We’re here with the latest in all things Disney food! 

Disney World has seen a lot of menu changes and new food lately! One Disney World resort just got brunch every day of the week, buffets are returning to Hollywood & Vine in Hollywood Studios, and we tried all of the new food at 50’s Prime Time Cafe. With even more new Disney food on the way, we want to bring you all the latest updates, including a revamped menu at this Hollywood Studios spot! 

Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano just got hit with a few menu changes, and we’re trying all of it to see how it stacks up! The new menu features Italian-inspired dishes, and here’s what they were like!

Atmosphere

Mama Melrose’s is located all the way in the back of Disney’s Hollywood Studios behind Muppet*Vision 3D.

The inside of this restaurant really helps you escape and feel like you’re not in a theme park anymore. The dining room has fairy lights hanging from the ceiling and greenery hanging from the rafters.

The walls are adorned with some eclectic decor and writing that is made to look like crayon-writing.

The dining rooms are dark, which can make it kind of tricky to read the menu, but adds to the really unique and interesting atmosphere of the entire restaurant. And while it doesn’t feel like a theme park restaurant, it is a restaurant in a theme park, and as such can be pretty busy, so keep that in mind if you’re looking for a quieter dining experience.

When we arrived at our table, it was set for us with a knife and fork, as well as a piece of paper with a QR code on it for the menu.

The knife and fork were laid on a paper napkin, and there was a small plate in the center of the table for us to use for our bread and appetizers.

Eats

So let’s get into the reason we’re really here: the FOOD! We headed to Mama Melrose’s to try the new menu items, but, like all other meals here, we were started off with some bread.

The rolls were hard on the outside but soft and fluffy on the inside. We thought they could have used a little butter, if we’re being honest. The olive oil with Italian seasoning was good, but we we wish there was more of the seasoning and less olive oil. The bread definitely needs to be dipped, in our opinion.

The first new item on the menu we tried was the Fried Fresh Mozzarella, which is two mini mozzarella sticks served with marinara sauce, ricotta salata, and lemon oil. 

For $11, these mozzarella sticks were good, but very small for what we got. They were cooked very well, and the inclusion of the lemon oil really added to the flavor. We weren’t sure how the lemon would work with the mozzarella, but it actually pairs really well.

The marinara is a basic basil marinara sauce that’s slightly chunky and overall has a great texture. The mozzarella is super fresh and the best part? It has a fabulous cheese pull!

The ricotta also really helps to give the mozzarella stick a super creamy texture, but it overall didn’t really seem worth it for the price.

We also tried the  Grilled Bone-in Pork Chop, which was served with creamy polenta, roasted tomatoes, mustard vincotto, and charred broccolini.

The pork chop is cooked medium, but can be changed upon request. We thought it was cooked well and has a great char. We did have to ask for a knife because the butter knife we were given didn’t cut it (pun intended). While we really enjoyed the pork chop, the polenta was a little off-putting for us.

It had the same consistency as mashed potatoes, but were more gritty. They tasted like creamy cheddar cheese and also had a bit of a peppery flavor, as well. We didn’t dislike them, but we do kind of wish that they were mashed potatoes, instead.

The vegetables were delicious! You could taste the char on the broccolini and they were very crunchy and not at all soft. The tomatoes also added a great freshness to the whole thing, as did the onions. In fact, the entire entree kind of had a French onion taste to it. The pork chop is $28 and overall, we really enjoyed it.

We also tried the upgraded version of Mama’s Italian Pasta, which is fettuccine with roasted tomatoes and garlic, artichokes, butter, and white wine sauce. 

The pasta was cooked perfectly al dente and the roasted tomatoes and garlic just melted in our mouths. We also really liked the white wine and butter sauce and couldn’t taste much of the white wine, which is a sign that it was cooked well.

We also really enjoyed the artichoke pieces, but we do wish there were more of them because they were kind of hard to find. When we did find them though they added a nice tang to the pasta overall. The chicken was cooked very well and was nice and juicy, but it comes as one big piece of meat, so we do wish that it was cut up before we received it.

It also came with shredded mozzarella and fresh basil on top, which contributed to the freshness of the entree. Overall, the whole thing was very fresh and light. This entree is $24.

And the final entree we tried was a lasagna with meat and mushrooms. It was the special the day we dined, but our server did tell us that it may be added to the menu permanently at a later date.

First things first: the portion size for this is HUGE! Pretty much everything about this was cooked well. The meat has an Italian garlic and basil flavor and is accompanied by ricotta that tastes very fresh and you can tell that is of high quality.

We also thought the mushrooms were cooked very well and blended nicely with the meat. Even if you don’t like mushrooms, you may still like this because our reporter doesn’t like the texture of mushrooms, but wasn’t bothered by the mushrooms in the lasagna.

Parmesan and parsley are sprinkled on top of the lasagna and we thought the most prominent flavors in this were cheese and basil. Overall, we really enjoyed this lasagna, however, we did think that the lasagna noodles were a little overcooked and wish they were firmer. The lasagna was $24.

Of course, they also had some new sweet treats that we had to try! The first dessert we tried was the Blueberry Frangipane Tart, which is Blueberry Frangipane in a Vanilla Tart Shell with a Blueberry Compote topped with a Pistachio Powder and Pistachio Brittle. 

The tart wasn’t our favorite. It was VERY dry and cakey and could have used more of the berry compote or maybe some fresh fruit to add more flavor. The blueberry compote was very good, but we do wish that there was more of it. The tart itself could have used more blueberry flavor, as well. We were also surprised by the fact that the pistachio powder sprinkled on top of the tart really came through.

The pistachio brittle was actually our favorite part of this dessert. It did get stuck in our teeth because it’s brittle and that’s what brittle does, but the flavor had a lot of pistachio and butter to it. About the dessert, our reporter said that it reminded them of the almond holiday cookies that come in those big tins, but in tart shape.

The Blueberry Frangipane Tart is $9.

And finally, we tried the  Colors of Italy Cheesecake, which is Lemon Cheesecake layered with a Raspberry Marmalade and Olive Oil Cake topped with a Whipped Raspberry Panna Cotta and finished with a Raspberry Basil Sauce. It is garnished with halves of Sparkle Fresh Raspberries.

We really, really liked this dessert! It was very light and refreshing and was almost more the consistency of a mousse than a cheesecake. The lemon and the raspberry flavors are very strong with this dessert. The olive oil cake was also very light, but it was dyed green to represent the colors in the Italian flag, which we appreciated, but it did turn out tongue and mouth green.

The fresh raspberries on top of the cheesecake had edible glitter on them, too, which was a fun touch. We loved the tang of the raspberry basil sauce and thought that it did a lot to bring all of the flavors together. If you don’t like raspberries, you probably wouldn’t like this dessert, but we really enjoyed it. the cheesecake is $8.

Nosh or Not

Head over to Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano if…

• You’re in the mood for Italian food much like Olive Garden while you’re in Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
• You and your party want to dine in a more fun and energetic atmosphere.

Don’t head to Mama Melrose’s if…

• You are looking for more adventurous eats. The food here is pretty basic Italian food for the most part and might be great if you have picky eaters. But if you are looking to try new and out of the box food we’d go elsewhere.
• You’re hoping to have lunch or dinner in a quieter restaurant.
• You want to dine in a restaurant with lots of natural light. This restaurant does not have any windows and as such is pretty dark.

Overall

Mama Melrose’s does no have the greatest track record, and as such has been pretty hit or miss for us in the past. However, we are happy to report that the updated menu definitely makes this restaurant better! We enjoyed almost everything we had here, other than the Blueberry Frangipane Tart. If you’ve counted out Mama Melrose’s in the past, we wouldn’t count it out now.

Those are the new menu items we tried at Mama Melrose’s! This spot has always been pretty hit or miss for us, so we’re glad that the menu got an update! There have been a ton of new things to try in Disney’s Hollywood Studios like the new 50’s Prime Time Cafe menu, and this surprisingly good chilly treat! Make sure you stay tuned to DFB for more Disney food updates!

Click here to see ALL of the Major Food Announcements that are Coming to Disney World!

Have you tried any of the new menu items at Mama Melrose’s? Let us know in the comments!