Day 4: Brunch - California Grill
Up next is the reservation I was most looking forward to prior to my trip - brunch at California Grill.
This is certainly a pricey meal, however I burned two table service credits on the dining plan. I am happy to report that I would have happily paid out of pocket for this meal and felt like I got a great bargain.
Seriously - you NEED to do this brunch! The only time I think I've seen more options for a brunch is in Las Vegas at the fancy pants buffets, which or for a similar price point to Cali Grill.
You experience starts when you're escorted up toe the 15th floor of the Contemporary Resort and are greeted by mimosas...
And live music...
With some of the best views around.
You are given the option of ordering off the menu and then are invited up to the buffet to nosh while you wait.
I was torn between ordering the standard eggs benedict and the lobster eggs benedict and was a little bummed to find out I could not order a half order of each, but I
could order two full entrees. In the end I ordered the lobster eggs benedict.
I made my way to the buffet to see what it had to offer.
You have the option to add on the bloody Mary bar (for an additional charge). You have a good selection of vodkas...
I'm a Wisconsin gal, and if there is one thing I am well-versed in, its bloody Mary garnish. California Grill has a great selection of garnish. I love bloody Mary's, primarily because I like the mini snack buffet that comes along with them. I would not have been disappointed by this selection, however - I was content with Mimosas this morning as I was also driving.
Next up, you're greeted by a beautiful display of charcuterie.
House-made Charcuterie - Includes: orange-honey ham, venison terrine, wagyu sausage, pork belly rillettes, whole-grain mustard, cheeses, Zellwood pickles, pickled Pero Farms peppers, sweet onion jam
Onwards to sushi, starting with California Rolls...
Continuing on, are deviled eggs...
Deviled Lake Meadow Farms Eggs - with crispy lardons, spiced aioli
And next are the salads:
Fregola Salad - with crispy sauteed vegetables, lemon vinaigrette, Florida hearts of palm
Baby iceberg wedge - with marinated tomatoes, cherrywood bacon, avocado-buttermilk ranch dressing
Kale and apple salad - with dried cranberries, pink pearl apples, marcona almonds, apple vinaigrette
There's more sushi here...
Shrimp tempura - with orange drizzle and mango
There's a selection of Greek yogurt (not pictured), smoked salmon (also not pictured), fresh fruit and bagels.
And ending with:
Scones, "sticky buns" and cheddar biscuits.
One of the awesome things about Cali Grill is getting to check out all the action in the open kitchen.
For my buffet plates, I started at the charcuterie:
I was really excited about the venison terrine and the wagyu sausage. I also grabbed some salami, prosciutto, the onion jam and pickles, some Tillamook cheddar and an aged white cheese...I think it was asiago, or something in that family.
Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy either the venison or the wagyu. I greatly enjoyed the pickles, onion jam, cheese, prosciutto and salami.
While there were breadsticks and cracker type bread available, I do wish there was some sliced baguette to make a makeshift meat/cheese mini sandwich.
The cheddar biscuit was completely forgettable and I don't recommend wasting the carbs on it. Even with a little meat/cheese it was totally blah.
Next up was my sushi plate...
Which consisted of a little bit of each of the offerings they had + two deviled eggs and some smoked salmon.
You can also pick up a little plate of soy, ginger and wasabi from the buffet, along with chopsticks.
I'm not even a little ashamed to say - I ate. all. of. this. Every last bite. And I thoroughly enjoyed everything.
The sushi - while not as adventurous as the nighttime offerings, was absolutely on par with the quality you've come to know from California Grill. It was at this point I realized that I would have been completely content continuing to eat off the buffet rather than having an entrée, but I was excited for my eggs benedict, which came out next...
(Realllllllly sorry about the bite, but my first picture did not turn out).
Poached Lobster Benedict - with Butter-Poached Tail, Two Soft-Poached Eggs, Honey Ham, Yuzu Hollandaise, Marble Potato Hash. Additionally available as regular Eggs Benedict or with Smoked Salmon.
You get two muffins here, I'm not sure why I only photographed the one.
I was a little confused about the ham with this. I think it would have been totally fine to just have the lobster, the egg and hollandaise. As you can see, the lobster portion was extremely generous and it was cooked to perfection!
At this point, I was thoroughly stuffed!
However, we still had the finale to get through:
There was a French madeleine, a raspberry jam shortbread, a raspberry white chocolate truffle (the heart)...
A coconut macaron and some salted toffee.
I had a bit of everything (except the truffle...I ate all of that!) and had the rest boxed to go. Everything was delicious, but seriously- I could have eaten about 50 of those madeleines. They were light as air...and I've never been much of a fan of them, but I certainly was of these!
I was there at what I thought was a pretty prime time (10:45 reservation), but the restaurant was only half full.
It was great to experience Cali Grill without it being packed like it is for dinner and I have to say - I can't wait to go back and enjoy this brunch again.
We have Narcoossee's booked for our trip next week, and I already know it will pale in comparison to this brunch!