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When I first heard that Disney was opening a new hotel in Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, I was really excited. I love staying in Disney hotels so I would have been thrilled regardless of the theming. But the theme of the new Disney hotel really intrigued me: the Riviera.
Disney’s Riviera Resort is themed to the rivieras of France and Italy, and I knew the hotel would be beautiful (which it is) and really feel like an escape into a different place (which it does). But I was also intrigued by what the restaurants would look like. I love French and Italian cuisines, so I just knew the food at the restaurants would be great.
And it turns out I was right! I know because in my last trip to Walt Disney World, my family decided to have lunch at the Riviera Resort’s quick-service restaurant, Primo Piatto. So of course, I am going to have to tell you about our great meal there!
Primo Piatto: How to Get There
So I chose to eat there in part because it’s a restaurant I wanted to try. But I also think, given the Riviera Resort’s location, it’s a great choice for lunch during a day at the parks.
The Riviera Resort has a Disney Skyliner Station. That means you can easily get to the Riviera via Disney’s newest form of transportation, the gondola system. The Skyliner can take you to both Epcot (at the World Showcase Entrance) and Hollywood Studios.
You can see our video of the Skyliner system here:
So we had spent the morning at Magic Kingdom. Then we took a bus to Disney’s Riviera Resort and had lunch. We were staying at the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort. My mom wanted to go back to the room, so she was able to take a skyliner to Epcot and then take a boat back to the hotel. But the rest of us were able to go on to Hollywood Studios. By the time we got to Hollywood Studios, it was 2:00 so we were able to park hop.
This makes this restaurant a great choice for lunch if you get a park hopper ticket, which you can get at a discounted price here.
The hotel having a Skyliner station also makes it a convenient place for any meal for anyone staying not only at the Riviera Resort, but other specific Disney hotels as well. Art of Animation, Pop Century, and Disney’s Caribbean Resort also have Skyliner Stations. So you can easily eat at Primo Piatto if you are staying at one of those hotels.
I also mentioned that it was convenient for the hotel I was staying at, the Dolphin hotel. But that means it is also convenient for all the Epcot area hotels. This includes the Walt Disney World Swan Resort Hotel, Disney’s Boardwalk Inn, the Beach Club, and the Yacht Club.
Primo Piatto Food Review
But you’re not going to want to go out of your way to get there if the food isn’t great, right? But that’s not something you have to worry about at Primo Piatto! They have great delicious food.
You can order the food beforehand via your My Disney Experience app. When we were there, though, the app wasn’t working. But we were able to order our food in the restaurant.
They have a really great menu full of lots of delicious entrees, like burgers, soups, even a great Greek salad.
But we really wanted to get a Croque Monsieur sandwich. I absolutely love this French sandwich. I got mine with Romano and Herbed Fries.
You don’t have to get the fries. You can get other sides, too, like assorted fruit.
But having said that, I definitely recommend the Fries. They were perhaps the best Fries I have ever had at Disney World.
I really liked my lunch, and I like how special it is. One complaint I would have about Disney World is a lot of the restaurants in the parks serve the same foods. So you can end up eating the same basic foods (like burgers, Chicken fingers, hot dogs, Turkey legs) over and over. So it was really nice to have a different, special lunch without having to pay the high prices of a sit-down restaurant.
Primo Piatto Atmosphere & Decor
So as I said, the food alone is a reason to visit the Primo Piatto. But the atmosphere is really great, too.
There are a lot of great touches in the way the restaurant is set up. I really love the pictures up. You can see Walt Disney himself in Europe. I think this is a really nice touch.
But that’s not all you can look at and enjoy while you eat your meal. You can also get a seat by the windows and enjoy beautiful views of the Skyliner, water, the pool, and the resort.
And I can’t emphasize enough how great it is that you can eat indoors! It was really hot when I visited Disney World last week. It was really nice to be able to eat indoors with the air conditioner going.
But if the day is a bit cooler, you can also enjoy your meal outside as they have lots of tables outside with great views. If you are staying at the Riviera Resort, you can also take your meal back to your room.
Riviera Resort: How to Stay at a Discounted Rate
Speaking of staying at Disney’s Riviera Resort, how would you like to stay at Disney’s newest hotel? It’s a wonderful hotel that is very convenient for visiting the parks, especially Hollywood Studios and Epcot. I know you would love to stay here.
But you may think it’s too expensive to stay here if you’ve ever seen rates through Disney’s website. But luckily, there is a way to book a stay here for a much cheaper rate. And that is through David’s Vacation Club Rentals. You see, Disney’s Riviera Resort is a Disney Vacation Club hotel. That means members of Disney’s Vacation Club can stay here at lower prices, but you don’t have to be a DVC member to get these cheaper rates. You can rent points from members and stay there at a lower rate through David’s. We go over how to do that here.