Tag Archives: Downtown Disney

Apr 23 2015

The BOATHOUSE Opens At Downtown Disney

Exciting news for fans of fine dining and Downtown Disney! A new upscale restaurant, The BOATHOUSE, opened its doors last week. The reviews I’ve seen so far look amazing and I can’t wait to try this place during my next Disney World visit. Here’s the scoop courtesy of WDW News.
Prepare to be very hungry!

The BOATHOUSE officially opened its doors on April 13, 2015 as one of the new venues in The Landing, the first of four planned neighborhoods as Downtown Disney transitions into Disney Springs, an exciting new waterfront district for shopping, dining and entertainment. Completion of Disney Springs is set for 2016.

The BOATHOUSE is an upscale, waterfront dining experience featuring spectacular floating artwork: dream boats from the 30’s, 40’s & 50’s. The restaurant is 24,000 square feet, with 8,000 feet devoted to the state-of-the-art kitchen where an extensive menu is prepared, showcasing steaks, chops, fresh seafood and a raw bar. The BOATHOUSE will seat up to 600 guests and will serve guests until 2 a.m. The restaurant is designed with spectacular nautically-themed rooms including The Runabout, Twin Transoms, and The Lake House.

There are also two private dining rooms: The Regatta and The Trophy Room for hosting special events, receptions, and corporate presentations. In addition, there are three distinctive bars featuring classic craft cocktails, along with an extensive list of wines, anchored by iconic American vineyards. Bars include: The Captain’s Raw Bar, The Admiral’s Club Bar and The Dock Bar, which is built over the water and attached to over 300 feet of boardwalk and docks, connecting all areas of the restaurant. The BOATHOUSE restaurant will be managed by the award-winning Gibsons Restaurant Group, internationally renowned and celebrated for exceptional food, service and hospitality.

More than a dining experience, The BOATHOUSE immerses guests inside and out with waterfront adventures including live music and romantic Captain’s guided tours aboard The Venezia, a beautifully crafted 40-foot wooden Italian Water Taxi featuring champagne toasts and chocolate-covered strawberries. There is also a multi-million dollar fleet of 19 rare boats on display, gathered from museums, private collectors, and boat shows from around the world.

Among the star attractions are Captain-guided tours from The BOATHOUSE Amphicars. These amphibious autos launch from land, entering the water with a splash, taking guests on a 20-minute tour of the landmarks of Downtown Disney. Most people have never seen an amphicar because there were only 3,878 of these unique vehicles produced from 1961 to 1968. The BOATHOUSE Amphicars have all been completely restored in order to delight guests with the ride of a lifetime.

Throughout each day and evening, The BOATHOUSE Harbor Master will orchestrate flag ceremonies, accompanied by a lively musical performance of beloved bugle songs, performed aboard a classic 1800’s antique steam boat.

The Ship’s Store, adjacent to The BOATHOUSE restaurant, sports an All-American look, reminiscent of the art deco period of 1939 to 1959, updated with modern mahogany accents. Authentic nautical items are featured at The Ship’s Store such as custom engraved paddles and life rings personalized with a guest’s name or favorite saying, along with Rubba Ducks®, distinctive lake-themed merchandise, fine apparel, jewelry, and unique items “Made on Earth™.”

“We are extremely honored to open The BOATHOUSE at Downtown Disney, and to be part of the upcoming and exciting transformation into Disney Springs,” said creator Steven Schussler. “We are very proud of our menu and the upscale experience that we have created for our guests. Unbelievable food and service are the top priority, so we chose to partner with Gibsons Restaurant Group to bring their culinary expertise and legendary great service to The BOATHOUSE. In addition to the amazing food, The BOATHOUSE offers a number of water adventures including the guided Captain’s tours on our 40-foot Italian Water Taxi and Amphicars, as well as live music daily.”

Visit The BOATHOUSE Restaurant daily from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.; The Ship’s Store from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m.; Guided Captain’s tours with Champagne and Chocolate-covered Strawberries begin daily at 10 a.m. on The Venezia Italian Water Taxi; Amphicar guided tours begin daily at 10 a.m.

For more information about this restaurant, please visit TheBOATHOUSEOrlando.com or call 407-939-BOAT.
Advance dining reservations will be available beginning
mid-May online or by calling 407-WDW-DINE.

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Apr 17 2015

Dockside Margaritas Opening At Downtown Disney

Dockside Margaritas

Are you a margarita fan? If so, you are in luck! On April 23, Dockside Margaritas will open at Downtown Disney Marketplace just in time to kick off the summer. Here’s the scoop courtesy of Disney Parks Blog:

Dockside Margaritas is set to open later this month at Downtown Disney Marketplace. This waterfront margarita bar is the perfect place for enjoying the relaxing things in life – Florida style. Everything about Dockside Margaritas projects a fun, laid-back vibe—from the theming which is reminiscent of a Florida fruit stand from the 1960s with cool, tropical colors and eclectic, modern furniture to the handcrafted margaritas and authentic Floridian brews.

Waterfront entertainment will return, with live performers from 2:30-10:30 p.m. on Sunday through Thursday and 12:30-10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. With live entertainment daily, beautiful views of the waterfront at Buena Vista cove and ample seating, Dockside Margaritas is sure to be a popular destination to relax with friends and family.

Refreshing, handcrafted margaritas and cocktails include:

  • Patrón Añejo Margarita – Patrón Barrel Select Añejo Tequila, Grand Marnier, Sweet-and-Sour and fresh Lime Juice
  • Habanero Lime Margarita – Patrón Silver Tequila, Habanero Lime, fresh Lime Juice and Florida Sugar Cane Simple Syrup
  • Sunset Margarita – Casamigos Reposado Tequila, Cointreau, fresh Lime Juice, Sweet-and-Sour and Orange Juice
  • Orange Grove Rum Runner – Siesta Key Spiced Rum, Blackberry Brandy, Crème de Banana, and Florida Citrus Juices with a float of Gosling’s 151 Rum
  • Sugar Cane Mojito – Siesta Key Silver Rum, Florida Sugar Cane Simple Syrup, fresh Lime Juice and Mint
  • Strawberry Margarita – Herradura Reposado Tequila and fresh Lime Juice blended with Strawberry Purée
  • Florida Citrus Freeze – Florida Cane ‘Orlando Orange’ Vodka and Peach Schnapps blended with Orange Purée

Look for craft beers from Florida breweries, like Orange Blossom Pilsner, Bold City Duke’s Brown Ale and Cigar City Jai Alai IPA. Tropical Florida wine in refreshing flavors like Mango Mamma and Key Limen will also be available.

This place sounds amazing and is definitely on my list
for my next Disney World vacation! How about you?

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Are you a margarita fan? Which cocktail would you most like to try?
Please leave a comment!

Mar 16 2015

The Latest On The New Shopping Locations At Disney Springs

Disney Springs Town Center

So many changes are happening during the transformation of Downtown Disney to Disney Springs. New parking garages and roads are being built, many new restaurants are planned, and several new shops are now open. In case you haven’t heard, here’s the latest from Disney:

Trendy new retail shops are just the beginning of an entirely re-imagined Downtown Disney. With everything from sun hats and stylish flip-flops to customized headphones and gluten-free cupcakes, Downtown Disney has become a shopper’s oasis for all to enjoy. The new offerings are part of an expansion that will double the number of shopping, dining and entertainment experiences available as the area transforms into Disney Springs.

New shopping at Downtown Disney includes:

The Art of Shaving

A boutique retail offering that sells high-end shaving supplies and related grooming products for the modern man. Founded by a husband and wife in a Manhattan apartment, The Art of Shaving has grown to a worldwide organization. Guests can receive expert shaving advice on products and techniques, or make an appointment for a luxurious grooming experience at the Barber Spa.

Apex by Sunglass Hut

A first-of-its-kind sunglass store that was built with the athlete in mind. This retail location showcases the industry’s best selection of sport performance and lifestyle eyewear including Oakley, Ray-Ban, and Under Armour. In order for guests to choose a lens to best suit their needs, Apex has developed environmental simulators so guests can test out how a specific lens will perform under a variety of light conditions.

Chapel Hats

A fashion forward shop that specializes in an assortment of hats for guests of all ages.  The location carries stylish hats including fedoras, cowboy hats, floppy hats, outdoors hats, kid’s hats and more. Every Chapel Hats location is themed to a different time period and is built by using old pieces of shops, factories, schools, pubs and The Downtown Disney location is themed to the 1920s.

Havaianas

A Brazilian-based shoe store that offers fashionable flip flops made with the highest quality rubber — with hundreds of styles to choose from. This store will feature a large assortment of colorful Havaianas for women, men and children, plus kids’ rain boots. There’s also the “Make Your Own Havaianas” and “Embellish Your Own Havaianas,” option, where guests can customize this casual footwear.

Sanuk

Innovative, fun and comfortable footwear with more than 175 designs will be available at this 1,000-square-foot venue. Taking its name from the Thai word for “fun,” Sanuk strives to make more innovative products that are as much about funk as they are about function. Favorite styles including Yoga Mat Sandal Collection and its patented “Not-A-Shoe” Sidewalk Surfers will be showcased.

Sound Lion

A new retail concept that offers the latest technology in headphones, docking stations, wireless music players and other products. Before purchasing a product, guests can hang out at their Listening Bar and find which product works best for them.

Erin Mckenna Bakery NYC

A unique bakery with savory offerings and an all-vegan and gluten-free menu. Look for a full selection of award-winning donuts, cupcakes, cookies, bagels with vegan butter, and other delicious items daily. Some of their fan-favorite cupcakes from their flagship bakery in New York and sister bakery in Los Angeles include vanilla cupcakes with zesty lemon frosting, red velvet cupcakes with creamy vanilla frosting and brownie cupcakes with rich chocolate frosting.

501 WaysHeading to Disney World soon?

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Excited about any of the new shopping locations?
Please leave a comment!

Feb 25 2015

New Menu Items For Downtown Disney Food Trucks

Disney Springs

Disney Springs is continuing to take shape. Not too long ago we saw the opening of the Food Trucks in their permanent location at Exposition Park in the West Side. But like everything else in Disney World, things are always changing. New items are being added to the menus at the Superstar Catering Food Truck and the Fantasy Fare Food Truck. Here’s the scoop on all four fantastic food trucks (photos courtesy of Disney)…

Fantasy Fare Food Truck

This truck offers favorite foods from Disney Parks around the world such as hand-dipped corn dogs from Disneyland, chicken & waffles from Magic Kingdom and Croque Monsieur from Disneyland Paris. New to this menu are sweet potato puffs topped with marshmallow cream and candied pecans.

Namaste Café Food Truck

This truck offers foods from Disney’s Animal Kingdom such as tandoori shrimp, naan with samosas, butter chicken and lamb kefta.

Superstar Catering Food Truck

This truck offers the flavors of Disney’s Hollywood Studios with a brand new menu including items such as pork shank served with Gruyere macaroni & cheese, a sausage and caramelized onion flatbread, and “A Taste of Hollywood Studios” featuring samplings of the BLT Soup from Sci-Fi Dine-In Restaurant plus the Famous Cobb Salad and a mini grapefruit cake from The Hollywood Brown Derby.

World Showcase of Flavors Food Truck

This truck features favorites from Epcot’s International Food & Wine Festival such as pierogies, beef sliders and a grilled chicken breast gyro.

I’m so excited to try some of these delicious dishes on my next Disney World vacation!

Need help planning your Disney World vacation?

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Have you tried the food trucks yet? What did you think?
Please leave a comment!

Feb 24 2015

St. Patrick’s Day In Disney World

Raglan Road

If you will be visiting Disney World around St. Patrick’s Day and are looking for a fun place to celebrate, look no further than Raglan Road Irish Pub in Downtown Disney. Here’s what’s on the agenda courtesy of Disney:

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Award-winning Irish and American bands and quick-stepping Irish dancers will showcase their Irish roots during the Mighty St. Patrick’s Festival at Raglan Road Irish Pub & Restaurant in Downtown Disney March 13-17. The most authentic St. Patrick’s Day celebration in Central Florida also will feature inventive cuisine by Irish celebrity chef Kevin Dundon, host of the TASTE Award-winning PBS and Create TV cooking show, “Kevin Dundon’s Modern Irish Food.”

Raglan Road guests ready to “get their green on” can participate in festivities that run from 4 p.m. until 1:30 a.m. March 13 and from noon until 1:30 a.m. March 14-17, including complimentary face painting for guests, and live music. The diverse band lineup headed by Scythian — playing gypsy-infused American Celtic tunes — offers something for everyone:

  • Reel Ó Gránde, the newest Raglan Road house band playing traditional Irish ballads, jigs and reels and modern Irish and country music.
  • The West Coast Trio from Connemara, playing traditional and contemporary Irish songs on accordion, flute and guitar with plenty of reels and jigs.
  • 3 Dollar Band, three extraordinary musicians inspired by Irish and Appalachian music.
  • The Brayzen Heads, a popular duo on guitar and banjo playing Raglan Road regularly.
  • Drops of Green, an exciting new ballad group from the heart of Ireland.
  • The Raglan Road Dancers, seven full-time champion dancers, performing daily

Debuting just in time for the big celebration is the updated spring menu. Three new items being featured on the lunch and dinner menus are:

  • Cod Cornucopia – pan-roasted cod on a warm potato salad topped with chorizo vinaigrette.
  • Proud Pork – grilled pork chop with colcannon potato mash with cabbage, buttermilk, and onion.
  • Double Joint – cowboy cut rib-eye steak served with duck fat fries, roasted vegetables, and a salad.

There are also some new cocktails available including:

  • Grapefruit Gin and Tonic
  • Ginger Mojito
  • Smoking Margarita

For more information or to make reservations, please visit RaglanRoad.com or call 407-938-0300.

Need help planning your Disney World vacation?

Be sure to check out these resources to make the most of your time in Disney World:

Heading to Disney World soon?

If you are planning a vacation to Disney World, be sure to check out these valuable resources to help you save money: