Scat Cat's Cafe -- Dinner -- Table Service -- Port Orleans French Quarter

*This dining experience took place in December 2015.Port Orleans French Quarter is home to many things - gluten free and dairy free beignets and the ever popular Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory - but has not had a proper table service dining location after the closing of Bonfamille's Cafe well over a decade ago (read a history of the resort over at PortOrleans.org).During the 2015 holiday season for about a week, Scat Cat's Cafe, a pop-up restaurant located in the space formerly known as Bonfamille's Cafe, served up guests classic N'Awlins flavors with a family style all-you-care-to-eat dinner.Because I love the Port Orleans restaurants so much, I knew I had to go. And, of course, my friends Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando and Amanda from Eating Out Without, also wanted to dine here too (you can read their reviews of our dinner on their blogs).When we arrived, we were greeted by Chef Tony and Chef Paul who I often see at the resort at Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory or Boatwright's, one of my favorite restaurants on Disney property. Both chefs gave us a run-down of the menu. It was awesome to hear that the majority of the menu was naturally gluten free and mostly dairy free. The only dairy filled items included the mashed potatoes and mac & cheese (a gluten free mac & cheese substitute was offered for Alexis). Hearing this reminded me that we were in for a treat at this dinner.While Chef Tony went over the menu with us, Chef Paul came out with GNI brand rolls and some extra virgin olive oil with herbs in it. These were very well heated and the olive oil was a great accompaniment to the rolls. Of course, knowing the dinner was all-you-care-to-eat, I made sure not to indulge in to many of these!The house salad made served included a delicious roasted garlic vinaigrette and was easily one of my new favorite salad dressings. The sweet and garlicky taste of this dressing was a nice variation of so many of the vinaigrette made on Disney property.Up next were the maque choux (made with corn, peppers, and onions) and collard greens. Both were naturally gluten free and dairy free and delicious. I think I might have been the only diner at my table to really dig into both of these, and I certainly ate my fair share. Having family with Southern roots, I absolutely adore collards, and I found these to be a delicious version.Since we couldn't have mashed potatoes, Chef Paul also brought out seasoned asparagus. Asparagus is on my high list of favorite vegetables, and this version was outstanding. Both Amanda and I quickly made our way through this dish. Hands down one of my favorite things from the meal.The main course included roasted chicken, which had been brined and seasoned well. The brining made the chicken extra moist and super flavorful. Everyone at the table loved this, and we quickly asked for seconds on the chicken.I also really enjoyed the sausage that accompanied the main platter, though I only ate one piece of this. The jambalaya was equally good, but I could have gone for the dirty rice that is served at Boatwright's. That dirty rice is bananas good!The pot roast with carrots was very flavorful, and I added a bit of the juice on the bottom of the bowl to the meat, since our version didn't have gravy. I'm not a huge beef eater, but I did enjoy the portion of it that I ate.As you can see from my plate, I certainly did not go hungry at this meal. Highlights of the main meal were definitely the salad, roasted asparagus, collard greens, and roasted chicken. If you like classic Cajun and Creole cuisine, this meal would have been right up your alley.The restaurant was serving a bread pudding for dessert, which was unfortunately not gluten free or dairy free. Thankfully, Chef Paul brought out some beignets for Amanda and me (Alexis got a bananas foster ice cream sundae), and this was the perfect ending to our meal.I absolutely adore the beignets served at Port Orleans French Quarter, and I seriously couldn't have imagined another dessert with my meal. Smothered in powdered sugar and deep fried, these beignets continue to be one of my favorite unique sweets at Disney World. Whether they are dessert or a decadent breakfast option, they are always worth the trip!Our dinner at Scat Cat's Cafe was terrific, and I can't thank Chef Tony and Chef Paul enough for continually taking care of special diets diners with delicious and decadent food. So much of their menu was already safe for us to eat, and that made having a "normal" dining experience even more possible. It's definitely a testament to why I am such a huge fan of the Port Orleans restaurants and culinary team. They are so committed to making great food for everyone, dietary restrictions or otherwise!I would love to see Scat Cat's Cafe or some other type of table service come back to Port Orleans French Quarter. The restaurant space was terrific, and the family style meal was both tasty and a very affordable dining option ($25.99 per adult). Fingers crossed that they may explore that option at POFQ in the future.Many of the items served at Scat Cat's Cafe can be found over at Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory, so if you're craving this roasted chicken or the Jambalaya, you can still get your fix there or at Boatwright's at Port Orleans Riverside.Would you like to see a table service dining location at Port Orleans French Quarter? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section!