“Macatizers” Mac & Cheese Booth Menu & Review: EPCOT Food & Wine Festival
Macatizers is a booth serving gourmet macaroni and cheese during the EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival at Walt Disney World. This Global Marketplace review covers menu prices, food photos, and our thoughts on what is—and is not—worth your money or Disney Dining Plan snack credits.
Although Macatizer is a brand-new “booth” inside CommuniCore Hall, the concept of a Mac & Cheese booth is not. In fact, when this booth first debuted four years ago during the ‘Taste of’ event inside World ShowPlace, it was one of the highlights. Walt Disney World didn’t have to put as much effort in as they did for comfort cuisine, but it was much appreciated.
That first incarnation of Mac & Cheese was presented by Boursin Cheese–a logical and tasty fit for this booth. After all, Boursin is a fine cheese that’s beloved at social gatherings in France (per Bousin, and since their corporate website says so, it must be a fact). It’s sophisticated stuff for discerning palates, not some swill like Babybel. Never mind the fact that they’re both made by Bel Brands USA (and also the reality that Babybel is a delicious guilty pleasure). But I digress!
Note that’s all past tense. The Mac & Cheese booth subsequently relocated and was renamed Mac & Eats. It got an all-new menu that was dramatically different, and not nearly as good.
Once again, the booth has been renamed and relocated–this time inside CommuniCore Hall–and the menu has been modified, albeit slightly this time. Here’s what’s available at Macatizers during the 2024 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival:
Food Items:
- 🧀 Traditional Macaroni and Cheese with herbed panko
- 🧀 Cheesesteak Macaroni and Cheese with shaved beef, peppers and onions, and breadcrumbs
- 🧀 Truffle Macaroni and Cheese
- 🧀 IMPOSSIBLE Chili Macaroni and Cheese with sour cream and cheddar (Plant-based)
Beverages:
- Crooked Can Brewing Company Vinifera Velvet Lager
- Southern Tier Brewing Co Raspberry Shine Summer Wheat Ale
- Lexington Brewing and Distilling Company Kentucky Pumpkin Bourbon Barrel Ale
- Beer Flight
- Terrazas de los Andes Reserva Chardonnay
- Klinker Brick Bricks & Roses Rosé
- Beringer Bros Bourbon Barrel Aged Cabernet Sauvignon
- Wine Flight
- Knights Bridge Sauvignon Blanc
- St. Supéry Domaine de l’Ile Rosé
- Caymus 50th Anniversary Cabernet Sauvignon
Now our photos and reviews of each item at the Macatizers Marketplace…
Cheesesteak Macaroni and Cheese ($6.50) – This mac & cheese is topped with with shaved beef, peppers and onions, and breadcrumbs. It replaces the Cowboy Mac & Cheese, which featured smoked pork belly, brisket burnt ends, pickled peppers, onion straws, and barbecue aioli.
Just from the description, it should be fairly clear this is a downgrade. Nevertheless, this is the best option at Macatizers, with the shaved beef and other toppings making this simple comfort food something better. It’s also the mac & cheese with the largest portion at the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival.
Truffle Macaroni and Cheese ($6.50) – I’m a huge sucker for all things truffle, including–actually, especially–truffle mac & cheese. And yet, it’s really difficult to justify this over the Cheesesteak Mac & Cheese.
Even though the truffle mac & cheese is tasty, it’s nothing special. The real issue, though, is the portion size. The Cheesesteak Mac & Cheese is about double the size (including toppings) for the exact same price.
Traditional Mac & Cheese ($5.50) – This is the straightforward macaroni and cheese dish, with herbed panko added to the mix.
Our portion here was pathetically small, but that’s okay–Disney was just looking out for our waistlines! 😉 Joking aside, we really didn’t mind because this mac & cheese was dry and uninspired. Not recommended–avoid this dish.
IMPOSSIBLE Chili-Cheese Macaroni and Cheese ($6.50) – This is the plant-based option, featuring meatless house-made ground “beef” plus beans, corn chips, and other ingredients that should probably have air quotes around them.
The “beef” is actually quite good, making for a hearty and satisfying dish here. The other ingredients work well with it, and make this shockingly convincing as chili mac & cheese. You can taste a slight difference in the “meat,” but I probably would’ve guessed it was just a bit lower quality–rather than plant-based–if I had to guess without looking at the menu. Recommended.
Ultimately, Macatizers is an underwhelming booth at the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival. This is mostly due to our knowledge of how good it was in the past, and how lackluster it is now by comparison. Don’t get me wrong, the Cheesesteak Mac & Cheese is fairly good, but this lineup used to consist of 4 different macaroni and cheese dishes all of which were significantly better than the best option at Macatizers.
But guess what! It doesn’t matter. Part of the reason this is (admittedly) such a low-effort review is because Macatizers is the most popular booth with the longest line in all of the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival. If there’s anything I’ve learned from the Fry Basket, it’s that Walt Disney World guests love comfort food, even if it’s underwhelming. Most people wanting this type of food aren’t reading reviews, anyway. If you are, a simple recommendation to order the Cheesesteak Mac & Cheese and skip the rest (but ideally, you’d skip the entire booth) should suffice. No sense tilting at windmills with a long treatise thoroughly reviewing each dish.
Check out our Global Marketplace Booth Menus & Photos for the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival Booth Menus post if you want to see and read more about every menu this year! You’ll also want to read our full 2025 EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival Guide before you go to get an idea of what to do, strategy for the festival (yes, you will need a strategy), and much more!
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of the Macatizers Marketplace? Have you tried any of the four food items at this booth? What did you think of them? What do you think of this booth? Does it live up to the quality of its Mac & Cheese predecessors, or is it an inferior replacement? 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!
What kind of peppers were pickled?
Tom,
Those pictures of the Lobster Mac & Cheese does not look like lobster. It looks like diced summer sausage on top of the mac & cheese.
Thank you for your thoughts, hints reviews and Keeping us informed. Is there any place to find the nutritional values for the booths and restaurants for DW? I am looking forward to trying as much as possible but my friend (newly diabetic) has to be so careful. Thanks
Thanks for continuing to go and post updates Tom! The mac and cheese is making me hungry 😀 I always enjoy when you do ones that are “less common’ such as the food or items in the gift shops at the parks or hotels. Especially now that it looks like we’re not going to be going to WDW any time soon
Have I ever attended a Food & Wine Festival at Epcot? No. Am I planning to this year? Also no. Will I continue to read your reviews for every menu item of food I will never eat because I find them entertaining? Yes.
This is totally off-topic, but I have a question related to Flower & Garden Festival merchandise. My sole reason for going to Epcot is to, hopefully, purchase the Orange Bird juice glass, pitcher and Minnie Ears. Has anyone visiting Epcot seen these items in stock? The shopping link on My Disney Experience no longer shows merchandise availability in parks. It is now a link to shopDisney website. Thanks to anyone who can help!
There’s tons of the Orange Bird stuff all over stands in World Showcase. Not sure about the ears.
Thanks so much, Tom. You saved me from going the Ebay pirate route.
I would also LOVE a coffee-table book of your amazing photography.
There are a couple of locations in Epcot currently offering Flower and Garden Festival merchandise. I was just there last Friday and Sunday.
I must admit, I groaned as soon as I saw the headline of a booth dedicated to Mac & Cheese. I’d have thought with the tourist crowd reduced and the “locals” crowd increased, they’d be pitching slightly higher in terms of ambition. That said given the circumstances I can understand the whole event being a bit phoned in.
The new restrictions on food consumption would make the event far less enjoyable anyway, unfortunately. Is there something specific to the U.S. that makes the slightly heavy-handed/micromanaging approach necessary? In the U.K. face coverings are now mandatory in various indoor settings which is mostly accepted/complied with but there is no enforcement and society seems to have accepted that 100% compliance through rigid rules is not achievable or desirable. In particular the U.K. and U.S. appear to have taken very different approaches in terms of people with disabilities that make mask-wearing difficult.
There definitely IS something specific to the US that makes the current approach neccessary. (sadly)
“Is there something specific to the U.S. that makes the slightly heavy-handed/micromanaging approach necessary?”
I feel like this is probably rhetorical. If not, see social media, American cable news, or any number of past debates over individual liberties. It’s disappointing, but not even remotely surprising.
Hello cdd89! There are a lot of people trying to get around the rules (or blatantly ignoring the rules) which makes it so that more have to be implemented for Cast and guest safety. When cast notice issues arising, they can report it, and unions have been stepping in to try and increase their safety, as a cast-wide spread could be devastating for Disney.
Really hoping to score some of that Gourmet Mac & Cheese when we (hopefully!) visit in September! Looks glorious!
I can’t wait to try.
Now I I wish we knew when this festival ends–I would consider moving up our November vacation to earlier in November if necessary to be able to do this festival and this Mac and Cheese! The reason we had chosen the weekend before Thanksgiving was because of the D23 Destination Disney event which of course has been canceled and will go virtual instead at some point. So I am half joking but really I could move it up. I do love Mac and Cheese!!!