REVIEW: Il Mulino (located at the Swan)
SUMMARY: Still great Italian
After a thorough rehashing of the immense enjoyment of our 2007 meal here, we decided to pay Il Mulino another visit. Knowing how much we liked our first meal here, we were fearful of a sophomore jinx.
We had originally booked a 6:00 ADR, but decided to try to slide in early, so I would have time to run the camera back up to the room before we headed out for the night, after dinner. So, we arrived at the podium at 5:45 p.m. We passed through a fairly full bar area to get to the podium, and were seated immediately. No pager, no stand over there, just straight to the table even though we were early. Excellent. (I should point out that the bar area was so full, they had servers waiting on the tables there. The young lady we saw was not dressed like the servers in the main dining areas. She was wearing a shiny black outfit, what I would call a sleeveless skirt, and what appeared to be very tall black go-go boots. The outfit was fetching, but reminded me very much of an Austin Powers movie.)
For this review, Im going to deviate from my usual mode of naming the waitstaff (when I can remember them), but I will explain why. Our waiters, for this review Waiter One and Waiter Two, were fine. Not terribly engaging, but neither was the service overly flawed. But, there was a patron with an issue, seated near our area, thus in their section, who had asked to see the manager abut something not once, but twice. The complaining patron reminded me of the old guy who kicks the bucket in the bathroom on Clerks. Appearance and expressions were similar, but throw in more Jackie Mason-like gyrations. I didnt get close enough to hear what the complaint was, or if it was legitimate (which would only have been just IMHO anyway), but it appeared to center on his tables food, based on his holding up his fork full of something and pointing to it, when speaking with the manager. What I do know is that what little conversations we had with Waiter One immediately ceased after the first manager visit to that table. After the second manager visit to that table, we didnt feel we were even on Waiter Ones radar. Waiter Two stayed consistent throughout the night, but was younger, and seemed to be the second, supporting the lead role of Waiter One. So, for that long winded explanation, I will pass on naming the servers in this review. I know that a complaining patron, legitimate or not, can drain ones enthusiasm for their job. While it did impact the service we received, I think I should let this one pass.
After being seated by the hostess in an almost empty restaurant (which seemed strange because the bar area was hopping), we began our examination of the menu. We had already discussed (after our previous visit) a starter of the Insaccati Misti A Platter of Italian Delights, for two. We then saw the calamari in the appetizer section, and decided to be a bit risqué this visit. (Note: Robert P. has acquired a new found weakness for calamari and cheese plates ..) Waiter One brought out the small complimentary sampling of sliced meat and roasted eggplant, garlic, and parsley puree, and again this visit the roasted eggplant spread was excellent, and a perfect start to our Italian meal.
A pretty respectable bread basket arrived a minute or two later.
We then went ahead and ordered the sampling platter and the calamari for starters, and said that we would decide on the next course after we saw how hungry we were. This seemed to throw off our server, who wanted us to keep his very large menu on our very small table, for deciding what to order later. We ended up compromising, and placing the menu on the floor, propped up against the side of my chair. Also during this exchange, one cocktail was ordered, a vodka tonic that came out strong and cold, as a good vodka tonic should be.
The platter and calamari arrived together, roughly 10 minutes later, completely overwhelming our small table. (RANT ON - I realize we were only a party of two, but it was early, and the place was at less than 10% of capacity when we were seated. Ultimately, it was our fault for not asking for a larger table, but still, I wish the host staff wouldnt always just default a party of two to the smallest tables in the place. - RANT OFF)
The platter, Insaccati Misti, was a platter of Italian delights: Prosciutto, Soprassata, Cacciatorini, Parmigiano Reggiano, Roasted Red Peppers, Cherry Vinegar Peppers, Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Buffalo Mozzarella, for two. The Parmigiano Reggiano was 2 nice sized chunks, which is about half of the regular appetizer. The Roasted Red Peppers were nice, with good flavor and texture. Of the meats, the Prosciutoo stood out as the best of the bunch, and was shaved paper thin, but not dried out. The mozz/tomato combo came with a bonus, a few slices of a nice beefsteak fresh tomato thrown in, which worked well with the flavors of the sun dried tomatoes. The biggest surprise came with the Cherry Vinegar Peppers. These appeared to be regular cherry bomb peppers, which I have cooked and handled many times back home. Waiter Two warned me that these were hot, but would Robert P listen, nooooo and these things knocked my taste buds off. Hot and spicy peppers, flavorful vinegar, just a great flavor experience, with the heat equivalent (IMHO) of fresh Serrano peppers. Painful at first, but too delicious to stop eating. To quote Moe the bartender Its like theirs a party in my mouth, and everyones invited.
The calamari was excellent. Lightly breaded in a tasty seasoning flour, quick fried, with a kick butt marinara sauce along side. Our second best calamari experience at WDW, trailing only the calamari at the Flying Fish. Thats all I have to say about that.
For a side by side comparison....
For entrée discussions, we considered sharing the Pollo Fra Diavolao that I had ordered last year, but the spicy red sauce would have been much too intense for my wife. Being well fed after the two starters, we went light, and ordered the pizza margherita to share as an entrée. We were also saving room for dessert, hoping to try the incredible tiramisu we had previously. Waiter One didnt seem happy after we ordered just the pizza, but that may have been due to the impact of the complaining patron. Anywho, the pizza margherita (basil, cheese, and tomato) came out probably 15 minutes later. I would estimate this to be a 10 or maybe even 11 inch pizza, with a great thin crust, and simple but delicious flavors.
One of the better pizzas we have had at WDW, but not sure if it was $16 good. Reminded me of the pizza at Wolfgang Puck Express, but this was much much better. And, it was perfect in size, so that we didnt stuff ourselves right out of dessert. After wiping out the pizza, we decided to not make total pigs of ourselves, and again split an order of tiramisu.
Though the picture doesnt do it justice, this was the same light and fluffy creation we had last time, came with a touch of both marscapone cream and zabaglione, and was accompanied by a few different kinds of fresh berries. It was every bit as good as last time, and capped the meal off nicely. Probably the perfect dessert.
I should note that last visit, after dessert, they brought us two chilled shots of Lemoncillo from the giant center display Tilt-A-Jug. These were complimentary, and a nice finish to the meal. This time, no offer or even mention was made. We had a considerable wait for our check (over 10 minutes) after we were done eating, and we didnt have coffee to dawdle over during that time, so I dont know if we would have waited any longer, even if it was free. I guess that part of the meal will remain a mystery, until next time ..
Check:
Total tab for the two of us was $80, pre tip. Not bad, but not great either, considering we laid off the wine and heavy entrees for the evening. I would call it a fair price for a very good meal. There are no discounts currently being accepted at the Swan/Dolphin, which is a shame, because I think it would help to drum up interest for some of these out of the way restaurants.
Summary:
Above average meal, fairly priced. Service could have been better, but I believe that other factors impacted that aspect, so we wont dwell on it (but nor can we praise it like last time). Il Mulino remains on the list of favorites for our next trip.
NEXT UP: Bistro de Paris
REVIEW: Bistro de Paris
SUMMARY: Did I just eat snails? Or Lost in Translation
A fantabulous review by Oybolshoi, a desire to try new things, and a 20% DDE discount converged to form Le Perfect Storm, and drove us ashore to the Bistro this visit. Seriously though, we have had this place on our radar for a few years now, and with this being a short and unexpected trip, the new place got the nod.
PRELUDE:
Though I wont go into the details now, since the story is being optioned by a well known Hollywood studio, Robert P (escorted by Mrs. P to digitally record the event for posterity sake, and bring me any bail money that may be required), attempted to accomplish his dream of drinking around the world (showcase). This plays into my review because while the skies were hazy that day, so was my memory. Thank goodness for the camera.
We arrived at France, in EPCOT, at 5:45 for our 6:00 p.m. ADR, with my Moosehead Light beer in hand (as Canada ran out of LaBlatts). We decided this was just too early to go into the restaurant, and certainly too early to rush through my beer, so we sat in the courtyard off to the right in France, and made some phone calls. Ah beer, the cause of and solution to, all of lifes problems. At 5:55, all phone calls (and beer) were done, so we went inside. The beautiful parlor was nice, with a few chairs for sitting, and a gorgeous staircase leading up to the Bistro. I couldnt decide if it was more Moulin Rouge or Gone With The Wind. Having never seen the movie Moulin Rouge, I went with the latter (no pun intended there)..... We were told to have a seat, and someone would come for us in just a moment. We had enough time to look around, and take a few pictures, and exactly at 6:00 a charming young lady with a lovely French accent came down the stairs calling for our party of two. I half imagined she would say Butler, Rhett Butler, Party of Two.
Up we went to the second floor, with no green drapes to be found, and were led into the dining room where we were the 4th party seated (all of us in opposite corners of the room, no less). Our table, in the Northeast corner, looked out right toward a tree, with a view of the boat dock underneath.
Our waiter took his time coming over to greet us, but Romain (pronounced more like Roman, less like the lettuce) was quite efficient. Not the chattiest waiter weve ever had, but polite and professional, and an excellent server all in all. After greeting us, he briefly covered the menu items, and went to get us water. He came back with our water, and quickly followed that with the amuse bouche, which was a devine tuna tartar, with a lentl puree garnish. Very nice, and a promising start to the evening.
After perusing the menus for a minute, we had pretty much decided to try the set menu, or should I say Menu Degustation, which would allow us to experience more dishes during the evening. The tuna tartar sealed the deal on that decision. We both chose the escargot to start, but we split our choices on the fish selection, with Mrs. P ordering the scallops, and I went with the red snapper. We both selected the beef tenderloin for the next course. I then bowed to my newfound cheese addiction, and added a cheese selection to my line-up. Then for dessert, the set menu had the dessert sampler. No arm twisting needed there.
About the escargot - I had made it 39 years without eating snails. Our starter choices were either a saffron and mussel soup, or the escargot. As this entire meal was uncharted territory, and because by the time we sat for dinner, I had been drinking, A WHOLE LOT, I figured what the hey, if Im ever going to try snails, this is the time and place to do it. So, here we go ..
The escargot was prepared in a butter, garlic, parsley sauce. I was expecting more in the bowl, to be quite frank, but the serving size was perfect. The escargot tasted, to my naïve taste buds, like rich clams. The sauce was not overpowering with the garlic, but balanced well enough to hide any 'snaily' tastes from me. In the end, I ate all of the serving, and it was okay. Nothing I will order again anytime soon, snails just arent my thing, but my wife (the escargot pusher for the evening) declared them among the best she has ever tried.
After the course that I still refer to as snail city, and an appropriate amount of time had passed, Romain brought out the seafood portion of the meal.
The three scallops were, in my opinion, small, but were perfectly cooked, and the ham, sweet peas, pearl onions and cream sauce were amazing accompaniments. The dish was delicious, and all of the flavors worked well together, but still let the scallops stand out. The pea puree base (think hummus-like), and crispy flat treat were okay, but really served only as decoration. A great dish overall, as my wife only shared a few bites with me.
The red snapper was, in a word, perfection. Broiled in the oven, with crispy skin, flaky and light in the middle, and perfect flavor. The sauce was a cream sauce with a hint of curry, and was great just by itself. The other items on the plate were sliced boiled pumpkin, which had no spices added, which I believe was to keep from confusing any flavors with the delicate hint of curry in the sauce. The white things were, I think, parsnips. We lost something in translation with Romain on this one, and its either parsnips or turnips. There is an outside chance he said catnips, but that would just be silly.
On a side note, after my infrequent series of camera flashes, my wife was mortified that I was lighting up our table, taking pictures of the food. I cant believe you are taking pictures of each plate of food. Nobody does this. No more than 5 seconds later after she said that, a table nearer the middle of the restaurant lit up brightly. It wasnt a retaliation flash though, but an older gentleman, with a really really really nice digital camera, and he was taking pictures of his entrée. He then proceeded to turn the plate a few degrees, move something that was causing a shadow, and took another two pictures. The smug look on my face when I turned back to my wife must have been too much, because all she said was Dont even say it. The timing of the entire exchange was just too perfect.
End Part One:
Bistro de Paris
Part Two:
Before I go further, three observations. 1 - The Bistro only had male waiters in tuxedos, and no females that we saw were waiting on tables. There were two young ladies in the dining room though. One was serving bread to each table, and the other was refilling water for the tables. Dont know if this is the norm for France, or the Bistro, or if it was just that way on this night. 2 Romain, our waiter, wasnt very chatty with us, but came out of his shell (so to speak), when the party of six sat down in his section. He talked to them about the college program, and his home town in France, just to name a few of the topics. I briefly had the theory that his chattiness was due to the larger party size and the potential for a bigger tip. That theory went down in flames quickly, because if he came out of his shell for the group of six, he came clear out of the ocean for the table of two young (early 20s) ladies, who were seated across from us just as we started our desserts. They were very attractive, he was turning on the charm, and they were eating it up. Ah, to be young, and in Paris (sort of). 3 The Menu Degustation portion sizes are not full portions, like a regular entrée. The regular scallop entrée had six scallops, and the red snapper entrée was made up of two nice sized pieces. So, I believe I can say that our set menu entrees were roughly half of a full entrée order. Just FYI.
After the fish course, he brought out something with a fancy French name, and explained it was to cleanse our palates between courses, and is customary when having multiple entrees in a French meal. What he brought each of us was a key lime sorbet, over an unknown granite (see Lost in Translation comments at the top of the review), and some, drum roll please . straight vodka.
Thats right, that little cute decorative pitcher in the corner of the plate, which looks like it came straight from a Barbie tea set, contains about half a shot of good vodka. We were told to combine all three ingredients, mix them up a little, and enjoy. We did, we did, and I did. The vodka was a bit too direct for my wife, so I bailed her out, and finished hers. I have since named this part of the meal the do it yourself daqua-rita. It served its purpose though, and erased any remnants of seafood taste we may have had lingering on our tongues.
After the palate cleansing shots, maybe ten minutes passed before the beef tenderloins arrived. The tenderloins were served in a simple presentation over a bed of cooked mushrooms, with just demi-glace sauce, and a single piece of asparagus, which had been peeled, boiled, and flash cooled. The sauce was rich and tasty, the asparagus was perfectly cooked, and the meat was very tasty. Our only complaint about this course, which was not drastic, was that we ordered the tenderloin medium rare, and what we were served was overcooked, I would say it was medium well to well done. Fortunately, when dealing with a choice cut like tenderloin, it doesnt get as chewy from overcooking, and the taste was very good. So, we let it slide, rather than delaying the meal further by sending it back and having them cook a new order.
Now to the cheese plate (loud sigh here) - this was the disappointment of the evening. First, it was $10 extra to add the cheese plate. Second, it came with only 3 small-ish pieces of cheese. And the kicker nobody seemed to know what 2 of the 3 cheeses were. Seriously, we tried to find out. Romain was sure that the first one (top left) was Camembert, and I have to agree. Smooth, rich, very nice, with a mildly bitter rind. The third one (middle right) was, from what we could tell, a soft goat cheese, of unknown name and origin. It was nice, with good flavor, but not memorable. The second one though (middle bottom), I still dont know what it was. Romain said it was a cooked cheese, which made no sense. It had a red rind, which is turned away from the camera, and the texture reminded me of a hybrid between parmagiano reggiano and gouda. The taste was rather bland, and provided no help at all. Despite sending Romain back to find out what the cheeses were, we got no more information than what I just wrote. For $10 extra, I expected something distinctive, memorable and French. But even now, Im still not sure exactly what was on that plate.
On to dessert. Ah dessert, In France. Ah.
We were each presented with a plated dessert sampler. And it was every bit as good as it looks. UPPER LEFT Apples, pastry, sugar, light crème. Wonderful, but overshadowed by the others. BOTTOM LEFT Chocolate dome, with an orange crème center. Chocolate city people, way too much chocolate for me, but my wife enjoyed it. A chocolate lovers dream. MIDDLE Pineapple sorbet, over a what I would call a mild pineapple chutney or even hash. Fresh, fruity, and delicious. BOTTOM RIGHT Vanilla Crème Brulee. Its France people, there had to be a crème brulee somewhere. Crunchy thin top, thick rich bottom. Just great. And unlike the crème brulee offered during the Food & Wine Festival, no hammer and chisel required. TOP RIGHT Chocolate lava cake. A light and fluffy cake, with a liquid chocolate center, and gets out vote for the best dessert of the evening.
Check:
Total tab for the two of us, before the DDE discount, was $160 pre tax and tip (note that the cheese plate was up to $10, rather than the old price of $5). Had we opted for the wine pairings, it would have added another $100 to that $160. This was by no means a cheap meal in any sense. But you get what you pay for. With the exception of the pitiful cheese plate, everything was delicious and fairly priced.
Summary:
Great meal, very good service, and we are glad we did it. Our experience was not as good as others I have read about, but it was a nice dining experience, thats for sure. Will we be back, sure, but not in the next 12 months, and not without a DDE card. This was a special meal, and well have to save it for special occasions in the future. I would whole heartedly recommend it to anyone wanting to try something more elegant, or just out of the norm.
NEXT UP: Fresh (breakfast)
That burger looks incredible!!!!!
This one at the Fountain, and one for lunch at Raglan Road (pictures of that in the future with the RR review). This one above, they actually messed up my order, as I didn't want the lettuce, tomato, fresh onion on it, since I was adding bacon and sauteed onions. Glad they screwed it up, because the whole thing was delicious the way it was. Juicy, and cooked perfectly to my specs (medium well).
TK,
It was soooo good. I had two great burgers this trip.
Funny thing is, I usually stay away from burgers on vacation, since I grill a pretty mean one at home.
TK,
It was soooo good. I had two great burgers this trip.
Funny thing is, I usually stay away from burgers on vacation, since I grill a pretty mean one at home.
Blech.
That looks really good. I tend to avoid burgers at WDW, because I have tasted the CS burgers before.
(yes, pun intended) running wild 
(another pun) within the restaurant. Total check was under well under $40, including tax and tip. We were in and out of there in under 45 minutes.
Bistro de Paris
After the fish course, he brought out something with a fancy French name, and explained it was to cleanse our palates between courses, and is customary when having multiple entrees in a French meal. What he brought each of us was a key lime sorbet, over an unknown granite (see Lost in Translation comments at the top of the review), and some, drum roll please……. straight vodka.
That’s right, that little cute decorative pitcher in the corner of the plate, which looks like it came straight from a Barbie tea set, contains about half a shot of good vodka. We were told to combine all three ingredients, mix them up a little, and enjoy. We did, we did, and I did. The vodka was a bit too ‘direct’ for my wife, so I bailed her out, and finished hers. I have since named this part of the meal the ‘do it yourself daqua-rita’. It served it’s purpose though, and erased any remnants of seafood taste we may have had lingering on our tongues.
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If the booze was tequila, I'd have called it a Deconstructed Margarita. 
