Disney to take over operations of the Morocco Pavilion at EPCOT

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EPCOT Morocco Pavilion overview

Posted: Wednesday October 21, 2020 2:24pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

According to a statement issued to the Disney Food Blog, Disney will take over operations of the Morroco Pavilion at EPCOT from the existing operating participant.

Jacquee Wahler, VP Communications Walt Disney World Resort, and Rashid Choufani and Rachid Lyazidi, Operating Participants Morocco Pavilion stated, “After many years of working together, we have a mutually agreed arrangement to begin the process of transitioning operations of the Morocco pavilion to Disney. By the end of the year, Disney will assume operations of this important part of EPCOT and under Disney’s operation, the pavilion will continue to honor the rich traditions and legacy it has since it opened.”

Tangierine Cafe inside

Marrakesh Moroccan Restaurant LLC, which is the current operator of the pavilion's dining and merchandise locations, has struggled during the COVID-19 shutdown and subsequent phased reopening. In particular, the Tangierine Cafe closed shortly after its reopening.

Many of the EPCOT pavilion restaurants and stores are operated by third party participants, including those found at China, Mexico, Japan, France and Italy.

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larryzDec 16, 2020

That's basically how Wal-Marts operate and they seem to be doing fine. I thought Wal-Marts operated on the bizzare principle, rather than the bazaar principle...

UNCgolfDec 16, 2020

That's basically how Wal-Marts operate and they seem to be doing fine.

TrainsOfDisneyDec 16, 2020

Have you visited Galaxies Edge?

jaklgreenDec 16, 2020

But we are in America. I am sure the Bazaar approach works great there. Not so much here. Nothing wrong with that, just different.

UNCgolfDec 15, 2020

I wasn't complaining -- Disney is serving the same type of food Spice Road Table served under the previous management. Can't blame them for making a negative change because there hasn't really been a change.

_calebDec 15, 2020

There's not always a huge difference.

_calebDec 15, 2020

Yeah- other cultures know nothing about selling stuff!

TrainsOfDisneyDec 15, 2020

Spice Road wasn’t supposed to be historic Morroco was it? It always seemed like it was supposed to represent modern.

MisterPenguinDec 15, 2020

It's still just lounge food. They haven't even opened up full meal kitchens yet. When they open Marrakesh and they serve French fries, I'll pick up my pitchfork and join your mob.

UNCgolfDec 15, 2020

Indeed. It's Mediterranean but not Moroccan. At least Restaurant Marrakesh had some more authentic dishes like couscous.

FlynnwriterDec 15, 2020

Disagree. I travel all the time. Each country has a wealth of specific merchandise that would appeal to the Epcot shopper AND support the culture of each country. Disney World retail has been homogenized and made to resemble a KOHLS. Chapek wants to dumb down and simplify retail so there are less items and everything supports an IP. This is a disaster for the park stores.

jaklgreenDec 15, 2020

They need to bottle and sell the harissa sauce that they use in Restaurant Marrakesh.

LittleBufordDec 15, 2020

Egypt has zabadi, which is a version of tzaziki, but that’s at the other end of North Africa. There’s nothing particularly Moroccan about either the previous menu or the current one.