Just the two of us...no dining plan, no discounts, no allergies...lots of pics! COMPLETE

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Sorry for the super dark drink shot, but we were anxious to try them! The Server was teasing Husband and the other person who had ordered the Jet Juice that it was the strongest thing on the menu. It is served in a small glass and probably tastes stronger than it is because of the heat of the chile and the tang of the lemon. Good drink! I was sufficiently entertained by the tingling of my drink. Never had one quite like that before. The tang of the tingle helped to cut the sweetness of the rest of the drink. It was both refreshing and invigorating. We enjoyed getting to know our table-sharers, and overall the place is really fun. Here is the bar:

 

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Oh that’s bad. I’m in NJ (10 minutes from Philly) and won’t order any cheesesteak sandwiches outside of my area. The ones in WDW look downright scary!

We sure learned our lesson!

 

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We got a kick out of the DJ.

 

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And of course had to take the obligatory Oga's selfie:

 

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We continued to have fun around the park until it was time for our 6:35 ADR at Mama Melrose. Despite the up and down reviews, we chose to try it mainly because we had never been to it before, unlike 50's Prime which we had previously experienced. Since Sci-Fi was a repeat, we didn't want two in one day. We arrived at Mama's a good fifteen minutes before our reservation, hoping that maybe we could get in earlier, because by now we desperately needed to rest our weary legs and also to get the heck out of the cold again! We had also gotten up so early. The Woman at the Hostess stand who checked us in was a bit on the rude/grumpy side informing us that we were not only EARLY, but that THEY were running LATE. Somehow she managed to make us feel like being early was a fault, while running late was perfectly normal. Okay, whatever. We'll wait even though she offered to take a phone number and text us, but both of our phones were running low on battery power. Note: There is not much room inside to wait for a table. I'm sure that 99% of the time, that's not a bad thing in Florida, but it was still super COLD out. After about five minutes, we got really lucky when one of the few benches opened up, and we plopped down to await our fate.

Let me tell you, if you are a BIG group...this is your place! They took table after table of large families. We kept thinking, surely you could squeeze in TWO people somewhere? Sure enough we waited the 15 minutes until our actual ADR. Then we waited exactly the twenty minutes more that she said they were running behind. The whole time we were thinking they sure seemed to have overbooked the place! When we got inside, it was clear why it took so long for the two of us...there were very few two-tops and I'm sure they weren't about to put us at an empty table that could seat four. Oh well, we were IN and glad for it! Bring on that glass of red wine!

Our Server was sure busy but she got our drinks and let us order pretty quickly. I had to remind myself to be patient on this trip with ordering, because unlike me who had perused every menu and pretty much knew what I was going to order for every ADR of our trip, Husband had not done so. Shockingly he actually had to READ the menu, and make a decision. After we ordered, we were brought some warm yummy bread and given nice olive oil to dip it in.

 

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One of the reasons I thought Husband would like this restaurant was that they had a nice sounding steak for $33. (Compared to $50 for a steak at Hollywood Derby). Being a beef-loving guy, I thought for sure he would order it, but despite my suggestion, he went with $22 Spaghetti and Meatballs, which he thought was pretty decent.

 

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Personally I thought the pork sounded amazing:

Saltimbocca
Pork Tenderloin topped with Prosciutto, Sage, Fontina Cheese, Tuscan Mashed Potatoes, Broccolini, and Lemon Caper Sauce

$28.00

It was indeed very good. The pork was lean and tender, and the toppings added a lot of flavor. I couldn't quite figure out what was in the Mashed Potatoes...something green, spinach perhaps? I loved them, but would have loved them a bit more if they were hotter. Same with the Broccolini, which was super Al Dente...had to use a knife to cut it, but I actually liked that, as I thought the crunch of it added a nice texture, especially when eaten with the Taters. I would definitely recommend this!

 

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Husband got an Espresso:

 

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And somehow we managed to have a little room left for dessert, which was a delicious STEAL:

Dessert Sampler
Miniature versions of Mama’s favorite Desserts...Lemon Cheesecake topped with Passion Fruit Pearls, Valencia Blood Orange Cake, and Tiramisù

$6.50

Yes, under $7 dollars for three adorable, pretty, and delicious desserts. All of them were light and really really good! My fave was the Cheesecake with the pearls on top. So unique...Yum!

 

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Overall, I am happy to say that we enjoyed our meal at Mama Melrose, despite having to wait a bit for our ADR. It was just what this Gal needed to take her mind off the fact that in just a few hours, it would officially be the start of a new DECADE for me. GULP. Didn't hurt when we got back to the room and saw that Mickey had been by to wish me a happy birthday. Coming up...dining and drinking at Epcot!

 

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Great start, following

Thank you for coming along with us!

 

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That doesn't look good even in the dark

For good reason! It sure wasn't!

 

[amuse-bouche]

Thanks for reviewing Mama Melrose. We have never tried it. Mostly because of negative reviews. We frequently stay at Boardwalk Inn which has two of our favorite restaurants nearby, the amazing Il Mulino and the very solid Trattoria al Fornio. Both being Italian, it never made sense to take a chance on Mama Melrose, but it sure would be nice to have a dependable place to eat in Hollywood Studios. We aren't fans of Hollywood Brown Derby, at all.

 

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Thanks for reviewing Mama Melrose. We have never tried it. Mostly because of negative reviews. We frequently stay at Boardwalk Inn which has two of our favorite restaurants nearby, the amazing Il Mulino and the very solid Trattoria al Fornio. Both being Italian, it never made sense to take a chance on Mama Melrose, but it sure would be nice to have a dependable place to eat in Hollywood Studios. We aren't fans of Hollywood Brown Derby, at all.

I would still be careful what you order there. I'm Italian also and I personally would not have been happy with Mama's spaghetti and meatballs after tasting Husband's. But he liked it okay. I haven't tried either Il Mulino or Trattoria al Forno yet. Will have to try them, tx! But we did hit up two other Italian places.

 

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So Tuesday arrives and it is going to be even COLDER in Orlando. I put on TWO shirts, black jeans and wore the only jacket I had brought with me, (a hoodie), and still FROZE all day. The wind at Epcot is what made it so crazy. I felt so bad for the Cast Members working at Spaceship Earth. The winds were unbelievably strong there and at the bus stop. We know because we shivered crazily at both places. (even though we had seen weather forecasts and knew it was not going to be a hot week in Orlando, we were not expecting the difference wind made on regular temps) .

We started at Epcot after sleeping in a bit with a 10:25 fast pass to Spaceship Earth that morning. That was definitely the longest fast pass line we waited in all week, or maybe it just felt that way because of the Arctic conditions.

The ride itself warmed us up and onward we went toward Italy where our 11:30 ADR awaited. On the way, Husband insisted we stop and get a birthday button for me and an "I'm celebrating" button for him. We arrived at Via Napoli around 11:25 for our 11:30 reservation and they were just opening. Waited the few minutes and were seated at a two top in the first dining room where we have dined before. Ready to warm up and start celebrating, this birthday girl ordered a glass of red wine, and even Husband was cold enough to order a glass of wine as well. (although he mistakenly ordered a pinot white instead of pinot red, even though I had explained the difference )

Let me just say service here was excellent from beginning to end! Would love to someday try something else on the great sounding menu, but we come here way too scarcely to not order the pizza. Because we both agree this place has the BEST pizza we have ever had ANYwhere. (including Italy). So we ordered a large with half pepperoni, half spicy Italian sausage with added olives, with hopes that it would live up to our memory and expectations.

But they had to bring us warm delicious bread and full body olive oil first. Who can resist?

 

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As good as this is, I only did a small amount because I knew this beauty was coming!

 

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Sigh...yes, it was exactly what this Birthday Gal had remembered and dreamed about! Could not have been happier with my choice for brunch. I managed to eat three large pieces (although sadly omitting the excellent crust). Husband did almost the rest. We did have to apologize to my Italian Grandma in Heaven for not being able to finish the one last piece. (she didn't believe in wasting food and neither do we!) We just couldn't carry a box with us for hours or we would have taken it with us. We did order a couple espressos to try and warm up some more before venturing out.

 

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That espresso is what they call a double. Can't imagine how tiny a single would be! It was good though. And then surprise! Several of them came and sang to me and brought us this light and lovely dessert which we somehow managed to eat despite extreme fullness:

 

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This dessert reminded me of something I had forgotten about from a long time ago. My Italian Grandfather had never liked frosting. When his birthday came around he always requested whipped cream instead on his cake. Such was this cake. Light. Good. Memory-creating, and much appreciated!

 

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Via Napoli continues to be a 5-star place for both of us in terms of flavor, quality and price. Now, I wish I could say we ran out and found a bunch of rides to ride, but we walked out and were instantly frozen again. Which means we didn't make it farther than Tutto Gusto Yes, besides being cold, we are shameless. However we were also a) on vacation...b) none of our 5 adult kids were with us...c) it was my BIG birthday...did I mention HOW big? True confession time...the big 6-0! Gulp. Tutto Gusto it was: