Yes, finally, as promised, the review for my absolute greatest meal ever is online. A Vegan Adventure at 'Ohana has been posted as a guest blog on AllEars.net. I know... it left a real gap in my trip report here, but the meal was so amazing that I just had to share it with as many people as I could!
Chef TJ is amazing - he's more of a "food artist" than a chef, in my mind. He creates works of art that look as good as they taste, and they taste AMAZING! I have written to Disney, more than once, about what a gem they have in him. I am not kidding you - my meal at 'Ohana was seriously the highlight of my wonderful vacation. You can bet I'll be back on my next trip!
Friday, January 15, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
veggie burger update...
Wow - so cool to have helpful readers! Thanks to the comments on my last post, I did a little more searching, and found a thread on Disboards that lists the ingredients and discusses the pros and cons of these burgers: New Gardenburger in Restaurants (As always, if you have an allergy, *please* confirm with the restaurant before eating anything. Nothing here is confirmed, guaranteed or set in stone, and things change all the time.)
It appears that these are not available at your local store. This is still just my opinion, but the Veggie Medley burgers are "close", if you just want to know what they taste like. (However, it does require buying a box of four, which I did... and managed to work my way through, with lots of "embellishing".) If it's particular ingredients, or calorie count that you're curious about, then the above-mentioned article has lots of helpful details.
In a perfect world, we'd be able to choose from a variety of veggie burgers, but at least Walt Disney World has them. (Has anyone seen a veggie burger of any type in any other theme or amusement park? I pretty much went hungry on my last trip to Cedar Point.)
It appears that these are not available at your local store. This is still just my opinion, but the Veggie Medley burgers are "close", if you just want to know what they taste like. (However, it does require buying a box of four, which I did... and managed to work my way through, with lots of "embellishing".) If it's particular ingredients, or calorie count that you're curious about, then the above-mentioned article has lots of helpful details.
In a perfect world, we'd be able to choose from a variety of veggie burgers, but at least Walt Disney World has them. (Has anyone seen a veggie burger of any type in any other theme or amusement park? I pretty much went hungry on my last trip to Cedar Point.)
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
regarding the veggie burgers...
A reader of my blog (gosh, there's more than two of you!) asked if I knew the ingredients in the current veggie burgers at Walt Disney World...
Sadly, I just never thought to photograph the ingredients page, though I did look at it when they first made the switch, to be sure it was vegan. I cannot tell you exactly for certain what's in it, but I will tell you that they look and taste almost exactly like Gardenburger's Veggie Medley. I cannot be certain that they are exactly the same (it's possible that Disney has them create something especially for them), but they are really darn close, in my humble opinion. These are very "veggie-like", and not at all "hamburger-like", which is either a good thing, or a bad thing, depending on your point of view.
To be honest, I have wondered if Disney made the change because the old Boca burgers looked so much like hamburgers that maybe they had trouble telling them apart once they were cooked, but that's just me wondering. More likely, Gardenburger simply made Disney a better offer than Boca.
And just a reminder, you need to order these on a "gluten-free, tapioca roll", in order for it to be vegan. In my opinion, the new veggie burger, on the tapioca roll, is just barely edible. I politely told Disney that frankly, I'd prefer to wait and eat PB&J in my hotel room. But your experience may be different. And fortunately, there are still a few non-burger vegan options in the parks.
That's it for today! Happy Disney Dining!
Sadly, I just never thought to photograph the ingredients page, though I did look at it when they first made the switch, to be sure it was vegan. I cannot tell you exactly for certain what's in it, but I will tell you that they look and taste almost exactly like Gardenburger's Veggie Medley. I cannot be certain that they are exactly the same (it's possible that Disney has them create something especially for them), but they are really darn close, in my humble opinion. These are very "veggie-like", and not at all "hamburger-like", which is either a good thing, or a bad thing, depending on your point of view.
To be honest, I have wondered if Disney made the change because the old Boca burgers looked so much like hamburgers that maybe they had trouble telling them apart once they were cooked, but that's just me wondering. More likely, Gardenburger simply made Disney a better offer than Boca.
And just a reminder, you need to order these on a "gluten-free, tapioca roll", in order for it to be vegan. In my opinion, the new veggie burger, on the tapioca roll, is just barely edible. I politely told Disney that frankly, I'd prefer to wait and eat PB&J in my hotel room. But your experience may be different. And fortunately, there are still a few non-burger vegan options in the parks.
That's it for today! Happy Disney Dining!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
happy new year!
Okay, this is something I never do, but it's a new year, and time for something different.
For the first time in nearly a decade, I decided to stay up for New Year's Eve and ring in the new year. (Or, maybe I just wanted to make sure the *old* year really left!) I like to think I'm an optimist, but 2009 certainly had its fair share of challenges. With that thought in mind, I decided to break all the rules and give myself a treat for New Year's Eve.
Now for most of you, this probably doesn't sound all that wild and crazy, but keep in mind that, outside of vacations, I hardly ever indulge in sweet treats. I managed to completely change my habits about 2-1/2 years ago. I gave up fast food, frozen meals, soda pop, chips, candy, soy ice cream... just about anything even vaguely unhealthy. And I started exercising. And I lost a lot of weight. I feel great. I am absolutely not ever going back to that person I was before.
But I also know that sometimes you just have to break the rules. So what did I do? I made brownies. Now, I really really love oooey gooey chewy fudgey brownies... and I haven't managed to produce one since I went vegan almost 10 years ago. "How It All Vegan" has a good recipe for a rather cake-like brownie, but I've had my doubts that it was possible to produce a chewy version without the usual non-vegan ingredients. But I'm happy to report that I was wrong.
I went to a few vegan recipe sites, and did some research. I found a few promising ones on VegWeb.com (a great site for vegan recipes, by the way), and in the end, ended up taking someones modification of someone else's recipe, and making my own modifications. This is what I ended up with:
These are really, truly "gooey chewy" - not cake-like at all - which is exactly what I was craving. And given that I'm pretty useless in the kitchen, I am beyond thrilled with the results! They're also super rich, at least to me. My limit was two - and that took some effort!
Anyway, given my lack of skill, I wouldn't normally share this, but since my non-vegan hubby has pronounced these "pretty good" (high praise from him!), I'm going to give you all the recipe I used:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup vanilla Silk soy milk
1/4 cup peanut oil
1/4 cup (softened) Earth Balance margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla
(a little powdered sugar added for the photo, but not needed)
Preheat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix wet ingredients in a medium bowl. Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix well. (This makes a very stiff batter - a big wooden spoon will help to mix it.)
Pour (push, shove, smoosh) batter into an oiled/floured pan. (The recipe I adapted this from calls for a 9 x 13 pan. Mine is closer to 8 x 12, and it worked fine. In fact, I would have had trouble spreading it into a larger pan, though I think the end results would be fine.)
Bake for approx. 30 minutes. The recipe I adapted from said 25 to 35. I took mine out at 30, but I really think they should have gone a bit longer. However, my current oven runs a bit on the cool side.
Now, a couple of notes: yes, I realize that using regular white sugar makes this "not vegan" in some circles. Use your own judgment and substitute accordingly. Also, the original recipe called for 1/2 cup vegetable oil, but all I had on hand was peanut oil - so I used 1/4 cup of that, plus 1/4 cup of Earth Balance, and it worked fine, though it might be why the batter was a little hard to work with. And again, if gooey-chewy isn't your thing, than these brownies aren't for you.
Wishing you all a bright, shiny, wonderful New Year, full of lots of good vegan eats!
For the first time in nearly a decade, I decided to stay up for New Year's Eve and ring in the new year. (Or, maybe I just wanted to make sure the *old* year really left!) I like to think I'm an optimist, but 2009 certainly had its fair share of challenges. With that thought in mind, I decided to break all the rules and give myself a treat for New Year's Eve.
Now for most of you, this probably doesn't sound all that wild and crazy, but keep in mind that, outside of vacations, I hardly ever indulge in sweet treats. I managed to completely change my habits about 2-1/2 years ago. I gave up fast food, frozen meals, soda pop, chips, candy, soy ice cream... just about anything even vaguely unhealthy. And I started exercising. And I lost a lot of weight. I feel great. I am absolutely not ever going back to that person I was before.
But I also know that sometimes you just have to break the rules. So what did I do? I made brownies. Now, I really really love oooey gooey chewy fudgey brownies... and I haven't managed to produce one since I went vegan almost 10 years ago. "How It All Vegan" has a good recipe for a rather cake-like brownie, but I've had my doubts that it was possible to produce a chewy version without the usual non-vegan ingredients. But I'm happy to report that I was wrong.
I went to a few vegan recipe sites, and did some research. I found a few promising ones on VegWeb.com (a great site for vegan recipes, by the way), and in the end, ended up taking someones modification of someone else's recipe, and making my own modifications. This is what I ended up with:
These are really, truly "gooey chewy" - not cake-like at all - which is exactly what I was craving. And given that I'm pretty useless in the kitchen, I am beyond thrilled with the results! They're also super rich, at least to me. My limit was two - and that took some effort!
Anyway, given my lack of skill, I wouldn't normally share this, but since my non-vegan hubby has pronounced these "pretty good" (high praise from him!), I'm going to give you all the recipe I used:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup vanilla Silk soy milk
1/4 cup peanut oil
1/4 cup (softened) Earth Balance margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla
(a little powdered sugar added for the photo, but not needed)
Preheat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix wet ingredients in a medium bowl. Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix well. (This makes a very stiff batter - a big wooden spoon will help to mix it.)
Pour (push, shove, smoosh) batter into an oiled/floured pan. (The recipe I adapted this from calls for a 9 x 13 pan. Mine is closer to 8 x 12, and it worked fine. In fact, I would have had trouble spreading it into a larger pan, though I think the end results would be fine.)
Bake for approx. 30 minutes. The recipe I adapted from said 25 to 35. I took mine out at 30, but I really think they should have gone a bit longer. However, my current oven runs a bit on the cool side.
Now, a couple of notes: yes, I realize that using regular white sugar makes this "not vegan" in some circles. Use your own judgment and substitute accordingly. Also, the original recipe called for 1/2 cup vegetable oil, but all I had on hand was peanut oil - so I used 1/4 cup of that, plus 1/4 cup of Earth Balance, and it worked fine, though it might be why the batter was a little hard to work with. And again, if gooey-chewy isn't your thing, than these brownies aren't for you.
Wishing you all a bright, shiny, wonderful New Year, full of lots of good vegan eats!
update from my WDW trip
For those of you who asked (and anyone else who was wondering), yes, I did write to Disney and tell them about my recent experiences dining at Walt Disney World.
Because my major gripe was the fact that the forms I filled out, via e-mail, before the trip turned out to be completely useless, I decided to e-mail my thoughts to the same people. I was careful to share both the good and the bad, giving praise where due, but also sharing my disappointments. In addition to sharing details about all of my table-service meals, I also gave my thoughts regarding counter-service in general, and the veggie burgers in particular. My only goal was to help educate Disney, in hopes that perhaps things could be better for other vegan diners.
I am happy to report that Disney wrote me back, and it wasn't a silly form letter. This was a very carefully thought-out reply, addressing my specific concerns. As I had already guessed, their main concern is the safety of their diners. While they didn't specifically say this, I'm afraid that, as vegans, we'll have to accept that we are now lumped in with allergies. Again, to anyone with an allergy, I mean no offense, and I truly admire Disney's efforts to make things safe. But I can't help feeling that dining has just gotten more complicated for the average vegan.
However, they did express concern over the fact that my e-mailed form had clearly not reached its target. Hopefully, they will fix this problem.
And, as a "goodwill gesture", they are sending me a Disney gift certificate. I didn't expect this, but since I did pay quite a bit for a couple of rather disappointing meals, I'm going to happily accept it. Had I been on the dining plan, it would have been different. But when you're paying that kind of money for what you hope to be a really good meal, and you leave disappointed (or worse, hungry), it's tough.
So, do I think Disney can do better for vegans? Yes. But even with the recent disappointments, I still eat better at WDW than I do at just about anywhere else. And, while some trips are better than others, I really do believe that Disney listens. I will happily plan many more trips to Walt Disney World, and I have no doubt that there will more good than bad to report in the future.
(And for those of you who are just looking for tasty food pictures... stay tuned. I might have a small treat for you tomorrow.) :-)
Because my major gripe was the fact that the forms I filled out, via e-mail, before the trip turned out to be completely useless, I decided to e-mail my thoughts to the same people. I was careful to share both the good and the bad, giving praise where due, but also sharing my disappointments. In addition to sharing details about all of my table-service meals, I also gave my thoughts regarding counter-service in general, and the veggie burgers in particular. My only goal was to help educate Disney, in hopes that perhaps things could be better for other vegan diners.
I am happy to report that Disney wrote me back, and it wasn't a silly form letter. This was a very carefully thought-out reply, addressing my specific concerns. As I had already guessed, their main concern is the safety of their diners. While they didn't specifically say this, I'm afraid that, as vegans, we'll have to accept that we are now lumped in with allergies. Again, to anyone with an allergy, I mean no offense, and I truly admire Disney's efforts to make things safe. But I can't help feeling that dining has just gotten more complicated for the average vegan.
However, they did express concern over the fact that my e-mailed form had clearly not reached its target. Hopefully, they will fix this problem.
And, as a "goodwill gesture", they are sending me a Disney gift certificate. I didn't expect this, but since I did pay quite a bit for a couple of rather disappointing meals, I'm going to happily accept it. Had I been on the dining plan, it would have been different. But when you're paying that kind of money for what you hope to be a really good meal, and you leave disappointed (or worse, hungry), it's tough.
So, do I think Disney can do better for vegans? Yes. But even with the recent disappointments, I still eat better at WDW than I do at just about anywhere else. And, while some trips are better than others, I really do believe that Disney listens. I will happily plan many more trips to Walt Disney World, and I have no doubt that there will more good than bad to report in the future.
(And for those of you who are just looking for tasty food pictures... stay tuned. I might have a small treat for you tomorrow.) :-)
Sunday, December 27, 2009
a bashful vegan WDW holiday - day 9
Sunday, December 13 - our last day. Breakfast in the room and off to make the most of our last few hours.
Just one more meal to report, and it's a repeat. I knew that we'd be on a plane around dinner-time, so I wanted to make sure I at least got a real lunch, so we hit one of my favorites - Sunshine Seasons, in the Land pavilion at Epcot. Once again, I got the Tofu and Vegetable Noodle Bowl from the Asian station. Given that this is tasty and filling, and that no manager is required to place the order, this will remain one of my favorites.
I also noticed some decent vegan side items available here. Available in one of the cold cases, between the "stations", they had a variety of different types of salads, including Tabbouleh, and this Cous-Cous salad (both vegan). It was actually pretty tasty, though too much food for me after the tofu noodle bowl. It's probably something I could have bought and brought back to the room to eat later. I'll have to remember that for next time.
Well, that's all folks. After lunch at Sunshine Seasons, we headed back to the resort for our shuttle to the airport. And now it's back to life as usual, in central Ohio. Thanks for reading, and Happy Disney Dining!
Just one more meal to report, and it's a repeat. I knew that we'd be on a plane around dinner-time, so I wanted to make sure I at least got a real lunch, so we hit one of my favorites - Sunshine Seasons, in the Land pavilion at Epcot. Once again, I got the Tofu and Vegetable Noodle Bowl from the Asian station. Given that this is tasty and filling, and that no manager is required to place the order, this will remain one of my favorites.
I also noticed some decent vegan side items available here. Available in one of the cold cases, between the "stations", they had a variety of different types of salads, including Tabbouleh, and this Cous-Cous salad (both vegan). It was actually pretty tasty, though too much food for me after the tofu noodle bowl. It's probably something I could have bought and brought back to the room to eat later. I'll have to remember that for next time.
Well, that's all folks. After lunch at Sunshine Seasons, we headed back to the resort for our shuttle to the airport. And now it's back to life as usual, in central Ohio. Thanks for reading, and Happy Disney Dining!
a bashful vegan WDW holiday - day 8
Saturday, December 12, and our last full day at Disney. Breakfast in the room, and then off to a morning at the Animal Kingdom. After a ride on Expedition Everest, and wonderful visit with some old friends, we headed for the Animal Kingdom Lodge, and my first look at Kidani Village. This is the new DVC section recently added to the resort. Along with the rooms, a new gift shop, and a great pool area, they also added a new restaurant - Sanaa. This choice was clearly a "no-brainer" - this restaurant actually has a dedicated vegan menu! Of course, that means that my review is pretty unnecessary - of course this is a good choice! I have to confess, though, after a disappointing week of Disney dining, it was really nice to go somewhere that I knew I wouldn't leave hungry.
Again, we showed up before the first seating of the day, and were treated to a wonderful round of African singing by the restaurant cast members. We were quickly seated, and it became apparent pretty quickly that we had a great server... who's name I didn't get, and I feel awful about that. She was knowledgeable, and helpful - and made the meal even that much better.
While we didn't get a window seat (most of those tables looked like they were designed to seat more than two people) we could still see the savanna, and the whole restaurant is very beautiful anyway. (Sorry no interior shots, but here's a picture of the check-in desk. See the hidden Mickey?)
The menu is sort of unusual in that there are a lot of "smaller" dishes. It's really nice how they set it up, though. A lot of the food is designed to be shared, and our server really helped to make this possible, even with a vegan and non-vegan. For instance, we ordered the Indian Style Bread Service, which comes with three types of breads, and three accompaniments. There are only two types of bread that are vegan, but she allowed us to order those two, along with a third non-vegan choice for my husband. The person who actually brought the bread to our table actually messed up the order, but our server caught it before we could take a bite, and brought a second, separate plate for me. The fact that she actually saw this, and fixed it so quickly really impressed me. She was on top of things! Here's a shot of the Roti and Paratha, both vegan:
I believe the Paratha is the one on top - sort of like pita bread, only a little softer. It was very tasty. The Roti was really more like a cracker than bread - brittle and crispy - but nice with some of the toppings. I chose the Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus (bottom right), and the Mango Chutney (top). Hubby added on the Red Chili Sambul (bottom left), which might not have been vegan.
Both the hummus, and the mango chutney were good. Actually, these with the Paratha bread were one of my favorite parts of the meal.
I also decided to try the Salad Sampler - three small servings of three different types of salads. With some help from our wonderful server, I chose (from left to right in the picture below) Roasted Beets, Roasted Potato Corn and Spinach, and Watermelon Lime and Radish.
As the server had suggested, the watermelon was actually my favorite. (I notice that this isn't on the vegan menu currently posted at AllEars, but that predates my visit - it was definitely on the vegan menu earlier this month.) The roasted beets were also good, if you like beets (I do). I have to confess, though, that the potato-corn-spinach salad was a little too different for me - just not that crazy about the flavor.
I had almost ordered the Chickpeas with Cucumber and Tomato salad, but Rocky decided to have that as his salad choice with his sandwich, so at the server's suggestion, I chose another, giving us more things to try, and to share. It was a good choice - I'd choose this over the potato-corn one next time.
Instead of an entree, I asked for one of the appetizers. Our server was more than happy to do this, arranging for it to arrive at the same time as my husband's sandwich. I figured that with both the bread, and the salad sampler, I wouldn't have room for a full entree. I will probably try something different next time, but I'm glad I did it this way this time. I ordered the Potato and Pea Samosas, with Tamarind Chutney. There were only two samosas, but they were quite large, and very filling. They really did work as an entree for me. The tamarind chutney wasn't really my thing, but I still had mango chutney left over from the bread service (and the offer for more, if I wanted it). While not "too" spicy, the samosas did have a little kick, and I felt that the sweet mango was a better compliment to them.
Amazingly, this menu actually boasts THREE vegan dessert options! I wish I had had some room left, but the samosas were quite filling, so I had to pass.
For dinner, I'm afraid we just made do with stuff in the room. I can't even remember what we had left at this point, but we must have found something. So, nothing to report for dinner, but lunch was really good. Yes, the flavors are a little exotic, and Sanaa won't appeal to everyone. But the options are amazingly plentiful for a vegan - no prior notice required.
Again, we showed up before the first seating of the day, and were treated to a wonderful round of African singing by the restaurant cast members. We were quickly seated, and it became apparent pretty quickly that we had a great server... who's name I didn't get, and I feel awful about that. She was knowledgeable, and helpful - and made the meal even that much better.
While we didn't get a window seat (most of those tables looked like they were designed to seat more than two people) we could still see the savanna, and the whole restaurant is very beautiful anyway. (Sorry no interior shots, but here's a picture of the check-in desk. See the hidden Mickey?)
The menu is sort of unusual in that there are a lot of "smaller" dishes. It's really nice how they set it up, though. A lot of the food is designed to be shared, and our server really helped to make this possible, even with a vegan and non-vegan. For instance, we ordered the Indian Style Bread Service, which comes with three types of breads, and three accompaniments. There are only two types of bread that are vegan, but she allowed us to order those two, along with a third non-vegan choice for my husband. The person who actually brought the bread to our table actually messed up the order, but our server caught it before we could take a bite, and brought a second, separate plate for me. The fact that she actually saw this, and fixed it so quickly really impressed me. She was on top of things! Here's a shot of the Roti and Paratha, both vegan:
I believe the Paratha is the one on top - sort of like pita bread, only a little softer. It was very tasty. The Roti was really more like a cracker than bread - brittle and crispy - but nice with some of the toppings. I chose the Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus (bottom right), and the Mango Chutney (top). Hubby added on the Red Chili Sambul (bottom left), which might not have been vegan. 
Both the hummus, and the mango chutney were good. Actually, these with the Paratha bread were one of my favorite parts of the meal.I also decided to try the Salad Sampler - three small servings of three different types of salads. With some help from our wonderful server, I chose (from left to right in the picture below) Roasted Beets, Roasted Potato Corn and Spinach, and Watermelon Lime and Radish.
As the server had suggested, the watermelon was actually my favorite. (I notice that this isn't on the vegan menu currently posted at AllEars, but that predates my visit - it was definitely on the vegan menu earlier this month.) The roasted beets were also good, if you like beets (I do). I have to confess, though, that the potato-corn-spinach salad was a little too different for me - just not that crazy about the flavor.I had almost ordered the Chickpeas with Cucumber and Tomato salad, but Rocky decided to have that as his salad choice with his sandwich, so at the server's suggestion, I chose another, giving us more things to try, and to share. It was a good choice - I'd choose this over the potato-corn one next time.
Instead of an entree, I asked for one of the appetizers. Our server was more than happy to do this, arranging for it to arrive at the same time as my husband's sandwich. I figured that with both the bread, and the salad sampler, I wouldn't have room for a full entree. I will probably try something different next time, but I'm glad I did it this way this time. I ordered the Potato and Pea Samosas, with Tamarind Chutney. There were only two samosas, but they were quite large, and very filling. They really did work as an entree for me. The tamarind chutney wasn't really my thing, but I still had mango chutney left over from the bread service (and the offer for more, if I wanted it). While not "too" spicy, the samosas did have a little kick, and I felt that the sweet mango was a better compliment to them.
Amazingly, this menu actually boasts THREE vegan dessert options! I wish I had had some room left, but the samosas were quite filling, so I had to pass.
For dinner, I'm afraid we just made do with stuff in the room. I can't even remember what we had left at this point, but we must have found something. So, nothing to report for dinner, but lunch was really good. Yes, the flavors are a little exotic, and Sanaa won't appeal to everyone. But the options are amazingly plentiful for a vegan - no prior notice required.
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