Just like Teppan Edo, Le Cellier was a place we had had a reservation for on our last trip, but hadn't gotten around to going. This time around, I was all the more determined to try it, and in this I was strongly supported by DH (he didn't so much mind cancelling an Asian place with "tiny portions and probably mostly fish" but heaven forbid he miss a steak house
).
So here we were, after our lunch at Beaches and Cream and some more leisurely pool time:
To get there, you wander along the beautiful gardens of Epcot's Canada:
Upon checking in at the podium we were told that there would be a little bit of a wait, but as soon as we had wandered a few dozen steps back out into said gardens, our buzzer went off and our table was ready.
The lady who brought us to our table was really sweet, she chatted to us about Germany and then explained to us which Canadian state we were sitting in, as the whole restaurant is divided up into the different states and territories. A really nice idea. I think our table was in Saskatchewan, but I have to admit that I dont remember any of what she told us about that state. I'm very sorry, Canadian readers!
The restaurant had a very nice feel to it, nowhere near as dark and crowded as I had feared it might be. It was a very nice and pleasant, cool wine cellar-like atmosphere, not too crowded, not too loud, thoroughly enjoyable.
Our server arrived and she also had something nice to say about Germany it never ceases to amaze me how many Americans (and Canadians) have been to Germany, or know people there, or have ancestors coming from there.
We then proceeded to order our drinks:
We both like wine, even though we are far from being connoisseurs. And we do not usually have wine with our meals (especially not at 3 pm
), but in this nice atmosphere and looking forward to a great meal, we quickly decided to indulge ourselves with a carafe of Willamette Valley Zivo Pinot Noir to share.
This was our server's recommendation after we had asked for a rather light and yet full-bodied red wine, and we were both very pleased with it. I think it might even have been the first Canadian wine I have ever tried.
I am very fond of Pinot Noir in general, and I have found it to be much more prevalent in the States than at home. Like I said, I sadly do not know very much about wines but I definitely know that when only a handful of different wines are available at a gift shop here in Germany, there most certainly wouldn't be a Pinot Noir among them. At the Yacht Club shop, however, there was one!
Anyway, not willing to stick with all alcohol all the time, we also had one of the non-alcoholic specialty drinks each:
I decided on the Niagara Refresher, a Mango Smoothie with a splash of Cranberry, while DH had the Red Maple (a Raspberry Smoothie with a splash of Sprite).
If you want to try only one of them, I would say definitely go for the Red Maple! My Niagara Refresher was much too sweet to be refreshing, while DH's drink was just totally yummy. (I had decided against it as I dont much care for Sprite, but it is not at all overbearing in this drink.)
The next goodies to arrive at our table were bread and butter:
I already knew from the Disboards that one of the breads on offer would be a Canadian pretzel bread stick that everybody loves. I had been wondering how different that would be from our "normal" German pretzel bread and it turned out to be more or less exactly the same
.
So, nothing exotic here for us, but still delicious! I really like pretzel bread, and while when you buy it in a German bakery it is all too often dry, this was absolutely fresh and light and fluffy.
The worst thing about that bread basket was that there was so much of it, and it tasted so nice, that it was an effort to resist eating too much. Because after all, we still had to keep our appetites for three more courses this being the first of it:
Caesar Salad with Grilled Chicken - Romaine lettuce, parmesan, sourdough croutons and a creamy Caesar dressing, aka DH's appetizer.
He really liked it, both since it tasted good and as it was not of the "deconstructed" type for once
.
I did not have any trouble deciding on an appetizer either after all, I had already had to go without mussels for two days!
So behold these beauties: Roasted Prince Edward Island Mussels with Tomatoes, Garlic, Rosemary, and Pernod. Mmmmhh!
This reminds me: Do Americans also have this saying that you should only eat mussels in months ending on "-r"? (Or I guess in the case of English it would have to be also include months ending on "-ry".) I wonder if this still holds true in todays' globalized markets and improved refrigeration, but anyway I was lucky to be here in Octobe"-r"!
Now, this being a steak house, I obviously could not keep sticking with seafood. So tada this was my entree:
The Le Cellier Mushroom Filet Mignon - with wild mushroom risotto, white truffle and herb butter sauce. In theory, anyway not being as avid a risotto fan as I am a Mashed Potatoes fan, I substituted the risotto with the cream cheese mashed potatoes and was very happy with that change.
I apologize if the picture does not do this justice it was to die for. Absolutely delicious. Especially in combination with the veggie side dish that I shared with DH:
A tasty side of Green Asparagus.
Well, I am not sure if I have mentioned this already in my last report (if so, I apologize. Please shut me up), but green asparagus is definitely the less common variant where I live. You can certainly buy it in pretty much any supermarket when it is in season, but I do not think it is eaten near as much as our "normal", white asparagus.
A friend from New Jersey who we met on our cruise told me that white asparagus was considered something special and rare in the States, but also said that she was disappointed when she tried it as she found it rather bland.
Now, I definitely think that white asparagus is more difficult to prepare than green asparagus, as it is less forgiving with small "cooking mistakes". It can be awfully woody if it is not totally fresh and if you do not cut off enough of the ends, and it can be horribly watery if you do not leave it to drip thoroughly before serving. You need to have the cooking time exactly right (longer than with green asparagus, too). And as it really is much milder in taste that its green cousin, you need to combine it well like, for instance, with a few slices of salted smoked ham, young potatoes and a "sauce" of molten butter, olive oil and fresh basil leaves. Its divine.
But anyway, please forgive this digression into Northern German cooking that was inspired by my American friend's fascination with strange white asparagus, and back to Disney World cuisine:
This was DH's entrée: The New York Strip Steak with bercy butter, served with Gruyere-Yukon Gold potato gratin. I did not get to try it (it is usually hard to separate a man from his steak, as I am sure many of you know
), but I am told it was very tasty.
After sitting for a while longer, sipping our wine and enjoying the atmosphere, the time came for dessert:
Mine was the Le Cellier Mont Blanc Semifreddo, a Semi-frozen White Wine Sabayon with Chilled Fruit Soup nice, fruity and not too heavy after all that had been devoured before.
DH, not having lost his love for Crèmes Brulées since our last trip, had this:
The Maple Crème Brûlée.
This he did let me try, as alas he did not like it very much
. The slightly bitter maple syrup taste did not do much for him. I, on the other hand, found this to be the greatest Crème Brulée I have ever tasted. Absolutely fantastic in its reduced sweetness. Needless to say I finished that as well as there was no way I could let that go to waste.
In the end, I contentedly half-waddled-half-rolled out of the restaurant on DH's supportive arm, pleasantly tipsy to boot, after what was easily one of the best meals I have ever had in a Disney park. I absolutely, truly recommend Le Cellier, and we will definitely visit there again.
Now, shortly after our visit they have started to prize Le Cellier as a 2-credit restaurant on the
Disney Dining Plan for dinner (a meal for lunch, like we had, is still only one credit if I am correctly informed).
I wouldn't let that deter me from dining there, though both DH and I truly think that this restaurant deserves a 2-credit status more than some of the existing 2-credit restaurants, such as the Brown Derby or the Yachtsman Steakhouse. Those are nice places, but in our opinion, just not on a par with Le Cellier.
I realize we may have just been lucky, since after all there have been quite a few not-so-good reviews but we have definitely become fans.
Coming up next: Lunch at Mama Melrose's!
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