Primo Piatto is a counter-service restaurant inside of Walt Disney World’s Riviera Resort. Sitting on the ground floor of the hotel, near the pool, bar and gardens, the restaurant is brightly decorated with a casual vibe. The food offered is largely American fare with a slight European (French & Italian) flare. Primo Piatto does take part in the Disney Dining Plan as a counter-service credit. In this post, we’ll review Primo Piatto’s lunch and dinner offerings as well as the atmosphere and value.

We’ve been fans of Primo Piatto’s breakfast since the Riviera opened. In a (Walt Disney) World full of bland counter-service breakfast menus, the offerings here are unique and delicious. We’d been several times for breakfast but had never ventured over for lunch or dinner until recently. I think the less inventive menus for those meals kept us from checking them out. But that was a mistake.

Counter-service lunch and dinner menus all seem to share a few of the same items. You’ve got your pizzas (or flatbreads) and sandwiches that will be offered most places. Those are a few of the most accessible options for a wide number of guests so their inclusion makes sense. But, variety is the spice of life and I like to try different spices. So, generic hotel quick menus don’t always call to me. In this case, getting caught up in a bland menu was the wrong move because Primo Piatto is fantastic.

I should note that the two entrees we’ve had for lunch here are two of the more unique options. The menu does focus on sandwiches and pizzas as well as a few other specialty items. All of the options are in the $10-$15 range.

Of those generic options, the one that called to me the most was the Grilled Chicken Sandwich. Let’s take a minute to admire the real and beautiful plate it’s served on. Well done, Primo Piatto! The sandwich consists of Grilled Chicken, Tomato Spread, Spinach and Artichoke Spread, and Mozzarella served on Toasted Focaccia. Both spreads combined to make a creamy taste that was perfect with the chicken. I also really liked the Focaccia it was served on. The chicken was delicious, juicy and flavorful.

This ends up being one of the best sandwiches we’ve had in WDW. Even the fries were much better than the usual options, topped with parmesan and having a good crunch to them. At $13.19, this is one of the better values when it comes to delicious food at Disney World.

Not to be outdone, this is the Beef Bolognese. The dish is slow-braised Beef Bolognese, Pasta, Herbs, and Parmesan, and it belongs on a table-service menu somewhere. Relative to all of the Disney World Italian dishes I’ve had, this is one of the best. There’s a hefty portion of beef that is combined with the delicious Bolognese. There’s a nice but not overpowering tomato flavor to go with thick strips of pasta. The Beef Bolognese costs $14.99, which is a very fair value. I’m not ready to crown this as one of the best counter-service meals in WDW but it’s definitely being considered for that totally made up prize.

Our dessert was the most ordinary part of the meal. Primo Piatto has a seasonal cheesecake on the menu and the one shown above is pumpkin flavored. This was good but tasted pretty similar to most Disney World desserts that are stored in the fridge. I do like the design on this. Primo Piatto has several other desserts, including Tiramisu!

We came away very impressed by the meal. The menu isn’t as creative as breakfast, and I think it could use one more specialty dish to pair with the Beef Bolognese, but the food was very fresh. That isn’t a surprise as the kitchen is open and guests can watch food being made from where they sit. The quality at Primo Piatto is a step above most other WDW counter-service spots.

I won’t spend much time on the atmosphere here, as I covered most of that in our breakfast review. In short, the sitting area has nice pops of color and is adorned with photos of Walt Disney visiting the actual Riviera. It’s a nice touch that isn’t a transportive theme but feels thought out. I especially like the wood tones and the colorful booths.

One plus of eating here in the afternoon or evening is how nicely Primo Piatto is lit up with natural light. Those large windows that give guests a view of the lake, illuminate the seating area nicely. That’s a stark contrast to some of the less enjoyable, food court style seating areas that certain quick-service restaurants have. The restaurant benefits from newness both in atmosphere and food.

Along with a great atmosphere, Primo Piatto has a nice slate of grab & go options, real plates (if you don’t mobile order) and freshly brewed iced tea. As far as I know, this is the only place to get fresh iced tea with your refillable mug. I hope that Disney doesn’t read this and immediately revoke the wonderful iced tea. I would be sad but my wife would be heartbroken. I got sidetracked, but the point of this paragraph was to convey that this counter-service restaurant is a step up in quality over others in Disney World.

We love Primo Piatto, regardless of if we dine there for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The food is consistently fresh and delicious without being overpriced. On top of that, the atmosphere is bright and modern. This has become one of our favorite counter-service spots in all of Walt Disney World.

Overall Rating 9.5/10

Have you eaten at Primo Piatto? Let us know your thoughts or any questions you might have in the comments below. Planning a trip to Walt Disney World? Check out our Disney World Trip Planning Guide to help you out. Looking for discount tickets? Check out this site! If you enjoy what you are reading here on Wandering in Disney please share this post with your friends, as well as like our social media pages. You can also subscribe to the blog via WordPress or email. All of those links are on the right side of this page. Thank you for reading, we really appreciate it!