Review: Flying Fish – Everything You Need to Know
What happens when a dude who doesn’t like fish visits a restaurant with fish right there in the name? Here’s a review of Flying Fish, one of the most revered Signature Dining experiences at Walt Disney World.
The Location
Disney’s BoardWalk hosts several restaurants, bars, lounges, and snack shops. You’ll never go hungry when you visit here. In fact, Disney’s BoardWalk Inn doesn’t technically have nice restaurants of its own. Such places would feel redundant with the BoardWalk merely a few steps down from the hotel lobby.
Flying Fish is only a few steps away from the Friendship Boat station at the BoardWalk. While the eatery’s sign features splashy blue colors and design, it somehow bleeds into the surroundings a bit. So, you may miss it unless you’re paying close attention. My suggestion is to look for the sign for Trattoria al Forno, its next-door neighbor.
Still, the BoardWalk is relatively short. You’ll know that you’re in the right area when you see the sign for AbracadaBar. Flying Fish is catty-cornered beside it.
The Theming
This doesn’t happen often at Walt Disney World, but I’m hard-pressed to describe the theming at Flying Fish. It’s…elegant? As a Signature Dining experience, the restaurant comes with a dress code and an ambiance befitting its stature.
Still, Disney operates a couple of other noteworthy fish restaurants. Coral Reef and Cape May Café play into their aquatic themes. Conversely, Flying Fish doesn’t seem very Disney in its style. It’s classically themed in a conventional, comfortable way. You’d happily walk into the same eatery in Las Vegas or Miami, but the décor wouldn’t distinguish it.
At Flying Fish, you’re there for the food. Sites like TripAdvisor, Eater, and OpenTable have aggregated thousands of reviews for the eatery, almost all of which are incredibly positive. So, the theme here is really haute cuisine…with some hypnotic chandeliers thrown in for good measure.
Our Dining Experience – Seating Portion
My party arrived on time for our Advanced Dining Reservation (ADR). We waited roughly 15 minutes for a table, a reliable indicator of Flying Fish’s reputation/popularity. Generally, an ADR during the January off-season guarantees quick seating, but this place is in high demand.
Eventually, we sat down at an intimate table for two. I can say with complete sincerity that it was one of the most romantic atmospheres I’ve ever had at a restaurant. Our table rested by a pair of wine racks that functioned as walls, eliminating half of my perspective. While my date could see other tables, my primary view was of her, which suited me just fine.
A delightful server from Morocco immediately came over to assist us. I failed to write down his name, which makes me feel guilty. His performance justifies special mention. A Signature Dining restaurant at Walt Disney World should feature the most exceptional servers on the campus, and he indeed demonstrated this trait.
Before we could order, the server presented us with bread. My wife and I have a running debate about the most nourishing kinds. This one catered more to her needs. It was hard on the outside but soft on the middle, somewhat French with Italian tendencies.
She thought that the bread was world-class while I liked it well enough. Both of us agreed that the butter, which seemed similar to Coral Reef’s old style, could have been better.
Photo Credit: TastyChomps.com
Our Dining Experience – Appetizers
My date and I generally share appetizers, sampling a bit of each other’s orders. So, we agreed to select Slow-roasted Pork Belly and the Tasting of Artisan Cheeses. Both of us wished that we’d chosen the other’s appetizer.
I found the pork belly just plain wrong in texture. It felt linguini in my mouth, which wasn’t what I expected. I got distracted by this and overlooked the taste a bit. It’s a shame because the flavors were spot-on. My wife suggested that it’s some of the best pork belly she’s ever had.
Conversely, I was in love with her artisan cheeses. The server rushed through the names too quickly for any of them to register with me. Still, a foamy white cheese and a harder vanilla one blew my mind. I didn’t care much for the cracker, but that’s a trivial complaint about a terrific app. My wife liked the cheese plate enough to pick at it until our dinners arrived.
Our Dining Experience – Entrees and Desserts
We ordered Hokkaido Scallops and Char-crusted New York Strip, which we didn’t share since I hate fish. You can guess which one of us wanted to eat here!
My lone complaint with my order is that the menu didn’t clearly spell out that the Sauce Foyot comes on top of the steak. I’d expected it on the side, which caused some minor issues for me. Even so, the temperature, texture, and flavor of the steak were eye-opening. The chefs at this restaurant understand how to maximize flavors.
I’m told that the scallops were a little bit spicy but not overwhelmingly so. The emulsion proved to be the star of the dish. Still, the grits were nearly as good. My wife’s quite the scallop aficionado, and she proclaimed this entrée as worthy of a fine dining restaurant with “fish” in the name.
The meal proved so filling that we planned to skip dessert. Our server took this personally and insisted that we order. As he pointed out, we had the dining plan and had already paid for our sweet treats. So, we might as well order them. At this point, he went above and beyond to pack up our desserts to take back to our hotel.
We ordered the Chocolate Mint Financier, but there was a mishap that prevented us from getting it back to the room. Thankfully, we did get to dive into the Cocoa Breach, a delectable custard dish with the ideal amount of crunch. Flying Fish gets its desserts right.
Conclusion
The one comment I’ll make here is that we approached Flying Fish incorrectly. We used two Table Service entitlements each on this meal. I’d strongly suggest that people pay out of pocket. We would have saved money by using the same entitlements to buy lunch for a party of six the following day. That’s on us.
From the review perspective, I walked away from the BoardWalk understanding the hype about Flying Fish.
Photo Credit: Burnsland.com
Lead Image Photo Credit: Mealtrip.com
