Tag Archives: Italy

Enjoy Lunch (or Dinner!) at the Via Napoli Pizza Window!

Always a great topic to start off any day, let’s talk about pizza!  Yes, folks, let’s chat about Via Napoli Pizzeria e Ristorante!

Never been to Via Napoli?  Believe it or not, neither had I!  It was actually Evan Chaisson’s recent post – right here on All in WDW – that brought it up to the top of my list.

Therefore, let’s start with him.  Evan covered his fantastic dinner a few weeks back.  Catch it here at … Dining Recon: Via Napoli!

Yum!  Personally, pizza is one of my very favorite foods.  Little peek behind the curtain, there!  Anyway, the day I stopped by Italy, I didn’t have time for a full sit-down experience.

Never fear, the pizza window was near!  Check it out!

To find Via Napoli, enter the Italy Pavilion, of course!

Via Napoli is directly in the back of the pavilion.

The pizza window is on the left side of the building.

For lunch, I started with Napoli’s pizza “special”.  A thick-crust Pizza Bianca covered with pomodoro (tomato sauce), prosciutto, arugula, and freshly-made mozzarella, I wondered if they gave me a double portion!

Initially, I had intended on going “boring”.  My goal had been to buy a simple slice of pepperoni pizza.  In the end, I wish I had.  I found the bianca to be too much “bread” and too little sauce.  The prosciutto and mozzarella were good, though.

When it came down to it, in reality, I had come for the meatballs!  I knew that I wanted to sample the window’s Polpette E Mozzarella Parmigiana!

Almost identical to a dish served by Italy at 2017’s “Food” & Garden Festival, Napoli’s version was equally outstanding!  Hand-made beef and veal meatballs.  Tomato sauce.  Mozzarella.  Parmigiano.  Fantastic!

My friends, my first taste of this iconic Epcot table service restaurant was a mixed bag, that’s for sure.  In the end, though, if those meatballs had been part of Food & Wine, they might have won the festival!

My recommendations?  Stay simple with your pizza order but get those meatballs!  Whether you dine inside or out, however, you’re bound to have a great Italian meal!  Buon appetito!

Dining Recon: Via Napoli Pizzeria e Ristorante

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!

The All in WDW Readers’ Top 10 Epcot Quick Service Restaurants!

Good morning!  Did you have a chance to listen to the WDW Magical Main Street Memories Podcast starring … me?!  Well, not “starring” little ole me, but I made a solid contribution … I think!

Anyway, if you missed it, Doug Davis and Dennis Conroy of the aforementioned show asked me to “pull up a barstool” and join them in a rousing discussion of Disney food and, most of all, the upcoming Epcot® International Food & Wine Festival.

It’s worth the listen … if I do have to say so myself!  See that nice “triple-shot” picture off in the top-right margin of All in WDW’s home page?  The one labeled “All in WDW Talks Food & Wine ’14!”?  Click it!  It’ll take you right to the show!

Did you listen to the show? Which one of these Sunshine Seasons dishes did Doug Davis rave about?

Did you listen to the show? Which one of these Sunshine Seasons dishes did Doug Davis rave about?

OK.  Enough with the commercials!  Back to today’s business!  To formally conclude our contest to crown Epcot’s “king” of Quick Services, let me introduce your Top 10 Epcot Quick Service Restaurants!

  1. Sunshine Seasons
  2. Les Halles Boulangerie & Patisserie
  3. La Cantina de San Angel
  4. Kringla Bakeri og Kafe
  5. Yorkshire County Fish Shop
  6. L’Artisan des Glaces
  7. Sommerfest 
  8. Tangierine Café
  9. Electric Umbrella
  10. Liberty Inn 

Great support last week, my friends!  Thank you, very much!  You constructed a great Top 10, too, by the way!  Have a great Monday … if there is such a thing!

Let’s “Quickly” Unveil the Epcot “Champ”, Shall We?!

It’s no secret that Epcot is the All in WDW family’s favorite park, so it should come as no surprise that we’ve sampled the cuisine from most of the Quick Service options in this week’s “tournament”.

Take the Yorkshire County Fish Shop, for instance.  One of our favorite activities is to take a seat in the Rose & Crown Pub, sample some of Carl the “infamous” bartender’s beer, and nibble on a serving of Yorkshire’s delicious fish and chips.

Mmm. Love those Fish 'n Chips!

Where’s my beer, Carl?

It’s an excellent way to relax and spend a few hours out of the Epcot crowds and Florida heat.

Then, there’s La Cantina de San Angel.  One evening, some months back, Mrs. All in WDW and I staked out a table at the edge of La Cantina’s “deck”.  Prime Illuminations real estate.

Armed with waves of nachos and margaritas, we held onto that spot for hours … much to the chagrin of other hungry diners.  Of course, the show was great!

Who can turn down a School Bread?  I mean, really.  We were skeptical the first time we bought one from the infamous Kringla Bakeri og Kafe, but it, too, has become a family favorite.

School Bread

I knew that Norway was one of my favorite pavilions!

Custard.  Coconut.  It’s a great treat to have between meals or as a dessert.

Les Halles Boulangerie & Patisserie.  Oooh, fancy name.  Great selection of food!  An example of a refurb that went right.  Sandwiches upon sandwiches, and much, much more!  The only thing we don’t like about France’s bakery is the seating.  I wish it weren’t so darn hard to find a seat!

Like I said, sandwiches upon ...

Like I said, sandwiches and …

IMG_2536

… much, much more!  Delicious!

So.  Why do I babble on about virtually every contender in Epcot other than the true “champ”?  Simple.  Because, as good as all of the aforementioned places are, as good as any Quick Service in Epcot is, you can’t escape one undeniable fact.

The monumental variety of options and quality of cuisine at The Land’s Sunshine Seasons cannot be beat. In this series of polls, it wasn’t even close!

Step into the "Sunshine"!

Step into the “Sunshine”!

Seasons?  You are our “sunshine”. There’s not much more we need to say.

From soup to salads or sandwiches to entrees, you are the best. For breakfast, lunch, and dinner, your overall offering is top-shelf. As a Quick Service option, you are the total package.

And, as a result, you are the two-time All in WDW Readers’ Favorite Epcot Quick Service Restaurant! Congratulations on the repeat!