Review- California Grill Brunch at the Top

[Hammer]

As most of you who read the Dining boards know, I am a big fan of signature dining. My sister and I also love going out for Sunday brunch in New York, Hoboken and Philadelphia. So, when it was announced that they were starting to serve Sunday brunch at California Grill, my sister and I decided we had to try it. We were heading to WDW for a long weekend in March to attend a spring training game between the Braves and the Phillies at Disney, so we made a reservation for this past Sunday, March 13th.

When you check in at the Contemporary security gate, your Magicband is scanned, showing that you are attending brunch at California Grill. The security guard informed us that valet parking is included with brunch. After parking the car, we went to check in on the second floor, just as you do for dinner. The hostess takes you up to the 15th floor, where you are greeted by a second hostess who will take you to your seat, first stopping to give you a glass of the signature cocktail, a Yuzu bellini. The drink was tasty, but a bit too sweet for our tastes. We would have preferred to have the choice of a mimosa or regular glass of champagne. Surprisingly, the menu does not list a mimosa as a beverage available for additional purchase. The hostess walks us through the self-serve appetizer selections and the bloody Mary bar. The Bloody Mary bar is an additional charge (neither of us like Bloody Marys). We were seated at window table, right by the entrance to the observation deck. The view during the day is as stupendous as it is at night! A string quartet plays throughout brunch. We noticed it during brunch and said “Oh look, there’s a band!” (bonus points if you know from what movie that is quote)
Just after being seated, our server came by to ask us what we would like to drink. My sister ordered the pressed pot of coffee and I ordered a pot of Darjeeling tea, as well as each of us ordering a glass of champagne. We also knew what we wanted to order, so we placed it at that time. Our server said she wouldn’t put in the order until she noticed we were slowing down with the self service options.

We went up to the beginning of the self-service bar, which is a charcuterie board. Frequent readers may remember I love charcuterie boards, so I was excited to try this. On the board there is smoked beef sausage, pork belly rillette. bison and sweetbread terrine, orange honey ham and porchetta. There are also accompaniments of sweet onion jam, Dijon mustard, Zellwood pickles, peppers and various flatbread crisps. I enjoyed the pork belly rillettes and porchetta the best, accompanied by the Zellwood pickles and onion jam, though everything I tried on the board was tasty (I did not try the sweetbread terrine).

After trying the charcuterie, we went up to the next table. Here you had various sushi rolls, deviled eggs with spicy aioli and crispy bacon, and salads. The sushi choices are spicy tuna roll, crabmeat California roll, shrimp tempura roll with mango and orange, and various nigiri selections. I tried all of the choices and it was as fresh and well-made as I have come to expect from the California Grill, though I thought the shrimp tempura was a bit too sweet from the mango. I don’t like deviled eggs, but my sister does and said that they were very tasty and creamy. There are 3 types of salad: fregola pasta salad with sautéed veggies and lemon vinaigrette; baby iceberg salad with tomatoes, bacon, and avocado-buttermilk ranch dressing; and kale salad with apples, craisins, quinoa, almonds, and apple vinaigrette. Neither of us tried the kale salad, but we both had the mini wedge salad and I tried the fregola pasta salad. Both salads were tasty, though neither was very unique. We did not try the Greek yogurt bar or bagel bar, as we wanted to have room for our entrees.

For our entrees, my sister ordered the grilled flat-iron steak, which had chimichurri sauce on top and marble potato hash. On the side, there was also a poached egg, sitting inside a ring of charred red onion. The egg was cooked perfectly, though her steak came out medium to medium well and she ordered medium rare. Our server immediately noticed the meat was not cooked to order and offered to send it back, though my sister said it wasn’t necessary. We appreciated the attentiveness of the server. Service throughout this meal was exceptional and I don’t use that word lightly. I ordered the shrimp and grits. The shrimp was very tasty, but the grits were a bit bland.

The meal ends with a dessert tasting plate that included dark chocolate toffee bark, strawberry jam tea cookies, lemon madeleines, French macarons, and chocolate truffles. I tried the truffles and the toffee bark, but it was the same as good quality chocolate here at home. After brunch, we went out and took pictures from the observation deck, but not before we filled out surveys detailing our experience.

Overall, it was an enjoyable brunch that I think you should try if it is in your price range. It is a great idea for a special occasion brunch.

[VWL Mom]

Thanks for the review Christine. Although I'm not a CG fan I may have to put this on my bucket list.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

Sounds delicious.

[JanetMegan]

"Mine are broken..."

What no sweetbreads? Thanks for the good and well written review from a fellow foodie!

[SBETigg]

I had an excellent sweetbread dish at a local restaurant the other night. But with so much else to eat at brunch, you have to be selective, I suppose. That sounds like a lot of food. I think I prefer California Grill for dinner and won't be trying the brunch, but it sounds like it was good for brunch fans.

[faline]

Sounds like a very enjoyable dining experience!!

[DisneyAunt]

Thanks for the info. California Grill is a family and sentimental favorite. I remember going to breakfast up there when it was Top of the World. We have reservations here for Mother's Day brunch. Cannot wait!

[TheSorcererofFantasia]

Thanks for the detailed review Christine. We booked this for our September trip and excited to try it.

[Arielfan98]

Thanks for the review! Out of curiosity, was the dessert plate one for you both to share? Or was it one for each of you?