We LOVE Dining at Disney! As a matter of fact, after all these years of visiting Walt Disney World and even Disneyland, now the restaurants are as much of an attraction for us as the Theme Parks! I know it sounds hard to believe, but Disney restaurants are an attraction in themselves!
After all, they do have world class chefs, wonderfully themed restaurants and fantastic and diverse wine lists themed to that restaurant, the best example that comes to mind is Jiko at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge has one of the most extensive lists of South African wines than any restaurant in the country.
So along with planning which park we’ll visit and how many FastPasses we can get, we think about which restaurants we’ll be dining in. On a recent trip, we had the opportunity to eat at one of our favorites, the Flying Fish at Disney’s BoardWalk.
At the Flying Fish, guests dine amid parachuting fish, funhouse mirrors, decorative roller coaster tracks and a whimsical, backlit Ferris wheel. The ambiance and décor really are incredible, it’s totally sets the stage for the wonderful meal you will soon be enjoying.
As you walk into the restaurant to be seated, you will pass by and be able to peer into the onstage kitchen, where chefs use uber-fresh ingredients to create such succulent specialties as potato-wrapped red snapper, crispy crab cakes and char-crusted strip steak.
A very popular experience at the Flying Fish is the Chef’s Tasting Wine Dinner for a savory 5-course prix fixe menu with expertly chosen wines.
Take a seat at the chef’s counter, directly in front of the onstage kitchen, and interact with the talented culinary team preparing the evening’s specialties.
The Chef’s Tasting Menu changes daily but may include such delicacies as miso-cured yellowfin tuna with shirred quail egg or ginger-laced Maine lobster ravioli.
Dinner seatings for this experience—which is designed for Guests 10 years of age and up—are at 5:45 PM and 8:15 PM, Sunday through Thursday. Groups of up to 6 can be accommodated and reservations must be made at least one day in advance.
As we were seated, some warm bread arrived at our table and we selected a wine, the Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc. We were parched from a hot day in the parks and this fit our fancy wonderfully!
There we six of us dining, so we chose a variety of appetizers to start off. Actually we chose the three signature appetizers, Crispy Sesame and Togarashi-scented Calamari – with Asian Dipping Sauce, Yellowfin Tuna Tartare and Crispy Tempura Tuna-Vegetable Sushi Roll – with Wasabi Foam, and a Sweet-and-Spicy Sauce and Signature Flying Fish Cafe “Crispy Maine Coast Jonah Crab Cake” – with Vegetable Slaw and Ancho Chile Rémoulade. Each was fantastic, but I think the Calamari was incredible!
For our entrees, one of our friends had the Trio of Heritage Berkshire-Kurobuta Pork, which was incredibly which had a rich pork au jus and was incredibly tasty. Another tried the Fragrantly-spiced “Char-crusted” Yellowfin Tuna, which is one of my favorites and is maybe the best Tuna I’ve had anywhere. Another of our table mates ordered the Mussels appetizer and Roasted Heirloom Beets and Fresh Vermont Goat Cheese which was a great choice. Two signature entrees on the menu are the Idaho Potato-wrapped Red Snapper and the Char-crusted Angus New York Strip Steak always tough for me to choose between these two. Well thanks to the Chef, we don’t have to anymore! Now they have combined the two into a Chefs Thunder Entrée Duo.
The Char-crusted Angus New York Strip Steak comes with a Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Red Bermuda Onions, Young Carrots, and Haricot Verts with Classic Sauce Foyot which tops it off so nicely! The Char on it is perfect while the steak stays juicy and tender on the inside!
The Potato-wrapped Red Snapper is served over a Rich Leek Fondue with a Veal Glace de Viande and Red Wine-Cassis Butter Reduction. The fish is flaky, tender and moist, and the leek fondue just melts in mouth, delicious!
We did manage to save just a bit of room for dessert, I know sounds crazy, right? The Flying Fish is known for its Caramelized Banana Napoleon, Crisp Phyllo, Banana Mousse, Crème Caramel, Exotic Fruit Coulis, and Bitter Chocolate. As one of my friends who recently tried this said, “I’m so mad I just found out about this”!
We also tried the “Nuts about Chocolate” Indulgence, Caramel Chocolate and Hazelnut Praline Mousse, Candied Pecan and Butterscotch-laced Blondie, Chocolate Sorbet, and Candied Marcona Almonds, while the Banana Napoleon was really good, the chocolate sorbet and the almonds was my favorite!
Flying Fish Cafe is a Signature Dining location, which means that it is one of the pricier places to eat at Walt Disney World. Expect to spend $36-60 per person, or to use 2 credits per person on the Disney Dining Plan.
The Chef’s Wine Tasting Dinner includes a 4-course prix fixe menu that includes wine pairings for $149 plus tax – groups of up to 6 can be accommodated.
Reservations are highly recommended, and can be made 180 days in advance. Reservations are required for the Chef’s Wine Tasting Dinner.
