Disney World Hurricane Preparedness and Dining Reviews

Hurricane Preparedness and Closures

• ⚠️ Disney World's hurricane preparedness is deeply integrated into its construction, with tests like firing a 2x4 from a cannon at 300 mph to ensure structural integrity.
• 🗓️ While often cited as the fourth closure, Disney World has officially closed for hurricanes multiple times, including Hurricane Elena (1985), Hurricane Erin (1995), and Hurricane Floyd (1999), with Hurricane Matthew being a recent event.
• 📦 During past hurricanes, Disney provided boxed meals, but during Hurricane Matthew, guests were charged $13 for basic boxed meals, a move criticized for its PR implications.
• 🏗️ Post-hurricane, Disney teams immediately begin storm prep, removing banners and flags, securing decorative items, and taking down theme scrims.

Disney Springs Dining Experiences

• 🍕 Blaze Pizzeria offers a fast-casual pizza experience where customers build their own pizzas with a variety of toppings, cooked in a brick oven in 3 minutes, with most pizzas starting around $10.
• 👍 The reviewer found Blaze Pizzeria to be better than Via Napoli, praising the crust and toppings, despite unique picnic-style seating.
• 🍔 Deluxe Burger offers high-end burgers and milkshakes, with a meal for two (including milkshakes) costing nearly $60, highlighting the richness and portion sizes of the offerings.
• 🥤 Milkshakes at Deluxe Burger, like the $15 birthday cake flavored one, are described as extremely sweet and large, with a similar over-the-top style seen at Toothsome's Chocolate Emporium.

Disney Springs Development and Future

• 🚗 Disney Springs is facing challenges with foot traffic, particularly from locals, despite the addition of new parking garages.
• 🛍️ The retail mix at Disney Springs includes unique stores like a prescription sunglass shop with a 7-day turnaround and places selling whimsical signs, alongside more mainstream retailers like Uniqlo.
• 💡 There's discussion about moving the Osborne Lights to Disney Springs for the holiday season, though logistical challenges with individual lessees and signage may delay this.
• 🏗️ The expansion of Golden Oak, a private community within Walt Disney World, is significant, with plans for five times its current size, leading to discussions about exclusive dining experiences.
• 🍽️ Walt Disney World is considering expanding Club 33-style exclusive dining experiences to all four theme parks and Disney Springs, potentially starting with Golden Oak residents.

Victoria & Albert's and Wine Pairings

• 🌟 Victoria & Albert's is discussed in the context of Michelin star ratings, with the reviewer estimating it would receive between one and two stars if Florida restaurants were rated.
• 🍷 A unique experience at Victoria & Albert's involved a sommelier recommending a red wine specifically chosen not to pair with a dish, to demonstrate the impact of wine pairings and educate the diner.
• 🧪 The wine chosen for the non-pairing experiment was described as tasting like a combination of paint thinner and medicinal cherry cough syrup, effectively stripping the palate and highlighting its incompatibility with the food.