Hi!! Time for part two of our last park day
When I left off, we had missed our SDMT fast pass because it was closed for weather. We would get over our irritation with a little help from...FOOD.
First we stopped for this:
and then headed for Sleepy Hollow for waffle sandwiches! I got the turkey and prosciutto (it was fine...wouldn't get it again), DH got the sweet and spicy chicken (it was DELICIOUS.), X got the nutella/berry (yum!), and L got waffles with strawberries (double yum!!).
All of my photos of the sandwiches look disgusting, full of chew marks, because I just can't get it together with my food photography, but L's waffles look yummy:
We took our food into the Heritage House, which is a hidden gem. It's quiet in there, and out of the way. We ate and just kind of relaxed for awhile. DH checked times for the Hall of Presidents. It was 5 minutes away from starting, so we walked over and enjoyed getting out of the drizzly, hot, soupy air.
Afterward we got a treat! The Festival of Fantasy Parade was just starting. We managed to snag a spot on the porch outside of Heritage House. This is a great parade viewing area!! You are elevated, so you can see everything that's happening and you are NOT crushed by the crowd. It was like winning the jackpot.
I shared a few FoF pictures from our first day, so I won't bombard you, but...
I saw my BFFS, Tiana and Naveen
and Olaf, Anna, and Elsa
Side note: What the heck is up with the Elsa wigs??? They're terrible!! I have yet to see a photo of a parade, the Frozen summer fun events, or a meet and greet where her hair looks any kind of good. It's baffling.
Here is Prince Philip. I love this picture because I caught the swoop of his cape as he whirled around to battle the crows and thorns
And here's a picture of the dragon that shows off where we were standing, so you can snag this spot, too!!
We hauled our soggy behinds back to New Fantasyland to try to use our rain-delayed FP to see if the Dwarfs were working hard or hardly working. The ride had JUST opened back up (the standby line was overflowing...I don't think anyone got out of line.) and we were the first people in the FP line. DH sat this ride out, so the kids sat together and I sat with a very, very, VERY excited Japanese girl. She was adorable.
We met back up with DH (who, in searching for the exit after we got in line, walked alllllll the way around the mountain instead of walking, oh, five feet the other direction. LOL!), found a FP kiosk, and got an immediate return time for Winnie the Pooh. I was grateful for this, b/c the standby line for this was looong.
The ugly cry did not make another appearance, thankfully.
We spent a little time in Hundred Acre Goods, and then I remembered I wanted to ride the People Mover. So off to Tomorrowland we went. The line for the People Mover was INSANE. I've never seen it so full, EVER. We bypassed it and walked right on Carousel of Progress, and after that, our renditions of Blood on the Saddle were replaced with "It's a great big beautiful tomorrow...." for the rest of the day.
We were starting to d-r-a-g by this point in the day, but we had to hang in there! We had a reservation for Be our Guest at 5:15! We had to kill about an hour.
We wandered around in Big Top Souvenirs. What a store!! I think this is one of the most impressive shops in the parks. Then we started back toward BOG, with a stop at the little store in the village.
I think the boys were punch drunk. They were giggling so hard over the antler hats. Had to pair them with swords of course:
I checked the time, 4:55. We decided to go for it. We got to the gates of BOG
and the gate keeper told us we could check in 15 minutes early. It was 4:57. So we sat and waited for three minutes.
Finally the time clicked over to 5:00, and we started toward the doors. I was so excited!!!!!!!!!! We enjoyed lunch here, but dinner?? That's a big deal, right? We always see how hard it is to get a reservation here, and I snagged ours so easily, I hoped hoped HOPED it would be worth it.
It was.
We checked in and took our buzzer in to wait with these guys:
(can you find the hidden Mickey in this blurry picture??)
The Beast was seated in his library...what a tease. We were so close, and yet so far...
After what felt like an eternity (in reality it was maybe 10/15 minutes), our name was called and it was time!!
Side note: I thought they were supposed to have a "friend of Lumiere" with them to guide you to your table?? No candelabra for us
I was hoping for the ballroom, but we were seated in the West Wing again. It was fine though. The low light didn't bother us (except where taking pictures was concerned).
Our server was April, and she was great! I could overhear her interacting with her other tables, and she was really on the ball, keeping everyone engaged, very knowledgeable about the menu, helpful with suggestions, etc...
So pretty. *sigh*
DH and I started off with a drink
(drinking beer at MK seems so weird)
I had the Chimay red, DH had the blue:
I absolutely enjoyed the atmosphere of Be our Guest more at dinner. It was quiet and subdued. I didn't feel rushed, there was no hectic scrambling of others around you, desperate for drink refills and forks. It was so peaceful. The dim lighting of the West Wing made it all the more restful.
Would you like to hear about the food??
Good, 'cause I'm getting ready to gush about it.
I ordered the salmon on leek fondue. I want to come back so I can have this again!!!
Now, it might not look like much, but this. was. divine. The potato/leek gratin under the salmon was CRAZY good.
DH got the steak
He ordered it medium rare and it was cooked to perfection. And don't even get me started on that truffle garlic mayo stuff that came with it. I was swiping fries like a madwoman to dip it in that sauce. Yum!
X ordered the braised pork again. It is presented differently than lunch, but is still delicious.
He would not stop eating for me to take a picture, so you get to see him shoveling it into his mouth. Sorry.
We told L he could order off the adult menu if he wanted, but once he saw the kid's fish of the day on the menu, that is what he was set on. The kid LOVES fish (except salmon), and will order it over almost anything. The fish of the day was Mahi.
He inhaled the fish and broccoli, left the rice, and stole bites of my leek fondue. I may have threatened to stab him with a fork, but I won't say for sure...
X was the only one who remembered to wear his birthday button, so he's the only one who was treated to the gray stuff
Dinner was great and all, but it was finally time for what I was REALLY waiting for...meeting the Beast!
We were damp and bedraggled, but by golly we smiled:
Why is X making a face and pointing at DH's shirt? Because he's a horrible, terrible child, who hates his mother. Or because he's 11, and as I previously stated, 11 year old boys are weird.
This was IT for us. We were exhausted. There was time for only one more thing, a parting shot of my beautiful icon of all icons, Cinderella Castle
The rest of the evening was spent swimming, packing, and feeling pretty sad.
The next chapter will be departure day, followed by a post full of our Memory Maker photos.
Thanks for making it this far...we're almost to the end!
Looks like the first half of yours was pretty excellent!
But I also had the salmon and leek fondue and Wow it was delish! Don't recall what Dh ate, it was no where near as good as what I had! (Though he thinks otherwise - of course I didn't let him taste mine...)
We've had dinner there 
We've had lunch there once but it didn't do anything for us. Since we (well, 3 of us lol) love it so much, it makes me sad when people don't enjoy it and very happy when they do!
