Review: Hollywood Brown Derby Originals in Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Helllllo from Hollywood! Today we are bringing you a super fun review from the Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge in Disney’s Hollywood Studios!
The Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge is the patio off of the signature restaurant, The Hollywood Brown Derby. There aren’t any reservations — seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. While you can order anything off of the Brown Derby menu, the Lounge has its own unique menu of tapas and cocktails. We love the Drink Trios, which allow you to try three mini martinis or margaritas at once!
Brown Derby Lounge Martini Flight
But today, we are taking a bite into three signature dishes. Each item we are reviewing was originally created at the Brown Derby in California — the one that the Hollywood Brown Derby in Walt Disney World was modeled after. We thought this would be a fun way to enjoy an afternoon on the leisurely patio!
Atmosphere
The Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge doesn’t have the black and white caricatures that the full restaurant is known for, but it does have an awesome view for people watching and enjoying the park atmosphere!
Passersby
The seating is a collection of high-tops and circular tables and chairs, complete with welcomed umbrellas. Seating can be a bit crammed during peak-meal times, so we suggest going in between lunch and dinner for a seat and a nosh.
Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge Seating
Upon entering the Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge, you’ll see a full bar. This is great if you can’t score a seat or you’d like to simply walk-up for a drink to go!
Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge Bar
But for food, you’ll need a table. Which we grabbed and got to ordering our three signature dishes!
Eats
As stated before, you can order off the entire Hollywood Brown Derby Menu on the patio, or you can nosh on the tapas sized dishes specifically available at the lounge.
The Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge Menu
Not too long ago, we dug into some of these unique offerings and fell in LOVE in a few items. You can read our review here.
Andouille-Crusted Shrimp
But for today we had that specific mission in mind: enjoying the three iconic Brown Derby originals which include the Cobb Salad, the Shirley Temple, and the Grapefruit Cake.
Cobb Salad, Shirley Temple, Grapefruit Cake
First up, was a refreshing mocktail: The Shirley Temple.
Shirley Temple
Now, according to several articles, the Shirley Temple — ginger ale and grenadine topped with maraschino cherries — may have been invented at Chasen’s, a West Hollywood bar, for then-child-actor Shirley Temple. But Brown Derby also claims the credit for the drink, and Temple herself does quote that the Brown Derby probably popularized the “saccharine sweet, icky drink” that she hates in the mid-1930s.
Shirley Temple
There isn’t anything particularly special about a Shirley Temple at the Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge, as compared to anywhere else, but it is fun to have one where it originated (kinda). Plus, the bartender did put a glow cube in my drink, which is always fun! A Shirley Temple is pretty sweet, but also refreshing, and still a winner with kids (and adults) of all ages. And grown ups — if you want to take it to the next level, ask for a “Dirty Shirley.” Your bartender will splash some vodka or rum into the mix, which will cut the sweetness and make it even more fun. 
Next up, the famous Cobb Salad. This was created as a late night snack for Sid Grauman (of Grauman’s Chinese Theater), where Chef Robert Cobb finely chopped and tossed together a bunch of remaining ingredients. And VOILA! It was a hit with Grauman who continued to request it, and eventually it made its way onto the menu.
Cobb Salad
This is an appetizer size of the salad (though the full-size is on the full menu), but it still has all the components. The Brown Derby Cobb Salad is made up of Finely Chopped Greens, Turkey Breast, Bacon, Egg, Tomatoes, Crumbled Blue Cheese, Avocado, Chives and Cobb Dressing.
Hollywood Brown Derby Cobb Salad
All of the produce is nice and fresh, and there’s a perfect balance between the blue cheese, avocado, bacon and other toppings. The dressing is light and adds good flavor, without being too acidic or overwhelming.
Cobb Salad Board
This salad is so delicious — you can certainly tell why it’s famous! It’s even earned its own custom presentation board. Too cute!!
Last but not least, Grapefruit Cake! This was invented for a famous gossip columnist who was on the trendy “grapefruit diet” and requested a dessert that would fit on her diet.
Grapefruit Cake
I’m pretty sure there is nothing healthy about this dessert, considering it’s a Chantilly cake with cream cheese frosting, but it is light and delicious. The Chantilly cake is moist and not overly sweet thanks to the grapefruit, and the frosting has the perfect zest of citrus.
It’s certainly a more unusual dessert than your typical cakes, and we recommend trying it if for no other reason than it’s legendary!
The Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge Dessert Menu
The Grapefruit Cake comes as a choice on the dessert trio menu, so naturally we just HAD to sample two other desserts on our stop. Sometimes life is tough, right? We selected the Lemon Cheesecake with Blueberries and the Banana Toffee Cake.
Dessert Trio
The Lemon Cheesecake was quite tasty, with the cake itself being moist and not overwhelmingly rich. The blueberry sauce added a nice sweetness that balanced the tartness of the lemon.
Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake
The Banana Toffee Cake was recommended to us by our server, and it was also a hit, flavor wise. Just be warned — it is VERY banana-y so if you don’t care for bananas, this one is not for you. Our only criticism is we wished the toffee cake had a bigger crunch, as the entire dish is basically the same consistency.
Banana Toffee Cake
Overall
As with previous visits, the Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge remains a great place to grab an upscale nosh and cocktail, and spend a few minutes relaxing during a hectic theme park day. We had fun ordering the “Brown Derby Originals,” which proved once again why they’ve been popular choices for the last 80+ years. And we’ve been wow-ed by newer options such as those to-die-for shrimp and cocktail trios.
The food on the patio may be more expensive than your average bar food, but it’s certainly upscale in flavor and atmosphere. This is one of the rare places in a Disney park where you can truly indulge in signature level bites and relax outside, and for that reason, we love the Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge. We will be back! I’m already dreaming of eating that salad again.
Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!
Don’t Miss Out on the ALL the Best Snacks Walt Disney World Has to Offer!
Get four awesome e-Books FULL of Disney park dining advice, bundled for 30% off the already discounted price! Yep, we’ve scoured the parks to find any and all snack choices — from the mundane to the spectacular — and we tell you all about them (with full-color pictures!) in our snack guides! These are updated every year, so you know your guide will be perfect for your upcoming trip, and they’re bundled with our DFB Guide to WDW Dining!
This money-saving bundle includes all of the following:
- The 2018 DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining
- The DFB Guide to Magic Kingdom Snacks
- The DFB Guide to Epcot Snacks
- The DFB Guide to Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios Snacks
All four are being sold together — for 30% off the already hugely discounted bundle price. Use code BUNDLE18 at check out to get the discount. It’s a $63 value for under $30!!
With this Bundle of e-books you’ll have everything you need at your fingertips to plan the best Disney World vacation ever. And with our handy e-book format, you can download the Guides to all of your electronic devices and take them with you wherever you go!
And with our 100% money-back guarantee, what do you have to lose?
Are you a fan of The Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge? Tell us about your favorite places to relax outside in the World!
from the disney food blog http://bit.ly/2Gjml6M
Post a Comment