By Evan Chaisson

While sitting at the Rose & Crown Pub – waiting for Illuminations to begin – I couldn’t stop thinking about the meal we just had … at Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria!

Huh?  What?  I know.  Rose & Crown is great, but I just have to write this review.  We had just left the Italy Pavilion and, yet again, had amazing food and fantastic service at Via Napoli.

First, a little bit about Via Napoli … it’s really the main restaurant in the Italy Pavilion.  Shhh.  Don’t tell Tutto Italia Ristorante, though.

Napoli’s specialty are its pizzas, pastas, and Italian drinks.  They boast an open concept kitchen and restaurant which only leads to one thing – this might be the loudest restaurant in all of Walt Disney World!

Of course, that being said, the noise is the only negative point we can make.  The positive?  Well, let’s get to the food.  Oh, just a hint … if you want bread service you have to request it, fans.  It’s very good and they serve plenty.

On this visit, we started with the Arancini.  Fried risotto filled with mozzarella and meat ragù, you get two “balls”.  Perfection!

Next, we moved on to entrées. As we normally do, my wife and I decided to split a dish.  Well, that turned out to be a large pizza.  We chose one that was half Margherita and half prosciutto and roasted peppers.

The prosciutto melts in your mouth, and trust me, folks, they don’t skimp on the toppings!  The roasted peppers – red, yellow, and orange – burst with flavor.

On the other hand, the Margherita pizza was in my wife’s words – “Oh, my!”  Her side of the pizza was covered in mozzarella, and the sauce was phenomenal.

We would recommend anybody who likes good Italian food to try Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria the next time that they are at Epcot.  I can, now, taste why it’s generally recognized as the best restaurant in Epcot.  In our opinion, it also has the best pizza on property!