Taste of Disney

May 2015 Trip Review

Once we were seated, Emily ordered a Lapu Lapu since she had missed out on the cocktails at Trader Sam’s…

This was our first experience with the Lapu Lapu. I was still feeling the effects of the Tiki rum so I didn’t try it, but Emily really enjoyed her drink. She rated the Lapu Lapu a 5.

Then we all looked over the menu and discussed what we would each be ordering, trying not to have any repeats…

And the sushi menu…

While waiting for our food, the Hawaiian bread and macadamia nut butter were delivered to our table…

We hadn’t been to Kona Cafe for dinner since 2010 so I had forgotten just how good this bread is. Within 10 minutes this is what our bread plate looked like…

So it was a good thing that we had decided to order an appetizer…

Sticky Wings – Glazed Chicken Wings with tangy Mustard Drizzle and Toasted Sesame Seeds

These were quite tasty and we unanimously rated them a 4.

For our entrees, I was expecting Allison to order sushi but she surprised me and instead went with…

Sustainable Fish (this was swordfish) served with Swiss Chard, Forbidden Rice and Hibiscus-Beurre Rouge – Market Price (which was $23.99)

She said the fish was very good but the side dishes were just okay so she gave this an overall rating of 4. Oh, and she got the suggested wine pairing, which was MacMurray Pinot Noir, and said it was good.

I also rated my entree a 4…

Pan-Asian Noodles – Yakisoba Noodles, Wok-seared with Vegetables and your choice of Chicken or Tofu (for an extra $1.00 I chose shrimp instead) in a Ginger-Garlic Sauce

My first choice was actually the pork chop but then Andrew ordered it, so I quickly switched to this. It was pretty good but Andrew’s pork chops was definitely better…

Kona Coffee-Rubbed Pork Chop – Grilled and served with Mashed Potatoes, Fire Roasted Corn, and Eggplant

He really liked the pork chop and mashed potatoes, didn’t touch the corn or eggplant. Andrew gave this a rating of 5.

And that leaves Emily, who gets the award for the most impressive looking entree of this meal…

Grilled Curry-crusted Lamb Chops with Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Swiss Chard, and Mango Compote

With the exception of the Swiss chard, she loved everything on her plate. Consequently, she rated her entree a 5.

And that just leaves dessert.

We decided to order two since we couldn’t all agree on one to share. The girls chose this to share…

Warm Apple Tart with Cinnamon Gelato and Bacon-Macadamia Nut Brittle

And Andrew and I, the creme brulee fans of the family, ordered this to share…

Banana-Chocolate Creme Brulee with a Chocolate Spiral

Both of these desserts were rated a 4. I failed to write down in my notes as to why the girls rated their apple tart a 4 rather than a 5. But as for the creme brulee, both Andrew and I thought it was good but not as good as the creme brulee we had had the night before at California Grill.

So in conclusion, our dinner at Kona Cafe surpassed our expectations. The kids chose to dine here mostly due to its location, as the Polynesian was once our family’s favorite Disney resort. We were pleasantly surprised that all of our food turned out to be above average, and a couple of our entrees were even rated as Very Good/Excellent. Personally I still prefer breakfast at Kona (due to the Macadamia Pineapple Pancakes ), but I would definitely consider having dinner here again sometime on a future trip.

Want to know what I did next on this trip or just want to share a comment on this review? Click here to go to this trip’s blog post!