Tink Tested: Cooke's of Dublin Dinner

Location: Next to Raglan Road in Disney Springs 
Meals Served: L, D

Type of Cuisine: Irish/English quick service

Dining Plan: Yes
Full Menu: Cooke's of Dublin Dinner Menu
Atmosphere: Casual pub/cafe

Fun Stuff: The many outdoor tables allow for great people watching, and you can even catch some live music on most nights. 

Stand out dishes: Fish and Chips, Hog-in-a-Box, Beef and Lamb Pie, Garlic and Parmesan Chips (Fries)

Best Use of Dining Plan Point: Meat Pie, Shrimp or Hog-in-a-Box ($11.95) + Any Dessert ($5.00) + Any Cold Beverage ($3.50) = $20.45

Experience: The night we went to Disney Springs to check in on all of the construction projects and see what was new, we hadn't eaten any dinner, and the gremlins, (K and D), were ravenous, so we picked one of our favorite quick service spots to grab a bite, Cooke's of Dublin. We discovered this place a few years ago, when we were on a vacation and using a dining plan. We were looking for some unique options. You know, something other than the standard burgers and fries. We knew we loved Raglan Road, so we figured Cooke's was a smart choice to try, since it is owned and operated by the same people. Since then, we have been many times, though we hadn't ever taken the kids there. 
     If you have never been, Cooke's of Dublin is a small counter service location, connected to the side of Raglan Road. They specialize in delicious dishes from the United Kingdom, like meat pies and battered fish and chips, but in a quick service format. It's a nice alternative to Raglan Road when you can't get a reservation, or you don't want to pay the prices of a full service dinner. 
     We were there on a Sunday night, and Disney Springs was relatively busy, so the line for Cooke's of Dublin was out the door. Now, that's an easy thing to have happen, since the location is on the small side, but it was still comparatively busy. Seating is a really tough thing here, since there are only a handful of tables inside the cafe, in the air conditioning, and not a whole lot outside either. It was a pretty hot night, so I grabbed an inside table while The Hubs placed our orders. He did run into some difficulty since they do not offer an allergy menu, and the staff seemed confused as to the difference between an egg allergy and a dairy/gluten allergy. They kept telling The Hubs that he was safe to order the chicken fingers for K, because the batter was dairy and gluten free. He would then say, "Yes, but are they EGG free?", and the gentleman behind the counter would say, "Yeah, dairy and gluten free." Huh? After much confusion, we finally got it confirmed that all of their standard batter for breading is not JUST dairy and gluten free, but also egg-free as well. Once that was out of the way, The Hubs took the number they gave him to place on our table, and got our refillable drinks from the fountain. We waited a very long time for our food... almost 30 minutes. They were very busy, so we understood, but keeping the hungry littles from melting down for 30 minutes while we waited wasn't easy. 
     When the food did come to the table, everything looked amazing. K and D would be sharing an order of chicken fingers and chips, which were cut similar to steak fries. The chicken was lean and the breading was not overly greasy. I got a Caesar salad. It looked fresh and fantastic, with a nice surprise of prosciutto crisps on top, but unfortunately, the dressing was flavorless and super oily. In fact, I said to The Hubs, "The only way to describe this salad is 'slick'." It just felt slippery and gross, with no flavor to it. I ended up not eating it. That was fine though, because we also had an order of my favorite: garlic Parmesan skinny chips. These babies are hot, delicious fries, covered in garlic and fresh grated cheese. SO good! I highly recommend you trying them! The Hubs got the "Hog in a Box", which we both found to be a hysterically funny name, but we both have the sense of humor of a 12 year old boy. It was a piece of pork shoulder, potatoes, sage and onion stuffing and applesauce, all in a Chinese-takeout-looking box. It was SO delicious! The pork was tender and flavorful, and the sweetness of the applesauce mixed so nicely with the savory stuffing. He was really glad he ordered it. He had planned on ordering his standard Cooke's of Dublin favorite, which is their Battered Burger. Yup. An actual battered and fried burger. He loves it. I find it to be too much grease for me. Because of this visit, though, he has a NEW favorite dish, and will likely order the Hog in a Box again. 

Chicken and Chips

Garlic Parmesan Chips

Caesar Salad

Hog in a Box

Hog in a Bo

   Even though the food took a long time and my salad was disappointing, the fries, the pork, and the chicken fingers all made the visit worthwhile. I find their battered items, like the fish and chicken, to be consistently delicious. Their chips are always flawless. You should, for sure, add it to your "Must Do" list for Disney Springs, just try and avoid weekend nights if you don't want to wait. Enjoy!

Tink's Tots Try It Out: According to D (6 yo girl) What did you like at Cooke's of Dublin, D?   I liked the salad. I know you didn't like it, but I did.   Oh, you did? Ok. Well, I am glad you liked it.   Well, I liked it a little. I liked the fries and chicken too. They were good. And I liked that the little boy in the picture was a cook.   Huh? Oh! The pictures hanging in the restaurant were of The Cooke Family. The Cooke's of Dublin. He wasn't a cook, like a chef. Cooke was his last name.   Oh. (Looks down in a disappointed way.)

Tink's Tots Try It Out: According to K (2 yo boy)  K, did you have good chicken at the restaurant?   Yeah, I do. I sit wif Mamma.   Yes, we did let you sit on the booth instead of in a high chair. That was a mistake Mamma won't be making again soon.   Haha! I sit on the floor and up-down on seat.   Yup, all of that. You were all over the place. It was not cool.   K is us-um, Mamma.   I agree, kid, you ARE awesome. Next time, you will be awesome in a high chair.   Ok.

Will we be back: Yes! One of our favorite places for a quick service meal on Disney property!