Oh, theme park resort pizza we love you. Of course, we often dislike you at the same time. So often for the prices you charge, we expect way better pizza. We joke about rat pizza over at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. We wonder why the pizza needs to be so puffy in terms of crust. However, data on pizza sales at Orlando area theme parks remain shockingly high for often less than average pizza. Sure, there are several places you can get good pizza at Orlando area theme park resorts. However, those price points may exceed your desire after a long park day.

A bright light in the world of theme park resort pizza shines at Universal Orlando. Universal Orlando value plus level hotels continue to offer quality pizza at a lower price than you would expect. Rarely do I hear a guest complain about pizza at these two resort hotels. Both Cabana Bay Beach Resort and Aventura go by the moniker of being value plus level to distinguish them from the Endless Summer Resorts. The Urban Pantry food court at Aventura even offers a brick oven style pizza. This pizza station often gets busy.

However, this busyness grows since the pizza station only opens during busier dining hours. In some cases, it only fully opens on busy days with higher hotel occupancy. Some of this remains understandable since these pizzas take more time than just your average fast-food pizza. The official operating hours for the pizza station are Mon – Wed (5pm – 10pm) and Thu – Sun (4pm – 10pm).

For the record, this review will reflect a tale of two pizzas so bear that in mind. During my most recent trip to Universal Orlando staying at Aventura, I ordered a meat lovers pizza on my first night there. I ordered my pizza on a low hotel occupancy day at Aventura. That evening very few people were dining at Urban Pantry. Since I have visited this food court many times, I know a low number of people eating there counts as rare. I ordered a “meat lovers pizza” for $16 before discounts.

Now, I ate the entire pizza, with my trusty diet soda, while sitting in the Urban Pantry writing an article about Mardi Gras. My pizza tasted good but not to the level I expected from this place. I got the wonderful signature pizza box which I enjoy. I expected more from the pizza stove method being used. Even my spouse told me how wonderful the pizza was here. The quality of topping exceeded similar pizza offerings in Orlando area for similar price point. I could see the pizza was made fresh. The crust tasted average like it was not totally baked. I wondered what I was missing. Having had pizza at Cabana Bay Beach Resort and both hotels of the Endless Summer Resorts, I found this pizza good but not to that level.

However, I try to avoid writing reviews based on just my one experience. A few nights later, a group of us were meeting at the Urban Pantry. One of my friends ordered a meat lover pizza. Now, she added mushrooms to hers but still basically same pizza. I looked shocked when I saw her pizza compared to a photo of mine. Her pizza looked way better. She expressed that it tasted great. For record, she ordered this one on a higher crowd level night at Aventura.

My experience leads me to believe that this pizza station offers better products on busier nights. If you are selecting between all the quality options at this food court, pizza rates far better on a higher crowd night such as the weekend for example. As we have seen at Universal Orlando, day and time matters when you order food (looking at you Finnegan’s). Despite my experience, the pizza here rates high especially when you factor in theme park resort overall value. If you are craving pizza, this place makes a great option just maybe not on a slow Tuesday night.

Thanks for reading and as always, eat like you mean it!