Not impressed with Via Napoli

[DisneyFive]

Believe me, it was a surprise to us too... Maybe we had too high of expectations, but we just weren't overly impressed with Via Napoli. It was good, but not great.

We've been to roughly 16 different TS locations at WDW over the last 5 years, with many of our fav's repeated year after year, but we wanted to try something new this year so we decided to try Via Napoli.

The entrees that we ordered:
Me: Prosciutto e Melone Pizza - white pizza, fontina, mozzarella, prosciutto, canteloupe, arugula
Wife: Lasagne Verde - white lasagna, spinach, parmesan, ricotta, besciamella
DD13: Spaghetti e Polpettine - hand-crafted veal meatballs & tomato sauce
DD11: Funghi Pizza - tomato sauce, mozzarella, portobello, cremini mushrooms
DS8: Spaghetti with Meatballs

Desserts:
Me: Zeppole di Caterina - Ricotta cheese fritters, served with whipped cream and chocolate sauce
Wife: Coppa Brutti Ma Buoni - “Ugly But Good” Amarena cherry & vanilla gelato sundae
DD13: Coppa Brutti Ma Buoni
DD11: Coppa Brutti Ma Buoni
DS8: Coppetta di Gelato - chocolate or vanilla Italian Sundae

Now, I love thin crust brick oven pizza, but there just wasn't anything special about it at Via Napoli. Crust was a bit chewy to be honest, and there just wasn't that pop of flavor I expected based on so many reviews... I did like the unique combination of toppings on my pizza, as it was a fun alternative to the standards.

My wife's Lasagna Verde was o.k., but was pretty bland. Plus, it comes served VERY "bare bones" Just a hunk of lasagna on a small dish.

My daughters spaghetti with meatballs was good, but nothing special either. She said it was o.k., pretty good. Granted, it is spaghetti with meatballs. Only so much you can do with that, but it was surprisingly mediocre.

The mushroom pizza for my other daughter was tasty, again good, not great.

The desserts were fantastic though. The cheese fritters of mine were awesome, dipped in the warm chocolate. And the "Ugly but Good" desserts were great too.

The environment/theming wasn't anything special either. Other than the cool looking brick ovens, there wasn't much to set Via Napoli apart from any other Italian restaurant in other locations around the US. Maybe I'm being overly harsh, or was expecting too much, but it just fell a little flat for us.

Dan

 

[sproutmd]

Thanks for the review!

 

[havoc315]

Those aren't brick ovens.... "Brick oven" is just a marketing gimmick. A gas oven with bricks decorating the outside. But they are really just ordinary brick ovens.

Truly great pizza can be made in wood burning or coal ovens. For a variety of reasons (including the pollution from a coal oven), very few restaurants use these types of ovens. But they burn hotter, and many pizza aficionados appreciate the "burnt" crust of a wood or coal burned pizza. Plus, wood imparts its own unique flavor.
When properly done, the crust should be at least partially blackened.

Via Napoli does use wood burned pizzas. Some people dislike the wood flavors and the "burnt" aspect of the pizza, while it is considered a better more gourmet pizza by others. So it is possible that wood burning doesn't appeal to you, and you prefer a regular gas oven pizza. Or.. you described it as chewy. Shouldn't be chewy... If it was chewy... was it burnt at all? If it was chewy, and if it wasn't burnt at all, then it sounds like they undercooked your pies. Yuck.

I suspect, they may have had customers that were complaining "my pizza is burned!" --- And therefore they are now undercooking them, leading to very "blah" results, but the results that people are more used to seeing.

 

[nanni]

My friend and I went 2 years ago and neither of us were really impressed. I had the prosciutto and melon pizza and it was okay. She had a pasta dish, I can't remember which one, and thought it was greasy and bland.

 

[DisneyFive]

Those aren't brick ovens.... "Brick oven" is just a marketing gimmick. A gas oven with bricks decorating the outside. But they are really just ordinary brick ovens.

Truly great pizza can be made in wood burning or coal ovens. For a variety of reasons (including the pollution from a coal oven), very few restaurants use these types of ovens. But they burn hotter, and many pizza aficionados appreciate the "burnt" crust of a wood or coal burned pizza. Plus, wood imparts its own unique flavor.
When properly done, the crust should be at least partially blackened.

Via Napoli does use wood burned pizzas. Some people dislike the wood flavors and the "burnt" aspect of the pizza, while it is considered a better more gourmet pizza by others. So it is possible that wood burning doesn't appeal to you, and you prefer a regular gas oven pizza. Or.. you described it as chewy. Shouldn't be chewy... If it was chewy... was it burnt at all? If it was chewy, and if it wasn't burnt at all, then it sounds like they undercooked your pies. Yuck.

I suspect, they may have had customers that were complaining "my pizza is burned!" --- And therefore they are now undercooking them, leading to very "blah" results, but the results that people are more used to seeing.

Now that you mention it, remembering back, I'm guessing they undercooked them a little. It may just be as simple as that. Attached is a photo of the pizza I had. Doesn't look too undercooked, but could have been better. I love the blackened, burnt, woody flavor of true wood oven pizza. It was what I was expecting. Doesn't fix the mediocre results of the other entree's but could explain a good part of why the pizza wasn't top notch.

Dan

 

[havoc315]

Now that you mention it, remembering back, I'm guessing they undercooked them a little. It may just be as simple as that. Attached is a photo of the pizza I had. Doesn't look too undercooked, but could have been better. I love the blackened, burnt, woody flavor of true wood oven pizza. It was what I was expecting. Doesn't fix the mediocre results of the other entree's but could explain a good part of why the pizza wasn't top notch.

Dan
View attachment 127373

Hard to tell in that picture. But if that is the answer, it begs another question:
Did you just get unlucky, and happen to get an undercooked pizza, or are they undercooking them on purpose?

I ate at Via Napoli around 4-5 years ago, when it was still fairly new. It was very very good pizza. But I recall a lot of complaints (in reviews and message boards) around that time of "burnt pizza."
So I really wonder if they started undercooking the pizza on purpose. I go to a coal oven pizza place that has signs explaining, "Our pizza will have a burnt crust" -- warning new customers what to expect. At Disney, they may have just decided to cater to the generic American palate and "dumb down" the pizza a bit.

 

[jknicholas]

Those aren't brick ovens.... "Brick oven" is just a marketing gimmick. A gas oven with bricks decorating the outside. But they are really just ordinary brick ovens.

Truly great pizza can be made in wood burning or coal ovens. For a variety of reasons (including the pollution from a coal oven), very few restaurants use these types of ovens. But they burn hotter, and many pizza aficionados appreciate the "burnt" crust of a wood or coal burned pizza. Plus, wood imparts its own unique flavor.
When properly done, the crust should be at least partially blackened.

Via Napoli does use wood burned pizzas. Some people dislike the wood flavors and the "burnt" aspect of the pizza, while it is considered a better more gourmet pizza by others. So it is possible that wood burning doesn't appeal to you, and you prefer a regular gas oven pizza. Or.. you described it as chewy. Shouldn't be chewy... If it was chewy... was it burnt at all? If it was chewy, and if it wasn't burnt at all, then it sounds like they undercooked your pies. Yuck.

I suspect, they may have had customers that were complaining "my pizza is burned!" --- And therefore they are now undercooking them, leading to very "blah" results, but the results that people are more used to seeing.

I would agree on the pizzas probably being undercooked. Some of the pizza joints in my area I personally ask for well done on my pizzas to get them a little crispy.

thank you for the review! i think i would still give it a whirl

 

[jknicholas]

also, to take one step further, that type of pizza is usually assembled after its pulled. most pizza places, at least the italian ones that I've grown up on dont put arugula or proscuitto on the pizza and then stick it in the oven. they always put it on after. i wonder if whomever the cook was pulled it too early vs say a standard cheese pizza where its in for XXX amount of minutes. in those ovens, it shouldnt be that long either as the heat is in excess of 500+ degrees.

regardless, your picture made my mouth water awhile im sitting here at work.... my co-workers thing im foaming at the mouth - nope its just me drooling.

 

[lovin'fl]

We went once and weren't wowed either.

 

[DisneyFive]

also, to take one step further, that type of pizza is usually assembled after its pulled. most pizza places, at least the italian ones that I've grown up on dont put arugula or proscuitto on the pizza and then stick it in the oven. they always put it on after. i wonder if whomever the cook was pulled it too early vs say a standard cheese pizza where its in for XXX amount of minutes. in those ovens, it shouldnt be that long either as the heat is in excess of 500+ degrees.

regardless, your picture made my mouth water awhile im sitting here at work.... my co-workers thing im foaming at the mouth - nope its just me drooling.

Yeah, really the only thing on the pizza while it was in the oven was any sauce and the cheese. The arugula, cantaloupe, and prosciutto were all added after. It was a yummy pizza, just not to the level I was expecting.

It wasn't a bad meal per se, just not somewhere we'll be back to when there are other options we know we like better. Yeah, I would still give it a whirl.

Dan

 

[UnderTheRialto]

I find the pizza good, but not amazing. I live in a pretty boring area but even in my area we can get similar pizzas.

However, I find it amazing compared to any other WDW pizza!

 

[minnie mum]

Thanks for your review. I have to agree that Via Napoli is really just a run of the mill Italian place. The only thing it has going for it is that the pizzas are marginally better than the usual cheesy cardboard that defines Disney pizzas elsewhere.

One of the things that you mentioned repeatedly was that it just wasn't special. Well, no. Outside of a very few restaurants at WDW, there really is nothing special as far as the food goes. Anyone who expects 'special' from a non signature restaurant is just setting themselves up for disappointment. I'm usually happy if the food is just 'OK'. I'm ecstatic if it's good or very good. YMMV

 

[Planogirl]

We enjoyed the pizza but haven't tried anything else.

They sure are popular. I can't find anything available during our week.

 

[librarymom2007]

We enjoyed it but I cannot remember what we got! I only remember the tiramisu which was amazing!

 

[Nancy F]

We try to go every trip and have never had a bad pizza. The only pizza I enjoy more is John's right off of Broadway in NY.

 

[PoohsHunnyBee]

I ate there last week for the first time and agree that my pizza crust was chewy, but only on the inside. The exterior had some crunch and dark spots, but the interior was thicker than I had expected from pictures/reviews and had a chewiness that I attributed to Via Napoli using a high-gluten flour in their dough.

Personally, I enjoyed it and would be interested to know if that's how the crust is intended or if it was underdone.

 

[POTCfan]

I am definitely a bigger fan of their pizza than you, but I agree about the other entrees. When we went in June, I got the pizza (as usual) and just tasted others entrees. I was very happy with my choice. And my wife's favorite dessert in all of WDW is the Zeppole di Caterina.

 

[tinkerhon]

We try to go every trip and have never had a bad pizza. The only pizza I enjoy more is John's right off of Broadway in NY.

Love johns !! ( other than the notorious mediocre service) --- pizza is so good !! Was just there seeing "Spring Awakening" ---- if you can come that close, go to "Spumoni Gardens" --- Brooklyn --- best pizza ever !!!

 

[POTCfan]

Ha! We are big fans of John's as well - and while we will absolutely eat at the Broadway location, my wife prefers the Greenwich Village location. Though I think it has more to do with her going to NYU than the pizza quality (we love both).

And if you love John's and Via Napoli, you'll also love Apizza Scholls in Portland, Oregon!

 

[Mikka]

Too be blunt, I've always thought the pasta dishes at Via Napoli are sort of bleh. I've been told by nt Italian friend from Naples who visited that it is very traditional for there (she told me it was those (a rude word) from Venice who do the fancy pastas, theirs are more plain). Still, to my used to the local mom and pop Italian places where I'm from, they tasted very plain and simple to me. Not bad, persay, but just... simple. Tutto's I like better.

The pizza's are definitely the traditional Naples stuff, though, and I like those. Or at least I did. I hope they're not undercooking them... I don't like 'burnt' crust, no, but the brown and smokiness of the Via Napoli ones weren't burnt to me, just delicious. Of course, I have seen a lot of complaints (as well as whining they're not like American pizza joints)... foo.