🫒Eat good, feel good: Amare at Disney’s Swan Reserve makes modern Mediterranean the new luxury

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Amare is the Swan Reserve’s signature dining outlet, and the tone is upscale without acting like it.

“We don’t want to be pretentious,” executive chef Devin Queen told me. “We really try not to take ourselves too seriously. Because it’s still food.”

That philosophy shows up in the restaurant’s Mediterranean approach: bright flavors, shareable plates, and dishes that feel indulgent without leaving you weighed down.

Queen said the team didn’t want to “pigeonhole” Amare into a single corner of Mediterranean cooking. Instead, the menu pulls notes from Greece and Italy, Northern Africa, and Israel, plus approachable favorites that make sense for Central Florida diners.

It’s a big geographic idea, but the experience is grounded in a simple promise: food made with obvious care, served by people who want you to have fun.

The first thing I tried was Amare’s signature showpiece: the Ishka Bubble.

Yes, the name is made up. That’s part of the charm.

In the kitchen, I watched the process start with a house-made dough (including flours, za’atar, garlic, and onion powder). It’s rolled, set on a tray, and sent into a roughly 600-degree oven. The heat builds steam inside the dough, and the bread puffs into a big balloon.

At the end, the bread is brushed with extra-virgin olive oil and dusted with za’atar, that earthy, toasty herb-and-sesame blend. Then it comes out to the table with an instruction I loved: stab it to let the steam out.

I was, in fact, extremely excited to stab it.

Three dips, one bread, and a very happy “sauce girl”

Amare serves the bubble bread with a flight of dips, which is basically my love language.

One was a smoky roasted red pepper-walnut dip with pomegranate sweetness (a romesco-style vibe). Another leaned bright and herb-forward, a green chile condiment built for dipping without overwhelming heat. The third was a creamy, option — tangy, balanced and the kind of sauce that makes you immediately go back for seconds.

This is the kind of shared starter that turns a table into a group project: tear, dip, argue about favorites, repeat.

Fried chicken hummus shouldn’t work — but it does

Then came a dish that made me do a double-take: fried chicken hummus.

The hummus is made daily, I learned, because chilling can change the texture. It’s whipped with lemon, cumin, olive oil, and tahini (plus a key detail: ice, to keep it smooth and airy). On top: za’atar-spiced crispy chicken, tomato jam, and toasted sesame.

The result is a sweet-salty crunch over something creamy and bright. It’s playful, and it makes a surprisingly solid case for “why not?” as a culinary strategy.

The vegetable plates are not an afterthought

I’ll be honest: brussels sprouts and I don’t always get along.

At Amare, they did.

The fried brussels sprouts are tossed in a hot honey herb sauce with citrus, then finished with pomegranate seeds for crunch. Bitter was the flavor I expected; it never showed up.

The grilled asparagus comes with a pistachio gremolata-style topping and Meyer lemon notes. It’s bright, textured, and cooked with restraint — tender, not tired.

If you’re the person who usually waves off vegetables “for the table,” you might want to rethink that here.

Parchment-baked sea bass brings the tableside “wow”

Amare’s sea bass is served in a parchment pouch and opened tableside, a little theater with a practical payoff.

The fish cooks with layers of flavor sealed inside — white wine, aromatics, kale, tomatoes, olives, shaved garlic, potatoes, and thin lemon slices meant to be eaten, not used as garnish. The staff finishes the dish with a lemon-forward sauce.

Queen told me the sea bass took serious testing because, once it’s sealed in parchment, “there’s no real way to know what it’s going to be like when it’s done.”

At the table, the payoff is delicate fish that tastes clean and citrusy, with the kind of lightness that makes you want another bite instead of a nap.

A steakhouse moment, Mediterranean-style

For meat lovers, Amare doesn’t make you choose between “fresh” and “satisfying.”

I tried a Black Angus ribeye served medium with chimichurri, plus blue cheese potatoes and a bright arugula-forward salad underneath. A black garlic element added depth without harshness.

It was the rare steak course that still felt connected to the menu’s bigger theme: bold flavor from herbs and balance, not heaviness.

Swordfish that eats like “the steak of the sea”

I also tried swordfish, which I’d never eaten before. The kitchen described it as the “meatiest” fish — more steak-like in texture than flaky.

It arrived over a saffron risotto-style rice cake, topped with a bright, crunchy salad and pomegranate seeds. The whole plate leaned fresh, not fishy, and it matched what I kept coming back to all night: ingredients that taste alive.

Why Amare stands out at the Swan Reserve

Queen said what separates Amare isn’t only the food — it’s also the service and the way guests are welcomed.

That tracked with my night. Between the tableside reveals, the kitchen’s willingness to explain the “why,” and the menu’s across-the-Mediterranean ambition, Amare felt less like a generic hotel restaurant and more like a destination.

If you’re looking for upscale Mediterranean food in Orlando — especially near Walt Disney World — Amare’s biggest flex might be how modern its luxury feels: flavor that’s fresh and balanced, and a meal that leaves you happy and grateful.