bleeps
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 15, 2003
- Messages
- 2,265
(Links to my other reviews from this trip -- with more to come!:
Monsieur Paul
Artist Point
San Angel Inn
Rose & Crown
Kouzzina breakfast
Kona Cafe breakfast
Coral Reef lunch
Mama Melrose lunch)
In 10 years of trips to WDW, and nearly all of them on DDxDP, we've just never managed to have a meal in Italy at Epcot. I'm not exactly sure why that is, although we live in the Boston area and have quite a few great Italian restaurants in the area, and there are SO many great places to eat at WDW...guess it just never seemed like a priority. It can be hard to break out from your favorites (our list of must-do's seems to get longer every trip), but we were determined to try at least a couple of new places this time around (and having California Grill closed for renovations opened up a couple of spots on our dance card!).
As with Monsieur Paul (just posted that review as well), I almost cancelled this ADR because Tutto gets pretty inconsistent reviews. But, we were all up for trying and -- drum roll, please -- we loved it!
I will admit that there are a million and one small things that can make or break any dining experience. We go in to places happy, expecting to have a good time, and with the attitude that waiting tables is extremely hard work (been there, done that, never again!). We always talk about how difficult the jobs are that the CMs have to do every day, and so we go in wanting to be friendly and relaxed.
Dinner service on this evening was very busy, although we were seated right on time for our 7:30 ADR. Our server came over with menus and apologized that he'd need a few moments to come back for drink orders; we smiled and assured him that it was all good, we were in no rush, and we could see that he was busy. Perhaps this helped set the stage for our terrific experience here; he smiled and clearly was relieved that we would be an "easy" table.
He came back promptly with bread service:
The focaccia with rosemary was just the right, dense texture and the bread sticks were airy and crisp. We love olives, and these were meaty and delicious! We asked for wine recommendations and were delighted with the server's choices (apparently I really enjoyed drinking wine on this trip but did an abysmal job of keeping track of what we had!); I cannot stress enough the benefits of asking your CM for suggestions. DS is very knowledgeable about California wines, and knows a bit about Australian and some South American wines, but really does not know Italian wines. Rather than bluffing your way through or making choices based only on price, I'd urge you to let your CM know what you like and what you are willing to spend -- I have NEVER been disappointed doing this (and it helps establish rapport with your CM).
Our DS (15) happened to be wearing a soccer jersey from the national team of Spain, and that sparked some fun with our CM (who scolded DS soundly!). We do watch a lot of international soccer so we were able to talk with him about the Italian national team and about his favorite team (Juventus). It wasn't that he had loads of free time on his hands, or that he spent an unusual amount of time at our table, but he seemed to really enjoy us and would always have a comment or pause for a moment as he checked on us and brought courses out.
On to the food!
For appetizers, I had:
Insalata di Mare Trapanese - shrimp, squid, octopus, celery, red onion, potato, capers, lemon, extra vrigin olive oil. Each item was totally fresh and prepared perfectly (sometimes in these seafood mixes you'll find one thing or another is tough, but these were all sublime). This is a cold dish, which can also mute flavors, but the dressing was bright and I ate every bite. I know I'll be dreaming of this dish all summer long.
DH went with:
"Fior Di Latte" Mozzarella - roasted red peppers, basil, Maldon sea salt, and extra virgin olive oil. I would say this is very typical of him -- he loves a mozz and tomato stack or mozz and roasted peppers and he said this was all very good. Flavors were deep, nothing was too mushy, and he soaked it all up with the focaccia.
DS also went down a very predictable path for him:
Caesar Salad - romaine wedge, olive crostini, and shaved parmesan. At first he was a little put off by the presentation, but the shaved parm was incredible, the lettuce was crisp, and the dressing was applied perfectly -- not drowning the plate. He wasn't into the olive crostini so I got to eat it for him -- YUM! He did a major amount of damage to this; his eyes can be bigger than his stomach but that wasn't an issue at this point.
For our entrees, I had:
Filetto di Sogliola - Filet of sole, white asparagus, lemons, capers. OMG. The texture of this fish was like nothing I've ever had before -- buttery, velvety, rich, tender. I think of sole as being flaky and sometimes a little dry, but this preparation turned it into something else all together. I hope this stays on the menu forever because I never want to eat anything else here -- it was that good. I should have asked how it was prepared, but I was in a state of food ecstasy and wasn't thinking clearly.
DH tried:
Fettuccine Vecchia Roma - pancetta, parmesan cream. This is a kind of dish that I make at home pretty regularly, and I wonder if you're having the same concern I was when they put this down in front of him. The top of the pasta all looks pretty dry, like this was ready first and sat a little too long while the rest of our dinner was cooking. I will say that in an Italian restaurant, you'd expect them to have the timing down on the pasta dishes. I held my breath but DH just gave it a stir and a turn and dug in -- and gave it an enthusiastic two-thumbs up. Now, you shouldn't go wrong with a dish like this and I am very glad he enjoyed it (I tried it, too, and once stirred it really was fine).
DS ordered:
Lasagna alla Bolognese - traditional preparation with Emilia-Romagna beef sauce, bechamel and parmesan. I also make lasagna at home, but mine is not nearly as fine as this one. Everything was actually very delicate and distinctly flavorful; it looks heavier here than it really was. DS got through most of it -- more than I would have expected -- and said it was exactly what he was hoping for.
We really were pretty full, but it was early in our trip and we weren't totally food-defeated yet so we did order desserts.
I had:
Lemon sorbetti. So refreshing and light! I ate more than I meant to because it was just so good -- not too sweet, but not overly tart, either.
DH gave in to:
Blackberry sorbetti, I believe. He said it was the best he'd ever had.
And DS managed to have a few bites of:
Cannoli - crisp pastry filled with sweet ricotta, chocolate and candied orange. He's not big on citrus so in his perfect world, it wouldn't have included the candied orange, but that's a personal thing and I thought the flavors all really worked together. The shell was crisp -- clearly it hadn't been sitting around as is sometimes the case with restaurant cannoli.
So again, I urge you to try the places you want to try and don't be deterred if a place gets mixed reviews. I guess we're going to have to start taking longer trips, now that we keep adding restaurants and dishes to our list for every time
Monsieur Paul
Artist Point
San Angel Inn
Rose & Crown
Kouzzina breakfast
Kona Cafe breakfast
Coral Reef lunch
Mama Melrose lunch)
In 10 years of trips to WDW, and nearly all of them on DDxDP, we've just never managed to have a meal in Italy at Epcot. I'm not exactly sure why that is, although we live in the Boston area and have quite a few great Italian restaurants in the area, and there are SO many great places to eat at WDW...guess it just never seemed like a priority. It can be hard to break out from your favorites (our list of must-do's seems to get longer every trip), but we were determined to try at least a couple of new places this time around (and having California Grill closed for renovations opened up a couple of spots on our dance card!).
As with Monsieur Paul (just posted that review as well), I almost cancelled this ADR because Tutto gets pretty inconsistent reviews. But, we were all up for trying and -- drum roll, please -- we loved it!
I will admit that there are a million and one small things that can make or break any dining experience. We go in to places happy, expecting to have a good time, and with the attitude that waiting tables is extremely hard work (been there, done that, never again!). We always talk about how difficult the jobs are that the CMs have to do every day, and so we go in wanting to be friendly and relaxed.
Dinner service on this evening was very busy, although we were seated right on time for our 7:30 ADR. Our server came over with menus and apologized that he'd need a few moments to come back for drink orders; we smiled and assured him that it was all good, we were in no rush, and we could see that he was busy. Perhaps this helped set the stage for our terrific experience here; he smiled and clearly was relieved that we would be an "easy" table.
He came back promptly with bread service:
The focaccia with rosemary was just the right, dense texture and the bread sticks were airy and crisp. We love olives, and these were meaty and delicious! We asked for wine recommendations and were delighted with the server's choices (apparently I really enjoyed drinking wine on this trip but did an abysmal job of keeping track of what we had!); I cannot stress enough the benefits of asking your CM for suggestions. DS is very knowledgeable about California wines, and knows a bit about Australian and some South American wines, but really does not know Italian wines. Rather than bluffing your way through or making choices based only on price, I'd urge you to let your CM know what you like and what you are willing to spend -- I have NEVER been disappointed doing this (and it helps establish rapport with your CM).
Our DS (15) happened to be wearing a soccer jersey from the national team of Spain, and that sparked some fun with our CM (who scolded DS soundly!). We do watch a lot of international soccer so we were able to talk with him about the Italian national team and about his favorite team (Juventus). It wasn't that he had loads of free time on his hands, or that he spent an unusual amount of time at our table, but he seemed to really enjoy us and would always have a comment or pause for a moment as he checked on us and brought courses out.
On to the food!
For appetizers, I had:
Insalata di Mare Trapanese - shrimp, squid, octopus, celery, red onion, potato, capers, lemon, extra vrigin olive oil. Each item was totally fresh and prepared perfectly (sometimes in these seafood mixes you'll find one thing or another is tough, but these were all sublime). This is a cold dish, which can also mute flavors, but the dressing was bright and I ate every bite. I know I'll be dreaming of this dish all summer long.
DH went with:
"Fior Di Latte" Mozzarella - roasted red peppers, basil, Maldon sea salt, and extra virgin olive oil. I would say this is very typical of him -- he loves a mozz and tomato stack or mozz and roasted peppers and he said this was all very good. Flavors were deep, nothing was too mushy, and he soaked it all up with the focaccia.
DS also went down a very predictable path for him:
Caesar Salad - romaine wedge, olive crostini, and shaved parmesan. At first he was a little put off by the presentation, but the shaved parm was incredible, the lettuce was crisp, and the dressing was applied perfectly -- not drowning the plate. He wasn't into the olive crostini so I got to eat it for him -- YUM! He did a major amount of damage to this; his eyes can be bigger than his stomach but that wasn't an issue at this point.
For our entrees, I had:
Filetto di Sogliola - Filet of sole, white asparagus, lemons, capers. OMG. The texture of this fish was like nothing I've ever had before -- buttery, velvety, rich, tender. I think of sole as being flaky and sometimes a little dry, but this preparation turned it into something else all together. I hope this stays on the menu forever because I never want to eat anything else here -- it was that good. I should have asked how it was prepared, but I was in a state of food ecstasy and wasn't thinking clearly.
DH tried:
Fettuccine Vecchia Roma - pancetta, parmesan cream. This is a kind of dish that I make at home pretty regularly, and I wonder if you're having the same concern I was when they put this down in front of him. The top of the pasta all looks pretty dry, like this was ready first and sat a little too long while the rest of our dinner was cooking. I will say that in an Italian restaurant, you'd expect them to have the timing down on the pasta dishes. I held my breath but DH just gave it a stir and a turn and dug in -- and gave it an enthusiastic two-thumbs up. Now, you shouldn't go wrong with a dish like this and I am very glad he enjoyed it (I tried it, too, and once stirred it really was fine).
DS ordered:
Lasagna alla Bolognese - traditional preparation with Emilia-Romagna beef sauce, bechamel and parmesan. I also make lasagna at home, but mine is not nearly as fine as this one. Everything was actually very delicate and distinctly flavorful; it looks heavier here than it really was. DS got through most of it -- more than I would have expected -- and said it was exactly what he was hoping for.
We really were pretty full, but it was early in our trip and we weren't totally food-defeated yet so we did order desserts.
I had:
Lemon sorbetti. So refreshing and light! I ate more than I meant to because it was just so good -- not too sweet, but not overly tart, either.
DH gave in to:
Blackberry sorbetti, I believe. He said it was the best he'd ever had.
And DS managed to have a few bites of:
Cannoli - crisp pastry filled with sweet ricotta, chocolate and candied orange. He's not big on citrus so in his perfect world, it wouldn't have included the candied orange, but that's a personal thing and I thought the flavors all really worked together. The shell was crisp -- clearly it hadn't been sitting around as is sometimes the case with restaurant cannoli.
So again, I urge you to try the places you want to try and don't be deterred if a place gets mixed reviews. I guess we're going to have to start taking longer trips, now that we keep adding restaurants and dishes to our list for every time
