Universal Orlando Resort (USF, IOA, Epic) Discussion Thread

Yesterday I had the chance to visit The Cowfish at CityWalk for its first night of soft openings. I've been anticipating this moment since the day the CityWalk expansion was first announced back in 2012! For those of you not familiar with the concept (I wasn't when it was first announced), The Cowfish is an up-and-coming chain of restaurants focused on high quality burgers, sushi and a unique combination of the two foods known as Burgushi. Seeing as both types of foods are some of my favorites, I knew that it was likely that this unique marriage would appeal to me, as it will with many guests.

Yesterday's dinner certainly proved my theory and solidified The Cowfish as my new favorite eatery among tough competition from Universal's recently opened concepts, Antojitos and Vivo, along with my longtime favorites, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and Margaritaville.

Cowfish Food Menu

Cowfish Beverage Menu

The restaurant has three floors and on the third floor in the glass room seen from outside is a set of small tables with an amazing view. We were lucky enough to get one of them!

I am so freaking stoked!

How good is the view you ask? Pretty amazing considering you can see most of Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure from the table!

Is this real life?

We started with the highly-recommended Crab Rangoon Dip. This dish is basically a deconstructed presentation of a traditional Crab Rangoon, with the filling being served as a dip, the wonton wrappers being served as light wonton chips and the sweet Thai chili sauce being drizzled over the wontons instead of being served in a dipping bowl. We really loved this one!

We tried two burgers on the recommendation of our server. The first was The Texas Longhorn, a more traditional burger with cheddar cheese, jalapeño bacon, barbecue sauce and onion strings. It was really a fantastic burger!

Always one to try more unique burgers when I have the chance, I opted for the Black Truffle Cheeseburger. This thing was INDULGENT! It is served with black truffle cheese, sautéed mushrooms, roasted garlic aioli and sliced shallots. I very highly recommend this if you're going for a rich, heavy burger! The side of seaweed salad was great too--one of the best I've ever had outside of Japan!

I had to try at least one Burgushi item on the menu for my first visit so I decided to go big and order The Prime Time Roll. This is a lobster-filled sushi roll with thin slices of seared rare filet mignon wrapped around the sticky rice, drizzled with spicy mayo, topped with pan-fried portobello mushroom slices tossed in truffle oil and green onions and served with a side of pounded ginger sauce. This thing was incredible and easily one of the best (and most unique) rolls I've ever had in my life!

Another signature offering at The Cowfish is their list of "Spiked Shakes." We tried the "Chocolate "To Dive For"", which featured amaretto liqueur, Godiva liqueur, vanilla ice cream, malt and shaved chocolate. This thing was KILLER!

To wrap up our meal we had the "East West," described as key lime and mandarin cheesecake jumbo size with an Oreo cookie crust and vanilla ice cream. This was probably the most mild (read: ordinary) thing we had the entire night. It wasn't bad, but it certainly didn't wow us like everything else we tried this evening.

Time to take a look around the restaurant...

Presented without comment.

The bar on the second floor...

Really neat decor inside!

The outside bar on the second floor (opposite the Red Coconut Club) features for hole for those in the mood.

The moment is finally here!

Getting closer!

CLOSER!

I seriously loved our meal at The Cowfish and will be returning frequently to try as many new menu items as I possibly can! Thanks to everyone at The Cowfish for making this such a great first experience!

The Cowfish has taken its rightful place among a growing list of fantastic dining venues at Universal Orlando's CityWalk. Come check it out ASAP and get your Burgushi on!

That food looks SOOO good! What were the prices like? I'll probably have to get that Prime Time Roll when I visit next year!

Yeah, I want to eat there now. Looks good!

dt

Wow, everything looks so good! The concept is really neat as well. Will definitely have to try it when I'm around those parts.

Looks delicious! Does it have weird opening hours like some of the other newer restaurants? We wanted to eat at Antojitos last month but it didn't open for lunch.

Oh, wow, that looks amazing...and I'll be at Universal this weekend! I know where I'm eating! Thanks for the report and pics!

That food looks SOOO good! What were the prices like? I'll probably have to get that Prime Time Roll when I visit next year!

The site doesn't have a menu for the Orlando location yet, but assuming it's the same as the others, you can take a look at the menu here. https://www.thecowfish.com/locations/?l=1&c=1

Not cheap, but not really that bad either, if the food's as good as it looks.

That first burger looks and sounds amazing! Can't wait to try it out! Is this the last new restaurant for City Walk? I believe all of the others are already opened...

Here are the menus (with the exception of dessert) for the restaurant, pricing included.

Cowfish Food Menu

Cowfish Beverage Menu

This is the last phase of the originally announced expansion to CityWalk but it is expected that a second batch of projects are to begin soon. NASCAR Grille ceased operation on November 1st, and NBA City is expected to follow soon. It has also been rumored in the past that The Groove, Big Kahuna Pizza (which is rarely open anyways) and possibly Red Coconut and Rising Star may see changes in the near future.

Do they do delivery?

Everything looks great, even the (yum) cheesecake.

Oh that all looks so delicious.

I got to try the Raleigh location back in February, and after seeing this would love to make this a part of my next trip to Universal.

I notice they don't have what I had in Raleigh on the menu, a flash fried burgushi with ground beef and 2 or 3 kinds of fish- I wonder if they are varying menus between locations or if it might expand in the future (or giving me a great reason to try something new!). Regardless, that Prime Time Roll looks amazing!

I really need to get back to Orlando...to visit everyone. And try out all the new food options!

Great report!

Any kids menu Adam? I notice that there is not one thing on that menu KT would eat! (And possibly me as well!)

Any kids menu Adam? I notice that there is not one thing on that menu KT would eat! (And possibly me as well!)

Saw this on the website:

https://www.thecowfish.com/locations/?l=1&c=9

Perfect thanks! I assume the Orlando location would have to have a similar kids menu since well, it's ORLANDO!!!

The restroom sign illustrates something that WC Fields supposedly said: "I never drink water. Fish function in it."

I like the look of the restaurant. The food looks delicious. I defintely will try it out on my next Orlando visit.

I'm not a fan of sushi but some of the burgers on the menu sound absolutely delicious.

This place looks awesome except for one small personal pet peeve, gigantic menus drive me crazy! Maybe I'm the only one but it seems like menus for restaurants have grow over the years so to the point that they are so big that they are cumbersome to handle at the table,

This place looks awesome though, such a cool concept.

I would have a hard time choosing from these items:

* The Jalapeno Popper Show-Stopper (remember to take Prevacid before eating)

* The Cowfish Has Officially Left The Building (just sounds ridiculously decadent)

* The Boursin Bacon Burger (I LOVE me some Boursin)

* Prime Time Filet & Lobster Roll (the photo made it look so good)

* The Pittsburgoo-Shi Sandwich Roll (just because)

Not sure what the popularity is with edamame though - it's like eating regular green beans that are filled with nasty, dry-ass lima beans.

Holy.

Crap.

I'm.... I'm in love.

Orlando's been absolutely exploding in the past few years.

This place looks awesome except for one small personal pet peeve, gigantic menus drive me crazy! Maybe I'm the only one but it seems like menus for restaurants have grow over the years so to the point that they are so big that they are cumbersome to handle at the table,

 

This place looks awesome though, such a cool concept.

I also agree that this menu, with upwards of 75 items on it, is in a style that is becoming a little dated. On the one hand, at a theme park you need to cater to many different crowds. However, on the other hand, this makes ordering take longer, increases the chances of the kitchen being out of something, and in many cases detracts from possible freshness. It also makes the customer believe they could have 'done better' than whatever they ordered.

All that being said, it sounds cool and maybe Citywalk USH will get one some day!

Great photos Adam! I had no idea about this chain (or concept!) before. Hopefully i'll get to visit next time I'm in Orlando!

Universal Orlando Resort will host a fun filled weekend featuring the Nickelodeon hit live action series “Every Witch Way” on December 12 and 13.

 

• Enjoy an exciting celebration to kick off the weekend, featuring DJ Boogie and the cast of “Every Witch Way”
  
• Participate in Q&A and autograph sessions with the cast
  
• Access a special viewing party featuring an advance screening of the first two episodes of season 3 of “Every Witch Way”
  
• And more!

 

“Every Witch Way” is a spell-binding tale that follows teenager Emma Alfonso (Paola Andino) as she moves to Miami and discovers that she isn’t so ordinary—she’s a witch. The series, which recently concluded its second season, is a bona fide hit consistently winning its time period (Mon-Fri, 7:30-8 p.m. ET/PT) with kids 2-11. Season 3 of “Every Witch Way” will premiere in 2015, sparking mystery and adventure with a daily dose of magic that will keep viewers captivated and enchanted.

 

During the event, guests can also experience one-of-a-kind traditions that the entire family will enjoy at Universal Orlando’s Holidays celebration. Running daily from Dec. 6 to Jan. 3, guests will come face-to-face with The Grinch at Grinchmas, watch majestic Macy's balloons wind through the streets and hear Christmas music sensation - Mannheim Steamroller - perform beloved holiday classics.

 

It’s a weekend of bewitching and holiday fun at Universal Orlando Resort—all included with admission to Universal Orlando theme parks. For more information, visit http://www.UniversalOrlando.com/events/everywitchway.aspx.