My culinary journey around Mardi Gras 2022 at Universal Studios Florida brought me once again to the food tents near King’s Cross Station. At this food tent, I spotted Shrimp and Avocado Ceviche. Ceviche at a theme park? Sounded risky to me. It sounded like a step up from convenience store day old sushi. Also, this ceviche faced a challenge since the night before I eat fine dining ceviche at American Kitchen Bar and Grill at the B Resort in Disney Springs. In addition, the ingredient combination of this ceviche would be defined as unique.

The Shrimp and Avocado Ceviche costs $8.99 before discounts. That food item title failed to alarm me. Shrimp and avocado commonly exist in ceviche. However, the menu description concerned my stomach and taste buds a bit. The menu description reads poached shrimp, marinated radish, (and) blood orange sorbet. Sorbet on my ceviche at a theme park? I found it interesting that avocado did not rank high enough to make menu description but featured in title of entrée.

As you can tell, the sorbet worried me. Even those who adored this dish found the sorbet to be an odd choice. The presentation of this ceviche varied among people who tried it. You should be able to see that from the sampling of photos included in this review.

If you have read many of my food reviews of Universal Orlando Mardi Gras options, you can predict my next sentence. This dish only works if you get a bit of every ingredient in each bite. If you do then the intended flavor combination makes sense. You may or may not like the intended flavor, but a clear plan can be seen.

On the good side, the poached shrimp was sizeable with a good texture. Yet, I desired more flavor with these shrimps. They appeared to have just been poached and added to the ceviche. Once again, each component of this ceviche depends on other components to maximize flavor. The marinated radish provides some flavor but would not suggest eating it separate from everything else. If looking for a bit of sour and touch of sweet, this ceviche fits that yearning.

On the less positive side, I found all the flavors just a bit off. The blood orange sorbet I had failed to every match up with rest of ceviche. In fairness, some guests enjoyed the flavor combination. Even when I consumed all the elements together, I felt something was still missing. I do not want to be overly critical because I am not sure what that piece would be to fill in the gap.

As always, I appreciate the Universal Orlando chefs’ creativity designing a food festival style ceviche. For me, this one may not have stood a chance. Most guests I polled found this ceviche simply average compared to other food options this year. Still, if you want a creative shrimp dish that will not kill your vacation budget, give this a try.