Chocolate? Yes, please.

This past week I was in Orlando attending a conference for work. The conference was held at the Lowes Pacific Royal over at Universal Studios. I wish I could say I popped over to the parks, but the weather was awful. On Monday night I was out for a run and ran past the entrace to CityWalk CityWalk is part of Universal Studios and consists of many restaurants, bars and other entertainment. One restaurant in particular caught my eye, The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen. Did someone say chocolate? I have quite the sweet tooth and love anything chocolate. Once I was back in my room, I looked up the menu and thought maybe I would check it out.

My original plan was to spend my last night in Florida at Epcot. I am a Disney girl through and through and go every chance I get. I am also an annual pass holder, so not having to shell out $100 or so for a park ticket is appealing. However, as I mentioned, the weather was terrible. There was a tornado warning! I decided to wait out the weather and walk over to this intriguing restaurant with chocolate in the title.

As I entered, I realized this was much more than just a restaurant. Upon entering, to the right is a shop with candy, freshly-made desserts, popcorn, novelty items, and more. To the left is a counter where one can order fantastic sundaes and milkshakes. Before I took a look at any of this, I went up to the hostess and asked for a table. She informed me there was a 40-minute wait, but I could head upstairs and eat at the bar. There were high top tables, where the full menu is served. Off I went!

I grabbed myself a high top and had fun perusing the menu.

The restaurant has an extensive menu that includes an all-day brunch. The appetizer selection was quite big — a favorite on the menu, Warm Chocolate Almond Bread that comes with a salted caramel butter. I was about to order that when I saw a Baked Brie En Croute. It is made with raspberry marmalade, berries, almonds, chocolate almond bread, and oven-baked lavosh. I had to try this. As for my drink, I ordered a Vanilla Chocolate Cocktail. The drink consisted of Madagascar vanilla vodka, Trader Vick’s dark chocolate, Faretti chocolate, and chocolate bitters.

As I was eating my appetizer, my server came over and asked how everything was, and we got to talking. He told me that the restaurant has a backstory. Apparently, characters walk around, including Penelope Tibeaux- Tinker Toothsome, creator of the restaurant and her robot Jacques. Unfortunately, I did not have the pleasure of meeting her or her friend.

I had a hard time deciding what to have for dinner. There were sandwiches, flatbread pizzas, pasta, burgers, and entrees. I asked the server for his recommendation and he said I could not go wrong with the braised short ribs. I was sold.

As I waited for dinner, I snapped some photos of the seating area. The bar is pretty big, and the seating area around it is very nice. The view is great.

My ribs arrived, and he was right, it was delicious. Though I have to admit, I am not a fan of grits. The grits were mixed with cheddar cheese, and are not my thing. Other than that, the meal was excellent. When it came down to dessert, I said no, but not because I did not want to try something, but because I wanted to see what was downstairs.

I headed downstairs where I roamed the candy store.

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I ultimately decided to order a sundae. Though, let me tell you, the milkshakes looked amazing as well.

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When I saw the May Contain Nuts Sundae, how could I resist?

This sundae is made with peanut butter ice cream, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, chocolate peanut butter pie, fresh whipped cream, peanut butter sauce, topped with Reese’s Pieces and a piece of peanut brittle. It was a shame I was there alone. I could only eat half and had to throw the rest away.

If you are ever in the Orlando area, I would highly recommend this restaurant, even if it is to just grab a fun dessert or two.