News New Pirates of the Caribbean-themed lounge

[Bocabear]

Disney’s service game is indeed strong and no one is surprised MK focuses on theme park standards like burgers, pizza, and chicken nuggets.

It would just be nice if they upgraded kitchens to make better burgers and pizza like Connections.

I did hear Disney is switching back to chicken tenders…

The tenders used to be great...It was sad when they dumbed it down to Chicken nuggets you can buy in your grocer's freezer section...

 

[JustInTime]

So I've never been in the Pirates League, but I'm assuming Tortuga is much bigger? If so, makes a ton of sense to me they switch it over there. I have a feeling this is going to be VERY popular, to the point having a couple bar areas might make a ton of sense, so more space the better (for both guests and profits). I'll stand by that there is a DESPERATE need for decent quick service that has options for everyone (especially in this area), but I completely get this move. I hope they really do it right.

Yes! The footprint is much larger. Should have some good options, too.

 

[SilentWindODoom]

Diamond Horseshoe shares its kitchen with Liberty Tree and serves the same food.

Wild. Simply wild. It feels almost weirder than Columbia Harbour House food coming out of Tomorrowland Terrace.

I know the Patriot Platter is involved in getting it together, but they run Pecos Bill's and Tortuga Tavern through the same kitchen. They can't even muster turkey and pork sandwiches with cups of mac and cheese and potatoes and vegetables for sides?

So, while I agree that MK needs for QSR, I am really excited about having a Pirates bar in the park. Oga's and Trader Sam's are both fun places to hang out - and I'm not even that big of a drinker - and I definitely think a Pirate concept in that vein would be cool.

Would be nice if they end up using the Pirate League space for something though. And opening up other QSR elsewhere. Someone mentioned that not having something in the Circus area was a miss and I agree as there was definitely space there and could easily have traditional fast food that fit the theme.

And return BOG to a quick serve lunch. And open up Tommorrowland Terrace. And Aunt Polly's.

Tomorrowland Terrace, for being in the center of the park, is kinda also in no-man's-land like Tortuga. Everyone could easily go about their day without coming within hundreds of feet of it or laying eyes on it. Of course, if it had unique and popular options, it could draw people in. Perhaps some manner of signage from the Tomorrowland side. I could have sworn that one of the attractions let out in Tomorrowland Terrace, but I can't find any evidence thereof. Perhaps I'm mixing up parks.

Aunt Polly's is paradoxical. It's the most remote restaurant but it's also a place that is so remote that for those on the island, you want them to have options. I honestly don't know how to feel about it. Last time I went there, there were two vending machines next to a downspout with a drowned dead rat sitting at the bottom of it.

Perhaps it could function as something between Counter Service and vending machines. A simple cart-like menu. A special unique treat or two where one person can run a fryer and one person can run the window bolstered by a cooler of drinks, apple slices, and Uncrustables. I can't really think of anything at the moment besides hush puppies, but I'm sure there's a number of lovely Southern delicacies that can be enjoyed, serve the people, and if they are good enough to garner a following and actually drive traffic, then expansion is possible.

 

[JoeCamel]

downspout with a drowned dead rat sitting at the bottom of it.

You mean the chef's special?

 

[SilentWindODoom]

You mean the chef's special?

There are so many times when I wish we had reacts in here that they have in the Sportslogos.net forum and so many times when I wish that they had the reacts over there that we have here. What I wouldn't give for the reaction right now.

 

[Bocabear]

if Aunt Polly's had something unique and kind f wonderful, it could actually drive attendance to the island...it culd be the special thing people seek out on their trips to WDW...not uncrustables and apple slices... What if they made frsh fried hand pies... peach Hand pies+ a la mode...a single signature thing and drinks. Make them like the old cookie ice cream sandwich at the Main Street Bakery...Something unbelievable for it's reasonable price and memorable and instagrammable....Bring back Tom and Becky to hang around the porch for meet and greets... It could be a really special thing...a little detail... a little depth...

 

[Purduevian]

FYI this is how Disney classifies it's QS in MK:

QS Restaurants:
Casey, Columbia, Cosmic Rays, Pecos Bills, Pinocchio

QS Kiosk:
Friars nook, Golden Oak, Lunching Pad, Sleepy Hollow, Tortuga Tavern

QS-Coffee:
Main Street Bakery

Snack:
Aloha, Auntie Gravities, Cheshire, Cool Ship, Gastons, Liberty Square, Plaza Ice Cream, Prince Erics, Storybook Treats, Sunshine Tree, Westword Ho

 

[SilentWindODoom]

if Aunt Polly's had something unique and kind f wonderful, it could actually drive attendance to the island...it culd be the special thing people seek out on their trips to WDW...not uncrustables and apple slices... What if they made frsh fried hand pies... peach Hand pies+ a la mode...a single signature thing and drinks. Make them like the old cookie ice cream sandwich at the Main Street Bakery...Something unbelievable for it's reasonable price and memorable and instagrammable....Bring back Tom and Becky to hang around the porch for meet and greets... It could be a really special thing...a little detail... a little depth...

To be clear, those were options that needed no preparation and don't need to be thrown away if they're not sold in the low-traffic area that can provide a full lunch for picky ones and children playing on the island while referencing their history of selling peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. But the main show was supposed to be some kind of Southern specialty that... I couldn't think of at the time.

Honestly, hand pies do sound like a good option. Mass produce them, toast them up and serve. The goal was to find something that could fulfill need without too much risk in the event that five people go during the day.

But I just went to look into past menus there and found out that right before the pandemic they'd opened up with an absolutely beautiful menu! I'm shocked! So maybe they are willing to go out on a limb in that location.

FYI this is how Disney classifies it's QS in MK:

QS Restaurants:
Casey, Columbia, Cosmic Rays, Pecos Bills, Pinocchio

QS Kiosk:
Friars nook, Golden Oak, Lunching Pad, Sleepy Hollow, Tortuga Tavern

QS-Coffee:
Main Street Bakery

Snack:
Aloha, Auntie Gravities, Cheshire, Cool Ship, Gastons, Liberty Square, Plaza Ice Cream, Prince Erics, Storybook Treats, Sunshine Tree, Westword Ho

While a lot of this makes sense, I have no idea what the difference is between Pecos and Tortuga that got Tortuga pushed down a level.

 

[LSLS]

While a lot of this makes sense, I have no idea what the difference is between Pecos and Tortuga that got Tortuga pushed down a level.

Pure guess, but Tortuga doesn't look like it had a kids menu.

 

[Purduevian]

Pure guess, but Tortuga doesn't look like it had a kids menu.

Not sure but just comparing the menus and also other QS Restaurants... So to be a "Restaurant" you need sides I think?

	Pecos	Tortuga	Casey	Columbia	Cosmic Rays	Pinocchio
Entrees	14	5	9	9	9	8
Sides/snacks	6	0	7	6	2	4
Kids' Disney Check Meals	4	0	0	2	2	2
Kid's Meals	3	0	0	2	2	2
Beverage options	9	3	7	10	12	12
Desserts	4	0	0 (baseball brownie listed as a snack)	2	1	2

 

[SilentWindODoom]

Huh. I guess I'd just checked it the other day and looked long enough to find out they were selling barbecue and didn't look deeply into it. When you actually count it like that, the current Tortuga menu is paltry, the number of items of a kiosk. I suppose I'd never thought of restaurant categories by menu but by the structure and serving method. But by the size of that menu, they've clearly been treating Tortuga like Friar's Nook.

I wish there was an archive of historical menus somewhere to compare what's sold over eras and when changes came.

 

[LSLS]

Huh. I guess I'd just checked it the other day and looked long enough to find out they were selling barbecue and didn't look deeply into it. When you actually count it like that, the current Tortuga menu is paltry, the number of items of a kiosk. I suppose I'd never thought of restaurant categories by menu but by the structure and serving method. But by the size of that menu, they've clearly been treating Tortuga like Friar's Nook.

I wish there was an archive of historical menus somewhere to compare what's sold over eras and when changes came.

Here's 10 years ago.

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Here's 10 years ago.

View attachment 790943

This is the menu I was referring to. Thanks for finding it. Forgot about the nachos and the quesadillas via the kids menu. The taco salads and burritos were great.

 

[SilentWindODoom]

Here's 10 years ago.

View attachment 790943

 

[LSLS]

Go google the wayback machine. It's an internet archive of web pages.

 

[SilentWindODoom]

Go google the wayback machine. It's an internet archive of web pages.

I can't believe I didn't think to use the Wayback Machine on the AllEars menus.

 

[Captain Barbossa]

I can't believe I didn't think to use the Wayback Machine on the AllEars menus.

There’s also this mind blowing thing called a google image search. You just type the WDW restaurant menu of your choice, the year you want said menu to be from, hit search and then poof! Pictures of the menu appear out of nowhere! It’s a combination of rocket science and sorcery.

 

[JoeCamel]

There’s also this mind blowing thing called a google image search. You just type the WDW restaurant menu of your choice, the year you want said menu to be from, hit search and then poof! Pictures of the menu appear out of nowhere! It’s a combination of rocket science and sorcery.

And it along with real time map and traffic data is "free" for all. Boggles the mind

 

[SilentWindODoom]

There’s also this mind blowing thing called a google image search. You just type the WDW restaurant menu of your choice, the year you want said menu to be from, hit search and then poof! Pictures of the menu appear out of nowhere! It’s a combination of rocket science and sorcery.

I've done a whole lot of searches over the years, and every instinct and experience told me that there was no way typing in the restaurant and the date was going to get me anything but slammed with official and unofficial site repeating the same things about the current restaurant as assistance to visitors.

I know that Disney Food Blog frustratingly doesn't include any date information in their posts (and had to look at the dates on the comments to find out when Aunt Polly's had that menu) and AllEars and Disney would just have current information. I thought my best bet would be searching for frames in old videos or searching for unlabeled shots of the menu among hundreds of pics in a trip gallery.

Isn't it always the way when you finally give up trying that trying would have worked immediately?

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Here's 10 years ago.

View attachment 790943

$2.50 for a bottle of water

Those were the days...