Where to go for something really different...?

[pinchy]

This year I will be going on my second trip to Disney World and we have booked the dining plan. As a total foodie I am very excited about this and I keep looking at all the menus and the different options even though our trip is not until October!

I would rate the food inside DW quite highly judging from my experience last year. The best restaurant I visited was the California Grill - WOW!

But something I have noticed is that even in the world showcase most menus are pretty similar. They follow a pretty predictable pattern and I'm not sure there is much really authentic or really different food available. There is usually a steak cooked in a marginally different way from restaurant to restaurant.... usually a basic chicken dish.... usually a salmon fillet... etc.

Maybe I am just spoilt by the sort of dining out I have got used to in London, but I am sometimes surprised that there aren't more unusual cuts of meat and more adventurous recipes considering the huge range of restaurants out there.

Anyone got any suggestions for somewhere particularly unusual or adventurous?

 

[bicker]

It is unfortunate that the pedestrian American palatte doesn't foster the kind of authentic culinary diversity that Epcot World Showcase would be a perfect forum for. There have been many attempts by Disney to provide such unique offerings as you suggest, but all have been met with general disregard by the vast majority of patrons. It's a shame, but many Americans feel they know that they like, and don't have much tolerance for appreciating unique, foreign experiences.

Anyway, my suggestion is the Matsunomo Lounge.

 

[pinchy]

It is unfortunate that the pedestrian American palatte doesn't foster the kind of authentic culinary diversity that Epcot World Showcase would be a perfect forum for. There have been many attempts by Disney to provide such unique offerings as you suggest, but all have been met with general disregard by the vast majority of patrons. It's a shame, but many Americans feel they know that they like, and don't have much tolerance for appreciating unique, foreign experiences.

Anyway, my suggestion is the Matsunomo Lounge.

mmm sushi! good sushi can be wonderful... I may well pop along

I think our visit may coincide with the epcot food and wine fest so I'm helping we will find some really interesting bits and pieces

 

[nliedel]

You are correct. These are very Americanized versions of international food and honestly that is what you are going to get at DW. If you want more authentic experiences then there are other ways to do it, going to the country or a larger city with authentic restaurants. Disney needs to cater to the larger palate rather than a true experience from that country. You do get some idea but true authenticity? No. Which is a shame from the perspective of a real foodie. I also have purchased some good cookbooks and learned to make more authentic dishes at home.

You can get really good food in Epcot that gives you some idea of what the country is about. Akershus was more authentic earlier on. Very much like what I had in Norway and what my Swedish Grandmother made on Sunday's but not as much any more, although the herring is good.

Food and wine fest can net you some great stuff.

 

[Harambe]

Head to JIKO at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. You will have a wonderful experience from appies to desserts, based on African spices and cooking methods. And the restaurant itself is beautiful and peaceful.

 

[nliedel]

Boma is good too and there are some authentic dishes. Overall some areas are better about true diversity, AKL is one of them. Unfortunatly Epcot is not.

 

[k-wa]

Another vote for Jiko and Boma.

Also, Artist Point at the Wilderness Lodge serves up a buffalo steak.

All three of these are winners.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I'm like you, a total foodie, and am hoping to get an ADR at California Grill. Two places I really enjoyed, were Boma, which is a buffet, so lots of different things to try, and Artist Point, which has some unusual items. Also, not very exotic, but more unusual ways of preperation, and great quality, Brown Derby.

 

[pinchy]

well so far on our next trip I plan to make repeat visits to the California Grill and the San Angel Inn. Artiste Point is my big must do this time round. I'm not so sure about buffets for 2 reasons... firstly sometimes the food isn't as fresh and secondly I don't like the psychological mess I get into with them as I try and pile a million different flavours onto my plate and then realise that it doesn't really all go together.

 

[maggiew]

Jiko is not a buffet. Only Boma.

Maggie

 

[pinchy]

Jiko is not a buffet. Only Boma.

Maggie

am trying to get hubby to agree to jiko.... hes not convinced yet

 

[PixieDust742]

I know you said that you aren't a huge fan of buffets, but I vote for Boma as well. It's phenomenal!!

 

[disneyfav4ever]

Actually, I don't care for buffets either. Usually the quality of the food is an issue to me, and I like to be waited on. But Boma, and Crystal Palace too for that matter, are exceptions. Boma's food was interesting, and well prepared. I thought the best part of the meal there was the soups, and the zebra domes and chocolate mousses. Nothing I had there was bad or off-tasting, though some things I preferred over others. CP also has good, fresh food, but isn't unusual, but I do eat there for Eeyore.