Disney Dining

We recently took a little family vacation to Disney World. It turned out to be a really fun little trip. Somehow, this was unexpected to me. We also had some good dining experiences. Not in the parks, mind you, there you are pretty much limited to burgers, pizza, fries, ice cream (not even frozen yogurt!), and cotton candy. So, leave your diet at home.

Here's a little recap of the restaurants where we dined (all of which are located in the Swan/Dolphin resort).

Todd English's Blue Zoo

On our first night in Orlando, we had dinner plans to meet my dear friend Buzz and his lovely wife Karen and their 2 kids. I was very excited to check out Blue Zoo and Karen graciously made reservations. A & I got there first (L was on the phone). We checked out the restaurant and then made our way to the (largely empty) bar. I pulled out a stool to sit down, and planned on putting A in a stool next to me. (I wasn't entirely sure that this would work, but I thought I'd give it a shot.) Well, before I could sit down, the hostess came running over and informed me that "kids were not allowed in the bar area." Seriously? Did she understand that she was on Disney property? Now, let's be clear. She did not tell me that we could sit at one of the many empty tables in the bar area, just not sit at the bar itself (which I would have understood.) She said kids were not allowed in the entire bar area. So, I walked out.

When L & our friends arrived, we headed back into the restaurant. This time the hostess said we could sit at a table in the bar area while we waited for our table. Even though we now included 3 kids. Huh?

Anyway, dinner was great, albiet extremely expensive. The food was excellent, no one had a single complaint. I personally thought the bubble gum martini was a bit much, but Karen loved it. We had a great time catching up. I had not seen Buzz in many years, and he had not yet met my son. However, the atmosphere was not so friendly. (The little kids rolling around on the floor probably didn't help.) Whatever. I had my back to the the dining room so I was little oblivious to what was going on around me. Moreover, I enjoyed the company I was with very much. I recommend it, but probably leave the kids at home.

Next up: Il Mulino

Il Mulino is an Italian restaurant out of New York that has opened several outposts through out the country (including Atlanta.) We decided to there our second night at Disney. We didn't have reservations, and even though, they were very busy, they squeezed us. There were lots of families dining. And lots of happy noise and activity. The place was beautiful and had a great atmosphere. No one seemed to mind that A was not on his best behavior. It was just...fun. We ordered pizza for A. L & I shared an order of bucatini amatriciana and an order of veal saltimbocca. They brought out limoncello at the end of the dinner. Everyone was so pleasant and accommodating. We had a wonderful time. But as we took our last bites of food, L & I looked at each other and said "the food wasn't very good, was it?" Not that it was bad, just not great. Sort of mediocre. And we hadn't even noticed it. Lesson learned: atmosphere can take you a long way.

Last night: Kimonos

On our last night, we went to Kimono's, the sushi restaurant. This was definitely the riskiest place to take A, what with all the tables close together, cluttered with small plates, and bowls, water glasses, wine glasses, etc. A disaster waiting to happen. It didn't help that A was exhuasted after a long day at Magic Kingdom. He threw more than one fit in the short time we were there. The sushi was excellent, as were the cocktails. But dinner was cut short by our over-tired child.

So overall, our Disney dining experience was pretty good. Blue Zoo has great food, but needs to work on their atmosphere (or at least come to terms with the fact that they're on Disney property and can expect kids in the restaurant). Il Mulino has a great atmosphere, but needs to work on punching up the food. And Kimonos really had both.

Dining with Child Revisited

The last time I discussed dining with our son A, he was still an infant. As you may recall, L & I brought A to a very sleek restaurant (Dolce) and he proceeded to expel a thick green vomit all over himself and the floor around him. Nice. Well, now he's nearly 3. The perils of dining with a three year old are considerably different than those of dining with an infant.

Case in point: recently, we had dinner at Bistro Niko, a new restaurant here in Atlanta. Now, as I have previously confessed my love of French bistros, you may imagine that I've been dying to check out Bistro Niko. I would have preferred using my first Bistro Niko experience as an excuse to get a sitter and have an "adults-only" dinner with L. The problem was I just didn't kow when we'd be able to do that. The schedules are so difficult.

So I made 5:30 reservations for 3 on a Sunday. That particular day was quite busy. We took A to the circus at noon, followed by an hour or so playing in the park. We had enough time to clean up, before heading back out for dinner. A had no nap and very little lunch. All this is to say, that upon arriving at the restaurant, A was bouncing off the walls.

They sat us at a table for 4 which had 8 crystal wine glasses across the middle. I avoided disaster by asking Rashid, our server, to remove them pronto! A just would not sit still. He was loud, whiny, bored and agitated. I thought to myself (but did not say aloud) "maybe this was mistake..." L ran out to the car to get A's toy cars for him to play with. And I walked, or rather chased, A around the restaurant. Although I usually say that "A is for adorable," that night "A" was for annoying. I concluded that we'd have to make it a quick dinner so we could get out of there without bringing too much shame and embarassment upon ourselves.

When Rashid came to take our order, we quickly ordered A a croque monsieur and frites (grilled ham and cheese with fries) and ordered ourselves escargot and a pate charcuterie. We felt defeated but were determined to try to salvage the dinner.

And then a miracle happened. Rashid brought the bread course. We gave A some bread and butter. Then we gave him more. Apparently, the poor child was starving. He happily and quietly ate several pieces of bread. In fact, he finished the bread basket. When his sandwich came, he devoured it. All this food cause an immediate transformation. He returned to his usual fun, funny, sweet self. A was for adorable, once more.

This allowed L & I to enjoy our delicious dinners (beef bourgonnone for him, skate wing for me). We shared a bottle of red wine and had pistachio profiteroles for dessert. While we ate, A laughed, played, sang and kissed and hugged us. We did not have to rush. It was lovely. In fact, it was a blast. My friends never believe me when I say it, but in all honesty, dining out is more fun when A is involved.