Ever since we learned Universal’s CityWalk was closing Emeril’s for a grill-based American restaurant we were all for it. Grilled food is some of our favorites and always brings back memories of our summers back home in the midwest. Bigfire American Fare is now open so we knew we had to check it out. Here is a breakdown of Universal’s newest eatery.

Atmosphere

Think of Bigfire American Fare’s atmosphere as that of the nicest lodge you’ve ever been in. Given the theme of American grilled food, the atmosphere is very appropriate for the type of food being served. The restaurant is really big on the inside. We ended up sitting on the second floor.

Unfortunately, that great size doesn’t come with much space; there are a lot of tables crammed in every nook and cranny of the building. We didn’t feel it was overcrowded, just a bit cramped.

With that aside, the building is very clean and bright on the inside and we didn’t have a problem with noise in the least. Conversations around us were happening, but they weren’t intrusive to our meal. We could hear faint music from our table that may have been louder in the bigger main dining room, but the music wasn’t distracting.

Drinks

Bigfire American Fare has a massive drink menu full of beers, wines and spirits, but their specialty is bourbon. Tyler never misses an opportunity to have an old fashioned and Bigfire American Fare has a good selection of the drink to try. One option is the Grand Pappy, an old fashioned made with 10-year old bourbon! While that may sound great, it’s extremely expensive. A single glass is $100! 

Not wanting to spend the entire meal’s budget on one drink, Tyler decided to go with The Classic. The Classic is Bigfire American Fare’s signature old fashioned because it’s made with their own special brand of bourbon. As far as taste goes, The Classic is among the best old fashioneds Tyler’s ever had. The proportion of bourbon to the syrup and fruits inside were spot on. They even provided a whopping five Luxardo cherries, the best part of an old fashioned. This drink isn’t to be missed.

Jessica decided to go with something from the specialty cocktail menu called the Lakeside Punch. This drink pairs vodka with orange, pineapple and cranberry juices. It was a nice, refreshing drink but didn’t really stand out as a must-have like Tyler’s.

The Food at Bigfire American Fare

We decided against an appetizer so we could enjoy a dessert (more on that below), but based off of spying on other tables, the best-looking app is the Skillet Roasted Mussels. We’re eager to try them on a future trip.

As its name suggests, Bigfire American Fare has grilled American food all over its menu. It was a challenge to find our entrees because everything sounded so good. The menu is separated into different sections: Entrees (think plated food), Salads, Handhelds (sandwiches) and Off the Embers (more plated items, but specialty grilled). Each section has a good variety of meat, seafood and chicken. Gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan options are marked as well. We would be surprised if there was a member of your family who couldn’t find anything they liked.

After a debate, Jessica went with a Salmon BLTA which is your standard BLT with salmon and avocado added in. The bacon is “jalapeno bacon” but honestly it didn’t taste spicy so don’t let that deter you from getting it if you don’t like spicy food. Rather than a slice of tomato, the sandwich comes with a tomato jam which is a cool twist on the sandwich. It was a solid sandwich, but with so many other great options on the menu, it may not be a repeat for us.

Tyler was torn between a steak or the Signature Bison Burger. He ended up going with the burger because bison isn’t nearly as common on a menu and it’s one of his favorites. However, the fact that the burger was on the menu wasn’t nearly as impressive as how well it was made.

Despite Jessica’s (and our waiter’s) questioning, Tyler ordered his burger medium rare. Medium rare isn’t as common with burgers as it is with steak, which means if you order medium rare you usually get medium or medium well. Yet, after biting into his burger the burger was actually cooked medium rare. 

This feat was as impressive as anything else in the meal. The burger was cooked to what Tyler wanted and was delicious. If Bigfire American Fare is that accurate with a burger, just think of how well done (heh) your steak will be?

Like we said earlier, we decided against an appetizer so we could enjoy a dessert. We went with the Tableside S’mores because it was something we could share. The s’mores came out in a segmented plate with graham crackers, Hershey’s chocolate, Reese’s Cups and two kinds of marshmallows. 

One kind of marshmallow was the common store-bought kind while the others were made in house, including chocolate marshmallows. You could really tell a difference between the store-bought and in-house flavors! The in-house ones were much better tasting and didn’t have an artificial aftertaste as the store-bought ones did.

We roasted our marshmallows over a small, controlled fire-in-a-cup (think a wickless candle) which gave us plenty of open flames to work with. Using Reese’s in a s’more was something we both did growing up, so it was fun to see it given to us in a restaurant. The fire burns for about 20 minutes, so we didn’t feel rushed in making our s’mores.

The Verdict on Bigfire American Fare

In places like CityWalk and Disney Springs, if you don’t have a gimmick or outlandish theme like Toothsome or T-Rex Cafe, you need to rely on the quality of your food to survive. By simply offering grilled American food, Bigfire American Fare was already facing an uphill battle. Thankfully, the food taste and quality are the restaurant’s best part. Tyler’s burger was done exactly how he wanted and his drink was one of the better old fashioned he’s had. Jessica loved the unique combination in her meal and the dessert was a fun way to end the evening.

For as good as the food and drinks were, we noticed the portions were smaller than we usually get. Tyler’s drink could have used a splash or two more and the pile of fries we got were on the low side. It’s not necessarily a bad thing because it left more room for dessert and we didn’t walk away feeling overstuffed, but we also want to make sure we’re getting our money’s worth. The portions weren’t so small we felt cheated but small enough for us to notice.

If you’re looking for a solid meal at CityWalk, you can’t go wrong with Bigfire American Fare. While it doesn’t have the flash of Toothsome or the lassez faire attitude of NBC Grill and Brew, it’s got a diverse menu and extremely well-made food. You’ll enter the building hungry and leave comfortable, full and happy. Bigfire American Fare gets our seal of approval. (Plus, Universal Annual Passholders get a discount too!)