Ever since Mike and I had been to the Brown Derby for dinner one evening, Ive been looking for an excuse to go back for lunch. I didnt have a chance to try the Grand Marnier flight at dinner, and the teas on the dessert menu looked great. So when I was thinking about a way to celebrate our engagement, I first thought of the Brown Derby for lunch. Wed seen a lot of MGM lately with Star Wars days in the recent past, so we were only going in for lunch.
I easily made a priority seating for 12 PM, and we showed up right on time. After how loud it was when we ate dinner, I asked to be seated on the upper tier, and was told that it was no problem. We were handed a buzzer, and walked around for a minute before one of the hostesses called for us to follow her to the dining room. Even though it was 12, there werent very many people in the waiting area. Although we were told that we could be seated on the upper seating tier, we were shown to a booth in the lower dining area. We reasoned that because it was lunch, it wasnt as busy and didnt seem as loud, so we just sat down without much comment. We like sitting in booths better than at tables anyway, so we were happy.
Having looked over the menu in depth before we left (something Ive always done. It really gets to Mike sometimes), I already knew what I was going to order. I checked the drinks side, and being so hot outside, I figured something refreshing was in order. Id had a wonderful mojito at some friends wedding reception recently, so I asked to try the one at the Brown Derby, but with regular rum instead of raspberry rum ($6.25) when our server came by to take our drink order, along with a water. Mike ordered his usual diet Coke, of course ($2.00). Mikes drink came out first, so I snagged it and drank some of it because of the heat. My drink came out soon after that, and it was a great version of a mojito, which contains sugar, rum, lime juice, mint leaves, and soda water. This one was fairly strong (though it didnt taste like alcohol), had a great mint flavor, and wasnt too sweet. The actual limes that had been used for juice were put back in the glass, which I thought was nice it shows that real lime juice was used, and not juice from concentrate.
After our server brought our drinks, we were ready to order. I had to order the Cobb salad again this time, with chicken ($12.99, $2.00 for chicken added), and I advised Mike to order the barbecued breast of chicken salad ($14.99). After our drink order was taken, the rolls were brought out and this time they were warm! Theyre pretty much nondescript white rolls, but were crusty and had soft insides they were very welcome. At this point, Mike was in dire need of a refill on his soda, and it took a little while before our server came by. But very soon after the rolls came out, my Cobb salad was brought out, un-tossed. I asked to take a picture quickly, and the chef who brought out the salad wanted to see the picture. He was amused by the fact that I was taking pictures of my food nearly everyone is. He tossed the salad and presented it to me. The salad contains avocado, bacon, blue cheese, tomatoes, egg, chives, and chopped mixed greens. Right after, Mikes salad arrived, as well. His salad had thickly shredded romaine lettuce, green goddess herb dressing, and a teriyaki barbecued chicken breast with grilled flatbread on the side.
I know that a lot of people dont like the Cobb salad chopped as it is, but I love salads like that. When I eat other salads with lots of toppings, Im always eating either just lettuce or just toppings. With a chopped salad, I have a little bit of everything. The dressing is already on the greens when it is brought out, and was a very light, refreshing dressing. This is the best salad Ive ever had, and of course, the best Cobb salad seeing as its the original Cobb salad, I would hope that it would be the best. It would be difficult for me to eat here and not order this salad, either at lunch or dinner and I like variety.
Mikes salad was a winner as well. The barbecued chicken had actually been grilled over wood (you can taste it in the meat), and tasted fantastic. The barbecue sauce had a light teriyaki taste not overwhelmingly so, but enough to be noticeable. The odd part of the chicken was that it was a breast on the bone, with a leg bone attached. Id never seen a chicken breast on a salad that still had the bones in it. It didnt really take away from the salad as a whole, though. The flatbread was also grilled over wood, and was just as good as the flatbread at Spoodles (grilling bread is a great thing try it at home!). I usually dont like romaine because of the white, crunchy ribs, but this didnt contain any ribs at all. The green goddess dressing tasted as if it had been made fresh, with fresh herbs, was slightly creamy, and was very good. I only wish they had the recipe for it! The salad was so good, that it did rival my Cobb salad for my attention, but Mike kept it close to him on his side of the table.
After we were finished, our server came by to ask if we were ready for dessert, and of course we were! I first mentioned that I was splurging and would like to order the Grand Marnier flight ($22.00). He asked if I wanted it before or with our desserts, and I said that it didnt matter. For dessert, our server recommended the flourless chocolate cake if we liked chocolate, and I asked how it was served, after the bad one that we had at Artists Point. He said that it was almost fudgy, and that sold me. We wanted to try one other dessert, so we took a minute to deliberate. Mike thought that the banana mascarpone cheesecake sounded good, so he went with that one. The Grand Marnier flight was brought out first, and thankfully it was on the same type of placemat that the wine flight was on. Each large glass held a tiny pour (maybe ½ of an ounce?), and Mike was a little surprised at how small a portion it was. I wasnt surprised, though, because I knew how strong it was. A warning this really spoils you on the Grand Marnier 100 and 150. The regular one almost tastes harsh after the two older ones. The Grand Marnier 100 was my favorite, and was also my servers favorite. It seemed to have the best balance of taste and aroma. Unfortunately, I cant regularly buy or order it, as its well out of my price range. This was, too, but it was a splurge, and I had been planning on it.
The desserts came out while I was in the middle of the flight. The flourless chocolate cake looked promising it was small, looked dense, had two round pistachio brittles, a raspberry sauce, and decorative chocolate. I took a bite, and I was in heaven; I had finally found a great flourless cake on property! This rivaled the flourless cake at Tchoup Chop. Dense, fudgy, chocolatey, and decadent. The pistachio brittles were light and delicious, and the fresh-tasting raspberry sauce went very well with the cake. I looked at the decorative chocolate piece, and on the back it was decorated with gold musical notes what a nice touch! The first bite of Mikes cheesecake was just ok, but he found the caramelized banana center, and he was much happier. The cheesecake part was good, but not great, but he liked the combination of the two together. According to the menu, there was a caramel sauce, but I never noticed it. It may have been what I thought looked like a chocolate sauce, but I never tried it. If you like the Tonga Toast at the Kona Café, youll really like this cheesecake.
After we were finished with our desserts, our server came by and talked with us about the dessert chef hes actually a pastry chef, his specialty is chocolate, and hes done a lot of the chocolate statues around the entire resort. We had a very pleasant conversation with him about the dessert chef, and we were very impressed by his work.
Overall, we had a wonderful lunch here. My meal was perfect, from the mojito to the flourless cake, and I believe Mike felt the same about his meal. The service was great for the most part. It was relatively quiet compared to how loud it was at dinner time, and there seemed to be plenty of seats when we arrived at 12 PM. It was a great respite from the heat, and we were reluctant to leave the restaurant to brave the middle of the day outside. Interestingly, there was a long line to check in and a lot of people waiting when we left at 1:45 PM. I would make a priority seating just in case, but I dont think it would be much of a problem if you arrived early. I highly recommend coming here for a meal, lunch or dinner, if you have a chance. Its one of our new favorites, and theres a little bit of everything for everyone. Just dont skip the Cobb salad!
Photo gallery
I easily made a priority seating for 12 PM, and we showed up right on time. After how loud it was when we ate dinner, I asked to be seated on the upper tier, and was told that it was no problem. We were handed a buzzer, and walked around for a minute before one of the hostesses called for us to follow her to the dining room. Even though it was 12, there werent very many people in the waiting area. Although we were told that we could be seated on the upper seating tier, we were shown to a booth in the lower dining area. We reasoned that because it was lunch, it wasnt as busy and didnt seem as loud, so we just sat down without much comment. We like sitting in booths better than at tables anyway, so we were happy.
Having looked over the menu in depth before we left (something Ive always done. It really gets to Mike sometimes), I already knew what I was going to order. I checked the drinks side, and being so hot outside, I figured something refreshing was in order. Id had a wonderful mojito at some friends wedding reception recently, so I asked to try the one at the Brown Derby, but with regular rum instead of raspberry rum ($6.25) when our server came by to take our drink order, along with a water. Mike ordered his usual diet Coke, of course ($2.00). Mikes drink came out first, so I snagged it and drank some of it because of the heat. My drink came out soon after that, and it was a great version of a mojito, which contains sugar, rum, lime juice, mint leaves, and soda water. This one was fairly strong (though it didnt taste like alcohol), had a great mint flavor, and wasnt too sweet. The actual limes that had been used for juice were put back in the glass, which I thought was nice it shows that real lime juice was used, and not juice from concentrate.
After our server brought our drinks, we were ready to order. I had to order the Cobb salad again this time, with chicken ($12.99, $2.00 for chicken added), and I advised Mike to order the barbecued breast of chicken salad ($14.99). After our drink order was taken, the rolls were brought out and this time they were warm! Theyre pretty much nondescript white rolls, but were crusty and had soft insides they were very welcome. At this point, Mike was in dire need of a refill on his soda, and it took a little while before our server came by. But very soon after the rolls came out, my Cobb salad was brought out, un-tossed. I asked to take a picture quickly, and the chef who brought out the salad wanted to see the picture. He was amused by the fact that I was taking pictures of my food nearly everyone is. He tossed the salad and presented it to me. The salad contains avocado, bacon, blue cheese, tomatoes, egg, chives, and chopped mixed greens. Right after, Mikes salad arrived, as well. His salad had thickly shredded romaine lettuce, green goddess herb dressing, and a teriyaki barbecued chicken breast with grilled flatbread on the side.
I know that a lot of people dont like the Cobb salad chopped as it is, but I love salads like that. When I eat other salads with lots of toppings, Im always eating either just lettuce or just toppings. With a chopped salad, I have a little bit of everything. The dressing is already on the greens when it is brought out, and was a very light, refreshing dressing. This is the best salad Ive ever had, and of course, the best Cobb salad seeing as its the original Cobb salad, I would hope that it would be the best. It would be difficult for me to eat here and not order this salad, either at lunch or dinner and I like variety.
Mikes salad was a winner as well. The barbecued chicken had actually been grilled over wood (you can taste it in the meat), and tasted fantastic. The barbecue sauce had a light teriyaki taste not overwhelmingly so, but enough to be noticeable. The odd part of the chicken was that it was a breast on the bone, with a leg bone attached. Id never seen a chicken breast on a salad that still had the bones in it. It didnt really take away from the salad as a whole, though. The flatbread was also grilled over wood, and was just as good as the flatbread at Spoodles (grilling bread is a great thing try it at home!). I usually dont like romaine because of the white, crunchy ribs, but this didnt contain any ribs at all. The green goddess dressing tasted as if it had been made fresh, with fresh herbs, was slightly creamy, and was very good. I only wish they had the recipe for it! The salad was so good, that it did rival my Cobb salad for my attention, but Mike kept it close to him on his side of the table.
After we were finished, our server came by to ask if we were ready for dessert, and of course we were! I first mentioned that I was splurging and would like to order the Grand Marnier flight ($22.00). He asked if I wanted it before or with our desserts, and I said that it didnt matter. For dessert, our server recommended the flourless chocolate cake if we liked chocolate, and I asked how it was served, after the bad one that we had at Artists Point. He said that it was almost fudgy, and that sold me. We wanted to try one other dessert, so we took a minute to deliberate. Mike thought that the banana mascarpone cheesecake sounded good, so he went with that one. The Grand Marnier flight was brought out first, and thankfully it was on the same type of placemat that the wine flight was on. Each large glass held a tiny pour (maybe ½ of an ounce?), and Mike was a little surprised at how small a portion it was. I wasnt surprised, though, because I knew how strong it was. A warning this really spoils you on the Grand Marnier 100 and 150. The regular one almost tastes harsh after the two older ones. The Grand Marnier 100 was my favorite, and was also my servers favorite. It seemed to have the best balance of taste and aroma. Unfortunately, I cant regularly buy or order it, as its well out of my price range. This was, too, but it was a splurge, and I had been planning on it.
The desserts came out while I was in the middle of the flight. The flourless chocolate cake looked promising it was small, looked dense, had two round pistachio brittles, a raspberry sauce, and decorative chocolate. I took a bite, and I was in heaven; I had finally found a great flourless cake on property! This rivaled the flourless cake at Tchoup Chop. Dense, fudgy, chocolatey, and decadent. The pistachio brittles were light and delicious, and the fresh-tasting raspberry sauce went very well with the cake. I looked at the decorative chocolate piece, and on the back it was decorated with gold musical notes what a nice touch! The first bite of Mikes cheesecake was just ok, but he found the caramelized banana center, and he was much happier. The cheesecake part was good, but not great, but he liked the combination of the two together. According to the menu, there was a caramel sauce, but I never noticed it. It may have been what I thought looked like a chocolate sauce, but I never tried it. If you like the Tonga Toast at the Kona Café, youll really like this cheesecake.
After we were finished with our desserts, our server came by and talked with us about the dessert chef hes actually a pastry chef, his specialty is chocolate, and hes done a lot of the chocolate statues around the entire resort. We had a very pleasant conversation with him about the dessert chef, and we were very impressed by his work.
Overall, we had a wonderful lunch here. My meal was perfect, from the mojito to the flourless cake, and I believe Mike felt the same about his meal. The service was great for the most part. It was relatively quiet compared to how loud it was at dinner time, and there seemed to be plenty of seats when we arrived at 12 PM. It was a great respite from the heat, and we were reluctant to leave the restaurant to brave the middle of the day outside. Interestingly, there was a long line to check in and a lot of people waiting when we left at 1:45 PM. I would make a priority seating just in case, but I dont think it would be much of a problem if you arrived early. I highly recommend coming here for a meal, lunch or dinner, if you have a chance. Its one of our new favorites, and theres a little bit of everything for everyone. Just dont skip the Cobb salad!
Photo gallery
