Mama Melrose "NOT SO" Italiano!

Those that have seen my blog know that I am all things Disney. So this review comes with a real empty feeling. Today I want to discuss my dining experience at Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano located in Disney Hollywood Studios. As most do, we had made our reservations based on our daily plans well in advance. Being on the dinning plan, the choices at Hollywood studios are limited at best. We had been to Hollywood and Vine during past trips and wanted to change it up. This was a change we would soon regret. Upon entry we notified the hostess that we had a reservation. We waited for an unusually long time to be seated based on Disney standards.

Once we were seated, we were in a back corner of the restaurant beside a busy server station. The area was very small and quite uncomfortable. The overall atmosphere was odd. Strings of clear lights looking like leftover Christmas lights strung about the celling. Lighting was very dark, but not in an intimate way but annoying to the point it was hard to read the menu. This may have been a blessing in disguise since it may have been best not to order food. We had a few questions about specifics of dishes, and our waitress had not a clue about the menu and read from the menu, as if we could not read. Most cast members are very knowledgeable and are able to describe more details to a dish at other restaurants we have experienced.

I ordered the Charred Strip Steak, while my wife had the Seafood Arrabbiata. To start with my wife's pasta was very undercooked and the seafood amount was extremely scarce. By way of comparison, the seafood (not chowder) stew at Ragland Road was loaded and similarly priced. My Steak was tough and very tasteless. I am a huge Chianti fan, but the reduction used tasted spoiled and added nothing to the dish.  The Baked Macaroni was very substandard and dry like it had been sitting in a pan for hours and not cooked to order.  For the price paid, we expected far more in terms of taste and quality.  If you are in Hollywood looking for a change, I would steer you away from this choice.  Unless the folks at Tutto Italia Ristorante take over the kitchen, best to skip this less than memorable experience.