Artist Point
To end our first day of our glorious vacation, we decided to make ADR’s at Artist Point. I’ve haven’t heard much about this place on the DIS, so we kind of went into this blindly. My DH and I have spent MONTHS(literally...we had a year and a half to plan..pure TORTURE!) pouring over all the menus at allears.net to get an idea of what we would like to have once we arrived.
So we get there…it was our first time ever walking into the Wilderness Lodge…beautiful.
It reminded me of Disney’s Grand Californian, with the large, open lobby. We walked around the lobby a bit, in awe of how amazing the architect of this building was, before walking over to Artist Point.
Our ADR was for 5:30 and the restaurant doesn’t open until 5:30 so it was a nice feeling to have the entire restaurant to ourselves for a bit (and I do mean a BIT…this place PACKED out about 30 minutes after being there!)
The restaurant itself was very lovely and true to the Wilderness theme..
So we got seated, and were handed our menus to look over. An impressive wine list was given to us, so I chose a nice Chardonnay (8.00) and DH went with a King Estate Pinot Noir (13.00). Alas, no pics of the wine..you know what wine looks right? And the glass is either half empty or half full, your preference...I'm a half full kinda gal, just to let you know a bit more about me..
The Appetizers:
Smoky Portobello soup with roasted chitakes and chive oil ~ 9.00
Let me just say this…if you decide come here, and you will after reading my review by the way
, you must get, no no, you WILL get the soup! OUTSTANDING! Seriously there is no word to describe it..so I’m forced to make one up, and I’m going to do so right now, Scrumptralascent! (Will Ferrell doing his impression of Inside the Actors Studio with James Lipton, SNL =) ). I could have had this as an entrée and dessert if I had to. It’s so creamy and satisfying! We raved so much about it in fact, the waiter came back with a printed copy of the recipe! YAY! I can
try to make this at home now! DH loved his app by the way, but wished he would have gotten the soup. Haha, No soup for you! (soup nazi, seinfeld)
DH ordered the Venison Pot Stickers with tamarind ponzu ~ 11.00
The Entrees:
For my entrée, I decided to go with the waiters recommendation, and ordered their signature plate..
Cedar Plank Roasted King Salmon with sourdough bread dumpling, broccolini, and mulled red wine brown butter ~ 34.00
Delicious! The salmon was cooked so lovely and the sides were a perfect match to bring out all the flavors of the salmon! And they really do bring it to you on a plank! Whoda thunk it?
DH ordered the Grilled Buffalo Striploin with goat cheese polenta, ancho-cherry compote, baby golden beets, asparagus and dark chocolate red wine reduction ~ 45.00
We’ve never tried buffalo and they do recommend it cooked as medium, since this type of meat tends to dry out more. Very good! Oh, I HATE polenta! This polenta rocked the house! And if you’re worried about the reduction being too much, it really isn’t..it’s wonderful!
The Desserts :
I’ve noticed a trend from reading reviews about the Deluxe Dining Plan, that people often share a dessert between two people or just skip it completely. I will tell you right now, that this whole trip, my DH and I only shared one dessert, and that was because I was sickeningly full. Other than that, I always order a dessert every single time, and sometimes when my DH doesn’t want one, I make him order my second favorite off the menu! So that’s TWO desserts for me!!!
Oh one more thing before I go onto my dessert review: there’s not many options to choose from for desserts at Artist Point, but that only means that they make these desserts spectacularly! So keep that in mind!
Double Chocolate Cheesecake with raspberry coulis, grand marnier mousse, and candied oranges ~ 10.00
I already knew I was going to love this because it had the word “Chocolate” in it… now add the word “Double” and I’m sold! Lol! Yummola!
Artist Point Cobbler with seasonal berries and black raspberry ice cream ~ 10.00
(wasn't sure which pic would come out better, so here's both!)
DH is a huge fan of fruity desserts and loves when I make my peach-blueberry cobbler at home, so I knew he was going to order this. This was packed out with berries! No skimpage here!
For those using the Deluxe Dining Plan, they take 2 credits per person because it’s a Signature restaurant, so it’s 4 credits total.
For those paying OOP, here was our total with 2 glasses of wine, 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, 2 desserts, and tax: $149.10
Now I think I know why not many people on the DIS talk about Artist Point…they want to keep this place a secret and SHAME ON THEM! This place was phenomenal! DH and I have already decided that we will either start or finish our vacation with Artist Point from now on just because of how splendid our meal and the service was! Hmm…maybe I shouldn’t have said anything about AP…should I also have followed in the footsteps of DIS members and taken the vow of silence for AP? No, it’s inevitable. You were bound to find out about this magnificent place. But keep it to yourself, yes?
Leshaface out!