Nancy for Disney
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2008
- Messages
- 1,114
The following was taken from my tr. I thought I would post it here for those who are wondering if they should dine at Kouzzina's. My link to the entire tr is posted at my signature.
I had gone back and forth on whether or not we should eat at Kouzzina. I had read a lot of mixed reviews on DIS after all. I am a big fan of Food Network and at first had been very excited that I would have an opportunity to eat at one of the Iron Chefs restaurants. I love the dining review forum so I start to read a lot of reviews on DIS. The majority of the reviews I read were negative but there were also some that were positive. In the end I decided to keep the adr, thinking that if something happens, such as we miss our arrival night adr, I would cancel Kouzzina and maybe we could do signature dining one night. Since we got that earlier flight we had no problems with our arrival night adr so we ended up just keeping all our adrs as they were. Boy am I glad we did!
We had a about a 20 min wait for our adr. I know we checked in early and I think we ended up being seated just before our adr time. We had a great view of the open kitchen from our table.
It did take a bit longer than I would have liked to meet our waiter. I think his name was Charlie. I already knew exactly what I wanted but as I saw plates go by I started to question myself. The Traditional Whole Fish Pan-roasted was looking mighty good as it went by. In the end I decide to stick with my original choice, The Fishermans Stew. Charlie tells me it is the best thing there. Will he be right???
I start off with the Sangria Kouzzina. It was a nice and light cocktail. I wish I had some now.
Our bread and butter is delivered. Charlie was good about telling us what kind of salt is on the butter. I cant remember what he said though.
Bread and butter was very tasty. It was fresh and had an earthy flavor. It would have been nice to be served warm but it was still very good.
It took a while to get our entrees. I had lots of time to take photos of chefs while in the kitchen. My ultimate goal was to get a picture of flames in the air. It took a while but I finally succeeded.
That is our waiter, Charlie, on the left.
The chefs notice me taking pictures and pose for me. I know the one on the left is the head chef because I read about her on one of the blogs on DIS or maybe it was a podcast. I cant remember.
At some point Charlie stops by to check on us. He says that he hasnt been around because he was searching for some cream for the next table. They were out and he had to go somewhere else to get some more. Possibly a farm and he had to milk the cow himself.
It really was getting to take some time for our food but we werent in a hurry so it didnt bother me too much.
Finally our food arrives.
DH had the Oak-fired Pork T-bone (with Farmhouse Greens and Citrus-Fennel Marmalade). He doesnt get as excited about food as I do but he said it was good.
Here is my Fishermans Stew. (Scallops, seasonal Fish, Shellfish, Fennel, Grilled Bread, and Ouzo Butter)
This was so freakin good.
The spice was just right although I can see how it would not be for everyone. It spices were not hot but there was a lot of flavor. On one of the reviews I read someone stated that this was too much like a soup as the sauce was too thin. I totally disagree. The sauce was quite thick. The bread on the side was perfect for getting every last drop of the sauce. I strongly recommend Kouzzina based on this dish alone.
Charlie came around for our dessert order. I was very full but we were on DDP so I really had no other choice but to get dessert. Poor poor me, right?
I also already knew what I wanted based on a DIS review. Someone had stated in their review that the only good part of their meal was the Galaktoboureko (Semolina Custard in Baked Phyllo Dough and Vanilla-Praline Gelato) Charlie sealed the order when he advised me that everyones favorite was the item no one could pronounce.
This was the one part of the meal that was disappointing. I found it to be very bland. Although I liked the gelato. I was very full from my stew so it didnt bother me too much.
DH had the Chocolate Budino Cake (Warm Molten Chocolate with Whipped Sweet Cream). DH let me have a taste and I must say he got the better dessert.
We also got a pressed pot of decaf coffee with our dessert which we enjoyed. Unfortunately it arrived halfway into our dessert. Thankfully Charlie didnt have to milk any cows for my cream.
I give Kouzzina
out of 4. It was by far the best meal of our trip. The only down side was the dessert which may not have been for me as others seem to like it. The service was a little slow but our server was at least pleasant. The slow service actually made for a nice relaxing meal after being in the park all day. I really hope that I some day have a chance to go back and get some of that fishermans stew.
I had gone back and forth on whether or not we should eat at Kouzzina. I had read a lot of mixed reviews on DIS after all. I am a big fan of Food Network and at first had been very excited that I would have an opportunity to eat at one of the Iron Chefs restaurants. I love the dining review forum so I start to read a lot of reviews on DIS. The majority of the reviews I read were negative but there were also some that were positive. In the end I decided to keep the adr, thinking that if something happens, such as we miss our arrival night adr, I would cancel Kouzzina and maybe we could do signature dining one night. Since we got that earlier flight we had no problems with our arrival night adr so we ended up just keeping all our adrs as they were. Boy am I glad we did!
We had a about a 20 min wait for our adr. I know we checked in early and I think we ended up being seated just before our adr time. We had a great view of the open kitchen from our table.
It did take a bit longer than I would have liked to meet our waiter. I think his name was Charlie. I already knew exactly what I wanted but as I saw plates go by I started to question myself. The Traditional Whole Fish Pan-roasted was looking mighty good as it went by. In the end I decide to stick with my original choice, The Fishermans Stew. Charlie tells me it is the best thing there. Will he be right???
I start off with the Sangria Kouzzina. It was a nice and light cocktail. I wish I had some now.
Our bread and butter is delivered. Charlie was good about telling us what kind of salt is on the butter. I cant remember what he said though.
Bread and butter was very tasty. It was fresh and had an earthy flavor. It would have been nice to be served warm but it was still very good.
It took a while to get our entrees. I had lots of time to take photos of chefs while in the kitchen. My ultimate goal was to get a picture of flames in the air. It took a while but I finally succeeded.
That is our waiter, Charlie, on the left.
The chefs notice me taking pictures and pose for me. I know the one on the left is the head chef because I read about her on one of the blogs on DIS or maybe it was a podcast. I cant remember.
At some point Charlie stops by to check on us. He says that he hasnt been around because he was searching for some cream for the next table. They were out and he had to go somewhere else to get some more. Possibly a farm and he had to milk the cow himself.
It really was getting to take some time for our food but we werent in a hurry so it didnt bother me too much. Finally our food arrives.
DH had the Oak-fired Pork T-bone (with Farmhouse Greens and Citrus-Fennel Marmalade). He doesnt get as excited about food as I do but he said it was good.
Here is my Fishermans Stew. (Scallops, seasonal Fish, Shellfish, Fennel, Grilled Bread, and Ouzo Butter)
This was so freakin good.
The spice was just right although I can see how it would not be for everyone. It spices were not hot but there was a lot of flavor. On one of the reviews I read someone stated that this was too much like a soup as the sauce was too thin. I totally disagree. The sauce was quite thick. The bread on the side was perfect for getting every last drop of the sauce. I strongly recommend Kouzzina based on this dish alone.Charlie came around for our dessert order. I was very full but we were on DDP so I really had no other choice but to get dessert. Poor poor me, right?
I also already knew what I wanted based on a DIS review. Someone had stated in their review that the only good part of their meal was the Galaktoboureko (Semolina Custard in Baked Phyllo Dough and Vanilla-Praline Gelato) Charlie sealed the order when he advised me that everyones favorite was the item no one could pronounce.
This was the one part of the meal that was disappointing. I found it to be very bland. Although I liked the gelato. I was very full from my stew so it didnt bother me too much.
DH had the Chocolate Budino Cake (Warm Molten Chocolate with Whipped Sweet Cream). DH let me have a taste and I must say he got the better dessert.
We also got a pressed pot of decaf coffee with our dessert which we enjoyed. Unfortunately it arrived halfway into our dessert. Thankfully Charlie didnt have to milk any cows for my cream.
I give Kouzzina
out of 4. It was by far the best meal of our trip. The only down side was the dessert which may not have been for me as others seem to like it. The service was a little slow but our server was at least pleasant. The slow service actually made for a nice relaxing meal after being in the park all day. I really hope that I some day have a chance to go back and get some of that fishermans stew. 
