My Disneyland Trips Aren't Complete Without...

Welcome to those of you joining me from "Disney Babies Blog" and those of you just hopping aboard. I am the 2nd stop on our Magical Blogorail.

I have a confession to make before we even get started. This month we've been charged with coming up with something (attraction, food, show, whatever) that, if left out of our Disney trips, leaves our time in The Parks feeling rather incomplete. For me, there's one little item in particular I feel this way about, and I've written about it before but it's been quite some time since I've done so. So, in the interest of time and getting it out there again, I've decided to redeliver it to you, our loyal readers, in a very slightly altered format. I think it's still good though, and worth a look-see. Phew! Now that that's out of the way...

Everyone seems to have something that they absolutely have to have anytime they are present inside a Disney Park. Fortunately, most people can relate to my article today because in my case, it involves something from the foodservice industry of Disney. For me, no trip inside Disneyland Park (since Disney California Adventure Park doesn't have them) is complete without a classic, the Mint Julep in New Orleans Square.

Typically, people fall into one of two categories when they think of the Mint Juleps at The Park:

1. The "They taste like glorified mouthwash" camp and
2. The "They're the best!" camp

So, originally, I wasn't really sure whether I initially wanted to try the little concoction or not.  But having done so I can proudly say, "They're the best!", with all the enthusiasm I can muster.

So first things first.  What exactly is the Mint Julep in should you so desire one?  The Park describes it as "A refreshing mint drink with a hint of lime flavor", which is actually what made me hesitant to try one in the first place, and is surely why many people fall into the "glorified mouthwash" camp.  I figured the mint would more than overpower the lime in the drink, and thus be exactly like drinking mouthwash.  But after having had several of my own, I tend to think it's more of "A refreshing lime drink with a hint of mint flavor".  In all of the ones I've had, I've never felt the mint was too overpowering; it's always been light and refreshing, which is just what I'm looking for, especially on a hot Southern California day. That said, I know it's probably still not for everyone (different people have different tastes and buds), but if you're on the fence because of the mint, I have to encourage to try it for yourself and see what you think.  It just may surprise you like it did me!

And you can see exactly how it's served up, complete with a lime, lemon, a few mint leaves, lots of ice, and a cherry on top!  Delicious!

Now that you know what the Mint Julep is, I suppose you might be wondering where exactly to go to get one.  Luckily for you, I know the answer!  One place you can find it should you get a hankering for one is Cafe Orleans in New Orleans Square.  If you're going to be eating at that restaurant, it will definitely compliment your meal and with free refills, you can't go wrong.  That said, my favorite place to grab one is at the Mint Julep Bar itself, also in New Orleans Square.  It's located right next to the dining patio for the French Market restaurant.  In fact, if you are taking the Disneyland Railroad from Main Street USA to New Orleans Square, you'll most likely see the bar as soon as you de-board.  It's practically right in front of you across from The Haunted Mansion.  The drink itself will run you only $2.99 (a steal!) and is well worth the money. Sometimes you pay an amount for a drink and feel ripped off a bit, but I've never felt that in this case, and I'll usually order one and either park myself at a nearby table, or wander off into Critter Country, happily sipping away.

Really wanna go nuts?  Feel free to polish it off with an order of Mickey-shaped beignets too and feel those sugar energies soar!  A 3-pack will run you $3.99 and a 6-pack will run you $6.99.  But who doesn't love little fried Mickey heads with confectioner's sugar on top?

And there you have the Julep!  Again, I know that a lot of people probably don't or wouldn't like these little beauties, but if you've never tried one, they come with my highest recommendation and are firmly at the top of the list where it comes to my favorite "In-Park" treats.

Thank you for joining me today. Your next stop on the Magical Blogorail Loop is "Ideally Disney".

Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail should you happen to have to make a stop along the way and want to reboard:

1st Stop ~ Disney Babies Blog
2nd Stop ~ Days in the Park
3rd Stop ~ Ideally Disney
4th Stop ~ A Disney Mom's Thoughts
Final Stop ~ Capturing Magical Memories

Days In The Park's Favorite Things: The Mint Julep

We've spent some time in the past talking about Amy's favorite things, and we've even spent some time talking about Chad's favorite things, or Mark's favorite things, but every so often something comes along that we can all get on behind, prompting a big "Favorite Things!" from all of us.  Such is the case with this little Park classic on the tips of so many people's tongues (literally and figuratively), the Mint Julep in New Orleans Square.

Typically, people fall into one of two categories when they think of the Mint Juleps at The Park:

1. The "They taste like glorified mouthwash" camp and
2. The "They're the best!" camp

So, other than Amy (because she's an old hat and they're relatively new to Chad and Mark), we weren't really sure whether we initially wanted to try the little concoction or not.  But having done so we can proudly say, "They're the best!", with all the enthusiasm we can muster.

So first things first.  What exactly is the Mint Julep in should you so desire one?  The Park describes it as "A refreshing mint drink with a hint of lime flavor", which is actually what made us hesitant to try one in the first place, and is surely why many people fall into the "glorified mouthwash" camp.  We figured the mint would more than overpower the lime in the drink, and thus be exactly like drinking mouthwash.  But after having had several of our own, we tend to think it's more of "A refreshing lime drink with a hint of mint flavor".  In all of the ones we've had, we've never felt the mint was too overpowering; it's always been light and refreshing, which is just what we're looking for.  That said, we know it's probably still not for everyone (different people have different tastes and buds), but if you're on the fence because of the mint, we have to encourage to try it for yourself and see what you think.  It just may surprise you like it did us!  Our friend Amanda at Disney Go To Girl described the Julep in one of her articles as a "mint-flavored lemonade", and we think that's pretty close to the mark, too.

And you can see exactly how it's served up, complete with a lime, lemon, a few mint leaves, lots of ice, and a cherry on top!  Just hits the spot perfectly on a hot day in July in The Park.

Now that you know what the Mint Julep is, we suppose you'd be wondering where exactly to go to get one.  Luckily for you, we know the answer!  One place you can find it should you get a hankering for one is Cafe Orleans in New Orleans Square.  If you're going to be eating at that restaurant, it will definitely compliment your meal and with free refills, you can't go wrong.  That said, our favorite place to grab one is at the Mint Julep Bar itself, also in New Orleans Square.  It's located right next to the dining patio for the French Market restaurant.  In fact, if you are taking the Disneyland Railroad from Main Street USA to New Orleans Square, you'll most likely see the bar as soon as you de-board.  It's practically right in front of you across from The Haunted Mansion.  The drink itself will run you only $2.99 (a steal!) and is well worth the money we think.  Sometimes you pay an amount for a drink and feel ripped off a bit, but we've never felt that in this case, and we'll usually order one and either park ourselves at some nearby tables, or wander off into Critter Country, happily sipping away.

Really wanna go nuts?  Feel free to polish it off with an order of Mickey-shaped beignets too and feel those sugar energies soar!  A 3-pack with run you $3.99 and a 6-pack will run you $6.99.  But who doesn't love little fried Mickey heads with confectioner's sugar on top?

And there you have the Julep!  Again, we know that a lot of people probably don't or wouldn't like these little beauties, but if you've never tried one, they come with our highest recommendations and are firmly at the top of the list where it comes to our favorite "In-Park" treats.  Try one for yourself and see if you like it!

What say you?  Have you tried the Julep yourself?  Let us know what you think!  And if you've never tried one, and you plan to, come on back and let us know if you liked it.  We'd love to hear from you!