The Everything Victoria & Albert's Thread

[ems_mom]

Thank you for sharing your experiences. I'm that crazy type A who needs as much information as possible. My husband wanted the earlier seating so I gave in, on the condition that after dinner we can go see Wishes (if not inside the park, maybe from the beach at the Poly) which is at 10:00pm that night.

For my date in May the late seating is no longer available so I told him to be sure. So now I am thinking of the 5:30 start as cocktail hour. We have champagne, the amuse bouche and go slowly from there. At 8:00pm or later we can take the boat to the MK and watch wishes before returning to our villa (or from the Poly beach if Mk seems too much after the wine pairings!)

I want to take pictures, but I'm not a photographer. Will it bother the other diners if I use my phone?

 

[BC1836]

Thank you for sharing your experiences. I'm that crazy type A who needs as much information as possible. I want to take pictures, but I'm not a photographer. Will it bother the other diners if I use my phone?

A couple of unobtrusive photos are acceptable; however, on more than one occasion we have seen a few "gollee, lookie there: three forks by my plate" folks snapping away as if they were at a character breakfast.

We'll get a first-hand look once again a week from Friday.

Enjoy your meal and be cautious: the wine (and when appropriate, beer) pairings can be overwhelming. But they are paired to near perfection.

All the best.

 

[Tinkerbellie16]

Thanks for all the info on the caviar! Since I'm not allergic to anything, I think I'll just let it fly. I'm game for eating just about anything. If I don't like it, I'm sure there are lots of other things that will be served - and DH loves it when I don't eat something

 

[BC1836]

Ah, once again...too much wine and food last night. And in the main room! When will we ever learn. Next time: no wine pairings.

All the best.

 

[OKW Lover]

Got our call yesterday. We are going to be there 4/5 and they called 6 days ahead. Soooo looking forward to this experience!!!

 

[RCharnay]

Ah, once again...too much wine and food last night. And in the main room! When will we ever learn. Next time: no wine pairings.

All the best.

I read the warnings here but I thought "3 glasses over 3 1/2 hours, I can handle that.". I was wrong. Too much wine. Half a glass with each course is still a lot of wine and I was just so happy by the time the gelato and souffle came, I'm not sure I tasted them.

I loved our evening and can't wait to return and get it right next time. Next time, we share!

 

[Navychica]

2 questions;

Is Victoria and Albert's really worth the money? If we go, we'll want to do the wine pairings, and we'll probably have to switch 1 or 2 other meals to CS to make it a bit more affordable.

Also, how far in advance does it book up? Do you need to call exactly 180 days out? Our plans completely depend on when I come back from deployment, and right now we're making reservations for 2 or possibly 3 different weeks early next year, and then canceling what doesn't work. We may not know for sure when we're going until 3-4 weeks away.

 

[jkh1978]

2 questions;

Is Victoria and Albert's really worth the money? If we go, we'll want to do the wine pairings, and we'll probably have to switch 1 or 2 other meals to CS to make it a bit more affordable.

Also, how far in advance does it book up? Do you need to call exactly 180 days out? Our plans completely depend on when I come back from deployment, and right now we're making reservations for 2 or possibly 3 different weeks early next year, and then canceling what doesn't work. We may not know for sure when we're going until 3-4 weeks away.

There's only a handful of 5 star restaurants, so unless you are a picky eater, then yes its worth it.

I'm not sure how how booked up they are, but there are 3 kinds of experiences, so if you want the chef's table or the Queen Victoria, you'd need to book those earlier than a table in the main room (would be my guess).

 

[saintstickets]

2 questions;

Is Victoria and Albert's really worth the money? If we go, we'll want to do the wine pairings, and we'll probably have to switch 1 or 2 other meals to CS to make it a bit more affordable.

Also, how far in advance does it book up? Do you need to call exactly 180 days out? Our plans completely depend on when I come back from deployment, and right now we're making reservations for 2 or possibly 3 different weeks early next year, and then canceling what doesn't work. We may not know for sure when we're going until 3-4 weeks away.

DW and I dined at V&A during our last trip in Nov, 2010. We live in a small Mississippi town but visit nicer restaurants in New Orleans when we can. DW and I like to try all different kinds of foods so WDW is great for us since there is so much to choose from. With that said, we would place V&A above any place we have been. The service, food prep, wine pairings... all of it is 1st class. It is truly a dining experience and not just a meal. A word of caution though, if you get the wine pairing, you get a full glass with each course. DW and I split a wine pairing and received the appropriate wine with each course but only a 1/2 glass. A full glass with each course and we would be crawling out of there at the end of the night!

 

[jkh1978]

DW and I dined at V&A during our last trip in Nov, 2010. We live in a small Mississippi town but visit nicer restaurants in New Orleans when we can.

Have you been to Stella! V&A would be my #1, and and Stella! my #2 favorite meal.

 

[OKW Lover]

My wife and I are going to V&A's tonight (4/5) to celebrate our 15th anniversary. I'll do a review in the next couple of days.

 

[MoonFaerie]

DW and I dined at V&A during our last trip in Nov, 2010. We live in a small Mississippi town but visit nicer restaurants in New Orleans when we can. DW and I like to try all different kinds of foods so WDW is great for us since there is so much to choose from. With that said, we would place V&A above any place we have been. The service, food prep, wine pairings... all of it is 1st class. It is truly a dining experience and not just a meal. A word of caution though, if you get the wine pairing, you get a full glass with each course. DW and I split a wine pairing and received the appropriate wine with each course but only a 1/2 glass. A full glass with each course and we would be crawling out of there at the end of the night!

When we were there in Dec 2011, they did the wine pairing splitting differently. It was 6 glasses total, and we each got 3. It was still customized to each of our individual food choices.

 

[DrGaellon]

DW and I dined at V&A during our last trip in Nov, 2010.... DW and I split a wine pairing and received the appropriate wine with each course but only a 1/2 glass.

I understand they've since changed the policy; if you split the wine pairing, you now each get three full-size glasses, properly matched to the dish you've chosen.

 

[jkh1978]

Glad to hear they are properly matching those drinks. I'm not much of a wine drinker, so I like when I go someplace fancy with an expert. If that was the policy when we went, we would maybe have done the "sharing" instead of each getting our own wine flight.

 

[DrGaellon]

Glad to hear they are properly matching those drinks. I'm not much of a wine drinker, so I like when I go someplace fancy with an expert. If that was the policy when we went, we would maybe have done the "sharing" instead of each getting our own wine flight.

All of the wine flights are pre-selected by the chef and sommelier. Even in the old days, you each got a half-glass of the wine that was appropriate to your dish, even if they were different wines.

Does anyone know why they changed it?

 

[ambgoph]

All of the wine flights are pre-selected by the chef and sommelier. Even in the old days, you each got a half-glass of the wine that was appropriate to your dish, even if they were different wines.

Does anyone know why they changed it?

Yes. When I was there in Dec. I asked Israel about it at the end of the evening. He said they were losing money as some of the 1/2 glass pours ended up being more than 1/2 a glass.

I wish they went back to the old way as I enjoyed trying all of the different wines with each course.

 

[BC1836]

Yes. When I was there in Dec. I asked Israel about it at the end of the evening. He said they were losing money as some of the 1/2 glass pours ended up being more than 1/2 a glass.

I wish they went back to the old way as I enjoyed trying all of the different wines with each course.

Indeed. We have dined at V&A regularly over the last several years and have always enjoyed the wine pairings, although the main dining room servings are easier to consume that the other two room offerings.

Remember: the serving amounts are appropriate to the glass, i.e., to the curve of the glass. A so-called "half-glass" via the wine pairings would yield an amount something like a glorified ounce -- not like the Blues Brothers consuming white zinfandel!

All the best.

 

[BGK]

Yes. When I was there in Dec. I asked Israel about it at the end of the evening. He said they were losing money as some of the 1/2 glass pours ended up being more than 1/2 a glass.

I wish they went back to the old way as I enjoyed trying all of the different wines with each course.

So, I'm terminally confused. If one is a wineaux (like yrs. trly.), uninterested in splitting a wine pairing, is the main dining room wine pairing still a different wine with each course? Or are there only now three wines, served with/just prior to some of the courses?

 

[Eeyore98]

So, I'm terminally confused. If one is a wineaux (like yrs. trly.), uninterested in splitting a wine pairing, is the main dining room wine pairing still a different wine with each course?

Yes.

Or are there only now three wines, served with/just prior to some of the courses?

Only if you are opting to split a wine pairing with someone else.

 

[BC1836]

So, I'm terminally confused. If one is a wineaux (like yrs. trly.), uninterested in splitting a wine pairing, is the main dining room wine pairing still a different wine with each course? Or are there only now three wines, served with/just prior to some of the courses?

This may help.

Here's what I had last Friday with each course:

1. Amuse-Bouche...Piper Heidsieck Cuvee

2. Gulf Shrimp...Paco & Lola Albarino, Rias Baixas 2009

3. Diver Scallop & Langoustine Cioppino...Jules Taylor Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough 2011

4. Porcini Mushroom Soup...Talley Vineyards Estate Pinot Noir, Arroyo Grande Valley, 2009

5. Kurobuta Pork Tenderloin...Yangarra Estate Shiraz McClaren Vale 2008

6. Assorted cheeses...Quinta do Crasto Porto 2006

Adds up to more than three by my count.

Enjoy!

All the best.