The Italy Pavilion is an Italian-themed pavilion that is part of the World Showcase, within Epcot at Walt Disney World in

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

, United States. Its location is between the Germany pavilion and The American Adventure.

Layout

The Italy Pavilion features a plaza surrounded by a collection of buildings evocative of Venetian, Florentine, and Roman architecture. Venetian architecture is represented by a re-creation of

St Mark's Campanile St Mark's Campanile ( it, Campanile di San Marco, ) is the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy. The current campanile is a reconstruction completed in 1912, the previous tower having collapsed in 1902. At in height, it is the tal ...

(bell tower) with the La Gemma Elegante shop representing a replica of the

Doge's Palace The Doge's Palace ( it, Palazzo Ducale; vec, Pałaso Dogal) is a palace built in Venetian Gothic style, and one of the main landmarks of the city of Venice in northern Italy. The palace was the residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme auth ...

. The pavilion's design is inspired by other hallmarks of Italian architecture, such as the Columns of San Marco and San Todaro, the Ponte della Paglia, Neptune Fountain (reminiscent of Rome's Trevi Fountain) and the Il Bel Cristallo shop (meant to resemble the exterior of the Sistine Chapel). There are also small shops selling Italian goods, such as candy, household items, perfumes and wine. Venetian Mask Artisans from Balocoloc in Venice, Italy have also been featured in this Pavilion since 2001, performing live painting throughout the day and showcasing their authentic handmade masks. Musicians, clowns, and acting troupes often appear in the piazza throughout the day. The original plans for the pavilion called for an expansion that would be built in Epcot's "Phase II" of construction, thus leaving a wall with nothing behind it at the rear of the pavilion. The expansion would have included a gondola dark ride and a Roman ruins walk-through. When "Phase II" was canceled, the pavilion was left incomplete. However, a restaurant by the name of ''Via Napoli'', designed by the Florentine architects Stefano Nardini and Raffaella Melucci, opened under the Patina Restaurant Group in 2010, and brought the pavilion its long-awaited completion. It features Florentine architecture and authentic Neapolitan cuisine. The water used to make pizza dough is imported from Pennsylvania to simulate authentic Neapolitan dough. Via Napoli's three wood-burning ovens pay tribute to the three active volcanoes in Italy: Etna, Vesuvio, and Stromboli. To do this, each of the three ovens are sculpted in the shape of the face of the god that their corresponding volcano is named after. The long communal table in the center of the room was built in Florence and features hand painted tiles depicting iconic monuments in Italy. Other notable features of Via Napoli are its high and vaulted ceilings, imported ceramics, and blown glass, and the abundance of windows that flood the establishment with natural light.

Service

Dining

* Tutto Italia Ristorante's (formerly Ristorante Alfredo) menu is curated by chef

Joachim Splichal Joachim Splichal is a celebrity chef based in Los Angeles, California. In 1991, he was declared "Best California Chef" by the James Beard Foundation. Four years later in 1995, he was inducted into their "Who's Who of Food & Beverage in America". Spl ...

. The restaurant is bedecked in murals,

fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

s, and a Carrara marble piazza. *Tutto Gusto (Wine Cellar) * Via Napoli Pizzeria e Ristorante's menu is curated by chef

. The restaurant was inspired by the dining/architecture trademarks of Naples and Florence, with the house speciality being Neapolitan pizza. The restaurant trio of brick ovens are named Vesuvius, Etna, and

Stromboli Stromboli ( , ; scn, Struògnuli ) is an island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, off the north coast of Sicily, containing Mount Stromboli, one of the four active volcanoes in Italy. It is one of the eight Aeolian Islands, a volcanic arc north of Sici ...

Future

* La Gelateria

Shopping

* Il Bel Cristallo * La Bottega Italiana * Enoteca Castello * La Gemma Elegante

Entertainment

* Sergio, a comedic juggler * Sbandieratori di Sansepolcro, a flag throwing show performed by authentic artists from

Sansepolcro Sansepolcro, formerly Borgo Santo Sepolcro, is a town and ''comune'' founded in the 11th century, located in the Italian Province of Arezzo in the eastern part of the region of Tuscany. Situated on the upper reaches of the Tiber river, the town ...

, Italy (since October 2014)

Former attractions

The original table-service restaurant in the pavilion, L'Originale Alfredo di Roma Ristorante, closed in the summer of 2007. The restaurant space has been acquired by the Patina Restaurant Group, which has re-launched it as Tutto Italia.

Gallery

File:Italy Epcot Panarama.JPG, Panorama File:EpcotItalyDoge.JPG, Venice's Doge's palace and campanile File:Epcotitaly3.jpg, Tutto Italia File:Epcotitaly4.jpg, File:Il Bel Cristallo at Epcot.jpg, Il Bel Cristallo File:Epcot Italy.JPG

References

External links

Walt Disney World Resort - Italy PavilionItaly Fact Sheet

Sbandieratori di Sansepolcro's Official Website
{{Epcot Walt Disney Parks and Resorts attractions Epcot Italian-American culture in Florida World Showcase 1982 establishments in Florida