FLYING FISH CAFE - PART 2
I believe that it was about this time during our meal that Michael returned and brought Beth with him. She had not had much sleep the night before with packing and such and then had a very early flight out that morning. Consequently she was quite tired and had laid down for a quick nap before dinner but had fallen into a deep sleep. I'm kind of remembering now that Beth had left behind her phone at ESPN, where she had spent some time with Hunter & Paula that afternoon and they had possession of it. This would explain why we were unable to reach her by phone. But regardless of whether this was true or my memory is playing tricks on me, the final outcome remains the same. Our entire group of 6 was now present and we proceeded to order our entrees...
I had made a plan with Brenda to share the Signature Entree Duo. Brenda wanted the steak and I wanted only the Red Snapper part of the duo...
Idaho Potato-wrapped Red Snapper over a Rich Leek Fondue with a Veal Glace de Viande and Red Wine-Cassis Butter Reduction
This is my second favorite seafood entree at WDW, second only to the salmon at Artist Point. During my second visit to Flying Fish back in May 2011 I ordered this and ever since then I haven't been able to order anything else there. The smaller portion that you receive with the duo is actually the perfect size for me though, so I was very happy that it worked out for me to share with Brenda.
Since Beth was seated next to me at the table, I got to see up-close what she chose for her entree. She not only allowed me to take a photo of it but also insisted that both Brenda and I have a taste.
And one more, this time a close-up shot, because these sushi rolls were so darn photogenic...
I'm not 100% certain but I believe this was the Yellowfin Tuna Tartare and Crispy Tempura Tuna-Vegetable Sushi Roll that is listed in the Appetizer section of the menu.
Hopefully Beth will jump in (sometime after she and Wil return from their current trip to Disney World) and confirm this, as well as give you her thoughts regarding this dish. As for my opinion, well first off I must tell you that previously the thought of eating raw tuna (or any other fish) made me queasy.
But this looked beautiful, its appearance was actually much more appetizing than my cooked fish. So with Beth's assurance that it was delicious, I ventured into the previously uncharted waters of raw fishies
and took a small bite of one of her sushi rolls...and it wasn't disgusting!
So I now know that I can take a bite or two of raw fish without losing the rest of my dinner. And who knows, maybe one of these days you will be reading my review of a plateful of sashimi...but I wouldn't hold your breath.
Ok, that was the good, but now for the bad.
Through the process of ordering and receiving our entrees, our relationship with our server continued to deteriorate. In fact, even before our entrees were ordered, Hunter had had enough of our server and stated that he would place his order directly with the chef.
Though Beth is not the complaining type, not long after our entrees were delivered she apparently reached her breaking point. She had had a wonderful dinner at Flying Fish just one week earlier and had sang its praises to us earlier that day. So feeling both disappointed and embarrassed that she had highly recommended Flying Fish, she decided it was time to express her feelings to the manager.
And the manager listened and took immediate action.
He came to our table and apologized for the poor service which we had received up to this point. He replaced our server with one who had a personality which was much more compatible with our group. The manager assured us that our new server was much more experienced and would take very good care of us for the remainder of our meal. And I'm happy to say that his promise was fulfilled. Our new server was friendly and seemed at ease with us, yet still acted in a professional manner. Oh, and as a side note, it seems that our first server had only been employed at Flying Fish for a couple of weeks...which pretty much invalidates his statement that the bread was the same as it had always been, doesn't it?
With the tension and drama now over, I was able to relax and enjoy my dessert. Unfortunately I completely forgot to take a photo of the dessert menu, but hopefully either Brenda or Paula took one. Since I already knew exactly what I wanted, I'm not sure if I even looked at the menu. During our dinner here in December we had each gotten to sample this After-Dinner Dessert Cocktail...
Peanut Butter Freeze with Kahlúa, Baileys Irish Cream, Crème de Banana, Dark Crème de Cacao, and Peanut Butter
- Photo credit to Rachel (rachel09985) -
I loved this and was greatly looking forward to having it again...only this time the full-size version.
This was again delicious!!
One more photo, this one taken by our new server toward the end of our meal...
But I promised you a surprise ending, so it's not time for me to deliver. Soon after the above photo was taken, we were told by our server that our entire meal had been comped.
That's right folks...wine flight, appetizers, entree, dessert cocktail, all free. And that was just my share of what we had consumed. Once a little of the shock had worn off, I began calculating in my head what my bill would have been so that I could leave our server an appropriate tip. I estimated that my dinner would have been around $100. Add to this 5 more people and our combined bill could have easily surpassed the $500 mark. So now you know why I am still baffled by this dinner and its surprise conclusion. The problem began with such a minor thing, in the grand scheme of things it was "nothing", and if our innocent question/comments regarding the bread had been handled appropriately by our server then it would have ended there. Instead this "nothing" ended up becoming something...something which required the attention of the chef, the manager, and ultimately having our $500+ bill comped.
As I said in the beginning of this review, I left the Flying Fish Cafe that night wondering "what the heck just happened here?"
More than two months later, my only answer to this question is that it was...
"Much Ado About Nothing"
So in conclusion, all the food that I had that night at Flying Fish was delicious and our second server, the chef, and the manager, all went above and beyond to make everything else right. Therefore, I will most definitely return to Flying Fish Cafe. In fact, I already have plans to dine there with Linda (Linda67) during my October trip and am very much looking forward to it. But don't be surprised though, Linda, if I'm a little leery of the bread...in fact, I think I might just skip it.
Glad to hear it worked out and that the food was very good (ignoring the bread).
at Gollum! But, I admit, I can relate. In Disneyland I always stock up on treats from either Pooh Corner or Main St, because it is a little taste of Disney when I'm home. Nothing else compares!! I will be stocking up at WDW also, I'm sure of it.
...um, I mean escargot at the F & W booth in France. 
