Disney’s Port Orleans – French Quarter
I am obsessed with wanting to visit New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA) for Mardi Gras, and at the moment the closest I can get to that is visiting Disney’s Port Orleans – French Quarter, where it is Mardi Gras every day! Port Orleans – French Quarter (POFQ) is a Disney Moderate Resort.
Revel in the romance and pageantry of New Orleans’s historic French Quarter at this Moderate Resort hotel, where cobblestone streets, gas lamps, wrought-iron balconies and fragrant magnolia blossoms evoke the Antebellum era and colorful Mardi Gras characters and jazz keep things lively. Then stroll along the lushly landscaped Sassagoula River to Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – Riverside, where the bayou beckons, as do Cajun and Creole specialties. – Walt Disney World
You enter the Resort into a courtyard setting, with a fountain in the middle (with coins, and colourful doubloons tossed in!), pots full of flowers, benches, and Mardi Gras decor. On one side is the lobby area and Resort store – Jackson Square Gifts & Desires (I guess the courtyard might be called Jackson Square?). And on the other side is the Resort’s Quick/Counter Service Restaurant – Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory.
There is of course all the Christmas trees and decorations, but I’ll talk about those in a moment!
As it was nearing lunchtime as we arrived at POFQ, we decided to have some food at Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory before having a proper look around. POFQ is a Disney Resort that I have always wanted to stay at. But, it’s not a DVC Resort so we are unable to use our points here *sad face*.
Disney has a background story for pretty much every location at Walt Disney World, and Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory (SFFF) is a converted warehouse that stores Mardi Gras props during the off season. It would seem though that the restaurant had an update a couple years ago, and a lot of the props have now been taken down (which is such shame – have a search online to see how it used to look – big, bold and totally NOLA!)
All that is left hanging are some Mardi Gras beads and a few of the float works…
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner is served at SFFF, and as I said, we stopped by for lunch. It is set out with different food sections called shops – I took a few (rubbish, so not included here) photos, and there was a Po’Boy Shop, a Pizza & Pasta Shop, a Grill Shop, and a Bakery Shop. You order and pick up your food from whichever shop you like, go to multiple if you want to, and then you pay at the check-out tills.
There are also fridges with drinks, and other grab-and-go foods. It is quite a standard Disney Resort Food Court style set up. A lot of the food has a New Orleans / Mardi Gras flair; but you can buy regular dishes like burgers, pasta, pizza etc.
Steve and I both opted for Po’Boys which is a traditional Louisiana sandwich. Liam of course had a burger. For dessert we shared a box of beignets, and I snagged a mini King Cake. We also picked up a bag of crisps
The food was really good – but the service behind the counters was not. It was really slow, and the Cast Members were pretty miserable – not letting the good times roll at all!
Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory
Main Course…
Me: Daily Po’ Boys – Shrimp or Catfish dressed with lettuce, tomato, and remoulade ($10.99)
Him: Daily Po’ Boys – Shrimp or Catfish dressed with lettuce, tomato, and remoulade ($10.99) + Cup of Gumbo – Rich stew containing chicken, sausage, okra and spices ($4.39)
The Boy: Bacon Cheeseburger – House-smoked Bacon and Cheddar Cheese on a Broiche Bun and choice of two: french fries, coleslaw, potato chips, and macaroni salad ($12.99)
Desserts…
Me: Mardi Gras King Cake ($5.49)
US: French Quarter Beignets – Six Beignets ($6.49)
They now serve Mickey-shaped beignets at SFFF – it was just regular shaped ones when we visited. There was enough powdered sugar on this pile of six to cover about a dozen more! They cooked these fresh to order so you know they’re got to be all yummy and warm. They’re deep fried and covered in sugar – what is there not to love about them?!
Oh, and Tables in Wonderland is accepted here, but we either forgot to show our card, or didn’t realise we could use it here. If you have a TiW card, it is always worth asking if it is accepted as it gives you a 20% discount on food and drink (including alcohol!)
Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory » Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter
Bill: $52.43 + Tax: $3.41 + Tip: $0 = $55.84
TiW Discount: $n/aTotal Paid: $55.84
And now onto the Disney Christmas trees and decorations at Port Orleans French Quarter! Given my aforementioned love of New Orleans and Mardi Gras, the decorations at POFR were some of my favourites.
There were actually four trees in the courtyard area – two on either side of the doors at both ends. They were all very festive, with a Mardi Gras theme, decorated with beads, masks, and fleur-de-lis, as well as brightly coloured ornaments and ribbons. The trees sat atop a stand covered in purple crushed velvet.
The colours of Mardi Gras – purple, green and gold were used a lot, as well as pink, red, and harlequin patterned ornaments. I also love the huge gem ornaments that were dotted about too.
In short, the POFR trees were amazing and I would totally have this style up in my house if I didn’t already have a heavily invested in Disney ornaments tree!
We then ventured outside to have a look around. It was pretty cold by now and so there was not a soul in the swimming pool – called the Doubloon Lagoon. The lifeguard was on duty though, wrapped up in a fleece and hat!
The pool had a huge sea serpent wrapping its way around the edges, with a water slide coming out of its mouth, and King Neptune sitting atop its head. We all agreed it was a pretty cool looking feature. Other decor around the Resort were jazz playing alligators – laissez le bon temps rouler! (Let the good times roll)
We didn’t explore very much more, mainly because of the weather, so we popped into the Resort store – Jackson Square Gifts & Sundries where I bought some [more] pins (I know, I’ve got a problem!) and had a good old chat with the Cast Member behind the counter.
The wreaths hanging outside the entrance to the POFR lobby courtyard area were very different in style. They had a lovely autumnal feel to them with velvet fruit ornaments – apples, pears, and grapes, as well as baubles in rusty shades of copper and gold. Just gorgeous. 10/10 for the decor at Port Orleans French Quarter from me!