Mama Melrose's in Disney's Hollywood Studios

I'm going to cut to the chase in this review and tell you this right of the bat:

Why am I killing all the suspense and letting you know in the first paragraph that I'm a fan of this joint? Because I find that every time I'm talking about it it sounds like I'm calling it boring.

When I try to describe the restaurant the phrases that come to mind are "fine," "not bad," "pretty good." While this sounds bad, the fact is Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano has well-executed, but very standard Italian food.

The Caesar salad is the first example of my inclination to describe the food in seemingly equivocal terms. What I like about it is that it's almost identical to lots of other tasty Caesars I've had at chain restaurants. It does stand out a bit because of the melty-cheesy croutons, but otherwise it's pretty similar to many other Caesars you may have had in Disney World.

Caesar Salad

My dining partner had the minestrone, and when I asked her to describe it, she said "it was fine." Typical. But when I asked her if she liked it, she said "yes." So once again it's pretty much like other minestrone soup you've had, but like the good ones -- not that nasty one you didn't care much for.

Minestrone Soup

The chicken pipette that my companion had for her entree was a tiny bit off the beaten path. It was very creamy and tasty. Like some other dishes I was glad I got to try it, but also glad it wasn't my dish. I think over the course of a whole serving of the food the richness would have been a bit much. Plus the flavor was pretty homogeneous since the sauce was so evenly distributed. She, however, loved every bite.

Chicken Pipette

So now we're to my entree. I love a good chicken parm and this was once again the stereotypical dish. It was nice to have the pasta on the side to alternate flavors. Once again I may sound ambivalent, but honestly I wish that Tony's Town Square had a entree I like as much.

Chicken alla Parmigiana

Now we come to dessert. Three words that strike terror into diners all over Disney world are no sugar added. We referred to this dish as the "No Sugar Added Lemon Dessert" and that's pretty much exactly what it is. You should be able to imagine it based on that excellent description. If you have a medical reason to give it a try, it's not the worst thing you'll ever eat, but I wouldn't go after it otherwise.

No Sugar Added Lemon Dessert

The cheesecake on the other hand was one of those pre-fab tasty cheesecakes that I love. It actually had some interesting elements, but by and large it was sweet and delicious and typical.

Cheesecake

So as you can see nothing was truly exceptional, but everything was "pretty good." Ultimately though, the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts. Mama Melrose's is pretty easy to get into and usually isn't crowded. There are sometimes streetmosphere characters who pop in and add to the fun. It's cool and comfortable and all the dishes are pretty good. Having no duds on the menu (with the possible exception of the no sugar added options), is really quite an accomplishment.