We had it in our heads that we needed to watch the fireworks at least once from the 15th floor observation deck at the Contemporary Grill, and this was the only place to squeeze in a reservation. We knew we wouldn’t be hungry after eating at a buffet but we figured we would go grab a drink and an appetizer or dessert.

We finished up at 1900 Park Fare later than we thought we would, and headed straight for the monorail. As we arrived at the Contemporary, we heard the first fireworks go off, so we hustled over to the check-in counter for the Cali Grill and they quickly put us into the private elevator leading to the restaurant. While in the elevator, a cast member told us that as soon as we arrived at the restaurant, we should head directly outside and our table would be waiting for us once Happily Ever After was finished.

We took her advice and headed out onto the observation deck. We had missed less than 5 minutes of the 18 minute long show, and we knew we’d be seeing it later in the week so we weren’t upset. It was also a pretty cold night, especially up that high with the wind blowing , so the deck wasn’t crowded at all and we had no issues finding a great spot to watch despite being late. Most people were huddled inside, not brave enough to come out into the cold for a better view.  It was a great view though, and we enjoyed Happily Ever After for our first (of many viewings on this trip). I honestly only took two or three pictures, I wanted to just enjoy the show.

Once the fireworks had ended, we made our way back inside, where our table was ready for us. We knew we weren’t hungry at all, so we decided to share an appetizer, eat quickly and allow them to turn over our table to another couple who would spend more money than us.

Like ordered a drink as well, the Blackberry Lemonade- which doesn’t appear to be on the menu any longer, and I didn’t get a picture of the description. It was $13, and Luke didn’t love it. The stir stick was cute though with its little monorail! 

We wanted to share an appetizer, but there wasn’t much on the menu that appealed to a picky eater like myself. We ultimately ended up ordering the Pepperoni Pizza -House-made Pepperoni, Tomato Conserva, Fontina, Asiago, Parmesan, Mozzarella, Basil-Oregano Pistou, $16.

I did not like this at all.  I tend to like wood-oven pizza, but this had too much char on it, it tasted more burnt than anything else. I also hated the basil-oregano pistou (which is weird, because I tend to like the flavours of both of those herbs) – but I have no idea what a pistou is so maybe that’s the part I didn’t like?

Our server did bring us a basket of bread, and I did eat some of that. I enjoyed the fancy butter haha. I love bread, and I’m not difficult to please with that stuff…

Our total bill came to $29.19 after saving $1.60 on our pizza with my annual pass.

I know there are so many huge fans of California Grill out there, but I wasn’t overly impressed. Although, I do recognize that we did not give it a fair shot, neither one of us ordered a steak (or an entree of any kind for that matter). We actually have reservations for the brunch there on our trip next May, where we will be sure to show up nice and hungry and be able to give this restaurant another chance.

No TIW – blackout day

Predicted food budget: $2631.67 (does not include tip)       Estimated Cost of this meal: $60.71                                                          Actual Cost: $29.19 (before tip)                                                    Over/Under: Under by $31.52                                                                         Remaining: $2189.46