Yes, It IS About the Food OR Two Foodies Do WDW From Table To Table--TR - Page 22 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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Will have the Marrakesh review up in a day or so. I have it roughed out but need to look at the photos to add details. (Okay, I lied again. It went together faster than I anticipated and appears below.) It's amazing how much about these meals has gone whoooosh from both our memories.
Consider the chicken bastilla. It looked bizarre the first time we had it years ago at the wedding dinner of a childhood friend of Drew's. We had no clue what that weird cinnamon and powdered sugar-coated flat pastry was, but one bite and we both wanted more than we were served. It contains minced chicken and almonds, just fantastic!
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
Last edited by Her Dotness; 01-22-2015 at 05:45 PM..
Update: Lunch in a Moroccan Palace--the Restaurant Marrakesh Review
Lunch at Restaurant Marrakesh got off to a shaky start when our server speedily brought our delicious mint hot teas and my salad but forgot Drew's soup. Fortunately, I was finally able to get his attention, he brought the soup and was very apologetic. Another potential service disaster well remedied this time as we received our main dishes and desserts in timely fashion.
The restaurant is lovely, having been constructed to resemble a Moroccan palace. We were charmed to find that the Disney-modest bellydancer show we'd enjoyed at dinner a few years before was also done at lunch. It really adds interest and entertainment to the meal for us.
I was dismayed to find my salad really bland. Maybe it was sinus affecting my sense of taste again, but the creamy dressing was too abundant for no more flavorful than it proved to be. If I'd known the salad would be smothered in dressing, a pet peeve of mine, I'd have asked for it on the side. I never have been able to comprehend restaurants that load on the dressing like that. But maybe most people want to be enticed into eating healthy raw veggies by a layer of salad dressing.
The salad contained lettuce, tomato and cucumber which I suspect had been cut hours beforehand as watery as they seemed. Too bad it didn't live up to its exotic name, Moroccan Jasmina Salad. I gave up on it after a halfhearted few bites.
On the other hand, Drew really enjoyed his Harira Soup containing tomatoes, lentils and bits of lamb in a tomatoey broth.
I had to agree when he offered me a spoonful that I should have ordered it. It was wonderfully spiced with cilantro and turmeric, both seasonings I like.
On to our entrees where again Drew chose better than I did. His lamb shank was tender, wonderfully flavored and just plain yummy. He wasn't thrilled by the mixed veggies in the rice but liked the zucchini and tomato side dish.
My beef shish kebabs just didn't suit. The meat was so chewy that I doubted it actually was tenderloin. Then again, I wasn't terribly hungry, so perhaps I was simply difficult to please that day. Honestly, the plate looks much more appealing now than it tasted to me then. Maybe a temporary case of Grumpy?
Hoping for better luck with dessert, I was gluten-bad and got the baklava assortment, all of which were fantastic and more than made up for my so-so experience up till then. I love the evocative names given to some Restaurant Marrakesh menu items, this one being labeled Moroccan Symphony. Harmonious it certainly was! (Ooopsie! I just discovered we didn't get pictures of the desserts. Oh, well...anyway.)
Drew chose the Marrakesh Delight, a fresh fruit salad flavored with orange flower water, usually topped with sliced almonds. He doesn't care for nuts and asked for those to be omitted. The result was very good indeed, the fruit being a pleasant combination of varying textures and flavors, all of it very fresh-tasting.
Next time, we may do dinner again. We really enjoyed the assorted appetizer platter for two we'd had previously which was largely why we tried lunch. The beef brewat rolls on it were wonderful. Plus, dinner was a more relaxing meal there, I thought, although my impatience to get back to touring WS probably made lunch less satisfying for me. Drew didn't have any complaints.
I am glad I followed his insistence that we both order the Moroccan mint hot tea. It was marvelous on a very chilly afternoon and was the perfect complement to the savory dishes served. It really was the high point of the meal for me along with the baklava.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
Last edited by Her Dotness; 01-22-2015 at 05:49 PM..
I'll pop in again to see the photos when you get them added. Morocco is my favorite pavilion, the restaurant is just beautiful and the servers are friendly and efficient. I love eating here just for that reason, but in general I find the food watered-down Moroccan. It may be because I'm limited to the vegetarian options, but there's no reason they should be under-seasoned. I actually prefer the flavor of the food from Tangierine Cafe to the items I've had from Marrakesh. It does sound like the food Drew got had lovely spices, so maybe they've gotten bolder with the seasonings.
Oh, goody! The photos just appeared. The food looks very nice, except for the salad-- I agree, it's just drowning in dressing.
Preview: The Two Biggies and We're All Done Till These Two Foodies Return To the Tables of WDW
I've gotta admit when looking at the photos of Be Our Guest dinner, the food was much more enjoyable than I actually expected after all the hype. Well, except for the brickhard chocolate cookie bar beneath the famous Grey Stuff. That mini-tale of woe to follow shortly.
Otherwise, chalk up dinner at Be Our Guest to my new category--"Reverse Character Meal" where the food is somewhat more pleasant than the experience. If the place weren't so doggoned LOUD, it would be a winner in both senses.
And then, on to a truly fabulous experience that any Disney Addict Foodie worthy of the label must do at least once in your life--the Chef's Table at Victoria & Albert's. I idolize Chef Thomas Keller, but I frankly doubt that his Per Se in New York City or French Laundry Restaurant in California can put out a better meal than Chef Aimee and the staff of Victoria & Albert's gave us. Not that I wouldn't love an opportunity to compare...
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
I'm sorry your meal didn't amaze - I always order my dressing on the side for that very reason. I'm still excited to try it, especially since you say dinner is better! I chose it since I'll be dining alone I thought the entertainment would be nice
A lot of why we had such an enjoyable dinner at Restaurant Marrakesh was that our server was incredible! It looked as though she was taking care of about eight tables, and over half of them were parties of four to six. She never seemed rushed although she certainly hustled. We were just amazed by how efficiently she served us, never missing a thing we needed.
Hope you enjoy your dinner there.
I must remember your advice about dressing on the side. I nearly always forget to request that at places we've not tried, and it really is necessary so many times.
Actually, one of the best salads I've ever had was one day when I went shopping here at home and popped into Red Lobster for an early lunch. The limited time Crab Trio was on, and I knew I'd eat far too much melted butter with the crab legs so asked for my salad with lemon wedges as the dressing. It was delicious that way and went perfectly with my overindulgence in crab.
Much though I love crab, I wasn't tempted to return for that particular meal. But, I collected the shells and made a marvelous broth from them for my improvisation of the Tutto Italia seafood stew I enjoyed so much a year ago.
Okay, I'm drooling again. Time to go broil some nice lamb chops for dinner.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
We only ever had dinner at Restaurant Marrakesh, so it was nice to read your review. I think for now we'll probably stick with dinner. I would probably be like you, anxious to gt back to touring.
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Glad you enjoyed Monsieur Paul's! I certainly did too back in April last year! It is as you said, quite rich, but worth it. You just can't over indulge on the bread! I've never ate at Marrakesh. Never had a lot of interest in doing so, but the show seems good. I did do this on a couple of occasions first hand when I visited Morocco about 15 years ago and enjoyed the shows there. The food was decent, but the show much better! It's probably why I haven't had a lot of interest in WDW's version. Sorry that your meal wasn't great, but at least you had a good time!
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
For the most part, Disney restaurant designers did Be Our Guest right and then some. Each of the three rooms is visually spectacular. Sure can't fault it one bit for atmosphere.
I was a wee bit disappointed that we weren't seated in the very popular West Room, the infamous "thunder-boom room." However, we've wandered through there futilely looking for a table at lunch twice now, and each time I concluded I wouldn't want to eat dinner in there because it's just too dark. Call it my inner little kid that was disappointed, I suppose, that we were seated at the back of the Ballroom right next to the Christmas tree. I wasn't unhappy for long when we realized that the ornaments on the tree were cleverly done brass-and-glass Beauty and the Beast characters. Chip and Mrs. Potts were at my eyelevel, and we were able to spot several other characters in the intervals between courses. When we weren't simply watching the snow fall "outside," that is. The snow falling outside those stunning windows was a truly inspired touch to the Ballroom, especially during the holiday season.
When we saw our place settings, we decided immediately that our first photo had to be of the lovely Beauty's rose folded napkin. Isn't this the perfect introduction to dinner at BOG?
Being devotees of a good French onion soup, we both had that as our first course, and Cheryl aka chezp was absolutely right to rave about it. It really was delicious. All you can see here, of course, is the layer of lovely melted Gruyere cheese atop it. (Yup, I'm drooling, too.) And the soup below was just as wonderful as that cheese looks! Intensely oniony with a richly flavored broth that tasted like it probably had a sizable dollop of wine in it.
Drew had the fabled braised pork which he said was justifiably famous as it was fork-tender and intensely flavorful. He's not a fan of carrots, so I got what I could eat of those which by that point wasn't much. The broccoli was cooked perfectly, still a bit crispy, and tasted quite fresh, he said.
I really wished I'd ordered the pork myself as my lamb chops were okay but not fantastic.
There was quite a lot of fat on them and a vein of cartilage through one which I had some difficulty cutting away. The grainy mustard demi-glace was a pleasant enhancement as was the broccolini which was cooked beautifully. Beyond eating a bit of the mashed potatoes, I gave up so as to save room for the grey stuff dessert.
Attractively piped onto a chocolate brownie-like bar, it certainly looked good.
And then, we attempted to eat it, whereupon we discovered that the brownie bar was baked rockhard. It was SO hard that you actually could poise the tines of your fork atop it, pound sharply on the end and dent that thing not a smidgen. I literally had to stab hard three or four times to break off a bit that proved as inedible as a baby's teething biscuit!
We ended by scooping the grey stuff off it and eating that. It was okay but not something I care to eat ever again although Drew said it was good. I really don't know why so many people rave about it other than how it's hyped because of the movie tie-in. It does look amazingly grey, however, as you can see. Drew said he really liked the grey stuff topping on the Master's cupcake at lunch last year. The cupcake was very moist and the grey stuff combined well with the chocolate cake.
I wish I'd stuck with a sure thing and ordered the raspberry-lemon creme puff I've enjoyed so much at lunch. Drew said he wished he could have gotten the Master's cupcake which he still raves about but isn't offered at dinner.
On the whole, we doubt we'll brave the mob and the horrific noise level of the place to do dinner again. Really, the highlights of the experience were spotting character ornaments on the Christmas tree and meeting Beast and getting our picture taken with him after dinner. Those and the marvelous French onion soup almost made this a memorable meal.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
Last edited by Her Dotness; 01-29-2015 at 06:32 PM..
The grey stuff is whipped topping with finely crushed Oreos in it usually. Anyway, those are the main ingredients of recipes I've read online.
I really do like those metallic pearl thingies they garnished it with, but the grey stuff itself, just meh for me. As Drew just said, the hype was greater than the stuff itself is.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
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It went together faster than I anticipated and appears below.) It's amazing how much about these meals has gone whoooosh from both our memories.
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I've never ate at Marrakesh. Never had a lot of interest in doing so, but the show seems good. I did do this on a couple of occasions first hand when I visited Morocco about 15 years ago and enjoyed the shows there. The food was decent, but the show much better! 
Waiting for our next adventure after enjoying our Alaska cruise. 
Jenn
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