bleeps
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 15, 2003
(Other completed reviews from our June 2013 trip; I hope to add many more shortly:
Monsieur Paul
Artist Point
Tutto Italia
Rose & Crown
Kouzzina breakfast
Kona Cafe breakfast
Coral Reef lunch
Mama Melrose lunch)
Hello!
We recently returned from our 9th trip to WDW; this one, like most, we had the DDxDP. Although I've done all my reviews in one thread in the past, as many do here, I thought this time it would be more helpful to split them into individual reviews. Not sure which approach is better, so I'd appreciate input on that! The downside to the individual approach is that I have to keep remembering to include the kind of background details (such as being on the dining plan)....
On our arrival day, Friday, June 7, 2013, we had an ADR for 7:30 at San Angel Inn, in Epcot. We usually try to eat here; although this is a restaurant that has had some ups and downs, we always enjoy the incredible setting inside the Mexico pavillion. It is dark, it is cool, it's beautiful.
We love real Mexican food; I have traveled to Mexico and while I am not claiming to be an expert, I will say that we understand the difference between this and Tex Mex. We happen to love Tex Mex as well, but that is not what we're expecting when we dine here. I *think* that some measure of the negative reviews of this place come from folks who have Tex Mex in mind.
We were seated after about a 15 or 20 minute wait -- so a little past our ADR time. I will say that this place is very popular and seems to draw a lot of walk-ups. BUT, we have only ever seen walk-ups get turned away! We've come to expect a scene at the podium here; people really give these CMs a hard time about not being able to get a table. The moral of the story: make an ADR!!
DH and I had really been looking forward to one of these:
A classic margarita made with premium tequila. Totally delicious, and we both loved the presentation with the little cocktail shaker (which was very generously full!). We also appreciated the suggestion from our fabulous CM, who advised us to only pour a little into our glasses each time so that the remainder stayed on ice. (I have seen, over the years, some poor reviews of the CMs here, but as always ours was terrific. Being friendly and respectful always goes a long way, and our CM was very knowledgeable and fun.)
We have always wanted to try La Cava del Tequila, but we're not big drinkers and there never seems to be time for just a drink and a snack (plus it seems unsporting to make our DS, 15, sit through that when he'd always either be eating a full meal or having fun in the parks!). Based on this drink, I can imagine that the offerings in the tequila bar must be equally fantastic.
Drinks were served with nice, fresh, toasty warm tortilla chips and salsa.
For appetizers, I ordered:
Quesadillas Rebozadas - battered corn quesadilla stuffed with Huitlacoche, corn, mushrooms, and queso fresco topped with sour cream. (I'm sorry that some of my photos from in here are kind of dark and blurry; it took me a few trys to come up with an approach that worked.) I was eager to try this, because I've never had huitlacoche before -- it is a mushroom-type of fungus that grows on corn. I was delighted with this dish -- the lightly batter fried quesadillas were crispy and full of flavor; earthy, but not overwhelmingly so.
DH went with:
Coctel de Camarõn - Acapulco style shrimp cocktail served with spicy marinated tomato sauce, fried flour chicharron, avocado and lime. He's fairly predictable in liking to order shrimp cocktail wherever we go. This was terrifically spicy; it tasted great (yes, I insisted on a bite!) but be forewarned if you are not a spicy food lover. DH was a little surprised/disappointed at first that the shrimp were cut into pieces and served in this sauce (he was expecting the classic full-shrimp presentation) but he got over that quickly and found this presentation quite enjoyable.
DS also went with kind of a stand-by for him:
Ensalada César - Romaine lettuce, anchovies, parmesan cheese. Nothing not to like here, and he did a great job on it. Now that he's 15, I've finally stopped interfering (I hope!); I probably would have encouraged him in the past to try something else, but I've come to realize it's his vacation, his meal, and that the guy has the right to just order what appeals to him!
For my entree, I had my eye on:
Chile Relleno - Poblano pepper stuffed with pork, pine nuts and almonds, topped with roasted tomato sauce. On the one hand, if I had really been thinking, it might have given me more variety not to have the appetizer and entree that I did, just in that both were kind of similar (tasty morsels of things dipped in batter and fried). But, both choices were really flavorful! For me, this portion, given that I had an appetizer and was planning to have dessert, was perfect. I appreciate not feeling like I'm in a food coma when I finish eating. But, I can see that for $24.50, some might be disappointed that this is one chile (there was a bowl of Mexican rice served on the side). The filling was utterly delicious, and chile rellenos is not something I make at home, so this was a real treat. I would definitely order it again.
DH tried:
Pescado a la Veracruzana - Catch of the day served prepared with capers, olives, bell peppers, Spanish onions, and tomatoes, seasoned with white wine and spices over poblano rice. I am really trying to remember what kind of fish it was; it is possible that it was monk fish (which tastes very lobster-like). DH loved this, in any case.
And DS went with:
Carne Asada - New York strip served with cheese enchilada, black refried beans, red bell pepper, onion, Mexican rice and guacamole. He ordered it medium-rare and it was cooked pretty close to perfectly. I know it is not the best photo, and that the steak itself is kind of hidden under the pile of onions and red peppers, but it was a decent size. The cheese enchilda was spicier than he was expecting so he didn't do a great job on that, but otherwise he finished most of this off. I miss the days when he thought he didn't like guacamole and used to give it all to me....
And onto dessert! One note here -- we found that at every single place we ate -- signatures, and table service throughout all the parks -- meals are paced very quickly. It is clear, and understandable, that they are trying to serve as many guests as possible; with not even having room for walk-ups, I appreciate their need to get everyone in (and I respect that if I expect to be seated on time for my ADRs, I need to be a cooperative part of the process by not taking too long at our table). Every CM was gracious and appropriately attentive, but there was almost never a time that one course was cleared and we had to wait for the next course.
Anyway, for dessert I had:
Helado de Dulce de Leche - caramel ice cream. LOVED this!
DH and DS shared:
Mousse de Chocolate - chocolate mousse and almond brittle candy. I got to have the almond brittle, and the mousse was terrific. DS was too full for his own dessert but he liked the mousse (after DH had eaten the fruit and whipped cream, neither of which DS cares for).
I can see the ways in which the dining plans, particularly the deluxe, kind of skew your thinking. For me, because I wasn't thinking about price or value, I thought this was an excellent meal (we all really enjoyed the food) and this place remains on our "must-do" list. But if you are a big eater and you are paying OOP, you might not think the portions were big enough, and you'd also be disappointed if you had Tex Mex in mind.
Monsieur Paul
Artist Point
Tutto Italia
Rose & Crown
Kouzzina breakfast
Kona Cafe breakfast
Coral Reef lunch
Mama Melrose lunch)
Hello!
We recently returned from our 9th trip to WDW; this one, like most, we had the DDxDP. Although I've done all my reviews in one thread in the past, as many do here, I thought this time it would be more helpful to split them into individual reviews. Not sure which approach is better, so I'd appreciate input on that! The downside to the individual approach is that I have to keep remembering to include the kind of background details (such as being on the dining plan)....
On our arrival day, Friday, June 7, 2013, we had an ADR for 7:30 at San Angel Inn, in Epcot. We usually try to eat here; although this is a restaurant that has had some ups and downs, we always enjoy the incredible setting inside the Mexico pavillion. It is dark, it is cool, it's beautiful.
We love real Mexican food; I have traveled to Mexico and while I am not claiming to be an expert, I will say that we understand the difference between this and Tex Mex. We happen to love Tex Mex as well, but that is not what we're expecting when we dine here. I *think* that some measure of the negative reviews of this place come from folks who have Tex Mex in mind.
We were seated after about a 15 or 20 minute wait -- so a little past our ADR time. I will say that this place is very popular and seems to draw a lot of walk-ups. BUT, we have only ever seen walk-ups get turned away! We've come to expect a scene at the podium here; people really give these CMs a hard time about not being able to get a table. The moral of the story: make an ADR!!
DH and I had really been looking forward to one of these:
A classic margarita made with premium tequila. Totally delicious, and we both loved the presentation with the little cocktail shaker (which was very generously full!). We also appreciated the suggestion from our fabulous CM, who advised us to only pour a little into our glasses each time so that the remainder stayed on ice. (I have seen, over the years, some poor reviews of the CMs here, but as always ours was terrific. Being friendly and respectful always goes a long way, and our CM was very knowledgeable and fun.)
We have always wanted to try La Cava del Tequila, but we're not big drinkers and there never seems to be time for just a drink and a snack (plus it seems unsporting to make our DS, 15, sit through that when he'd always either be eating a full meal or having fun in the parks!). Based on this drink, I can imagine that the offerings in the tequila bar must be equally fantastic.
Drinks were served with nice, fresh, toasty warm tortilla chips and salsa.
For appetizers, I ordered:
Quesadillas Rebozadas - battered corn quesadilla stuffed with Huitlacoche, corn, mushrooms, and queso fresco topped with sour cream. (I'm sorry that some of my photos from in here are kind of dark and blurry; it took me a few trys to come up with an approach that worked.) I was eager to try this, because I've never had huitlacoche before -- it is a mushroom-type of fungus that grows on corn. I was delighted with this dish -- the lightly batter fried quesadillas were crispy and full of flavor; earthy, but not overwhelmingly so.
DH went with:
Coctel de Camarõn - Acapulco style shrimp cocktail served with spicy marinated tomato sauce, fried flour chicharron, avocado and lime. He's fairly predictable in liking to order shrimp cocktail wherever we go. This was terrifically spicy; it tasted great (yes, I insisted on a bite!) but be forewarned if you are not a spicy food lover. DH was a little surprised/disappointed at first that the shrimp were cut into pieces and served in this sauce (he was expecting the classic full-shrimp presentation) but he got over that quickly and found this presentation quite enjoyable.
DS also went with kind of a stand-by for him:
Ensalada César - Romaine lettuce, anchovies, parmesan cheese. Nothing not to like here, and he did a great job on it. Now that he's 15, I've finally stopped interfering (I hope!); I probably would have encouraged him in the past to try something else, but I've come to realize it's his vacation, his meal, and that the guy has the right to just order what appeals to him!
For my entree, I had my eye on:
Chile Relleno - Poblano pepper stuffed with pork, pine nuts and almonds, topped with roasted tomato sauce. On the one hand, if I had really been thinking, it might have given me more variety not to have the appetizer and entree that I did, just in that both were kind of similar (tasty morsels of things dipped in batter and fried). But, both choices were really flavorful! For me, this portion, given that I had an appetizer and was planning to have dessert, was perfect. I appreciate not feeling like I'm in a food coma when I finish eating. But, I can see that for $24.50, some might be disappointed that this is one chile (there was a bowl of Mexican rice served on the side). The filling was utterly delicious, and chile rellenos is not something I make at home, so this was a real treat. I would definitely order it again.
DH tried:
Pescado a la Veracruzana - Catch of the day served prepared with capers, olives, bell peppers, Spanish onions, and tomatoes, seasoned with white wine and spices over poblano rice. I am really trying to remember what kind of fish it was; it is possible that it was monk fish (which tastes very lobster-like). DH loved this, in any case.
And DS went with:
Carne Asada - New York strip served with cheese enchilada, black refried beans, red bell pepper, onion, Mexican rice and guacamole. He ordered it medium-rare and it was cooked pretty close to perfectly. I know it is not the best photo, and that the steak itself is kind of hidden under the pile of onions and red peppers, but it was a decent size. The cheese enchilda was spicier than he was expecting so he didn't do a great job on that, but otherwise he finished most of this off. I miss the days when he thought he didn't like guacamole and used to give it all to me....
And onto dessert! One note here -- we found that at every single place we ate -- signatures, and table service throughout all the parks -- meals are paced very quickly. It is clear, and understandable, that they are trying to serve as many guests as possible; with not even having room for walk-ups, I appreciate their need to get everyone in (and I respect that if I expect to be seated on time for my ADRs, I need to be a cooperative part of the process by not taking too long at our table). Every CM was gracious and appropriately attentive, but there was almost never a time that one course was cleared and we had to wait for the next course.
Anyway, for dessert I had:
Helado de Dulce de Leche - caramel ice cream. LOVED this!
DH and DS shared:
Mousse de Chocolate - chocolate mousse and almond brittle candy. I got to have the almond brittle, and the mousse was terrific. DS was too full for his own dessert but he liked the mousse (after DH had eaten the fruit and whipped cream, neither of which DS cares for).
I can see the ways in which the dining plans, particularly the deluxe, kind of skew your thinking. For me, because I wasn't thinking about price or value, I thought this was an excellent meal (we all really enjoyed the food) and this place remains on our "must-do" list. But if you are a big eater and you are paying OOP, you might not think the portions were big enough, and you'd also be disappointed if you had Tex Mex in mind.
