Maria & Enzo’s opens at Disney Springs with delicious Italian cuisine and specialty drinks

in Disney, Entertainment, Theme Parks

Maria & Enzo’s Ristorante, the newest Italian dining location in Disney Springs, opened its doors for guests to take a look inside the new eatery.

Maria & Enzo’s is a brand new dining destination in Disney Springs that is said to bring the warmth of Italy and the most delicious Italian cuisine to Walt Disney World. The restaurant will serve Lunch and Dinner, where guests can feast on a vast amount of tasty Italian dishes, specialty cocktails, and desserts.

Yesterday, on National Spaghetti Day, the restaurant celebrated its opening by holding a dedication ceremony with the team behind bringing Maria & Enzo’s to Disney Springs. This included Italian ambassadors, chefs, executives from Patina Restaurant Group, Delaware North, Disney and Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse. The event also included a special music and dance number as well.

In celebration of National Spaghetti Day, the chefs at Maria & Enzo’s prepared a special bucket of spaghetti and meatballs, which was presented during the ceremony.

WATCH – FULL DEDICATION CEREMONY AT MARIA & ENZO’S

As many fans of Disney know, their restaurants generally have a backstory, which is part of the company’s tradition of immersive storytelling. Following this tradition, Patina Restaurant Group collaborated with Walt Disney Imagineering to create the story of Maria & Enzo’s.

WATCH – INTERVIEW DISCUSSING MARIA & ENZO’S STORY: 

The restaurant was the dream of Maria and Enzo who met in Italy before moving to Florida, where they wanted to introduce Italian cuisine to the townfolk of the bustling Disney Springs. An airline pilot, Enzo was drawn to an abandoned airline terminal, which became the spacious setting for the restaurant.

The interior of the restaurant is an intimate Italian trattoria set in the once-abandoned Disney Springs airline terminal from the 1930s, which has been transformed into this new eatery. The main room features 50-foot ceilings with views of Lake Buena Vista and showcases artifacts that recall air travel of the time.

WATCH – INSIDE MARIA & ENZO’S INTERIOR:

Some of these artifacts include brightly illustrated pictographs and reimagined air terminal boarding gates, all of which help transport guests from Disney Springs into the time of 1930s air travel.

The restaurant also includes a special First Class Lounge, where randomly selected guests are upgraded upon arrival. Here, guests over the age of 21 will receive a complimentary glass of prosecco and kids will be given complimentary airline pins. Guests who are seated in the special area can expect to receive a more upgraded level of service.

The menu, created by Michelin star-rated Chef Theo Schoenegger, features a variety of handmade pasta, including Busiate con Granchio (spiral pasta with crab), Rigatoni all Norma (eggplant, chile, tomato, ricotta salata) and ‘Ncasciata al Forno (Sicilian baked pasta) – served tableside.

Other offerings include Braciola di Maiale (Berkshire pork chop, plum mostarda), Nodino di Vitello (grilled veal chop) and Tonno (grilled ahi tuna steak, pistachio pesto) all served with rosemary potatoes and tempura fried vegetables.

For wine drinkers, you are in luck because this restaurant offers a wine list featuring over 100 bottles of wine. Maria & Enzo’s also offers non-alcoholic mocktails and specialty cocktails as well.

Below is a look at the full menu offered in the restaurant.

Some of the delicious foods that were shown off at the event include the following:

The Prosciutto Di Parma – A cured meat aged 24 months.

The prosciutto is nice as it doesn’t taste overly processed or salty. For fans of cured meat, this is definitely a great option from Maria & Enzo’s.

Spaghetti Alla Chitarra – Served with burrata and meatballs.

The sauce and meatball are sweet, but not overwhelming. This option is great for anyone who loves a traditional plate of spaghetti and meatballs.

Cannoli – Made in-house and come four per person. They are made with candied orange, ricotta cheese, and chocolate chips.

No Italian restaurant can go without serving a cannoli and Maria & Enzo’s are delicious. The ricotta cheese and candied orange filling are sweet, but not too rich. The chocolate chips finish the dessert nicely as they add that little extra something to have your mouth watering.

Maria & Enzo’s also showed off some of their delicious drink offerings at the event.

Negroni Classico – Campari, Antica formula vermouth, Plymouth gin, and Orange.

This is a sweet drink offering. The taste of the orange is nice and it isn’t drowned out by the Plymouth gin or Campari.

Other drink offerings highlighted at the event included Prosecco and wine. Both are delicious and are also imports from Italy.

For guests who want more of a fast-casual dining option, they can go to Pizza Ponte, located right next to Maria & Enzo’s.

This quick-service restaurant serves pastries, pizza, Italian sandwiches, and espresso. Some of their pastry specialties include Bomboloni (Italian doughnuts) Sfoglia di Riso (pastry with rice cream) and Tiramisu.

More savory items offered include signature Triangolo (stuffed pizza bread) sandwiches, Porchetta (roast pork) and Pizza al Taglio, Sicilian-style pizza by the slice.

To keep the theme of its neighboring restaurant, Pizza Ponte also follows the story of Maria & Enzo.

 Maria began a simple cafe inside the lobby of what was once the bustling Disney Springs air terminal. Pastries and pasta were the initial offerings, but eventually the family was able to install wood-fired pizza ovens that helped make them even more successful. Pizza Ponte is accessed from the entrance beneath the air terminal’s old Control Tower.

Maria & Enzo’s officially opens today from 11:30 a.m. to 12 midnight daily, with weekend brunch coming soon. Pizza Ponte is currently open from 8 a.m. to 12 midnight daily.

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