The Hollywood Brown Derby - Fantasmic! dining package review
Dining Disney Style
Sunday, February 26th, was the first day of our trip and, contrary to tradition, we began our vacation in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. One very important reason was we wanted to make it a point to see FANTASMIC! - the fireworks spectacular at the Studios which we had not seen since it first opened in 1996. That was 16 years ago!!!! Shameful, I know. Although we had not seen it once during those 16 years, we knew all about the Fantasmic! dining package at the Hollywood Brown Derby, Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano, and Hollywood and Vine (dinner only) and that we wanted to take advantage of it. Here’s the package break down:
1. Of the three restaurants above, you have your pick of any time of day for The Hollywood Brown Derby and Mama Melrose’s, and any dinner reservation at Hollywood and Vine.
2. For a fixed price, you get a selection of an appetizer, an entree, a dessert and any non-alcoholic beverage. *You CAN take advantage of the Fantasmic! dining package if you are on one of the many Disney Dining plans. As with all other restaurants, your menu choices will be limited.*
3. At the time your reservation is made, you will be “assigned” a showing of Fantasmic! based on what time your reservation is, as well as demand.
4. At your meal, you will be provided with a green ticket. This ticket lists the show that you will be seeing, as well as the number of people in your party. With this ticket, you will be admitted to the stadium through a special entrance. This entrance lets you skip the regular line and directs you to a special section reserved for those taking advantage of the dining package. Obviously, the earlier you get there, the more seating options you have and the closer you will be able to get to the stage.
Of the three restaurants that offer this package, we’ve been to two: The Hollywood Brown Derby and Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano. We have never been to Hollywood and Vine for the simple reason that we have never really been interested to go: neither Kristin nor I eat enough to justify paying for a buffet. Plus, when we go with the entire family, there are other “all-you-can-eat” experiences that we’re so fond of that we don’t want to go anywhere else. Mama Melrose’s was the family favorite for 22 years. We went to the Hollywood Brown Derby on our first visit in 1989 and did not return until the fall of 2010. (This is for a very good reason that has nothing to do with the food or atmosphere. I’ll let you in on the fun family anecdote at the end of the post.) Well, we loved our experience in 2010, so we decided to go back this time around.
The Hollywood Brown Derby is modeled after the original Hollywood Brown Derby that opened, on North Vine Street in Hollywood, California, in 1929. (This Brown Derby restaurant was actually the second in the Brown Derby franchise; the first opened on Wilshire Boulevard in 1926 and remains the most easily recognized due to its distinct derby hat shape.) The restaurants proximity to popular Hollywood hot spots, intimate setting, beautiful architecture, and delicious menu offerings catapulted the Brown Derby into infamy. Some of Hollywood’s biggest names (i.e. Clark Gable, the cast of I Love Lucy, and others) could be found dining in this iconic restaurant. The Brown Derby began a licensing program in 1987 when it entered into a contract with the Walt Disney Company to create a replica of the original Hollywood Brown Derby in the then Disney-MGM Studios. A Hollywood Brown Derby restaurant can also be found in each of the three other Disney theme park locations: Disneyland, EuroDisney and Tokyo Disney.
Let’s start with an evaluation of the restaurant’s atmosphere. In a word: breath-taking. Granted, Disney had a model; however, the quintessential Disney quality is found within every line! When you approach the restaurant from the outside, it is pushed back from the main thoroughfare approaching the huge Sorcerer’s Apprentice hat, on a much narrower walkway. Although it still gets some heavy traffic (it is Disney World, after all), you don’t feel like you have to get inside or risk being squashed by the crowds. You walk under a long awning to the front door, which opens on to a small, understated lobby. The floors are plain tiles, there are caricatures of celebrities on the walls, a handful of leather chairs/sofas, and wall sconces shaped like little derby hats on the walls. The big “wow” factor is in the main dining room.
The center of the dining room is recessed a few steps down from the level of the lobby. Here, the walls are lined with booths (for parties of 4 or larger) that are beautifully upholstered in chocolate brown leather; the center tables are adequately spaced to seat parties of 2 or larger. Before making your way to the main dining area, there is a “shelf” of tables. The wall to the outside of the “shelf” is also lined with booths for larger parties, while the inside wall is lined with tables for parties of 2. The cream colored walls are articulated with chocolate stained crown mouldings and decorated (almost floor to ceiling) with more caricatures of celebrities. The floor is carpeted, and the full service bar is open to the dining room. The dining room is far enough removed from the entryway and park traffic that it is quite and peaceful. The lighting is even dim enough to allow your eyes a break from the strong Floridian sun.
If I had to sum my meal up in one word, it would be: scrumptious! I was pleasantly surprised that with our fixed price dining package, we were able to choose any appetizer, entree and dessert that struck our fancy. I have photos of our appetizers and entrees, but I forgot to photograph our desserts. But trust me when I say that they looked just as good as they sound! For full descriptions of what’s contained in each dish, check out the photograph of the menu!
Appetizer:
Kristin: Bibb Lettuce Salad - Perfectly proportioned and dressed! Kristin does not enjoy heavy salad dressing, so she usually asks for it on the side. The salad came perfectly garnished and the dressing, while flavorful, was very light. The vegetables were so fresh they tasted like they came fresh from market that morning!
Michelle: Blue Lump Crab Spring Rolls - I have never had a spring roll so deliciously done! It was crispy, but not oily; flavorful, but not over powering; just the right amount of food to encourage my appetite for my main dish!
Entree:
Kristin: Noodle Bowl with Wok-fried Coconut Tofu- Kristin is a vegetarian and, even in Disney, sometimes the vegetarian menu options fall short of dazzling. Well, this is definitely the exception. The coconut crusted fried tofu is fresh and clean tasting, not greasy like fried tofu tends to get. It’s not overly sweet either. My favorite part about this dish is the lemongrass curry broth. It is packed with flavour and provides just enough of a kick to balance out the sweetness of the tofu, but it is not intimidating. If we had been the only party in the dining room, I would have drunk the remaining broth right out of the bowl.
Michelle: Duck Two Ways - This was only my second time having duck, ever. I have always been under the pre-conception that duck is incredibly oily and that the texture would do nothing to appeal to my likes. Well, I was so very wrong. The meat itself was fantastic and tasted almost exactly like chicken. The spices for the dish made it taste like Thanksgiving (which is great for me - I love Thanksgiving!) and I would definitely have eaten twice as much as they gave me.
Dessert:
Kristin: Grapefruit Cake (A Brown Derby original) - Kristin doesn’t usually like dessert and she especially dislikes cake...don’t ask. That being said, she finished almost the entire piece. The cake was light and packed with refreshing grapefruit flavor. The serving size was perfect and again, the plate was not overly dressed with garnish. Sweet, tangy, moist, delicious dessert that Kristin swore she would order, and enjoy, again.
Michelle: Double Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee - Mmmm, mmmm, mmm! My only complaint about my creme brulee was that the sugar crust was not exactly crusty enough. I enjoy that crunch when you first crack into the shell. The flavors and texture were otherwise perfect.
Wine:
Kristin: Castello Banfi Chianti Classico Riserva - Tuscany, Italy, ‘07 - Your typical Chianti. Smooth, easy to drink and it’s palate of flavours complimented every dish, from appetizer to dessert very well.
Michelle: Patilla, Malbec - Argentina, ‘08
Royal Tokaji Red Label 5 - Puttonyos, Hungary ‘05 (dessert wine)
I loved, loved, LOVED my Malbec. Full flavors, with just a bit of spice, I would love nothing more than to sit and sip this wine on a cool evening. The Royal Tokaji I should have done without. For the most part, Hungarian wine is a little too strong for my pallet, but I thought I’d give it another shot. This wine was strong, bitter and a touch sour; I did not understand what kind of dessert this wine could satisfactorily accompany.
I’m such a huge fan of the Hollywood Brown Derby. It is one of those restaurants that I would visit all the time if I lived in the Orlando area. For me, this was the best meal we had the entire trip and deserves a big fat 10. The serving sizes were perfect, just enough food to fill you up but not make you feel like you should have worn your elastic waistbanded pants.
The Fantasmic! package was a great idea. We ate more food than the total amount we paid would have gotten us a la carte. We didn’t have to wait in a line to get a great seat for Fantasmic! and we were able to see absolutely everything! Our dining review is already a bit lengthy, so we’ll be back soon with a review, and photos, of Fantasmic!
Personal anecdote time! On our first trip to WDW, I was not even a whole 18 months old. How my parents managed with a 6 year old, a 3 year old and a toddler, I will never really know, but I digress. On our one day at Disney-MGM Studios, we stopped for lunch at the Hollywood Brown Derby. According to my parents, I was a smiles and laughter and the picture-perfect child... until we stopped to eat. Apparently, I broke down into temper tantrums and hysterics every time we stepped into a restaurant. I didn’t want real food, I wanted popcorn, pretzels, ice cream and lots of things to look at. Our trip to the Hollywood Brown Derby was particularly catastrophic.
From the time we sat down, I was giving my parents a hard time. They ordered me a Sprite (more out of concern for appeasing my growing outrage than for its nutritional value); I didn’t want a Sprite - I wanted my mother’s diet coke. Temper tantrum ensues. My mother ordered me a plate of spaghetti and meatballs in marinara sauce - apparently this was the only thing I would even consider eating off of the menu. After lunch was brought to the table, the temper tantrum escalated and my mother never got to taste her French Dip. No, she did not. But she did get the lovely addition of a plate of spaghetti and meatballs tossed all over her white and turquoise outfit. Needless to say, after cleaning the bits of spaghetti and meat off of her clothes, my mother picked me up and whisked me outside where I quietly sat and ate a soft pretzel for lunch while she, in vain, tried to remove some of the sauce from the front of her shirt. From that day forward I was told that my photograph was somewhere on the walls of that restaurant under the heading “WDW’s most wanted.” Granted, I knew it was a joke; however, part of me believed that I might find a photo of my 18 month old self plastered up somewhere inside that restaurant. It was not until I was 22-years-old that I plucked up the courage, and the humor, to make a special lunch reservation for the family at the Brown Derby. It was a great idea and it allowed us to rediscover the deliciousness of the long overlooked restaurant.
I hope that our review is helpful, or at least entertaining. And please feel free to use the bit of “WDW’s most wanted” for any misbehaved children you may be dealing with on your trip. I promise we won’t get mad at you for it.
TTFN!
Dining Disney Style
One of my favorite things to do at Walt Disney World is EAT! Wining and dining, in my opinion, can make or break any vacation. It is very important to me, whenever I am planning a get away, to check out what kinds of restaurants are available at my point of destination. I have no problem grabbing street food during the day, but I really enjoy the beauty of a fine meal. So if when asked about food at Walt Disney World, the first thing you think of is “chicken fingers, French fries and soda”, then you, my friend, are so SO wrong! The Walt Disney World resort offers an abundance of high quality Fine Dining experiences which may pleasantly surprise you!
Let’s start with what Disney calls “Signature Dining”. “Signature Dining”, is defined by the people at Disney as “A unique experience featuring outstanding food and wine served in an atmosphere to make any occasion special”. Basically, that means the menu offers high quality dishes made from high quality ingredients that match the overall atmospheric theme of the restaurant. According to the Walt Disney World Dining and Reservation’s page the signature dining restaurants include: Artist Point (The Wilderness Lodge); Bistro de Paris (France Pavilion, EPCOT); The California Grill (The Contemporary Resort); Citrico’s (The Grand Floridian); Jiko (The Animal Kingdom Lodge); Le Cellier Steakhouse (Canada Pavilion, EPCOT); Narcoossee’s (The Grand Floridian); and Victoria and Albert’s(The Grand Floridian).
The signature restaurants are a great way for adults to experience the “Grown Up” side of Disney. They offer a quiet, refined atmosphere that allows you to sit back with a glass of wine and relax after a day full of sensory overload. The service is exquisite, and no matter how busy the dining room may be, I have never felt rushed or inconvenienced. All Signature Dining restaurants technically request “business casual” attire for their dining room. Now, I’ve eaten at all of these restaurants (with the exception of Victoria and Albert’s) and have seen people dressed in everything from jeans to formal dinner wear. So as long as you aren’t dressed like a slob, you won’t have any problem in the dining room. That being said however, there are two exceptions: the management at the California Grill does ask their diners to adhere to the business casual dress code (and believe me, this restaurant is so beautiful, you’re going to want to dress up) and Victoria and Albert’s is a FORMAL dining room- jackets and ties for men, skirts or dresses for ladies- and you really must honor the dress code at V&A’s.
Please do not think the “Signature Dining” restaurants are stuffy-they aren’t at all!
These restaurants are simply another dining option within a slew of many on the WDW resort. And remember, this is indeed Disney, so all these restaurants do provide warm, family-friendly service and are definitely kid friendly (complete with kid’s menus and crayons).
If you’re like me, and like dressing up for dinner, then you probably won’t feel inconvenienced by Signature dining attire requests. However, let’s be real: that just doesn’t work for some people. Whether you have kids or a tight schedule or you simply do not feel like putting on a pair of real pants, there are plenty of wonderful nice restaurants on the WDW property that do not have a true “dress code”. All of the deluxe resorts provide at least one (usually two) full service sit-down restaurant adjacent to the main lobby. These restaurants host menus that fit with the theme of each resort and are typically more relaxed than ‘Signature Dining’ restaurants.
Now if you are in one of the theme parks and would rather starve than eat another French fry, then you are in luck! Each park has at least two full-service sit-down restaurants (yes, even the Magic Kingdom) that provide menus with food other than burgers and fries! EPCOT, in particular, is brimming with delicious one-of-a-kind restaurants. To get a full list of these restaurants, I recommend you either stop in a Guest Relations in each park (they can even make a dining reservation for you there) or check out your Mobile Magic app! Some of my favorite theme park restaurants include: The Coral Reef Restaurant (The Living Seas, EPCOT); Tutto Italia and Via Napoli (Italy Pavilion, EPCOT) and The Brown Derby (Disney’s Hollywood Studios).
All sit down restaurants offer not only a fabulous food menu, but also a wine list and full service bar. Except in the Magic Kingdom! ALCOHOL IS NOT SERVED AT ALL ANYWHERE INSIDE THE MAGIC KINGDOM! Walt wanted it that way, and that’s the way it’s gonna stay!
A word of advice- reservations are STRONGLY recommended (if not required) for any signature dining restaurant. The best way to do this is to contact Disney dining and set up your reservation in advance. Some of these restaurants -Le Cellier comes to mind- book up months in advance, so it really is in your best interest to decided if you want to eat at one of these restaurants and set it up before you even get on the plane. You can do that at: http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/reservations/dining/. If that doesn’t work for you, you can always make a dining reservation with concierge services when you arrive at the resort OR by contacting guest relations inside the theme park.
If you want to see current menus for any of the restaurants listed in this blog post you can access them at http://allears.net/menu/menus.htm.
See ya real soon!
Review: La Hacienda
For dinner our first night, we dined at La Hacienda, the new restaurant at the Mexico pavilion in EPCOT. The restaurant opened a little over a year ago and features a menu that focuses on traditional central and southern Mexican cuisine; the restaurant is only open for dinner, with seating available after 4 pm. . The dimly lit dining room is decorated with sedate, Spanish mission style furniture, stained glass lamps, and artwork honoring some of Mexico’s most famous painters. The large picture windows overlooking the lagoon give a beautiful view of world showcase and, at the right time, the Illuminations fireworks spectacular.
We started our night off with sampling the specialty margaritas that are offered. (If you are like me, and have adventurous tastes, I highly recommend trying either the blueberry basil margarita or the jalapeno margarita.) The cocktail menu also boasts an impressive list of tequilas and tequila tasting flights. Once we placed our orders, the server dropped off a basket of tortilla chips and two tomato dips- the first was a mild red salsa verde, the other a spicy chipotle tomatillo. Both were delicious.
For dinner, I ordered the vegetable tacos. The flavors were bold and fresh; the vegetables tasted like they were harvested that morning. The queso fresco was sweet and mild and added an extra element of complexity to the dish. The serving size was perfect, with just enough food on the plate to make sure my hunger was satiated, but not so much that I felt neither stuffed nor was I forced to throw away food.
The service was wonderful: we were seated promptly and our server thoroughly explained the menu offerings to us. The restaurant features a vegetarian menu in addition to their main offerings. Our cocktails and food arrived in a timely fashion, but our server did not bother us, giving us ample time to eat and enjoy our meal.
Over all, I enjoyed dining at La Hacienda very much. The food was delicious, the cocktails refreshingly inventive and the service impeccable. I strongly advise making a reservation in advance as the dining room is huge, but it is a new restaurant with great food and cocktails, and a fantastic view, so it books up fast.
Just a word of advice, if you are looking for Tex-Mex style food, you will NOT find it here. If you are looking for brightly colored décor, giant strawberry margaritas and cheddar cheese enchiladas, go inside to the San Angel Inn, or stop by the quick service stand next to La Hacienda. If you are looking for fun, fresh Mexican cuisine, you will not be disappointed with La Hacienda.
Being a Vegetarian in Walt Disney World:
Dining out when you have any kind of a dietary restriction can be challenging and it has only really been in the last 10 – 15 years that Disney has begun incorporating options for various diets into every menu at every restaurant on premises. At many of the restaurants, you have to request a separate menu; however, the choices they offer really show that the staff at Disney has gone above and beyond to cater to any diet in a way just as delicious as the standard menus. These choices extend far beyond the sit down restaurants: all quick service restaurants offer vegetarian, kosher and gluten free meals; you can even find special munchies at some of the snack carts throughout the parks. If you are counting calories, fruit and vegetable sides are available as an alternative to french fries (and are the default side for kids’ meals), while water, juice and milk are available as alternatives to soft drinks.
In general, being a vegetarian in Disney is fairly easy. Most sit down restaurants offer a completely vegetarian menu: all you have to do is let your server know, and they will bring you the separate menu. In the event there is no vegetarian option on the menu, you should still let your server know. They will let the kitchen staff know and a chef will come to your table to discuss what delectable dish they can whip up for you. In quite a few cases, the base for soups, sauces or rice dishes will most likely be chicken broth, oyster sauce, etc. If you are like me and prefer not to eat these types of animal by-products, ask your server if you can have a list of the ingredients that will be in your meal- sometimes the chef is willing to make a vegetarian subsitution.
If you are attending a dinner show, like the Spirit of Aloha Luau or the Hoop De Doo Review, you will have the opportunity to register your dietary restrictions when you make the reservation. In the event you forget to inform the staff at the time of your reservation, simply tell your server once you are seated. The kitchen staff will do their best to accommodate you.
To be fair, the majority of the vegetarian menu options are just as varying as the non-vegetarian options. There are very few cases where the vegetarian entrée leaves much to be desired, as in the case of the Hoop De Doo Review dinner show: a plate of pasta with red marinara sauce and sautéed vegetables. You do not get a protein. I know this may not sound unsatisfactory to some, but when you are paying $45-$60 for a meal (yes I know it includes the show, salad, unlimited beverage options and dessert), it should be a bit more imaginative and satisfying than a plate of pasta and over cooked vegetables. To avoid disappointment with a restaurant’s vegetarian options, call WDW dining (407.WDW.DINE) before making your reservations; they may not be able to tell you exactly what the current menu selections are (they change occasionally), but they will be able to give you examples of past offerings. Then you can make an informed decision on whether the trend of vegetarian options is appealing to your pallet.
Overall, the offerings for a vegetarian in Disney are vast and the staff is more than happy to do their best to accommodate you. I’ve been a vegetarian for over ten years and have watched Disney change their menus to reflect the needs of their ever evolving clientele. At the beginning of my experiences as a vegetarian in Disney, the options were incredibly limited and the meals were not very well balanced: the last 10 years have seen a vast improvement in Disney’s vegetarian consciousness. The moral of the story? Do not sweat it if your diet needs special accommodations. Remember, a dream is a wish your heart makes. And if your heart is craving tofu or gluten free desserts, well, Disney will make your dreams come true!
See ya real soon!
