Rose and Crown
So I am really kicking myself in the butt for not trying Rose and Crown sooner. We have had many reservations here in the past, and we have always cancelled them for one reason or another. Well on our trip in February 2019, we finally tried it. And OMG and I am still drooling over it! Let me share with you how simple yet amazing this meal is.
So for starters let’s look at the menu. We were on the dining plan, so we were able to get an entree and one beverage (including beer or wine). They have an extensive beer and wine list as you can see (and as expected being a pub). The entrees are fairly basic and limited, but honestly, I only came for one thing anyhow.
So even though Melody did not get a meal from our dining plan, they still gave her a menu and crayons. We had considered ordering her fries, but she was not too into them this trip. We offered her a few of ours, but she only wanted her chips.
Now the atmosphere. I was surprised how small the restaurant was. The dining room was sort of “L” shaped. You could basically see all of the indoor seating from my seat. There was also patio seating too. We were not given the option of where to sit, so I am not sure how you get to sit outdoors. We are always lucky enough to sit inside. I am not a fan of outdoor seating. Especially in Florida. The last picture below is of the pub area. A reservation is not required for there, but I am unsure if the menu goes beyond drinks. The ceilings were gorgeous here. So much detail was put into them. And the entire place felt very homey and quaint. My only complaint is that they tables are fairly close together. I mean the couple next to us was asking about our desserts and such without shouting or having to really make much effort.
Brad isn’t amused by all of my picture taking for the blog, ha! And Melody was in a really great mood after a great nap.
So here it is. Our entree. We both ordered the fish and chips. I didn’t ask what kind of fish it was. It was just one large piece of beer battered fish. It was served on top of “chips” aka fries. They also include homemade tartar sauce, ketchup, and vinegar. Oh and a wedge of lemon. The plate was covered with “fake” newspaper before plating our food to give it a more authentic feel per our waiter. He recommend we cover the fish in vinegar and salt. At least that is his preference.
The fish was super crispy and cooked perfectly. The batter didn’t fall of the fish either. So I tried it his way first. I took a small piece and covered with vinegar and salt. I honestly have never done this before. And I have eaten a lot of fish and chips in my day. But oh my this was amazing. I was really hesitant because I am a tartar sauce fan all the way, but after one bite, I salted and added vinegar to my entire fish without hesitation. It was really that good. My only complaint was that the vinegar caused the paper to tear apart. So that wasn’t appealing.
And the chips were really good too. I love the size of them, but they were also really salty. Not sure if that is typical, but I like it. Since I didn’t get to use the tartar sauce for my fish, I used it for my fries. And it was really really good. I highly recommend this classic entree. I am hoping to try the quick service version soon to compare.
Again, since we were on the dining plan, we also got a dessert. And honestly, we were so full from our fish and chips, if we had not had the dining plan, there is no way I would have ordered dessert, ha! So below is their dessert menu along with their dessert drinks.
So my choice was the chocolate nougat bar. Our waiter’s best description was it lasted like a Milky Way bar. I must say, there is some similarity. But this was a much harder chocolate. The dessert was also cold. So generally it wasn’t melt-in-your-mouth like a Milky Way would. It was really good though. I would order it again, but it is doubtful I would ever have the room, ha! I didn’t eat much of it since I was so full.
Brad ordered the sticky toffee pudding. His dessert choices were limited because of his hatred for fruit and his tendencies to get migraines from milk chocolate. The toffee pudding seemed like the best choice. I did try a bite of it. It was ok, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the texture of the “cake”. Brad did enjoy it though. I would not order it for myself, but our waiter did say this was a very classic British dessert. So if you are torn or have the same concerns as Brad, this is something to at least try.
Honestly, this was one of my favorite meals this trip. Brad said it was his least favorite, ha. He isn’t the biggest fan of fish and chips, so I think that had something to do with it too. I am so glad we finally tried it though. I am definitely going to go back on a future trip.
**Side note - the iced tea here was phenomenal. I should have bought some Twinings tea while there, but I kept talking myself out of it, and ended up simply forgetting. It had an almost fruit flavor to it, but it wasn’t overpowering like some fruit teas I have had. I am uncertain of what specific tea they served, but I plan to try and ask on my next trip. I ordered iced tea at most restaurants on this trip, but this and Via Napoli were the best flavored.
