Narcoossees Cheese Plate

One thing you will quickly discover is that I LOVE CHEESE PLATES. Cheese plates–especially at Disney World–are truly what I look forward to. Even more than steak and dessert most of the time.

I wanted to do a series on these because they’re beautiful, but also because I think they’re a good opportunity for the restaurants to do a nice little piece of branding. They usually serve cheeses that reflect the ethnicity and geography of their menu, and therefore what they want to be known for.

I’ll start with Narcoossees because it’s one of my favorite restaurants and serves one of the tastiest and most beautiful cheese plates I’ve seen at the World:

Extra Old Black Diamond White Cheddar, Cow’s Milk: This is “the official cheddar of Disney World” as far as I’m concerned, and since tillamook has been so conspicuously lessened on Artist Point‘s menu lately. You get Canadian Black Diamond just about everywhere cheddar is required (Le Cellier and Yachtsman to name two), and I like to believe that’s because Black Diamond is simply the best of the best. Black Diamond on a crisp with honey is absolutely delicious.

California Humbolt Fog, Goat’s Milk: This is a mild and tangy cheese. It’s got a cream cheese-like texture and an edible rind. Most distinctive is the thin layer of ash running through the wheel (don’t worry, you can eat this, too). Narcoossees serves it with dried cranberries, which I greatly enjoyed.

Rogue River Blue Cheese, Cow’s Milk: You see this in one or two other places in the land of Disney cheese plates, and it’s meant to be one of the stronger cheeses served. The wheels are hand-wrapped in grape leaves soaked in Clear Creek’s Pear Brandy, which helps to maintain the cheese’s moist texture. This is a straightforward blue cheese–you’ll have to remind your kids that eating mold is OK sometimes.