There is just something about the atmosphere of this pub that really reaches me on some primal level. Though I am only a sliver Irish somewhere on my mother's side, it just seems ancestral and nostalgic in some way. The architecture and decor is quite striking, with its rich woods and polished brass, and light streaming through the colored glass windows in the rotunda. There just seems like there is a history there, even though it was just flown in from across the pond and recreated in central Florida. The theming is very immersive and detailed.
They offer entertainment throughout the day, from different Celtic and Irish folk bands to traditional Irish dancing on several stages throughout the pub. They also ask kids from the audience to come up and join them to learn a dance if they would like. After they get a cute certificate with their name on it. My daughter was not interested the first time they asked her, but the second time she wanted to go up there, but pretty much just stood there holding one of the girl's hands. It was sweet, nonetheless.
What I really enjoy is the Irish folk bands. Some of them are really good, and maybe not what you would expect from Disney. I'm a total music nerd, so when it comes to bands, I tend to be hypercritical, but there are a couple of groups I've had the pleasure of seeing, that I really got into. One of the bands was a duo called The Brayzen Heads.
It was pretty traditional Celtic fare, with an acoustic guitarist/singer, and a banjo player/fiddler, playing Irish folk tunes with some Celtic rock peppered in. I love Irish folk music anyway, with its stripped down, bare quality and thunderous backbeat, so this was really my cup of tea. We stayed and listened to them for like a half hour after we had finished our meal because the music was so captivating. I would say they sit somewhere between The Pogues and Van Morrison, and you can't really go wrong with that.
And they weren't just good for "Disney," they were good in their own right. I would gladly pay a cover to go see them at a local dive. But the entertainment at Raglan Road is free-ish. I would say it's definitely worked into the prices of the food and drinks, which doesn't particularly bother me, but it certainly seems to annoy some people. My husband is a professional musician, so I have no trouble supporting the arts and/or live music in this digital age. But I will admit, there was a band we saw there another night, called The Raglan Roots Coalition, and though they were fine musicians, it wasn't really my speed. They were younger, a little less seasoned I would say, and they were playing mostly American pop music injected with a Celtic twist. I don't really want nor need to hear an Irish band do like, Pharell songs, in a pub. It came off as sort of cheesy wedding band-esque. So, the music can be hit-or-miss, but they post the schedule of entertainment on their website, raglanroad.com, so you can avoid some of the lamer bands if that is important to you.
As for the food, it's sort of like upscale pub grub. Their chips are addictive for sure, I usually tend to make a meal out of those, and that damn honey mustard they have, which is like crack to me. They should just sell that as a drink. Ugh, it's so good. But this particular meal, we started off with the Nom Nom Wings, which I have been trying to find the recipe for since I had them. They are like an sweet, spicy Asian style, drenched in a soy ginger sauce, and served with the aforementioned crack mustard. They seem to only offer them at dinner though, so be advised.
We also got the Potato Leek Soup, which was also excellent, and served piping hot. (It's the worst when soup is only lukewarm.) It came with a garnish of chives, and a puff pastry bread stick for dipping. Perfect on a slightly breezy fall day.
There is also complimentary Irish soda bread with a sweet Guinness reduction, that is really tasty. It's definitely one of the more creative and unique bread baskets at the World.
For my entree I got the Raglan Risotto, and added a chicken breast to it, because I thought it wouldn't be filling enough, but the risotto itself was so rich and flavorful, it really didn't need the added protein. I did like the tomato, zucchini and mozzarella kebob that came on top. I slid it off the skewer and mixed it into the risotto. It also came with a Parmesan crisp or "frico," as it's called in Italian. There really is just no substitute for Parmesan cheese; Italians have the lock on that.
My husband got the Portobello Beauty Burger, which looked delicious, but he didn't really like it. He said the portobello mushroom flavor was too strong. I think portobellos always taste too pungent for my liking, and I think I've pinpointed the problem; it's the gills. They are just too earthy tasting, almost like a dirt flavor. Blah. But it's also any easy fix, because you could just scrape off the gills with a spoon before cooking, and what you are left with is a more delicate mushroom flavor. Alas, this was not the case with this burger. He said he would rather stick to his fish and chips.
But the sleeper hit of the meal, actually came in the form of a kid's entree. We ordered our daughter the macaroni and cheese with side of fries, because that's basically all that kid ever wants to eat. But this particular macaroni and cheese is made in-house with Irish cheddar, and it is really effing good. It was so rich and cheesy, she was lucky if she got a couple bites in between my husband and I wolfing it down! It's a good thing that kid pecks at her food like a little bird.
As if this wasn't enough food, we managed to find some room for dessert, because I needed my husband to try the Ger's Bread and Butter Pudding. It's. So. Damn. Good. It's basically like a typical bread pudding, with a challah or brioche type bread but it is smeared with Irish butter before it is soaked and baked in a rich custard with golden raisins, and served in a giant coffee mug. But then it comes with these miniature pitchers of creme anglais and butterscotch sauce, and you burrow a tunnel into the pudding and flood it with the sauces, for this sort of volcanic mountain of warm pleasure.
You may be stuffed by that time, but you should order dessert anyway. Raglan Road is definitely a cool place to hang out, even if you were just getting drinks with friends, but it's delicious to grab a bite as well. It can get kind of raucous on the weekends, but if you are looking for something a little more lively, than you've found the spot. Lunch or early dinner is much tamer, less crowded and full of plenty of kids. Either way, whatever you're into, Raglan Road is worth the trip.
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