Chris A.
Yelp
We came here with some family one evening to celebrate a few little occasions, and for a nice Christmas dinner. Nestled in the lobby of Disney's Contemporary, the ambiance is very nostalgic Disney. There are pictures everywhere of Walt Disney World at various points in time. Looking back through Disney history is always nice, I think.
Within the dining room, I will admit, the grandiosity of the place is some of the best I have ever seen. Disney certainly designed this place to get a lot of oohs and ahhs. Old school vibes with the woods and the modern contemporary art adorning most of the wall space. A huge, vast open design that makes it seem like you can see every single of the room all at once. It's just very pretty.
Service was nice. A very friendly guy. Nothing too out of the ordinary once way or the other. Not as top notch as you would expect at a designated steakhouse, but we never hurt for refills. You know.
Now for the food.
We started out with the Shrimp Cocktail (Citrus-poached Shrimp, Cocktail Sauce, Chive Oil). Unless you're old old school, skip this. No hint of citrus poaching, chive oil wasn't very chivey. This is a dish to satisfy certain people's nostalgia.
Then we moved onto the Sea Salt-dusted Potato Brioche (Butter, Roasted Garlic-Tomato Spread). Wow! Such a soft brioche with a nice, crusty exterior, paired perfectly with those large, giant salt crystals. Lovely the way it is, but then your spread that garlicky, tomatoey spread on it, and it's just so unctuous. A lovely bread. Everyone should get this.
I personally ate the 10-oz New York Strip, medium rare, for my entrée. Sides of Mashed Potatoes and Creamed Spinach. I don't know, man. It was definitely medium. I don't blame them for overdoing it, since the cut was so thin. The mash was silky smooth, but there wasn't really a speck of seasoning on it other than butter. The creamed spinach was a very nice addition, but again, lack of seasoning.
I also got a bite of the 6-oz Filet Mignon, medium rare, with a side of Macaroni & Cheese. Another subpar steak, but this side was the best side of the night. Nicely cheesed noodles with a nice bite to them and some bread crumbs on top for a nice texture. This side was a winner.
The best part of the evening, hands down, was the Flight of all five (5) Sauces. A little cup of each of the five steak sauces, the red wine, the whipped horseradish cream, salsa verde, the béarnaise, and the signature steakhouse 71. The best one, and the most complex one was their signature. If you only get one sauce, I would pick that one, and the salsa verde was just unnecessary.
We finished up with the second best part of the evening, the Steakhouse 71 Signature Chocolate Cake (15 Layers of Jack Daniels-infused Decadent Chocolate Cake, Chocolate Mousse, Raspberries). Decadent AF. A slight tinge of that Jack, pairing well with a nice, solid mousse. There could have been more raspberries involved, to cut through the richness, but good thing I was sharing it.
Overall, this was a nice place to eat at. If you're looking for a steakhouse on Disney property, I would probably hit up Toledo or Shula's, but if you have a budget or are being treated to this place, just get the largest steak you can, order it one level rarer than you want, and get the mac & cheese. You'll be fine.