Ahoy boaters to the newest restaurant at Disney World. This new restaurant is called The Boathouse. It is located at the new Disney Springs (Downtown Disney) at the Walt Disney World Resort. It is a restaurant and so much more. One of the first attractions you will see at The Boathouse is the line of cars that you can rent called Amphicars. What is an Amphicar? It is a car and boat. These are fun old-fashioned cars with a convertible top. You can charter a ride to drive down The Boathouse ramp right into the lake at Disney Springs. You then enjoy a ride around the lake. The Boathouse Amphicars are fun to rent or just watch them drive into the water or around the lake. I think I stood on the deck a good 20 minutes just watching the Amphicars!
The Boathouse has a huge dock outside the restaurant, where you can grab a drink at the outdoor bar called The Dockside Bar. You can also just sit on the dock to watch the Amphicars or enjoy the beautiful lake view. They have several comfortable outdoor seating areas, including seating with a fire pit (perfect for the evening hours).
After relaxing, you may want to walk through the floating boat art exhibit. The Boathouse has a whole museum of boats, right on the water. These boats were donated by the boat owners, ranging from very old styles to newer designs. They have all been fully restored. There are even two of these boats that you can charter for a ride.
Before dining, you may want to pick up a souvenir at the extensive gift shop. The Boathouse has unique souvenirs like a boat paddle that you can engrave your name or family name. The most popular souvenir at The Boathouse is the duck float. The Boathouse is known for their yellow duck floats. They have over forty duck designs, including a soldier duck, captain duck. mermaid, and more. If you need a duck for your bath or pool, you will want to pick up one of these fun toys to remember your Disney World vacation.
Be sure you have your camera ready! There are so many photo opportunities with the Amphicars, floating boat museum, lake views, and even a picture with the captain in front of a large boat wheel. The Boathouse even has photographers at the front of the restaurant to capture that family shot, before heading to the hostess stand.
As you can see, The Boathouse is a whole experience from the moment you arrive. The dining is just as memorable. The Boathouse is divided into several separate dining rooms. They have two private rooms, called The Regatta and The Trophy Room. The other rooms include nautical theming, called The Runabout, Twin Transoms and The Lake House. Each room has specific artwork, furniture and designs to the room theme. The main room room is an open air room. This huge room features seating, another lounge and the Raw Bar. In this area, you may even enjoy live music! This restaurant follows along with the theme of Disney Springs. As the city of Disney Springs grew, the city needed a boat house and restaurant. As Disney Springs grew, The Boathouse grew.
You may get to dine in one of these unique rooms or outside on the deck. There is over 600 seats, so plenty of space for you! If you are lucky, you may get to dine in an actual boat. Right behind the hostess stand, sits a full size boat with table/seating right inside the boat. Your whole family would love this experience. You can request this special seating at the hostess stand, when you arrive. This ultra special table seats up to six people.
The menu at The Boathouse is just as exciting as the restaurant, with special dishes created just for this location. The chef did let me know that the menu is constantly changing based on seasons. We tried several recommended dishes on this visit, including Coconut Frog Legs and Hot Dog (on the kids menu). Everything was delicious!
To start off your meal, you may want to try something from the Raw Bar or an appetizer. The Raw Bar includes Oysters on the Half Shell, Boathouse Lobster Cocktail, Wild Caught Baja Cocktail Shrimp, Yellowfin Tuna Poke or Jumbo Lump Crab and Avocado. For an appetizer or Launch (as they call it), you can try Firecracker Shrimp, Coconut Frog Legs, Crispy Chili Calamari, Boathouse Gumbo, or Seared NY Strip Carpaccio.
For entrees, you can enjoy salads, seafood, sandwiches or meat. The salads or Field Day include The Plank with lettuce, bacon planks, blue cheese, grape tomatoes and New York Strip or The Galley with romaine hearts, Laughing Bird Shrimp, hearts of palm, salami, olives, pepperoni, smoked mozzarella and herb vinaigrette. You can also have an Asian Vegetable, Caesar or Garden salad.
For seafood, you can enjoy Coriander Seared Tuna, Broiled Atlantic Swordfish, Baked Crab Stuffed Lobster, Jumbo Lump Crab Cake, Cedar Planked Salmon, or Broiled Day Boat Virginia Southern Flounder.
For meat options, The Boathouse has several options like Filet Mignon, New York Strip in 14 ounces or 20 ounces, T-Bone, Porterhouse, Dry Aged Tomahawk Rib Chop, Berkshire Pork Chop, Filet Mignon Oscar Style, or Half Joyce Farms Rotisserie Chicken. These entrees can be accompanied by fresh cut fries, sea salted baked potato, steamed broccoli, cut from the cob roasted sweet corn, or roasted new potatoes as a side dish. These dishes range in price from $14 for the Asian Vegetable Salad to $115 for the Dry Aged Tomahawk Rib Chop. Most of the entrees are around $30.
The Boathouse even features three exclusive dishes called Beach & Sea Lobster Bake for Two, The Boathouse Surf & Turf Table, and Anastasia Gold Caviar. The Beach & Sea Lobster Bake for Two is 1 1/4 pound of Whole Main Lobster, clams, mussels, Andouille Sausage, red potatoes, corn on the cob and Boathouse Lobster Broth. This dish is $60. The Boathouse Surf & Turf Table for Two is a 32 ounce Dry Aged Tomahawk Rib Chop and 1 1/4 pound of Whole Main Lobster. This entree is $135. The Anastasia Gold Caviar is proprietary Boathouse Evans Farm Osetra Caviar for $100.
The Boathouse is certainly a family experience with incredible dining and entertainment. This new restaurant has plenty of seating and are currently only taking walk up reservations. Get your sea legs ready for an upscale dining experience at The Boathouse!
