Jaleo by Jose Andres is now open at Disney Springs and it’s an experience unlike any other at the shopping district.
The menu features dozens of different plates, ranging from cheeses, to meats, to fish all served in a Spanish-style tapas offering.
Tapas are small appetizer-portion plates intended to have people around the dinner table share and order multiple items and experience a variety of flavors.
Jaleo also has larger menu items.
On the opening night of Jaleo, we tried 5 dishes to share.
1. Pan de cristal con tomate
This dish features crusty bread with cold tomato sauce and oil. The salt content made this item addictive.
2. Croquetas de pollo
These chicken critters are not greasy and deep-fried like you would imagine. The outside is crisp & light while the inside remained creamy. The waitress says the croquetas are served on a pillow to pay homage to Cinderella and Disney.
3. Dàtiles con tocino ‘como hace todo el mundo’
These are dates like you’ve never had before. They are wrapped in bacon AND fried– giving them an indescribable texture. There’s also an apple-dijon dipping sauce that pairs nicely with the dish
4. Christorra envuelta en patata frita
These are essentially pigs in blankets… on a stick. The chorizo inside the thin breading is tender with a slight spice. The dipping sauce has little-to-no flavor.
5. Pulpo a la Gallega
This boiled octopus draped over potatoes was my favorite dish of the night. The extra virgin olive oil really helped the seafood “pop” and this is arguably the best octopus I’ve ever had. It was salted perfectly and boiled to perfect. Sometimes octopus is tough & chewy, but this one could be cut with just a fork.
Jaleo also has an extensive drink menu, ranging from various types of sangria to an extensive gin and tonic menu.
I tried the Mediterranean gin & tonic, featuring Gin Mare, Fever Tree Mediterranean Tonic, sweet vermouth, dry vermouth, lemon, lime & thyme.
If you’re wondering about the atmosphere, don’t worry, we’ve posted a walkthrough video:
Also… the bathrooms are REALLY cool.
Overall, Jaleo seems to be an invaluable addition to Disney Springs by hitting a demographic that no other restaurant does: authentic Spanish food to share with big groups.
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