According to the Orlando Sentinel, four more Magic Kingdom restaurants will begin serving wine and beer starting December 23, 2016.
Cinderella Castle
Starting next week, guests dining at Tony’s Town Square, Cinderella’s Royal Table, Skipper Canteen, and Liberty Tree Tavern will be able to indulge while dining.
Magic Kingdom made headlines in 2012 when Be Our Guest Restaurant, home to the Beast and continually one of Disney World’s toughest reservations to book, became the first location ever to serve alcohol in the park.
Chimay Blue at Be Our Guest Restaurant
Why such a big deal? Walt Disney himself famously prohibited alcohol in his original park, Disneyland, in Anaheim, California (which is still a dry park, save for the ultra-exclusive. members-only Club 33); and it was his wish to not serve alcohol in the Magic Kingdom, either. So many Disney traditionalists protest the addition of beer and wine to the menus in these parks.
Cinderella’s Royal Table
As was the case with Be Our Guest, Disney will introduce alcohol that suits the themed menus in the four no-longer-dry Magic Kingdom restaurants. Tony’s Town Square will offer Italian wines and beers to complement its Italian menu; Liberty Tree Tavern will showcase American products like New England lagers, ciders, and domestically-produced wines; Skipper Canteen sticks to its explorer-themed menu with wines and beers from around the world; and Cinderella’s Royal Table stays regal with champagne and sparkling wines.
Jungle Skipper Canteen Sign
According to Disney, beer and wine will be sold only in these table-service restaurants for lunch and dinner, and will not be sold at any pop-up or external locations in the parks.
We’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below and let us know what you think about this unprecedented expansion of alcohol options in the Magic Kingdom.
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My husband and I are going to Disney World for our second anniversary in May and greatly looking forward to celebrating with a bottle of champagne with dinner at Cinderella’s 🙂 These comments are hilarious.
I agree, the comments are quite comical. That being said I don’t foresee people walking around sloppy drunk throughout MK – especially not at $40-$320 per bottle and at only 5 select locations for lunch/dinner (2 of which are nearly impossible to get reservations) but I for one will enjoy a nice bottle of champagne to celebrate our anniversary with my husband and will remain on my utmost magical behavior. Cheers guys 😉
Nice to be able to have a glass of wine at MK on our October trip. A bit of beer and wine in a few restaurants hardly compares to EPCOT when you can get a drink at just about any kiosk.
Pay tribute to what Walt Disney originally intended – no alcohol served in The Magic Kingdom. If you MUST drink to have a good time, visit one of the Disneyland or Disney World Hotel bars & restaurants.
I’m a frequent visitor to WDW. I love it, my favourite vacation. I have never seen any drunks wandering the World. Not once. I like the idea of being able to have a beer, glass of wine or cocktail with my meal. I’m on vacation. And honestly, who is going to get drunk off a glass or two of wine during dinner? While many people state WDW is for children, it’s not. It’s for everyone. It’s for the magic and wonder in all of us – even adults. I’ve done the Disney vacations with my children and have had a glass of wine with dinner. I do that at home once a week too. It doesn’t not make me a bad parent, it actually makes me a good parent as my children (late teens and young adults now) have learned what being responsible and drinking in moderation actually means.
Serving alcohol with meals at MK does not detract from the experience, it will not make you vomit on the tea cups, it’s just another way to enjoy great meals at WDW.
WOW I knew this was a controversial move, but look at the comments! Still coming in months later! Even mine 🙂
As a former-heavy-drinker-turned-teetotaler, here’s my take: addicts will always be addicts, no matter where they are. If someone wants to get totally tanked at MK, they will find a way to do it, regardless of anything Disney does to police the sale of booze there. You could bring in a “water bottle” or some “mouthwash” very easily. Since alcohol is sold at all of the other parks, all of the hotels, and in very many of the stores and restaurants, there’s nothing at all stopping a person from getting drunk in one place and then moving on to MK. You don’t even have to walk, just stumble to the nearest bus, and if you’re near the monorail or boats, you’re basically already at the gates! Even if every park and restaurant and hotel was totally dry, people would still get it off property or bring it from home. You can’t police everyone on this, it’s just not possible to do.
This doesn’t scream “cash grab” or “slippery slop” to me. It reminds me more of the policies Disney introduces to bring themselves up to a new standard, such as the original decision to allow the sale of alcohol at EPCOT. Back then, as far as I am aware, the decision revolved around respectfully and authentically portraying the culture of each country. Drinking wine is a part of Italian culture like drinking beer is a part of English or German culture (though their tastes sure differ!). It was deemed to be a flaw, in both the storytelling for each nation and the respect displayed for the entirety of their culture. I am hearing TONS AND TONS of “Walt never wanted this!!” over this decision, but I have heard no mention of this OTHER much-belabored decision regarding alcohol in a Disney park.
It is strange in this day and age to have a high-end, expensive restaurant that does not give you the option to order alcohol. As MK has sought to add to these types of restaurants in their park in recent years, this incongruity has become more pronounced. Be Our Guest must have been the tipping point, maybe just for the number of restaurants that fit this bill, but maybe there’s something’s specific about that one that did it; having not been there myself I couldn’t really say. But I think this brings these restaurants up to the modern standard for high-end dining, and respects the modern high-end diner who may want alcohol with their meal. I especially like that each restaurant has it’s new beverages themed to it; another sign of good storytelling and respect at work 🙂
Everyone makes their own choices. I choose not to drink and that works great for me! Others may decide differently, and it works great for them! Alcohol isn’t a magic potion that suddenly makes people into buffoons and monsters. It’s entirely your decision what you do and how you behave. That’s what “Drink Responsibly” used to mean: you are responsible for how much you consumed and what you did, not the beverage nor anyone else. Disney can’t take on or take away everyone’s personal responsibility, so blaming them for the poor choices of others seems highly excessive. You have to draw your lines somewhere, and I for one am glad that this is where they drew them on this issue.
We recently enjoyed a bottle of champagne with dinner at Cinderella’s Royal Table. It was fun to toast our son’s birthday, our wedding anniversary and this WDW bucket list ADR. It also seems a bit more special, now knowing it has only recently been an option. I had forgotten that MK did not serve alcohol until last last year.
Alcohol in the magic kingdom. Next thing you know, women will have the right to vote.
It doesn’t matter to me if they serve beer and wine or not. I don’t drink! LOL! Nice restaurants at home do, that I eat at. What I do object to is it will probably make things higher. like the dining plan. Its all about how Disney can make money. Seems like the food on the plate is getting less and less at Disney already LOL! Give me a bite of meat on a plate over some potatoes or rice and toss a couple slices of carrot on the plate , with some kind of drizzle on the plate, and charge me 50-75 dollars! Kids menus are ridiculous . At nice restaurant for 20- 40 dollars for children , A bowl of macaroni , or 4 nuggets, and a drink with a handful of grapes! For Real as my 5 yr old granddaughter would say! LOL
Was there today Aug 26, 2017
No alcohol is sold that I could find. Even found a place where menu online said they did. Then I got there and they didn’t.
They better have booze or I am not going
I personally have a favorite alcohol and it is a rum.