Grand Floridian – WDWNT Archive

Narcoossee’s Brunch and Las Ventanas Dinner Set to End Soon at Walt Disney World

WDWNT on December 11, 2017

Two Walt Disney World restaurants will soon be concluding two of their meal services.

Narcoossee’s at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa will no longer offer brunch after January 27th, 2018. The brunch service began in November 2015 and was offered only on Sundays.

Las Ventanas at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort will no longer offer a dinner service following December 30th, 2017. They will continue to offer breakfast and lunch.

Minnie Vans Service Expanded to Grand Floridian Resort Guests Starting Today

WDWNT on September 27, 2017

While initially only available to guests staying at Disney’s Yacht and Beach Club and Boardwalk Resorts, Minnie Vans have since rolled out to Wilderness and Animal Kingdom Lodge hotels, and today are joined by the Grand Floridian due to popular demand.

Starting today, guests at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa (as well as the Villas there) can now go to the front desk at the resort to activate the point-to-point transportation service for their use.

Minnie Vans is a paid transportation service that is operated by Disney and summoned through the Lyft app. Please check out our review to see how it works and if Minnie Vans will be right for you.

PHOTO: Lighthouse Sculpture Unveiled at Grand Floridian to Honor Alligator Attack Victim

WDWNT on August 20, 2017

The lighthouse sculpture to honor Lane Thomas and the foundation set up in his name was recently unveiled at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa at the Walt Disney World Resort.

Photo credit Disboards.com

The sculpture rests along the shorelines where the incident took place a little over a year ago.

PHOTOS: Construction Begins on Memorial Lighthouse at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort

WDWNT on July 13, 2017

A few weeks ago, Disney announced that they would be erecting a lighthouse sculpture at Walt Disney World to honor the memory of Lane Thomas, the little boy who lost his life to an alligator last summer in the Seven Seas Lagoon. It appears that construction of the memorial icon has begun and it will be located near where the incident occurred at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa.

Construction walls have been erected on the left side of the beach, near the steps that lead down to the sand.

A look over the walls (which isn’t hard because the elevated concrete walkway is about the same height) reveals that the foundation is already in place. Since the sculpture is most likely a prefabricated piece created offsite, it will likely be in place very soon.

Disney did not list a completion date for the project, but simply stated that it would be erected this summer.

Lighthouse Sculpture To Be Installed at Walt Disney World To Honor Toddler Attacked By Alligator

WDWNT on June 25, 2017

Wednesday, June 14 marks the one-year anniversary of the date when an alligator living in the Seven Seas Lagoon attacked two-year-old Lane Thomas Graves at the water’s edge at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa.

The family has since founded the Lane Thomas Foundation to honor Lane and to support families the way others have supported them. The foundation’s mission is “to serve as a beacon of hope in the depths of despair, to create a strong base of support for families in crisis.”

Disney has released a statement from George A. Kalogridis, president of Walt Disney World Resort: “To provide continued awareness of the foundation and its mission, we’ve commissioned an original sculpture of the lighthouse the foundation uses as a symbol of love and hope, to be installed on our property this summer.”

It is not known exactly when or where the sculpture will be installed.

Since the incident, Disney has added warning signs along many of the lakes and canals across property. A rock wall was constructed along the edge of the Seven Seas Lagoon to discourage guests from entering the water. The Graves family did not sue Walt Disney World or the Walt Disney Company over the incident.

BREAKING: New Security Measures at Walt Disney World Hotels, “Do Not Disturb” Room Signs Being Removed

WDWNT on May 28, 2017

Beginning with the three monorail resorts near the Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World Resort Hotels will no longer provide guests with “Do Not Disturb” signs to put on their doors. The signs will be replaced with “Room Occupied” signs that will notify cast members that guests are in the rooms. However, these guests will be “disturbed” at some point, as it will now be required that a Disney employee enter their hotel room at least once a day to ensure guest safety.

If you choose to forgo housekeeping on a given day, the Disney terms of service state that “the hotel and its staff reserve the right to enter your room for any purposes including, but not limited to, performing maintenance and repairs or checking on the safety and security of guests and property.” Disney states that cast members will give reasonable notice prior to entering by knocking and announcing that they will enter.

The popular theory is that this is a response to the incident that happened in Vegas earlier this year. The monorail resorts are quite tall and offer similar vantage points of crowded guest areas, as well as Walt Disney World transportation such as monorails, buses, and watercraft. Disney is not publicly stating why they are making the change though.

Guests at the Grand Floridian, Polynesian, and Contemporary Resorts should find a paper in their rooms today noting the change. These changes are expected to roll out to other Walt Disney World Resort Hotels in the coming weeks.

Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort Introducing 4th of July Barbecue Event

WDWNT on May 18, 2017

New for 2017, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa will offer a special cookout-style event with a menu featuring grilled steak, shrimp, and other favorites along with specialty alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks.

Desserts will be served at the end of the evening in the Marina, where guests can enjoy views of Cinderella Castle and the Fourth of July fireworks of the Magic Kingdom. Tickets for this Fourth of July celebration are $120 (plus tax) for adults and $59 (plus tax) for children. For reservations, call 407-WDW-DINE.

RUMOR: Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort to Be Gutted to Become Modern Luxury Resort

WDWNT on February 6, 2017

This rumor is out there, but seems to be picking up some steam…

Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa has remained for the most part the same since 1988, with the exception of new lobby floor installed in the last decade.

It appears Chairman of Disney Parks and Resorts Bob Chapek is not a big fan of the current Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, Walt Disney World’s flagship hotel and often most expensive per night. Similar to the recently initiated shakeup in housekeeping for Disney World, Chapek feels as if the Four Seasons Resort Orlando is putting them to shame when it comes to what a luxury resort on-property should be. So, what’s the solution? To completely gut the 28-year-old Magic Kingdom area resort, of course.

A room at the Four Seasons Resort Orlando, Walt Disney World

Obviously, many executives at Walt Disney World are trying to talk Chapek out of this massive remodeling as the Grand Floridian makes quite a bit of money and is often well-liked by those who stay there. One of the proposed alternate plans would involve constructing a new flagship hotel for Walt Disney World just north of the Transportation and Ticket Center. Reportedly, they have had no luck in changing his mind as of yet and Chapek is still moving full speed ahead with his plan.

Should it come to fruition, all of the rooms and the lobby of the resort will be completely gutted and rebuilt with a more modern-luxury theme, perhaps along the lines of the new hotel being constructed at the Disneyland Resort.

As it stands now, this project may not even be in the design phase as of yet, but it seems as if it will come to fruition should Chapek remain at helm of Parks and Resorts for the foreseeable future.

REVIEW: Gasparilla Island Grill Returns with Exquisite Entrees & Desserts, Quick Service Goes Upscale

WDWNT on January 16, 2017

Following a short refurbishment, the Gasparilla Island Grill at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa reopened recently featuring a number of interior changes and a drastically new menu.

The restaurant is tucked in the back of the main building, towards the marina area, so many guests are not even aware that it exists. This often makes it a quiet getaway from the rest of Walt Disney World, but it can get busy from time to time.

A completely new station was built featuring desserts, pastries and sweets from the Grand Floridian Bakery, as well as a selection of coffee and specialty beverages.

The self serve dessert case is well stocked with amazing looking treats.

There are also assorted pastries available.

A look at the overall menu.

Next up is the sandwich and pizza station.

And of course, there is the much improved sandwich bar. No more hot dog served in a baked potato here…

Gasparilla Island Grill is the latest counter service establishment to receive Coke Freestyle machines and they have tow of them which work using the Rapid Fill technology in Disney cups.

Coffee, hot cocoa, iced teas, and more are also available.

Not much has changed over at the condiment station.

Some quick grab and go options by the registers.

You can sit indoors and outdoors here and they will bring your food to when it is ready either way.

I prefer outdoors if the weather is nice as the atmosphere in the marina area is always really enjoyable.

OK, enough of that, let’s talk about the food!

Sausage and Mozzarella Pizza ($11.29)

One of the big selling points of the new Gasparilla Island Grill is the new pizza-making process…

Each pizza—which cooks in 90 seconds at 840 degrees—is served on pizza dough made in-house daily by Chef Erich’s team at the Grand Floridian Bakery.

You could really taste the difference here and this was a big step u in quality for counter service pizza at Walt Disney World. The sauce was really sweet, so don’t expect New York-stlye here, but the overall flavors of the personal pie were really good. The distribution of the toppings could have been a little better, but really I’m just nitpicking here. If you want a quick pizza, I would highly recommend getting one here.

Chicken and Brie ($12.99)

Described as “Grilled Chicken and Ham on a Brioche Bun served with French Fries”, there is actually a whole lot more going on in this sandwich. There is also some sort of strawberry jam in here and a good amount of arugula. Jam of any sort isn’t my favorite thing to eat, but overall I thought this sandwich was really good. The bread was nice and fresh and the ingredients in the sandwich all blended together really nicely. Grilled chicken sandwiches at Walt Disney World’s counter service restaurants aren’t often very good, but this is one that I would order again.

Coconut Pot de Creme ($4.29)

Now, for what you have all been waiting for… dessert! This coconut pot de creme might be my favorite dessert I have ever had from a quick service establishment. I love coconut, so if you don’t, obviously don’t order this, but I can’t imagine a scenario where anyone wouldn’t think this is amazing. The crust holds together a rich coconut creme, which is accented nicely by the whipped cream and coconut shavings on top. I will be back for this over and over again. Grand Floridian Executive Chef, Scott Hunnel personally recommended this to us as his favorite when we were picking out desserts, and I can see why.

German Chocolate Cupcake ($5.49)

As good as this cupcake looked, it did not have a taste that matched. Overall, I found it to have little chocolate flavor and the coconut material in the middle did little to enhance it. Next time, I think I’ll have to go for the Minnie Mouse Cupcake, because this just did not deliver the promises made by its beautiful exterior. It wasn’t dry or poorly made, it just didn’t have any flavor.

Overall

I have always loved Gasparilla Island Grill, but this new menu is a giant leap forward in quality, putting this restaurant towards the top of the list for the absolute best counter service eateries in all of Walt Disney World.It is also one of the few that offers some sort of late night menu and remains open 24 hours a day. I am anxious to try more of the new menu soon, so expect another review (if I can keep up, there are literally dozens of reviews I have in process waiting to be posted) in the not-too-distant future.

FWC & Orange County Sheriff Offer Final Report on Alligator Attack

WDWNT on September 2, 2016

FWC and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office have released their final reports regarding the death of Lane Graves on June 14, 2016.

Nick Wiley, FWC Director said, “We continue to pray for the Graves family. FWC would like to thank Disney and our partners at the Orange County Sheriff’s Office for the professional collaboration on this thorough investigation. Our agency will continue to work to keep families informed on how they can safely enjoy all that Florida has to offer.”

Here is the official synopsis of the report:

On June 14, 2016, at approximately 2100 hours, children were playing near the water’s edge at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort. A witness, Matt Graves, heard a splash and saw an alligator bite his son’s head and pull him into the water. Mr. Graves was close enough to grab the alligator, putting his hands into the animal’s mouth. The alligator began to struggle and broke free from Mr. Graves, injuring his hands. The alligator disappeared into the water with the child. Multiple individuals called 911 for assistance. Fire Rescue personnel and law enforcement officers from Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and Orange County Sheriff’s Office began a search of the area by land, air and water. The body of the missing child was located underwater by a patrol officer involved in the search and recovered by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office dive team in the Seven Seas Lagoon on the afternoon of June 15, 2016, submerged in approximately seven feet of water near where the initial attack had taken place. Six alligators were subsequently captured from the vicinity, euthanized, and had necropsies performed. Examination of the bite pattern on the victim’s body and an autopsy confirmed that the cause of death was injuries sustained from a severe alligator bite.

Tag: Grand Floridian