Jump to content

First Look and Review: Morimoto Asia Street Food at Disney Springs


Recommended Posts

We have more exciting news for you today — Live from Disney Springs! …AGAIN!!!!

While Morimoto Asia has been open for a few months now, the restaurant has just debuted another facet of their service — Morimoto Asia Street Food.

This patio dining spot is located in the same building where you’ll find Mormoto Asia. In fact, they’re pretty much one and the same, with patio seating for Street Food customers. Basically, Street Food is the counter-service part of Morimoto Asia.

Let’s take a look around before we dig into what this new counter service spot has to offer.

Atmosphere

Previously, we enjoyed dining inside Morimoto’s dining room. If you haven’t had the chance yet, make sure you visit this gem. It’s one of the most beautiful restaurants in all of Disney. But there’s plenty of functional beauty at Street Food as well.

Sign and  a Glimpse of the Second Floor Patio

Sign and a Glimpse of the Second Floor Patio

The action for Morimoto Asia Street Food all takes place outside on the patio. It may not sound terribly special, but with the recent removal of construction walls, you can now enjoy lovely views of Disney Springs from the area.

Walkway and Patio

Walkway and Patio

Banners that Line the Patio

Banners that Line the Patio

With all of the walls down, we’re also finally getting the full scope of the outside decor here. They’ve recently added this new Forbidden Lounge mural to direct customers to one of Morimoto’s three bars.

Side View of Building and Mural

Side View of Building and Mural

The retro feel of the painting (it even looks slightly weathered from age) is a great touch to the waterfront vibe of the building.

Forbidden Lounge Mural

Forbidden Lounge Mural

Want to get an idea of what they’re offering at street food before committing to the line? You can take a peek into the kitchen via this window. They also had some hand lettering announcing a daily special.

Lettering on Window

Lettering on Window

Here’s a long shot of the patio area. There’s no indoor seating for Street Food patrons, but the patio is roomy and nicely shaded.

Patio Seating

Patio Seating

Street Food is pretty self-explanatory, and we’ve all watched enough Anthony Bourdain and Andrew Zimmern to get the gist. But I love this sign that gives you just a little of the history. It also reminds us that Morimoto Asia focuses on food that’s a fusion of Asian cultures.

Street Food Story

Street Food Story

The set up is pretty simple here. Step up to the window, order, pay, and collect your food.

Ordering Area

Ordering Area

But while we were snapping pics, we also had a chance to see some of the dishes. I love that everything is displayed so that you can get a sense of what you can expect.

Kitchen and Ordering Area

Kitchen and Ordering Area

Now that we’ve had a little look around, I’m turning my attention to the food and drink. :-D

Eats

The menu at Street Food isn’t huge, but it actually covers quite a bit of variety. You can choose from Snacks, Sushi, Noodles, and Bao Tacos. There are an assortment of Drinks — both alcoholic and non-alcoholic — to enjoy while you nosh.

Menu -- Click to Enlarge

Menu — Click to Enlarge

Since this is our first visit to the new spot, I’ll share with you a few photos of the prepared food, and then we’ll take a closer look at the dishes I chose this time out. :-)

The savory fillings for the Bao Tacos are all prepared and ready to go. Here’s a glimpse of the Chicken Teriyaki. I love that there’s no shortage of sauce here.

Chicken Teriyaki Bao

Chicken Teriyaki Bao

The Kalbi Bao Filling looked way too good to pass up.

Kalbi Bao

Kalbi Bao

You can also choose a Pork Bao Filling.

Pork Bao

Pork Bao

Beyond the Bao Fillings, I also had a chance to check out the Snacks. First up are the Takoyaki, or Octopus Fritters.

Octopus Fritters

Octopus Fritters

Pork Egg Rolls look perfectly crisp and ready to go.

Pork Egg Rolls

Pork Egg Rolls

Finally, there was an entire pan of Morimoto Baby Ribs just begging to be eaten.

Ribs

Ribs

It was a fairly hot day out here, so I decided to start with a drink. If you prefer an adult drink, you have some really interesting beers to choose from. There’s Kirin as well as a selection from local craft brewery Crooked Can. Morimoto Soba, a craft beer brewed by Rogue Ales, is also on offer (check out the awesome Chef Morimoto tap below!), as is a selection from Baird Beer, a craft brewery located in Japan.

Beer Taps

Beer Taps

A Singapore Slush rounds out the alcoholic offerings.

You can also choose from Popping Boba Teas, and there’s some variety to them. They sounded so good, so that’s what I went for.

Boba Tea -- Up Close

Boba Tea — Up Close

You choose from Green or Black Tea, and you can also choose Peach or Mango Boba. I decided on Green Tea with Mango Boba. The bubbles are the “popping” type, rather than the chewy tapioca variety. The tea was super refreshing for a hot Florida Spring day.

Boba Tea

Boba Tea

A South Seas Slush sounded promising as well. Next time!

I couldn’t decide on just one dish, so I decided to sample a few. We’ll start with the Cold Team! I wanted to check out the Sushi, and went with the Shrimp Tempura Roll.

Shrimp Tempura Roll

Shrimp Tempura Roll

First off, let’s start with logistics: having the roll wrapped in cellophane made this super easy to eat on the go. Had I wanted to, I could have just unwrapped from the bottom to dig in.

Shrimp Tempura Roll

Shrimp Tempura Roll

But I wanted you to see the details, so here it is out of the wrapper.

Shrimp Tempura Roll -- Unwrapped

Shrimp Tempura Roll — Unwrapped

With Lettuce, Cucumber, and crispy Shrimp, I loved the textures here. Everything seemed really fresh, and I was confident that it had been prepared very recently.

Shrimp Tempura Roll -- Inside

Shrimp Tempura Roll — Inside

But I was also intrigued by the Takoyaki, or Octopus Fritters. They come six to an order, and are garnished with Nori (Dried Seaweed), Pickled Ginger, and Okonomi Sauce.

Takoyaki -- Octopus Fritters

Takoyaki — Octopus Fritters

The Okonomi Sauce had a really nice sweet and sour flavor, and the Ginger brought in a little kick. However, the portion is a little on the small side, even with six to an order. I liked the bamboo picks, though. I thought it was a fun touch, and also made the dish easy to eat on-the-go.

Takoyaki -- Octopus Fritters -- Up Close

Takoyaki — Octopus Fritters — Up Close

But we knew we had to give the Bao Tacos a try as well. We chose the — you guessed it! — Kalbi Bao Tacos. The filling for the Steamed Bun Tacos was Beef Short Rib with Butter Lettuce garnished with Kimchi and Scallions.

Kalbi Bao Tacos

Kalbi Bao Tacos

I absolutely loved all the textures and flavors at play here. The tender, braised beef was perfectly prepared, and the Kimchi actually lent not only a sour, but slight sweetness as well.

Kalbi Bao Taco -- Up Close

Kalbi Bao Taco — Up Close

There was plenty of sauce so that nothing was dry. I can’t wait to try all of them.

Overall

Whether you’re looking for a special occasion dining experience, or just an interesting, quick bite to eat, Morimoto Asia stands ready to provide. And with the debut of Morimoto Asia Street Food, you don’t have to make an Advance Dining Reservation just to ensure you’ll get your share of Sticky Ribs or Sushi. We’ll be sure to try the Noodles next time!

Will you be making your way over to try Morimoto Asia Street Food at Disney Springs in the near future? Leave a comment and tell us what looks good to you!

Disney Food Blog Fans, be sure to check out our DFB Disney World Dining Guide e-Books! Find great deals at DFBStore.com! Also, come on over and:


View the full article

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...