MK New Beak and Barrel - Pirates of the Caribbean-themed lounge

[TheMaxRebo]

That’s a strange policy. I mean I assume if you were allergic to the food they would take it off the plate, so what’s the difference if you just don’t want it? Same with the drink - maybe they’re premade and sitting in a fridge, or maybe they want absolutely zero confusion since that mug would be appealing to kids (Aunt Jane orders a virgin cocktail and shares it with nephew, Uncle Joe sees that and assumes he can order the same drink right off the menu to share with nephew next time.) But none of that stops them from just dumping the drink out, wiping down the container and giving you an empty souvenir mug.

They can't necessarily just take an ingredient off - some dishes can be adjusted to accommodate allergies (or other dietary restrictions - plant based, etc) and some cannot

And they give you a branded new mug in a box any way, no need to dump it out and wash it out for you. They could just take it back if you said you didn't want to drink it and then give you the new mug.

It could be that - the mugs the non-alcoholic options come in look different that the ones that have alcohol in them so might be to make things clearer.

Would think they could do something on just showing you the drink, making it clear this counts as one of your 2 max drinks and then take it away though if you don't want it even on the table

 

[DisneyHead123]

They can't necessarily just take an ingredient off - some dishes can be adjusted to accommodate allergies (or other dietary restrictions - plant based, etc) and some cannot

But if you’re allergic and say “I’m allergic to the food, just give me the drink”, they won’t let you order the drink because you’re allergic to the food? That seems unlikely but who knows.

And they give you a branded new mug in a box any way, no need to dump it out and wash it out for you. They could just take it back if you said you didn't want to drink it and then give you the new mug.

It could be that - the mugs the non-alcoholic options come in look different that the ones that have alcohol in them so might be to make things clearer.

Would think they could do something on just showing you the drink, making it clear this counts as one of your 2 max drinks and then take it away though if you don't want it even on the table

Yeah our Target recently added these large neon signs in the wine section with a warning that these drinks contain alcohol (I mean literally in the wine section, it’s not like they’re stocking wine coolers next to sodas in a way that could be ambiguous) so I do wonder about some kind of liability issue there. Still, I see no reason they couldn’t just give you the mug and say it counts as one of your two drinks. Sounds like they need some policy tweaks to me, or at least to be a little clearer about their rationale.

 

[plutofan15]

Forcing teetotalers and recovering alcoholics to sit there with an alcoholic drink they have no intention of consuming when they’re willing to pay full price for the mug is not a reasonable policy by any sensible standard, much less by Disney standards.

At least the management at Oga’s realises this.

This is not really complicated to figure out. This is a new venue and, as with any new place serving food & drinks, it takes a matter of time to get a feel as to which items are selling well and which are not. The menu clearly states that the only way to get the mug is to purchase the Plunderer's Punch. When they purchase the mugs, they purchase the amount that they have estimated the number that will sell. The drink may sell better or worse than what was estimated. Until it is determined how well it sells, the mugs should be limited to being sold only with the drink. If word gets out (and it will) that the mugs can be purchased without purchasing the drink, the inventory control determination will not be accurate. If they run out of mugs, then we would have to wade through posts here of people complaining that they purchased the drink and did not receive the mug.
Chances are once Beak and Barrel has been in operation for enough time to determine proper inventory control, the mugs probably will be for sale without having to purchase a drink.

 

[Tony the Tigger]

@LittleBuford had I known, I would have ordered one for you on Tuesday. I’m sure it would’ve been nice to meet you.

I know that’s not your point.

On a similar note, my husband is type one diabetic. All those mixed drinks are sweet. Although Jack Daniels is one of the ingredients listed in one of the drinks, he couldn’t order a Jack Daniels with Diet Coke.

I do think that’s stupid.

Yes, he could order a beer. And that’s probably what would happen next time. But it’s one of the reasons we didn’t go a second time on our recent trip. That, and our bill for 45 minutes was $140, and I left a $40 tip. Once was enough this time around! Thoroughly enjoyed it, though.

Pivoting:

It may surprise some to know I did not go staring at every nook and cranny to see if things were made with modern printers or if they were historically accurate. I just took in the ambience.

It may surprise others to know I don’t much care what an octopus thinks. Neither does whatever else will eat an octopus in the ocean. Neither do I consider the relative intelligence of an octopus versus a chicken.

Nor do I care if Disney is intentionally making money via alcohol. Of course they are. Nor do I care about how other people‘s children are affected by 45 minutes in this place.

All the Debbie Downers are far more offensive to me than any theming grievances or fuzzy mascots in this bar.

 

[Casper Gutman]

Here we go again.

The idea that Disney is spending money building highly-themed bars with menus composed almost entirely of alcoholic beverages and turning EPCOT into a giant bar but that they DON’T actively want more guests to drink is so mindbogglingly stupid it borders on the disingenuous. You can absolutely defend Disney and its decision to open a bar in the Magic Kingdom without discrediting yourself with such transparently absurd positions.

This particular conversation, by the way, is about Disney refusing to sell a product to a guest unless they accept alcohol. Now, maybe this current case was attributable to a confused employee or maybe not. That doesn’t change the fact that Disney has introduced a desirable piece of merchandise and is using it to encourage the consumption of alcohol. Are there any non-alcoholic dishes on property that come with a reasonably high-quality collectible?

In any case, I’m not particularly interested in arguing all this again. There is a fundamental disagreement here about who Disney World should be for and it will inevitably come up again. We can all continue the debate then.

PS: I remembered the existence of popcorn buckets below.

 

[DisneyHead123]

This is not really complicated to figure out. This is a new venue and, as with any new place serving food & drinks, it takes a matter of time to get a feel as to which items are selling well and which are not. The menu clearly states that the only way to get the mug is to purchase the Plunderer's Punch. When they purchase the mugs, they purchase the amount that they have estimated the number that will sell. The drink may sell better or worse than what was estimated. Until it is determined how well it sells, the mugs should be limited to being sold only with the drink. If word gets out (and it will) that the mugs can be purchased without purchasing the drink, the inventory control determination will not be accurate. If they run out of mugs, then we would have to wade through posts here of people complaining that they purchased the drink and did not receive the mug.
Chances are once Beak and Barrel has been in operation for enough time to determine proper inventory control, the mugs probably will be for sale without having to purchase a drink.

That seems off though - like if they were trying to suss out the popularity of popcorn by inventory-ing Figment buckets. Ain’t nobody buying Figment buckets for the popcorn, and from what I’m hearing, ain’t nobody buying skull mugs because the drink is particularly amazing.

 

[networkpro]

Where is my brothel and gambling den

In any case, I’m not particularly interested in arguing all this again. There is a fundamental disagreement here about who Disney World should be for and it will inevitably come up again. We can all continue the debate then.

There's no argument, Disney wants paying customers, it's as simple as that.

 

[Casper Gutman]

That seems off though - like if they were trying to suss out the popularity of popcorn by inventory-ing Figment buckets. Ain’t nobody buying Figment buckets for the popcorn, and from what I’m hearing, ain’t nobody buying skull mugs because the drink is particularly amazing.

POPCORN! Of course! OK, I overlooked something very obvious because I don’t involve myself in the bucket-mania. OK - popcorn and alcohol are the two things Disney pushes by tying them to memorabilia!

 

[DisneyHead123]

It may surprise others to know I don’t much care what an octopus thinks. Neither does whatever else will eat an octopus in the ocean. Neither do I consider the relative intelligence of an octopus versus a chicken.

Oh come on, how would The Boy and The Octopus have been if the boy, you know, ate the octopus at the end?

Appreciated the rest of your post though.

 

[James Alucobond]

Pivoting:

It may surprise some to know I did not go staring at every nook and cranny to see if things were made with modern printers or if they were historically accurate. I just took in the ambience.

…

All the Debbie Downers are far more offensive to me than any theming grievances or fuzzy mascots in this bar.

I have to assume this was aimed at my earlier post. Just want to point out that I’m generally not down on the new things happening at the parks, and the digital design and print issues are neither specific to this experience nor to Disney within the realm of themed design more broadly. In that sense, it wasn’t a nitpick of this experience in particular, so it does not surprise me that it’s pretty easy to look beyond it and enjoy the ambience. It’s just something that tends to stand out to me as feeling slightly “off” in so many places recently (think new signage in the Jungle Cruise queue, Bayou Adventure signage and posters, etc.). It’s something they consistently got right far more frequently than their competitors a quarter century ago even if it wasn’t perfect, but now it’s no longer a differentiator in terms of perceived authenticity.

 

[Casper Gutman]

Where is my brothel and gambling den

You’re not superior to someone who wants to gamble in moderation, guy who wants to drink in a theme park. You need to stop with this line.

By the way, someone who doesn’t drink in moderation isn’t necessarily superior to someone who does. Just to reiterate.

There's no argument, Disney wants paying customers, it's as simple as that.

Yup! And that’s why alcohol is so very attractive- it has huge profit margins and it makes paying customers less resistant to paying!

 

[Casper Gutman]

@LittleBuford had I known, I would have ordered one for you on Tuesday. I’m sure it would’ve been nice to meet you.

I know that’s not your point.

On a similar note, my husband is type one diabetic. All those mixed drinks are sweet. Although Jack Daniels is one of the ingredients listed in one of the drinks, he couldn’t order a Jack Daniels with Diet Coke.

I do think that’s stupid.

Yes, he could order a beer. And that’s probably what would happen next time. But it’s one of the reasons we didn’t go a second time on our recent trip. That, and our bill for 45 minutes was $140, and I left a $40 tip. Once was enough this time around! Thoroughly enjoyed it, though.

Pivoting:

It may surprise some to know I did not go staring at every nook and cranny to see if things were made with modern printers or if they were historically accurate. I just took in the ambience.

It may surprise others to know I don’t much care what an octopus thinks. Neither does whatever else will eat an octopus in the ocean. Neither do I consider the relative intelligence of an octopus versus a chicken.

Nor do I care if Disney is intentionally making money via alcohol. Of course they are. Nor do I care about how other people‘s children are affected by 45 minutes in this place.

All the Debbie Downers are far more offensive to me than any theming grievances or fuzzy mascots in this bar.

Aside from the last paragraph, this is a consistent and defensible position coming from a good poster. The Beak caters to you and that’s all you care about.

As a reasonable poster, however, I hope you wouldn’t be “offended” by the idea that this might not be a universally shared viewpoint.

 

[networkpro]

You’re not superior to someone who wants to gamble in moderation, guy who wants to drink in a theme park. You need to stop with this line.

By the way, someone who doesn’t drink in moderation isn’t necessarily superior to someone who does. Just to reiterate.

Yup! And that’s why alcohol is so very attractive- it has huge profit margins and it makes paying customers less resistant to paying!

Considering I drink maybe 4 beers a year and usually a radler, I'm hardly a high profit target.

We get that Disney isn't following your business preferences, but it's still a going concern in spite of that. Were also watching Six Flags circle the drain.

 

[Casper Gutman]

Considering I drink maybe 4 beers a year and usually a radler, I'm hardly a high profit target.

We get that Disney isn't following your business preferences, but it's still a going concern in spite of that. Were also watching Six Flags circle the drain.

This post is entirely irrelevant to anything I wrote. Every word of it.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Saw it reported and just checked myself, Beak and Barrel now limiting reservation party sized to 8 .... I did also check and Oga's still allows up yo 20 like other locations

 

[networkpro]

This post is entirely irrelevant to anything I wrote. Every word of it.

As you specialize in the oblique instead of direct speech, let's leave it with Raise Hell, Praise Dale.

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

It was totally at odds with the customer service I expect from Disney and actually marred our second visit quite a bit.

Agree 100% - there have been a few of these odd policies creeping into the WDW operations and it really bothers me on principle more than anything.

It might be with how it is set up for taxes, for legal reason

Please give an example of a tax law or legal reasons that Disney couldn’t simply sell the souvenir mug to someone who wants to buy it.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Agree 100% - there have been a few of these odd policies creeping into the WDW operations and it really bothers me on principle more than anything.


Please give an example of a tax law or legal reasons that Disney couldn’t simply sell the souvenir mug to someone who wants to buy it.

I don't know anything specific - just there could be some reason why they have it set up as you are buying the alcohol and getting the bug for free - could impact tax rates, supply systems, tipping .

I have been at places where it was the reverse, they weren't allowed to sell alcohol but they could give it away for free with the purchase of food.

Or as others have said it could be just to be very clear that the mugs that are out have alcohol in them so to avoid and mixing up. Could be for any number of reasons ... or for no good reason and they will adjust over time - but it is how Trader Sam's is so much be for for some reason as it would be less costly for them to not make the drink at all

 

[Chi84]

You’re not superior to someone who wants to gamble in moderation, guy who wants to drink in a theme park. You need to stop with this line.

By the way, someone who doesn’t drink in moderation isn’t necessarily superior to someone who does. Just to reiterate.

Yup! And that’s why alcohol is so very attractive- it has huge profit margins and it makes paying customers less resistant to paying!

Where did you get this idea that people are discussing this bar in terms of who is superior?

I can tell you just from life experience that social drinking appears to be more acceptable to our society than gambling (discussing brothels is silly).

 

[LittleBuford]

Please give an example of a tax law or legal reasons that Disney couldn’t simply sell the souvenir mug to someone who wants to buy it.

Given that Oga’s is willing to just sell you the mug without the drink, there are obviously no tax or legal reasons at play here.