News Disney hints at more changes to come at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom

[MagicHappens1971]

I thought that was going to become a pirates themed bar / restaurant

No, that’s going in the former Pirates League space

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

Man, Pecos is about the only place I eat now (well, a few years ago I guess) in MK. Harbour went WAY downhill, and everything else is pretty gross. As someone who hates Cajun food, I honestly have no idea what I would do in that park if Pecos goes away. Maybe jump a monorail to a resort? But that's losing a few hours in the park too.

Spring Roll Cart, Sleepy Hollow. Yeah that’s about it for quick serve. There are some decent table service restaurants though.

 

[LSLS]

Spring Roll Cart, Sleepy Hollow. Yeah that’s about it for quick serve. There are some decent table service restaurants though.

Neither of which I'd consider a meal. It's crazy how bad the food is at MK compared to the other parks.

 

[MisterPenguin]

I've never been disappointed with Liberty Tavern Inn.

 

[ToTBellHop]

~whispers~ I like Tony’s.

Finally tried Skipper’s Canteen and thought it was awful.

 

[GhostHost1000]

Finally tried Skipper’s Canteen and thought it was awful.

agreed... I tried it last year and was extremely underwhelmed with flavor and portion sizes

 

[MisterPenguin]

~whispers~ I like Tony’s.

Finally tried Skipper’s Canteen and thought it was awful.

I tried it shortly after it opened.

None of the staff showed any Skipper wit.

The noodle soup thing was lukewarm and chewy. I am of firm belief that noodles aren't supposed to be chewy.

The only thing that kept me from sending it back was the possible embarrassment of being told that's how that exotic dish was supposed to be.

Never went back.

 

[ToTBellHop]

agreed... I tried it last year and was extremely underwhelmed with flavor and portion sizes

I tried it shortly after it opened.

None of the staff showed any Skipper wit.

The noodle soup thing was lukewarm and chewy. I am of firm belief that noodles aren't supposed to be chewy.

The only thing that kept me from sending it back was the possible embarrassment of being told that's how that exotic dish was supposed to be.

Never went back.

I was really disappointed because I love Jungle Cruise. The “secret menu” bread was fine but everything else was entirely forgettable, including the server.

I’d rather have chicken parm, honestly.

 

[MisterPenguin]

I was really disappointed because I love Jungle Cruise. The “secret menu” bread was fine but everything else was entirely forgettable, including the server.

I’d rather have chicken parm, honestly.

Dude. Imagine a food cart that sold chicken parm pockets!!

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

Liberty Tree Tavern, at least as of 2017 (the last time I was there), was one of my family's go-to places in MK. Has the quality there decreased at all? Crystal Palace was another place we went relatively frequently (maybe every two years or so, when we would take annual trips). Otherwise, we didn't much eat in the park, aside from Columbia Harbour House and Pinocchio Village Haus. On MK days, if we weren't eating at Liberty Tree, we would have dinner at 'Ohana or 1900 Park Fare (both of which sadly declined in quality in later trips).

 

[UNCgolf]

~whispers~ I like Tony’s.

Finally tried Skipper’s Canteen and thought it was awful.

I had the worst chicken parm I've ever eaten at Tony's! Didn't know it was possible to screw up chicken parm that badly.

The spaghetti was bad, the sauce was bad, and the chicken was bad. My chicken was at least edible, despite being bad, but my GF's was like a piece of rubber. It was really difficult to even cut it. She ended up getting a hot dog at Casey's after we left just to have something to eat.

That was admittedly 5 or 6 years ago, so they could have improved since then, but it was bad enough that I wouldn't ever go back considering how many other options exist.

It's unfortunate, because I like the interior and the location! If the food was even average I'd be happy to eat there.

 

[SpectreJordan]

For the sake of contributing something pretty exclusively on-topic, I have heard that part of the holdup in considering this retheme is that the Beyond Big Thunder plans are in flux - Disney was less concerned about closing MK's Mexican restaurant when they were considering Coco as part of that expansion, as a new and better venue for Mexican food could be opened there.

Now that Coco has seemingly moved to Animal Kingdom and the thematic menu for Beyond Big Thunder seems still very much up in the air, the conversation around restaurant programming for The Magic Kingdom is a little bit less clear. Which is part of why I suspect Pecos Bill's may stick around for a bit if they decide not to turn it into Tiana's Palace.

If Coco were coming to MK I would bet Pecos Bill's would have closed for Tiana transformation already, but since it isn't the decision of whether to lose Bill's at all isn't yet finalized, from what I understand.

I know it's not a popular opinion but given Disney's current trajectory, I feel Coco belongs in the Mexican Pavilion.

I also think that making this work would require serious changes to the pavilion (and real construction) and that the ride would need to be expanded in that process (probably behind the Frozen meet and greet with those service structures relocated and the kitchen for San Angel Inn likely reworked) but unlike the French and Ratatouille, for instance, I know this is a movie that many in Mexico would be thrilled to have representing them, it actually has a good cultural fit, and it helps create another draw to pull people to this park out of MK.

They'll be getting rid of a c-ticket to do this so it's not a complete answer but personally, I have a hard time feeling about the loss of that, knowing it was a budget-engineered reskin of the original more culturally focused ride.

This change would actually feel like a happy medium between those two extremes, to me if they did it right and did a better job than they did with the Frozen redo of Maelstrom... Given this already has sections with larger show scenes, and the greater opportunity for mixed and practical sets (like Shanghai Pirates) based on the theme/story, I think a lot could be pulled off without needing a ton more space with the focus really being on increasing the ride time.

They'd probably have to close the San Angel Inn and the tequila bar for this work though and I'm sure they don't want to miss out on all that business for the twelve years it would take them to do this. :/

It seems like there's some room between Mexico & Norway that they could use to expand for a Coco ride there. The Mexican pavilion is popular enough to justify two rides IMO.

I think it'd be a fine addition to this Beyond BTM idea though. Just keep it out of Animal Kingdom, that'd be the most misplaced IP of all-time.

 

[HauntedPirate]

I had the worst chicken parm I've ever eaten at Tony's! Didn't know it was possible to screw up chicken parm that badly.

The spaghetti was bad, the sauce was bad, and the chicken was bad. My chicken was at least edible, despite being bad, but my GF's was like a piece of rubber. It was really difficult to even cut it. She ended up getting a hot dog at Casey's after we left just to have something to eat.

That was admittedly 5 or 6 years ago, so they could have improved since then, but it was bad enough that I wouldn't ever go back considering how many other options exist.

I can't recall having a bad meal at Tony's, but I also can't recall having a good meal there, either. We haven't eaten there for probably 6 or more years, but when we did (back when the Dining Plan was an actual deal) it was always a solid "meh".

And I agree - How in the blue blazes could they mess up chicken parm so badly? Even re-heated frozen Sysco chicken patties should be more appealing (I'm sadly becoming far too familiar - again - with Sysco's products. The "au gratin" potatoes should be a crime to serve to any living creature).

On the flip side, one of the best quick serve meals I've had is no longer available - the chicken pot pie from Columbia Harbor House. We used to enjoy Pecos Bill's when it had the best toppings bar in the park, plus meals worth going there for.

 

[Brian]

I had the worst chicken parm I've ever eaten at Tony's! Didn't know it was possible to screw up chicken parm that badly.

The spaghetti was bad, the sauce was bad, and the chicken was bad. My chicken was at least edible, despite being bad, but my GF's was like a piece of rubber. It was really difficult to even cut it. She ended up getting a hot dog at Casey's after we left just to have something to eat.

That was admittedly 5 or 6 years ago, so they could have improved since then, but it was bad enough that I wouldn't ever go back considering how many other options exist.

They've put some great back of house cast in there in recent years, and it has resulted in decidedly better food quality.

 

[ToTBellHop]

They've put some great back of house cast in there in recent years, and it has resulted in decidedly better food quality.

It improved dramatically during the 50th and has stayed pretty good. Better than Olive Garden (not high praise but also the best we can realistically expect in MK). I like it better than Mama Melrose’s!

 

[UNCgolf]

It improved dramatically during the 50th and has stayed pretty good. Better than Olive Garden (not high praise but also the best we can realistically expect in MK). I like it better than Mama Melrose’s!

That's all I'd need from it to be worth eating there considering I like the interior design and the MK has few options.

It was so bad before that I'm too afraid to go back, though. We usually eat most of our dinners at Disney Springs anyways --- the food (including the QS) is much better there overall than in any of the parks.

 

[rd805]

I had the worst chicken parm I've ever eaten at Tony's! Didn't know it was possible to screw up chicken parm that badly.

The spaghetti was bad, the sauce was bad, and the chicken was bad. My chicken was at least edible, despite being bad, but my GF's was like a piece of rubber. It was really difficult to even cut it. She ended up getting a hot dog at Casey's after we left just to have something to eat.

That was admittedly 5 or 6 years ago, so they could have improved since then, but it was bad enough that I wouldn't ever go back considering how many other options exist.

It's unfortunate, because I like the interior and the location! If the food was even average I'd be happy to eat there.

blandest italian food for sure -- worse than Olive Garden lol

 

[Smiley/OCD]

The pot roast at LTT is still excellent, it’s our go to restaurant at MK…to the point where when we order the platter there, we ask them to leave the roast pork off the plate and give us extra pot roast which they always do…
Also, I LOVE the Pooh’s puffed French toast at CP!

 

[UNCgolf]

The pot roast at LTT is still excellent, it’s our go to restaurant at MK…to the point where when we order the platter there, we ask them to leave the roast pork off the plate and give us extra pot roast which they always do…
Also, I LOVE the Pooh’s puffed French toast at CP!

The Crystal Palace buffet isn't a bad option for breakfast -- it's not the best one on property (Boma at AKL has the best by far IMO), but it's hard to really screw up standard breakfast foods. Even mediocre sausage/bacon/eggs are generally fine.

The Winnie the Pooh characters are a nice change from the standard Mickey crew for kids, too.

 

[Smiley/OCD]

They used to have a good omelette station there. After COVID, they stopped offering it. Don’t know if it came back. Breakfast is definitely better than lunch/dinner there and YES, I can make a whole breakfast out of that puffed French toast, bacon and OJ…