Pizzeria Valdiano — Restaurant in Winter Park

SO DISAPPOINTED

This should have been a 5 star review but I just can’t… Everything was so perfect.. the food, the people serving it and greeting us, etc… Then when I got to the register to pay… they wanted FIVE dollars for a SLIVER of cheesecake.

I’m wiling to accept some level of ridiculousness as it relates to pricing in restaurants and I know enough about the industry to know that they generally want food costs on desserts to be under 25%. No problem, I’ll pay high for delicious sweet treats that I really love. No problem. I’d even pay $5 for a piece of cheesecake (and gladly have in the past), but if you’re going to expect $5 for a dessert it better be: A) BIG and B) REALLY good.

This was a TINY SLIVER of a piece of cake! And, making things worse, it was some generic thing they bought at a store somewhere. Nothing special. Even $2.99 would have been ridiculously high, but I would have paid it without issue. but $5 for a tiny piece of this generic store bought crap?!? it insults our intelligence as customers.

I thought it couldn’t get worse… but that’s always when it does, right?

I had asked for two piece of cheesecake and the $5 price tag comes up PER piece and I looked at the guy at the register and said “you can’t be serious”.. and the guy looks at me right in the eyes, without missing a beat, and says “there’s a lot more there than you think”. It’s in a 100% clear plastic container and I can see what’s there. I looked at him and said “there really isn’t.. seriously, it’s tiny”. I mean.. If you’re going to lie to my face at least be good at it (and maybe put the item in a non see through box).

What makes this even more unbelievable is their pizza prices - they are totally reasonable and market competitive. It makes no sense that whoever was setting the prices would set them correct for most things and then suddenly wake up with a brain hemorrhage and charge this much for crappy dessert.

not...

We have eaten here many times before. Typically good food & quick. Tonight - we had about 25 minutes before our movie was to start. Wife ordered a chicken farm stromboli and i had a slice of Valdiano pizza. About 15 minutes later, my wife goes to the counter to check on our food. Well - burnt! They got the wrong slice of pizza. They gave me pepperoni & onions, instead of Valdiano. The slice was burnt to a crisp. I take the food back up there. Tell then they gave me the wrong slice and it is burnt anyways. The guy laughs and says "it is perfect!". I replied "listen, maybe you like burnt pizza but not me". So i got a cold slice of Valdianos (since now we were running out of time to make our movie!). If my wife had not gone up there... they did not seem to keep an eye on our food. The chick parm was crispy burnt too. I understand this is a high volume place. Mostly movie theatre going crowds. It can't be perfect all the time. I did not care about the burnt food. it happens. What pissed me off is we are sitting there eating... and i hear them making fun of me behind my back and claiming i order the wrong slice. One - you screwed up. Not me. Second - don't laugh behind a customer's back... while within an ear shot. I wanted to go back up there and shove the f'in slice of pizza in his fat face and walk out! But i have too much class for that. From now on however - this little hole in the wall pizza place is off my...

I’ve been coming to Pizzeria Valdiano for years — easily over a decade — and it has always been one of my favorite spots. I still remember coming here around 10 years ago and meeting Mike, who has been such a cheerful and welcoming gentleman. Even in times when life seemed like it might’ve been tough for him, he still showed up with a smile and radiated positivity. You can feel his good vibes in the pizza itself, and that kind of energy makes a difference. He truly deserves recognition for years of dedication, consistency, and love for this place.

More recently, I had the pleasure of meeting Jayden — and let me tell you, that young man can make some wings! Both Mike and Jayden aren’t just good employees, they’re genuinely good people who happen to work here. There’s a BIG difference.

Pizzeria Valdiano, treat your employees well — they’ve earned it. The food, the atmosphere, and especially the people make this...