Review of California Grill – Disney’s Contemporary Resort
On the evening of July 16, 2008 we experienced our first, of what I hope to be many, dinners at the California Grill located on the 15th floor of the Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World. This was actually my third time to the California Grill but my other two visits are vague memories with the latest being of a stop at the bar about 20 years ago and then a very vague memory of having dinner there when I was eight years old. So, I honestly didn’t know what to expect, except for the many reviews I had read.
As suggested by various reviews, I was on the phone at 7:00am exactly 180 days prior to our trip to try to book the California Grill, and a few other hard to get reservations, for the precise time and day that I wanted. Success was easy. Our reservations were made for 8:30pm on July 16. The madness behind my strategy was that I had already researched and found that the sun would be setting around 8:30 that night and I knew that the Wishes fireworks show at the Magic Kingdom would be at 10pm that evening. Have I mentioned that the California Grill has a drop dead view of the Magic Kingdom? Yes, I can go a little overboard on the planning but that’s what I do for a living and you have to make the most of your vacation, right? When I made our advanced dining reservation (ADR) I did need to leave my credit card as a guarantee and was told that if I needed to cancel my reservation, I needed to do so 24 hours in advance or I would be charged a “no show” penalty. Disney started this policy a few years ago for their most popular restaurants. I was also told that if I wanted to request a table by the window, I needed to ask at the desk when we checked in.
We were staying at the Wilderness Lodge resort so we took the boat over to the Contemporary that night. Our 10 year old daughter also joined us that night. We arrived at the Contemporary a few minutes early and checked in at the California Grill reception desk located on level 2. We waited about two minutes for the California Grill Elevator to come back down to get us. In the elevator with us was a nice family from the UK that proceeded to tell us that the California Grill was their favorite restaurant. Come to find out, they were having dinner in the California Grill’s private dining room that night. I guess they really do like the restaurant!
We were greeted as we got off the elevator by another cast member behind the “upstairs” reception desk where we were given our beeper. We were told we could wait at the bar if we wished. When we went to sit at the bar, I realized that I had forgotten to ask for a window seat. Oh, no!! After all my planning…. So, I quickly went back to the reception desk and made my request. I was holding out much hope as the restaurant looked very busy to me. The pleasant cast member smiled and said she would see what she would do but she couldn’t guarantee it and a window table would take longer. I assured her that waiting a little longer for the perfect table would be no problem. She said that was fine and that if we did get tired of waiting, just to let her know and she would seat us right away. I thanked her and back to the bar I went.
The bar is well equipped and has the largest wine/alcohol bucket I have ever seen. Every popular white wine they sell by the glass plus several bottles of vodka and a few miscellaneous bottles were nestled in for a nice ice bath. I ordered one of my favorite glasses of white – Conundrum, while my husband ordered his traditional martini and my daughter her Shirley Temple. Sitting at the bar, we were almost finished with our drinks and were having a nice conversation with the bar tender when our beeper went off. Wow, was the wait worth it. Our hostess led us to a great table with an amazing view of the castle, and soon, Wishes.
Our server for the evening quickly came to welcome us and inquire about our drink needs. We ordered a bottle of Pellegrino for us, a Shirley Temple for our daughter, and said we wanted to see about our dinner choices before ordering wine. The beverages appeared quickly and then it was time to review the menu and ask questions. My husband and I had decided earlier in the evening to share most of our meal, as we had done several times this trip. This allowed us to sample several appetizers as well as our entrée.
It’s important for me to mention now that our server turned out to be one of the best we have ever had. Once we started talking to him about what we wanted, he started making recommendations and after our first appetizer, we just left all of the wine pairing up to him!
I had heard that the sushi at the California Grill was outstanding so we ordered the California Grill. I know, not very adventurous be we really like California rolls. Our waiter then asked us if we liked tempura shrimp to which we answered yes to which he said he would have the chef make a special plate for us. My daughter wasn’t ordering an appetizer because she didn’t see anything that she liked. I happened to say, in passing, that she likes cucumber rolls but there weren’t any on the menu. Much to my surprise, our server said no problem! He would have the chef make one special for her with no sesame seeds just as she likes it! I was already starting to feel this was going to be a great dining experience. As for beverages, my husband ordered a sake which was served in a large wine glass (this has to have been the fullest glass of sake I have ever seen!) and I finished my Conundrum.
Our sushi course did not take long. Our special plate was half of a California roll, which was by far the best I have ever had, made with lump crab meat, and half of a shrimp tempura roll accompanied by two dipping sauces, one for each. The servings were huge! I was really glad we had decided to share our meal tonight. Our daughter’s cucumber roll was also huge and made exactly as she likes it.
Onto course number two of which we each ordered one; Sauteed Hudson Valle foi gras and the California Cheese Board for me. Each paired with another great wine. Both were fabulous.
For entrees, not that any of us were terribly hungry at this point, my husband and I ordered the Oak-fired Filet of Beef medium rare and our daughter the children’s rib steak medium with French fries instead of potatoes. For beverages, we asked our server to choose a wine for us to share. Sharing a glass of wine does not seem to be a problem at most Walt Disney World restaurants. They just refer to them as “half pours”. We wound up sharing many glasses of wine this past trip in order for us to sample many wines and still be able to find our way home! At our server’s recommendation, we also ordered our desert, the Valrhona Chocolate Cake and Apricots at this time because the preparation would take about 20 minutes.
Our server had paced out our dinner for us so that between our second course and our main course, the house lights dimmed and Wishes began. The music to wishes is piped right into the dining room for your enjoyment. My husband had tried to go out on the balcony adjacent to the restaurant but came back about two minutes later explaining that he could only get within about five people deep of the balcony edge so taking pictures with his tripod was impossible. Important lesson learned, if you want to view Wishes form the outside, be sure to make your way to the balcony a good 15 minutes ahead of time. All ended well though as the three of us got to watch “Wishes” from our perfect table location.
Our entrees appeared just as wishes was ending and were done exactly as we had ordered. Our filet was served in a sort of large square plate/bowl and then two plates immediately appeared for our sharing purposes. The filet was very tender and served with an interesting Teriyaki barbeque sauce which really made it stand out from some of the other beef we had had that week. We also enjoyed sharing our glass of wine. My daughter enjoyed her steak as well although after eating her entire cucumber roll which was quite large, she wasn’t able to finish her dinner.
Onto desert, I still don’t know how we ate everything that nigh! We decided to pair the warm chocolate cake with yet one more red wine, shared of course. We had completely given over our wine selection to our server after course one and he never disappointed us. He would always bring us a sample first to taste and then once we tried and approved, would pour our shared glasses. Our daughter ordered chocolate pudding. The perfect ending to her meal.
We finally fished our dinner around 11:00pm. I don’t think I need to elaborate on how completely full and thrilled we were with our meals. With the exception of dinner at Victoria and Albert’s, I have not enjoyed a meal at the many, many dinners I have had at Walt Disney World as I enjoyed my dinner at the California Grill. So many things fell into place that night; the perfect table location, one of the best servers we have ever had, great food, great wine, and Wishes. What else can one ask for? I’m hooked. I only hope my next visit to the California Grill can stand up to my first!
Cuisine: American, Californian
Hours: 5:30pm to 10:00pm
Location: 15th floor of Disney’s Contemporary Resort
Foods ordered:
California Roll – jumbo lump crab with avocado and cucumber $17
Shrimp Tempura Roll – off the menu
Cucumber Roll – off the menu
Sauteed Hudson Valley foi gras – with croissant bread pudding, plub compte and port wine jus $16
California Grill’s Cheese Board – $17
Oak-fired Filet of Beef with cheese orecchiette pasta gratin, sauteed asparagus, teriyaki BBQ sauce $38.00
Oak Fired Rib Steak with Yukon gold potatoes and seasonal vegetables $11.00
Valrhona Chocolate and Coffee – Warm Chocolate Cake with Molten Center, House-made White Coffee
Ice Cream and Cappuccino Anglaise 10.00
Chocolate Pudding with Whipped Cream
| 0.0 |
Author profile. To change this standard text, you have to enter some information about your self in the Dashboard -> Users -> Your Profile box.