Animaniac93-98
Well-Known Member
I see the interior continues the new area's theme of upscale American suburban strip mall. 
-
Welcome to the WDWMAGIC.COM Forums!
Please take a look around, and feel free to sign up and join the community.
News New Crêperie restaurant coming to Epcot's France Pavilion as part of Ratatouille expansion
- Thread starter wdwmagic
- Start date
Animaniac93-98
Well-Known Member
It's like the restaurant, inside and out, was designed by a third party who didn't know they were working on a Disney theme park.
"You told us to build a crepe restaurant in Florida, right?"
DonaldDoleWhip
Well-Known Member
Had no idea until googling, but apparently cider is the traditional drink pairing with crêpes in Brittany. Kudos for the authenticity.Is cider the only alcohol option?
Is this really a French restaurant without wine or champagne?
DonaldDoleWhip
Well-Known Member
That was new to me as well! Have to give +1 to the Ratatouille expansion for actually teaching us something.Aargh! I'm a dumb American!
thanks!
castlecake2.0
Well-Known Member
Curious what would make it look more like it was in France? What were you hoping it would like? (In non argumentative way) It looks very similar in design/style to the bakery and ice cream parlour.
UNCgolf
Well-Known Member
I don't think it looks like much like the bakery at all. Perhaps superficial similarities, but both the flooring and the ceiling in the bakery do a better job at evoking the right look than the creperie does. The creperie floor looks like concrete in those photos (it could look better in person).
I also think part of the problem is that the entire space is black and white, with maybe a bit of brown. It makes it look drab because of the floor/ceiling choices. Using a black/white scheme isn't automatically bad, but I don't think it works with the overall design of the space. That's part of the reason why I think it looks bad in general, though -- I would think it looked bad as a regular restaurant not at Disney, too. I don't think it's well-designed regardless of the themed intent.
As for the Parisian/French part: I honestly don't know. I just know that I spent a week in Paris a couple of years ago and that doesn't remind me of any of the local places I ate or walked past (I did a lot of looking in windows!). On top of all that, I have been to a restaurant in Atlanta that looks very similar (I've been racking my brain trying to place it, but have been unsuccessful so far), which of course isn't a great sign for something that's supposed to be themed to a specific location. The photos make it look like any random restaurant in the US -- if you put it on International Drive and had it serving steaks and hamburgers, would it feel remotely out of place?
While I'm sure you could find a restaurant that looks similar in Paris, but I don't think that's really the point. When it's supposed to be a themed environment, it should feel specific to that place (or at least other similar places) and not like something you could find anywhere.
Chefs de France, on the other hand, does look/feel like a Parisian street cafe. Of course, since they already built something like that, it may have made it harder to design the creperie. I'm sure they wanted something different. It probably wasn't the easiest task to build something that wasn't reminiscent of something you'd already built, but I think they could have done a better job with the overall design regardless of the Paris aspect.
ETA: We're also only seeing a photo of the entryway (I think). It's certainly possible that other areas of the restaurant look better, or that it's just a misleading photo.
Last edited:
castlecake2.0
Well-Known Member
I see what you’re saying. To me it looks like an older building (the wooden ceiling beams) that has been updated to a more modern time. If they were to replace Chefs de France with this theme/style I would be very upset, but it works for me here as it feels like when you walk under the ratatouille arch you are going into a subland that’s not particularly part of the same timeline/story of the front of pavilion. I think it also matches the more laid back menu compared to the more upscale chefs de France. I enjoyed reading your thoughts and ideas. Also enjoyed having a conversation where people could have different opinions and it not turn into an argument
UNCgolf
Well-Known Member
I see what you’re saying. To me it looks like an older building (the wooden ceiling beams) that has been updated to a more modern time. If they were to replace Chefs de France with this theme/style I would be very upset, but it works for me here as it feels like when you walk under the ratatouille arch you are going into a subland that’s not particularly part of the same timeline/story of the front of pavilion. I think it also matches the more laid back menu compared to the more upscale chefs de France. I enjoyed reading your thoughts and ideas. Also enjoyed having a conversation where people could have different opinions and it not turn into an argument
I made a couple of edits after you quoted, but yes, people can have different opinions without fighting about it!
You also reminded me of another small issue I have -- the wooden ceiling beams don't feel like they match the exterior of the building. They seem more like something from the 15th or 16th century (that or something more rustic/from the countryside) whereas the exterior looks more modern and urban (with maybe an attempt at late 18th or 19th century). Looking at the outside, I wouldn't expect to see those thick, heavy wood beams.
I don't expect that to be something most guests notice/think about, though.
Last edited:
rkleinlein
Well-Known Member
And all of the accents are wrong. All of them. Every single one.
crêpes not crēpes
entrées not entrėes
sélection not selection
salé not salė
chèvre not chėvre
Unbelievable. Such sloppy work. As if the people making the sign had no idea and just decided to do something vaguely French without bothering to glance at a dictionary. This lack of attention to detail (if you consider spelling a pesky detail) is completely on par with the whole food court look of the place. I hope the food is more authentic.
rkleinlein
Well-Known Member
Not ok. If you mean a stylized font by "stylized French" (I'm not sure what "stylized French" could mean) it's still not ok. They're completely DIFFERENT accent marks and used incorrectly on the sign. Every single accent is wrong. Some are missing completely. Who's running this show?
Sir_Cliff
Well-Known Member
Yes, I feel the same based on what we've seen. Can't quite put my finger on it, but it just doesn't especially remind me of France. Certainly not of Paris, where I have spent quite a lot of time over the years. It's kind of the opposite of theming at its best where you can't quite describe why it reminds you so much of a particular place, but everything just kind of comes together to create the right effect.
As you say, though, maybe it is just the limited views we've had so far.
Really does look and feel a bit like this!
jeanericuser001
Well-Known Member
I think you are looking in the wrong place for authenticity. Disney revels in its fakeness at times. This will be no different. The real challenge will be to spot how many things that are genuinely the real deal. Everything else might as well be a plastic facade.
ImperfectPixie
Well-Known Member
It's not that difficult to make an authentic-looking sign. These kind of errors should never occur in the first place.
ToTBellHop
Well-Known Member
It’s not supposed to look like Paris. It’s Brittany, *itch.
Figments Friend
Well-Known Member
It's Epcot.
Epcot is all about 'edutainment'..!
Chappie's 'throwback' to the EPCOT Center days of yore!
-
They changed the signs in Arabic when it was pointed out how wrong they were. Not to mention Kiestergate.
Last edited: