One of the best in-park theme park table/full-service restaurants in terms of value can be found in Lost Continent area at Islands of Adventure. Mythos serves quality full-service dining in an excellent setting.

Many of my Universal Orlando friends adore Mythos for good reason. Yet, I have been very clear on theme park podcasts, based in USA and UK, that Mythos is a great restaurant but not best in any theme park.

Recently, theme park discussions, based on a WDW executive language choice, occasionally turn to portion sizes of food. A similar type of conversation emerged during a personal trip to Mythos in late summer of this year.

One of my friends, who takes theme park photos for me, loves getting calamari. If calamari are on the menu, you can predict she will order it. She often orders the Semolina Crusted Calamari at Mythos.

As you will see in this review based on photos, she has ordered it a few times. The menu describes this appetizer as “tender calamari flash fried, served with Spanish chorizo aioli, marinara and charred lemon.”

The appetizer costs $12.

Since I do not eat calamari, I thoroughly trust her evaluation. She describes these calamari as well prepared. If you are someone who dislikes texture of bad calamari, you will not get that fried rubber band taste and texture. The seasoning on the calamari would make “Goldilocks” happy because it is just right. Basically, no significant complaints exist about flavor and texture.

However, Mythos, and a few other Universal Orlando full-service dining options, seem to be drastically reducing portion sizes. In addition, menu prices have not reduced and in some cases, prices have increased.

If you look at photos in this article you will see a 2020 version of the calamari and a 2021 version. I do not tour Universal Orlando with a measuring device, or a scale so can be exact. Still, calamari seem 35-40% smaller to group of us sitting around the table. I will let you decide that.

Yet, while the calamari portion size is noticeably smaller, we noticed that this trend continued across our entrée choices as well. As someone who writes more than a few theme park food reviews, I noticed prices have also gone up slightly despite the apparent portion size decrease.

In fairness, I appreciate those that call out Walt Disney World for price point increases and value reducing. However, Universal Orlando is following same pattern of reduced portions and price increases. The main difference seems to be they did not announce it.

The calamari would still earn a good value rating. They would be worth your dining selection. Please be advised that portion sizes are shrinking. This may be good for my waistline but maybe not good for my vacation budget overall.