This was the only Michelin starred restaurant in the area near Disney other than Victoria & Albert’s (on waitlist) without having to go into downtown Orlando. It was a plus for me that it was Spanish cuisine. I took my Uber straight from the conference to the restaurant in Golden Oaks. Golden Oaks turned out to be a nice Disney property with the Four Seasons. The restaurant itself was up on the 17th floor. I had the option to sit outside or inside and they suggested outside on the terrace because the weather is nice here to eat outside in the evening and I would be able to see the sunset and fireworks. Sounds good to me.

There was no tasting menu so I just had to order a la carte which was fine, but meant that I wouldn’t be able to try very many dishes. I started with a cocktail of course, in this case the Verde de Ramon which featured Charred Padrón Pepper-Infused Espolón Blanco, Cucumber Water Cilantro Syrup, and Lime. It was a nice refreshing drink.

For my starters/tapas, I went with a couple recommendations from my waitperson – the Gambas and the Pulpo. I had a glass of albariño with these. For the gambas, the sauce was made with egg yolk and some chili pepper. The shrimp was topped with some crispy celery root chips which gave some good texture to the dish. The shrimp was tender and there was just a little bit of heat. The pulpo was a single tentacle. It was very tender on the inside, but crisp on the outside which was pretty impressive. The octopus had been marinated in paprika with a bit more dusting one side of the dish. There was also their take on a mojo verde that was a smooth sauce. Either way, this dish was delicious.

For my main, I didn’t want a regular steak (I am usually disappointed with steak at restaurants) so I went with the Iberico Pluma (because we had such a delicious one at Bazaar Mar in Las Vegas) and a glass of La Rioja Alta ‘904’, their least expensive of their premium Riojas by the glass (they had a couple other glasses of much pricier Rioja at $124 and $215 a glass, but that seemed too steep without knowing very much about Rioja). This was served atop Romesco sauce which I believe is a more traditional way to serve this. It was good with a nice char on the outside, but I definitely preferred the one at Bazaar Mar. I also ordered a side, just so I would have some vegetable. I went with the Calabaza at the suggestion of the waitperson. This side was roasted summer squash with some whipped manchego (!) and some toasted breadcrumb bits for texture (and some buttery flavor). It was delicious to be sure, but not exactly light for a vegetable dish, but oh that whipped manchego…

I did want to try some dessert (and the pastry chef is apparently a two-time James Beard Award Finalist). I went with the Pastel de Almendras and a Mata Vermouth Tinto. The dessert had the olive oil cake set on top of some yuzu yogurt mousse. The cake was topped with small pieces of strawberries and then topped with a berry sorbet. The sorbet is too sweet for what I wanted, but I enjoyed the rest of the dessert.

All in all, it was nice meal with a great view.

http://www.capasteakhouse.com/