Do you know which Disney World park is a secret foodie’s paradise?
It’s Animal Kingdom! People often talk about the iconic snacks at Magic Kingdom and the treats around the World Showcase at EPCOT, but Animal Kingdom has some pretty amazing restaurants and snacks as well. However, recently I decided to visit Animal Kingdom’s most hated restaurant — was it really that bad? Let’s find out!
Background
Pizzafari is located in the Discovery Island section of Animal Kingdom, and as you might’ve guessed, it’s a pizza restaurant. This quick service spot is known for serving the “puffy” round personal pizzas.
In addition to the puffy pizzas, they also have options like the Chicken Parmesan Sandwich, the Greens and Grains Salad, and the Caesar Salad with Chicken.
Let’s head inside and see what it’s like!
Atmosphere
The main room of the restaurant where you order is home to both a standby queue and a Mobile Order pickup station. They had a Cast Member with a microphone announcing order numbers for pickup during my visit.
Each of the rooms in the restaurant is themed to a different group of animals. The back dining room is decorated with animals who are nocturnal.
Opposite that room, we have the “Home Room” which is painted with artwork of animals who carry their homes with them. (Think like snails and turtles.)
The largest dining area is the upside-down room, which is covered in animals who spend large portions of their lives upside-down. They even have bats hanging from the ceiling!
Located in the main areas are utensil and napkin stations — don’t forget to grab them before you dine!
They also have a small selection of condiments. Since it’s primarily a pizza place, the options include red pepper flakes, parmesan, and salt and pepper.
Now let’s order some food!
Food & Drinks
I ordered a variety of items to get a general idea of the menu here! On my buy list for the day was the Greens and Grains Salad, the Sausage and Pepperoni Pizza, the Chicken Parmesan Sandwich, the Antipasto Salad, and the Tropical Breeze Slush.
Let’s start things off with the beverage! The Tropical Breeze Slush is available for $5.99, or you can pay $8.99 to get it with a glow cube. It’s made of layers of mango and raspberry slush.
This drink was surprisingly delicious! It was very fruity and blue raspberry-forward. The flavors start to mix together as it melts, but they worked well together — it was quite refreshing! I would try it again, especially on a hot summer day.
Kicking off the meal with some veggies, let’s talk about the Greens and Grains Salad for $10.79. It’s made with mixed greens topped with garbanzo beans, white beans, red onions, pepperoncini, kalamata olives, tomatoes, quinoa, and green goddess dressing.
The variety of toppings helped make this more interesting than a basic no-meat salad, but there wasn’t quite enough dressing for my taste. The salad comes already topped with it instead of having the dressing served on the side, and I felt like my greens were a bit dry. The beans were fresh and added a fun texture overall, but I would’ve liked a little bit of crunch in the salad.
As a side dish, you can order the Antipasto Salad for $4.79. It has pepperoni, roasted red peppers, olives, cucumbers, artichoke hearts, and mozzarella tossed in Italian dressing.
I enjoyed this a bit more than I liked the Greens and Grains Salad — it was definitely a more appropriate amount of dressing. The tanginess from the dressing adds a nice cohesiveness to the variety of ingredients. You get a good mix of flavors and textures here, and everything was fairly fresh. My one complaint is that I wanted a bit more pepperoni.
Moving on to one of my favorite items, let’s talk about the Chicken Parmesan Sandwich for $11.99. This is breaded chicken topped with marinara and provolone on ciabatta bread. You can get it served with a side caesar salad or a Cutie.
I’ve had this sandwich in the past and thoroughly enjoyed it, and this time was no different! The breading on the sandwich is nicely seasoned and cooked through, and the chicken is juicy and delicious. The marinara adds some brightness and a bit of Italian seasoning, and the choice of bread is perfect. The bun is just a little bit toasted with adds some crunch. No notes, 10/10 for how much you pay and the fact that it’s a quick service sandwich!
Last but not least, we have the infamous pizza! I got the Sausage & Pepperoni Pizza for $12.29, which comes with tomato sauce, sausage, and pepperoni served with a small caesar salad.
This wasn’t the worst puffy pizza I’ve had in Disney World — it was cooked all the way through, which was a major improvement from my last visit to PizzeRizzo. The flavors aren’t too robust and it doesn’t have a lot of pepperoni, but if you’ve got a pizza itch, this just might scratch it. I much prefer the flatbread pizzas like you can get at Pinocchio Village Haus and Terra Treats (which is right around the corner from this restaurant).
So how did Pizzafari stack up?
Should You Go?
Now we’ve got to discuss the all-important question — should you go to Pizzafari? Well, that depends on your needs!
If you’ve got some picky eaters in your group or kiddos who love pizza, this might be right up your alley. However, if you’re heading to this restaurant and not craving a piece of pie, I definitely recommend the Chicken Parmesan Sandwich or one of the salads. Honestly, I’ve enjoyed the non-pizza offerings here most of all!
If you’ve got more expensive tastes or you don’t like puffy pizza, this probably isn’t worth a stop. There are some other really delicious restaurants nearby in Animal Kingdom like Satu’li Canteen or Flame Tree Barbecue, and we highly recommend Nomad Lounge if you’re amenable to a sit-down spot.
Ultimately I would go here again just to get that sandwich or a salad, and I’ll definitely want to go back and snag that slush on a hot summer day!
Thanks for following along with AllEars and stay tuned for more restaurant reviews from Disney World.
Click Here to See Our Review of One of Animal Kingdom’s Most Underrated Restaurants!
Have you ever been to Pizzafari? Tell us in the comments!