Tokyo Disney Resort – May 2004 – Part 6
Ikspiari and Disney Ambassador Hotel
Since Part 5 of my report on our trip to Tokyo Disney Resort was published in June 2004, dozens of readers have written to ask what happened to the rest of the report. The answer is, life intruded. I took a break from the report and from that point on, it just seemed to be one thing after another — some good, some bad, all time-consuming!
I must say, I still look back on our trip to Japan with great fondness and can hardly wait to go back. Now that I’m able to sit back down and start the report again, I’m looking forward to reliving a wonderful experience.
So here’s Part 6 of the trip report, “only” eight months late. Hope you enjoy it!
P.S. If you’d like to read the trip report from the beginning, click here.
Once we had finished our shopping at Bon Voyage, it was looking like rain, so we hustled down the sidewalk to Ikspiari, which is the very attractive and upscale Tokyo Disney Resort “mall.” Inside are all kinds of shops, restaurants and a 20-screen movie theater.Ikspiari is sort of the Japanese answer to Downtown Disney, but in this case everything is indoors, which is nice considering the very wet climate of Japan.
Outside of Ikspiri is a grand Mediterranean-style courtyard with a huge fountain and the entrances to Camp Nepos (a childcare facility) as well as an immense Disney Store. The monorail glides along overhead atop an arched aquaduct-like structure that encloses the courtyard. The massive scale of everything in this area is almost dizzying.As with every part of Tokyo Disney Resort, there is a lot of rich detail everywhere, and lots to take in. If the weather hadn’t been getting colder and wetter by the minute, we might have spent a happy half-hour just enjoying the interesting atmosphere.
The courtyard is actually ideal for people-watching because it’s adjacent to the Maihama train station and the Hotel Dream Gate under the train station, as well as the monorail station, the entrance to Ikspiari, and through the mall, to the Ambassador Hotel. So you get an interesting cross-section, ranging from tourists visiting the resort, to locals indulging in a day of shopping or a meal out in one of the Ikspiari restaurants.
We ventured into Ikspiari and were a bit surprised to see many familiar American stores and restaurants, such as Eddie Bauer, J. Crew, Gap, Planet Hollywood and Rainforest Cafe. However, the mall has its own uniquely Japanese shops, too, as well as many locations selling French pastries (this seems to be quite a trend in Japan) and a very international selection of restaurants. Italian, French, Korean, Vietnamese, Taiwanese and Hawaiian food were well-represented, and there is also an English pub and a New York deli!The layout of Ikspiari is a bit unusual. It is organized into nine themed zones. So for example, if you’re looking for “outdoorsy” items you’ll want to check out the “Trail and Track” section, which focuses on sportswear, hiking gear and pet goods. If you need housewares or collectibles, you’ll want to check out “Museum Row.”
The third floor, “Gracious Square,” is home to expensive and high-end shops selling primarily accessories (jewelry, neckties, sunglasses, hats) and luxuries (Godiva chocolates), while the fourth floor is “Chef’s Row,” with numerous restaurants.From Ikspiari, you can connect to the fabulous Art Deco-themed Ambassador Hotel through a lovely courtyard or a back hallway. We decided we were tired and ready to find someplace to sit and watch the world go by, so we went over to the hotel.
As we walked across the courtyard, we discovered that one wing of the hotel’s ground floor, just off the courtyard, is devoted to its restaurants. We walked through to take a look at the options, though it wasn’t quite late enough for dinner yet.
The choices included Chef Mickey’s (a character buffet), the Tick Tock Diner (a 50’s-style American diner offering counter-service and take-out meals) and the Empire Grill (a steak-and-seafood restaurant). All three restaurants are located along the same hallway, making it easy to check out the menus at each one.Since we weren’t ready to eat dinner yet, we decided to explore the lobby, and quickly found the Hyperion Lounge, where we relaxed for awhile and enjoyed a couple of drinks while looking out at the beautiful courtyard.
Cocktails were very expensive and small, though delicious and very high-quality (fresh fruit juices, high-end liquor).I had one tiny but perfect margarita and then switched to a very refreshing melon soda drink. This was brought to the table in the form of a glass of selzer and a tiny pitcher of syrup, allowing you to mix the drink to your own liking. Compared with a cocktail, it was very reasonably priced.
As always in Japan, the service was extremely attentive. Snack mix was brought to us, and we were not rushed at all. We probably sat in the Hyperion Lounge enjoying the atmosphere for well over an hour.
We were surprised at how much we liked the Ambassador Hotel. Having spent much of my adult life in Los Angeles, where Art Deco buildings are a dime a dozen, I didn’t expect to be “wowed.” But the hotel is truly beautiful, with the attention to detail that seems to mark everything in Japan. Mike and I both agreed that we’d be very happy staying at the Ambassador.
At last we made our way back to “restaurant row,” just off the main lobby. Much to my surprise, Mike (who is not usually a big fan of characters) suggested Chef Mickey’s. I figured it would be a hoot, if nothing else.We were instructed to line up behind a couple of other parties along one wall. Within a few minutes, our name was called and we were beckoned over to one side of the hallway, where a photographer took our photos wearing chef’s toques. Mike’s head was far too big for the rather tiny Japanese headgear, so it simply perched on him, giving him a slightly deranged, cartoonlike air. I thought it was hilarious. (Fortunately for Mike, I can’t locate the photo now… coincidence? Hmm.)
We were seated and a friendly English-speaking waiter took our drink order. The price of the buffet dinner includes hot tea or coffee, but you do pay extra for soft drinks. Then we went off to check out the buffet. It quickly became apparent to us that one side was primarily American-style foods (everything from spaghetti with meatballs to roast beef, though in some cases, with a Japanese twist), while the other side had more traditional Japanese fare. We tried a little of everything, and found it all tasty and fresh.Dessert was set up at a separate station. Most of the offerings were Western-style (cakes, pies, French pastries, soft-serve ice cream with toppings, etc.) but there were a few Japanese items. We each tried a bite of some traditional Japanese sweets, but decided that while they were exquisite-looking, they seemed a bit strange and bland to our American palates.
All during our meal, we had thoroughly enjoyed watching Mickey and Minnie interacting with the tables around us. Since the characters don’t speak, they can communicate very well with people of any nationality. Japanese people seemed just as delighted as Americans would be, as they danced with Minnie or reacted to Mickey miming “how was the food?”As we were finishing our coffee, Mickey came to our table. Apparently he had been making the rounds while we were at the buffet, and our waiter was concerned that we had missed him, so he specifically brought Mickey back to meet us and made sure that we got a picture taken with him! This “extra mile” attitude was something we experienced frequently in Japan and really appreciated.
Night had fallen while we were at dinner, and on our way out of the hotel and back to the train station, everything was beautifully lit. I regretted that my knees were so sore, because I really wanted to check out the lights, evening shows and fireworks in Disneyland. But I felt it was better to head back to our hotel so that I would be rested up for our visit to Tokyo DisneySea the following day. I definitely didn’t want to miss that!
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