We should eat here more – bluezoo Orlando review

Why I Chose bluezoo

I ended up at celebrity chef Todd English’s bluezoo because I was researching restaurants that offer good food and atmosphere, but that aren’t in everyone’s “Top 5 But Good Luck Getting a Reservation” Walt Disney World restaurant lists. And it was easy to get a table at bluezoo, even with a convention in town. Also, I’d heard the steaks and appetizers were better than expected, from friends who’d wandered in not knowing what to expect.

Setting and Atmosphere

bluezoo is on the bottom floor of the Walt Disney World Dolphin resort, halfway between Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Epcot, in the Epcot resort area. It lives up to its name, with blue lighting and stone surfaces throughout the dining room to represent coral reefs. The “blue zoo” undersea theme is subtle, though. It’s also a big restaurant, with an expansive bar area and lounge seating. You could host a large party here. You could also find an out-of-the-way corner for a quiet table service meal.

What We Ate – Rated and Ranked

Appetizers

Our favorite appetizer was the tuna tartare ($18) served with miso “caviar” and a dash of scallion cream. The tableside presentation includes spooning a nitrogen-cooled sriracha aïoli on to the plate. When nitrogen boils at room temperature, it releases a cloud of very cold “steam” that looks great. The tuna was delicious, with just the right amount of saltiness. The scallion cream’s flavor wasn’t as sharp as I expected, and the sriracha aïoli was mild, too. Despite the novelty presentation, this was our favorite appetizer of the evening.

The jumbo sea scallops ($18) were buttery, smooth, and delicious. The surprise here was pairing the scallops with a braised beef short rib and a cauliflower purée. But the braised beef provided some acidity to balance the scallops, and it all worked together. And while cooked cauliflower sometimes has a strong odor and taste, this purée was mild and smooth.

Our last appetizer was the Low Country shrimp ($16), three large shrimp served with white cheddar grits, smoked bacon butter, tomatoes, and okra. The shrimp were tangy and spicy, with a nice peppery taste that got smoothed out by the white cheddar grits. I still think the shrimp and grits over at Art Smith’s Homecomin’ are the best in Walt Disney World, but these are a good substitute.

Entrees

We tried two entrees on this visit. The better of the two was the togarashi seared tuna ($44) with fried sushi rice, sweet and sour Brussels sprouts, turnips, and carrots. This was presented as three large pieces of tuna, seared correctly, with a light soy glaze. The tuna was magnificent, and I don’t know that we could’ve ordered anything as satisfying on the menu. Also, how have I missed the “fried sushi rice” trend? I’ve had it twice in the past month (both with tuna) and loved it each time. I’d definitely order this again.

Our other entrée was the blackened Florida grouper ($37), served with a black eyed pea puree, polenta johnny cake, jumbo lump crab meat, and a creole cream sauce. This was like having two small dinners on the same plate. The johnny cake was fried until crisp on the outside, but tender inside, and served on top of the crab meat. The grouper was cooked correctly, spicy but still with the flavor of the grouper, and it all went well with the textured black eyed peas. I think the garnish was pea greens, too – it was all very good.

Sides

We tried the sriracha broccolini ($9), haricot vert ($9), and lobster mac and cheese ($12). Of these two, the sriracha broccolini was the best – a touch of spice and lemon with mild broccolini cooked al dente.

The haricot vert are, I think, tempura battered, fried green beans, and we ate them like french fries.

Like the shrimp and grits, I think Homecomin’ does better lobster mac and cheese than this, but bluezoo’s is pretty good, with crisp breadcrumbs on top, lobster meat you can see, and the right balance of pasta and cheese sauce.

Besides being a tasty side, bluezoo’s $12 lobster mac illustrates how absurdly expensive Tiffins has become, charging $21 for their version that’s not anywhere close to the same quality.

Desserts

The Swan and Dolphin’s executive pastry chef is Laurent Branlard, two-time winner on the USA’s World Pastry Team, and (I think), one of the coaches for the 2019 team competing for the championship later this month in France.

Our three desserts were a set of handcrafted chocolate truffles ($12), and two seasonal selections: a blackberry beignet ($13.50), and a white chocolate coffee stone ($13.50). The white chocolate coffee stone is a small cake filled with warm caramel sauce and coated in coffee-flavored white chocolate, served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The risk with chocolate, caramel, and cake is that it might be too sweet, but this isn’t. I think the coffee flavor cuts down on the sugar level quite a bit.

The blackberry beignet comes in a bowl with a crisp, sugar lid. There’s more powdered sugar on top. A tart blackberry ice cream was served alongside, also to help balance the sweetness.

Would I order these again? Yes. It was only out of politeness and a consideration for the other diners’ evenings that we didn’t abandon our utensils and eat these as fast as possible with our hands – a decision I may still regret. And the truffles were excellent, in flavors including pistachio, matcha, and passion fruit.

Rating and Comments

The cost of bluezoo’s entrees range from $29 for the roasted half chicken (no, they don’t say what the other half is), to $60 for the two-pound “Cantonese” lobster. If you’re going, figure on a budget of $90 per person for a full meal of appetizer, entree, dessert, and non-alcoholic drink, with tax and gratuity. That’s expensive, but the food quality and service is better than in many Disney restaurants in the same price ranges. In the Epcot resort area, I’d rate this meal at bluezoo higher than my recent meals at Flying Fish or Yachtsman Steakhouse.

87% of readers have given bluezoo thumbs-up rating in our surveys over the past year. That’s slightly below average for WDW as a whole, but close. Our last dining review gave bluezoo a 3-star rating, which says it’s average. This meal was better than average, so it’s time for a re-review.

Information

Todd English’s bluezoo

Location: Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel

Address: 1500 Epcot Resorts Blvd, Orlando, FL 32830

Phone: (407) 934-1111

Reservations: Recommended via OpenTable, which is free and doesn’t charge a cancellation fee. My Disney Experience does, but may have different availability.

Menus: dinner menu / dessert menu / wine list

Disney Dining Plan: Not accepted

Parking: At the Dolphin parking lot. Parking is free with meals over $30 – get your parking ticket validated at the host stand before leaving.