Disney World’s resorts can be the top choice for travellers coming to Orlando. It’s tough to say no to the luxurious Grand Floridian Resort, Contemporary Resort, and Polynesian Village Resort (to name just a few). Especially when it comes to places to eat and drink at those resorts.

©Conrad Orlando

Well, there are also some AMAZING other hotels off property that offer great amenities and dining. Have you ever heard of the Conrad Orlando hotel? It’s SUPER close to Disney World, and it’s a stunning resort. We recently visited to try out the Apero Bar, and we’re going to share our thoughts.

Conrad Orlando offers a traditional hotel stay, featuring both suites and family suites to choose from. Guests staying there can enjoy amenities like the outdoor water garden at the spa, private cabanas, and even a signature rooftop dining experience!

Conrad Orlando

If you want to visit (even just for a meal), note that parking at the Conrad Orlando is valet only. It really set the tone for an elegant evening. Our valet ticket was validated before we left. Once we got there and entered the lobby, there was a magnificent view looking out onto the impressive pool area. 

The pool

As we mentioned, we visited the hotel to try out the bar, Apero. It was located down one flight of stairs in an open lobby area, with bar seating and a selection of other tables and chairs. There are beautiful views out to the pool area from there as well, including a fountain right outside the window. Marco Dongi, a renowned Mixologist, was on hand to mix four different drinks. These selections were presented on a two-sided menu card.

Part of the menu!

First up, we tried the Oh Liang for $25. Whew — this was RICH! The rum was hidden behind the earthy almond and coffee flavors. We weren’t able to detect jasmine, nor the sweet floral flavor notes from the Pandan. It tasted a bit like a grassy drink. The texture was very smooth, and it’s one of the more interesting alcoholic beverages that we’ve had. We really liked the square ice cube; it was just gorgeous to look at. The almond and coffee bean on top added to the elegance.

The Oh Liang!

Next was the non-alcoholic Bellini NA for $15 on Apero’s regular bar menu. The drink is made with white peach puree and Lyre’s non-alcoholic prosecco. It tasted like very sour peaches, so if you like sour flavors, you’ll enjoy this drink. It was not a sweet drink, and it was quite fizzy — almost reminiscent of a wine cooler.

Bellini!

Time for some food! We got the Burrata for $20. The tomatoes were super fresh and marinated — they were both a little sweet and a little sour. The cheese was exceptionally creamy, with a magnificent shell of mozzarella. Overall, it was a lovely, refreshing dish.

Burrata!

We just had to try the Short Rib Pizza for $26! This one is made with garlic and shallot confit, braised short rib, mozzarella, pickled red onion, and chili oil. The crust was soft but crisp at the same time. The cheese was perfectly cooked. We didn’t detect much flavor from the short rib, unfortunately. We found that the entire dish was very heavy on garlic and parmesan — even the smell of garlic was very overpowering! This would not be a dish for anyone who doesn’t absolutely love garlic.

Short Rib Pizza!

Rocher ($18) was for dessert, and it was magnificent. This is described as chocolate frangelico semifreddo, salted caramel filling, chocolate cake, and chocolate fudge sauce. It was just like eating a Rocher candy — super creamy, and the nuts added a perfect amount of crunch. The fudge sauce was rich and decadent. We would 100% get this again! 

Rocher!

All in all, the event was delightful! The atmosphere was elegant and very welcoming. There was a violinist there who was superb and really added a perfect tone to the evening. There was seating at the bar and at nearby indoor and outdoor tables, which were very comfortable. While the menu is heavy on flavorful herbs with Mediterranean influences, there should be something for everyone here.

Outside the lobby

If you’re in Orlando, this is a place you should try out sometime. For more food reviews, make sure to stay tuned to the Disney Food Blog!

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Have you been to the Conrad Orlando? Let us know in the comments!

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. Today, we were invited by Conrad Orlando to attend their media preview of Apero. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ