What if the Aladdin and Jasmine M&G moved in there?
Marrakesh is one of our favorite service restaurants in Epcot. Doesn't hurt that my best friend likes the belly dancer. Or that I like the swarthy waiters.
-
Welcome to the WDWMAGIC.COM Forums!
Please take a look around, and feel free to sign up and join the community.
Morocco Pavilion facing financial troubles
- Thread starter castlecake2.0
- Start date
Marrakesh is one of our favorite service restaurants in Epcot. Doesn't hurt that my best friend likes the belly dancer. Or that I like the swarthy waiters.
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
Enchanted tales of Aladdin and Jasmine confirmed?
_caleb
Well-Known Member
Wow. You’re not even going to give me a “What makes you think they serve the display?” or “Are you sure they serve the food that’s been sitting in the case all day?” You just jumped straight to calling me a liar? I don’t appreciate that.
I’m speaking from my own experience. It was the end of the day, just before Illuminations. I was with my family. I ordered the Saffron Chicken dish, and they pulled the pre-made plate from the case, took it to the kitchen to heat it up, and then they served it to me.
That was my second (and last) time to actually eat at the Tangierine Cafe. The Moroccan mint tea is something I get every trip, though. I have also eaten at Marrakesh, which may share a kitchen with the cafe. I don’t remember the food being bad that time, but I was young.
Look, it’s “foreign” (to American audiences) cafeteria food. Most of it sits under plastic wrap (to keep the flies out) on a buffet line all day and is scooped onto your plate with an ice cream scoop (see photo from DFB, so I’m not called a liar again).
In my opinion, anyone who says the food in this cafe is “the best in Disney” is either exaggerating (which makes sense in a thread like this), delusional, or has very bad taste.
I would never expect fresh, high-quality food made to order in a quick serve restaurant in a theme park. But anyone who thinks the food in that cafe is freshly prepared (or even made in house), doesn’t know anything about foodservice or Mediterranean food.
Maybe my experience wasn’t typical. Lots of people say they like the food (though clearly not enough people did to keep the place in business). I wasn’t trying to insult you. I have no agenda other than to report my opinions and experiences.
GymLeaderPhil
Well-Known Member
The restaurant was perpetually available to reserve - even on New Year’s Eve. Guest Relations by Spaceship Earth was constantly pushing it on people who show up same day for dining reservations with PHOTOS of the food as well as menus.What if the Aladdin and Jasmine M&G moved in there?
Marrakesh is one of our favorite service restaurants in Epcot. Doesn't hurt that my best friend likes the belly dancer. Or that I like the swarthy waiters.
Spice Road Table, which never reached the heights the operating participant expected versus other Illuminations adjacent restaurants, cannibalized the demand for Marrakesh even further pre-COVID.
I could totally see Disney throwing Aladdin characters in Restaurant Marrakesh, but I still think that it would be throwing money at a location that historically has not worked as well as it could have given the abundance of more approachable dining options not hidden in the back of the pavilion. If it does reopen, expect a severely dumbed down menu.
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
Or you ordered the last one and they pulled the sample from the display?
If they did what you said it needed to be reported to the health department because you can’t store chicken like that.
Animaniac93-98
Well-Known Member
Wouldn't be the first time WDW had an Aladdin character meal, The Soundstage Restaurant at MGM-Studios was once one.
Jaz crashes Cindy's party.
_caleb
Well-Known Member
Of course you can’t! Why do you think I wrote the negative review in my previous post? And why do you insist on calling me a liar?
It’s a bad location for foot traffic. I’d guess 95% of guests never venture all the way back there. It has the benefit of being a huge room with good dining capacity and a stage space. It’s honestly a natural fit for character dining, just roll in the chicken fingers and fries.
The only benefit I can see for an EPCOT fan out of this news is if the princess-lunch-and-learn went on tour to a ‘new castle’ (the facade can pass for that, right?) and we get Akershus restored to its original menu and atmosphere.
I don’t know how long your history with the place goes, but yes it could probably be said that quality had fallen in recent years. It wasn’t always like that, though. And yes, any decently sized city likely has better offerings... but if it weren’t for my exposure to it at EPCOT, I never would have sought out or experimented with food from the region otherwise. Likewise with French food, Japanese, Scandinavian, and even a host of things I first tried at food and wine and then went on to explore the ‘real deal’. Just as the front of the park was formative to my STEM interests as a child, the back guided my adulthood adventures into culture and food. No honest foodie has ever claimed EPCOT was the pinnacle of fine dining, but you could never beat the easily accessible variety of solidly executed offerings.
mdcpr
Well-Known Member
Were people really not into the food? On the 3 times I went to Epcot I always had lunch or dinner at the Morocco pavillion and it was always full.
_caleb
Well-Known Member
I completely agree! For so many people, World Showcase is a first taste (literally) of the world. Perhaps the food used to be better. It may literally have just been the couple of occasions I was there that left something to be desired, but my experience wasn’t good.
I consider myself a foodie, but I’m no snob- I try to appreciate food for what it is. I LOVE Food & Wine, and I’ve truly had very good food from the stands. I’m a huge fan of World Showcase, and I believe the Morocco Pavilion is one of the best in terms of quality and authentic feel.
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
i was copying your tone in the post I quoted. It was the first adjective that I came up with. I apologize for that.
I’ve sent food back at Disney quick serve when it wasn’t prepared or plated correctly. I’m not saying that something crazy couldn’t have happened but that wasn’t normal procedure for that restaurant.
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
I would put it up with avatar canteen, and the wood fired grill from seasons as among the best in park counter service. Flame Tree as well.
LittleBuford
Well-Known Member
The assumption underlying the last several pages seems to be that Disney has been itching to increase Aladdin's presence in the Morocco pavilion but has been (or would have been) prevented from doing so by the people who have till now managed the pavilion. I asked this less directly earlier, but is the second part of this assumption at all true or substantiable? Can outside parties really tell Disney what it can and can't do in its own parks?
rle4lunch
Well-Known Member
I don't know how 'normal' you would say me and my family are, but each visit we always try a different table service location. I've been going to WDW and Epcot my whole life, and once or twice annually for the last 15 years with my wife, and we've only eaten back there once, and it was our last trip in January 2020 when we did. The food was fine, the live music and dancing were fine, but we couldn't hear ourselves think it was so loud and echo-ee in there. Had to yell across the table to say something. And the service, well, was very very meh.
It was fine to experience once, but not worth $100 for x2 chicken tikkas and a hamburger to split for our kids. We'll continue to try other table services, but won't be going back there anytime soon.
UNCgolf
Well-Known Member
Yeah, I don't think that's true.
As has been mentioned, they already had a meet and greet there for Jasmine. They likely wouldn't have been able to just take Restaurant Marrakesh and change it if there was a contract in place with the operators, but A. I think they probably could have added just about anything they wanted to the pavilion outside of existing areas and B. I doubt the operators would have minded anything Disney wanted to do if they believed it would bring more customers.
Last edited:
Disney is very complete with their contracts with operating partners, and I doubt they would have put themselves in a position where they didn’t have ultimate control.
GymLeaderPhil
Well-Known Member
Adding characters costs money. Disney would have charged the third party operating participant of Restaurant Marrakesh to incorporate IP and the cost of talent into their restaurant, if they even permitted them to have access to do so.
The company that operates Chefs de France had to pay Disney for the Remy animatronic, performers, and rights. It was far too costly and that was why it was ended in 2013.
The company that operates Chefs de France had to pay Disney for the Remy animatronic, performers, and rights. It was far too costly and that was why it was ended in 2013.
Looks like many places in my city would be reported if anyone cares to report. Chicken rolls, pizza slices with meat or chicken toppings in the local pizza places are stored behind a glass case in room temperature. When one orders something from the case, the staff member just takes one and reheats in the pizza oven. I've had no issues eating reheated food.
Last edited:
I believe it was reported that Tangerine Cafe closed in mid August.