We made this reservation at the last minute when we got the 'extra' TS credits from the reservation system crashing. We knew right away we wanted to try to get in here, because this is one of our favorite places to eat. I am SO sad that they are taking the appetizer out of the
DDP for next year, because this place has my most favorite appetizer in the world, but more on that later.
We had our ADR for 7:20, checked in, and had to wait a few minutes to get an elevator up to the restaurant, because there was a huge group of business people who must have been having a dinner up in the private room as part of a conference. Once we got up there, we each got a drink at the bar and waited about 40 minutes for our table to be ready. Although it was a long wait, we got to watch the sun set, which was really neat, as they open up all of the blinds and call out to let everyone know it was happening.
When we were finally seated, we were brought into a back room overlooking the Wilderness Lodge, and you could see Epcot in the distance. It was MUCH quieter here than in the main dining room. This is the second time we've eaten dinner in that little room, and we really like it.
Alicia, our waitress, came to get our drink orders and gave DH some wine recommendations. We put in our appetizer orders and they came out about ten minutes later.
I got the Spicy Sensation sushi
First, I'm sorry there's a bit missing (DH's is worse, just wait), but we were so hungry and I could not wait to dig into it, that I completely forgot to take a picture at first! I love sushi, and I have to say, this is the BEST sushi I have eaten ANYWHERE. In fact, at random points throughout the year I get cravings for it, and wish I could just hop on a plane to WDW solely to eat this. It has scallops, tuna, avacado, and tobika in there, with fireball sauce on the top. Let me tell you, this stuff is H-O-T! It's your mouth is on fire, nose is running, kind of hot. But, wow, is it good! And you can see that these rolls are huge - it's really hard for me to fit one in my mouth without cutting it in half, which I really don't like to do, because it IS sushi, but oh well. Also, I do have to say that although it is a great sushi dish, it's not *quite* as good as it was on our first trip to the CA Grill in May 2006. The reason is because when I had it then the fireball sauce was heated and poured warm on top of the sushi, which was just amazing, and now it is poured on there cold. It's still good, but I wish they would heat that sauce again!
DH had the Sonoma Goat Cheese Ravioli
Yeah... sorry 'bout that! He eats really fast. Basically, it is one huge ravioli - every inch of that bowl was covered in the ravioli, if that helps you visualize it. He said he liked it, but doesn't know what else to say about it. Hmmm... well, we must assume that it was good, since he ate the whole thing in under three minutes.
For his entree, DH had the Grilled Pork Tenderloin
This came with goat cheese polenta and mushrooms. I had a bite of this, and it was excellent! It was very juicy and so tender that it fell apart in your mouth. The polenta was creamy and VERY cheesy - it was almost over-powering. DH loved this as well, and ate every bit of it.
I had the Oak Fired Filet of Beef
This was very tender and juicy. The bbq sauce was sweet and it worked really well with the meat. The mashed potatoes were good - the skins were still on, which I love. The string beans were excellent - I couldn't tell what flavors there were, but they were amazing and SO much better than I make at home.
For dessert we split the Cheese Board
This could have been had as either an appetizer or a dessert. I'll describe from left to right. First, is a baguette with butter, which was surprisingly creamy.
The first cheese was the St. Marcellin, which is described as a soft cow's milk cheese with a runny interior and a strong flavor, and complemented with Apple Chutney. It was very creamy, more so than Brie. It smelled like stinky feet. The chutney was sweet and it complemented the cheese well, but the cheese was so strong that it basically overpowered the chutney.
Second was the Abondance, described as an uncooked, pressed, semi-hard cheese from the Alps region of France. It's a cow's milk cheese, and was paired with candied Marcona almonds. This was my favorite of the bunch. It was very hard, and reminded me of parmesan in taste and texture. When it was paired with the almonds it tasted like pistachios, like my family always has out at Christmas-time.
Third is the Clochette, described as a soft, smooth raw goat's milk cheese, made to resemble a bell. It has a white rind and a semi-firm center with a mild flavor, and was paired with Honey Comb. It was creamy, and the flavor came out when it was paired with the honey, but the wax from the comb kept getting stuck in my mouth. I don't remember much else about this cheese, except for that wax - it was a bit annoying.
Fourth is the San Andreas, which was a raw sheep's milk cheese from Bellwether Farms. It was smooth, creamy, and mild with a bit of a sour finish, and it was paired with raisins on the vine.
Finally, there was the Fourme d'Ambert. This is described as a creamy blue cheese with a lasting taste of wine, and was paired with apricot paste. This was much creamier than 'regular' blue cheese, and it didn't crumble at all. The apricot was sweet and it off-set the cheese, but it still tasted like blue cheese (you know, that strong flavor), so I wasn't TOO crazy about it.
I have to point out that the cheese board is $17.00, but it only counts as one appetizer/dessert, so DH was planning on getting one for himself, not realizing how large of a helping this was. Alicia told him that it was a LOT of cheese and that we should start with one, and that if he still wanted a second, she would happily bring it out for him. She was definitely right, and of course there's no way he could have finished a second, so she very kindly packed up a slice of chocolate cake for us to take with us, because she said it was included in the plan so we may as well. Unfortunately, we never got around to eating it.
Of course we watched Wishes from the observation deck, and it was fabulous, as always. I always feel like I am the only freak tearing up at those fireworks, but isn't it just the most beautiful message? After we came back in, our dessert was waiting for us. Alicia was a really fabulous waitress, and all of her recommendations were spot-on.
Spicy Sensation: $18.00
Ravioli: $11.00
Pork Tenderloin: $26.00
Filet: $36.00
Cheese Board: $17.00
Chocolate Cake: $10.00
Gund Merlot: $12.00
Spahn Chardonnay: $11.00
Tip: $26.14
Total: $145.67 (4 TS credits) 
I don't do sushi, but that appetizer looks amazing!
