Tutto Gusto

We already had planned our trip to Walt Disney World when they announced the opening of Tutto Gusto.  Tutto Gusto is a wine bar in the Italy Pavilion at Epcot which opened on May 1.  I do enjoy wine and cheese so we just had to try this out.  We decided to go over there on May 5 for a late lunch.  Before we arrived at the bar, we heard from a number of friends that the service was very poor.  We also heard that there were only one or two free tables in there so we decided not to try it because we were hungry.

We came back during the week and were very glad we did.  The service was fantastic.  I wouldn’t have wanted “opening jitters” to cloud my judgement of this location.

We didn’t know in advance if this was going to be a counter service or table service restaurant.  I was pleased to see it was a table service location.  We could go to the bar and place an order as all the food was on display in a cold case, but the cool darker interior of the building offered a nice respite from the heat outside.

We started off with beverages.  I spotted a unique martini on the list so I had to try this.  It was a Bruschetta martini!  Made with tomato vodka and dry vermouth plus a bit of basil, and garnished with a cherry tomato, this drink was very tasty.  A little bit sweeter tomato taste, but not sweet.  I did look through the very lengthy wine list.  There were a lot of great choices on the menu with many wines served by the glass.  I definitely have to come back and try a few.

The menu contains a good selection of “small plates”.  While you can make a meal out of dining here, you can’t really do so with one selection.

We started off with some meats and cheeses.  To make things easy, we did the Chef’s Selection of Four.  This included Proscuitto di Parma, Salametto, Fior di Latte and Parmigiano-Reggiano.  This came with Focaccia Rustica.

Next we had some Piccoli Piatti (small plates).  We tried the Olive Finocchio e Arance (marinated cerignola olives, fennel, orange).  This was just ok.  I didn’t really notice the fennel or orange, in fact, I didn’t even remember they should have this until I just looked at the menu again.  We also ordered Asparagi Bianchi (white asparagus, lemon, Parmesan, extra virgin olive oil).  This was very good.  It is a cold dish and the combination of the mild asparagus with the Parmesan cheese is something I would have again elsewhere.

The small plates and cheese platter were served fairly quickly as they were all cold.  We also ordered some Cavatappi (“corkscrew” shaped pasta) which took a little longer, but not too long.  We tried the Gamberetti which was shrimp, calabrian chili, garlic and pomodorini.  This had a little kick, but not much.

We finished off the meal with a Mocha Tiramisu.  This didn’t have a strong espresso taste like some tiramisus that I have had in the past, which made it more enjoyable to me.

Tutto Gusto is not currently on the dining plan, but does accept Tables in Wonderland.  Our total before the discount was just under $92.  While this was a little pricy for a lunch, we very much enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere.  We will definitely go back again!