Last week we wrote up a rave review of the brand new Sebastian’s Bistro at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, so today I thought we’d go a bit more classic and share a recent wonderful experience at Raglan Road in Disney Springs.
Raglan Road is an Irish pub located in the Landing area of Disney Springs. There you’ll find traditional Irish fare, plenty of drinks, and an atmosphere full of fun that includes live music and award-winning dancers.
Reservations inside the restaurant aren’t always easy to grab and walking up on a weekend night can be all but impossible. The waitlist for a table indoors was said to be “optimistically” 2 1/2 hours when we popped by to ask last Friday at around 5 p.m.
But here’s a pro hack: The outdoor area is open seating!! So if you hit it right, you can enjoy your meal open air in a gorgeous setting with the Central Florida late October breeze and some absolutely amazing live music. When we happened by, the late afternoon storms had just finished rolling through – so the night was cool and the outdoor area was all but empty. We grabbed a table right away and, by the time our appetizers had come, were surrounded by fellow foodies and enjoying some amazing live music.
But let’s get to the meat of the matter (pun somewhat intended) and talk food. Because it is so. good.
The menu is full of hearty Irish fare and I always have a hard time choosing because every single thing looks wonderful. This time we started with the Scallop Forest and the Smokie City
The Scallop Forest is a gorgeous set of Georges Bank scallops presented on individual forks, each fried in a golden batter and served with citrus lime dipping sauce and sweet chili jam.
The Smokie City is a creamy baked haddock and Dubliner cheese dip with potatoes, tomatoes and slices of warm toasted baguette.
Both were wonderful but, needless to say, not light dishes, so I was glad we were sharing them amongst us.
As for dinner, I’ll be totally honest and confess that I’m having trouble not running back tonight as I’m sitting here looking at the pictures and remembering it all.
I went with the StewBaa – braised lamb with root vegetables in a white stew with herb dumplings and mint coulis.
Good lamb is wonderful and this is really, really good lamb. And while the dish overall would seem to be on the heavy side, it’s actually an incredible balance of hearty and light as the dumplings are light and full of fresh herbs, the root vegetables taste fresh out of the garden, and the mint coulis makes the whole thing more refreshing than heavy. Overall just a really wonderful dish.
My mother got good old Bangin’ Bangers and Mighty Mash – Guinness and onion bangers (sausages) on mashed potatoes topped with traditional onion gravy.
I fully admit that I am not a huge bangers and mash girl but this was delicious and, again, as I’m looking at the pictures I’m wishing that Raglan delivered.
Last but not least, our friend ordered Boaring Burger, which is anything but boring.
A grilled wild boar burger, Cashel blue cheese, crispy onion strings, arugula, port and pear chutney with herb aioli served on a floury potato bun. There are a lot of amazing burgers on WDW property but if this thing isn’t a contender I’ll eat my hat. It was wonderful.
And of course there’s no dining at a good Irish spot without drinks to wash everything down.
My mother got the Four Provinces beer flight, which, at $9, has got to be one of the best deals around.
It includes generous portions of each of Guinness, Smithwicks, Harp, and Kilkenny and is no doubt one of the best drink values on property. (It’s all relative.)
I wanted something unique to the restaurant, so I went with the Rosemary & Maple Whiskey Sour.
This specialty libations list is dubbed with the line: “If it doesn’t kill you…it’ll cure you!” and heck if that isn’t true. The Rosemary & Maple Whiskey Sour is Dickel 2 Tennessee Whiskey, crushed rosemary, dark maple syrup, egg white, and fresh lemon sour and it is meant to be sipped, not gulped, because it will put some proverbial hair on your chest. Such a good drink though, especially to sip cold on a warm and breezy fall night in Central Florida.
Last but not least, there was no leaving Raglan Road without tasting something from the dessert menu.
Or, more specifically, the Ger’s Bread and Butter Pudding. The menu promises “Like no other you have ever tried. Believe us.” and the dish delivers. Big time.
The dish is served hot and with caramel and anglaise sauces. Best scooped out and served up drizzled generously with both sauces, I’ll make the perhaps scandalous claim that this might just beat out ‘Ohana’s also wonderful bread pudding.
I’ve always loved Raglan Road and this past weekend was no different. Looking back at these pictures and my write up, I could easily go back right now for a healthy serving of lamb stew and bread pudding with a Rosemary & Maple Whiskey Sour to wash it all down.
Have you visited Raglan Road in Disney Springs? If so, I would love to know what you thought of it!!
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