Yachtsman Steakhouse in Walt Disney World

By Lisa Green 

After many visits to Walt Disney World during which we frequented our tried and true dining favorites, on our last three Disney vacations, we were committed to trying new restaurants.  In May of 2014, we tried several new places.  In particular, the Boardwalk’s Flying Fish Café was a wonderful experience and we can’t wait to go back!  In October, Raymond and I discovered the hidden gem that is Citricos at the Grand Floridian.  In February of 2015, after years of hearing rave reviews, we finally had dinner at Yachtsman Steakhouse (Yacht Club) and what a dinner it was!

If you are looking for a steak in the Epcot area, bypass Le Cellier and walk on over to the Yacht Club!  The cozy atmosphere, the service, and the menu are a winning combination.  Raymond and I thoroughly enjoyed our dinner – from appetizer to dessert – and could not think of a single improvement that could have been made.

We checked in at the hostess station and were greeted by a lovely, charming woman from our home state of Louisiana.  She inquired if we’d dined at Yachtsman before and after hearing it was our first visit, proudly proclaimed that we were about to begin a new vacation tradition!  We were given our pager, but waited only moments before a young man came to show us to our table.

Because it was our first visit, he took the time to give us a tour and explain the process of beef aging and storage and steak preparation.  He was clearly proud of the dining experience Yachtsman offers guests and made simply being seated into an interesting experience.  The glass room of hanging beef was cool!  I joked that the butcher was one of the best animatronics I’d seen at Disney World and that they’d really stepped up their game in recent years – which made our young host laugh and comment that I was the first person to say that.  Go figure.

Our server continued the excellent hospitality and soon we were enjoying bread and butter and a glass of wine.  The butter is served with a roasted head of garlic along side.  If you love garlic (we do!), this is a fantastic way to start a meal!  Bread AND butter AND garlic = YUM!  Raymond and I always say we’re going to order different things so we can try more dishes, but at Yachtsman, we couldn’t do it.  We ordered the exact same meal.  To start, we both wanted a bowl of lobster bisque.  There are a staggering number of appetizers, cheeses, and an impressive charcuterie selection, but the bisque was irresistible.  Described as “Maine Lobster, Crème Fraîche, Preserved Lemon, Fine Herbes”, it was everything we’d hoped it would be – perfectly delicious!

Lamb, duck, scallops, tuna, even butternut squash waffles – the menu offers an amazing selection for a steakhouse, but we’d come for the beef!  Yachtsman is a steak-lovers paradise and offers steaks for every appetite.  Black Angus filet mignon, New York strip, roast prime rib, Kansas City strip steak, rib-eye, and even a whopping 32-ounce porterhouse for two…decisions, decisions!  We both decided on the filet mignon, which was the smallest steak on the menu at 8-ounces and came with a simple side of mashed potatoes and a cabernet wine sauce.

The true test of a steakhouse, to me, is not just the quality of beef, but the quality of preparation.  When paying $50 or more for an entrée, I want my steak prepared the way I like it best – seared dark and crusty on the outside while being warm and pink in the center.  I asked for medium and my steak arrived perfectly cooked.  Raymond and I were absolutely silent as we enjoyed our food, our attention focused on doing justice to the delicious meal.  In short order, those steaks were history!

There was a chocolate peanut dessert on the menu that caught my eye and curiosity, so I ordered one up for us to share.  Coffees all around (mine of the Irish variety), we tried our best to finish that delicious dessert, but were so full.  And happy.  We give Yachtsman a hearty four thumbs up and will absolutely be returning for another visit.

Have you tried Yachtsman Steakhouse?  Is it on your list of favorites?

This article was originally posted on Lisa's Living a Disney Life Blog.

She can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/LivingaDisLife and on Twitter at @life_of_green

Please be sure to check out Lisa along with me and David Hodges on The Disney Exchange Podcast!

 

Harambe Market at Disney's Animal Kingdom

By Nick

I'd heard about a new dining area to be located in Disney's Animal Kingdom's Africa section, and was excited to visit it when I was there with 2 friends last May. I was disappointed when I discovered when it was due to open just a few days after our visit, so it became one of my must dos for my trip in January.

And it didn't disappoint! Well, for the most part.

The themeing and details are amazing, and the food was pretty good. More on that shortly.

What was a bit of a downer was the disorganization of the lines, of which are very long indeed. Also, as I learned from a fellow guest, you can order whatever you want at any window, despite the themeing of each section not informing you of this fact.

I waited about 30 minutes in line, but once my order was placed, the food was served quickly.

I ordered 2 things:

The Grilled Chicken Skewer served with Green Papaya Slaw and Black-Eyed Pea, Corn and Tomato Salad and the Beef and Pork Sausage Fried in Curried Corn Batter. This also comes with the same side as the skewer, but I asked if I could get another item in it's place as I was already getting that and got a cookie. I also got a Reef Donkey APA Draft.

The batter on the sausage was pretty thick, and I wound up taking it off, and the sausage was very good. The skewer was excellent as was the slaw and salad. The beer was pretty good also.

I will absolutely go back and try other options, but suggest going at opening rather than during the lunch rush.

Favorite Dishes at Yak and Yeti

By Nick

Continuing a look at my favorite restaurants in Walt Disney World's theme parks as heard on Episode 17 of The Disney Exchange, I'm going to take us to the Asia section of Disney's Animal Kingdom where you'll find one of the most beautifully themed restaurants in all of the World, Yak & Yeti.

 

Not only is the themeing superb, the food is amazing as well. Y&Y is a very strong contender for favorite restaurant.

As with almost everything in WDW, Yak and Yeti has a back story.
Yak & Yeti is a house owned by a wealthy merchant who has fallen on hard times. To supplement his income, he has converted his home into an establishment that well-to-do travelers might seek out in India. It is filled with items collected by the owner and his family on their travels throughout Southeast Asia.

 

You can spend plenty of time just looking at all the incredible items scattered throughout.

My favorite dining area is on the second floor. We request a table by the window overlooking the courtyard, making it a great place to people watch as you enjoy your meal.

 

My wife and I ate here during it's opening week in 2007, and the food quality has not slipped a bit in the ensuing years.
On one of our most recent trips, my wife and I both ordered the same dish, the Chicken Lo Mein - Lo mein noodles, carrots, cabbage, green onions and bean sprouts.
Yes, you can get Chicken Lo Mein at any Chinese restaurant, but this is the best either of us has ever had! Perfectly cooked chicken, noodles and vegetables. I could go for some right now!

On past trips we've had the Baby Back Ribs – slow-roasted ribs, hoisin BBQ sauce, chicken fried rice, sweet chili slaw: $25.99.
The ribs are very tender, and the spice tangy, but by no means overwhelming. The fried rice is amazing.

Crispy Mahi Mahi - filet of mahi mahi, Japanese bread crumbs, Cantonese sweet and sour sauce, jasmine rice, stir-fried vegetables.
The mahi mahi is crispy on the outside, yet light, flaky and juicy inside. The chili sauce is lightly spicy and the vegetables are always fresh.

Duck with Anandapur Glaze – roasted half duckling, orange wasabi glaze, jasmine rice, stir-fried vegetables.
The duck was delicious, and the sauce a perfect compliment.

Yak & Yeti is owned by Landry's Inc., which also owns the Rainforest Cafe and T-Rex Restaurants located at Walt Disney World, and they do not accept the Tables in Wonderland Card, but do give a 10% to Disney Vacation Club (DVC) members at lunch and dinner.

Narcoossee's Restaurant at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort

by: Nick

Since becoming a blogger, I travel differently, keeping an eye out for interesting topics to write about.
Blogging also influences dining choices at restaurants. I usually try to choose different items than Barbie, so I have at least 2 menu selections to review.
This doesn't always work out. When we visited the Yak and Yeti Restaurant at Disney's Animal Kingdom on our trip in October of last year, we both ordered the Chicken Lo Mein. But at least I had other photos from previous trips to write about.
What I'm getting to is this, the review of Narcoossee's is going to be slim in the food review portion, because we both ordered the exact same thing, and as this was our first visit, there's nothing else to fall back on. 
Also, I apologize for how dark the photos are, the lighting in the evening at Narcoossee's is pretty intimate.

Narcoossee's is located on the shores of Seven Seas Lagoon, at the end of the Grand Floridian transportation boat dock.

We gave our names at the podium, and were handed a pager. We decided to have a look at the menu, so headed for the bar area.

On the way, we passed the open kitchen and the wonderful staff. Be sure to say hello!

 

 

I was impressed with the beer menu, not overwhelming but a nice selection.

 

We asked the bartender for a food suggestion, and he said his favorite was the scallops.

As I perused the beer list, our pager went off. As we were being brought to our table, Barbie spotted a man wearing a vest covered in Disney pins. She approached him, and they spoke at length. He came over to introduce himself and his wife. They were locals, and they also suggested the scallops, as well as the calamari.

If you time it right, and have a table facing Cinderella Castle, you can see Wishes at the Magic Kingdom. I made our advanced dining reservation at 180 days out for 8:00 pm, thinking the fireworks would be at either 8:00 or 9:00 pm. They were at 10:00 pm that evening, and while I could have changed our ADR, we both agreed that was rather late for dinner.

The menu is somewhat limited.

As our bread was being set on the table, we asked our server for an entree suggestion, and weren't really surprised when she said the scallops.

The bread was very crunchy with a soft center, almost a sourdough. I love butter with salt, and this was course, better yet!

We shared the  Crispy Rhoade Island Calamari with pepperoncini-olive relish and tomato coulis appetizer. 

I thought it was very light and crispy yet tender, not chewy. The relish was just the right kick, and the tomato coulis was the perfect acidic addition. Barbie thought they were the best Calamari she'd ever had! With a salad, this could easily be an economical choice for an entree.

For dinner, we both ordered the Pan-seared Georges Bank Day Boat Scallops with Trofie pasta with Sultana raisins, Marcona almonds, young string beans and herb creme with wild mushrooms, lemon-thyme-mustard au jus and arugula.

We both agreed these were the best scallops we'd ever had. They were perfectly prepared, and as good as they were, the pasta and mushrooms in the lemon-thyme-mustard au jus was even better. Shhhh, if you listen carefully, you can hear my stomach growling now as I write this!

We would have loved dessert, but were too full!

There is no doubt we will return to Narcoossee's in the future, and we will try to choose different food selections, but it won't be easy!

Vancouver to Alaska on the Disney Wonder, 8/26 - 9/2 2013 : Part 7

By: Gaylin 

September 1, 2013
Day at sea, Disney cruise to Alaska

We are motoring home to Vancouver! Another lovely day.

 We started out with breakfast at Tritons as I couldn't face another buffet. I started with fruit, yogurt and breakfast grits, yum!

And continued with bacon and a freshly made omelette. It was a nice way to start our day.

We had fully intended to go back to the room for a bit and then head to Studio Sea for the dessert making demonstration. I found out that as long as neither of us drinks and we both behave like adults (Tyler is 16) then we were allowed to the food demonstrations - if we sat in the back. As it turned out we didn't get to see the dessert making, we both fell asleep! Napping in the morning, must be on a cruise.

Even though it seemed like we had just had breakfast, off we went for lunch at the buffet. I admit, I couldn't get myself to eat the crawdad, maybe if it had been hot, since it was served cold, it was kind of icky.

Planes was showing that afternoon but neither of us was interested. We wanted to spend our time on the ship, since tomorrow it was home.
There is a small deck on the back of the ship where we had intended to spend some time but just after we got there, a couple of cast members showed up to power wash it! We then wandered the halls, peeking in rooms much more luxurious than ours while the cleaning staff had the doors propped open. Wow, some of those rooms are big! Beautifully panelled, large decks - if I ever do cruise again, I would hope to afford a bigger room.

After that, we had our last visit to the coffee shop. I have no idea what I was drinking, it was a cold coffee drink and was dessert in a cup.

Our last dinner was at Parrot Cay. We had a lot of fun again with our servers and the lovely ladies that were our dinner companions. It does show how big the ship is, we only saw the dinner ladies once outside of meal time! Mind you they had a room with a veranda and spent a lot of time there.

This turned out to be one of the best meals for me in the whole cruise. Red snapper with potatoes & veggies in a tomato sauce. It was divine! As you can see . . . I had started eating before I remembered to take a photo.

I was hoping to get an interesting dessert for the last meal but got a cup of chocolate mousse that was barely chocolate flavoured.
That was when we had the inspired idea to order a Mickey's Premium Ice Cream Bar!!! YUM. I love them. Ended my dinner quite well.

We then raced off to the Walt Disney Theatre for the live performance of Dreams. What an amazing show, all about reaching for your dreams.

The show ended at 9:30 and we had to get to our room to get our baggage out in the hall on time. They give you a full list of instructions on what to do with your baggage, you get baggage tags that are colour coded. Bags that you don't want to carry off ship yourself must be outside the stateroom between 8:30 p.m. and 10:30. We made it just in time!

One last walk around deck before bed, one last sit down and talk for awhile in 'our' chairs on the 10 floor landing. Soon it will all be a memory.

Please stop back tomorrow for the final part of Gaylin's Alaskan Cruise! 
For previous installments, please type in Vancouver into the search bar to the right.