Epcot Update: Food & Wine Prep Begins, New Restaurants & Construction
As we continue our July 2019 Walt Disney World construction updates, we leave Hollywood Studios and head over to Epcot. This photo report focuses Food & Wine Festival preparations, World Showcase’s new and upcoming restaurants, and other new topics.
We’ll set the scene for this update with our big blunder in starting it out, which was walking to Epcot from Disney’s Hollywood Studios after finishing our last photo update. This was 100% my idea, as I wanted photos of the Skyliner turn station and to check out the summer menu at BoardWalk Bakery. It was also 100% a bad idea. On the plus side, Daisy Duck and Minnie Mouse were outside in their Cape May Cafe costumes for some reason, so we got sweaty photos with them. It’s the small victories.
There’s a lot happening at Epcot right now, so we’re not going to rehash much. After what feels like 6 consecutive months of virtually the same nothing-new views of the Guardians of the Galaxy coaster show building, we’re skipping that. Ditto the Space Restaurant and upcoming films, where there’s no visible progress…
Epcot’s Food & Wine Festival (read our Ultimate Guide to the 2019 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival) begins at the end of August, but the Global Marketplaces are already going up around World Showcase. This seems earlier than normal, but I could be completely mistaken.
A couple of weeks ago, Walt Disney World released menus for the event, with some noteworthy additions like the Alps and Appleseed Orchard. We have cover all the food and drinks, along with photos from last year in our Menus & Food Photos: 2019 Epcot Food & Wine Festival post. That’ll be updated in early September with new photos of everything.
Here are photos of some Global Marketplace booths:
As you can probably see from some of those photos, Epcot was dead. That’s been true for the entire summer; Epcot definitely sees the biggest dip in crowds this time of year.
On the same afternoon that Disney’s Hollywood Studios had several attractions with triple digit wait times, Test Track and Frozen Ever After both peaked at 40 minutes. Most wait times were in the 15-20 minute range, including Soarin.
As we’ve discussed at length, most notably in our (updated for 2019) Summer Is Not Peak Season at Walt Disney World Anymore post, summer attendance at Walt Disney World isn’t what it once was.
We can quibble over the reasons for this phenomenon, but one thing is indisputable: Epcot has seen the biggest drop in summer numbers. I can’t think of any explanation for that aside from the lack of a seasonal festival.
While the current slate of attractions certainly leaves something to be desired, Epcot’s attendance woes are mostly confined to summer–the one time of year when there’s no festival. As fans, we sometimes deride the seemingly year-round festival at Epcot, but the reality is these events are what’s drawing crowds, and the one thing propping up attendance numbers until much-needed new attractions start opening next year.
Speaking of new attractions debuting next year, here’s a look at the facades going up in France around Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure.
It’s cool to see these buildings taking shape, and I’m really excited to see an expansion of the France pavilion. Honestly, I’m more interested in everything else than the ride itself. (Although I do think it’ll be a decent addition for Epcot.)
My one concern remains congestion getting into and out of this area.
Above is a look at the progress on the pathway that’ll connect the existing France pavilion to the new area. This pathway looks really narrow, and like a potential chokepoint for crowds.
Looking the opposite direction, here’s the current progress on the new International Gateway entrance and gondola station (we’ll have a new Skyliner update with many more photos later this week).
I have my doubts that this will be done by the end of September when the Skyliner is slated to officially open.
Back in World Showcase, here’s a look at the new Takumi-Tei Signature Restaurant that’s now open in the Japan pavilion.
I’m cautiously optimistic about this restaurant. The tasting menu sounds like Epcot’s spin on kaiseki, albeit presumably a diluted version of that. If that’s the case, this would be an excellent addition to Epcot in keeping with the spirit of EPCOT Center.
We know many have quibbled with the price points, and those concern us, too. However, it’s also pretty easy to drop $100-300 per person on kaiseki in Kyoto–it’s not exactly an inexpensive meal. If the tasting menu is even on par with mid-range kaiseki, it’ll be worth the money for the experience.
Currently, our plan is to dine here for Sarah’s birthday. If we do that, I might just leave the camera at home as it’d be nice to just enjoy the expensive experience, and I’m not sure how many of you actually care about this restaurant, anyway. Alternatively, we might give the restaurant a couple more months to get past any early growing pains. Monsieur Paul’s summer menu is also tempting.
Continuing on to American Adventure, here’s a look at World Showcase’s next restaurant: Regal Eagle’s Distinctly Patriotic Smokehouse: A Salute to All Foods, But Mostly Barbecued Meats ~ A Sam Eagle Craft Drafts & BBQ Joint.
No word yet on when this is opening, but we’re looking forward to it. There’s almost no way it’s not better than Liberty Inn.
Moving to Future World, we start with Sunshine Seasons. This used to be one of our absolute favorite restaurants at Walt Disney World, but has slid in quality in the last year or so.
One of the big downgrades is the bakery. They used to serve (at least) double the number of items as pictured above.
There’s a lot of pathway work occurring as you head to Journey into Imagination.
I love this path and don’t really see any downside in widening it–hopefully this leads to less congestion.
If you haven’t already, get used to the sight of walls in Epcot.
While most of the construction thus far has been confined to the far perimeters of the park–something it can be difficult to ascertain sometimes from these photo updates–we suspect that come September, Future World is going to feel like an active construction site.
In case you missed it, the why and what of this is covered in our Closing at Epcot: Club Cool, Starbucks, Electric Umbrella, MouseGear, Fountain of Nations, Etc post. You should definitely read that if you haven’t already, as all of this has been officially confirmed and announced by Walt Disney World.
It’s worth noting that there are several other rumored projects that have yet to be announced by Walt Disney World. We expect to know one way or the other about these things come next month’s D23 Expo in Anaheim.
Sentimentality and nostalgia being what they are, we’ll miss a lot of the things that are about to close. The Innoventions restrooms (speaking of which, does anyone feel like a scene from Stranger Things 3 might’ve been shot in them?!), the hallway above, Club Cool, etc.
However, these are necessary growing pains, and Future World is desperately in need of a redesign. About the only loss that I’ll actually mourn in the long term is Fountain of Nations. I really hope that finds a spiritual successor in Future World’s reimagined design.
Finally, we arrive at Epcot’s front entrance. As covered last month, the Leave a Legacy removal is now half-finished. Interestingly/oddly, work on the other side hasn’t even started yet. Walls are not even up.
We’ll monitor that and everything else about to start happening at Epcot in the next few months, and keep you posted with regular updates. For now, that’s all from Epcot!
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of the current state of Epcot and its construction projects? Have you dined at the new Takumi-Tei restaurant? Thoughts on the future of Future World? Excited for Regal Eagle’s Distinctly Patriotic Smokehouse: A Salute to All Foods, But Mostly Barbecued Meats ~ A Sam Eagle Craft Drafts & BBQ Joint? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Hy,The lack of attractions is a year-round condition, not a viable explanation for why summer crowds would be lower than non-summer crowds. But you already know that; how much will it cost me to cross this bridge.
I’m so jealous that’s all your food allergies are! I actually have seven total (can you believe that luck) and I didn’t travel for a LONG time because I was honestly terrified of what could happen…but it’s really down to planning your food well during a trip and making sure to inform the server every single time — good luck on your next trip, hope it’s for something fun!
Ohh this is fab. As a very new, floundering and feeling my way blog writer, I have discovered how naive I am! The whole follow then unfollow thing baffles me, as does the insta-bot thing. I was puzzled by the “f4f” comments I kept getting, wondering what the hell it meant, but Im learning fast!
Now, I only follow blogs, Instagram etc that interest me, (not who I think I need to be polite and follow back) and I comment if I feel I want to share something with the writer/poster, not so I get attention. Its a weird, whole new world that I need to understand lol. I also have no fear of my photos being mistaken as copies, I am a really rubbish photographer! (again, trying to learn fast)
I have found your blog a fabulous source of info on starting a blog etc, (I found it via a google search on blog help) and these ethics are exactly why I chose to subscribe. I will follow the ethics, plus a few more of my own, to the letter!
It think it fits Epcot’s theme really well. Maybe drunk people? But everyone is always so enamored by alcohol from around the world. Alcohol creates drunk people, so by my estimation, that also is culturally authentic.
I was just there last week and Epcot is something to be kept , it was full on July 13 even with the rain , is great to see those nations pavilions but …… paying a high amount of money to shop and eat makes you wonder how frequently you should go there . The congestion getting out the park was terrible no trams , We had to walk a lot and after the park you are really tired we’ve hop from MK and the monorail was shut down to walk to the bus and then to the Car end up our plans to go to D spring .We went to all the others parks and actually put the padlock when we left Walt Disney parks is always a great vacation.
Definitely thought about those bathrooms while watching Stranger Things 3 – glad to know I’m not the only one who thought that 🙂
I don’t understand the problem with the festivals. It think it fits Epcot’s theme really well. Maybe drunk people? But everyone is always so enamored by alcohol from around the world. Alcohol creates drunk people, so by my estimation, that also is culturally authentic.
Can anyone actually get Drunk on Disney cocktails??? The alcohol content for one has to be approx. one ounce, not even a full shot………Tell me I’m Wrong.!
In addition, we tried the “recommended” food items last Holliday season, they were not great……the turkey puff pastry from the French booth was so hard on the bottom, I had trouble cutting through it with the plastic knife they supplied. It really is quanity over quality, and I am tiring of IT !
People can very much get drunk on Disney spirits of some kind b/c they get really obnoxious. And there are a lot of them doing it to the point that we will likely avoid the WS at night with the kids. I was trying to buy a souvenir for my daughter (not with us) in the France pavilion last trip, and this huge drunk group was there for an eternity. I tried to leave and come back to avoid them but it was useless. The poor cast members were so flustered.
We made the mistake of going through the F&W booths at an off time to avoid the lines, and the food was really gross. We always had great quality stuff if we stood in the long lines, which is annoying of course.
Not a fan of Wine and Dine- quality and cost. It’s ok, but not great.
The only one that mildly annoys me is Food & Wine, and it’s because there’s zero substance to the event beyond spending more money on overpriced snacks and drinks. There used to be seminars and other interesting substance that balanced things out, but that’s slowly been removed.
I love the other 3 festivals. Sure, there’s the overpriced snacks and drinks component to those, but there’s also a healthy amount of substance.
We were there this past weekend and all the parks were noticeably quieter than normal, but the heat was HORRIBLE. Even our family from Florida was over it. It’s Florida in July, sure, but we’ve done the past 3 Julys and it’s never felt like this, we were dangerously close to overheating despite frequent breaks and plenty of water. Far too many spots in Epcot with the construction and in Hollywood Studios are without shade and an increase in outdoor fans probably, something they desperately need to address with summers getting warmer, especially if they hope to not have it be completely dead.
I have food allergies, which has been a Disney strength, and is a big draw for us but this trip we noticed quality and quantity had dropped quite a lot at many locations, in line with your comment about Sunshine Seasons. I hope this trend reverses itself, but if not, I suspect they will lose many allergy foodies (and maybe overall foodies). Perhaps they don’t care with the influx of Star Wars crowds, but it’s disappointing and made us regret purchasing APs for this year.
I do hope you’ll do a review of Takumi-Tei, even if the camera doesn’t join you.
My Japanese Wife & I are certainly going to eat there on our next WDW trip, but I’m unsure if we’ll splurge for the tasting menu.
Your respected opinion could go a long ways in the decision.
I second Jeff’s request! Please leave your blogger-camera at home for your wife’s birthday and enjoy yourselves, but a written recap — even without your beautiful photos — would be very much appreciated.
Great info. Is there any news at all on the new space restaurant?
Where the heck are those flowers in Innoventions? I’ve been in there to cool off (and to hang out in the sweet bathrooms) but have only ever seen the Epcot timeline wall.
Also…THAT’S the bakery case in Sunshine Seasons now?! So sad!
Tom & Sarah – I do hope I get to meet you at D23 Expo next month. I really appreciate all your reporting for those of us who live in the Midwest and don’t get to the parks as often!
I do care about your opinion of Takumi-Tei! I think with your experience in Japan, your review would be more rounded than most.
I would love to hear about your experience at the new Japanese restaurant, but please feel free to leave the camera in the room. Lots of people have already posted photos of the place and food. I’m just interested to hear your take on things there, and if it’s a Japanese version fo V&A.
Yes, I agree! I would also like to read your thoughts on this restaurant, but I hope you go and enjoy celebrating Sarah’s birthday! No need to bring work with you. It’s a wonderful blessing to be able to do what you love, but it’s also important to take the time to nuture what you love without those distractions so it always stays that way;)
Was was it a mistake to walk from HS to EPCOT? I always think that is a fun walk. Maybe too hot!!!
We were there on the 5th July and couldn’t believe how quiet Epcot was. We were able to ride Soarin in 20 mins, Spaceship Earth was a 5 minute wait (it did breakdown whilst we were on it!). Showcase was so quiet and very little wait to meet characters.
“Currently, our plan is to dine here for Sarah’s birthday. If we do that, I might just leave the camera at home as it’d be nice to just enjoy the expensive experience, and I’m not sure how many of you actually care about this restaurant”
Take the meal off and enjoy! As someone firmly in the traveling with kids demographic, I don’t care one iota about this restaurant :-).
I find EPCOT dining kind of interesting in that regard…there are tons of dining options, but I find most of them either have a) limited appeal for me to take my kids b) family appeal but are way expensive, or c) some combination thereof. It’s my least favorite park for dining with the family (Magic Kingdom being a real close second).
Interesting, Drew – I’ve found the opposite for Epcot. Pretty much anything in the World Showcase has worked for us with our daughter. (They are expensive, however.)
“We can quibble over the reasons for this phenomenon, but one thing is indisputable: Epcot has seen the biggest drop in summer numbers. I can’t think of any explanation for that aside from the lack of a seasonal festival.”
I dunno. Could be the lack of actual … what do they call them? Oh yeah, attractions.
Back when they had them in the 80s and 90s and even 00s, EPCOT wad pretty damn busy in summer.
And the food booths have NEVER been up this early. But, my guess is that one day soon, EPCOT will simply have year round food and booze fest until people realise how little they are getting and how much they are spending.
Lol, you sound like my husband! He has complained about the ROI at this park for years! Every time we go, he makes the comment that it the only park anywhere that you have to spend a lot to get in, to “get the right” to spend even more money for your “entertainment” – shopping & dining.
But he’s a good husband & goes for my sake, lol
“Could be the lack of actual … what do they call them? Oh yeah, attractions.”
Nope. The lack of attractions is a year-round condition, not a viable explanation for why summer crowds would be lower than non-summer crowds. But you already know that; how much will it cost me to cross this bridge?