Pirate Island

My friend told me about this place a couple of weeks ago. Because she mentioned tokens, I assumed it was basically a variation of Chuck-E-Cheese. I found out today that my assumption could not have been more wrong.
One of our favorite DJs (Cort Johnson, from 101.9 THE END) was broadcasting live from Pirate Island in Orem today, AND he was giving away Miley Cyrus tickets. Also, my good friend Brooke lives in Provo so we decided that would be a great place to meet up with her and her family too.
I was impressed right from the moment that we pulled up because there was a giant pirate ship out front and big wooden doors to go inside. To give you an idea how big this place is, they have converted and older movie theater into a restaurant.
THE ATMOSPHERE: When we walked in, my first thought was that it seemed a little bit like the Mayan. The atmosphere was awesome. It basically felt like you were at Disneyland and the Pirates of the Caribbean ride stopped so you stepped off into this place. Our table was over in an area that had a bayou feeling. There were huge fake trees and fireflies that kept lighting up and you could hear crickets and frogs. It reminded me a lot of the Blue Bayou restaurant at Disneyland, except the prices were reasonable and the food was good. Part of the place was painted like a giant pirate ship and every once in a while canons would fire from it. Then, as you continued past the pirate ship you ended up in Tortuga, which had a much more rowdy and kid-like atmosphere. The arcade was over that way and there was a small play area for younger kids. Out of the two, I was really glad that we sat over in the bayou area, because my kids are old enough that they could go over to the arcade by themselves but I didn't have to see it or hear it. Did I mention that all of the waiters were dressed like pirates? The kids really liked that.
THE FOOD: When we first got there I asked to look at a menu, because after I saw the place inside I figured it was going to cost a fortune. The menu had a lot of variety, especially since I was just expecting cardboard pizza. I noticed that the prices were decent too. Kids meals were in the $3 to $4 range, and were your basic kid-friendly choices. The kids menu even turned into a pirate hat. The regular menu had reasonable prices and lots of different choices. Soup and a salad bar started at $5.99 and then there were different wraps and sandwiches, etc in the $8.99 range. We ended up ordering a pizza for Guy and Hannah and myself to share. We chose the medium-sized chicken/bacon/ranch pizza for $16.99. It was DELICIOUS and there was even one piece left-over. One of the coolest menu items was the Kraken pizza. It was 24" wide (yes, that's 2 feet). It would probably feed 8 to 10 people, assuming you could all decide on the same kind of pizza. They did say they could even do 1/2 and 1/2, and could cut it into normal slices or even into smaller squares so they weren't SO big. We saw one come out to a nearby table and I have to say it was pretty impressive.
THE BILL: I had decided to treat since it was my idea and I know things are tight for Brooke and Chad right now with school starting up. I figured that if the 10 of us (4 adults and 6 kids) could get out of there for $70 we would be doing pretty good. Imagine how pleasantly surprised I was when the bill came and it was just under $50. That included one medium pizza, 4 kids meals with sodas, 2 soups and salads, and 3 regular sodas. I left a $10 tip and still got out of there for ten bucks less than I was planning on spending.
I HIGHLY recommend this place. It is in Orem, just past the University Mall, in the old movie theaters, behind the brand-new movie theaters. There is also a Costco right there in the same area. It is definitely a great place for kids, but it is even a place that I would consider going to with only adults. I was very impressed!