Via Napoli : A VERY un-Disney moment

[CarnotaurDad]

Wow. Not even sure where to start with this one as we love WDW (we own at 5 DVC resorts, and go at least twice a year to WDW) but something happened at Via Napoli that defies explanation.

DD and I are in WDW for a Daddy-Daughter vacation and decided to try Via Napoli. I love pizza and I love prosciutto so thought it would be great to try their pizza.

The menu for Via Napoli has a margherita pizza, a pepperoni pizza and a pizza that had prosciutto and cantaloupe. So, I figured, shouldn't be too hard to just make a plain prosciutto pizza. Either take the cantaloupe off the one pizza or add prosciutto to the plain margherita pizza or use prosciutto instead of pepperoni on that pizza.

Nope. No way. No how.

Spoke to the waiter, the waiter's manager and finally the manager of the restaurant overall. Can't do it. Soft opening. Too hard. Everyone will want to create their own pizza. No way can it be done.

Are you serious? I just wanted to replace pepperoni with prosciutto. Not asking for things not on the menu. Just want a prosciutto pizza. I've been to Italy many times. I know this pizza exists and is not some "crazy" concoction invented just to frustrate restaurants.

Anyways, was very stunned with the "NO" attitude and left to go to Germany and get QS. Again, this doesn't turn me off Disney but was very surprised by the unwillingness to create. Oh, well. Maybe it will get better as they get used to requests.

 

[abirdd]

Wow - I'm surprised too!

I can appreciate the challenges faced by restaurant staff during a soft opening; but you can't tell me they could not "remove" the cantaloupe. I mean, really, what if you'd had an allery to melon?!

I had been toying with the idea of changing one of our ADR's in September, but think it's too new. Maybe on our next trip, since my DH, and kiddos all love pizza (me, not so much!).

 

[Plumeria]

I can't believe it either! How hard would it be to omit one topping? And anyway...cantaloupe on pizza??

 

[Sassagoula Billy]

It's odd, but I've been to italian restaurants here at home that don't allow personalization of toppings. Strange but true.

 

[koolaidmoms]

Kind of reminds me of Jack Nicholson ordering toast - "Now all you have to do is hold the chicken, bring me the toast, give me a check for the chicken salad sandwich, and you haven't broken any rules."
- "You want me to hold the chicken, huh?"
- "I want you to hold it between your knees."

only - I'll have the prosciutto and melon pizza and just before you cook it take the melon off and set it on the side.

Unless all the pizzas are pre-made and even then to get most of the melon off how hard can it really be?

 

[crystalcml]

It is still in soft opening though. I'm sure they are trying to work out kinks and work through it being a new restaurant.

Sorry that happened though, I wouldn't eat cantaloupe on my pizza either! Maybe next time you are there try it again and see what they can do for you.

 

[TDC Nala]

Via Napoli is not owned or operated by Disney. The operating company is the Patina Restaurant Group.

Their website is at
http://www.patinagroup.com/

and has a "contact us" section if you wish to object to their restaurants' policies or ask questions.

 

[CarnotaurDad]

Hi TDC Nala, thanks. I knew it was run by Patina but, IMHO, it doesn't excuse the behaviour from them. Just like the store at Japan isn't run by Disney, but does a great job represnting Disney atmosphere, there is a "Disney" attitude expected and didn't receive.

I did send an email but not expecting much back from them.

 

[TDC Nala]

Not trying to excuse behavior from them, but you likely had an un-Disney experience because this is an un-Disney restaurant. You should probably also go straight to the owner rather than through the middleman. They're new, maybe they need to know this.

 

[CarnotaurDad]

Gotcha, TDC Nala. Greatly appreciated. That makes sense.

I get spoiled at WDW and have no problem with the money spent when service matches expectations!

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

I love the things I learn hanging out on this board.

Abirdd questioned what the restaurant would have done for a customer with melon allergy, and I thought, "Is there such a thing as a melon allergy?" I googled the malady and discovered that there most certainly is such a thing and this site even listed what chemicals in the melon are the most likely culprits.

http://www.allallergy.net/fapaidfind.cfm?cdeoc=995

So, if you feel a burning or tingling in your mouth when you eat melons you may have an Oral Allergy Symptom. I also learned that the melon pollens are related to ragweed pollen, and I know I am allergic to ragweed. I love most fruits and vegetables but have never really liked Melon. It makes my tongue feel weird, and now I have to wonder, do I have an allergy to melon.

I thought my allergist had tested me for everything, but I am pretty sure I have never been tested for Melon. So, I will ask for the test next time I am in. Up until now I have never thought I had any food allergies, but now I am wondering if I do. So, in addition to tobacco, cats, ragweed, oak pollen, ragweed, and a host of other weeds I may have a food allergy as well.

Wow, I love this board.

 

[jaci-h]

They've only been open for 10 days, give 'em a break! I'm sure after 10 days they've made tons of pizzas, but haven't really had a chance for their chefs to "experiment" and don't want to put something out they haven't figured out or even tasted. Sorry to hear it was upsetting, but like the managers explained to you, its a soft opening. They're only just now starting to get it together.

I hope they weren't rude about it, but the way you told the story makes it seem like they were kind.

 

[DaniB]

They've only been open for 10 days, give 'em a break! I'm sure after 10 days they've made tons of pizzas, but haven't really had a chance for their chefs to "experiment" and don't want to put something out they haven't figured out or even tasted. Sorry to hear it was upsetting, but like the managers explained to you, its a soft opening. They're only just now starting to get it together.

Sorry, but I disagree. There's no reason why they could not have made the pizza but omitting that one topping. It's not like he was asking to have a competely different topping ADDED. He wanted it excluded.

 

[CarnotaurDad]

They've only been open for 10 days, give 'em a break! I'm sure after 10 days they've made tons of pizzas, but haven't really had a chance for their chefs to "experiment" and don't want to put something out they haven't figured out or even tasted. Sorry to hear it was upsetting, but like the managers explained to you, its a soft opening. They're only just now starting to get it together.

I hope they weren't rude about it, but the way you told the story makes it seem like they were kind.

No, they weren't rude. It was more like they were immovable and didn't care. For heaven's sake, it's not that hard to substitute prosciutto for pepperoni. Again, I wasn't asking for some crazy combination that didn't exist.

I was very surprised at everyone's reluctance to provide that. Very bizarre and un-Disneylike.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Wow. I enjoyed the pizza at Via Napoli (moreso than the overall experience), but that's not great to hear. Menu customization is a frequent thing for me (no cheese on burgers, no avocado on salads, etc.) and while both pizzas I tried were fine with me (piccante and carciofi), I'd be very frustrated to receive that type of response if I wanted one topping removed.

 

[Euphoria027]

Perhaps I'm just too sympathetic of people in the food industry because I've been around them my entire life but I do think that in soft opening, it's not unreasonable to just stick to what's on the menu. Just my opinion though.

 

[TaraCavin]

I always have such high expectations that are always met at Disney. I think this let down would be magnified. Because at Disney I expect legendary Disney service.

 

[pearlieq]

I think it's unreasonable and I hope it doesn't persist.

I don't see why they couldn't have a "build your own" section of the menu, but putting that aside, I cannot think of one plausible reason why they couldn't omit a topping.

I would have been pretty ticked off if I had found myself if that situation. It's like they were being stubborn just to be stubborn.

 

[itchin2go]

Perhaps I'm just too sympathetic of people in the food industry because I've been around them my entire life but I do think that in soft opening, it's not unreasonable to just stick to what's on the menu. Just my opinion though.

I'm inclined to agree. Now, if the restaurant continues to persist in this "no substitutions" policy, that would be ridiculous. But during soft opening? I can see this almost as a training program for the staff, so maybe they're minimizing unnecessary confusion.

Sorry that happened though.

 

[CathieArms]

Wow. Not even sure where to start with this one as we love WDW (we own at 5 DVC resorts, and go at least twice a year to WDW) but something happened at Via Napoli that defies explanation.

DD and I are in WDW for a Daddy-Daughter vacation and decided to try Via Napoli. I love pizza and I love prosciutto so thought it would be great to try their pizza.

The menu for Via Napoli has a margherita pizza, a pepperoni pizza and a pizza that had prosciutto and cantaloupe. So, I figured, shouldn't be too hard to just make a plain prosciutto pizza. Either take the cantaloupe off the one pizza or add prosciutto to the plain margherita pizza or use prosciutto instead of pepperoni on that pizza.

Nope. No way. No how.

Spoke to the waiter, the waiter's manager and finally the manager of the restaurant overall. Can't do it. Soft opening. Too hard. Everyone will want to create their own pizza. No way can it be done.

Are you serious? I just wanted to replace pepperoni with prosciutto. Not asking for things not on the menu. Just want a prosciutto pizza. I've been to Italy many times. I know this pizza exists and is not some "crazy" concoction invented just to frustrate restaurants.

Anyways, was very stunned with the "NO" attitude and left to go to Germany and get QS. Again, this doesn't turn me off Disney but was very surprised by the unwillingness to create. Oh, well. Maybe it will get better as they get used to requests.

I'm ABSOLUTELY NOT justifying this, as I think it's asinine; however, I have an idea where the chef/restaurant was coming from.

My brother owns his own restaurant (Italian, but that's probably not imperative to the story). I was discussing the restaurant with his daughter, my (grown) niece and we were talking about individual requests. She was telling me that her dad flies into a rage in the kitchen every time someone requests to change an entree because - according to him - two things: First, it throws him off for any other orders going out at that time. When he has to make changes for one dish, it puts him "at risk" of forgetting something important in another order. When this happens, it takes him longer to get orders out because he has to double check the other orders to be sure he didn't mess something up with theirs.

The second reason has to do with that artistry of the chef's creation. When he makes changes and switches to the entree, it changes the whole entree and he can't guarantee the quality of what he's putting out.

Now, with that in mind, I'm still going to ask them to hold the butter on my veggies and omit the mushrooms. But I just thought I'd pass along some insight from a diva chef.