Trattoria al Forno — Restaurant in Bay Lake

We visited Trattoria al Forno last night. The food was very good and our waitress, Brianne, went above and beyond to take care of us. She made us feel welcome from the moment we sat down, and the rest of the staff was kind and attentive. Unfortunately, all of that was completely ruined and left a bitter taste in our mouths because of our interaction with the host, Bruce.

We had already received a text saying our table was ready at least 10 to 15 minutes earlier. After waiting in the lobby for the rest of our family to arrive, my wife went up to the front desk to let them know we were all there. Instead of simply asking us to wait a few more minutes if the table was not ready, Bruce looked at her and, with a dismissive and arrogant tone, said: “you have to wait until we are ready, unless you know where to sit yourself.” The way he spoke was so disrespectful that I honestly thought he must be trying to joke. When I asked if that was the case, the staff quickly tried to cover for him by saying it was “just a joke,” but he did not stop. He kept repeating in a mocking voice: “joke, not a joke, joke, not a joke.” A young team member at the desk even tried to apologize, and the way she did made it obvious this was not the first time she had seen this kind of behavior.

Later, when he finally seated us, Bruce turned to my wife and said: “you can sit here, smarty pants.” To say that was humiliating is an understatement. He said it right in front of our kids, who are just 4 and 9 years old. They looked confused, and my wife and I were embarrassed, upset, and uncomfortable.He kept throwing sarcastic comments at our family, which we simply tried to ignore. At that point, another waitress came over and apologized again, this time with a face that clearly showed she was ashamed of his behavior.

That told us his rude, antagonistic attitude is not an accident, it is habitual, and probably something the restaurant owners allow. We tried our best to ignore it so it would not ruin our night even more, but it already had. Instead of enjoying a cozy family dinner, we were left brushing off an ugly, unnecessary experience.

We travel often and dine out frequently in many different countries and cultures. We have received all kinds of treatment, but never anything like this. A host should be the warm first impression of a restaurant, the person who makes you feel welcome. Bruce did the exact opposite. He was insulting, antagonistic, and completely out of line.

It is shocking that a restaurant as beautiful, cozy, and family-friendly as Trattoria al Forno would allow one person to ruin what should have been a special night. Instead of leaving with happy memories, we left with a sour one we will never forget, and not for the right reasons. Sadly, this experience makes us not want to return, and we recommend that anyone who does not want to go through a moment like this should avoid this restaurant. We actually felt bad for the rest of the staff, because it was clear his behavior was affecting their tips and...

Bummed is the first word that comes to mind. I have been trying to get to this restaurant over the last four Disney trips we've had and finally had a chance. We wanted to get away from the parks for a night

We had a confirmed reservation for four but had to wait. Not a huge deal but this was the first flag. Was seated 20 minutes later and promptly greeted by our server. After some consideration we ordered wine, beverages, charcuterie and a few pizzas. Pretty simple stuff.

Charcuterie came out first. It was ok but wife definitely makes a better one at home. I would not order this again. Then, the wine came out. This was the point of no return for me on my opinion of this restaurant. The wine glass I was served was the dirtiest wine glass I have ever encountered. I have never in my 44 years seen something so disgusting and for the life of me cannot figure out how it made it to the customer's table. My wife's glass was also not clean, but mine was just simply gross. The server was called over and the look on her face said it all.

She disappeared for some time and came back with two full pours (no complaints there) on two clean wine glasses. It was still hard to get over what had just occurred though despite the heavy new pours. Our server, nice as could be in the beginning, would not be seen again until the check was requested.

Pizza took forever to get to our table. Not sure what the hold up was but it took an additional 30 minutes after the wine issue for our table to be served the pizzas. The pizza was ok, would probably eat it again if revisiting, but it was also weird they had no fresh Parmesan to top off the pizza. We were bought out grated Parm in a ramekin from the kitchen. Not the same.

During this time we noticed on 3 (three!) different occurrences, other employees wiping old dirty tables with tiny napkins to reset those tables. No cleaners, no cleaning cloths, just tiny little napkins that go under your drink glasses. It all comes together in my head why we had dirty wine glasses served to us. I cannot get past this.

All while these things were happening we noticed the manager in charge goofing around with his employees, never once walking the restaurant floor and asking tables if everything was ok. I had lots to say which I would have, had he ever approached us. I was not going to seek him out. After finally flagging down our server I paid the bill with normal tip and we got out of there asap to leave this experience behind.

I understand less than great food sometimes, or less than great service, but to witness the uncleanliness that we did was just not acceptable. I hope the manager(s) will see this and reevaluate their procedures. It's ashame because some of the food I saw come out the kitchen did look good..it's not the kitchen's fault. I blame management and perhaps a lack of training for the experience we had that night. Disney should have higher standards than this. I will not be...

I’ll begin this review by saying: if you’re staying on Disney property, consider heading to Disney Springs for your dining experience. However, if you’re hoping for a pleasant evening at the Boardwalk, I would advise against this restaurant. Here’s why:

We made a reservation through the Disney app, which was confirmed with a reservation number. Upon arrival, the app stated that we hadn’t confirmed our reservation, and we needed to speak with the hostess. She was polite and explained that the app often glitches and that we weren’t the only ones affected. My guess is we may have been bumped in favor of on-property guests, as we were staying at a different resort—but that’s purely speculation. Regardless, we waited an additional 20 minutes past our reservation time before being seated in the middle of the bustling restaurant.

The dress code online was listed as “resort casual,” which appeared to be interpreted quite loosely. The majority of diners were dressed in T-shirts, shorts, flip-flops, and even sweatpants—yes, sweatpants. If you’re planning to wear anything remotely polished, such as khakis and a knit shirt, you’ll be overdressed.

The atmosphere was chaotic, with servers rushing around and the kitchen constantly clanging with pots and pans. It felt disorganized and loud. Our server was nice, but seemed eager to get us through our meal quickly. He brought us some rolls that were dry, accompanied by roasted garlic submerged in oil, which was far from appetizing. My drink went empty and wasn’t refilled, and it seemed the server didn’t notice—or perhaps didn’t care. At one point, the table beside us ordered a bottle of wine, and the same server had to be reminded to bring an ice bucket to keep the wine chilled.

As for the food, it was underwhelming. Both dishes were excessively salty. The plant-based pasta option was particularly salty, and the gnocchi, which were pan-fried in a white sauce with a heavy sprinkle of parmesan, lacked flavor balance. The server checked on us once, but by that point, it hardly mattered. A funny moment occurred when the server tried to deliver the check to the table next to us, and the diner responded, “I’m still drinking my wine, take this check back.” It was a small but amusing moment in an otherwise lackluster experience.

Our total for two entrees and a tea came to $70, which felt steep for the quality of food and service we received. Disney can do better. In the meantime, if you’re in the area, I’d suggest heading over to Disney Springs. There are several fantastic dining options, including The Polite Pig—be sure to check out my review of...