Yachtsman Steakhouse

[Eeyore2U]

 

[ducklite]

Wellll.......

I've lost track of how many times I've eaten here. Twenty, thirty? Someplace in between I guess.

In the mid 90's, it was my opinion that this was the best restaurant on WDW property. It stayed that way for quite some time. (Some V&A lovers will argue that point, but that's another thread altogether). In late 1999, the tides seemed to be turning a bit. It was still great, but it slipped a tad.

In 2000, something happened. Perhaps they got a new executive chef? But it slipped quite a bit. The food was good, but not excellent. The service was generally good, but not at the level it had been for a long time previously.

In 2001 we watched it sink like a rock. The closing of the Yacht Club Galley brought in more families, and others looking for a casual meal, and it became more of a Outback Steakhosue, casual dining with passable food, but nothing at all special like it had once been. What had once been my favorite WDW restaurant was no longer even on the top ten list. For less money you could get a better steak and service at Le Cellier or the Concourse. For the same money you could get a much better, much more imaginative meal with far superior service at Jiko.

Regretfully the restaurant I once recommended as WDW's best I can no longer suggest. It is expensive for a meal that is just good, and service which has at times been barely acceptable. It's really a shame too. There was absolutely no reason for this restaurant to go downhill like it did. I blame it 100% on mis-management.

Anne

 

[SalandJeff]

We love YS. Our favorite restaurant at WDW. We go every year and only once did we have service that was anything less than excellent. I always get the filet mignon and have never had a problem (well done, butterflied). And after dinner, it's very nice to walk around outside and work off all that food!

 

[wdisneelvr]

Anne--

Your description is right on. I agree with you 100%. The service is sub-par IMHO. I was married at WDW in 97' and had my wedding reception dinner there and they had the Chateau Briand for Two back then....it was excellent! But I have watched it go down hill ever since. Not the quality it used to be and the service is at a minimum. Citricos, Flying Fish, Jiko's and LeCellier all have great cuts of steaks for everyone's appetites as well. Until I have heard that service and the menu picks up at YSH I won't be going back any too soon. It's a shame too, because it could be so much better there.....

 

[tnkrbell]

Just wanted to thank everyone for there opinions they are all well taken!!

 

[Tiffany]

Originally posted by tnkrbell
Just wanted to thank everyone for there opinions they are all well taken!!

Well tnkrbell,

We are back from our trip. We ate at the Yatchsman Steakhouse on the 14th. We both had the 8oz filet and it was out of this world. We eat at the Outback and the 99 here at home and there is no way we would compare the Outback to the Yatchsman. The service at the Yatchsman was great.

On our next trip we are going to give Shula's and LeCeller's a try in addition to the Yatchsman as we have never eaten at either but we found the Yatchsman to be great once again.

 

[Crazy Hakim]

I was at Yachtsman Steakhouse last night and got to talk to a couple of cast members there about this thread. Let me see if I can put everything into perspective.
Yachtsman Steakhouse always boasted in being the best steak on property and in most cases, they had the bragging rights hands down.
About 2 years ago all was well. Then Chef Roger left to pursuit other interests outside of the state or Florida. Right around the same time, Chef Claus had some major medical problems. They moved Chef Richard from the line to the head chef position. They eventually got Chef Thad as the new Head Chef, and he immediately started to make some major changes. This is when the chateau-briand was removed from the menu. Around the same time the manager Jason Cha-Kim was promoted and a new manager, Arun Joshi was brought over from Artist Point.
Whenever a new chef comes in there is a time of adjustment. Usually the first thing to erupt is cook time. For some reason it takes a new chef time to adjust to the servers and the flow and usually for tow or three weeks the cook time goes out the window and what may seem like bad service is really a delay caused by the kitchen. This usually has a way of working itself out.
Well, while Chef Claus was still on medical leave, Chef Thad defected to Darden Restaurants and once again, YSH was without a head chef. They used many temporary chef's, pulled from other locations, until Chef Phillip was hired. Chef Phillip is a great guy, has the desire to get things back in order and get back to being the best steak on Disney property. But, his wife recently had their first baby, and he has been spending some time at home with his new family.
Chef Claus has recently returned, and all indications that as soon as Chef Phillip is back, the situation should be back normal.
I think all that had some issues at YSH, do have reason to complain, but now that we know the inside story, it is understandable. Although, there is never a good "excuse" for poor service and food, there seems to be a underlying reason why so much as happed at YSH in the last two years. Not to mention the cutbacks after 9/11, the few months when the galley and YSH shared their space, and the normal personal issues.
I do think that YSH will be able to get things back in order and everything should be back within the next few weeks.
Oh, you can call a minimum of 24 hours in advance and request the chateau-briand for two to be served.

 

[FunkyLamb]

I ate there in 1998, not recently. It was terrible. To me this isn't something that has just happened.

Judging from the most recent menu (from July), it appears the non-steak options outweigh the steak selections.

My problem when I went (besides the sloppy service) was the quality and preparation of the beef. Most serious steakhouses are using "USDA Prime" beef when charging around $30 for a steak and in addition a lot of those other steakhouses are dry aging that beef to make it even more tender and flavorful.

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but YS is using "Certified Black Angus" which is a independent label put on beef. That beef could be "USDA Choice" or "USDA Prime", but it wouldn't matter because it came from a Black Angus and so it is labeled "Certified Black Angus". There is a huge jump in quality and when paying a premium for steak I would expect premium steak, aged "USDA Prime".

Hopefully YS will the "Chef Musical Chairs" game wrapped up and when they do, I hope whomever takes the helm (pun intended) will understand the concepts of a top notch steakhouse.

 

[Madmother]

We went there for our anniversary dinner on Halloween night 2000. The Food was out of this world (steak and rock maine lobster). We had a delicious bottle of wine with and when staff found out it was our anniversary, they told the chef. He prepared a special dessert to be shared by us both of chocolate cake with chocolate figures to the side. One of the figures was a markee that said "Happy Anniversary". It was an extremely memorable evening.

 

[tnkrbell]

Crazy Hakim- WOW!! Thanks for finding the scoop on the Yachtman!! (Do you work at teh hotel?)
I really would like to give it a try, I think I ll try both Lecelliar and Yachtman and then when I come back Ill give my opinion!!
Again I do appriciate ALL the responses and opinions!!!

 

[GoofysPrincess]

Originally posted by tnkrbell
Goofysprincess, I saw the tomato and mozzerella on the menu and it sure looks good!! Do you get the oil and vinigar on the side or is it already on the tomatos and cheese??

It was already drizzled on the salad as I recall...

 

[smfnj]

>Regretfully the restaurant I once recommended as WDW's best I can no >>longer suggest.

I guess I've waited to long to try YS, I was planning on it this Dec. Thanks for your input.

steve