Sunday, February 7, 2016

Maya Grill - Disney's Coronado Springs Resort

Last night, we had dinner at Maya Grill, a table service restaurant at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort that serves traditional Mexican and American dishes.  Maya Grill is run by the same restaurant group as Las Ventanas and the Pepper Market at Coronado Springs, and La Hacienda de San Angel, San Angel Inn Restaurante, and La Cantina de San Angel in the Mexico Pavilion at Epcot.  I was told that they will soon be opening a Mexican restaurant in Disney Springs, which must be Frontera Fresco.  Because these restaurants are not owned and operated by Disney, they do not have the allergy-friendly menus that were introduced at Disney World last year.


Maya Grill used to mark gluten free options on their menu, but now, they only label dishes that contain nuts.  Our server told me that most dishes can be made gluten free, and was ready to take my order, but I asked to speak to a chef before I made any decisions.  



I was interested in the beef short ribs, but was told that they cannot be prepared gluten free.  We considered ordering Maya Grill's signature fajita skillet, which was a safe option with corn tortillas, but ended up choosing the Yucatan roasted pork, and the Parillada "Del Grill."


My gluten-eating family started their meal off with jalapeno cornbread and a flatbread that was off limits for me, but I was brought some complimentary tortilla chips and salsa.  The chef told me that the chips are made in a dedicated fryer, so no worries about cross contamination.


The chips were warm, and perfectly salted, and I enjoyed some on their own and some with the salsa, which had a a little bit of a spicy kick.


We decided to eat family style, sharing the two entrees we ordered.  The Parillada "Del Grill," which serves two, came with marinated New York stip, chorizo, chicken al pastor, grilled bell peppers and onions, esquites (corn), black beans, cilantro rice, and warm corn tortillas.  This entree is very similar to the Parillada "La Hacienda" at La Hacienda de San Angel, but it was not as good.  The chicken lacked flavor and was overcooked, and there were way too many green peppers.  I forgot to ask if anything on the platter had sour cream or aioli, two ingredients I do not enjoy, so I did not get to eat the corn, which had a sauce on it underneath the cheese that my husband said tasted like mayonnaise.  The steak, which was my favorite part of this platter, was cooked to temperature, and I really liked the marinade.  Both my husband and I enjoyed the chorizo, but our daughters did not.  This dish could benefit from a better selection of vegetables, like the zucchini and yellow squash served with the Parillada "La Hacienda," and the chicken could use a more flavorful marinade, or needs to be topped with some pineapple relish, like the Pollo al Pastor at La Hacienda de San Angel.


My husband and I loved our second entree, the Yucatan roasted pork with slowly cooked pork, orange achiote, pickled red onion, guacamole, chilaquiles verde and corn tortillas.  Sadly, I could not eat the chilaquiles verde, because they had a huge dollop of sour cream on them, which was my fault, because I did not ask like I usually do at Mexican restaurants.  I did not realize until I started writing this review that the dish seemed to be missing the guacamole mentioned on the menu, which is a shame, because we love guacamole.


Both of our entrees were served with a bowl of cilantro rice and black beans, which I had promised to my daughters, so I did not try them.  We really don't even need to order our girls entrees at Mexican restaurants, because they are content eating chips and salsa, corn tortillas, rice, and black beans.


For dessert, gluten free options include the coconut flan, lemon sorbet, mango sorbet, and vanilla, chocolate and Dulce de Leche ice cream.  The coconut flan looked amazing, but I did not order it, because I have intensely disliked the taste of coconut since I was a little girl.  The chocolate abuelita panna cotta was my dessert of choice, but sadly, it is not gluten free.  I asked our server if I could combine the lemon and mango sorbet, or have sorbet with some vanilla ice cream, because so many sorbets are overly sweet and icy.


He was not sure if that was a possibility, so I ordered the mango sorbet instead of having him check with the kitchen.  Our server ended up bringing me a combination of the mango and lemon sorbets, which was unfortunate, because the lemon sorbet was icy and very bitter.  The mango sorbet, which is dairy and fat free, was creamy and smooth, just as described on the menu.  It tasted exactly like the mango sorbet served at The BOATHOUSE in Disney Springs, but it lacked the incredible gingered stone fruit compote that earned that dessert a place on my list of the best gluten free desserts at Disney World.  


Overall, we found Maya Grill to be a little hit or miss, and we all agreed that we would go back to La Hacienda de San Angel or San Angel Inn before dining there again.

You can read more about Maya Grill, view their menu and hours, and make advance dining reservations on Disney's website here.

What are your favorite gluten free options at Maya Grill?

2 comments:

  1. Oh how I wish one of their Mexican restaurants was Disney owned/operated. It seems they all have a good amount of inconsistencies that make me too afraid to try them (while on vacation--I would be braver if it was local for us).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Amanda - The retaurant group that manages all the restaurants at Coronado Springs and the three restaurants in the Mexico Pavilion at Epcot takes all the precautions that Disney-owned and operated restaurants do. I especially love their restaurants at Epcot. All three have great food.

      Delete