​My husband and I had lunch at Paddlefish in Disney Springs on Friday, March 2nd.  I went in with mixed expectations as I had read several negative reviews.  I am happy to report that this will not be one of those!  It wasn’t terribly busy on this particular Friday at 12:15, but we were immediately seated at a window-side table over Bay Lake with views of Disney Springs and Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort.  I might as well get my only negative out of the way and here it is – when you have tables next to huge windows, you need to make sure that the windows are clean.  I’m sure it’s not easy to keep the outsides clean, but bird doo-doo is not very appetizing.  One other thing is that my husband was a little bothered by the motion of the water below him, so if you have any issues with motion sickness, ask for a table away from the windows.

​Built on a “paddleboat”, the restaurant is divided into several rooms and we were seated in the center section which has a very clean, contemporary feel.  Some complain that it lacks nautical themeing, but I found it to be pleasant and upscale. The room at the front of the boat looks a little more nautical with it’s brass railings and there is also outdoor seating.
I started the meal with a Lilly Spritz cocktail. A take on a kir royale, it contains Mas Fi, a brut cava sparkling wine, Cocchi Rosa, a vermouth-like aperativo, and seltzer. It wasn’t very carbonated (maybe the cava had been opened for a while?), but the flavors were great, especially with the aroma of the expressed orange peel floating on top. I would definitely order it again.
Next, we were treated to a tableside preparation of lobster guacamole. The sou chef brought out the cart with the avocados and all the add-in ingredients – cilantro, diced tomato, red onion, mild jalapenos, lime juice – and asked us if we would like to omit anything.  I asked to leave out the jalapenos and go easy on the cilantro and onion.  She expertly mashed and mixed all the ingredients in the large stone bowl, ending with a generous helping of lobster meat.  It was served with house made tortilla chips and I can definitely say that it was one of the best things I’ve ever tasted.  The flavors were just to my liking and I appreciate that customers can have as much or as little heat as they like.

​ For our entrees, I chose the lobster roll and Bill chose the crispy fish sandwich. Yes, the lobster roll is pricey at $31, but it is 1-1/4 pounds of perfectly cooked lobster that you don’t have to extract yourself! In this case, the lobster was truly the star, dressed lightly with mayo and a nice crunch from a little celery. Just a bit of shredded lettuce sat at the bottom of the perfectly tender traditional split roll. I’ll admit reaching for the salt shaker, but otherwise it was just perfect and I was happy to take half of it home.
Bill’s sandwich contained two large pieces of flounder – definitely a knife and fork dish! He was very happy with the light, crispy batter on the fish.  He chose to accompany his sandwich with a side of sweet potato fries.  I have to say that the portions were quite generous.

​Our server, Cory, was very attentive and made sure we were completely satisfied. All in all, I am happy to recommend Paddlefish.  We’ll be back and at some point we’ll want to enjoy a drink on the top deck at sunset!  Thanks, Paddlefish for a lovely lunch.

Tuesday/Wednesday 2/27-28
When we checked into our one-bedroom villa at Disney’s Old Key West Resort, I was reminded how much I enjoy the spacious accommodations.  After 7 nights in 4 locations, it felt great to completely unpack the suitcases and be able to stay in one place for a week. Grocery shopping, golf (Bill) and a pedicure in Celebration (Jan) pretty much rounded-out that first day and it was nice to just make dinner and relax in our own villa.
On Wednesdays and Saturdays, they offer an hour-long tour of the Old Key West resort. We questioned whether we should delay going to the parks but were very glad we stayed back to take the tour.  Of course, we are aware that Disney Imagineers and designers tell a story with everything they create and that includes the resorts.  Conch Flats, the fictional location of Disney’s Old Key West Resort, uses real life people and places to inspire the design and tell the story.  Ernest Hemingway and Henry Flagler play prominently into the property.  Taking this tour reminded me once again of how I would like to create an architectural and design trip to Walt Disney World.
After the tour we headed over to Epcot, mostly to check out opening day of the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival.  I have both positive and negative feelings about this year’s festival.  The first disappointment was discovering that there is no Festival Center this year.  That means no free and low-cost seminars and demonstrations. No wonder I couldn’t find any schedules of them, as I’d been checking daily for weeks. It also saddens me that the Garden Rocks concerts are only on the weekends now, as opposed to every night. On the bright side, the gardens are absolutely beautiful and both new and perennial favorite topiaries grace the entire park.  The other positive is the variety of food offerings at the 15 “outdoor kitchens” featuring some delectable dishes.  We tried the Pear Cider-brined Shredded Corned Beef from the Cider House (United Kingdom), Braised Duck Confit with Parisian Gnocchi at Fleur de Lys (France) and Teriyaki Salmon with Furikake-seasoned Brown Rice from Hanami (Japan).  We enjoyed them all, but if I had to choose a favorite I think it would be the corned beef.

"​Between all the flowers and food, we managed to hit a couple attractions: the reimagined Mission: SPACE (the Green mild version really is very mild now) and the American Adventure. No visit to Epcot would be complete for me without hearing a set by the Voices of Liberty and once again they did not disappoint!
We headed to Disney Springs for dinner to try The Polite Pig for our first time.  You order at the counter and they bring it to your table.  We loved the smoked offerings and the ability to choose your spice level (no spice for me and some spice for hubby) by requesting that some of the fixings be served on the side. They also offer several nice beer choices on tap along with a bourbon bar, and specialty cocktails.
Our goal for the evening was to get over to Magic Kingdom to see “Happily Ever After,” the nighttime fireworks spectacular that replaced "Wishes" last year. While the story line was not as prominent, the projections on the castle were pretty amazing. Did the projections deter from the fireworks themselves? Mixed opinions on that.  I liked it, but you really do need to get a good view of the castle to fully enjoy it.  The other thing we wanted to do at MK was to see the new Hall of Presidents. Well done, although it’s sad that they feel the need to have security guards inside the attraction now – I don’t remember them having to do that in the past.
All in all, a great first day.