As I wrote in a recent dining review, House of Blues at Disney Springs at Walt Disney World has grown in recent popularity. Well, at least in terms of people searching for an advance dining reservation via MouseDining, this place has increased in popularity. As someone that spends a small amount of time pondering theme park dining, this place intrigues me. House of Blues functions as a worthy third-party restaurant on Disney property. Depending on where you live, you may have a House of Blues restaurant near you. Until recently, advance dining reservations were not challenging to get here. Of course, the popularity of some Disney Springs restaurants ebb and flow.
The menu here offers some solid bar style appetizers, sandwiches, burgers, ribs, shrimp and grits, and some decent southern BBQ style food also for example. They also offer five different types of salads. For some reason, my dining groups have been ordering more salads as their main entrée lately. Perhaps that relates to the fact that I am getting older, but who knows? On this occasion, I ordered the “Smoked Brisket Sandwich” as my main entrée. One member of my group ordered the “Steak Salad.” Based on the quality of this salad, I should have made it my primary selection.
The Steak Salad costs $20. The menu description reads “USDA Prime steak, mixed field greens, cherry tomatoes, toasted almonds, blue cheese crumbles, red onion, cucumber, (and) balsamic vinaigrette.” This might not sound impressive. Yet, I think many guests will enjoy this. In my previous article about the brisket sandwich, I stated that Hard Rock Café over at Universal Orlando offered a better sandwich. In a potential battle of steak salads, House of Blues probably wins. That discussion must wait for another day.
This salad came wonderfully prepared. We requested the steak medium well. The steak came prepared exactly that way. From a presentation standpoint, the entrée came like a small cut up steak with a nice salad as your side. I joked about it being a make your own salad. If this came with a starch, like a potato, this could pass a “poor man’s” steak dinner.
In fairness, this salad does not come with the highest grade of steak. Of course, this entrée costs only $20. Yet, I found the steak well prepared with a good flavor to match the salad. It brought good flavor and tenderness. Also, as menu description indicates, this salad contains a good balance of ingredients. The salad offered good flavor by itself. The vinaigrette salad dressing works well and provides a nice touch of creaminess.
Overall, I found this salad refreshing and good value. I would suggest eating it simply like a steak and a side salad. You do get more salad than a standard side salad but this presentation reminds me of that idea. Of course, you might want to eat the steak mixed with the salad. On this occasion, we combined those in very few bites. This would make a great entrée for someone looking to reduce their carbohydrate intake.
On the negative side, the price point of $20 for a salad might alarm some. Yet, we all know these are theme park resort prices. Still, at a House of Blues outside of Disney World, you would pay basically the same price for this. Also, if you arrived here very hungry or craving carbohydrates, this salad would leave you disappointed. Ye, I suspect most people fitting that category would find some other tasty entrée to enjoy. I do like the idea of adding a baked potato or French fries to this for feel of a steak dinner though.
Would I recommend this? I think I would. In fairness, I doubt most people visit House of blues to just get a salad. However, if you find yourself here wanting a salad, this good option awaits you. As always, eat like you mean it!
