sbprincess
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 19, 2010
California Grill!!! I was so excited about this reservation. The idea of sitting on the top of the Contemporary with a view over Magic Kingdom was so enticing when I read about this restaurant. I knew for our one special dinner, this is where I wanted to go. Now, this restaurant, being a Signature Dining location, has a dress code. But its still pretty loose IMO. However, we wanted to dress up a little more without feeling out of place. On our honeymoon I wore a dress for a couple of our meals and felt a little awkward walking through the parks in heels. We felt perfectly normal going to California Grill in slightly dressy attire, but I would have also felt fine in nicer jeans and a shirt too. (This is actually what Brian wore because someone forgot his dress pants. He was pretty perturbed with that someone
hehe 
) Notice my bag in this picture? I kind of asssumed the CM would think to not include that...I didn't really notice it until just now. I guess he didn't either? 
We checked in for our ADR on the second floor of the Contemporary. About 5 minutes later, we were escorted up to the 15th floor for our meal! We were seated right away at what I thought was an amazing table! Just look at our view!!!
This is me literally sitting in my seat and holding the camera right at my face. I was in love! Our waiter quickly came to greet us and take drink orders. This is the one aspect I have a small complaint about. Maybe its because I havent eaten in many fancy restaurants. Maybe its because Im from the South. Maybe its because of my background in customer service (and being pretty darn good at it, if I do say so myself!). Or maaaaaaybeeee its just me and what I like. But I didnt like our server. He was nice. He was polite. He was efficient. He just didnt have a warm personality. Now, I didnt expect him to be anything like the servers at Whispering Canyon. I didnt come in thinking he would be overly boisterous and crack jokes left and right. I just dont care for the professional-waiter vibe this guy gave off.
Does that make sense? And in no way am I saying every server there is like this
he was the only one we really had contact with though. Okay, that took too long.
Anyways, I have a suggestion for Disney. Any time someone on the regular dining plan eats at a Signature Restaurant, meaning they have to use 2 table service credits, why not throw us a bone and include the appetizer rather than making it cost extra?? While Im at it, I also have another suggestion. Tell me what you think. Or dont but at least listen. Why not have a dining plan priced in between the regular and deluxe dining plan called the Signature Dining Plan. Instead of the 1ts, 1 cs, 1 snack per person-per night like the regular and the 3 ts/cs and 2 snacks they do for the deluxe, this plan could be 1 sit down meal (be it signature OR regular), 1 cs, and 1 snack per person-per night. This way, people who want to eat at the Signature restaurants could without having to burn 2 ts credits. But, its also not quite as much food as the deluxe, and therefore could be priced accordingly. I would TOTALLY book this package! The deluxe is just a little too pricey/too much food for me. But I can only really justify one Signature restaurant per trip because of the 2 credit issue. Okay, that was really off track. Sorry! And maybe Im the only one who thinks thats a good idea. If it is a good idea, Disney just needs to hire me and give me lots of money for coming up with it! HAHA!!!
On to my actual night (sorry, Im chatty today). So with our drinks, our server brought out some crusty bread and butter. It tasted like bread and butter.
Although they werent included, I did want to order appetizers. Another thing Im obsessed with is goat cheese. So obviously, after I had read all the raves about the Sonoma Goat Cheese Ravioli, I knew I really wanted to try this. One thing Im not wild about is onions. I dont mind if theyre cooked and mixed in with something and pretty soft. I do not like crunchy or large ones. Just a word of warning (because I never heard anyone say this on the boards), this dish has cooked onions on the top of the ravioli. Not a huge deal but they were mixed with the sun-dried tomatoes, parmesan cheese, mushrooms and fresh basil so it was slightly difficult to separate them from the rest. I wish I would have known to request that they be left off. Still, this dish was very good. Not quite up to the expectations I had, but still very good. Also, its not quite as large of a portion as appears in the photo, just fyi. Good appetizer portion.
Brian really surprised me with his selection. Ive never seen this listed on any menu online so I dont know the name. But he ordered some sort of fried crab on top of a bed of corn, bacon, tomatoes, artichokes, potatoes, and pesto maybe? He is not the most adventurous eater. He can eat most anything but when were at a restaurant, he almost always plays it safe and orders something he KNOWS hell like. Before this, I dont think Ive ever seen him order crab. But something came over him and he wanted to branch out. He LOVED it though! He sucked every piece of crab meat out of the shell he possibly could and ate everything underneath too. Honestly, I took a bite and thought it was okay. Not something I would order though.
For my entrée, I went in with a few ideas but wasnt sure until we were sitting there. I went with the Grilled Pork Tenderloin, served with goat cheese polenta (theres the goat cheese AGAIN!), button mushrooms, and Zinfandel glaze. Everything about this was amazing! Im not a huge pork person, but this was sooooo good. It was cooked perfectly juicy and very flavorful. The polenta? WOW!!!!! The picture doesnt look like there was much of that, but there was. I could have eaten about 3 times the amount though. To me, it made the dish. When I hear people say they substitute something else for this, it makes me sad. To each his own, but I just dont understand anyone not liking this. I honestly think this was THE BEST thing Ive ever eaten. You know that show on the Food Network The Best Thing Ive Ever Eaten. Yeah, this is mine. Hands down. Case closed.
Brian ordered the Oak-fired Filet of Beef. Unlike the online menus (loaded mashed potatoes and broccolini), his came with asparagus and scalloped potatoes. This was another huge hit. I took a bite and it was great. The beef was extremely tender and the barbeque sauce was very good. Brian also felt this was the best thing hed ever eaten! He had taken me to Ruths Chris on my birthday at the end of February, right before this trip. Thats about the fanciest (definitely priciest) meal weve ever had. Theyre pretty known for their steaks. Brian thought this steak was better and about the same price.
Brian finished every last bite of his. I gave a valiant effort but left one of the pork medallions because I knew I wanted dessert, as always. Ill be honest here, I think their dessert offerings are a little lacking. Maybe it was the time of year we went, because I know they change their menu a little with the seasons. For some reason I wanted to branch out on this choice. The only two choices that really appealed to me were the chocolate cake (what I should have went with) and the Mascarpone and Meyer Lemon Cheesecake - Whipped cheesecake and meyer lemon Panna Cotta with huckleberry jam. This was good, just not my idea of dessert. I like fruit. Im just not a fruity-dessert kind of person. Im not big on fruit pies or cobblers. So the lemon cheesecake was good. But I know myself. I would have enjoyed something chocolatey, or creamy, or coffee-based. So lesson learned. You never know if youll find a new best thing until you try. Oh, and I did NOT like the huckleberry jam! That little biscuit on the right was good, but it was just an almond flavored soft cookie. Sorry about the bite!
Brian was much smarter than me. He ordered something he knew hed enjoy, the Bananas and Caramel - crispy baked Phyllo squares layered with banana, caramel, mascarpone mousse and caramelized banana. Im not a fan of banana generally so thats why this was out for me. He really liked this. But there was a layer in the construction we couldnt quite figure out. It wasnt the mousse. It was cold, kind of icy, and pretty flavorless. It reminded me of a palate cleanser, but that seems out of place in the middle of a layered dessert. We should have asked, but just didnt.
As the sun went down, this was our new view. I know theyre a little blurry.
I really wish we had made our ADR for later. We tried to stretch the meal out until Wishes started but just couldnt. There was still about and hour and 40 minutes until the show so we gave up the table and went out to the patio area. Heres a view of Bay Lake Tower from the deck somewhere I really hope to stay one day.
Heres looking back towards the restaurant.
I wish the deck had at least some seating, like maybe a few benches. It wasnt crowded at all out there so I cant imagine that it would cause much of an issue. Because of this, we decided to go back to the room. We still had over an hour before the show. Thinking back, we should have gone back to change clothes and shoes and then came back. But I literally just had that thought now. I know, it probably seems obvious. Call us dense!
We did walk around a little before heading back though.
I really like this picture for some reason.
So this was the end to our Best Day! We went back to the room and I really dont remember anything specific about it. We must have watched a little TV before turning in. California Grill was our favorite restaurant of the whole trip. Not that the rest were bad necessarily, this just blew them away. I guess being a Signature, it should. Were going back here in December and were both sooooo excited. Its actually the only table service thats a repeat for us. Im still trying to decide about my appetizer and dessert. Im hoping the seasonal dessert menu will have something really appealing (I love pumpkin and a lot of fall flavors so Im not worried). If anyone has an appetizer recommendation, let me know! Ive never had any sushi that I liked, but then again, Ive only had it a few times.
Up next:
Your least favorite park contains your favorite ride HUH?
The best counter service meal
We arranged our Disney schedule around a TV show yes, we did. I am ashamed.
) Notice my bag in this picture? I kind of asssumed the CM would think to not include that...I didn't really notice it until just now. I guess he didn't either?
We checked in for our ADR on the second floor of the Contemporary. About 5 minutes later, we were escorted up to the 15th floor for our meal! We were seated right away at what I thought was an amazing table! Just look at our view!!!
This is me literally sitting in my seat and holding the camera right at my face. I was in love! Our waiter quickly came to greet us and take drink orders. This is the one aspect I have a small complaint about. Maybe its because I havent eaten in many fancy restaurants. Maybe its because Im from the South. Maybe its because of my background in customer service (and being pretty darn good at it, if I do say so myself!). Or maaaaaaybeeee its just me and what I like. But I didnt like our server. He was nice. He was polite. He was efficient. He just didnt have a warm personality. Now, I didnt expect him to be anything like the servers at Whispering Canyon. I didnt come in thinking he would be overly boisterous and crack jokes left and right. I just dont care for the professional-waiter vibe this guy gave off.
Does that make sense? And in no way am I saying every server there is like this
he was the only one we really had contact with though. Okay, that took too long.Anyways, I have a suggestion for Disney. Any time someone on the regular dining plan eats at a Signature Restaurant, meaning they have to use 2 table service credits, why not throw us a bone and include the appetizer rather than making it cost extra?? While Im at it, I also have another suggestion. Tell me what you think. Or dont but at least listen. Why not have a dining plan priced in between the regular and deluxe dining plan called the Signature Dining Plan. Instead of the 1ts, 1 cs, 1 snack per person-per night like the regular and the 3 ts/cs and 2 snacks they do for the deluxe, this plan could be 1 sit down meal (be it signature OR regular), 1 cs, and 1 snack per person-per night. This way, people who want to eat at the Signature restaurants could without having to burn 2 ts credits. But, its also not quite as much food as the deluxe, and therefore could be priced accordingly. I would TOTALLY book this package! The deluxe is just a little too pricey/too much food for me. But I can only really justify one Signature restaurant per trip because of the 2 credit issue. Okay, that was really off track. Sorry! And maybe Im the only one who thinks thats a good idea. If it is a good idea, Disney just needs to hire me and give me lots of money for coming up with it! HAHA!!!
On to my actual night (sorry, Im chatty today). So with our drinks, our server brought out some crusty bread and butter. It tasted like bread and butter.
Although they werent included, I did want to order appetizers. Another thing Im obsessed with is goat cheese. So obviously, after I had read all the raves about the Sonoma Goat Cheese Ravioli, I knew I really wanted to try this. One thing Im not wild about is onions. I dont mind if theyre cooked and mixed in with something and pretty soft. I do not like crunchy or large ones. Just a word of warning (because I never heard anyone say this on the boards), this dish has cooked onions on the top of the ravioli. Not a huge deal but they were mixed with the sun-dried tomatoes, parmesan cheese, mushrooms and fresh basil so it was slightly difficult to separate them from the rest. I wish I would have known to request that they be left off. Still, this dish was very good. Not quite up to the expectations I had, but still very good. Also, its not quite as large of a portion as appears in the photo, just fyi. Good appetizer portion.
Brian really surprised me with his selection. Ive never seen this listed on any menu online so I dont know the name. But he ordered some sort of fried crab on top of a bed of corn, bacon, tomatoes, artichokes, potatoes, and pesto maybe? He is not the most adventurous eater. He can eat most anything but when were at a restaurant, he almost always plays it safe and orders something he KNOWS hell like. Before this, I dont think Ive ever seen him order crab. But something came over him and he wanted to branch out. He LOVED it though! He sucked every piece of crab meat out of the shell he possibly could and ate everything underneath too. Honestly, I took a bite and thought it was okay. Not something I would order though.
For my entrée, I went in with a few ideas but wasnt sure until we were sitting there. I went with the Grilled Pork Tenderloin, served with goat cheese polenta (theres the goat cheese AGAIN!), button mushrooms, and Zinfandel glaze. Everything about this was amazing! Im not a huge pork person, but this was sooooo good. It was cooked perfectly juicy and very flavorful. The polenta? WOW!!!!! The picture doesnt look like there was much of that, but there was. I could have eaten about 3 times the amount though. To me, it made the dish. When I hear people say they substitute something else for this, it makes me sad. To each his own, but I just dont understand anyone not liking this. I honestly think this was THE BEST thing Ive ever eaten. You know that show on the Food Network The Best Thing Ive Ever Eaten. Yeah, this is mine. Hands down. Case closed.
Brian ordered the Oak-fired Filet of Beef. Unlike the online menus (loaded mashed potatoes and broccolini), his came with asparagus and scalloped potatoes. This was another huge hit. I took a bite and it was great. The beef was extremely tender and the barbeque sauce was very good. Brian also felt this was the best thing hed ever eaten! He had taken me to Ruths Chris on my birthday at the end of February, right before this trip. Thats about the fanciest (definitely priciest) meal weve ever had. Theyre pretty known for their steaks. Brian thought this steak was better and about the same price.
Brian finished every last bite of his. I gave a valiant effort but left one of the pork medallions because I knew I wanted dessert, as always. Ill be honest here, I think their dessert offerings are a little lacking. Maybe it was the time of year we went, because I know they change their menu a little with the seasons. For some reason I wanted to branch out on this choice. The only two choices that really appealed to me were the chocolate cake (what I should have went with) and the Mascarpone and Meyer Lemon Cheesecake - Whipped cheesecake and meyer lemon Panna Cotta with huckleberry jam. This was good, just not my idea of dessert. I like fruit. Im just not a fruity-dessert kind of person. Im not big on fruit pies or cobblers. So the lemon cheesecake was good. But I know myself. I would have enjoyed something chocolatey, or creamy, or coffee-based. So lesson learned. You never know if youll find a new best thing until you try. Oh, and I did NOT like the huckleberry jam! That little biscuit on the right was good, but it was just an almond flavored soft cookie. Sorry about the bite!
Brian was much smarter than me. He ordered something he knew hed enjoy, the Bananas and Caramel - crispy baked Phyllo squares layered with banana, caramel, mascarpone mousse and caramelized banana. Im not a fan of banana generally so thats why this was out for me. He really liked this. But there was a layer in the construction we couldnt quite figure out. It wasnt the mousse. It was cold, kind of icy, and pretty flavorless. It reminded me of a palate cleanser, but that seems out of place in the middle of a layered dessert. We should have asked, but just didnt.
As the sun went down, this was our new view. I know theyre a little blurry.
I really wish we had made our ADR for later. We tried to stretch the meal out until Wishes started but just couldnt. There was still about and hour and 40 minutes until the show so we gave up the table and went out to the patio area. Heres a view of Bay Lake Tower from the deck somewhere I really hope to stay one day.
Heres looking back towards the restaurant.
I wish the deck had at least some seating, like maybe a few benches. It wasnt crowded at all out there so I cant imagine that it would cause much of an issue. Because of this, we decided to go back to the room. We still had over an hour before the show. Thinking back, we should have gone back to change clothes and shoes and then came back. But I literally just had that thought now. I know, it probably seems obvious. Call us dense!
We did walk around a little before heading back though.
I really like this picture for some reason.
So this was the end to our Best Day! We went back to the room and I really dont remember anything specific about it. We must have watched a little TV before turning in. California Grill was our favorite restaurant of the whole trip. Not that the rest were bad necessarily, this just blew them away. I guess being a Signature, it should. Were going back here in December and were both sooooo excited. Its actually the only table service thats a repeat for us. Im still trying to decide about my appetizer and dessert. Im hoping the seasonal dessert menu will have something really appealing (I love pumpkin and a lot of fall flavors so Im not worried). If anyone has an appetizer recommendation, let me know! Ive never had any sushi that I liked, but then again, Ive only had it a few times.
Up next:
Your least favorite park contains your favorite ride HUH?
The best counter service meal
We arranged our Disney schedule around a TV show yes, we did. I am ashamed.
That's just so wrong!
AND you're staying Yacht Club?? That's another of my must-do's at some point. So exciting!
I'm just not a fan. Can't put my finger on it but he gets on my nerves. But thanks for reading along!!
THIS YEAR I REMEMBERED TO MAKE DINNER RESERVATIONS DURING WISHES
SO EXCITED! CALI GRILL IS OUR FAV AND I LOVE, LOVE THEIR SUSHI, YOU REALLY NEED TO TRY IT ON YOUR NEXT TRIP! I ALSO HAVE RESSIES AT TONY'S, BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE I NEED TO LOWER MY EXPECTATIONS!
Either way, everyone have a great weekend!
(MADE WITH EEL) SO YOU MIGHT WANT TO STICK WITH "CALIFORNIA ROLLS" OR "COOKED" SUSHII. REMEMBER TO USE CHOPSTICKS AND POUR SOY SAUCE IN A LITTLE BOWL AND DIP THE SUSHI IN AND ENJOY!
Anyways, he liked everything too except he did NOT like the bacon. We also got an omelet to share but I forgot to take a picture! It was yummy! I think we got just sausage and cheese, so nothing spectacular.
I'm having a lot of fun writing it so I hope it's been fun to read. I really wish I had a nicer camera though. For a cheap little point-and-shoot it does fine during the day but my pictures at night definitely need some help. But when I think of all the things my house needs (new carpet, new stove, etc.), I just can't justify the expense right now. Oh well!
