Turf Club Dinner Review
*This gluten free dining experience took place in March 2022. It includes information about dairy free options, as well as fish/shellfish, peanut, hazelnut, cabbage, and chicken & turkey allergies.
Dinner at Turf Club
Turf Club Bar and Grill, located at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort, has been a restaurant that we have been to quite a few times over the years for its moderate table service prices and low-key atmosphere. It’s been quite a few years since we’ve been, partially due to the closure during COVID-19. Recently, we finally made it back to the newly reopened Turf Club after hearing good things about the new menu from friends.
Atmosphere
Turf Club has a decidedly equestrian theme. You’ll see photos of horse jockey jackets and horse riding gear, along with vintage decorations. The restaurant and the overall theme of Saratoga Springs Resort are inspired by turn-of-the-century upstate New York.
Sarah & Brandon at the Turf Club Entrance / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
The restaurant itself is located in the back of the main resort building and has views of the Lake Buena Vista Golf Club, Clubhouse, and Disney Springs. You can also get to the restaurant from the front of the resort by walking through the main lobby.
Seating Area - Turf Club / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
Inside the restaurant, you’ll find the equestrian theme throughout. Even the carpet is themed. We do find that the the theming is a bit on the dated side. But, we do both really enjoy the dark wood and cozy feeling from the decor. Unfortunately, we were seated at the front of the restaurant near the entrance, so we didn’t get a good chance to take a lot of photos or video.
Sunset at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
You can dine both indoors and outdoors at Turf Club. While we opted to dine inside this visit, we did get a lovely sunset stroll in as we were parked in the back parking lot near the golf club. You can’t beat those Florida sunsets!
The Food
Like most restaurants owned and operated by Disney, Turf Club does have an allergy-friendly menu. Of course, you can always speak to a chef to discuss options too. On this visit, we worked through our special dietary needs with our server and overall, found the menu to be very accommodating for our special dietary needs.
Gluten Free & Allergy-Friendly Bread Service at Turf Club / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
For bread service, I was served the gluten free, dairy free & allergy-friendly (and vegan) Bloomfield Farms brand rolls. These came with butter with black lava salt. If you’re dairy free, they do carry non-dairy butter options too.
The rolls were a little overheated, but I really enjoyed the black lava salt on the butter that accompanied the rolls. My only complaint was that there wasn’t enough salt!
Brandon had regular rolls that contained gluten. He really loved them, as they had both cheese, garlic, and herbs inside them.
Chopped Salad - Turf Club / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
For an appetizer, I debated on what to order, because the grilled artichoke appetizer sounded great. I ultimately settled on the Chopped Salad with Fresh Market Greens, Salami Toscano, Blue Cheese, Red Onion, Pickled Apricots, Roasted Shallot Vinaigrette. This was marked safe for Gluten/Wheat, Egg, Fish/Shellfish, Peanut/Tree Nut, and Soy Allergies.
If you are dairy free or vegan, this salad can be modified by omitting the salami and cheese. *If you’re looking for vegan reviews on this restaurant, we do recommend checking out the Vegan Disney Food website or Princess & the Bear’s YouTube channel.
Overall, I really liked this salad. The dressing was very light but flavorful. I liked all the components minus the chickpeas which seemed a bit out of place for the rest of the salad. Both Brandon and I were surprised at how big the salad was, so next time we might split this instead of ordering a full one ourselves! I would definitely get this again.
Chopped Salad without Cabbage - Turf Club / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
Brandon initially requested the French Onion Soup on the menu, which was listed as having beef broth. Unfortunately, we did find out that the soup is also made with chicken broth — which Brandon is allergic to. With this, he ended up ordering a Chopped Salad too — modified to be safe for him by omitting the cabbage.
Like me, Brandon really liked this — though he said it needed more blue cheese!
Filet Mignon - Turf Club / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
For entrees, both Brandon and I chose the Filet Mignon with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Smoked Vidalia Onion, Romanesco, Baby Carrots, and Cabernet-Fig Jus. This dish was marked safe for Gluten/Wheat, Egg, Fish/Shellfish, and Peanut/Tree Nut Allergies. It can be made dairy free by modifying the sides and sauce.
Wow! Was this dish a surprise hit with both of us. We both thought the filet would be good but not amazing. We were absolutely blown away by the way this dish was thoughtfully prepared and the overall quality of everything served. The filet mignon had a lovely grill flavor and was perfectly seasoned and cooked. I loved the sweet and savory Cabernet-Fig Jus. It added a lot of depth to the dish. The absolute stunner of this dish though was the smoked Vidalia onion with mashed potatoes inside it. The smokey, earthy flavor of the onion and the richness of the mashed potatoes was sheer perfection. And, to top it all off, the vegetables were super flavorful and well-seasoned. We both loved how they were grilled which added some nice flavor to both the carrot and romanesco.
The dish ranks high for me for steaks served at Disney World!
Filet Mignon without Sauce at Turf Club / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
Brandon’s dish was slightly modified because of his allergies to chicken and turkey. So, this meant his entree came without the sauce. Even without the sauce, Brandon said his entree was outstanding. We both agreed that we need to go back again for these steaks, because they were just so good!
Brandon even liked the romanesco, which he would normally not enjoy! Well-done Turf Club on making some very tasty veggies!
Plant-Based Creme Brûlée - Turf Club / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
For dessert, I could not pass up ordering the Mango-Passion Fruit Crème Brûlée. This dish was marked safe for Gluten/Wheat, Egg, Fish/Shellfish, Milk, and Peanut Allergies. It is also vegan. It does contain coconut, which is why it is not listed as safe for tree nut allergies.
Even though I really don’t like creme brûlée, I had to try this because it’s rare that restaurants make these kinds of desserts safe for those who are dairy free or vegan. I will give Turf Club some serious points for both creativity and effort in trying to make this dessert. I was also impressed that it had a nice crisp sugar coating on the top — a classic creme brûlée feature.
Unfortunately, this was just not a dessert that I enjoyed. I do like passion fruit, and I like the general flavor profiles of the dessert. I just didn’t like the texture and overall combination of flavors. The creme brûlée was oddly heated throughout (the bottom was very hot and the top was lukewarm) and the chocolate sauce was very bitter. It was not a dessert for me. That being said, I’ve heard so many great reviews about this dessert, that I would recommend trying it if you’re dairy free or vegan.
Espresso - Turf Club / Photo Taken by Gluten Free & Dairy Free at WDW
Brandon didn’t see any dessert that was of interest to him, so he opted to get an espresso instead. It’s always nice when a restaurant has some after dinner coffee options too.
If you want to hear more about our experience at Turf Club, check out the vlog we did for our YouTube channel for more information.
Overall
We were really impressed with the new, updated menu for Turf Club Bar and Grill. Not only was the food very friendly for our special dietary needs, but the quality of the food was excellent. This stepped up for us in our rank of restaurants on Disney property. We love that they really upped their game with options and made creative choices. We are looking forward to going back again soon!
Have you been to Turf Club Bar and Grill? What was your experience dining there?