Recently, Sebastian’s Bistro reopened with a brand new dining experience! Located right by the water at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, Sebastian’s Bistro is a lightly Little Mermaid-themed restaurant (makes sense — Sebastian is a Caribbean crustacean!).

Sebastian’s was previously a standard sit-down dining location. You order what you want and it’s brought to your table. Now though, the restaurant has shifted to a family-style, all-you-care-to-eat menu. We’ve rarely been wowed by this spot in the past (It’s perfectly fine if you’re staying at the resort. Otherwise, it typically hasn’t been worth going out of our way to visit.), but maybe the big shift in menu would change that?

Atmosphere

The decor inside this small restaurant is sophisticated and subtly nautical. It is very bright, airy, and surprisingly chill in here! It is a little bit small on the inside though. If you’re dead set on eating here, maybe consider snagging a reservation just in case. That said — we didn’t need one on opening day. In fact, reservations aren’t even an option until July 6th. Before that, it’s walk-ups only for this dinner meal.

This is a surprisingly upscale-looking and relaxing spot for a nice meal.

The interior of this spot has lots of really nice touches. It has a bit of that Yacht and Beach Club nautical vibe, but it definitely doesn’t take itself too seriously and has a lot of playfulness!

There are plenty of nods to the restaurant’s namesake…

…including this little guy!

Since ressies aren’t being used at this time, we walked right up to get a table.

And were texted that we’d be notified when our table was ready, which was just moments later.

Time to see what’s on the menu!

Eats

A QR code is provided at your table to scan with your phone to view the menu. 

Taking a look at the menu, it’s clear that a LOT has changed from our last visit!  Now, everyone gets the same appetizer, entree, and dessert at a flat rate of $29 per adult and $17 per child. Eating plant-based? They got you covered too with a similar but modified menu.

A number of family-style meals we’ve seen recently, like Cape May Cafe at Disney’s Beach Club Resort, have offered an “Enhancement” for an additional fee. Thats just a fancy way to say “extra slightly nicer quality food not included that you need to pay for if you want it.” Here, you can snag Coconut Shrimp for $8. 

Despite the limited food selection, there were still plenty of drinks and cocktails to choose from.

There is a whole menu of rums including a rum flight (Jack Sparrow would be proud. It IS the Caribbean, love!). You can craft your own Old Fashioned, selecting a rum, bitters, and a syrup too!

There are a number of beers, ciders, and a seltzer on the menu…

…as well as a selection of wines.

To start, we ordered a Marooned Pig Old Fashioned for $13. It’s made with Buffalo Trace Kentucky Bourbon, Bacon-infused Pure Maple Syrup, Angostura Bitters, and a nice little piece of Bacon! This was soooooo good, but you’ve gotta be a fan of maple, bacon, and –obviously — Bourbon! The maple syrup gave the drink a nice smokey sweetness, the bourbon was smooth, and the bacon was so much fun! The maple flavor is strong and really sweet!

Before our meal, our bread service arrived! The House-Made Pull-Apart Rolls with Caramelized Onion Jam and Guava Butter was delicious! The bread was fluffy and warm while the condiments were so flavorful!

The guava butter had a hint of sweetness but not overwhelming (butter fans shouldn’t be turned off by the guava) while the onion jam was savory and addictively good! We even asked for seconds (which they gladly gave us!).

For our appetizer, we were brought the Spice Necklace Salad with Mixed Greens, Kale, Toasted Pumpkin Seeds, Grilled Pineapple, Oranges, Spiced Candied Walnuts, Radish, and Key Lime Dressing. Remember, everything is plated family-style, meaning you’ll serve yourself on your own plate. The portion is scaled accordingly depending on your party size and you can ask for seconds of whatever you like. 

Aside from our one lone radish slice, everything was served in large, generous amounts! The fruit was fresh and juicy and added an interesting texture to the whole dish. There were lots of components to keep each bite interesting. The key lime dressing was creamy but not thick and brought the whole salad together with a strong citrus flavor!

Next is the main attraction: the Taste of the Caribbean Platter with Oven Roasted Citrus Chicken, Slow Cooked Mojo Pork with Mango Sambal, and Grilled Flank Steak with Mojito Relish. It’s served with Cilantro Rice and Beans, Vegetable Curry, and Grilled Broccolini.

The flank steak was cooked at medium (we weren’t asked about temperature) and it was delicious, especially with the mojito relish. Cucumbers and steak paired surprisingly well!

The pulled pork had a deep peppery flavor that we loved! It had that rich flavor. The meat was still quite juicy too without being overly fatty. It’s served with a Mango Sambal that complimented it nicely with a little sweet and a little heat. TBH, the pork had enough flavor to it that we didn’t find it needed the Sambal!

The chicken was a super flavorful mix of dark and light meat, but there wasn’t much noticeable citrus flavor. Despite not having that strong of a citrus flavor, the still-crisp skin, subtle fattiness, and seasoning made this chicken pretty tasty. Chicken often feels like an afterthought on plates like this, but this one stands on its own.

The sides of Cilantro Rice and Beans, Vegetable Curry, and Grilled Broccolini, however, were just okay. The rice and beans were pretty good but also pretty standard. This was probably our favorite side due to its simplicity. The meats have a lot of flavors going on so something simple on the side was welcome. The broccolini, on the other hand, was lukewarm and largely forgettable. It’s a green veggie though, so it checks a box. The curry wasn’t particularly spicy, but had been stewed for a while, leaving the veggies overdone and mushy. Not bad but not our favorite.

Overall, the sides weren’t bad! Just not as good as the main dishes.

For an extra $8, we added on that “Enhancement” Fried Coconut Shrimp with Creamy Chipotle Dipping Sauce! This was one of the best things we had all night!

The shrimp were so crisp and just a hint of nutty sweet. The shrimp were butterflied and went so well with the dipping sauce! Coconut Shrimp often are served with a sugary jam-like sauce, but this was creamy with some zip! We received 6 shrimp on our plate along with a lemon half for squeezing. This was definitely the star of the show at this dinner (aside from dessert — more on that in a sec!) and a total steal at only $8!

We also ordered up the Plant-Based Taste of the Caribbean Platter to show you what our non-meat-eating friends can enjoy! It’s served with an Impossible Kabob, Fried Jerk Tofu, and Impossible Sausage served with Cilantro Rice and Red Beans, Vegetable Curry, and Grilled Broccolini (AKA the same sides as the standard menu).

The Jerk tofu was very peppery and had a great flavor. We thought the sausages were great. These were probably our favorite part of the plate. The kabobs were also good but the tofu and sausages were even better. It was served with that same mojito relish as the steak, which tasted great.

Last but not least… dessert! You know we love a good bread pudding and this didn’t disappoint! House-made Coconut-Pineapple Bread Pudding with Caramel Sauce and Vanilla Ice Cream! This was hands down the best thing on the menu! The warm caramel sauce (which you pour yourself) and the vanilla ice cream brought this lightly-fruity bread pudding to a new level!

They serve something similar at the Banana Cabana but it doesn’t have the pour-on sauce. This was so delicious, we could eat a whole pan of this!

The pineapple and coconut flavors are a bit more forward here than our beloved ‘Ohana bread pudding, but that’s A-OK! There’s room for more than one awesome bread pudding in Disney World. We’re equal opportunity bread pudding fans.

A LOT of food later, we were ready to call it a night.

Nosh or Not

Stop by Sebastian’s Bistro if…

• You’re staying at Caribbean Beach Resort and looking for a convenient sit-down meal.
• You’re wanting to try a few different dishes for a good price! The flat rate makes this an easy way to explore Caribbean cuisine and the prices here are REALLY nice compared to elsewhere on property.
• You’re unable to score a reservation elsewhere. Like we said, this spot isn’t incredibly popular and you can usually get in last minute.

Steer clear if…

• You don’t like Caribbean cooking! There is a lot of Caribbean and Latin influence here! It’s not overly spicy, but it’s definitely unique compared to standard theme park burgers and hot dogs.
• You were thinking it would be more seafood offerings (Sebastian being the namesake and the nautical touches definitely lead you to believe there are more aquatic options aside from the shrimp!). Maybe since Sebastian’s friends are fish, that’s why they steer clear?
• You’re dining with a bunch of picky eaters, this might be tricky since this spot offers a limited and unique cuisine.

Overall

This is a VERY different experience at Sebastian’s Bistro than we’ve had prior though it’s not that unique in all of Disney World right now since so many more spots are dishing up family-style meals than ever before. The food is still decent here. Is it the best meal you’ll have all trip? Probably not, but it won’t likely be the worst.

We happen to love Caribbean flavors and the food here dances a fine line between trying to pull off authentic Caribbean and Latin flavors (often heavily spiced and, at times, food that should be quite spicy) and approachable foods most guests will want to eat. They tend to lean a little more towards the latter. The meats all had something unique to their flavoring but were still fairly commonplace. The sides were meant to be approachable and they are (well, maybe not that curry. That might be a hard sell for some guests!). And the bread pudding was just a total :chef’s kiss:. Should the “enhancement” shrimp we happened to love be included with the meal since, you know, this place IS putting off major “seafood is served here” vibes? Probably.

It’s hard to ignore what we think is a huge selling point of this new meal here — the price. Considering the previous menu at Sebastian’s featured a Taste of the Caribbean entree very similar to what we had for our main course for $32 yet this WHOLE meal was only $29, that’s a deal. Most entrees alone at Sebastian’s prior would cost you about the same as this whole three-course meal. You can get a LOT of food for a pretty low price. Even compared to other family-style meals, it’s one of the best price points around. Tusker House will run you almost double for dinner (though you do get characters) and the comparable Cape May Cafe has a slightly bigger variety of foods served but is still pricier at $42 per person. If you’re looking to stretch your dining budget, this out-of-the-way spot (well, not too bad if you’re on the Skyliner, at least) may be a solid choice. Sebastian’s Bistro probably isn’t going to make our “must-do” list of restaurants in Disney World anytime soon, but this new family-style menu is definitely a step in the right direction.

Click here to read our review of the new Cheeseburger Poutine!

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 What did you think of Sebastian’s Bistro’s new family-style meal? Let us know in the comments!

The post REVIEW: Should You Make the Trek to Eat One of the CHEAPEST All-You-Can Eat Meals in Disney World? first appeared on the disney food blog.