For the menu, it does not have to be vegan or salad oriented, but certainly can be if you choose. For help on the menu for this challenge, please look at a menu for The Wave restaurant.
In your challenge, you must include the location of the restaurant, the name of the restaurant, a description of the atmosphere, and a menu with a healthy and organic theme.
The Deadline for posting is July 28th at midnight, website time. The posting thread should be up after voting for the previous week has been completed and compiled.
Here at Unplugged, we try to take out a lot of the "overproduction" in food, and take it back to its sometimes "raw" routes.
Our dishes are as free as possible from modern technological improvements, have no artificial flavourings, preservatives or colourings, and many are even served with raw or minimally cooked ingredients - the cuisine is thus "unplugged". We use traditional cooking styles and techniques that in almost all cases would be used by for centuries.
Sushi and Sashimi feature most predominantly on the lunch and dinner menu as perhaps the two best known and widely acceptable "unplugged" styles; however although the focus is on these two styles there are also a other "unplugged" dishes from elsewhere - using raw meat is also not unique to Japan, or even Asia - many European dishes are made using raw or minimally cooked ingredients.
The popularity of Sushi and other parts of Japanese cuisine in the west exploded partly due to consumption by Rock (and other entertainment) Stars, tying the cuisine back to the hotel theme beyond a simple pun; in recognition of this the dishes on the menu are named for various musical acts, based on the ingredients, name, or origin of the dish.
However the unplugged ethos goes further - Chefs are not in a hidden kitchen but perform their culinary art in full view of the dining room, offering a show and emphasising the goodness and wholesomeness of the food - our is not mass produced; only items that take an extremely long time (by this we mean hours or days, such as with curing or smoking) are performed beforehand and even then only the required ingredients are prepared this way; it is always as fresh as possible. There is no sushi train in sight.
Our meats, including seafood, come either from sustainable wild fishing sources, (audited to ensure that their catch will allow the long term survival of the fishery) or farmed stocks raised in an organic way. Any given piece of fish on your plate can be traced back to the source, and our current supplier is noted on your menu. As most of the meats are served Raw, they are required to meet higher quality and freshness standards than meats intended to be cooked. They are frozen to remove potential parasites, but only for the FDA recommended period (-35c/-31f for 15 hours) – they are still served within 48 hours of landing/slaughter where possible.
Our Rice comes from certified FairTrade farms that subscribe to the Fair Trade Ethos. It is grown organically.
Decor
The name Unplugged goes beyond the food's preparation style. Our walls are uncovered by wallpaper, but instead present the raw construction material - timber or brick. Our tables are made of solid hardwood (like oak) and left uncovered by tablecloths. Place mats are made from Bamboo, and primary lighting to the table is by candle - house lights are kept low. Sporadically placed you'll find autographed prints from famous unplugged events, and other memorabilia.
All wooden materials come from sustainable forest farms,
The Kitchen however is our stage.The kitchen is light up like a stage, with tables and kitchen equipment placed to allow a good view. An extension to the kitchen offers a select number of kitchen stations situated by tables, offering an interactive table side experience with your chef.
Not visiting a theme park today? Looking for something different to do?
We do offer a make-your-own sushi experience in non peak times, perfect for older families and medium to large groups, where our chefs will teach you how to make many popular dishes, and the best part is you can eat what you make. We’ll show you some basic sushi techniques, and once you have that down pat we’ll let you experiment with different ingredients and flavours to create your own pieces.
Menu:
Our Sushi and Shashimi chefs are true artisans, provinding a dazzlingly array of dishes that will make you question the need for a stove at home.
Dinner Service
Dinner service offers two similar menus. A standard table service menu, and a number of "Chef's Tables" where for a small premium your chef will make the dishes right by your table. In addition to the regular menu, your chef may have some personal dishes off the menu s/he can suggest to make your experience one that is truly unique.
On Friday and Saturday evenings local musicians are hired to provide suitable acoustic instrumental styled music as background eating. During other times, tunes from “Unplugged” albums play on a jukebox basis.
Unplugged doesn't conform to the apps/mains/deserts formula of most resturants, there is just "standard track" and bonus teack. Standard tracks are like maibs and apps, Serving sizes on the menu are kept very small (with a price to match). Customers are encouraged rather than order 2-3 dishes to order a much larger number (10-12) of "tracks" (smaller dishes) for their “Album” (meal), this comes out to the same price as 2-3 courses at other resort restaurants. The idea here is that rather than having one big dish you are sampling a lot of different dishes and tastes, however a “Single” sized portion (which is to say sized to be a single course at other restaurants) can be made available on request.
Bonus tracks are like desert, and again follow a "sampler" formula. Highlights include frozen Yogurt and fresh in season berries, Fruit Salad, a Cheese assortment, Rice Pudding, and a small range of sponges.
If you’re not sure what to order? try our signature “Greatest Hits” compilation:
Top: Axl Roses' Salmon Shashimi ; The Stripes’ Namasu ; The Reverend Horton Heat's Yukhoe (Korean Steak Tartare)
Middle: Beach Boy’s California Rolls: Ozzy's Fugu (optional) ; McArtney’s famous Inarizushi (Tofu stuffed with rice), Served with lemon (not pictured).
(bottom) Joe Dolce's Carpaccio ; Slim Whitman's Yusheng ; Barenaked Ladies' Chicken Shashimi
Not Pictured: Also includes selection of soup (Miso Soup and various western broths) served with bread from Hollywood Dreams Bakery (see Breakfast).
Unplugged's menu is for the adventurous. With several other restaurants in the hotel complex offering more mainstream, unplugged has the opportunity to offer something that is truly different without the need to "please all comers". For mixed groups where a diner is clearly uncomfortable with the menu guests do have the option of ordering from another in-house restaurant and having this in Unplugged, however this service is only reactively offered (i.e., when someone seems to obviously need the service, if they're showing a lot of obvious discomfort with the menu, etc) it isn't actively promoted within the menu itself.
Bento Boxes and Lunch service.
In addition to a dine in menu similar to our dinner service, Unplugged offers a range of “EP”s (Bento Boxes). If you are visiting a Universal attraction we can arrange delivery to your selected park (or other attraction); alternatively if you are visiting an off-site attraction you can rent a cooler. Our Bento boxes are still prepared fresh just before you collect/we deliver, and to an extent can be customised to your taste.
Breakfast
Breakfast at Unplugged is different to the core menus, but still remains true to the same ethos. Unplugged offers a continental style buffet including a range of healthy cereals, fruit juices, delicatessen meats, baked goods and artisan breads; You'll also find an array of fruit juices.
Like lunch and dinner service, all of our ingredients remain traceable to their roots; in addition our baked goods are produced by a new Universal sponsored social enterprise "Hollywood Dreams Bakery". Hollywood Dreams offers 6-12 month training-through-employment contracts to disadvantaged members of society to help them get their first step on the employment ladder.
Finale
Unplugged offers something different and unique, providing high quality healthy food in a style that still fits the "Hard Rock" theme. It takes the Unplugged musical concept, and applies it to food, not just in preparation, but in everything the restaurant does. We hope next time you dine, you'll dine unplugged.
I'm freaking out.
I'm going to try adding it in portions.
The only thing I can think of is splitting it up into multiple posts, but I really don't want to do that...
Opening at Universal's Portofino Bay Hotel, Raccolto della Terra (meaning Harvest of the Earth) is a new casual dining experience that is suitable for the whole family. Featuring a combination of traditional Italian dishes and classic American entrees prepared with only the finest ingredients, Raccolto della Terra is sure to please anyone's palate.
Atmosphere: The main dining area of the restaurant resembles an outdoor courtyard, with walls lined with vine-covered trellises and a floor made of stone tiles. Booths seating 4 to 6 diners line the perimeter of the room, and in the center is an arrangement of tables seating parties of all sizes. The colors of the room are very earthy, with natural shades of greens, yellows, purples, and browns. The ambient lighting in the room changes depending on the time of day: brighter during the lunch service, and more subdued at dinnertime. During the evening on busier nights, live music is provided in the form of individual musicians strolling through the restaurant, pausing at tables to play diners a tune upon request. At all other times, soothing Italian music is played through an advanced stereo system.
Menu: The chefs of Raccolto della Terra pride themselves on using only the finest healthy and organic ingredients available in all their selections. All ingredients are purchased from local sources whenever practical, both to maximize freshness and to minimize the carbon footprint of the restaurant. Unlike some restaurants, the same menu is available for both lunch and dinner.
Starters: A small selection of appetizers is available, ranging from favorites such as garlic bread to more unique seafood options. All of these are great for sharing, and a single order is sufficient for a table of four. A variety of soups and salads are available as well, made with non-genetically modified produce containing no artificial pesticides.
Entrees: Most of the restaurant's dishes are similar to what can be found at classic Italian restaurants, but all are made from locally grown organic ingredients. As is traditional, the core of the menu is made up of a variety of pasta dishes, such as spaghetti, fettuccine, linguini, and penne, served with a variety of sauces and optional mixed-in ingredients. Other Italian dishes like lasagna, manicotti, and ravioli are available as well, as are a variety of pizzas. Finally, meat based dishes made with only organically raised livestock, such as chicken marsala and veal parmigiana, round out the menu.
Alternate menu: For visitors who feel Italian isn't really their thing, a small selection of American entrees is available as well. The list includes hamburgers and steaks made from grass fed cows and chicken options made using only free range chickens. In addition to standard sides like French fried potatoes, healthier options are available, such as sweet potato fries or a small side salad.
Drinks: A full wine list is available to accompany any entree on the menu. In addition, a few beers are kept on tap. For those who cannot or prefer not to have alcoholic beverages, standard Coca-Cola soft drinks, Italian sodas, and mineral water (both sparkling and regular) provide suitable alternatives.
Desserts: Dessert options are mainly Italian oriented and include options such as gelato (in a dozen different flavors), tiramisu, and chocolate cake. All desserts are large enough to be shared, but also small enough for a single diner.
Prices: As a casual restaurant, prices are reasonable. Most entrees are in the $15-20 dollar range, and a full meal including an entree, salad, non-alcoholic beverage, and dessert to share amounts to less than $30 per person including tip.
Universal Orlando's Royal Pacific's all new, 5-star organic restaurant called, The Greenhouse - Organic Bar & Grill!
Prepared to be immersed in a brand new dining experience for Universal Orlando Resort. The Greenhouse - Organic Bar & Grill will feature an all organic menu, a large amount of vegan and vegetarian options, organic beers and other alcohol, top notch service, easy access for those staying at the Royal Pacific and a unique themed environment. Even those not staying at the Royal Pacific can come and experience the The Greenhouse - Organic Bar & Grill!
All meats, vegetables and food staples are fresh and raised and prepared without the use of added hormones or without added pesticides. We bake our bread and prepare our food daily, instead of freezing and re-heating. All is done to ensure that guests can enjoy a healthy, all-natural dining experience.
What's on the menu?
Here at The Greenhouse - Organic Bar & Grill, we offer a wide array of all organic and vegan dishes for you to enjoy.
Check out our star dishes!
Soups & Salads
Miso Soup Bowl - $6.50 - Served warm with sh!take mushrooms, and coconut udon noodles, garnished with diced green onion, & red pepper.
Oceania Sea Vegetables - $7 - Marinated arame seaweed salad stacked with shaved red cabbage on top of coconut noodles, finished with a sesame garlic sauce.
Kale Avocado - $8.50 Our signature satisfying kale salad massaged with red pepper, avocado, tomato, lemon garlic-olive oil and topped with candied pecans.
Lunch
Tacos of Life - $8 - Pine nut-chili and walnut puree, fresh salsa, guacamole in 2 romaine shells topped with coconut “Sour Cream” and Jalapeno vinaigrette.
Sunlight Burger -$ 12 - Open-faced walnut, sunflower, almond, and carrot zucchini burger served over a slice of tomato and dripping with cashew “provolone”. Topped with caramelized onions.
Creamy White Truffle Pesto Pasta – $11 - Fresh zucchini pasta tossed with our pesto and sun cured tomatoes finished with pine nut “parmesan”. Served with our spring mix salad.
Dinner
Portabella Croquettes with Caesar Salad – $13 - Marinara sauce tossed with zucchini pasta and portabella nut meat croquettes topped with pine nut ‘parmesan.’
Pad Thai- $17 - Sweet & spice glazed Asian vegetables, over sea glass noodles in a sesame sauce topped w/curried cashews.
Mango Samosas – $15 - Indian curried vegetables folded into mango coconut wrappers and served on a bed of seasoned baby spinach.
*Breakfast is not served here. The restaurant opens at 11:30 for lunch.
Dessert
Brownie Sundae – $8 -Cacao brownie with cashew vanilla ice cream topped with dark cherries and garnished with vanilla cream.
Warm Pecan Apple Cobbler – $7 -Warm pecan-apple cobbler, drizzled with a coconut vanilla crème sauce and a scoop of our homemade ice cream.
Interior
When we said that The Greenhouse - Organic Bar & Grill was a unique dining experience, we meant it!
The restaurant is rightfully named and is themed to a beautiful greenhouse! Located as an extension off of the main building, sitting inside this restaurant is truly a sight to behold, day or night!
During the day, diners can have a nice view of the surrounding area, landscaping and sky with the comfort of A/C. However, during nighttime, things can get a little... Romantic as guests dine under the stars and moon. This restaurant is literally a greenhouse because all around you are beautiful flowers, maintained by the staff themselves. However, as you exit, feel free to purchase some flower seeds for your own greenhouse or garden!
Booths, high top and low top tables are available. Also, ask the hostess for a high chair if you have a young child not capable of sitting in a larger seat
Drinks & Organic Beers
Stop by at our sit-down bar and enjoy our selection of organic alcoholic beverages!
The Greenhouse - Organic Bar & Grill proudly boasts a wide array of organic beers on draft such as:
- Eel River Brewing Company
- Wolaver's
- Pinkus
- Butte Creek Brewing Company
- Peak Organic Brewing Company
- Stone Mill
Many beers are gluten-free. Just ask one of the bartenders of waiter/waitress.
Other organic alcoholic beverages are served such as margaritas, martinis and mimosas (as seen above).
Our favorite non-alcoholic beverages such as milkshakes and smoothies are served that are completely organic and can be enjoyed by anyone are:
- Green Dream Machine – Green apples, kale, celery, lemon, ginger – $6.5
- Universe drink – Cacao, goji berry, maca, banana smoothie – $7
- Raw Kombucha – Trilogy, Gingerberry, Multi-green and Grape – $4
*No dark soda is served, but you can find the basics such as milk, fresh-squeezed lemonade, water, Sprite, Blue Sky Soda, coffee, sweet & un-sweet tea and raspberry iced tea.
Join us!
Are you on vacation and you need a getaway before that hectic theme park day?Are you strictly eating organic foods or are you vegan? Are you just looking for a new unique dining experience?
Stop by at Universal Orlando's Royal Pacific Hotel for the new all-organic restaurant, The Greenhouse - Organic Bar & Grill for an amazing dining experience!
The profanity filter strikes again....
After making the trek to San Francisco, Richie Rangow, John Nash, and Jefferson Hunter in their hippie bus in 1967, they decided they wanted to go even further. Instead of taking the Hippie Trail east to India, they went west to the Pacific islands. They began setting up shop and getting the only food they could get: the non-pesticide stuff, the organic. Pretty soon, with John’s cooking skills, they had a few people coming to try their food. After many years, they saw that a part of the Pacific had moved west, down in Florida. They moved and gave Peace, Love, and Food to more people than ever before. Come check them out at Universal’s Royal Pacific.
Specifics: Located near the waterfront area at Universal’s Royal Pacific Resort, Peace, Love, and Food will be a unique and casual restaurant open from 7 AM to 1 AM serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner all day long. Most entrees are priced from $10 to $20. The smoothies are priced from $3 to $6.
Building: The entrance path meanders through a tropical garden area with the occasional palm tree and many low lying bushes and flowers. Various Pacific Islander statues and other outdoor art work sit here and there beside the path. The main building is a simple dark wooden structure. Situated in front of the main building are multiple bird cages, homes to lorikeets, tropicbirds, tanagers, and other pacific birds that can live in small areas. On the left side, the old school bus the guys used to travel to San Francisco attaches (broad side) to the building. The outside of the bus is adorned with vibrant and seemingly random paintings with a slight Polynesian theme. The bus (permanent) is surrounded by tropical foliage. A distinct add-on to the other side of the building looks less than temporary and about to tumble to the ground any second. The main dining room takes up the entire main building. All of the wooden tables and chairs have more art on them. Each is painted differently. In the center is a large bird cage for some birds that need more than a small cage. The front and left walls are adorned with both hippie and pacific art. The back wall is primarily windows. The right wall (to the add-on) is made of old doors nailed together. Various artifacts from the Pacific Islands and other hippies adorn the ceiling and planters around the room. Small signs around the entire restaurant tell a specific item’s history and reason. For example, old wall fell through so a series of old doors were used for the right wall to the kitchen (other examples are placed throughout). The Bus has two entrances and has booths lining both sides from one end to the other. Three booths toward the end of the bus use pillows sewed into straw benches because the supplier ran out. Small chandeliers (all different) line the ceiling of the bus. A larger booth at the front lets guests turn on the lights, breaks, and more. Out the back is a large patio with iron tables and chairs. More bird cages are located just beyond the patio, but still within a few feet of some guests. Two outhouses serve as the restrooms out back. Both have been “relocated” from their old restaurant in the Pacific. They look like large wooden, porta-potties, with paintings adorning both the inside and out (not to mention the history of their usage by celebrities written on a plaque). The patio overlooks more tropical gardens and even out to the waterfront (a good distance away). The add-on is the kitchen and the bathroom for diners in the main room. The music ranges from psychedelic rock, progressive rock, folk music, and folk rock. The music throughout is soft on the patio and slightly louder inside. All of the hosts and hostesses wear colorful Hawaiian shirts.
Menu: All of the food is organic and semi-vegetarian (but eggs and dairy is served). The main items are customizable.
-omelets with various veggies and cheeses for choices
-Egg Sandwiches with multiple veggie, fruit, and cheese add-ons
-Sandwiches without eggs
-Quesadillas with eggs, beans, cheeses, and veggies
-Rice dishes with veggies
-Mixed veggies
-Bean dishes with veggies
-Salads with eggs (hard boiled), cheeses, veggies, and fruit
Fruit and Veggies include, but aren’t limited to, carrots, tomatoes, peppers, mixed greens, spinach, mushrooms, avocados, strawberries, blueberries, corn, chives, and more.
Cheeses include pepper jack, cheddar, jack, Swiss, provolone, brie, havarti, feta, and blue.
Beans include lentil, black bean, lima, and black eye.
Many sauces changing with the season are available on each dish
The appetizer for guests is corn or tortilla chips with melted cheese and veggies cooked on top. Like the entrees, guests customize the chips the way they want it. Multiple salsas are available.
The next part of the menu is for smoothies. Guests choose what fruit they want the size. In addition to the fruit mentioned above, banana, raspberry, blackberry, orange, apples, agave, mango, and pineapple. Guests can add vanilla, honey, and peanut butter.
The dessert menu includes chocolate cake and fruit combinations, various fruit pies, and fruit ice cream combinations.
Various wines, whiskies, and a few beers are available.
Peace, Love, & Food will bring a unique and quirky restaurant to Universal’s Royal Pacific.
*As a note, I found a bit of inspiration (some quirkiness, the smoothies, and birds) for Peace, Love, & Food, from the restaurant R Thomas in Atlanta. If you are ever in the area, I recommend that you check it out.*
“LET’S DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN!!!”
The Hard Rock Hotel is going to take you back in time where Disco was boss and everyone let their hair down and just danced with The Groove!
Theme:
This 70’s theme restaurant will take guests back to the time of disco, dancing and fun times. The staff of the restaurant will wear 70’s style clothes with bell bottoms and such while using just enough phrases and 70’s terminology that will make you feel your back in that time but not overdo it.
The décor of the room will be just like you think the 70’s were and will always be with a dancing floor and disco ball in the middle of the room. This is so if the Groove gets you going you just have to let it out on the dance floor!
The “Cook” is going way back and really taking the theme of the 70’s to heart and decided that all meals will be organic and natural and come from local Orlando and Florida farms.
Menu:
Main Menu:
Chicken Barcelona
Airline Chicken Breast marinated in Orange, Honey, Cumin and Sweet Paprika, grilled and topped with roasted Citrus Chutney and Goat Cheese, served with buttery Baked Potato Custard and Organic braised Greens
Fish & Chips - Seasoned with Old Bay, Quick Fried with Slaw & Really Chunky Tartar Sauce
Slow Braised Lamb - Jamison Farm Lamb, sweet onion & golden raisin jam with House Made Ricotta Salata on Toasted Moroccan Bread
The "Disco" - 1/2 lb of Grass-Fed Beef Stuffed with Bacon & Gruyere, Smothered with Onions, Rusty Aioli & House-made Pickles on a Soft Roll
Lasagna - Loads of Mushrooms, Spinach, Mushroom Brodo & Shaved Pecorino
Ahi Tuna Tartar
Sushi grade diced tuna blended with shichimi pepper, spring onions, wasabi, soy sauce, ginger, sesame seeds, prepared mild, medium, hot or extra hot
Appetizers:
Carpaccio - Tenderloin of Beef, local greens, Mustard Schmear & Toasted Baguette
Oysters On the Half Shell
Butter Poached Cedar Creek Clams - Garlic, Parsley, Pale Ale & Toasted Baguette
Desserts:
Grown-Up S'More - Graham Cracker, Milk Chocolate, Marshmallow
Seasonal Crisp - Oatmeal, Brown Sugar & Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
Three Berry Cobbler
Hot Godiva Chocolate Cake
Gentlemen, the proposals you presented are making it harder and harder to judge and critique. The quality is going up every week, and that is how it should be. Each of you can win this competition, and as the quality of your work improves and you get more and more focused on winning, our critiques will be more and more "picky". I will be honest with you in my opinions while still trying to be constructive in them. I will say this- I am very impressed with all your work, and relieved that I don't have to be competing against you!
Chad H.: "Unplugged: Acoustic Cuisine" would be an extremely trendy, extremely unusual and extremely well-themed restaurant. I think that it would be tried by many diners at least once and by a loyal core of fans many times. Raw eating is a growing trend among health-conscious people, and this restaurant would give them an amazing dining experience.
I was impressed with your proposal on many levels. You were thorough with your awareness of safe food handling requirements, of Fair Trade concepts and of organic agriculture. This attention to detail of simplicity and a "raw ambience" to the dining experience was extended to the tableware, furniture and even the construction and decoration of the restaurant. The photo of "Unplugged" was an excellent choice in showing what a visually pleasant restaurant this would be.
Tying together music with this restaurant would go far in keeping this restaurant feeling young and vibrant, and not like a "health food store". The use of celebrity names with the dishes would make these foods seem less "scary" and more "hip".
Your menu was wonderfully original, ignoring the usual three course meal and using the concept of singles, tracts and albums to allow diners to create a unique dining experience. This would require the servers and chefs to explain this concept to first-time diners, who would at first find it almost confusing but, with some careful guidance from their servers and other diners they would soon grasp what a great idea this is.
The Bento Boxes for lunch is an interesting idea, probably limited in popularity to those rabid raw fanatics, but still an original concept. Offering breakfast based on the same ideas of raw and lightly-processed foods would demonstrate that healthy eating is not limited to special occasions.
I was surprised to read that you offered foods from other restaurants to be brought in to "Unplugged". I can understand the idea, but that would allow an easy out for people who might just need to be pushed into trying something new and different. Anyone who couldn't find something at "Unplugged" to eat needs to be treated for anorexia.
"Unplugged: Acoustic Cuisine" would be an amazing and probably extremely fun restaurant to experience, and this proposal is absolutely first-rate.
AJ Hummel: Congratulations on realizing the fact that a traditional ethnic restaurant can also feature healthy eating. "Raccolto della Terra" sounds like a delightful restaurant, one that most guests could relate to and enjoy easily. The setting of an outdoor courtyard with lighting adjusting to the time of day would be a special treat, allowing diners to enjoy comfortable dining alfresco without having to endure the Orlando heat and mid-afternoon rains.
You missed several opportunities in your menu selections to make this restaurant a healthy alternative to the usual Italian restaurant. Just because an ingredient is "organic" does not mean that it is "healthy". You can have organic lard as long as it comes from a pig that was raised and fed organically, with no chemical or pharmaceutical additives used, and the lard was rendered naturally with minimal processing. Whole grain is becoming more and more recognized as a healthy alternative to processed grain products, and many pastas are now available as being made from whole grain. The taste is slightly different than what we would call more traditional pasta, but the health quality is greater, and proper preparation and presentation would make it a delicious alternative to more traditional pastas.
Primavera means "Spring" in Italian, and pasta primavera emphasizes fresh vegetables, with the pasta being in a supportive role. This would be one more method of introducing healthy Italian eating to an audience more used to heavy tomato and alfredo sauces than to fresh or lightly-prepared vegetables. Antipasto, the traditional start of an Italian meal, often features vegetables, olives, cheeses, etc. in small portions, enough to enjoy but not in such large quantities as to be excessive or unhealthy. Moderation is a key concept in healthy eating, not just counting calories.
Italian food can be healthy, and your emphasis on organic and locally-grown ingredients is a strong start to a healthy menu. You just needed to go farther with it to make this a healthy alternative to Mama Della's Ristorante or Bice. This was a good proposal, but at this level of competition you need to get aggressive and be sure you have covered all your bases.
Bryce McGibeny: "The Greenhouse- Organic Bar and Grill" sounds like a beautiful setting for a meal day or night. I think that you should have presented the physical description of the restaurant at the beginning of the proposal, after the first paragraph, rather than between the menu and drinks. Regardless, you described a very attractive restaurant, lush with foliage during the day and romantic with stars and floral scents at night. Offering diners the chance to purchase seeds would give them an interesting opportunity to recreate this setting at home.
Your descriptions of some of the dishes on the menu were really mouth-watering and showed how vegetarian and vegan dishes can appeal to us carnivores. I do wish you had included one or two meat-based items, since you did mention that there would be some meat used, but I realize that this was certainly not a complete menu. It was still a good variety of dishes covering all parts of a meal, and showed how emphasizing fruits, vegetables and organic agriculture can lead to wonderful meals.
We rarely think of organic beverages, and you obviously did your research in featuring them at The Greenhouse. I'm not sure why you specified that "no dark soda is served" when Sprite is available, and root beer is one of the oldest and most organic beverages ever created. The descriptions of both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks demonstrated how much variety is available.
I both loved and hated the pictures you used. Visually, they were a good choice in demonstrating the design of the restaurant and the classic and simple elegance of the menu items. I liked the logo design very much, except that the black writing didn't stand out well against the background. However, the gray colour of the pictures made the restaurant look drab and almost dusty rather than the rich greens of the foliage and orange of the mimosas shown. A sepia tone might have been acceptable, but the gray didn't work. True colour would have been the best to show just how appetizing this wonderful restaurant and its dishes could be.
"The Greenhouse- Organic Bar and Grill" sounds like a great addition to the Royal Pacific, with wonderful foods in a beautiful setting. A few things in the proposal didn't work, but as a whole this was a very good proposal, well-written and well-researched.
David L.: I have so many mixed feelings about "Peace, Love and Food," none bad but I'm having trouble reconciling them. This is such a unique restaurant for Universal Orlando. The backstory you created for it was inspired, although I did searches for the three guys mentioned and found that John Nash is a mathematician, Jefferson Hunter is a creative director, and Richie Rangow doesn't even seem to exist. Made-up names? Personal friends? Either is ok. I was just curious if the names were of people important to the Hippie counterculture movement of the 1960's. Regardless, the backstory was great fun to read and was the perfect explanation for how this bizarre structure found its way to the grounds of the Royal Pacific.
The backstory created the physical restaurant, and it would be a remarkable, eclectic explosion/fusion of 1960's psychedelics, South Pacific tourist mementos and scavenged junk. Guests would have trouble eating- they would be too busy looking around and discovering new things surrounding them. The total atmosphere of "found" memorabilia, recycled buses and an eclectic mix of music almost made it feel like it belonged more at Hark Rock than at Royal Pacific, but the Polynesian backstory and decorating accents made it appropriate at Royal Pacific. It would almost fit either place, or neither place. The location at Royal Pacific is probably the best choice, but it would have to be located so that it would be visually hidden from the classical elegance of Royal Pacific but still be easily accessible from it.
Your description of the restaurant was remarkably detailed, a prime example of "painting with words". Such details as the wall created from old doors, the mismatched chandeliers and the bird cages made it easy to visualize this quirky dining space.
The menu was not the strongest part of the proposal. You mentioned briefly that the menu was organic and semi-vegetarian, but the listings on the menu were rather generic. I would have liked to have two or three detailed examples/descriptions. Also, the influence of their time in the Pacific should have been highlighted, with a menu fusing Polynesian and Hippie Organic Commune foods. Without featuring the Polynesian influences that they must have absorbed in the Pacific islands, a perfect tie-in to the Royal Pacific, they might as well have opened a farmers market restaurant set in a San Francisco suburb.
"Peace, Love and Food" would really be a fun, exciting "happening" of a restaurant, a great addition to Royal Pacific's dining roster. Visually it would be the most interesting place to eat. Culinary-wise, it would need more focus on its menu theme and how it ties into the physical setting. Still, it would be a restaurant that I would definitely try. This was a well-written proposal, as always well organized and carefully detailed. Excellent work.
Dan Babbitt: Dan, you popped my bubble. I saw that you had written, "LET'S DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN!" and thought you had created a Rocky Horror restaurant (although I would probably not order the Meatloaf for dinner). Instead, you went disco, not an era that I fondly remember or that I normally equate with healthy eating. A challenging decision.
The setting of the restaurant as a disco dance club complete with dance floor and disco ball would be an interesting space, but I might have liked a more complete description. Pictures are certainly not required, but one might have been a good addition here. Since you didn't include one, a more detailed explanation of a disco restaurant might have helped those born after the era to visualize what it would be like.
The menu presented emphasized the "organic" requirement more than the "healthy" requirement of the challenge. A 1/2lb burger stuffed with bacon and cheese? Baked potato custard? Hot Godiva chocolate cake? Hardly health foods, but what a way to go! You did have a good selection of healthy alternatives, emphasizing lots of vegetables (the lasagna) and fish (Ahi Tuna Tartare)- I would have emphasized these over the artery-clogging carnivore foods for this challenge.
The most important thing to consider with a themed restaurant is if the foods and the setting combine to make each more enticing than they would be alone. How do they support each other? Do they fit together? I was in a restaurant that used to be a Mexican restaurant that closed and was reopened as a Chinese restaurant, with very good Chinese food but with no redecorating. It still felt like a Mexican restaurant. It felt wrong, and the food probably didn't taste as good as it was or as it should have. In a restaurant, the food is the most important thing, and the surroundings need to support it, not clash with it. The food at "The Groove" sounds very good, if a little weak in the theming and challenge requirement area, but I don't think it fit in the disco era surroundings. I know you're on vacation (am I the only person not at WDW this week?!) but to make this concept work probably would take more time and research than you were able to put into it. A good, unique and original concept, but not the strongest in execution.
AJ Hummel – Racolto della Terra – I could have used a much better explanation as to what the décor is like, simple “an outdoor courtyard” in an indoor restaurant is enough to make my brain ache. There are certain outdoor styled yet indoor restaurants, particularly the one around Disneyland’s Pirates ride but that is about all that I could think of other than Casa Bonita (which doesn’t count….and I certainly hope that you are not edging toward that….and yes it does exist and Southpark was fairly accurate with their portrayal…..but they missed the point that Casa Bonita makes Taco Bell look like elegant cuisine…..but I seriously digress…..). When I think outdoor courtyard, I think of a concrete lot with a couple of sparse flower planter-boxes that do nothing to improve the atmosphere, with a couple of smokers and homeless people hanging out irritating the people that actually have important things they need to get done (like judging a theme park design contest). The hard part about judging a restaurant is that 90% of what keeps a restaurant open is the quality and taste of the food, something that we can’t even approach here, so we are stuck with attempting to grade you completely off of the other 10%. I think you really copped out with the Alternative Menu, I think regular Americans don’t need burgers on the menu if you are already doing pizza……and an Italian seasoned steak is usually delicious, so it doesn’t even need to be on the Alternative Menu. I think of all the ideas that I have read so far, I would actually eat at yours first but I would be bummed out by the décor.
Bryce McGibney – The Greenhouse – Organic Bar & Grill – OK, I had to actually look up organic beer to figure out what the heck that is, since I worked at the Coors brewery in Golden, Colorado for a couple of months doing IT work for them, and I couldn’t quite figure out how that was different than organic beer. The main difference is that Coors is not willing to lose their entire crop of barley and hops that their local farmers produce and have allowed them to spray some pesticides and fertilizers on the crops…..that is the only difference……which means that it is a marketing ploy and nothing else. (Not to get off on a rant here, but not using chemical fertilizers means that farmers then use organic fertilizers (aka manure), which then have the potential to lead to outbreaks of E.coli and people dying…..particularly on uncooked vegetables, this is bad bad news…..with the way the FDA is lording over what chemical fertilizers can contain, they are currently much safer than the alternative…..pesticides is another issue entirely, but the way it works today is you get both or neither.) I like your greenhouse design, but would take it a couple of steps further and fill it with actually lush greenery that will eventually be used in the kitchen, although the flowers is a good gimmick as well, particularly if you were to sell the actual flowers you were growing. Of all of the designs that I have seen so far, I like yours the best since the greenhouse evokes the correct environmental ideas that this challenge is trying to get across, while having the right drinks and foods to further sell the idea of an organic restaurant.
David L. – Peace, Love, and Food – I have mixed feelings about your décor. While I understand the style that you went for which is Polynesian junk shop, I have to say that many restaurants are getting out of the clutter business, Applebee’s in particular is renovating their restaurants and getting rid of the junk. I really can’t quite figure out of the décor is trashy or classy, but I am leaning definitely toward the junky feeling. It is interesting, some of the other players had alternative menus but had far less to apologize for than you do here, which I actually think is a strength. Unfortunately this goes down on my list of places I would never need to visit, but have a feeling that the people in the demographic you are catering to are going to eat this up from the name and the décor all of the way down to the food, but I wonder if a restaurant like this attached to a resort is self-sustaining, but I guess that is not the point of this exercise. I think you did a very good job of embracing the theme of the challenge through all of the different parts of your proposal.
Dan Babbitt – The Groove – I think you made the same mistake that David L did and equated the organic food movement to the hippies of the 1970’s. I don’t believe this is a correct inference, in fact the 1970’s was the time when most farmers were using the living heck out of DDT and screwing up the environment with the runoff from their fields. The 1970’s hippie movement was about drugs, sex, war protests, and counter culture. It wasn’t until Whole Foods became big that people even knew they had an option in everyday city lives to go organic. While David L seems to embrace his hippie theme and really sell it, it seems like your theme is very contrived and exists only because it was part of the challenge. While your menu items rate you as the second most likely of these restaurants that I would visit, it doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the organic theme other than a choice that the chef made. The idea was to embrace the organic lifestyle and take it somewhere. But I can honestly sympathize with you, because the absolute last place I would go for a meal is an organic restaurant. I guess I find this posting somewhat disappointing because you could have made it work if you had spent a little more time selling the idea.
1. Chad H – Unplugged: Acoustic Cuisine
2. Bryce McGibney – The Greenhouse – Organic Bar & Grill
3. David L. – Peace, Love, and Food
4. AJ Hummel – Racolto della Terra
5. Dan Babbitt – The Groove
The only thing the three judges agreed on this week was the slot for last place.
Since it was a unanimous vote, there will be no site vote this week.
Dan Babbitt, you are fired.
What I think the next thing I think you need to focus on is working out the important bit of the "spec" (Challenge), and pushing the theme a bit harder. With Unplugged for example the Theme dictated most of it - the music of the Hard Rock Resort plus the "back to basics" approach in Organic lead to the "Raw" menu, the "raw" decor, etc.
With yours you've called it Organico, and you've mentioned you've mentioned a few organic and a few ingredients, which is a good start, but it does need a bit more.
If it helps my "Backup" for the Italian restaurant was to translate this back to basics into "Eating at Nonnas" (or whatever the Italian slang for Grandmother is), make it feel like you're eating with family, with the sort of meal and attention that a family matriarch would put into a family get together. Cooking the old fasioned way without modern conviences, that sort of thing.
(Now I've just got to make one of my next challenge ideas work, argh).
So I've competited in all the TPA and WPA events and I've got into the top 5 every time. I have 2 5th finish's 2 2nd place finish's and won once. (The two 2nd place finish's I lost to James both times!) I believe I've done well.
Tim you have been the Judge, Jury and Executioner at times have you seen any trends in players preferences, strengths and weakness?
For example I think my strengths are in kids rides and redisign or creating new lands. I think I have trouble in restaurants and animals (even though I think I figured them out). Do you see any of this?
As judges, we also subconciously agreed to be more demanding of the competitors. Tim, bless his heart for conceiving TPA, is such a nice guy and tries so hard to be constructive in his criticism that I think (I KNOW) he holds back from what he might actually think. Me, I try really hard to balance my critiques with pointing out the good and bad- I don't always succeed, but I try. Jeff is just a mean, surley, self-centered, all-around unpleasant person who hates everything that he doesn't write himself (darn, that was my outside voice again and my "delete" button is broken!). Actually, I think that Jeff is probably the most honest judge in here, and the one who competitors can learn the most from. Maybe it's the Marine in him, plus he's a terrific writer in a variety of genres. He doesn't sugar-coat his opinions, but they are never meant to hurt or disparage the writer. And he really is a great guy!
We, as judges, want to challenge every competitor in here to do better than they think they can, to push them beyond what they have given and to "prove those stupid judges wrong!" (no- I'm not quoting anyone, but I bet more than one competitor thought that!). We have seen that in so many challengers. If our challenges seem more difficult that in the past, we did part of our job. If we didn't explain them as well as we could, then we have also learned that we need to work harder and push ourselves. Jeff and I have never judged this before, and Tim has never had to work with other judges. It's been a new world for all of us, and I hope that we're learning from our mistakes. We have already been talking about how to improve TPA for future competitions, and hopefully we will be able to impliment those improvements.
Dan, I hope you have no regrets about your work in here. Yes, the level of competition has gone way up, and as always you did some great stuff! You asked Tim some specific questions and I'm not going to presume to answer for him, but when you said, "I believe I've done well," I would say "That is an understatement! You've done VERY well!"
There have been several weeks where I really didn’t know what to write so far as critique goes, and I am sure that none of you want to hear “It was great, good work,” consistently for all of the competitors. In order to avoid that, you have to find something to pick on. Much like the “From the Trenches” article that I write (although I think I am overdue to write another one) you have to take stuff that most people would be fine with and pull at the seam until it frays a bit.
This last week was really tough for me. I don’t think I have ever actually sat down in a theme park’s restaurant and had a quality meal, I pay to go on the rides and not kill an hour sitting in a restaurant getting a gut-bomb that is going to prevent me from riding anything else, so therefore themed restaurants are things that I know little about. I know that in my personal life I don’t really do the themed restaurant thing after feeling like I was getting robbed eating crappy food at a Planet Hollywood years ago. One of the few themed restaurants I can tolerate is the Hard Rock Café where my wife and I on our first weekend alone together both wound up ordering bacon cheeseburgers and I knew she was a keeper right after that. Aside from those two place the only other themed restaurant I have experience with is Casa Bonita (yes, the one that was featured fairly accurately on South Park) and frankly a restaurant that serves fresh caught rat-kabobs would be better.
On top of that, I don’t do the whole organic thing, as you could probably tell by some of my more insidious comments in the reviews….I think the whole thing is a scam on people who are concerned about their health. It is higher prices and more waste, things that don’t seem very environmentally friendly to me.
On the whole, I agree with Jim, that the quality of the submissions are superior to what we have received in the past and vastly better than what we received even earlier in the competition. I think anyone who has made it this far should be complemented on the amazing amount of creativity that has been unleashed on these message boards. You guys are all now to the point where the difference between first place and last place is an extremely fine line, and I was amazed when the judges went unanimous on anything.
I also agree that this year is tougher. In past competitions you could freelance quite a bit off of the topic and still win the round. But now that not keeping to the topic is one of the big things that will find you at the bottom of the rankings, I can imagine that it is much harder.
But keep in mind that you guys are doing really really well. Just because we picked on your proposal doesn’t mean that it wasn’t really good. When the different is so small from first to last, it is the little details that mean the world and the ones that we are going to swing at.
The next two challenges were written by me, if you need any help on them, please let me know. I thought the Epcot challenge was extremely easy to get started on since there were so many directions that you could go with it, but it sounds like some people are having trouble with it, and sometimes it is really hard to narrow down an idea when you have such a vast area to work in.
We said from the get go that Tim would wind up being the nice judge, Jim wouldn’t be able to figure out if he was the nice judge or the mean judge (basically becoming the swing vote) and I would be Simon. It is funny that it actually kind of worked out that way…..
The end is near………..sprint toward the end…….…victory is at hand…….
Also James thinking back to previous TPA's Im sure you can see what categories you excelled at and what ones you had trouble in. All I was curious about was if you remember which categories were the easiest for you and which ones were more diffecult.
I think that dark rides are always the easiest to do.....it allows for easy development of a story and any type of ride system that you can conceive in order to transport the riders right into the middle of the action.
Restaurants and Hotels are the hardest for me…..I always seem to find the need to distract from the fact that they are simply restaurants or simply hotels, so most of my hotels have a water park and most of my restaurants have some sort of theater element.
