ChrisFL
Premium Member
it's Wagyu beef, some of the best beef on the planet, you aren't going to get "equivalent" cuts at many other places.
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EPCOT New Signature Restaurant for Japan Pavilion - Takumi-Tei
- Thread starter ToTBellHop
- Start date
it's Wagyu beef, some of the best beef on the planet, you aren't going to get "equivalent" cuts at many other places.
Lensman
Well-Known Member
From the menus I've seen online, there are other cheaper menu options, but I'd guess that the portion sizes might not be what people expect. For me this might be a good thing since I generally find portion sizes too large and I don't think taking home my leftovers is that much of an option for an in-park restaurant unless I were staying at BWV.Tim Tracker just did a video on this place and spent $150 plus an additional $30 tip...on a small meal for one person.Portion sizes were tiny.
Maybe they'll make portion size adjustments or have some filler items for American appetites? Or maybe people will do what we do at a la carte sushi places in NYC which is keep ordering until you're either full or you start worrying that your credit card is going to be declined.
What's needed is a Wagyu beef buffet!
I'd pay close to $50 for a really fine meal at a really fine restaurant (drinks not included) on special occasions. But $150? Is it going to be three times better? At some point, you're only going to get small incremental steps of "tastier" once you start maxing out just how tasty a meal can be. That means diminishing returns on what you pay for.
So the upshot is that this restaurant is for those who don't blink to be dropping $500 for a single family meal. It's a prestige experience for prestige wallets. Like Club 33 or a Club level room at a Deluxe resort. That's the clientele they're aiming for and by the size of the restaurant, one can tell they don't expect large crowds.
So the upshot is that this restaurant is for those who don't blink to be dropping $500 for a single family meal. It's a prestige experience for prestige wallets. Like Club 33 or a Club level room at a Deluxe resort. That's the clientele they're aiming for and by the size of the restaurant, one can tell they don't expect large crowds.
Lensman
Well-Known Member
Well, the Japanese A-5 Tenderloin entree will set you back $93, but Florida's own Jackman Farms Wagyu Strip Loin will only set you back $68 and it comes with mushrooms and potatoes (Maitake and purple). For the budget-minded I don't think there'd be anything wrong with the Misoyaki Sea Bass for $42 or the Shrimp Tempura for $44.
The compressed watermelon and tuna in the frisee is a nice touch as well. Wines by the glass are $12-$30 or you can get an Asahi for $12.
The Omakase Tasting Menu at $130 is the outlier and for that price it had better be good since it's about the price of a one-star Michelin restaurant in NYC (of the ones in NYC serving Japanese cuisine).
Knowing that the prices have to include the "Disney tax", they don't seem outrageous as long as the food is actually distinctive and good. As others have said, the question is whether there's that much of a market for in-park fine dining. It's in World Showcase so I could see it being a good place to schedule a nice sit-down meal as the capstone of a visit, much like Le Cellier ($57 for a ribeye) or Monsieur Paul (Sea Bass for $42). I haven't been to either so I have to depend on you folks to tell me whether the food there is actually good.
The compressed watermelon and tuna in the frisee is a nice touch as well. Wines by the glass are $12-$30 or you can get an Asahi for $12.
The Omakase Tasting Menu at $130 is the outlier and for that price it had better be good since it's about the price of a one-star Michelin restaurant in NYC (of the ones in NYC serving Japanese cuisine).
Knowing that the prices have to include the "Disney tax", they don't seem outrageous as long as the food is actually distinctive and good. As others have said, the question is whether there's that much of a market for in-park fine dining. It's in World Showcase so I could see it being a good place to schedule a nice sit-down meal as the capstone of a visit, much like Le Cellier ($57 for a ribeye) or Monsieur Paul (Sea Bass for $42). I haven't been to either so I have to depend on you folks to tell me whether the food there is actually good.
I am Timmy
Well-Known Member
The food sounds lovely, the experience wonderful, but the time involved is concerning for us as a family. We aren't locals, and park time is scheduled accordingly. So, now that I've read some reviews (but would like opinions from "not a blogger") and will wait to see what people think of the time involved when they aren't taking pictures of everything and talking to the staff for their story. One reviewer took 4 hrs., that cannot be the norm.
lentesta
Premium Member
Ate here last night in the Water Room. My quick take its that it's probably Disney World's second best restaurant in terms of quality (behind V&A), and probably a better value than V&A.
The food ingredients are, of course, very good. The creativity and presentation were exceptional. The unexpected thing that impressed me the most was that each course was slightly more intense in flavor than the one before. That makes the wagyu and vegetables the stars of the show. And they were. I said to my dining companions "You know, I think that if this cow knew how happy it made us, it'd be okay with how things turned out."
A complete tasting menu meal took 2.5 hours, so it's definitely not for kids. There'll be a 6-person minimum for the Water Room, which they didn't enforce either because (a) they recognized me, or (b) they needed the practice. Ordering from the standard menu in the other rooms is likely to be a shorter meal.
Dinner for 3, with one wine pairing, a carafe of sake, and several non-alcoholic cocktails, was $750 before gratuity.
The food ingredients are, of course, very good. The creativity and presentation were exceptional. The unexpected thing that impressed me the most was that each course was slightly more intense in flavor than the one before. That makes the wagyu and vegetables the stars of the show. And they were. I said to my dining companions "You know, I think that if this cow knew how happy it made us, it'd be okay with how things turned out."
A complete tasting menu meal took 2.5 hours, so it's definitely not for kids. There'll be a 6-person minimum for the Water Room, which they didn't enforce either because (a) they recognized me, or (b) they needed the practice. Ordering from the standard menu in the other rooms is likely to be a shorter meal.
Dinner for 3, with one wine pairing, a carafe of sake, and several non-alcoholic cocktails, was $750 before gratuity.
John park hopper
Well-Known Member
Sure as the rising sun rises every day I won't be eating there.
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Lensman
Well-Known Member
Maybe it was one of the lucky ones that got the somewhat mythical beer and massages?
Thanks for the review. It sounds like a welcome addition, given the complaints over the past few years about a decline in quality of signature restaurants and the "same-ification" of distinctive flavors and menus.
The price level of the tasting menu is shocking, though. I'll take back my shock if they get a Michelin star, though.
Oh, do you get rice at any point or are they too fancy for rice?
Think of it as dining in a high-class Japanese restaurant without having to fly to Tokyo to do it. I would try it (and eat cat food the rest of the month).
lentesta
Premium Member
Rice as a side dish? No.
I wouldn't be surprised if they're making a play for a Michelin star. I've eaten at a few 1-star places, and this seems like it'll be comparable.
ABQ
Well-Known Member
Are you saying that you cannot get the tasting menu outside the Water Room? So a dining party of 2 would be unable to get it, as they wouldn't fill the 6 person minimum for that particular room?
ABQ
Well-Known Member
Further, I can attest to the cost of Omakase in NYC, in fact, it can be obscenely more expensive. When you couple the typical WDW mark up for any meal, it seems on par.
https://www.thrillist.com/eat/new-york/best-omakase-sushi-nyc-price-cheap
https://www.thrillist.com/eat/new-york/best-omakase-sushi-nyc-price-cheap
DisneyOutsider
Well-Known Member
This is definitely a special occasion/celebration type of experience for us, not dissimilar to V&A (which I've never tried). Looking forward to trying this on my next birthday trip 
lentesta
Premium Member
I'd say it's more kaiseki than sushi omakase: https://ny.eater.com/maps/best-japanese-tasting-menu-nyc
Lensman
Well-Known Member
Yeah, that sounds right, it's somewhat curious that they decided to call it omakase and not kaiseki. Did they ask you questions that made you think they were tailoring the meal to your taste?
Here is the menu entry for their kaiseki (from wdwinfo):
wdwinfo said:
lentesta
Premium Member
The service team said it was kaiseki when we were seated, and asked if we knew the difference between that and omakase. I was tipped off a couple months ago that it might be kaiseki, and I did some research ahead of time in NYC for comparisons.
So the service team knew exactly what was being offered. I suspect that the distinction got lost in Disney's PR department.
jaklgreen
Well-Known Member
This is what I was thinking. The portion sizes at almost all of the restaurants are much too big for me. And, as you said, no one is going to carrying a doggy bag around the parks with them. I like the portion sizes that they are showing. That is more then enough food for me for a meal, especially if you add any kind of appetizer.