I’ve always been a big fan ofshopping malls, but when I moved to Portland where the climate isn’t a milliondegrees 98% of the year, I was able to full appreciate shopping outside.Collections of stores coming together without a roof overhead that aren’toutlet stores have become more and more popular in Oregon. Being able toappreciate the weather while getting to window shop or getting in a bit ofretail therapy. Our vacation rental in Anaheim was right across the streetAnaheim GardenWalk, which thrilled me to no end, because it had restaurants,shops and entertainment all in one spot. We found ourselves there on at leastthree occasions.
Even though we were just ashort drive from Disneyland and it could have everything you want in terms ofentertainment and food, the parks close at some point and you can’t find discountsto dining establishments there and you always feel compelled to be on the move.Since we travel during the shoulder season, attractions aren’t open as long asthey are during the summer and holidays. Because of this, we found ourselveswith a bit more downtime than we could have had. This gave us a chance to tryout some new restaurants, browse in stores we don’t have at home and get in amovie or two.
Our first trip to GardenWalkfound us having dinner at Bubba Gump. Even though it’s a chain, we never get achance to eat there. The last time we dined at Bubba Gump, we were in Cancuncelebrating getting engaged, so it has been a while. (Portland really needssome of those great chains like Hard Rock and Chili’s.) We grabbed a coupon fora free appetizer from our lobby and then ordered coconut shrimp – how can youNOT? – and a chipotle chicken salad. The free app turned out to be theirsignature dip and chips that was worth $10.50. Score!
The next time we headed over toGardenWalk, we were going expressly to see a movie, so we showed up a bit earlyto grab a bite to eat. We weren’t starving and we had decided to split an entréesomewhere. We chose Bar Louie, since it was close to the theaters, had a simplemenu and, being a bar, seemed to have fairly fast service. We split a yummyturkey and brie sandwich with some fries and then went up to the third floor tothe UltraLuxe Cinemas.
UltraLuxe movies don’t startuntil mid-afternoon, but go late into the night. It may not be in Hollywood,but they make you feel like a celebrity. When you purchase your tickets, youpick the seats you want to sit in, almost like going to a live production. Yousee what’s available and choose your seats on the touch screen. UltraLuxtheaters are also the only ones to have special theaters with seats that move!If you’ve gone to a theme park 4D production, like Captain EO, Shrek 4D or StarTours, you’ve enjoyed these seats before. You don’t get things sprayed at you,but your seat moves in reaction to things happening on the screen. We went tosee Hotel Transylvania, which was not in the moving seat theater, but I wasable to test out the seats in the lobby with a preview of Frankenweenie. It waspretty awesome, though I’m not sure 2 hours of that would be all that fun aftera while.
Our last night in Anaheim foundus at GardenWalk again. We decided to live it up with a trip to Fire + Ice. Ifyou’ve eaten at a Mongolian Grill, you know how it works. You choose the meat,veggies and other toppings, along with a sauce and the chefs cook it up for youon a giant round flat top while you watch and wait. It’s great, because you canchoose everything that goes into your meal. The downside is that it takes quitea while to get your food and if you don’t step up the grill with your party,you may not end up eating together at all. I enjoyed a great salad and severalplates of different combinations. (Yes, there’s no mystery as to where my extraweight came from on my vacation.)
Other cool stuff in AnaheimGardenWalk includes a gym, bowling alley, fountains and murals done by localartists. While we were there, there was also a haunted house (with it beingHalloween time and all). Even if you buy nothing while you’re there, you can stillbrowse at unique shops – Fresh Produce and Hello Tokyo – and your favoritebrand shops – LUSH Cosmetics and Skechers.
If you visit the Anaheim area, GardenWalk can be a great way to spend some time and also save some money on dining over the theme parks.
What do you think would be the most beneficial part of having GardenWalk so close to the theme parks?
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder