Jiko- The cooking Place

[stlouisdisneyguy]

HI, Can anyone give me a review, ( I will take good and bad) of Jiko. I am taking the other half there for a birthday dinner. In the past we have been to California Grill, which is always a great time for us. I would appreciate any comments. Thanks

 

[oybolshoi]

Hey there, fellow STL DISer!

The hubby and I have dined at Jiko twice - it was very very good both times. Here is a link to the review I wrote the last time we were at Jiko, which was October 2007. I apologize in advance because there's some additional stuff at the beginning of the review ... skip that and scroll down until you see a self-portrait of the two of us - that's where the Jiko review begins. I hope it helps a little.

Jiko & some other stuff ...

 

[stlouisdisneyguy]

Hey oybolshoi. Good morning to you from Soulard in st louis!!!!! Thanks for the quick response. I appreciate it .... have a super day! Stlouisdisneyguy Just back from reading your review. Can I ask you how you got that birthday balloon bouquet in your room? Was that done ahead of time? I need to get one for the other halfs bday. Any help on that would be great!

 

[oybolshoi]

Hey oybolshoi. Good morning to you from Soulard in st louis!!!!! Thanks for the quick response. I appreciate it .... have a super day! Stlouisdisneyguy Just back from reading your review. Can I ask you how you got that birthday balloon bouquet in your room? Was that done ahead of time? I need to get one for the other halfs bday. Any help on that would be great!

A friend of ours had the CMs at the Beach Club Villas put it together for me ... I don't know if they charged her for it or not. I loved the signed card, and my understanding is that the resorts will often do that for guests' birthdays if you ask.

You can also take a look at the WDW Florist website - they offer a number of balloon bouquets that can be delivered to your room as a surprise for someone in your party. Their prices can be a little crazy depending on what you're looking for, but every now and then I find something reasonable.

 

[MickeyNicki]

Here is my review

http://disboards.com/showpost.php?p=28254780&postcount=148

 

[onelilspark]

I've been to Jiko 3 times now. (All before I started reviews, sorry!) And each time has been fantastic. I love the food, I love the service, you really can't go wrong. I just put it in another thread, but Jiko is hands down my favorite restaurant anywhere...WDW or otherwise. We went in October '08 and Mary was our server. Saw a recent report that she was someone else's server, so if she's still there, request her, she's fabulous.

 

[stlouisdisneyguy]

Thanks so much for your reply and your awesome review MickeyNicki. Like I said we always go to California Grill, and we kind of feel a little burnt out from it. SOOOoooooooooooo. Jiko is for us. We have reservations in September ! Thanks again

 

[Connerzmom]

We ate at Jiko last September and loved it (even our 2 year old loved it). The food was terrific and the service was outstanding. It would be a great choice--IMO--for a nice dinner out for a celebration. Enjoy!

 

[stlouisdisneyguy]

thanks Onelilspark and Connerzmom for your responses. I will definitley try to see if Mary is there. I am really happy now that we made reservations for Jiko. I dont see it talked about too often on here, so good to get a few good reviews! Thanks again,

 

[Pakey]

We've eaten at Jiko at least a half dozen times (sorry, I don't do reviews) and it's one of my favorite places to eat at WDW also. I absolutely love the selection of appetizers here, we've tried them all and I have not had any that I could not recommend. The entrees are okay but I believe the appetizers are the stars of this place. I have not liked any of the fish dishes I've had here but surprisingly, I have enjoyed the filet (not much of a meat eater). The desserts are decent but I have not been wowed yet with those, not even the pistaschio creme brulee that so many dissers recommend.

The wine selection here is quite extensive and the servers are knowledgeable when making recommendations. We have always been very pleased with the choices.

We've been lucky and have enjoyed some very quiet meals here.

 

[stlouisdisneyguy]

Thanks for your response Pakey. I dont do reviews of where I have been either. We have been wanting to try Jiko for a few years now, but always wind up going to California Grill, So decided this trip that it was Jiko. Thanks again, I appreciate it! Stlouisdisneyguy

 

[docmidnite]

HI, Can anyone give me a review, ( I will take good and bad) of Jiko. I am taking the other half there for a birthday dinner. In the past we have been to California Grill, which is always a great time for us. I would appreciate any comments. Thanks

I don't want to be the downer - but -

I was not impressed with the service at all. It may have just been a snag and perhaps I should give it another try.

My GF and I arrived there and once we were seated had to wait 25 minutes just to get water! Our waitress only had 3 tables including ours!

The food was good, I appreciated a vegan option as a vegan - I just wasn't too impressed with it. Obviously my experience to the menu was/is limited.

The wine selection is good and we enjoyed that - but I couldn't get over how poor the service was.

I hope that helps - and I do think that was just a snag and not the norm.

Best

 

[nemofans]

We have eaten there on 2 separate trips & we love it. It's one of our favorites. The food is so good!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

We first tried Jiko in October 2008.

I had wanted to try it for quite some time but DMom & DDad were a bit hesitant.

Once I showed them that it got 94 by the Zagat guide they were willing to give it a shot. Sure...trust the expert dining reviewers not your daughter

We had a late ADR, 9pm. We arrived at 8:30, checked in and had a drink at the Victoria Falls Lounge. We were seated by 8:50 and had a fantastic server, Ron.

He suggested sharing several appetizers as we had never been before. We selected the BBQ Chicken Flatbread with Apples, the Cheese Board and the Seared Ostrich. Every single one was amazing!

The flatbread was smokey from the bbq sauce, creamy from the cheese and had a light crisp finish from the apples.

The cheeses were out of this world! They change frequently but our night there were 5. I believe that there were 2 cow's milk, one sheep's milk and 2 goat's milk.

The ostrich was by far the star of the appetizers! It does not taste gamey or like poultry at all. It was dense like beef or lamb with a flavor profile similar to duck and beef. It is served medium-rare and was so delicious we nearly licked the plate clean.

The bread was also a pleasant surprise. There were two, one flaxseed whole wheat and one honey oat - i think. The butter was outstanding! It was tandoori spiced butter. We have all tried indian food and typically we dislike the spice profile but this was mild, earthy and rich.

For our entrees DMom & DDad had the lamb tenderloin which was paired with lentils and berbere spiced carrots. They thoroughly enjoyed it.

I had the Filet with Mac & Cheese and Red Wine Reduction. OMG it was heaven on a plate. It was the best filet I have had at WDW. It wasn't quite on par with a Morton's or Ruth's Chris quality but it was far superior to Le Cellier or Yatchsman.

The mac & cheese was very creamy and rich which was balanced by the tart syrupy red wine reduction.

For dessert we tried the Meyer Lemon Curd with Blueberry Pomegranate Compote and Sour Cream Ice Cream. It was a lovely light finish to an exceptional meal.

We will be returning to Jiko in just over 2 weeks and I can't wait!

 

[xipetotec]

HI, Can anyone give me a review, ( I will take good and bad) of Jiko. I am taking the other half there for a birthday dinner. In the past we have been to California Grill, which is always a great time for us. I would appreciate any comments. Thanks

Best "upscale" dining on property IMHO. We love a lot of the restaurants at disney. But this is a case of "You get what you pay for"...

 

[stlouisdisneyguy]

Thanks so much for the good comments ,Nemofans, Xipetotec and TinkerBelle_325. No worries Docmidnite, there have been plenty of times that I have recommended a great restaurant to someone that I know here in ST. Louis, and then they go , and it was awful, and I have egg on my face!! I think sometimes even the best restaurants can have an off night or two. I appreciate your response. Thanks everyone, Stlouisdisneyguy!

 

[wezee]

I really, really wanted to like Jiko, but DH and I were disappointed with our meal, last Sept. Alot of the problems were because of our server. He gave us the feeling that he was too busy to bother with us. When we asked for a wine suggestion he just said..."they are all great". When we asked for a appie and entree suggestion, he said......"Just pick one...they are all great"
We both tried their signature filet, and maybe it was the chef's off-night, but the mac n cheese was tough and bland and our filets that were ordered med-rare were more like med-well done. I know we should have said something to our server, but we were frustrated and just gave up and left without even ordering dessert.
Also, we did not get a romantic feel at Jiko. Many of the tables for two are lined up along a long booth, with the tables placed about 18in. apart. We were squeezed between 2 other couples and heard more of their private conversations than we wanted.
We have been to most of the Signatures at WDW and have several favs that will continue to replace Jiko on our next trip.....like....Flying Fish, Narcoosees, Shulas and Yachtsman. We are looking forward to trying Cal. Grill and Citricos for the first time in Oct.

 

[MarieA]

We've eaten at Jiko 5 times in the last 3 years. It was one of our favorite 2TS restaurants until our last meal there in May 09. I knew that there was a new chef but figured it would still be as good as it has been in the past. My DH and I ordered the barbeque chicken flatbread and the cucumber, tomato and red onion salad. Both of our appetizers were great. I ordered the Grilled Berkshire Pork Loin and my DH ordered the Roasted Lamb Loin (which he had on our previous trip and loved it). My Pork Loin turned out to be a very fatty pork chop. I couldn't eat half of the pork because it was fat and I didn't care for the sides. I brought this to the attention of our server, he took it to the kitchen to show the chef and then took it off our bill. In speaking with the server I asked why the menu didn't state pork chop instead of pork loin and he said that it was the chefs decision to list it as a pork loin. I explained that I had order the pork loin medallions twice before and loved the dish both times. I also let he know that I was disappointed as I was so looking forward to my meal at Jiko. My DH's Berkshire Lamb was good but he said it wasn't as good as the last time we were there in November 08. Our desserts were both good. Our server was fantastic. He apologized for my bad experience and asked us to give Jiko another try.

Overall I wasn't happy with our last meal at Jiko. I don't know whether it was because of the change in chefs or it whether it was just an off night. I will definitely give it another try because we've had 4 great meals there (both food and service).

 

[blanq]

Thanks so much for your reply and your awesome review MickeyNicki. Like I said we always go to California Grill, and we kind of feel a little burnt out from it. SOOOoooooooooooo. Jiko is for us. We have reservations in September ! Thanks again

I don't think you will regret your decision. My family loves CG too and ate there for my DH's birthday this past January, enjoying a fantastic meal in the wine room, but we also are Jiko lovers. I would actually choose Jiko over CG if push came to shove. I think that the menu at Jiko is more inventive and unique. I also think they do a fantastic job of marrying flavors. Any seafood dish you choose at Jiko will be perfectly prepared, and I think the flatbreads have a nod over the ones at CG. The filet with mac and cheese is a Jiko signature dish, but not my personal favorite. I will go for a fish dish here every time. Oh...the pistachio creme brulee is yum. I like the unique wine list at Jiko, but CG has a great wine list too, and CG stocks my favorite California white, Conundrum. I like the atmosphere at Jiko over CG, although the wine room at CG is pretty amazing. I have found the service at both to be equally attentive yet non-obtrusive, which is how I like it.

 

[stlouisdisneyguy]

Thanks so much for your replies. The good and the bad. This will be our first time here, so I am so looking forward to it. We have eaten at California Grill many times , and always had great service and food, however, I have read many good and bad reviews on Cali Grill. thanks again for all your replies!