Bistro de Paris Tasting Menu

[disneyfav4ever]

Has anyone ever tried this. It's like six courses for $70. I'm thinking about it, but would love to see some reviews before I make up my mind.

 

[BillSears]

Here's a review with pictures that I wrote up in May of 2007. Personally I really enjoyed my dinner there.


Dinner that night was at Bistro de Paris. I’ve passed by the entrance to this restaurant many times and I might have glanced at the menu and ran away once I looked at the prices. Let metell you it’s worth every penny! I spent $70.00 on the chefs tasting menu, added another $35.00 for the wine pairings and added the $5.00 cheese course but I do have the DDE (DisneyDining Experience) card so I got to take 20% off from that. This meal was easily the best meal I’ve ever had at WDW. I can’t wait to come back.

My reservation was for 5:30 and I showed up at about 5:15 to make sure I was on time. But the restaurant didn’t open until 5:30 and I took a walk around France for a bit. At 5:30 they letme ride upstairs on the tallest old style left I’ve ever been on. Take a look at the view…

Now normally I’d expect at least a real elevator from Disney. But I guess this is better then nothing and at least it worked.

I was the first person to be seated. I was introduced to Nicolas, my waiter. It was his firstnight at Bistro de Paris and I was his first guest. Considering how well he took care ofme I wonder what an experienced server would have been like?!?! Nicolas was spot on witheverything and I really couldn’t have asked for better service. I know it’s probably normalfor this level of restaurant but he brought out new silverware for every course and even just bringing a spoon to the table involved him placing it on a plate with a napkin on it.

I already knew I wanted to do the tasting menu but I found out I’d still have to make some choices.

I made my choices and sat back to wait for my first course. I was seated at the window and Ihad a great view to people watch and look at EPCOT while waiting. While waiting for me firstcourse I was brought this…

OK what the heck is that little pitcher? I ask the server (not Nicolas) if that’s for dippingor drinking? She was nice and let me know it was tomato soup and it was to be drunk.The soup was pretty good, nothing special to write home about but a nice little treat. The bread was great especially with the butter.

My first course was the smoked salmon roll with the buckwheat crepes. Nicolas said the egg/chive/sour cream stuff was for the crepe. Great I can handle that. The salmon was amazing, really fantastic. The crepe was OK.

Next up was the Artic Char “Meuniere”. Now this was the one spot where Nicolas let me down although it might have been a language barrier. Nicolas said it was some sort of white fish butI think it was actually a type of salmon. (looking up Arctic Char on the internet says it’srelated to salmon but it is a type of fish) I have to admit it was like salmon but the besttasting salmon I’ve ever had. The sauce really added to the flavor and the slightly crusted outside was perfect. It came with fava beans and I can now say…I don’t like fava beans.

I was given a little chocolate flavored ice with a chocolate flavored side liquor. Very nice! I assume it was a palate cleanser before the main course.

For my main course I chose the beef tenderloin. This was amazing! It tasted different then anyother beef I’ve had, sort of a concentrated beefiness that was just perfect. The potatoes were darn good. The asparagus was, well it was a spear of asparagus, nothing special.

The cheese course was a nice touch. The Brie was great. The goat cheese was pretty good for goat cheese. The third cheese was kind of weird, it had a crunchy burnt crust but it was ok. Looking at the cheese plate though made me feel like I was in a Penn and Teller Bulls*&% episode. I was wondering how much I like the food because the food was great or did I like it because I paid so much for it. I mean I just paid 5 bucks for 3 pieces of cheese andthat was the cheapest item on the menu.

It’s time for dessert! The crème brulee was the best of the desserts followed by the hazelnut ice cream. The rest was pretty good but paled compared to the above.

I’m not really a wine person so I didn’t comment on the wine pairings. But to this uneducatedpalate the wine really did compliment the meals. I was very happy that I added it.

Overall the meal took about 2 hours. I’m very pleased with the whole event and I can’t wait to come back in the future.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

Thanks for the review it was great, and I'm so glad pictures were included. It seems like it would be a very nice meal.

 

[Cindy B]

That looks very nice.

 

[webray]

We have done it, I love it. Gives you a chance to try a little of things that look interesting.

 

[BoomNLeon]

We ate there in April of this year. Here is our review...

Review Date: Sun May 4, 2008 Would you recommend the product? Yes | Rating: 6

Pros: Service
Cons: Did not live up to reputation


Wow! We were really surprised by our evening at Bistro on 4/24. We went to celebrate my birthday and were fully ready for a breath-taking dinner. We both ordered the degustation menu with wine pairings and settled in for a what we expected to be an unforgettable evening. While our server, Jean-Claude, was attentive, professional and friendly, we found the food to be a let down. The only memorable course was the first item, the chef's tuna with saffron sauce. Other than that, the rest of the meal was for the most part forgettable. We were seated for almost 3 hours and each course came and failed to live up to the hype. The bill was almost $300 for the 2 of us and we found our dinner at Narcoossee's 2 nights later to be better.


Also, the atmosphere was a little surprising. We were forwarned by the reservation line that appropriate attire was necessary for Bistro. We were dressed in khakis and polo shirts, but watched the parade of diners come in dressed in tank tops, swim trunks and flip flops. Some even had hats on their heads while they ate. Also, we noticed that there were some light bulbs out. We did not find the atmosphere to be as refined as expected.


Bistro is worth a visit, but it was a costly evening that was not that impressive.


I wish we had a better experience. We usually are not too hard to impress, but this was a bit surprising. I would give it another try, but it was so pricey and a not as good as expected.

 

[oybolshoi]

You've probably already read my review from last October, but if not there's a link on the first page of the most recent food porn thread. We really enjoyed our experience at Bistro, although based on reviews here I'd say it seems to be a bit hit or miss.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

You've probably already read my review from last October, but if not there's a link on the first page of the most recent food porn thread. We really enjoyed our experience at Bistro, although based on reviews here I'd say it seems to be a bit hit or miss.

I have read it, I guess I need to reread it though, not that I mind doing that, your reviews are always quite entertaining.

I think I will try it though. I think $75 for a six course meal, (including the cheeses,) is not a bad deal.

 

[davinakb]

We've done it several times, always enjoyed it. One of my favorite things about Bistro is that the menu seems to change more often, with more variety, so it hasn't been the same place twice. (Wish I had old menus to post.) The atmosphere and service (quiet, refined) are a nice break from the park. Enjoy!

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1) I highly recommend Bistro.
2) We have done most of the items.
3) Bistro is one of the only five TS places I eat at WDW.