Epic Delicious Disney Chef Series Experience

Disney shows its luxurious side with Delicious Disney Chef Series, one-of-a-kind epic culinary events that belong on every Disney foodie’s “Must Do” bucket list.

The “Delicious Disney Chef Series” delights the senses as it transports you on a culinary journey set in an exclusive setting, only open to the public during these exclusive events.

I was honored to be an invited media guest for the “Delicious Disney Chef Series” event honoring the 10th anniversary of the award-winning Disney-Pixar film Ratatouille. Released on June 29, 2007, one of my favorite Disney films (I suspect every foodie’s favorite) provided inspiration for an elevated culinary experience. This was a check mark off my “someday list”. Read on and view the photos of this magical evening and you’ll see why it belongs on your list too.

I was not compensated or obligated to write this review. All opinions are my own and as always, I only share with you culinary and travel experiences worth celebrating to inspire you to “Make Someday Happen”.

Disney’s Luxury Side. Did you know Walt Disney World Resort has an exclusive residential community?

Ever since learning of Golden Oak, I’ve been curious to peek inside the luxury resort-like residential community, located in Lake Buena Vista, with homes starting at $2 million! Dining at Markham’s was immediately added to my “someday list” when I heard Chef Phillip Ponticelli became their Chef de Cuisine. Formerly at Citrico’s at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, he has been wowing Disney foodies for years! Unfortunately, only residents and their guests are allowed access to the restaurant housed in the community’s Mediterranean-style private clubhouse called Summerhouse.

Until now!

Delicious Disney Chef Series: A one-of-a-kind Disney Experience!

The Walt Disney World Resort chefs have created a unique dinner series titled “Delicious Disney, A Chef Series” with the theme of “storytelling with food.” Its purpose, to showcase the stellar talents of the culinary team during special dinner events featuring inspired culinary creations coupled with creative wine pairings.

These events allow the rare opportunity for non-residents to dine at Markham’s at Golden Oak when seats are released upon availability to the public. Reservations are required and a few seats are currently available for two of the upcoming events.

What’s in store for the magical evening? The whimsy of the guest chef!

On this night it would be Chef Dominique Filoni, Citrico’s current Chef de Cuisine, who would join Chef Phillip Ponticelli to take us on a journey through France, brilliantly inspired by Disney’s Ratatouille and Remy, its titular culinary mastermind. Together with his team led by the Grand Floridian’s Executive Chef Scott Hunnel (the culinary genius behind award-winning Victoria & Albert’s) an intimate group of around 50 guests thoroughly enjoyed the journey with Chef Dom.

A Classic Welcome.

The 1920’s classic cocktail French 75, created at famed Harry’s New York Bar in Paris, served as a fitting start. The concoction of gin, champagne, lemon juice and sugar, garnished by edible flowers, was refreshing on this warm summer evening. Assorted hors d’oeuvres including a delightful gruyere puff accompanied during the welcome reception.

The Film.

Let’s set the scene and give you a brief synopsis of the film which inspired this evening. The animated film Ratatouille, set in Paris, France, focuses on a rat named Remy who dreams of being a chef. Inspired by famed Chef Gusteau, he sets out to make his dreams come true. He and a young human chef named Alfredo Linguini end up in an unusual and hilarious partnership to foil the schemes of the evil Chef Skinner. Remy pulls Linguini’s hair under his toque to control his limbs like a marionette to create dishes that wow even the toughest of food critics, especially tough to please, Anton Ego. The film won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and the hearts of Disney foodies everywhere.

“How could I describe it? Good food is like music you can taste, color you can smell. There is excellence all around you. You need only to be aware to stop and savor it.” – Chef Gusteau

A fitting description of the evening’s experience.

Does Chef Dom have Remy under his toque blanc?

Anyone Can Cook, but not Everyone Can Cook as Good as A Disney Chef

Remy taught us that “anyone can cook”, but Chef Scott Hunnel welcomed us with a fair warning of the delicious evening ahead.

“Anyone can cook, however, not everybody can cook like Chef Dom”. – Chef Scott Hunnel

He couldn’t have selected a more fitting tour guide for our French inspired culinary evening. Chef Dominique Filoni, born and raised in St. Tropez, France, learned how to cook at an early age from his grandmother. He was the designated prep cook in grand-mère’s kitchen, which shaped his French Mediterranean style of cooking. This eventually led to stints in boutique resorts along the south of France, a move to Philadelphia, and numerous awards including Food & Wine “Best New Chef” in 2004. He’s been at the helm of the kitchen of Citrico’s since 2015.

The Gift.

Even before dinner started we received a nice house-warming gift.

“The spoon is just as important as the knife and cutting board in the kitchen” says Chef Dom. “It allows you to stir the sauce and taste.”

Every chef knows, including Remy, that tasting while you cook is important. This cute wooden spoon from France made a great souvenir of this delicious evening.

Amuse Bouche Delights All The Senses.

Remy had a refined sense of smell pairing mushrooms with cheese and wild rosemary. Chef Dom did the same with our first course, the Amuse Bouche. He added a touch of smoke for an impressive reveal as the small glass dome covering the plate was lifted. The smoke lightly touched our nose and immediately made us reach for our fork to take a bite. But pictures first…

The Amuse Bouche is meant to delight your taste buds. This one sparked much more. The only downfall of this beautiful creation of roasted mushroom, cheese and rosemary espuma, was that I wished for more. Oh but it’s just meant to be a bite. Anticipation peeked for what’s to come next.

Bubbles offer a beautiful pairing for any dish, especially at the beginning of the meal. The Canard-Duchene Cuvee Leonie NV Brut, from Reims, offered an impressive mouth feel. Made of 40% pinot noir, 40% pinot meuniere and 20% chardonnay, it’s a fuller bodied champagne with good acidity, balance, and stone fruit on the nose and palate. I could drink this all night!

Don’t Skip The Bread.

“How do you tell how good bread is without tasting it? Not the smell, not the look, but the sound of the crust. Symphony of crackle!” – Colette

Pastry Chef William Clark presented his flaky brioche and crusty mini loaves to top with house-made butter. “Don’t fill up on the bread” is easier said that done!

The Soup.

For our next course Chef Dom recreated the famous soup from the film. Potato Leek Soup with Pommes Souflèes, Tomato, and Herbes du Jardin. He may have had Remy guiding him under his chef’s toque but he is far from resembling Linguini, the fumbling culinary-challenged cook. The soup was absolutely perfect.

Pommes Soufflées, a type of twice fried potato, topped the creamy soup. It requires more culinary prowess than you may think, shared Chef Dom. He first learned the technique from watching famous chef Jacques Pepin on TV and practiced for weeks until he got them just right. And it was! Brunoise of potatoes and tomatoes with a touch of crème fraiche and fresh chives completed the topping. Every slurp from the glorious soup was creamy and rich, yet light and comforting.

The pairing: Domaine Louis Moreau “Vaillons”, Chablis 1er Cru. A beautiful balance of crisp acidity to contrast the richness of the soup. A bottle of this Chablis is welcome in my home any day.

The Seafood Course.

In the film Remy served salmon, but it wouldn’t be a proper French dinner without Coquille St. Jacques, would it?

Chef Dom’s seafood course introduced Hokkaido Scallops with Artichoke, sous vide baby leeks, topped with a canard of American sturgeon caviar, shaved asparagus for a nice crunch and Emulsion Acidulèe, a flavorful reduction of all the components.

The scallops were meaty and buttery and paired well with Clos Saint Jean Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc from Rhone regions. A blend of Roussane, Claret and Grenache Blanc, it offered honeysuckle on the nose for a delicate pairing.

The crispy leaks on the side were meant as a topping but they may be my new favorite type of “chip” as I nibbled on them in between sips of the crisp wine.

The Main Event.

The main course of Colorado Lamb with Fava Beans and Morel Ragout was hearty and flavorful. The lamb was accented by demi sauce finished with a touch of butter and Minus 8 vinegar for a bit of brightness.

Stealing the show was the Ratatouille.

Chef Dom recreated it perfectly. Although he says “we couldn’t make it so fancy fancy” it is the fanciest side dish I have ever seen.

Beautiful layers of color and flavors within a beautiful red Le Creuset. Remy impressed food critic Anton Ego, and Chef Dom impressed us with this dish consisted of onion confit, red and yellow peppers, tomato compote touched with saffron and orange, zucchini, eggplant and blanched tomato all cut in circles and arranged in a striking mosaic with fresh basil on top.

The traditional version of Ratatouille is a peasant’s dish. For the film, renowned chef Thomas Keller of The French Laundry restaurant in Napa, served as advisor and created a more refined version of the dish, called Confit Byaldi.

For the wine pairing….we had a real winner. No, not a 1961 Chateau LaTour as in the film. But Stig Jacobsen’s more accessibly priced version, Chateau Lagrange from Saint-Julien, a neighboring region of Pauilliac, where Latour comes from. The wine offered elegant notes of black fruit and currants with plenty of body and tannins. The wine was opened two and half hours prior to dinner to allow it to breathe and it was well worth it.

The Sweet Ending.

Pastry Chef Blake introduced his artistic creation. A dish where every detail and every component could very well stand on its own.

Fromage Blanc Panna Cotta with a pecan tuile.

Rum Savarin, with Candied Orange and Chantilly Cream.

A chocolate eiffel tower.

Perfection!

For dessert it’s only appropriate we enjoyed one of France’s famed dessert wines from Sauternes. La Fleur d’Or, a botrytis wine with notes of honeysuckle and peach that was dessert in a glass.

Quelle Surprise! How every meal should end.

Just as we were pleasantly satiated, a cart of goodies was rolled out into the dining room.

Surprise! A lift of the chef’s toque revealed a hand-painted White Chocolate Remy statue! The room of adults squealed like children seeing Mickey Mouse for the first time. The petite pastries including a delightful cheese macaron, rosemary tomato cookies, chocolate éclair, palmiers and jellies put me over the top!

The Wines.

The wines, expertly selected by Stig Jacobsen, Citrico’s sommelier, took us on a tour of the vineyards of France.

We started in the Champagne region, which is always a great place to start.

We moved on to Chablis.

Then Chateauneuf-Du-Pape for a departure from the usual red with a white blend.

The room erupted into laugher when Jacobsen mentioned a visit to Paulliac for the Chateau Latour was not possible. Instead we ventured to nearby Saint-Julien. We may not have had a Latour or Lafite or Cheval Blanc like in the film but that would have set the price point for this dinner at much more than a splurge.

We ended the evening with the most epic of France’s dessert wines region, Sauternes.

The Kitchen Action.

Just as Remy, who said in amazement “I can’t believe it! A real gourmet kitchen and I get to watch” as he observed the action of the kitchen at Gusteau’s. We delighted watching the culinary brigade in action in the open kitchen in the homey restaurant. It bustled as smoke was piped into glass domes, it sizzled, it buzzed with masterfully channeled energy.

And then, like magic, it was clean as if the evening was nothing more than a delicious dream.

The Service.

Disney’s service is always above and beyond attentive and Markham’s team provided impeccable service from beginning to end. Our server Tiffany was all smiles which is always contagious.

The room was full of a quiet energy fueled by the excitement and anticipation of each course. The staff worked in tandem to take care of the room as if you were the only guests there.

What’s Next?

“If you are what you eat, then I only want to eat the good stuff” – Remy

If you agree with Remy, then don’t miss dining with the award-winning Disney Chefs during “Delicious Disney’s Chef Series” upcoming events. Only a few seats remain. Call 407.939.5773 daily between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to make your reservations. Go #MakeSomedayHappen

^ Under The Sea
July 19th at 6:30pm
Enjoy the exotic and exquisite tastes of a journey Under the Sea with The Little Mermaid
Featuring Flying Fish’s Timothy Majoras and Team, hosted by Markham’s at Golden Oak Chef de Cuisine Phillip Ponticelli.
Location Markham’s at Golden Oak

^ A Walk around the World with Disney
August 16th at 6:30pm
Featuring Culinary Director Edwin Wronski and the Flavor Lab Team, hosted by Markham’s at Golden Oak Chef de Cuisine Phillip Ponticelli.
Location Markham’s at Golden Oak

Cheers!

Go Epicurista

Note: Photos of the film used in this post are property of Disney-Pixar.