September 7, 2007: Epcot's L'Originale Alfredo di Roma Ristorante

[Werner Weiss]

This week, Yesterland goes back to "Yestercot" for a very popular, very successful restaurant. This restaurant was famous even before EPCOT Center opened in 1982. That's because of a famous couple who dined there repeatedly while honeymooning in Rome, 80 years ago.

Link to Epcot's L'Originale Alfredo di Roma Ristorante at Yesterland.

Please discuss Alfredo's here.

[Caspian]

I'm sorry to see it go.

I have to agree that the food was inconsistent. However, I found out that if I stuck with the fettucine and a Caesar, this was one of my favorite restaraunts at WDW. I'm not too excited about the Patina Group's replacement. While I like Catal, I'm not a fan of Napoli or Tortilla Jo's.

Restaurants and Instituions places Alfredo's at number twelve in the top grossing independent restaurants here. I'm guessing Disney and Alfredo couldn't come to an agreement about how much of that $20 million each got to keep.

Let's hope the Patina Group wows us with a great new restaurant.

LD

[Chernabog]

Originally Posted by Caspian

Let's hope the Patina Group wows us with a great new restaurant.

Unfortunately the Patina Group hasn't actually made any restaurants that have been good. Tortilla Jos, Naples and Catal are all known in my circle of friends for their overpriced, mediocre food and beyond abysmal service.

I know people that have done catering with Patina (i.e. worked for them) who swear they never will again since they were treated worse than cockroaches. So the Patina announcement is, to me, really awful news.

We ate at Alfredo's last time we were at EPCOT (in October). Apparently we happened to go on a good day, since the waiter was great (and really cute) and the food was tasty.

I wish I could say the same for Patina's restaurants, but I (and my friends) have yelled at one too many managers for overpriced food, bad service, tacked-on hidden fees (yes, hidden group fees) and other problems in Downtown Disney to make me ever want to try one of their restaurants again. Blech.

[CaliforniaAdventurer]

Originally Posted by Chernabog

Unfortunately the Patina Group hasn't actually made any restaurants that have been good. Tortilla Jos, Naples and Catal are all known in my circle of friends for their overpriced, mediocre food and beyond abysmal service.

I know people that have done catering with Patina (i.e. worked for them) who swear they never will again since they were treated worse than cockroaches. So the Patina announcement is, to me, really awful news.

We ate at Alfredo's last time we were at EPCOT (in October). Apparently we happened to go on a good day, since the waiter was great (and really cute) and the food was tasty.

I wish I could say the same for Patina's restaurants, but I (and my friends) have yelled at one too many managers for overpriced food, bad service, tacked-on hidden fees (yes, hidden group fees) and other problems in Downtown Disney to make me ever want to try one of their restaurants again. Blech.

Hmm why don't you tell us how you really feel Cherny. P.S. Werner you made me really hungry!

[dgmoran]

Originally Posted by Chernabog

Unfortunately the Patina Group hasn't actually made any restaurants that have been good.

I'm sure you weren't including their most famous restaurant, "Patina," in downtown Los Angeles, which is considered to be one of the best restaurants in Southern California.

Dan

[Chernabog]

Originally Posted by dgmoran

I'm sure you weren't including their most famous restaurant, "Patina," in downtown Los Angeles, which is considered to be one of the best restaurants in Southern California.

As I have not been to that restaurant, I should have said: "Of all the Patina establishments I have been to (including all of them at Downtown Disney in Anaheim), not one of them is worth recommending on any level. Stay far far away." Patina's track record with Disney is just awful. I'm sure the places make money due to their location. But if I'm gonna spend that amount of money on a meal, why go to a place where the food is mediocre and you're treated like crap? (And no, it is not just me, I have been on these boards, and at DtD long enough to hear multitudes of horror stories. The best I have ever heard was, "well, um, the drinks were okay.")

Perhaps the original restaurant is a fluke?

[danyoung]

Originally Posted by Chernabog

....Naples and Catal are all known in my circle of friends for their overpriced, mediocre food and beyond abysmal service.

I can't speak for Naples, although I've heard many glowing reviews. But the food from Catal that you can get out at the Uva Bar has been nothing short of spectacular, as has been the service.

[TrojanSkippa]

I wasn't aware that Tortilla Jo's was run by Patina. I went there shortly after it opened, and the food was decent and the service was fine. Nothign spectacular, but for what I paid I feel I got my money's worth. The Uva bar on the other hand is a nightmare, I'll never go there again, expensive drinks and awful service.

[Chernabog]

Originally Posted by danyoung

But the food from Catal that you can get out at the Uva Bar has been nothing short of spectacular, as has been the service.

Hahah I have actually screamed at the manager there before (and when I get angry, I am usually the forceful yet low volume pissed-off type). Drinks took over 20 minutes, after having to ask multiple times. Manager didn't want to come over after multiple times. Wrong charges on the bill. Have to ask multiple times for refills, sweetener, etc. Food arrived cold. After asking for the bill 3 times (and having a 2 hour ordeal at that place) we were going to walk out without paying.

I've waited tables before at a fine dining establishment in the French Quarter of New Orleans. I know when I go to a restaurant if it is the kitchen that is slacking, or the server. In that case, it was both. There's mediocre service, and then there's asking someone five times if they can refill your iced tea, and they STILL don't do it. Or where your food has been sitting out so long that the sauce is congealing and it is cold. I don't think the food is remotely worth the price (though of course when you're on a Disney vacation and everything is expensive, I suppose it could just seem "in line" with the prices of everything else, lol).

And I do understand that restaurants have "off" days every so often, it happens. But unless I am the unluckiest guy in the world (and I'm not), crap like the above shouldn't happen every time I try one of those places. I've eaten at Catal/Uva, Tortilla Jos and Naples multiple times... I refuse to go back except just to hang out with friends at their table.

[TheManator]

I can't wait for the new eatery.

[Chernabog]

Originally Posted by TheManator

I can't wait for the new eatery.

Did you like the old one?

[sir clinksalot]

Thanks for the memories.

This is certainly one that I'm sad to see go. We only ate there once, but it was an unbelievably awesome experience made only better because of the friends we got to share the experience with.

Alfredo ... you will be missed.

[mousercise]

Too bad it closed, I would have loved to go there during my trip in October.

[Werner Weiss]

Originally Posted by Caspian

Restaurants and Instituions places Alfredo's at number twelve in the top grossing independent restaurants here. I'm guessing Disney and Alfredo couldn't come to an agreement about how much of that $20 million each got to keep.

Thank you for the "Restaurants and Institutions" link. I'll update the article with that information in the next few days.

I agree that contract renewals like this all come down to money in the end, especially when there's so much money involved. Other issues—such as Dining Plan participation, and even food and service quality standards—can all be dealt with in the terms and conditions.

I recall that on one of the other forum sites (not MiceChat), someone posted that Disney gave Alfredo's a very favorable deal before EPCOT Center opened because the presence of Alfredo's would boost the credibility of EPCOT Center. I don't know if that's true, but it's plausible.

Now Disney undoubtedly sees the highly successful restaurant in Epcot's Italy as a way to add more money to Epcot's bottom line.

[Werner Weiss]

Originally Posted by mousercise

Too bad it closed, I would have loved to go there during my trip in October.

Maybe Tutto Italia will be better. In any case, it's likely Tutto Italia will have the same exterior and interior. That might change in 2008 when the Patina folks give the place an extensive makeover.

Although I didn't quite say so in the article, Alfredo's lived off the reputation of the original in Rome, its location at Epcot, and the fact that many Americans won't eat anything they're not familiar with (so the only foreign food they'll eat is conventional Italian food). Okay, and the main dining room was very nice, if somewhat crowded.

I only dined at Alfredo's one. It was around ten years ago, but the experience was so disappointing that we never returned. In contrast—this year alone—we've been to Chefs de France three times and Le Cellier twice. Perhaps we should have given Alfredo's another chance, but there are so many places to get good Italian food in the Chicago area that it didn't seem worth returning to Alfredo's.

My only experience with a Patina restaurant was a light dinner in the Uva Bar at Catal. There were seven of us, and we all enjoyed it.