Pizzafari

7/7/15 Update: Menu updated.

Location: Pizzafari is located in Discovery Island to the left of the Tree of Life on the walk up to Africa.

Food Type: Pizza, Salads, and a Hot Sandwich

Dining Plan: One Quick Service or One Snack

Discounts: 20% Tables in Wonderland with no gratuity added.

Menu:

Larger: Pizzafari Menu

Unique Items: Heart of Romaine Salad, Baked Pasta Bolognese, and Tiramisu

Advantages:

• Plenty of indoor, air-conditioned seating in a pleasant atmosphere.  Outdoor seating is also available.
• Ordering process is usually quick.
• Convenient from Africa, the main entrance, and DinoLand.
• Heart of Romaine Salad is very good and the Bread Sticks are a filling use of a snack credit.
• Operates from 10:30am or 11am through Park close.

Disadvantages:

• Pizza is expensive considering each is individually sized and freezer-quality.
• Limited menu choices.
• Inconvenient from Asia.

Value: Average for the most part. This is standard Disney pizza and meatball subs, but the Heart of Romaine Salad is a little more interesting than most.

Reputation: Pizzafari is overshadowed by the superior Flame Tree Barbecue, but it isn’t a bad choice in its own right. And let’s be realistic, once your kids find out there’s pizza at the Animal Kingdom you’re going to be coming here anyway. I don’t usually advocate lying to children, but if you want to eat at Flame Tree you might have to tell them Pizzafari means “Broccoli Palace” in Swahili or something. Anyway, Pizzafari is a decent stop if you’re in the mood for pizza, salad, and breadsticks. It may even be a better stop than Flame Tree if you want to get out of the heat or aren’t in the mood to fight off the birds and ducks. The air-conditioned comfort level in the summer heat really can’t be overstated.

Food Items:

Pepperoni Pizza with Side Caesar:

I’ve always enjoyed Disney pizza, knowing that it’s basically Digorno/Pizza Hut/Costco quality stuff. It’s not going to win any awards, certainly, but it’s hot, well covered in cheese, and has a decent number of pepperonis on it. It’s nothing special and the side Caesar salad is a little on the sad side, but it’s a decent meal if you’re in the mood for pizza and I don’t have any qualms about recommending it. You’ll find the same recipe at Pizza Planet in Hollywood Studios, Catalina Eddie’s also in Hollywood Studios, and most resort quick services. Order the pizzas without the salad to save $2 and you may be able to request a bag of chips in place of the salad.

 

Vegetable Pizza:

I did not have high expectations, but I deemed it pretty good.  The vegetables present were finely chopped and added a little crunch to the pizza.  I think I see green/red onions and tomatoes.  People hate on Disney pizza.  And this is basically DiGiorno quality.  But I like Digiorno, so whatevz.  One nice thing about heading here about an hour before close is that the pizzas are baked fresh, rather than sitting under a heat lamp until someone orders them.  It’ll add five minutes to the wait, but it’s worth it, assuming they remember to make your pizza of course.

Side Caesar salads are now served in these small plastic cups instead of the paper bowls. This is pretty basic – fresh crunchy lettuce, a few croutons, and Ken’s Caesar. Order the pizza without the salad to save the $2.

Heart of Romaine Salad:

Fresh Heart of Romaine with Herb-marinated Chicken Breast, Candied Nueske’s Bacon, Crunchy Croutons and a sharp Caesar Dressing.

It was very good with significantly better ingredients than the standard Caesar. Even the dressing, which wasn’t the usual Ken’s, was an improvement. The chicken had a little more flavor than usual and was less dry and the bacon added a salty component. Even the croutons had a nice crunch. The only potential problem is the wedge itself. While fresh and crunchy, it’s kind of a hassle to cut it up yourself with plastic silverware on a slippery paper plate. But other than that, it’s a proficient salad in a Park that actually has a couple other great salads.

Baked Pasta Bolognese:

Penne Pasta in a hearty Tomato Meat Sauce topped with Mozzarella and Parmesan Cheese served with a Breadstick and Side Salad.

This is more or less Marie Callender’s frozen entree quality with stringy melted cheese on top of undercooked pasta and a bland meat sauce. It wasn’t terrible by any means – but I don’t think it’s necessarily a compelling purchase at this price, which is a couple dollars higher than average. Quick service theme park pasta is a rarity these days now that Pinocchio Village Haus did away with it a few years ago. It is a nice change of pace, but don’t expect anything gourmet or freshly prepared.

It’s paired with one of the breadsticks that you can order separately. Without the marinara, it’s just okay  – soft with a prominent cheesy garlic flavor. Just in case you didn’t get enough carbs with the pasta.

Bread Sticks:

This is a lot of bread that is probably an unnecessary side if you’re also ordering the bready-y pizzas. But they are seasoned well and dip nicely into the marinara. It’s a lot of calories for the money.

Tiramisu:

This was better than I was expecting. The mousse enjoyed a nice subtle coffee/chocolate-y flavor on top of the light and sweet sponge cakes underneath. It’s not a particularly compelling value out of pocket, but would be a better addition than most to a quick service meal on the Dining Plan.

Sangria:

Beso Del Sol is a decent boxed sangria that ordinarily costs $20 for a 3-liter box. It won’t win any awards, but it is refreshing. Note that it comes in at 8.5% ABV, which is about 3.5% higher than Budweiser and 4% lower than most other wines.

Uncrustables Kids Picks:

This includes everything on the tray to the right of the breadsticks.

This was my first Uncrustables and I wasn’t sure what to expect.  As you might imagine, it’s basically two pieces of soft bread pushed together with peanut butter and jelly on the inside.  I enjoyed this one for what it was.  It’s on a lot of menus here at Disney World and Uncrustables should be widely available in stores.  You may want to pick one up and see if the kids like them prior to your arrival, as it will make choosing Kids Picks easier.

The grapes are hit or miss.  These were soft and yucky.  The Danimals yogurt is par for the course as well.  You can sub in apple sauce, fries, a cookie, and/or a soft drink if you prefer.  I’d skip the grapes more often than not.

I’m not sure if Mickey Milk is a weird name or not.  If you think about goat’s milk, soy milk, etc.  I’m not sure I want to think about where this stuff is coming from.  The Kids Picks are usually a decent amount of food, particularly if you order the heftier french fries and cookie

Seating:

Pizzafari enjoys a lot of air-conditioned seating, along with outdoor patio seating. Like Restaurantosaurus and Backlot Express, you’ll find a variety of fun themes throughout the seating sections expressed in the murals, tables, and chairs.