for Z’s birthday dinner we had the most outstanding meal we have had at a Disney Resort.  I gave him a short list of 6 or 7 restaurants to choose from for his birthday dinner that included all types of places – old favorites, new hotspots, disney and magical dining.  He perused the menus and chose Artist’s Point.  It is at the Disney Wilderness Lodge.

a blt for the ages

The Disney Wilderness Lodge is a monumental resort that is done similar to the Yellowstone lodge.  It is made of (faux I’m sure) timbers and has a grandly scaled room filled with fireplaces, sculpture, huge scale art in paintings and totems along with oversize comfy lodge seating.   The romance for me in this place is the memory of my childhood and the fantastic summer vacations our family took to these places.  Walking the trails and seeing paint pots, geysers, hot springs, indian paint brush and getting paid to watch for wildlife.  …First one to see a bear gets a quarter!
Typical of Disney, we were warmly welcomed to the restaurant by the staff and shown to our lovely window seat right away which overlooked the hillside outside with a splashing waterfall.  We had fun looking over the menu which features foods from the Pacific Northwest.
For an appetizer we had a divine blt.  It was totally deconstructed braised and glazed pork belly with braised baby heirloom tomatoes and microgreens.  The pork belly was a total revelation.  It was rich and meaty -unctuous but not one bit fatty.   I fell in love just in that moment.

crisp and fluffy gnocchi

I chose yukon gold potato gnocchi for my main.  The potatoes were transformed into fluffy light pillows nested in crunchy vegetables and mushrooms with dollops of fresh ricotta sitting in a narrow puddle of corn nage.  Z had a pork tenderloin done in a bit of Spanish style with creamy polenta and piquillo peppers and crispy jamon and crowned with roasted figs.  I kind of think I accidentally snitched his bit of jamon.    We were so delighted with dinner that we skipped dessert just to savor the experience.  We wandered the lodge and grounds looking at the waterfall, springs and geyser made only by Disney erupt into the humid evening and slowly made our way home.