Sleepydog's Dining Reviews w/Pics--FINAL THOUGHTS!

I failed to put a picture of my steak and eggs from the CA Brunch, so here it is:
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As I mentioned in my review, while it was quite tasty, the steak was unevenly cooked. However, the sauce, potatoes, and caramelized red onions were spot on. I also failed to list a grade for the meal, so here it is:
GRADE: A- Highs: Views, locale, menu choices, free mimosas Lows: Cost

SANAA

This restaurant has earned a spot on our "must-do" list. We first sampled the delights of Sanaa about six years ago when we had a lovely dinner there. We were impressed by the quality of the food and the excellence of the service. Fast forward a year and we decided that lunch was the best fit for trying Sanaa again. The bread service sounded as if had been dreamed up just for us, so we ordered it. . .and the rest, as they say, is history. Here's a picture, one I'm sure most have seen multiple times, that gives you a brief glance at the full bread service.

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The one detraction from the dish this time around was the new plating. Gone is the huge platter with breads and sauces artfully arranged; instead, you get the cheaper looking sauce tray with thin, wooden spoons or sporks (think of a slight upgrade to the wooden spoons you find with ice cream cups). That slight eyesore aside, the sauces were every bit as lively, refreshing, savory, sweet, and spicy heat-hot as ever. If you've not done the bread service before, it is well worth the roughly $13 it costs--in fact, it's a relative bargain when it comes to Disney dining. You get five breads (frankly, only two of them are mildly distinctive from the traditional na'an) and more sauce than you'll actually use. In the picture, the hottest (aka spiciest) sauce is in the top right corner with the least spiciest in the top left corner (it's a cucumber raita). At some point, I'll look up what they are and post them (perhaps my loving, stunningly gorgeous wife will do it for me). There are some herbs and spices many palates won't be too familiar with, but none of them are terribly exotic--the first three sauces do give some good heat, though, so if you're not up to that sort of thing, you might proceed with caution. We've also found that combing sauces can be a real winner. One of the hotter sauces has a bit of cumin in it, and it meshes well with the tamarind-based sauce (that has a bit of sweetness to it) or the cucumber raita. One of the things we love the most about this meal is the possibilities for mixing and matching breads and sauces is almost unlimited.

You'll notice in the picture that there is a bowl of salad. The menu lists a salad sampler for $8; however, Luv asked if perhaps the kitchen could just give her one of the three, instead. They willing complied, so what you see in the picture is the chickpeas with cucumber and tomato selection. It was dotted with fresh cilantro, red onion, and I believe a bit of green pepper (I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm incorrect). It was delightfully chilled, and we loved the herbaceousness of the cukes and cilantro especially. The texture was a perfect complement to the breads and sauces, as well. Naturally, we had some adult libations with the meal--I mean, what says "Superb lunch!" better than a couple of glasses of crisp Chenin Blanc (Graham Beck)? Nothing, says I.

We arrived shortly after they opened, so were quickly escorted to a requested table next to a window as you can make out (if just barely) in this picture.
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Despite the heat (above average temperatures that week), animals were in abundance: giraffes, gazelles, an ostrich or two, et. al. Service was, as always, friendly, efficient, and timely. Even with the two glasses of wine we had (I think it was just two :drinking1), the cost for our lunch came in around $40--not bad for an inviting table service meal in an exotic location with excellent food and service. We came away thinking the same thing as we always seem to: although we don't generally tend to do the same restaurants each trip, it's hard to take this one off our list.
GRADE: A Highs: Food, service, locale, cost Lows: None, except new plating

Next up: Paddlefish (this will be a doozy)
 
Sadly, I still cannot see any pictures you post, my love. Here's what I have from Sanaa. I did love that little salad, and I wish it was available on it's own. Which, I guess it is, if you ask. But, I think we were charged $6 for that teensy bit, and given all 3 are only $8....IMG_3944.JPGIMG_3946.jpg
 
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Okay, your pictures are way better, anyway. Based on this picture, the spiciest sauce is in the back row toward the left in the dark red bowl. The next two bowls to the right of that one (orange and white) were also spicy; in fact, I thought the third one to be spicier than the first (I believe it had jalapenos). That would make the white bowl to the far left in the front row the raita. Others include red pepper hummus, mango chutney, tamarind chutney, and coriander chutney. I believe the spiciest is the red chile sambal. Regardless, it's a superbly awesome meal. . .
 
Paddlefish
When we looked at menus during our planning stage, we were intrigued by this update to the old Fulton's Crab House. We had liked Fulton's, though neither of us were crazy about it, so a few of the items on the new Paddlefish menu seemed adventurous and right up our alley. One of other sides of a restaurant we explore is their drink menu, especially wines. There, Paddlefish seemed to be a solid choice, as well. (Sorry for the poor picture below.) Though we waffled a bit, we ultimately decided to make an ADR there (yeah, so that's obvious, huh?).
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We had a 5:30 reservation and showed up right on time. It wasn't busy (a theme throughout the week), and we had a short 2-3 minute wait while they looked busy and threw dice to see where we'd be sitting. We did ask the hostess for a nice window seat, if available, or at least one with a view of the water. She was noncommittal, as was our Table Expedition Leader--a tall, lanky young man--to whom we repeated the request. He did mutter something to the effect of "let's see what we have." He led us through the downstairs side dining room that looks out over the water where we observed perhaps four to five occupied tables in a room with five times that many tabletops. Three or four tables next to the windows (thus water) were open (4-tops, mostly), as were a majority of the remaining tables not next to the window. We actually commented that any of these would be fine. Instead, our lanky table finder kept going into the dining room at the stern. There are a few tables at the window there, though the paddlewheel fills up the entire viewing area; regardless, he didn't stop at any of those, either. We followed right (meaning we were now on the port side of the ship with no windows. He stopped and showed us one of those quasi-booth tables (1/2 booth, 1/2 chair--a Chooth table!). . .right next to the server station and entrance to the kitchen.

Hmmm. We politely asked if perhaps a better table away from station as we've had some of our worst experiences at such spots what with noise and clamor those stations emit. Further, there was a family of four right across from that table, and one of the kids (in the neighborhood of 2 yrs old) was NOT having a good day. Lanky Man seemed a bit put out by our last request (remember, we had originally hoped for a window or near window seat in the light and airy starboard dining room), so headed to a 2-top sitting right against the wall separating the stern dining room. "Will this table be good enough for you?" he snarked. (I know it was snark because I have a special reserve of my own.) We almost asked to keep moving, but opted to take what was offered. He dropped off the menus and left, and as we sat down, we bumped the table which almost knocked off a wine glass since it was so poorly balanced. Our server arrived a moment later and had to stick a wedge under one of the legs to keep the table from being a weeble-wobble. My thought was, "so this is supposed to be a new upscale dining experience?" We were not off to a good start.

From there, things did improve a bit. Our server, while not exceptional, certainly was competent and friendly most of the night. At first, she was quite lovely, but as the night wore on, we saw less and less of her, to the point where our wine glasses had been sitting empty for 10 minutes before she came up to us to see if we wanted another. By then, we'd finished our meal so declined--that was a lost sale. It wasn't as if the area was busy (though I realize she may have had other tables in a different dining area), so her lack of follow up was unfortunate. While not terrible service, it certainly wasn't up to expectations for a signature.

Coming up: the food.
 
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Paddlefish (cont.):

LOML
generally knows what she is going to have at any given restaurant before she makes the 180-day ADR (sorry, babe, it's true), while I'm more of a spur-of-the-moment kinda guy. A typical conversation at home goes like this:
L: What do you think you'll have?
Me: Dunno.
L: What?! Don't you want to know what you're going to have before you go?
Me: Nope.
L: Think you'll have the _____ or the _____?
Me: Not sure.
L: Well, what I have may be dependent on what you have.
Me: I'm well aware of that.
L: So-o-o??
Me: Dunno.
L: Ugh.

Fast forward to the meal, and we went with the following. . .

Crab ceviche and lobster corn dogs
Paddle2.jpg

The Good: The lobster corn dogs were superb, I have to say. It's one of their dishes they consider to signature and for due cause. The breading was crunchy and light, the lobster tender and juicy, and the aoli spicy. The slaw with it was just average, but the amount of lobster you get for $15 is admirable (Disney standards, folks). I had two minor gripes. First, the breading has a tendency to come off after the first couple of bites because you have to eat around the skewer. Second, they give you precious little aoli as you can see in the picture--you need twice as much. I suspect they'd have given me more if I'd asked (though if you recall, our server became a bit lax mid-meal).
The Bad: The crab ceviche. I'm a fan of ceviche and have had some darn good ones in my life. This was not a darn good one. This one wasn't good, at all. I'm not sure where the fault lies. At first, I thought perhaps it was just my taste buds after gulping down a lobster corn dog. Then, perhaps it was a reaction to the wine. I had Luv try it, too, but she had the same reaction. It tasted old, canned, and funky all at once. I squeezed fresh lemon on it, and that helped but didn't remove the tinny nature. I kept trying a bite using tortilla chips (which is a weird accompaniment for a ceviche, anyway), and those didn't help, either. By the time I finally decided the ceviche was simply poorly executed, I'd eaten over half of it, so felt guilty about returning it. So, I didn't. It wasn't spoiled (I don't think), but it was very funky. Perhaps it was just crab that wasn't fresh or literally canned. Whatever the reason, it was a fail. Even the cilantro had no impact. The tortilla chips were a blunder, as well, since they came straight from a bag. Fresh, house made chips with a true Latino flavor profile in the ceviche could very well have worked. As it was, this was the worst item we tried at any restaurant our entire trip. By far.

Charred octopus with a side salad
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The Average: The charred octopus should have been excellent. It had the right flavor profile, and bites of it were nicely charred yet still succulent. Sadly, a third of the octopus had been undercooked and was chewy. In fact, we didn't finish the last few bites of the octopus, either. The cannellini beans mirrored the octopus--some of them were delicious (especially with the hint of chorizo and smoked paprika) and perfectly al dente; however, many of them were undercooked and crunchy. There was no consistency in the dish at all, so it joins my list as the second most unenjoyable food item during our week. It wasn't skanky (like the ceviche), but its failure was almost as obscene. A little more care, and it could have been a winner. And perhaps that's the sum of our experience there--there wasn't enough care taken from the moment we asked to be seated, to the gaps in service, to the uneven nature of the dishes.

Another shot of the lobster and ceviche to show how tight against the wall we were

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Overall, we were deflated by our experience at Paddlefish. They have marketed themselves as an upscale American seafood joint, and certainly there are touches of it. The overall decor is modern but has touches to the past. The lobster corn dogs were one of the better dishes I had on that trip. The wine list is commendable, if a bit limited. Still, those highs were more than offset by the lows of middling service and ill-prepared dishes. The ambiance never had a chance to kick in due to the table location, the table size and lack of elbow space, and noise from the nearby server station (and crying child).
GRADE: C (based primarily on that lobster) Highs and lows: already discussed above

Epilogue: A few days after our visit, I received a FB prompt to review Paddlefish on their page. I did so, and I told them exactly what I relayed above--while not awful, it was an inconsistent experience and not worthy of a signature label. We were contacted two days later by someone along the Levy Restaurant managerial food chain. He was extremely kind, apologetic, and asked that we come back during our next visit so that "we can make it right." After much discussion, Luv and I decided we will give them another try--any restaurant can have an off night, after all. We're going back in July, so we'll let you know!
 
A of all, I am quite certain I am not the only one who knows EXACTLY what they plan to order before they get there. It IS how you choose which restaurant to partake of, after all.

And B of all, I can see your pictures!!

I will say our Paddlefish experience was one of the poorest I have ever had anywhere. I actually think you were generous to give it a C, to be honest. But, as you said, anyone can have a bad night.

Let's just hope they don't have two.
 
That sounds like an altogether disappointing meal. Those lobster corn dogs though.. those I could get behind! I always love the idea of a corn dog, but I absolutely LOATHE hot dogs.

It's nice to be able to see your pictures in the post there, too!
 


A of all, I am quite certain I am not the only one who knows EXACTLY what they plan to order before they get there. It IS how you choose which restaurant to partake of, after all.

And B of all, I can see your pictures!!

I will say our Paddlefish experience was one of the poorest I have ever had anywhere. I actually think you were generous to give it a C, to be honest. But, as you said, anyone can have a bad night.

Let's just hope they don't have two.
Hi luvvwl,
yes, I too pick out what I will eat, or plan to order, at least. As you said, it is how you pick which restaurant. My daughter won't even look at the menu before. Apparently, she has gotten used to me "planning" or picking for her, even at many restaurants here at home. Maybe I just enjoy food more than her?? Or the anticipation of the dining experience.
Sleepydog25, your pictures don't show up until post 25.
Enjoying your tag-team style of dining report.
 
That sounds like an altogether disappointing meal. Those lobster corn dogs though.. those I could get behind! I always love the idea of a corn dog, but I absolutely LOATHE hot dogs.

It's nice to be able to see your pictures in the post there, too!
I was a bit uncertain of the lobster dogs since overcooking lobster is a big no-no. However, as stated, they were very succulent and almost creamy. I've read other good reviews of them, as well. As for the pictures, not sure what my issue was with the first sets of them as they showed on MY computer. Obviously, operator error on my part! I've changed how I'm adding them, and it's good to know that process is working. Thanks for reading!
Hi luvvwl,
yes, I too pick out what I will eat, or plan to order, at least. As you said, it is how you pick which restaurant. My daughter won't even look at the menu before. Apparently, she has gotten used to me "planning" or picking for her, even at many restaurants here at home. Maybe I just enjoy food more than her?? Or the anticipation of the dining experience.
Sleepydog25, your pictures don't show up until post 25.
Enjoying your tag-team style of dining report.
So, you and Luv were separated at birth? pirate: Seriously, I get the notion, but I'm more like your daughter in that I rarely look at a menu. On the other hand, I generally won't let Luv choose what I get, either. Now, I generally will agree to a dish she has her heart set on if we're sharing which we often do as a way to not only save money but to save calories. . .a few. . .a couple. . .we more than make up for it with wine. Well, it's good to know my pics DID finally start showing up. The pics: my process originally was flawed, and it now appears as though I've solved that issue. Glad you hung in there! As for the tag team approach, it works for us since we each have a slightly different take on a meal. I'm funnier; she's cuter. ;) (Okay, while the former may not be true, the latter definitely is.) Thanks of joining in, and we hope to keep you intrigued as we continue.
 
Great reviews! I'm looking forward to the next installment.

Terri
Thank you! Glad you joined, and now that I've figured out what a 7-year old can do in his/her sleep (add pictures that actually show up), hopefully it will be a fun read going forward.

Wow the brunch pictures look awesome! Looks like many choices.
And thanks to you for reading, too. As a brief aside, there are more choices than pictures we took. Now that we've been, I believe we can better plan our grazing habit for this brunch.

Thank you Luvvwl. Still looks worth it, lol
Definitely worth it, and thank you for following along!
 
Hi luvvwl,
yes, I too pick out what I will eat, or plan to order, at least. As you said, it is how you pick which restaurant. My daughter won't even look at the menu before. Apparently, she has gotten used to me "planning" or picking for her, even at many restaurants here at home. Maybe I just enjoy food more than her?? Or the anticipation of the dining experience.
Sleepydog25, your pictures don't show up until post 25.
Enjoying your tag-team style of dining report.

HA!!! I told you so!!
 
Thanks for the pictures @luvvwl I could not seen any either:confused3 I love Sanaa and the bread service, yummy!

Glad to see a review on Paddlefish, the lobster corn dogs look delicious, I love seafood but my daughter, who I travel with, not so much!
 
Thanks for the pictures @luvvwl I could not seen any either:confused3 I love Sanaa and the bread service, yummy!

Glad to see a review on Paddlefish, the lobster corn dogs look delicious, I love seafood but my daughter, who I travel with, not so much!
Oh, come on! Surely you can see mine now! I've got Luv sitting on the couch next to me cackling with superiority. Sigh. :sad2: Seriously, glad you can actually see pictures regardless of source. ;)
 
Oh, come on! Surely you can see mine now! I've got Luv sitting on the couch next to me cackling with superiority. Sigh. :sad2: Seriously, glad you can actually see pictures regardless of source. ;)

I do not cackle, thank you very much. I laugh gleefully. :D
 
I'm not sure "cackley" is an actual word, just sayin'
I would NEVER make up a word. . .

Geyser Point
As we started our fourth day at the World, and given we were staying at our very favorite resort (VWL--more on that in a later post), we had come back to the room after hitting some park that morning--the name escapes me, but it was either Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Epcot, or Disney Hollywood Studios (known by some diehards as MGM). Yeah, it was one of those four, I'm fairly certain. At any rate, we'd heard good things about Geyser Point Bar & Grill (despite the fact it sits on, what is to me, revered grounds of the old beach area--also more on that later), so we opted to try it out. It was drizzly that day, and there were more than enough tables open, plus the entire bar seating was practically empty. I can see why a few have complained about GP not seating a ton of people, though. There aren't a lot of tables, and a number of them have cushy, outdoor chairs/settees and low lounge tables that would accommodate at least 8 people. However, given the seating arrangements, if a family of four sits down at one of these large tables, the entire area is then gone, and we saw at least two such incidences. So, while there were a few seats unoccupied at these two locations, the families had sprawled--as families are wont to do--effectively removing those seats from being used. Even just the two of us took up a table that could easily seat 4-5, though we did give up one of our seats to a nearby table.

Sorry for the poor quality of the picture, but perhaps you can get a feel for the seating.
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Back to the food. The menu is fairly limited but what we tried was delicious! By limited, I don't mean the typical chicken nugget, burger, turkey sandwich restrictions, just that not a huge number of items are offered. But, what they offer? Yum.

I went with the salmon BLT expecting to get a small sandwich with a few waffle chips tossed in. What did I get? BEHOLD! (That might or might not be a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc in the Starbucks cup :rolleyes1)
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That is one nice fillet of salmon, and just about perfectly cooked to boot. Here's a close-up of my new favorite sandwich at the World:
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There was a creamy lemon-caper aoli as the primary condiment with 3-4 huge slices of hearty bacon complemented by the peppery-ness of the arugula. This is only half the sandwich in this picture, mind you. It possesses the light tartness of the lemon offset by the unctuousness of the salmon and smoke of the bacon. What a great mouthful! If I had a critique, it would be the bread needs to be a bit more substantial as this was served on some sort of thin(ish) sliced multi-grain bread. I'd consider making the bread a light rye and making the slices a bit thicker to stand up to the mounds of meat. It's accompanied by waffle fries that were perhaps the best I've ever had--crunchy on the outside and creamy goodness inside. They were hot and fresh, too. Simply superb! All of this $12.99--shhhhh! Don't speak of it anymore since someone might read this who works for them and jacks up the price.

Luv had the grilled Portobello mushroom salad, and while it didn't approach the zenith of my sandwich, it was quite tasty. It had zucchini, roasted red peppers, tomatoes, et. al. on a multi-grain salad (think quinoa). Her main complaint was that the multi-grain salad wasn't fluffy and light but more of a wet mixture. Perhaps she can explain more. She did enjoy the flavors, however. I didn't get a shot of the salad except in passing in the first picture above.

We started off the meal (I guess I'm doing this review in reverse) with the cheesy brisket. Very tasty with hearty BBQ and smoked notes covered in melty, ooey-gooey Tillamook cheddar and served with house-made potato chips--which were also among the best I've had as they were crispy, light, and perfectly cooked. Somehow, they stood up to the moisture in the air and stayed crisp the entire meal. They'll bring refills of them--for which we asked--and the second batch was just as perfect as the first. You can, again, catch a glimpse of them in the first picture above. I don't know that we'd do the brisket again not because it wasn't good but because it was, naturally, a bit heavy with which to start a meal, especially one would think when the weather is blazingly hot and humid. Still, if you like cheese, BBQ brisket, and chips, you gotta get this!

GRADE: A- Highs: Food, setting (GP is a gorgeous building), service Lows: Potentially seating and service when it gets busy.

Here's a nice picture to leave you with a smile (t'was purely by accident):
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I do have pictures of my lovely, but heavy salad and of the yummy, but also heavy cheesy brisket thingie. With the yummiest ever housemade chips. Which you can order refills of. For free, even. Additionally, you neglected to mention that we had dinner-ish @ Paradiso the same day as Cali Grill brunch. I say dinner-ish since we were still so full we actually only ordered nachos, guacamole and a pitcher of margarhitas. Which may, or may not be a running theme with me. Or is it?

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I do have pictures of my lovely, but heavy salad and of the yummy, but also heavy cheesy brisket thingie. With the yummiest ever housemade chips. Which you can order refills of. For free, even.

Nice reviews/pics overall! I too know exactly what I'll order, restaurants and food are a thing I'll look forward to for days if I know I'm going out to dinner. Also, that brisket is so great, we had it twice last week! Plus my somewhat food-apprehensive kid even liked it, especially with the chips. It makes for a really wonderful late night snack.
 

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