Happy #tastytuesday friends!! Today, I wanted to share with you a revised and updated dinner review of Mama Melrose Ristorante located in Disney’s Hollywood Studios park. You can find the restaurant tucked away in the back corner of Muppets Courtyard, right at the exit of Muppet Vision 3D. I recently dined here the past week and greatly enjoyed my experience.
I’m also glad that I dined here again recently because I was FINALLY able to remember to take pictures and videos of both the outside and inside of the restaurant. I honestly love the theming here, which has a super cute backstory that I suggest that you google online because I don’t think I will do it justice LOL.
The inside is just beautiful, to put it simply. Everything is decorated to the nines and has a New York/LA Italian restaurant vibe with Hollywood influences with the names of actors/actresses written all over the walls. I am a sucker for twinkly lights, so those were such a fun touch for me. As you can also see in this picture, we had a clear divider behind our table that separated us from any parties that may be sat behind us. We also were advised that the CDC recommends that we leave face coverings on while not actively eating or drinking, which is an updated mask policy that you can find for Walt Disney World table service restaurants here.
As always, we checked into our reservation via the My Disney Experience app where I had already noted my egg, dairy, and gluten allergies within the reservation. Our table was given a QR code to scan for both the regular and allergy friendly menus, as the allergy friendly menu for this restaurant is now online. You can see how to find allergy friendly menus online or through the My Disney Experience app here.
My meal started off with my favorite allergy friendly bread service with a side of olive oil and herbs. Ya’ll know I love this bread and am always happy to have it! The olive oil here actually was delicious with the herbs, although maybe a little too herbaceous because I kept getting too many herbs on my bread that kept getting stuck in the back of my throat. 9/10 for me!
I was also in the mood for a margarita that night, so I ordered a blood orange margarita, which is one of my favorite drinks to order across property at WDW. It was the perfect balance of sweet and tart, which I loved. 10/10 for taste!
Unfortunately, there were not any allergy friendly appetizers on the menu that could suite all 3 of my allergies as-is. I asked originally for a house salad as a substitute, but, due to Covid, the restaurant no longer had a house salad as an offering. Our waitress brought out the amazing Chef Maria who let me know she could modify the mozzarella and vine ripened tomatoes app to include cucumbers instead of cheese, and she mentioned that the balsamic was amazing. And wow, was she correct! The veggies in this dish were super fresh, and I loved the balsamic on top. 10/10 for an app and anther 10/10 for Chef Maria who was kind enough to accommodate my food allergies!
For my entree, I decided on the spaghetti bolognese, which is naturally gluten, dairy, and egg free. I am always down for a great pasta dish, and this one did not disappoint! The sauce was cooked perfectly, but the pasta was a little overcooked for my taste (I like an al dente pasta and this one was slightly mushy). My one main complaint is that there was too much food for me to eat all at once, especially with the large app I had just eaten. I will also say, I think I had a slightly better pasta dish at Tony’s Town Square, which is a review that will be coming out soon. 8/10 for me!
Overall, I did enjoy my experience at Mama Melrose. I don’t think it’s somewhere I will frequent regularly, but it was a good experience with decent food. I also want to go back and try the allergy friendly dessert options, as I saw there was allergy friendly ice cream on the menu!
NOTE: Based on my original review, one of the reasons we actually chose this restaurant (back in 2019) in particular was because we booked it as part of a dining package with Fantasmic! Although it is not currently offered due to the fact that Fantasmic! has yet to return to Hollywood Studios, this kind of dining packaged existed in Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom park pre-covid, and for 1 payment , you can have lunch or dinner at certain restaurants and also receive a guaranteed pass to see the nighttime show in that park. In the case of Hollywood Studios, you can see Fantasmic! I’m unsure if this kind of dining package will return anytime soon, but it’s a great added benefit if you can book it!
You can check out videos of my review on my Youtube Channel, and you can follow me on social media (Instagram; Facebook) for more allergy friendly and Walt Disney World updates. Here’s to living our best and most delicious Disney lives! <3
~ Meagan
Meagan has been living with many food allergies and sensitivities since she was 19 years old. She is currently a Personal Vacation Advisor for Magical Vacation Planner, specializing in helping her guests book trips to Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort. Meagan enjoys researching fitness and nutrition and has taken a special interest in finding allergy friendly options at Walt Disney World.
Interested in having Meagan help you plan your next trip? Send her an email at m.slone@magicalvacationplanner.com or get a free quote at https://magicalvacationplanner.com/staff/meagan-slone/!
