Splitsville

Disney Springs – Lunch

The entire place is done up in 1950’s vintage bowling decor. There is that old time red that is everywhere and lots of vinyl…vinyl booths, vinyl seats (all red by the way)… but with a little twist of modern technology. After all you wouldn’t find flat screen tvs in a 1950s bowling alley;-)

There is a shop area when you first enter through the main entrance. In case you were not paying attention on the way in, this is where you will really realize you are at the Splitsville in Downtown Disney…it’s their only location where you can purchase your very own Mickey or Minnie Mouse bowling ball. There are other locations in Florida but I don’t think you’ll be seeing these bowling balls there;-)

I believe there are 30 lanes in the entire building but they aren’t all along a wall like a typical bowling alley. There are spread out all over the first floor as well as the second floor. The billiard tables are upstairs though.

On the first level there are 2 groups of lanes, lanes 5-10 shown below…a large bar area and lots of tables and booths to dine at. The second floor has a nice amount of space & lanes to accommodate several parties at one time.

There is also a substantial amount of outdoor seating, both downstairs and upstairs.

As you can see by the photos it was a rather quiet time of the day (mid-afternoon) and we were there for a late lunch. There were some people bowling and some guests eating outside.

We were seated downstairs in a comfy booth. At the time we were seated there was no one else around us.

Our friendly server greeted us quite quickly and took our drink order. Their beverages are served in red vintage Coca-Cola cups.

Our waiter was kind enough to show us some of their drink specialties which are pictured below. On the left is the “popular” Snickertini which consists of Smirnoff Vodka, Frangelico, Kahlua and cream and on the right, the “refreshing” Koolaide Bowl which has Bacardi Orazz, Limon and Dragonberry mixed with pineapple, cranberry and orange juice. (Sure different than the Koolaide I once knew;-) He said these were among the most popular drinks and I could see why.

The menu has an interesting variety of appetizers, pizza, burgers, salads and SUSHI. I still think it’s really interesting that SUSHI is not just served here, but it’s one of their specialties…just doesn’t seem to fit in here but that’s another distinguishing difference they have over other “bowling allies”. Their sushi has a great reputation here, although we didn’t try it. (maybe I should have…)

One of the servers walked by with an order of Nachos she was serving a table outside. She said they were very good although there didn’t seem to be a lot to them. My daughter really wanted a simple order of chicken fingers and fries and that’s what she got and she was very happy with them. They were tender and juicy on the inside. The white meat chicken was very plump and the light crispy breading made them very enjoyable.

I ordered the Tijuana Chicken Sandwich with fries which was supposed to be a piece of grilled chicken with avocado, pico de gallo, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion and pickle with chipolte mayo on a whole wheat bun. I skipped the cheese and onion and asked for the mayo on side.

However, when it was served all I got was a piece of chicken with lettuce and tomato and the fries. They also skipped out on everything else. It took a little while for our server to come by and check on us and I told him most of the items were missing so he said he’d bring them right out. I hadn’t tried it yet.

It was quite a long time though until he came back and I was hungry… so I proceeded to cut the sandwich in half and unfortunately it was extremely challenging. I did use a butter knife but it felt like there was a ball of rubber in the middle which was actually a piece of fat.

The roll was stale and crumbly. The sandwich really wasn’t good, was disappointed but had already munched on the fries while I waited for our server to return. I waited some more and ended up cutting around the knot and left the roll.

FINALLY our server showed up with some mayo and a little bit of avocado…a little too late. I told him the sandwich was not good. There were so many other things I could have chosen to order (like sushi LOL!), but it was already passed that point, I no longer had an appetite left for lunch. The fries were good though;-)

Within a minute or two, the manager unexpectedly stopped by and he was extremely eager to make things right. I told him I was already past the point of eating anymore lunch stuff but he told us he’d buy us a sundae on the house which wasn’t really necessary but he insisted.

And I have to say it was a great sundae!! It made up for that sorry excuse of a chicken sandwich. 

All in all even though I didn’t have the best experience with my sandwich my daughter loved their chicken fingers and the sundae was magnifico!

I would probably not order the chicken sandwich again but there are so many other options. I do have to say though, the manager was very concerned about getting it right and even though our server didn’t return for a long time he still tried to make it right as well. That meant a lot as it didn’t feel like a “letdown” (like some other places we may have reviewed), just a bad, bad piece of chicken and maybe a little miscommunication in the kitchen which can happen anywhere.

This is a fun place to have a night out or afternoon away from the parks. Bowling isn’t cheap here though, but if you’re wining and dining they do take the Tables in Wonderland card which is a nice perk. (bowling not included in the discount)–I think this is a fun place for a special occasion, birthday or just something different to do at Walt Disney World.

Next time…I might try the sushi:-) …LOL:-D