I wasn't expecting much out of Wolfgang Puck's. I generally mistrust corporation chefs: the restaurants, the airport eateries, the soups, the TV shows... it's just too much. But I was in for a pleasant surprise.
We arrived in Downtown Disney after an exhaustingly fun day at Discovery Cove. I tried to prepare myself for the "cheese" factor, but it was overwhelming. Gloria Estefan's restaurant! A huge Virgin Megastore! Giant, splashy murals! Tourists, tourists, tourists! A theatre that charges $13 for movies? What, seriously, in Florida? For ONE movie?
Wolfgang Puck's Grand Café had a facade in keeping with the rest of Downtown Disney—competing colors, each brighter than the next; a huge sign; and lots of lights. The inside fared no better—it made me think of an upscale Cheesecake Factory, but dimmer to appear classy. It was sprawling and loud. We were seated upstairs, and the place was really quite large.
The menu was a mixture of styles, common in corporate restaurants, like the chef is trying to please all possible customers. The only thing really tying it together was the seafood—yum! With the seafood, the place surpassed my expectations.
First of all, there was the price—it's always a shock to eat at theme parks, and Downtown Disney restaurants are like a large-scale version of the $4 hotdogs at Sea World. Everyone's entrée was in the $25 to $35 range, but I was also taken aback by the selection. Everything sounded amazing, much better than I would have thought.
The bread basket that comes with the meal featured yummy parmesan crispbreads and freshly-baked focaccia. Deliciously decadent appetizers included macadamia-encrusted scallops and crab-stuffed, bacon-wrapped jumbo shrimp. I ordered grouper, which I love—one of my favorite things about Florida. It had a sweet mango relish and was served over sugar snap peas. It was perfectly done, flaky, and delicious. The wines chosen by the Disney PR reps were fantastic as well. We unfortunately didn't have time for dessert—running late for Cirque du Soleil!—so I can't comment on that. But if desserts were made with the care and the fresh ingredients of the rest of the food, I'm sure they would have been amazing. The staff was highly efficient, gracious, and patient with our many requests.
All in all, it was an exquisite meal and lovely dining experience. If you can get past the exterior of the restaurant and any misgivings about the Wolfgang Puck name, definitely give it a try.