We didn't have concrete plans for dinner but found ourselves wandering through Downtown Disney perusing various menus. Eventually we rolled the dice and decided on Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen which, like so many Disney-property establishments, gets decidedly mixed reviews.
I'll pass on this stew ...
We were seated in the restaurant's outdoor courtyard, which has been decorated to resemble a nineteenth century French Quarter dwelling - there's lot of wrought iron and sculptures and even a fountain slopping water cheerfully on the floor, so when you slip and fall and bust open your spine on those beautiful tiles you can do so to the sound of happy water gurgles. Not that anyone fell while we were there, but it sure seemed like a law suit waiting to happen.
The four of us had to order drinks to celebrate our last dinner together - when I saw a sazerac on the menu I had to order it; Jason and Jason ordered spicy bloody marys and Chelis went with a mint julep. The drinks all tasted quite good but my sazerac showed up in a half-full cocktail glass with no ice and was the color of children's cough syrup. *SIGH* Doesn't anyone outside of New Orleans or our house make a proper sazerac? Absinthe is legal for crying out loud ... do it right or don't do it at all!
Cheers to us!
And then the appetizer parade began! In our defense, not that we needed one, we really hadn't eaten very much throughout the course of the day. And while I can speak for Chelsi and Jason, my Jason and I wanted to do as much as we could to prolong the evening since it was going to be the last one we'd spend with our dear friendies for another six months. So what did we start with and why did our waitress secretly think we needed a second table?
Chelsi's Jason ordered the Soup of the Day, which I think was a seafood bisque (correct me if I'm wrong, Jason).
Mystery Soup of the Day
I ordered the Louisiana Crab Cakes which were served with fire-roasted corn and black bean salsa with horseradish cream and chili aioli. These were pretty tasty but a little more spicy than I typically like - undoubtedly that chili aioli was tough to avoid.
Sweet crabby patties!
My Jason ordered the Soup 1-1-1 ... a tasting trio of the Soup of the Day, Gumbo Ya-Ya, and Creole Onion Soup. The hubba really liked this - he had a chance to try more than one item that he'd really enjoy but the portion sizes were small enough that he wouldn't be bursting at the seams due to liquid overload.
Soup times three!
Chelsi ordered the Gumbo Ya-Ya ... a heaping, helping of spicy gumbo chock full of everything but Plankton!
Gumbo!
And to help absorb all that liquid-y goodness ... grilled garlic cheese bread! Our waitress recommended this and it was excellent - chock full of buttery, cheesy goodness with a mild garlic flavor.
Mmmmm, bread plate!
The two Jasons ordered Krusty the Fish, also known as Andouille Crusted Mahi-Mahi which was served with Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli Rabe, and Smoked Tomato Chardonna Reduction. In a word: Excellent!
Krusty the Fish!
Chelsi ordered the Caramelized Pork Chop with Bacon Braised Turnip Greens, Jalapeno Potato Croquette, and Calvados Demi-Glace. In another word: YUM!
Porkie Chop
And I ordered the supremely boring, but always safe to eat before a long day of tavel, Grilled Chicken and Penne which included Pancetta, Basil, Asiago Cheese, and Pink Vodka Sauce. It was supposed to include a bunch of caramelized onions but I asked our waitress if the kitchen could please leave them out and they very kindly obliged. I enjoyed this dish but had the same problem I usually do with pasta dishes - too much food to finish in one sitting.
A whole lotta drunken pasta!
The weather was getting much cooler with the setting sun and the wind was picking up - we'd left our jackets in a locker earlier in the morning when we'd arrived at the park because it was too warm to wear them during the day and no one wanted to lug them all over Disneyland and CA Adventure. The only warm-up option left to us was alcoholic coffee! And I wish I could remember which alcohol went into whose coffee but I don't any longer - all I do know is that these were some tasty caffeinated boozie concoctions and definitely did the trick.
Mmmmm, swirling boozie coffee
Chelsi is soooo cute!
One of us had to drive back to San Diego and that meant the sad, sad prospect of non-alcoholic coffee reared its head for Jason, who generously took one for the team.
Sad, plain coffee ...
I would be sad, too!
Dessert was a foregone conclusion and we decided to share the Creme Brulee sampler, but our cute little waitress saw Chelsi's birthday button and brought her a plate of complimentary beignets! Who doesn't like warm, fresh beignets coated with powdered sugar? These were really good, especially with our boozie coffee.
Birthday Girl!
Beignets!
The creme brulee sampler included a generous portion of Grand Mariner, Cafe au Lait, and Vanilla Ginger Creme Brulees with a yummy cookie. These were all well cooked, creamy, and flavorful and provided a sweet, but not too heavy end to a wonderful meal.
Trio of creamy goodness
All in all our dinner at Brennan's was a tasty and enjoyable experience. We received great service and really flavorful ,well prepared food - it ended up being a good choice and was a lovely end to a wonderful trip. Jason and I couldn't have asked for a better evening, unless it involved winning a mega lottery that would have enabled us to stay in San Diego with our friends indefinitely!
7 comments:
:) Yes! my early birthday button! Those were good donuts and worth a lie! :) Jason looks so sad with his coffee! flavored coffee! Miss you!
Terrifically timely! I am leaving early Tuesday morning for the golden realms of Hollywood and Disneyland and very much appreciate the lowdown on the high points!
That creme brulee sampler looks wonderful.
Great review of Ralph Brennans! We walked by that frightening chef statue quite a few times when we stayed at the GCH in 08...i wish we had stopped in ! That brulee' trio looked amazing! And Krusty the Fish..lol!
YUM YUM YUM YUM!!!
Looks like so much fun! I'm so sad now that we won't be feasting together in Vegas. :( Perhaps I will will the lottery and join you! ;)
The Gumbo Ya-Ya looks as rich & authentic as the one served at Mr B's in the Quarter! The beignets looked pretty good too.
I would be all over that soup trifecta. I'm a soup monster, so that would be a menu item that would grab my attention for sure.
I would be as sad as Jason with the sad coffee, too. ;) I've seen plenty of great reviews of this place, that I was unaware there were mixed reviews of this place.
I got my beignet fix from the bakery next door, took a bag of them to my room. Powdered sugar overload in the bag, though. You can re-create your own scene from "Scarface" with the extra sugar. Heheheh.
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