If 2020 produces new Disney food and menus like 2019, then we are certainly in for a treat! As we march full speed ahead into the new year, there is so much for my fellow Disney Foodies to look forward to with new restaurants in Disney World for 2020! Last year we saw new resort restaurants open, this year it is all about the parks and Disney Springs. Better get started with a travel agent NOW to book your 2020 trip and advance dining reservations!
Of all the restaurants in Disney World, this may be the most patriotic. This winter, guests can head over to Regal Eagle Smokehouse: Craft Drafts & Barbecue, coming to Epcot so soon! This will be a new fast-casual barbecue experience at The American Adventure and will offer up classic American backyard barbecue from around the United States as well as a variety of home-style craft brews. The menu will have a variety of sandwiches like the Texas beef brisket sandwich with house-made spicy mop sauce on garlic toast, and the South Carolina smoked sausage sandwich with tangy mustard sauce and caramelized onions. You can choose from platters with Kansas City smoked chicken, Memphis dry-rub pork ribs, or North Carolina chopped smoked pork butt. Lighter and plant based options include the Power Greens Salad with chilled pulled chicken, fresh citrus, and a citrus vinaigrette, and the plant-based BBQ burger featuring a plant-based patty topped with BBQ jackfruit served on vegan garlic toast.
Around the corner in Future World, guests will soon be able to travel 220 miles above Earth’s surface to dine at the Space 220 Restaurant in Epcot. The inside will be a panorama of a space station. Who needs firework views when you can have celestial views of our beloved planet while dining on out-of-this-world grub? The Patina Group (famous for several other favorite restaurants in Disney World like Via Napoli and The Edison) will be running this restaurant and the menu will feature modern American cuisine, more than 1,000 bottles of the world’s finest wines, and a wide selection of craft beer. Rumors of an early 2020 opening (possibly February) have been circulating but stay tuned for exact dates.
In Hollywood Studios, we can look forward to the Roundup Rodeo BBQ Restaurant coming to Toy Story Land. Hey, toys get hungry too right? This is will be a fun family-friendly table service dining experience for guests with a Western theme paying homage to the great Woody. And like the land around it, the Roundup will be fully immersive with 90’s toy décor and our favorite Toy Story Characters.
Several new foodie spots will be popping up at Disney Springs.
The City Works Eatery and Pour House is set to open this month, and just in time for Super Bowl! This new lunch-and-dinner spot in the West Side will offer gourmet cuisine with a chef-driven twist, over 90 local and global craft brew varieties (on tap) and a premium sports-viewing experience. Guests can enjoy a lively meal indoors amidst the restaurant’s sprawling, high-energy atmosphere—designed with massive, state-of-the-art HDTVs at every angle—or dine al fresco on the spacious outdoor patio. The full menu has been posted on the restaurant’s website and looks amazing! It offers up items like Sweet Child O’Mine (brioche bread, Bailey’s cream cheese, vanilla bean ice cream battered, mixed berry compote, and powdered sugar) for brunch, Kung Pao Cauliflower (roasted cauliflower, sweet peppers, green onions, garlic, ginger, arbol chiles, fried peanuts, chili oil, sweet and spicy tamari) for an appetizer, and the Nashville Hot Chicken Wrap (buttermilk breaded crispy chicken breast, hot cayenne pepper mop, romaine, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, ranch dressing, flour tortilla, with olive oil parsley fries) as a main entrée. The menu is full of salads, tacos and burgers, perfect for game-day viewing, and even includes a plant based Impossible burger. Sounds like a win!
The restaurant I am MOST excited to see open in 2020 is Beatrix! This restaurant is owned by Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises (a Chicago-based restaurant group), and this will be their first restaurant in Florida at Disney Springs West Side. It has been described as a neighborhood restaurant, coffeehouse and grab-and-go market featuring healthy food options including vegetarian, gluten-free, and vegan along with fresh-squeezed juice cocktails (this Dietitian is salivating as I type). The restaurant will also offer a bakery and full-service bar with a selection of all-American beer and wine. Executive Partner and Divisional President, Marc Jacobs, explains “Beatrix represents the way people are eating today – it’s that mix of health and comfort. Whether grabbing a cup of coffee and your favorite pastry, or having a cocktail, lunch, or dinner with friends, it’s your neighborhood meeting place.”
Last, but certainly not least, to join the Disney Springs line up is Ample Hills Creamery- a second location in addition to the one located on Disney’s BoardWalk! You’ve got to make up for all those calories burned from walking somehow and this is just the place to do it! Known for the most decadent ice cream desserts, including bowls, cones, cakes, pints and sundaes handcrafted with house-made mix-ins and farm-fresh ingredients, this place drew large crowds and long lines and was long overdue for an expansion. I am very excited to have another spot to grab our favorite Nonna D’s Oatmeal Lace flavor, among many others!
What are you MOST looking forward to eating at Walt Disney World in 2020? No matter where in the (WD) world you end up, you’re wildest culinary dreams can come true!
