A change we’ve LONG desired is coming.
San Angel Inn
The San Angel Inn Restaurante has long been one of our favorite Walt Disney World restaurants as far as atmosphere goes. Located within the Mexico pavilion at EPCOT’s World Showcase, the restaurant takes total advantage of that pavilion’s unique-for-the-park faux indoor setting to create a permanent “outdoor” dining at night experience, which is especially cool with the massive pyramid rising above and boats from the Gran Fiesta Tour passing by. While food quality has come and go over the years, this setting has always remained fantastic… with one glaring exception in recent years.
The problem with the San Angel Inn atmosphere-wise? At times in its history, the tables have been WAY too close together.
San Angel Inn’s previous seating
As AJ wrote in one of our previous reviews, “It’s actually a fairly small space. But tables are placed very close together. This was a new detail of the recent renovation and restaurant updates, and I’ve gotta say — it’s not my favorite aspect of dining here. I’m uncomfortable in a restaurant whenever I feel like I can reach out and touch the person at the table next to me.”
While this may seem like a minor complaint, the feeling of sitting on top of other people was really detrimental to the whole San Angel Inn dining experience, However, that’s finally changed!
Didn’t see this coming! 🤩
San Angel Inn Restaurante in the Mexico Pavilion has a newly redesigned dining room! pic.twitter.com/qXMRQrw6IA— Disney Food Blog (@DisneyFoodBlog) June 13, 2024
In June of 2024, Disney revealed a revamped seating area of the San Angel Inn.
The NEW San Angel Inn Seating
The new design features the tables spread much further apart, with new thematic barricades spacing them out even further.
Spaced out tables, with dividers!
Disney’s description of the San Angel Inn encourages you to “Start out a romantic meal with zesty appetizers like tortilla soup topped with avocado, cheese, and tortilla strips. Then, delight in steak, chicken, and fish entrées served with such sauces as chipotle pepper, chocolaty mole, and green tomatillo. And later, top off your meal with creamy Bavarian mousse, or cheesecake covered in caramel sauce!” Now, the restaurant’s new seating allows you to do so in a much more comfortable setting.
The restaurant still retains its faux-outdoor atmosphere.
The San Angel Inn Restaurante’s new seating arrangement spaces guests to sit a bit, giving them more comfort and even a bit of privacy, greatly improving the dining experience. Stay tuned to DFB for further updates on eats around EPCOT.
I Have a Controversial Opinion About EPCOT’s Food and Wine Festival
Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!
WE KNOW DISNEY.
YOU CAN, TOO.
Oh boy, planning a Disney trip can be quite the adventure, and we totally get it! But fear not, dear friends, we compiled EVERYTHING you need (and the things to avoid!) to plan the ULTIMATE Disney vacation.
Whether you're a rookie or a seasoned pro, our insider tips and tricks will have you exploring the parks like never before. So come along with us, and get planning your most magical vacation ever!
Does the new seating arrangement at San Angel Inn Restaurante make you more likely to eat there? Let us know in the comments below.
Our handy (and portable!) ebook guides make sure you get the best deals and can plan a vacation of a lifetime.
Food was fantastic when we went last Saturday; the service was meh.
We always eat there when we stay at WDW, but this is a very good improvement. Now they need to make it just a little bit brighter.
I can relate to not wanting to be too close to your “neighbors” in a restaurant. One year on Valentine’s Day my wife and I were at a restaurant with a similar set-up, so that I was closer to the guy at the table next to us than to my wife. My wife and I started discussing a broadway show, and the woman from that table next to us jumped into our conversation and it was like we were on a double-date for the rest of the night with strangers. While they were nice enough, it wasn’t exactly the romantic night away from the kids that I was imagining it would be.
That’s wonderful. I hav eaten there like 20 years ago and love the atmosphere, but hate the awkward closeness. You can hear everything the table next to you and it is hard to get in any out of without your backside in someone’s face. It was a horrible set up. So glad they have fixed this !!!’ May try it again.
That’s fantastic news! We haven’t been back in a long time because the seating was too cramped. We’ll definitely make plans to return now. Sadly, the same reason we haven’t been back to LeCelier either after the last time in 2023.