EPCOTblog.com – The EPCOT Online Community Of Today

EPCOT Universe of Menu Energy

Wednesday, October 29th, 2008

The inefficient Christmas light illumination of the menu boards was replaced this year. It was hardly noticed by many that each was powered by a solar panel on top. Though not a future technology any more, it was nice to see that some of what was demonstrated in the front of the park for 25 years had made it’s way into actual use there. We were not there after dark, so I’m not sure how well it works. I’ll post that as soon as we get a shot.

Tags: Energy, Food & Wine Festival
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No Signs of Recession at The EPCOT Food & Wine Festival

Monday, October 27th, 2008

We started another year as Disney Annual Passholders this past weekend with our benchmark event, The Food & Wine Festival. With all the news about gas tanks and the economy tanking I was wondering if it would impact attendance. It appears that Disney World is, in fact, the “Happiest Place on Earth” because the crowds seemed oblivious to any money problems and were larger than ever.

The food selection was good, though not much exotic fare. That would probably not be economically wise. Being able to graze a variety like this is an attraction though. Ordering was efficient and it was prepared well, served without much waiting. Line lengths varied and changed frequently.

Two things I’d like to see return are: a sample display so you didn’t have to try and catch a glimpse of what people carried away and a menu board above the kiosks so you didn’t have to wait for the area around the ground display to clear. Both of those were common in the early festivals.

Sure you don’t go for the bargains, it’s the experience of tastes, locales and people. But keeping the economy in mind here are some personal observations with taste and cost in mind.

Best values: The cheese plate from Ireland. Three large slabs of wonderful aged cheese, brown bread with Irish butter and a great spiced chutney to dip the cheese in. Durban spiced chicken with coconut milk infused root vegetables from South Africa. A nice skewer of tender moist chicken and a heap of tasty starches with a sweet/spicy kick. The lamb chop at Australia. A big (for lamb) tender chop and sweet jam that was like a meat lollipop worth the $5.

Worst value: Though it sounded great… the Praline (properly pronounced PRAW lean) bread pudding at the Louisiana exhibit. $2.75 for a scoop the size of a sample handed out at the grocery.

We enjoyed much more and I’ll have more to report when we return for seconds.

Tags: Food & Wine Festival
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I miss the information and reservations kiosks…

Friday, October 10th, 2008

Cutting edge technology had a face at EPCOT for several years at the WorldKey Information Kiosks. Stationed next to guest relations and in other intervals around the park it was likely where many of us first encountered touch-screen technology. You selected from a database of videos about the attractions and, most importantly, called up a live host to handle making reservations at the sit-down restaurants. Sure, it was just a webcam… but this was before the “web”! You could see them, and they could see you. It made the mundane task of making a reservation something you went home and told your friends about. The forward thinking Imagineers even gave the device the merged word name “WorldKey” like domain names became. The kiosks were practical devices that subtly punctuated the possibilities of the future world we were experiencing.

Tags: kiosk, touch-screen, WorldKey
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Welcome to EPCOTblog.com

Wednesday, October 1st, 2008

Welcome to the EPCOT blog, a companion site to www.EPCOTfans.com

We were there on opening day in 1982 and have been there hundreds of times over the past 26 years, so the observations we will be making come from a true fan perspective. Our goal is to give new EPCOT visitors advice on how to efficiently visit the park and enjoy the must-see attractions. For veterans, we want to share the memories and experiences that have kept us coming back to the third most visited theme park in the United States. So subscribe to our RSS feed and become a part of the EPCOT Online Community Of Today.

Tags: EPCOT
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