PHOTOS - A look inside the new Zuri's Sweets Shop at Disney's Animal Kingdom

[BrerJon]

It's so odd that the rest of the resort gets utter trash in terms of attractions, theming, new concepts, yet the whole Harambe project has been superbly done, and up to the standards of Tokyo or Universal. I just can't see how Harambe Market and the Polynesian Lobby or Dwarfs Mine could have come from the same people.

I wonder if the Harambe redevelopment project was assigned to a small rogue group of Imagineers who have skill, talent and creativity (not the kind of Imagineers we normally get whose only ideas are giant hats and tombstones) and they've been accidentally left alone, given the money they need to do a good job, and have produced great results.

Let's hope this is a sign of things to come, and not an anomaly that One Disney will crush as soon as it spots it! Let's promote those Imagineers, not fire them for being too expensive as is normally the case!

 

[dstrawn9889]

maybe all resort executives need a drooping earlobe?

 

[COProgressFan]

It's so odd that the rest of the resort gets utter trash in terms of attractions, theming, new concepts, yet the whole Harambe project has been superbly done, and up to the standards of Tokyo or Universal. I just can't see how Harambe Market and the Polynesian Lobby or Dwarfs Mine could have come from the same people.

I wonder if the Harambe redevelopment project was assigned to a small rogue group of Imagineers who have skill, talent and creativity (not the kind of Imagineers we normally get whose only ideas are giant hats and tombstones) and they've been accidentally left alone, given the money they need to do a good job, and have produced great results.

Let's hope this is a sign of things to come, and not an anomaly that One Disney will crush as soon as it spots it! Let's promote those Imagineers, not fire them for being too expensive as is normally the case!

Crazy, right? The DAK projects seems to be put together by a completely different organization. And even more than the beautiful design work in the new areas, the merchandising is actually appropriate for the setting. I am shocked there are actually specially-branded DAK items (that look awesome, BTW) that fit the theme. One can only hope this trend continues.

 

[MarkTwain]

It's so odd that the rest of the resort gets utter trash in terms of attractions, theming, new concepts, yet the whole Harambe project has been superbly done, and up to the standards of Tokyo or Universal. I just can't see how Harambe Market and the Polynesian Lobby or Dwarfs Mine could have come from the same people.

I wonder if the Harambe redevelopment project was assigned to a small rogue group of Imagineers who have skill, talent and creativity (not the kind of Imagineers we normally get whose only ideas are giant hats and tombstones) and they've been accidentally left alone, given the money they need to do a good job, and have produced great results.

Let's hope this is a sign of things to come, and not an anomaly that One Disney will crush as soon as it spots it! Let's promote those Imagineers, not fire them for being too expensive as is normally the case!

I'm scratching my head over this one too. Can we assign these people to everything?

It really does look amazing, and the trend toward more unique merchandise across property is a welcome and positive change.

I love the looks of the African wine! And the idea of being able to buy Flame Tree BBQ sauce is mouthwatering

 

[notnothin]

How about those poop treats, though?!?

 

[MGMBoy]

Can anyone with the appropriate knowledge and graphics skills show an aerial map of the Harambe Marketplace with each of the locations labelled? When I look at an aerial photo, I have a hard time figuring out which building is which compared to the on the ground photos.

Hey @doctornick . I had been wondering the same thing so I was trying to figure it out myself. I will give this a crack with the caveat that I have not personally been in the new market but have spent a LOT of time in Harambe (40-50 hours a week for at least a year ) so I think I have a pretty good feel for where everything is.

Here's a zoomed out shot during construction so you can get a feel for how it is situated:

Here you can see the Harambe WLE station at the top of the shot and the bridge from Discovery Island at the bottom. The area being utilized used to be support parking along with a trailer for Entertainment cast and the south entrance used to be the area gate used by De-Vine and the Harambe meet & greets (King Louis, Baloo, etc.) Here is a slightly more zoomed in area with my (albeit childlike) markings for where everything is:

In this shot the dark green line is the foot paths that go through the area, the light blue lines are backstage dividers (I think, the bigger line is an area that I haven't gotten a good look at but a gate there makes the most sense). The left of the two dark blue circles is the market arch (the one with 1980 listed in it) and the right circle is the area with the "luggage" and the fence that looks out on the WLE tracks that are visible in the top right. The yellow circle is the sitting area and you can also see the covered shelters as well. The red square SHOULD represent the footprint for Zuri. It may be off by a tiny bit but it looks pretty close based on the photos. If you look to the left of it you can see the brown roof of Ziwani and the gray roof of the outdoor covered area for that same store. The Fuchsia letters are the individual locations:

W - Wanjohi Refreshments
K - Kitamu Grill
B - Boerewor's Sausages
M - Chef Mwanga's Ribs Shop

The whiote arrow at the bottom is just there to show where the WDWMagic video starts and which direction it goes.

Hope this helps clear it up (apologies for looking like a preschooler did the markings). Can someone who has actually been there let me know if I am off on any of this. Personally, I think this was a brilliant use of what I had always thought was wasted space and offers so much more flexibility of guest flow in an area that, when I was there, was a HORRIBLE bottleneck during parades and high traffic time (which now would include FoLK show dumps I'm sure). I am so excited for this expansion and the theming is absolutely AMAZING! Can't wait to check it out in person!

 

[GrumpyFan]

A lot of it has to do with a concept coming out of F&B and Merchandising. There's a push for resort specific, attraction specific, etc. And F&B is really coming up with some great stuff.

Also -try the African Spices popcorn. And if you don't like it, I'll eat it.

I can't help but think that the things Universal has done in recent years with Harry Potter and the Simpson's hasn't played a big part in this as well. It's like they (Uni) went back 10+ years and looked at Disney's branding and marketing and figured out that it might be worth duplicating.

Was it Eisner or Iger who did the whole DisneyParks initiative? Seems like it started around DL's 50th celebration. Regardless, as many of us stated then, it was a dumb idea, that would ultimately drive sales revenue down. Hopefully, we've turned the corner on that.

 

[majortom1981]

Did they have the zebra domes or will I have to settle for eating them back at my resort?

 

[wdwmagic]

Did they have the zebra domes or will I have to settle for eating them back at my resort?

No zebra domes.

 

[MGMBoy]

No zebra domes.

Gotta keep them going to AKL for something. I literally ate myself sick on Zebra Domes once. Apparently my limit is somewhere between 7 & 10 after a full meal at Boma.

 

[Rob562]

Can someone who has actually been there let me know if I am off on any of this.

You've got it almost 100%. About the only minor correction is that the blue circle next to the green line is additional covered seating. The archway spans the stretch between that area and the Refreshment window (W).

I can also confirm earlier reports that you can order anything from the three food windows all at the same window. (Well, we only did it with the sausage and the grill menu items, but I presume you can do it with the ribs window, too) The sausage "corndog" was OK (my bf was very happy that they were freshly made) but I thought the beef flatbread was far better. They also gladly substituted a side item from one menu item for the side on another.

My one complaint was that the lines moved a bit slower than we expected, and because of that they need to add a lot more shade to those lines. Each queue has one large umbrella one either end with a lot of open space in-between. We were there in the middle of the day on a very sunny, hot day and everyone in line was huddled in the shady spots, moving from one bit of shade to the next.

-Rob

 

[JenniferS]

I literally ate myself sick on Zebra Domes once.

Me too. One bite.

 

[jensenrick]

How about those poop treats, though?!?

So gross.

 

[BrerJon]

I can also confirm earlier reports that you can order anything from the three food windows all at the same window.

I thought it was quite clever how it's just one basic quick service kitchen, with three sales counters, but by the way they theme the walls in front they make it appear as if it's three different restaurants.

Didn't think much of the food, overpriced for what you get, but the area is themed wonderfully and is a great addition to the area.

 

[EvilQueen-T]

Love the move back toward park specific items and will hope it continues to at least some degree. While I understand the company savings by having less diversity I'm soooooooo tired of seeing the same exact thing at every location.

 

[EvilQueen-T]

So gross.

But if you've ever spent time with a 7 y/o boy you'll remember how much they'd love it lol.

 

[doctornick]

I think the Match the Species treats (yes, the animal poop) is brilliant. It's obviously something that will make the rounds on the internet (free publicity!) and is funny. While I can understand some getting grossed out, I think it is the type of thing that will appeal to many children and adults who will buy them just for the novelty.

 

[FigmentJedi]

How about those poop treats, though?!?

Terrible. All I think of is Rick and Morty

 

[twebber55]

I think the Match the Species treats (yes, the animal poop) is brilliant. It's obviously something that will make the rounds on the internet (free publicity!) and is funny. While I can understand some getting grossed out, I think it is the type of thing that will appeal to many children and adults who will buy them just for the novelty.

I think they ll be incredibly popular...novelty is a great word

 

[docandsix]

How about those poop treats, though?!?

Color me STUNNED that the resort that has apparently banned the "Because they inspire you to go... deeper and deeper into the jungle" bit of potty humor from the Jungle Cruise has permitted this.

But we're going to get every variety the next time we're there. (If they last that long.)