PassPorter Podcast: Episode 70: Dining at Disney - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
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We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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PassPorter Moms Podcast: Disney & Beyond Episode 70: Dining at Disney - (05-18-2011 07:00 AM)
Podcast Description: Join Jennifer and Sara as they discuss the week's news, announce celebrations and contest winners and chat with author and Disney restaurant reviewer AJ Wolfe from the Disney Food Blog.
Special Guest: AJ has been a Disney parks fan since her first trip to Disney World as a wee one. Now she can’t ever decide between Disneyland and Disney World, and luckily lives in Texas, equidistant between her two favorite places. Her focus on Disney food started during a trip while in graduate school, when she was more excited about choosing restaurants than choosing rides. Today, she owns, writes, and edits the Disney Food Blog, which covers Disney food news and offers information and reviews on all things Disney food. AJ is also the author of the e-book, The DBF Guide to Disney World Dining.
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Thanks so much for the birthday wishes! Trying to get packed and ready to go. It's difficult keeping the cruise from my daughter when she starts asking questions like "Why are you packing our Pirate stuff for Disney World?" Luckily at 5, I can still redirect her thoughts but it won't last for long. :-)
I do have one question about something AJ mentioned when discussing California Grill. She made a comment about having dinner and then coming back for fireworks. If you have a dinner reservation which is too early for fireworks, will the restaurant allow you to come back for fireworks viewing?
Thanks for all the great info! So glad I finally got into podcasts!
I’m catching up on the podcasts, as I’m so horribly behind it isn’t even funny.
But wow, I really loved this episode, especially since I’m a total Disney foodie. One thing I am very surprised not hearing any mention whatsoever of on the show is Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe in Tomorrowland in the Magic Kingdom. It’s one of my fave Magic Kingdom food spots, if only for Sonny Eclipse. Also, I rarely eat in Fantasyland, mainly due to the dearth of decent eateries in Fantasyland, which thankfully will be changing with New Fantasyland.
As far as other Magic Kingdom food spots I love, obviously I love Aloha Isle and the Dole Whips (can’t not have those before hitting Pirates anymore), but one spot I rarely hear mention of on very many Disney podcasts (the only one I’ve EVER heard mention this particular restaurant is Lou Mongello on WDW Radio), and that is Pecos Bill’s Tall Tale Inn and Cafe. The wraps are supposedly quite good, but I’ve never been much of a wrap person, especially on occasions when I have had stomach problems due to nervousness. The root beer float there is quite good also, but I haven’t had one of those in years, so your mileage may vary.
Epcot food spots are pretty good, but there are far too many options, which is definitely not very good for people like me, LOL. I personally like Electric Umbrella, Garden Grill in The Land (the perfect character meal!), Biergarten in Germany (great buffet, I’d probably do that one again), and Sunshine Seasons Food Fair in The Land (which is perfect for making you feel good about yourself after you’ve hit the Living With The Land boat ride, although I much prefer the version that actually had the skipper).
Studios food spots are reasonably good if you’re stuck at the Studios on a 1 day, 1 park pass. I like the Backlot Express, ABC Commissary (perfect for ABC fans), Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano (if it is still there, couldn’t quite tell on my last visit to the Studios) and the area on Sunset Boulevard that is where the Toluca Legs Turkey Company area is, great stuff. Haven’t tried Sci-Fi Dine In yet, and definitely haven’t tried the Brown Derby either. Stuff for future trips, I suppose.
I haven’t eaten at very many Animal Kingdom food spots, but the one I have eaten at is the Rainforest Cafe, and that is a really atmospheric and amazing restaurant. Food there isn’t much to write home about (I personally love any kind of Icee or slushie type drinks myself and Rainforest Cafe had a particularly good one as I remember), but the atmosphere of Rainforest Cafe at Animal Kingdom is so good that I’d like to eat there again.
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