Anyone who tells you that all Disney World food is good is a liar…but also, anyone who tells you that all Disney World food is BAD is a liar, too.
California Grill
We’ve tried enough food over the years (which means dining at every restaurant in Disney World!) to know that there are some absolutely delicious eats around the resort. Disney has several signature restaurants that serve some top-notch dining experiences, and recently, we got invited to stop by one of our favorites.
Disney recently invited us out for a media event at California Grill, and during my visit, I got the chance to try some truly spectacular food.
We ate from their 3 Course Selection Menu, which is $89 per adult, plus tax and gratuity. For additional charges, you can add the Signature Wine Pairing or the Deluxe Wine Pairing.
California Grill table setting
With the meal, you get to choose one Market Inspiration (appetizer), one Chef’s Journey (entree), and one Sweet Creation (dessert). There are plenty of different options, and it was honestly kind of hard to choose! But based on the recommendations of my server and things we’ve tried at California Grill in the past, I made my order.
The full menu
Ultimately, I got the Braised Beef Short Rib Wontons, the Wagyu Strip Loin, and the Valrhona Ganache Torte. Each of those items were absolutely delicious, but there were two things among the many that stood out to me in particular. So let’s talk about it!
Inside the restaurant
First up, I need to mention those short rib wontons! They’re made with Doenjang-Miso-Cola-Onion Sauce, radish, crispy garlic-chili oil, and pickled lotus root. They had a hint of spiciness to them, and the wontons themselves were perfectly soft without being mushy.
The wontons were GOOD
Even after I cut into them, they held together surprisingly well. I particularly enjoyed the mixture of textures from the garnish that came along with them, I would totally recommend this as a start to your meal, the whole dish was ON POINT.
The one thing I should note is that this seemed to be a slightly smaller portion for an appetizer than some of the other options. So if you have a huge appetite during your visit, you might want to choose something else.
Inside the wontons
The other item from the menu that I have to rave about is, of course, the Wagyu Strip Loin. If you’re ordering this at California Grill, it’s an additional charge of $47. It comes with Kimchi fried rice, steamed dumplings, bok choy, and crispy lotus root, but the steak was what stood out above the rest. I know, that upcharge is a hefty sum to pay, but it might be worth it if you’re a steak aficionado.
Wagyu Strip Loin
I’ve always heard people describe nice steaks as “melt in your mouth” but I wasn’t 100% sure what that meant or felt like until I ate this strip loin. The knife sliced through it like butter and each bite had a perfectly balanced chew and a deep, rich flavor. I could’ve simply sat and ate nothing but this steak all evening and left completely happy. Is it the best steak in Disney World? I haven’t had them all, but it’s certainly the best one I’ve eaten.
I wanted to cry this was so good.
California Grill is really a unique experience in Disney World. You’ll have to check in on the second floor of Disney’s Contemporary Resort and then take a private elevator up to the top. The dining room has spectacular views of Disney property as a whole, but especially Magic Kingdom and the monorail resorts.
You’ll check in on the second floor.
After (or during!) your meal, you can head out to the private viewing area and watch Magic Kingdom’s nighttime fireworks show, and they even pipe in the music. It was, in a word…magical.
Dinner with a view!
So if you’re interested in visiting California Grill during your next Disney trip, I definitely recommend the items I ordered — they were all delicious! We’ve also been big fans of the Sonoma Goat Cheese Ravioli, the Oak-fired Filet of Beef, and the Peanut and Banana Torte in the past. If you try any of those items, make sure to let us know your thoughts!
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Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. We were invited by Disney World to attend their media event at California Grill. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ
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I used to sit at the sushi counter, and Yoshi (before she retired) would make rolls that weren’t on the menu, and, sometimes, not on the bill either. I won’t return until they dump this prix-fix menu and return to a la cart.
Very sad!