Two new Epcot eateries coming this fall, plus new stores
You may have noticed a couple of decorated constructions walls in Epcot. The Italy Pavillion will be getting a brand new pizza restaurant and Mexico has torn down its outdoor restaurant for a major replacement.
Pizza in Italy
The Patina Restaurant Group, which already runs the Tutto Italia Ristorante in Epcot, is building an authentic Neapolitan pizzeria in the back of the Italy Pavillion. The 300-seat family-style pizzeria is inspired by Naples 45, another Patina Restaurant Group pizzeria in New York City. The new restaurant will feature wood-burning ovens representing Italy’s infamous volcanoes and use water from a source that most resembles the water in Naples, Italy.
The building that houses the restaurant is being built with a Florentine architecture. The 14,000-square-foot space will also feature vaulted ceilings and indoor and outdoor dining. The addition of the pizzeria will expand the piazza by 10,000 square feet. A name for the pizzeria has not been finalized. The Patina Restaurant Group operates 30 restaurants across the country. (Update: The pizzaria has been given a name – Via Napoli.)
More in Mexico
Over in the Mexico Pavillion, the lagooon-side Cantina de San Angel Restaurant has been completely torn down and is being rebuilt. Once open again this fall, the 12,000-square-foot restaurant will offer 400 seats. The space will be nearly four times larger than before. This will be Disney World’s first flex-service restaurant. Disney research has shown that guests prefer a quick lunch while spending a day at the parks and enjoy a nice table-side restaurant in the evening. As a result, the new restaurant will serve quick service meals during the day. Then, in the evening hours the restaurant will be converted into a table-side restaurant where reservations are recommended. About half of the seats will be indoors and half outdoor. The lagoon-side seats will be especially popular during the nightly IllumiNations fireworks show.
The indoor and outdoor eateries in Mexico are run by the San Angel Inn company. They’ve been providing Mexican cuisine to Walt Disney World guests for more than 25 years.
Both the Mexico and Italy restaurants should be open in time for the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival.
Plus new stores and menu
• A new 20 x14 merchandise kiosk, Good Fortune Gifts, recently opened in front of the China pavilion.
• By September, Givenchy will open a 300-square-foot shop at the France pavilion that will be the only retail location in the United States to offer the full line of Givenchy make-up and skincare products, as well as a large selection of Givenchy fragrances. Currently small selections of Givenchy perfumes are available in The Plume Shop.
• The Rose & Crown Pub & Dining Room in the United Kingdom is offering a newly-updated menu. The restaurant features regional English cooking such as: Cottage Pies, Chicken Pies, Fish and Chips, Corned Beef Sandwich, Yorkshire Puddings, Mushy Peas, and more.
