4 days/nights of eating at the world, to include Le Cellier!

[BLTLDZ]

Celebrated my 31st birthday at the world
The cast was myself, and DH (35).
The dates were 5/7-5/11/11

Restaurants included are:

Le Cellier
Flying Fish- Chef's tasting dinner
Il Mulino
Citricos
Captains grille
Ohana
Kona

Stay tuned!! Food Porn to follow!

 

[butiflfeet]

Yay! More reviews! I can't wait

 

[jakenjess]

Nice lineup! I'm in!

 

[TigerKat]

WooHoo!! You went to three of our favorite places, can't wait!

 

[jmkst58]

yay. count me in. sounds perfect.

 

[BLTLDZ]

So, we arrived at our favorite place early in the morning, then headed over to Epcot right in time for our 12:05 PM lunch reservation at the coveted, Le Cellier steakhouse.

This was our first time trying this restaurant. In the past, I had tried to secure a ressie here unsuccessfully, and eventually just stopped trying.

So, imagine my surprise when making lunch reservations online, I was able to get lunch for our arrival day. So I snagged it.
Without further ado..
We started with the Pretzel bread…Yum!
I could have easily eaten the whole basket, but I controlled myself.



I also decided against the cheese soup, as we had dinner reservations at Il Mulino, and did not want to over- do lunch.

I had the burger: Le Cellier House Burger - with roasted mushrooms, pancetta,maple barbecue, Black Diamond Cheddar, and crispy onions $14.99



LOVED it. My mouth is watering just thinking about it….Dh tried it and he too agreed it was worth the hype I was giving it.
DH had the famous filet mignon with mushroom risotto.

Le Cellier Mushroom Filet Mignon - with wild mushroom risotto, white truffle and herb butter sauce $26.99



He loved it, but agreed that Yachtsman steakhouse filet was better.

I tried his, it was quite good…I will say, I did not enjoy the risotto. It just tasted like salt infused chicken broth. Maybe it was an off day..DH did not care for the risotto either….All in all, we had a great meal & great server…OK in my book, and we plan to go back.
Stay tuned for dinner @ Il Mulino....

 

[BLTLDZ]

That same night, we headed over to Il Mulino in the Swan resort.
I did not take photos this night, and I apologize…but we were both VERY underwhelmed to say the least….

First off, the service was HORRIBLE. The restaurant looks nice enough, but was not even half full…YET, we waited quite awhile for anybody to come to our table, and when they did, they were not very nice..On top of that, we ended up with 4 different servers throughout the course of our meal. Each one was worse than the last!

We started off with the fried calamari..

Calamari Fritti - Lightly Fried Calamari with a Spicy Marinara Sauce $13
It was “ok”. Came out REALLY fast, and seemed reheated. We ate it, but more out of hunger.

We also had –
Insaccati Misti for Two - A Platter of Italian Delights: Prosciutto, Mortadella, Soprassata, Cacciatorini, Parmigiano Reggiano, Roasted Red Peppers, Cherry Vinegar Peppers, Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Buffalo Mozzarella $24
This was the highlight of the meal, and it was just “good”.

 

[BLTLDZ]

For entrees , at one of our servers suggestions, both DH & I had the snapper
Dentice - Seared Red Snapper with Cherry Tomatoes, Garlic, Pancetta and White Wine served over Broccoli Rabe $31

The female server told DH to order the snapper over the Salmon, or we would be arguing over the snapper.

The snapper was nothing special. Not awful, but not as great as she made it seem. If that is their best dish, (as she claims), then I don’t think this restaurant is that special.

Again, not our cup of tea, and won’t rush back here, especially with the abundance of great italian eateries at our fingertips where we live.

Up next:
FLying Fish Chef's tasting dinner with wine pairings!

 

[LuvLuvLuv]

i'm joining in!!

 

[BLTLDZ]

This was by far, a wonderful experience.

FF has always been a consistent favorite of ours, so when I heard about this and told DH, he was on board right away. I called disney dining back in february to book our May 8th dinner.
FYI- You must pay in full at the time of booking.

We opted for the later seating, the 8:15.
We were seated promptly at the chef's counter, next to two other very nice couples. This was our view



It was pretty neat to watch the action of the kitchen!

 

[BLTLDZ]

I do not remember the servers name, but I belive the Chef's name was Todd....both were wonderful, and explained everything in detail, but did not hover, and allowed us to really enjoy the experience, and pleasant conversation with one another.

The chef started us with : "Amuse Bouche"- Chilled Epcot Land Pavillion Cucumber soup w/ Greek yogurt, citrus, avocado & cumin accents, Maryland blue crab & american sturgeon caviar



The soup was very refreshing.....Off to the right you will see what looks like a small ice cream cone, which was filled with tuna tartare...This was REALLY good. I am normally NOT a fan of raw tuna & caviar, but figured, what the hey?? I really enjoyed it. The wine paired with it sure helped
Oh, and for those interested, the wine paired with this course was a white wine:
Lucien Albrecht Brut Cremant'd Alsace NV
It was crisp & refreshing.
Also, for those wondering, the wine pours were not stingy at all...

 

[BLTLDZ]

The maryland blue crab was REALLY good, and quite meaty..All in all, a fabulous first course!

On to course # 1...Salad of Farmer Lee's Young Ohio Greens
Hudson Valley Duck Confit, preserved lemons, Sea Beans & pickled ramps, Duck prosciutto Cracklins, Duck glaze drizzle and a meyer Lemon-Dijon Emulsion



This was paired with : Saint Andre de figuiere COtes de Provence Rose '09
I realize as I type this how "fancy" this all sounds..

I guess I should mention that the descriptions are right off of the personalized menu, and that if you are not an adventurous eater, I recommend making sure disney dining can clarify that they have a simpler menu I was told it changes with the chef, and is never the same.

I am normally not a duck eater, but again, really enjoyed this...the flavors blended nicely. The duck sort of tasted like pork.

Course # 2- "Saffron laced tagliatelle alla Frutti di Mare
Chardonnay poached dutch style mussels and cedar creek clams, Confit fennel, young leeks, arugula, and a lobster rose creme.



(Sorry for the blurriness!)
This was my favorite
The seafood was so fresh, pasta cooked perfectly, just the right amount of broth and salt....just so good! I thoroughly enjoyed this!

Paired with : "Saarestein Pinot Blanc, Mosel 09
By now, we were getting REALLY stuffed, and a little loopy
We were having a blast..

After this course, we received "intermezzo" to cleanse the palatte
This was a coconutty sorbet... YUM


They were very accomodating as well. The woman seated to the right of me did not care for her sorbet, so right away, the chef sent her a different flavor...she was very content, and I thought that was really nice of them, considering the menu was set.

 

[BLTLDZ]

Main course! Yes, there is MORE food

Porcini & pepperberry-scented lamb ribeye & catskill merino Maple-glazed Lamb bacon

This was like a "filet of lamb" SO GOOD! Again, very tender, but not raw..cooked to perfection.



This was paired with a nice red wine "Dusted Valley Stained tooth Syrah, Columbia Valley, '07"

Last but not least, the dessert course...OH MY GOODNESS is all I can say.
The chef made Passion fruit cream filled Profiteroles, exotic fruits & ginger jam...This was a party for the mouth...It was light and refreshing, believe it or not. I have never had a dessert like this before, and I come from a LONG Line of gourmet bakers...holy moly...



When I complained to my DH how stuffed I was, and how I could not move, he attempted to swipe a profiterole from my plate...well, needless to say, I smacked his hand out of the way!
It pains me to admit, after two , I just could not do anymore, or I would have needed to be rolled out the door, and down the boardwalk ...So, he got his way, and had the rest of my dessert...

All of this, with tax & gratuity came to $137 Per person....In both of our opinions, worth every penny...We are thinking of doing this again in the future , especially since the menu, and the chefs, change continually.
Here's a pic of us with the chef
(Well, a picture of a picture, so again, sorry for the blurry image!)



A GREAT experience!! Highly recommend

Stay tuned for lunch at Kona...

 

[jmkst58]

yay. i'm so happy to see the review of the chef tasting--- THANK YOU!!!!!!

 

[chocolateMinnie]

great reviews - Le Cellier is one of our favourites but we have yet to do lunch there - booked for our next trip.

 

[BLTLDZ]

yay. i'm so happy to see the review of the chef tasting--- THANK YOU!!!!!!

No problem! DO you have it booked? It was SO GOOD

 

[jmkst58]

YES!!! this sunday!!!! and I was dying to read more about it. THANK YOU! We leave tomorrow for our anniv trip and I cannot wait to get to FLA. We're going to Le Cellier too so I cannot thank you enough for that one too!!!! GREAT REVIEWS

actually--- one question.. my DH doesn't really drink. It's not a huge problem if he can't take the wine pairing off his dinner (I'LL JUST DRINK THEM! lol) but did anyone at your seating take them off?

 

[BLTLDZ]

YES!!! this sunday!!!! and I was dying to read more about it. THANK YOU! We leave tomorrow for our anniv trip and I cannot wait to get to FLA. We're going to Le Cellier too so I cannot thank you enough for that one too!!!! GREAT REVIEWS

actually--- one question.. my DH doesn't really drink. It's not a huge problem if he can't take the wine pairing off his dinner (I'LL JUST DRINK THEM! lol) but did anyone at your seating take them off?

Hmm...good question! I think everyone had the wine pairings, but, did you book them both with the pairings? Since it is pre paid, I'm not sure how it works.... You shouldcall them to confirm. Happy anniversary!!

 

[BLTLDZ]

Kona cafe: lunch!

This was unexpected...We had originally planned this day to be a HS day, with Sci-fi dine-in lunch,,,BUT, we decided to skip the park this day, and go shopping instead...

We started our shopping spree at the Contemporary, then ended up at the Poly.

Long story short: we were hungry, and got a last minute lunch at Kona.
Of course, we started off with a backscratcher, and Lapu- Lapu (my favorite!)



We started off with the Duck pot stickers with Ginger glaze...



These were really tasty...
Then we both ordered , off of the waitors recommendation, the chicken:

Pan-fried Chicken with Coconut and Mango Sauces

I forgot this picture, but it was really good, and we are glad we tried Kona! We will definitely return

Next stop: Citrico's !! (Our consistent favorite!)

 

[PrincessBetsy]

Loving all your reviews! I just have to say that your Flying Fish Chef's Dinner looked amazing! I would love to try this one day!