After a busy morning making the most of the rides and attractions at Chessington World of Adventures, we were definitely ready for a break. The weather was incredibly hot during our visit, and after spending hours walking around the park, all we really wanted was somewhere indoors where we could sit down, cool off and enjoy a leisurely lunch.
After looking at the different dining options available, we decided to give the Adventure Point Pizza & Pasta Buffet a try. The promise of unlimited food and drinks sounded perfect, especially as we knew we’d need to rehydrate before heading back out into the sunshine.
Finding a table
As you might expect on a busy summer day, there was a queue when we arrived. The restaurant was clearly popular with families looking for an indoor dining option, but thankfully the queue moved fairly quickly and we weren’t waiting too long before being shown to a table.
One thing to be aware of is that you pay before entering the restaurant. During our visit, adults were charged £23.25 and children £13.25, which included unlimited pizza, pasta, salad and soft drinks.
Once seated, everything was ready for us. Plates and cups were already on the table, which meant we could head straight to the buffet and start eating.
What’s on offer?
I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting a huge selection, so I was pleasantly surprised when we saw what was available.
The pizza buffet offered several different varieties, including cheese, pepperoni, vegetarian options and meat-topped pizzas. Every time we visited the serving area there were plenty of pizzas available, and nothing ever seemed to run out despite how busy the restaurant was.
The quality of the pizza was fine, but nothing particularly memorable. The topped pizzas were definitely the best options. The plain margherita pizza was a little disappointing though. It seemed quite sparse on cheese and lacked the flavour of the other options. If you’re choosing between them, I’d definitely recommend going for one of the pizzas with toppings.
Alongside the pizzas were a selection of pasta dishes and sauces. Erin opted for the pasta bolognese and was really impressed with it. Erin’s not usually a fan of pasta like this but she said it was one of her favourite parts of the meal.
There was also a salad bar with a variety of fresh options for anyone wanting something lighter, although we skipped this in favour of pizza and pasta.
Unlimited drinks
One of the biggest reasons we chose the buffet was because of the unlimited drinks.
When you’re visiting a theme park on a scorching hot day, staying hydrated becomes really important. Unfortunately, the unlimited drinks turned out to be the biggest disappointment of the entire meal.
The drinks available were four different juice options as well as water and, quite honestly, none of them tasted particularly nice. Erin is usually quite easy-going when it comes to drinks and isn’t especially fussy, but she took one sip and immediately decided she didn’t want any more.
Instead of enjoying multiple refills as we’d planned, we each had one drink and then ended up buying cans of Coca-Cola. Given that unlimited drinks were one of the key reasons we chose this restaurant, this was really disappointing and definitely affected our overall opinion of the experience.
Was it worth the money?
For £36.50 for the two of us, the Adventure Point Pizza & Pasta Buffet wasn’t terrible value when compared to other dining options inside Chessington.
There was a decent choice available and we certainly didn’t leave hungry. If you have children who love pizza and pasta, it’s easy to see why this restaurant is popular with families. The indoor seating was also a welcome escape from the heat, and being able to sit down and take a proper break from the crowds was something we really appreciated.
However, the drinks were a major let-down. Because we ended up purchasing additional drinks, the value wasn’t quite as good as we’d hoped.
Do we recommend it?
Honestly, probably not.
The food was perfectly acceptable and there was nothing wrong with it, but there also wasn’t anything that stood out enough to make us want to return. The pizzas were average, the pasta was nice and there was plenty available throughout our visit.
The biggest issue was the drinks. If those had been better, our overall review would probably have been much more positive.
If you’re looking for somewhere indoors to sit down, cool off and enjoy a filling meal during your day at Chessington, the buffet certainly serves a purpose. However, if you’re expecting amazing food or great quality drinks, you may come away feeling a little disappointed.
For us, it was an okay lunch stop that did the job, but it isn’t somewhere we’d make a point of visiting again on a future trip to Chessington.
Other posts about Chessington
- Adventure Point Pizza & Pasta buffet review
