Reviews of Jiko – The Cooking Place – Jambo House
Read prices, menu items, and more
Menus at Jiko - The Cooking Place
Reviewed by NJDzneMom Review Date: 10/08/2017
Rating: (10) Recommended
We dine at Jiko on each Disney trip we make and are never disappointed. The service and food and wine choices are excellent! I tried the BLT flatbread as an appetizer and it was pleasant, though a little messy. For dinner, I enjoyed the Wagyu strip loin and loved every bite. My husband had the seafood stew and devoured it! I thought he may lick the bowl clean!!! Both my husband and i also enjoyed the wine flights - all of them were delicious! This is a wonderful fine dining experience.
Pros:
Excellent Dining ExperienceCons:
PriceyReviewed by Geri604 Review Date: 10/08/2017
Rating: (10) Recommended
After reading a lot of positive reviews, I changed our Be Our Guest dinner to Jiko for our final night, and I am so glad I did! My filet was cooked to perfection, and the asparagus and tomatoes that came with it were also delicious - the only thing I didn't like was the mac & cheese side that came with it. My mom had the maize crusted halibut and the portion was HUGE! She's very fussy when it comes to how her fish is cooked (it needs to be thoroughly done all the way through), and she said this was perfect. All my dad wanted was a lobster tail, which was on the menu as an "enhancement" - I was going to add it on to my filet order, but the server let him order that on its own. I also had a very good Cabernet with my dinner - I wish I could remember the name, but it's the one recommended with the filet on the menu.
Pros:
The server was very knowledeable and the food was deliciousCons:
noneReviewed by SusieH212 Review Date: 08/20/2017
Rating: (10) Recommended
Had the first dinner of our trip here, which was awesome as we were staying upstairs at AKL. We were handed their separate vegan/vegetarian menu....which was amazing! We loved everything we had & then we could just head upstairs to our gorgeous room. Can't wait to go back!
Pros:
Vegan/Vegetarian OptionsCons:
NoneReviewed by NJDzneMom Review Date: 12/12/2015
Rating: (10) Recommended
We dined at Jiko for a second time the week of Dec 6, 2015. We love this signature restaurant and look forward to this dining event when we visit Disney.
We were seated almost immediately for our ADR time. Our waiter was most attentive and gave welcome overviews of each dish on the menu.
We loved the wild boar appetizer - very tasty - and I'm not one to usually try these types of dishes. My family also truly relished the grouper, lamb, filet and short rib dishes. The wine was also delightful and accompanied our dinners very nicely.
If anyone is looking for a special dining experience, I would definitely recommend this restaurant. However, I do believe it's geared more towards teen+ kids and adults. Little ones may not appreciate the longer meal experience and the atmosphere is a little more sophisticated than other resort restaurants.
Pros:
Food Quality, Wine Selection, ServiceCons:
NoneReviewed by fitziek Review Date: 06/03/2015
Rating: (10) Recommended
My husband and I had our anniversary dinner at Jiko. It was an absolutely amazing experience! When we arrived the hostess walked us through the dining room and explained the meaning of the restaurant name as well as the decor. It was a fun little insiders tour before dinner!
Our server, Onsy(sp?), was absolutely amazing. He made great recommendations on our meals and wine selections.
We split the wild boar tenderloin as an appetizer. I was a little worried as I'm not really one for out of the ordinary meats but this was amazing! Super tender and the sauce that comes with it enhances the flavor beautifully. Be warned - it comes rare!
For dinner I had the Harissa Chicken with Cinnamon Couscous. The chicken was tender and juicy and the cinnamon couscous was a perfect pairing!
My husband had the Maize Crusted Halibut over tomato butter. Another stunner. The fish was nice and light and the tomato butter added lovely flavor without being overwhelming.
Since it was our anniversary Onsy brought us each a small chocolate & coffee mousse and chocolate cookies. The mousse was topped with a white chocolate butterfly and was almost too pretty to eat!
I can't wait for our next Disney trip so we can return to Jiko!
Pros:
Service, FoodCons:
None!Reviewed by Collime Review Date: 12/09/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
We had an amazing adult dinner, (dropped the kiddos at the Kids Club before dinner) at Jiko in November. We were a party of 4 and sat in the wine room off the lobby which we loved, as it was much quieter than the main dining room.
Although, on the dining plan we did not stick to only an entrée and dessert - oh no, we went all out - with wine, starters, entrees, desserts, coffee and after dinner drinks.
We tried the short rib, lamb, filet and the special fish dish. Everything we had was delicious and prepared amazingly well! One of the best dinners I have had in a long time!
Pros:
Food, WineCons:
ExpensiveReviewed by Eean Review Date: 10/16/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
We ate dinner at Jiko on August 14, 2014. We are family of five, with three boys ages ranging from 12 to 6.we had never eaten at Jiko before, but I wanted to try a restaurant at the Animal kingdom lodge. We usually eat at the California Grill, since we like to stay at the contemporary resort. After a hot and tiring day at the animal Kingdom park, the ambience at Jiko was very relaxing. Our server's name was Alfredo, and he couldn't have been friendlier. We started with the taste of Africa appetizer, which all of my boys thought was interesting. For my entrée, I ordered the monkfish. Although I usually like fish, this was not my favorite. My kids and my husband all ordered the filet with the mac & cheese. Two of my boys are still raving about their meal. They said hands-down this was their favorite restaurant at Disney. My husband's secretary went there last month and we recommended Jiko to her and her husband. She agreed that this was also their favorite restaurant. Even though I wasn't the biggest fan of the monkfish, the attentive service and the quiet atmosphere made this a winner in my book! It was even better this year than the California Grill. My kids have asked if we could go there again next time, and I will definitely try the filet.
Pros:
Quiet ambience; attentive serviceCons:
Expensive- 2 credits on DDPReviewed by Alexandra1986 Review Date: 09/24/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
We ate at Jiko's on August 29, 2014. We try to always eat at Jiko because it's off the beaten path and tends to be quieter and very romantic. The food here is always amazing, this trip we started off with sharing the Crispy Duck rolls which are very good. The main course I had the filet with mac and cheese (can still specially request the mac and cheese it's not on the menu), and my fiancé had the lamb two ways. Both were cooked exactly how we wanted and were very tender. As for dessert we had the ice cream a variety are served in neat little cones, and the chocolate dessert which was rich and delicious. I highly recommend this restaurant the service here is always top notch and we are treated really well.
Pros:
food, service, atmosphereCons:
noneReviewed by LordInfidel Review Date: 12/29/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
You cant get more recent then sitting at the table writing this.
Jiko has moved into first place on our list of favorite reataurants; yes its pricey, but get on tbe disney dining plan and it wont be an issue.
Now onto the review; after years of eating at California grille and narcoosees, we tried Jiko last year and fell in love. It was hands down the best filet around (rivaling le cellier). So this year, we booked it for 3 nights.
Our first night we were upset at the removal of the bibodi rolls; which i was craving. So Lucius, our waiter, talked to the chef to see what he could do. We figured that would be the end of it but wow were we surprised.
The head chef, John, came out and talked to us for about 30 mins about his vision of the menu (very exciting things coming). He then had some special items brought out to us to try. And it did not stop there. Upon learning that we were coming back tonight and tomorrow, John had his chefs special prepare us the new version of the bibiodi rolls for us to try (they are milder then last time and made with duck, but still very good).
They brought us out a new appetizer called vetahook which has 3 types of rolls on it. Egg curry, squab and a vegetable roll. the purpose of the dish as we learned was to try 3 different flavors in order of heat. Without giving too much away, I personally loved the vegetable (if you like spice, you will love it)
Now you might be asking, did they remember the bibodi rolls; well i made sure i asked for lucius tonight (and got him). within 5 mins of sitting down, out comes john to talk to me about the bibodi (he remembered and he remembered that i loved the vegetable vetahook so he had a plate made with all veg)
On xmas when we were here, i had the boar as an app and it was very flavorful. The filet was not as spicy as i remembered it but still it was very good. So tonight, i asked Lucius about the spice they used on the boar; and in proper fashion they are putting the seasoning on my filet (i love my filet, its one of the reasons why we eat in disney table service).
And now, here we wait for our next course to come out which will be wonderful again. Then onto desert, the creme brulee is wonderful (although i think they share the same recipe as le cellier).
If you are in the fence about trying something new, i strongly urge you to give jiko a try. It will be very hard to be disappointed.
Thanks Lucius and John.
Got to go, my filet just arrived!
Pros:
Personal attentivenessCons:
—Reviewed by Nicklissa Review Date: 12/28/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
Our family of 4 (including my husband and his parents) ate here on Christmas night 2013. We checked in 20 minutes earlier than our reservation and were seated within five minutes. Staff were very friendly and genuine. The restaurant is beautifully themed, and the quiet, muted, dark tones are appreciated by people such as myself who suffer terribly from migraines.
Our waiter was friendly and the number one reason we chose Jiko for Christmas dinner is this is one of the few restaurants on Disney World property that has a full, separate vegetarian menu. My husband and I are vegetarian, though my husband still eats fish. Having full options from appetizers and soups to entrees was a welcome change. We usually have to ask how everything is made and then try to negotiate changes to adhere to our dietary restrictions. Having the menu, a regular part of Jiko, on hand was lovely.
After drink orders were taken by our waiter, another staff member brought us an amuse bouche of plum pudding. Very tasty, and I usually hate plums.
We ordered the Taste of Africa and the cheese plate as our appetizers. The Taste of Africa is a selection of breads/flatbreads/crackers with four unique African-inspired/spiced dipping sauces. All was very good, and experiencing new spices was fun. The cheese selections were paired with sweet chutneys/brittle/jam, etc. and were wonderful. The only part of the appetizers we didn't like was when the plates were empty.
For entrees my father-in-law ordered Spicy Botswana-style "Seswaa" Beef Short Rib served with Cassava-potato puree, sambal, mushrooms and fava beans. He was leary of the short ribs being off-the-bone, but said it was delicious. My mother-in-law ordered the Lamb Two Ways which was served with autumn vegetables, pumpkin seed duqqa, grilled olive ciabatta and pomegranate demi glace. She is hard to please, especially with lamb, and she literally wanted to suck the bones (disgusting for us vegetarians), but she said it was the best she's ever had.
My husband ordered the West African Jerked Scallops that came with basmati rice, red quinoa, baby rainbow carrots, and coconut curry sauce. He enjoyed it very much and said the scallops were cooked well, not rubbery, and spiced nicely.
I ordered the Braai Pie that I can best describe as a type of quiche with a crust, filled with squash, carrots, potatoes, garbanzo beans, wilted greens and "tamatie bredie - a type of tomato sauce I think. It also came with some pickled veggies such as radish, etc. and that was terrible - too salty and weird textures. I did not eat that. The pie was delicious - but very small.
The reason I can not give Jiko a score of 10 for this visit is the time we waited for entrees. It took a while, which was fine. However, when the food arrived, everyone got what they ordered except for my husband. Since we told the waiter we were vegetarians, but that my husband still ate fish, the waiter noted the table as two of us being vegetarians. This was fine, but when the waiter put in the order for jerked scallops, the kitchen made the vegetarian version of this - which is jerked tofu. They took the dish back and my husband watched as we all ate. We tried to wait, but the food was getting cold. A floor manager checked in on us and when she found out about the mix up she promised to check in with the kitchen. She was very nice and very apologetic. However, the three of us finished our entire meal before my husband was even served.
It took some time after entrees to get our dessert ordered and served. Mother-in-law and I had the Chocolate and Tea Safari which included Vanilla rooibos-Tanzanian chocolate cake, free form "kit kat" and green tea ice cream. The ice cream was gross to me, but mother-in-law enjoyed it. Everything else, however, was divine - truly truly divine.
My husband ordered the banana bread pudding. It was served with ice cream in a separate dish. He enjoyed it but found it dry.
Father-in-law ordered the milk tart which included fig jam, whole figs with gold leaf sprinkles, and goat's milk balsamic ice cream. He said it was very good, but very small.
Getting the bill took a while as well, but we had a great time overall. We were on the dining plan, so 2 credits per person were used. The meal, had we not used dining credits, was almost $400 (including appetizers, entrees, 3 alcoholic beverages, 4 non-alcoholic beverages, desserts, taxes, and tip).
We will be back and I highly recommend you try it here. They do have a dress code, so you may want to check with the restaurant or Disney Dining when you make your reservation.
