I just returned from Walt Disney World on Monday night.  It was only a short trip and my wife and I made the decision not to get the Disney Dining Plan.  As a result, we chose restaurants that were more “off the beaten path.”  These restaurants, for the most part, were at resorts not parks.  This kept crowds down and were very easy to get a reservation.  This review is on one of those restaurants – Maya Grill.

The Maya Grill is located at Coronado Springs which can make it difficult to get and from if you are not staying at Coronado Springs, not already in a theme park, or have your own car.  My wife and I briefly toured EPCOT upon our arrival to Yacht Club and worked our way to the front of the park.  From EPCOT, we took the bus to Coronado Springs.  Our return was bit more tricky but I’ll save that for the end of the review.

 

My wife and I arrived to Coronado Springs with some time to spare before our reservation.  We spent that time looking around the resort since we had never been here.  (Pictures to come in the first installment of my trip resort tonight). We got to Maya Grill and checked in.  We had to wait a minimal amount of time for our table – just enough time to check out the menu on the wall.

 

Our table had a great view of Lago Dorado where we could watch the thunderstorm roll in an destroy our view for a brief time.  We could hear but not really see the one man mariachi band which played throughout our meal.  Maya Grill has an expansive tequila and margarita menu.

I stuck with just a soft drink since we had just spent three hours in the blazing sun (temperature was above 100 degrees Friday through Sunday).  My wife went with a blood orange margarita which I took a couple of sips and it was quite good.  The flavors complemented both the appetizer and the main course in different ways.

We got a Queso Fundido (not pictured) for our appetizer.  It is a very share-able appetizer.  It’s a plate of Mexican cheese dip topped with chorizo.  It is served with a side of warm tortilla chips which were more like small fajita wraps.  The Queso Fundido was excellent.  There were not enough fajita wraps for all the Queso Fundido so we used some of the leftover tortilla chips which came out before our appetizer.  I highly recommend this appetizer.

After our appetizer, we waited a short time for our main course and listened to the one man mariachi band.  He played a wide variety of music.  We were stunned to hear him play some Journey but it quickly got more interesting when he moved on to some Pink Floyd and then finally Cat Stevens.  He was an interesting one man band but provided well-played background music even if it was not authentic Mexican fare.

Our main course arrived and the portions were large.  I got the pork belly enchiladas.  My wife got the chimichanga platter which came with one beef and one chicken chimichanga.

The pork in the enchiladas were more shredded than I expected.  Still, they were very good.  Not very spicy and the cheese on top had melted just enough that it was wasn’t too “gooey.”  The red-eye aioli provided an extra kick to the enchiladas.  This was something that I had never tried before and I was glad I did.  It was very good.

The chimichangas were large.  My wife liked both of them but could come nowhere near finishing them.  She ate more of the chicken (left) than the beef (right).   She didn’t finish not because they weren’t good but because she was full.

 

 

We saved just enough room for dessert.  We didn’t have a big dessert.  My wife and I each got a dessert shot.  I love key lime pie so I was instantly drawn to that.  My wife got the Dulce de Leche shot.

After our dinner, the rain had stopped.  The one man mariachi band had taken a break.  We paid the bill and went out for walk around the outside of the resort.   Before taking a bus to the Magic Kingdom and then transferring to another bus to take us back to Yacht Club.

Maya Grill is an excellent table service meal.  The restaurant was barely half-full which led to a very intimate dining experience.  This also makes it a table-service restaurant where, if a guest is willing to travel, a guest can get a table by walking up to the hostess stand.

Our bill, including tip, came to $97.16.  This includes an alcoholic drink ($12.50) and an appetizer ($10.95) – two things which aren’t available on the Disney Dining Plan.  Still it was an excellent meal for the price point.  It’s not a restaurant that we will eat at on every trip or every other trip.  However, it is a restaurant that could make an occasional appearance in our dining plans.

The Dad For Disney Facebook Group will be holding his first giveaway in a couple of weeks.  Details to be coming soon.

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