Skip to main content

Steakhouse 71 Dinner Review

The Wave, especially the lounge, was one of my favorite spots to stop for a bite at Walt Disney World.  So I was understandably upset when they announced the permanent closure.  Steakhouse 71 is what moved in instead, and it celebrates the opening year of the parks and the Contemporary Resort.  It sounded like an acceptable replacement, but of course I had to give it a try for myself.  

Upon walking in, black and white photos line the walls which I loved.  The lounge has an upscale retro vibe but our table was quickly called so we didn't get to sit and enjoy that area.  
The menu sounded just wonderful, there were so many things I wanted to try.  We started off with some drinks and ordered appetizers.  
Amaro Highball
Fig Manhattan
The cocktails were fine but not my favorites. I've definitely had more impressive cocktails across Disney property.  We opted to switch to wine after these initial drinks.  For appetizers we just couldn't narrow it down so we ordered one each.  The onion rings were our server's recommendation and they were great!  They are plant-based too which is great because anyone can enjoy them.  They are so light and crispy!  Next we went with the brioche bread.  I'm not a big fan of having to pay for bread service, but we gave it a try anyway.  This was the most disappointing appetizer.  It looks so buttery and golden but was dry inside. Also, it was $12! So not worth it in our opinion.  Finally, the Wave's popular appetizer "bacon and eggs" made the cut to stay on the menu so we gave that a go to see if it's as good as we remember.  It definitely was and was actually a highlight of the meal. Other appetizer options include French onion soup, shrimp cocktail and two salads to choose from. 
Steakhouse 71 Onion Rings: Hand-breaded with Spicy Ranch Dipping Sauce
Sea Salt-dusted Potato Brioche: Butter, Roasted Garlic-Tomato Spread
Bacon & Eggs: Maple-lacquered Pork Belly, Smoked Cheese Grits, Perfect Egg
This is where our meal unfortunately took a turn for the worst.  Our server came to take our order and when we said we were ready, he walked away.  Our water glasses and cocktail glasses were empty with no signs of refill.  We were exhausted and enjoy a leisurely meal, but this was starting to drag on and we didn't even have our entrees yet.  

Thankfully, a manager stepped in to help our server and took over from here on out.  He was so helpful and patient with us, choosing a wine for the table and we ended up with Oberon which we truly enjoyed.  We got our steak orders in finally and unfortunately went back to waiting.
Since it is a steakhouse, we all ordered a steak but we all ordered different cuts to give them a try.  Between us we had the tenderloin medallions, the New York Strip and the prime rib.  We also opted to give the sauce flight a try because, well, why not?  I really wish I had better things to report from here on out, but there were multiple mistakes with our steaks and we were just very underwhelmed.  The NY strip was overcooked (ordered medium rare) and the tenderloin medallions were basically still mooing (ordered medium.)   Our new manager/server was quick to try to rectify the situation, but the new steaks didn't come out cooked correctly either!  He offered to try to correct them again but we were so tired at this point after a very long few days, we asked him not to try again and just wanted to settle the bill.  However, the prime rib was cooked beautifully and that Yorkshire pudding was delightful!  
10-oz New York Strip with Garlic Mashed Potatoes
8-oz Beef Tenderloin Medallions with Macaroni and Cheese
12-oz Roasted Prime Rib & Classic Yorkshire Pudding and Garlic Mashed Potatoes
The mashed potatoes and mac and cheese were fine but nothing to write home about.  The sauce flight was a ton of fun though as different sauces really paired better with different steaks.  I liked the bernaise with the tenderloin, the red wine sauce with the NY strip and the au poivre (pepper) sauce with the prime rib. 
Sauce Flight
Ultimately this experience doesn't have me rushing back to try Steakhouse 71 again anytime soon, but that's what's so great about Disney, I have plenty of other options to choose from! 

 Have you tried Steakhouse 71?  How was your experience there?  Let us know in the comments below!


Maci Schau
Maci is an avid foodie and loves trying out new restaurants and seasonal food offerings in the parks.  You can email Maci at maci@kingdomkonsultant.com.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

House of Blues Brunch

Brunch is probably my favorite meal to go out for, and Disney Springs has some hidden gems in the brunch department. House of Blues offers weekend brunch with one of the best deals on property, bottomless mimosas!  If you’re up for it, House of Blues offers a laid back atmosphere with live music for brunch. It is available Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 2pm, with the full menu available after 12pm. We were sat in the back room where we couldn’t see the stage but could hear it and it was a great vibe!  Bottomless mimosas and coffee were the popular choice for beverages, but they also offer a variety of brunch cocktails and other options. Bottomless mimosa! We were a party of 8 and hungry, so we started with an order of nachos from the lunch menu and they were a HUGE portion, so glad we had a lot of people to share them with.  BBQ Nachos - Four cheese sauce, avocado, roasted corn salsa, pickled red onion, tomato, Memphis BBQ sauce, cilantro crema, cotija cheese. Chicken, Brisket or Pul

Carthay Circle Review

The Kingdom Konsultant team had the pleasure of being invited to the Disneyland Resort for agent training recently, and the first night the whole group was there, we went to Carthay Circle for dinner. The restaurant is a model of the famed Carthay Circle Theater, where Snow White debuted in 1937. The restaurant is elegant and beautiful, but not pretentious. They are used to people in theme park attire. We had trouble securing a reservation for 18, but we were able to get 3 smaller reservations and the restaurant was accommodating to seat us at tables next to each other. We had beautiful tables on the balcony overlooking Disney California Adventure and a dazzling sunset.  Some of us ordered entrees, some ordered appetizers but mostly we ordered a lot of things to share! Every table tried the Warm Cheddar Parker House Rolls, which were served with Calabrian Chili-Pine Nut Romesco Butter. These were delicious , and the butter was the real star.  Warm Cheddar Parker House Rolls & Calab

Black Tap Craft Burgers & Shakes

Black Tap Burgers & Shakes is located at the Downtown Disney District at the Disneyland Resort.  It is a fast-casual restaurant, meaning you order your items at the counter, but then they bring it to the table for you.  They have a selection of burgers, wings, salads and chicken and a fun milkshake menu.  If you just want a shake, there's also a walkup window outside, but some special creations can only be ordered for dine-in. We placed our order at the counter and noticed all the tables inside were full. We found a table outside and hung out while we waited for our food to come. They have a full bar and craft beers on tap, but I was surprised to get wine in a can. Strawberry Shortcake Shake We had hoped to have this Crazy Shake for dessert, but it actually came before any of our food. The Strawberry Shortcake is described as a vanilla frosted rim with crumbled cake topped with a strawberry shortcake ice cream bar, pink & white twisty pop, whipped cream, strawberry drizzle