Disney's BOARDWALK INN Information & Questions

[matt and beth]

Holy moly!!! $100 dollar cakes?

 

[Gary Stocker]

Just keep the butter butter breakfast sandwiches...all will be ok.

 

[DebbieB]

https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/b...dwalk/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook

 

[Disneykingofkings]

they should put in a huge Nathans or even a Gargiulo's like near Coney Island or even a Randazzo's Clam Bar like at Sheepshead Bay

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Cautiously optimistic about the planned changes but is the coffee shop replacing Belle Vue Lounge? I sure hope not. One of my favorite spots.

 

[Kazi7]

I live in the Indianapolis area where the Cake Bake Shop is located. I know she has gotten on a lot of "lists" and been the subject of some flattering celebrity stories and the like, but I am pretty surprised that she landed this deal with Disney. Good for her, I guess. Her cakes are absolutely gorgeous and very yummy, but very expensive. Like $15 and up for a slice, although it's a big slice. The regular food is good also, but IMO most people think of it as a special occasion dessert place. My husband and I went there for a piece of cake for our anniversary, and my husband thought it was very "girlie". The decor is fancy and glam, kinda French-inspired. I love all the sweet treats at the Boardwalk Bakery and will be sad if that selection isn't available as a QS option anymore.

 

[Crazyhorse]

I agree with you. I hope they don't mess with the resort too much. And they better not get rid of that crumb cake.

....or those Snickerdoodle muffins! We grab one for the plane ride home....OMG....so good.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

....or those Snickerdoodle muffins! We grab one for the plane ride home....OMG....so good.

I had a guy in line at the bakery tell me how good they were. I was gonna try one but then never had the chance. I'll be so sad if I missed my opportunity

 

[The Mayor]

ESPN Club permanently closes at Walt Disney World's BoardWalk to be replaced with The Cake Bake Shop by Gwendolyn Rogers

Disney has announced that a new table service restaurant and bakery, The Cake Bake Shop by Gwendolyn Rogers, will be joining the BoardWalk and sources indicate that the ESPN Club will be the location.

Out of all of the stupidest changes Disney has made over the past two years this one ranks right up there with the stupidest!! Nothing screams turn of the century Boardwalk like an overpriced bakery/restaurant with $26 sandwiches and afternoon tea. ESPN was the only legit sports bar on property and if ESPN/ABC/ Disney didnt want to continue on they could have replaced it with a similar type sports restaurant/bar. I give this new place a year before it closes! Just like Ample Hills.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

Out of all of the stupidest changes Disney has made over the past two years this one ranks right up there with the stupidest!! Nothing screams turn of the century Boardwalk like an overpriced bakery/restaurant with $26 sandwiches and afternoon tea. ESPN was the only legit sports bar on property and if ESPN/ABC/ Disney didnt want to continue on they could have replaced it with a similar type sports restaurant/bar. I give this new place a year before it closes! Just like Ample Hills.

Well when you put it that way it sure doesn't make any sense does it? Afternoon tea is more of a Grand Floridian thing. This is the thing that is really bothering me with the changes that Disney has been making with their refurbs. I have seen it over at the Wilderness Lodge where they seem to be toning down the theming. The new rooms are now more like the Grand Californian than a lodge like it used to be. I'm worried about that happening here too. When we were there last month I noticed the shower curtains just being plain now. Didn't they used to have boardwalk type designs on them?

 

[mrsap]

Out of all of the stupidest changes Disney has made over the past two years this one ranks right up there with the stupidest!! Nothing screams turn of the century Boardwalk like an overpriced bakery/restaurant with $26 sandwiches and afternoon tea. ESPN was the only legit sports bar on property and if ESPN/ABC/ Disney didnt want to continue on they could have replaced it with a similar type sports restaurant/bar. I give this new place a year before it closes! Just like Ample Hills.

I don’t care for the menu myself either, TBH. I’m sure it will be nice to look at as I walk by, though. lol I am looking forward to the Sandwich Shop, although I enjoyed the sandwiches just fine at the Bakery.

 

[Crazyhorse]

Out of all of the stupidest changes Disney has made over the past two years this one ranks right up there with the stupidest!! Nothing screams turn of the century Boardwalk like an overpriced bakery/restaurant with $26 sandwiches and afternoon tea. ESPN was the only legit sports bar on property and if ESPN/ABC/ Disney didnt want to continue on they could have replaced it with a similar type sports restaurant/bar. I give this new place a year before it closes! Just like Ample Hills.

I really liked Ample Hills. The ice cream now is just Edy's...I can get that at the grocery store. TBH, ESPN wasn't all that and a bag of chips either. Food was average at best. I too don't understand this concept going into that big space. They do need to replace a sit down place with another sit down place but I think that there "may" have been better options.

 

[DaviVascaino]

With all due respect, but afternoon tea is a very niche activity. I don't know, i don't think replacing a sports bar with that is a good idea

 

[MidnightMeeko]

I don't even like watching sports, but I think replacing ESPN with a super fancy, very expensive place in that location is a terrible idea. I mean no disrespect to the creators/owners of The Cake Bake Shop, but I really wish that Disney would go back to putting in original restaurants on property that are Disney owned and created. If it were going to Disney Springs, I'd have no qualms at all. I'd cheer them on. This just really feels like the wrong spot.
I also get that not everyone likes that The Boardwalk doesn't have a traditional style quick service/food court and they complain, but it's The Boardwalk. It should have Boardwalk style quick service options and having a coffee lounge, or a place to refill mugs inside is and will be helpful....I digress... my tiny insignificant voice.

 

[minster22]

As much as I will miss some epic moments that ESPN has provided me, I am excited about the new restaurant. I thought the food at ESPN was terrible. I hope they don't do too much to change the lobby, it is soo pretty. All would be forgiven though if they put pull down murphy beds in the studios at BWV!

 

[Takket]

I perused the Cake Bake shop and I... I.... I have questions.

First of all there are two sites. What looks like an original location in downtown Indianapolis, and an expansion site in Carmel, IN. The Indy site is SMALL, very small. But admittedly adorable. My wife especially loves small little tea places and we have done Grand Floridian tea many times. Given that Boardwalk is our favorite she will be excited to have one of her favorite activities are her favorite resort...

That being said, while the Indy shop is small and adorable... it is SMALL and adorable. The ESPN club is a BIG space. Are they going to be ready to handle the kind of crowds that will fill that space, while maintaining the same quality standards? I don't know how large the Carmel space is because it looks like it is pretty new. Google maps shows the area where it is as a dirt lot with a bunch of construction vehicles parked on it, so it probably went up in the last year.

Maybe they plan on leaning heavily on lunch/tea but can the ESPN club really handle a cake shop? This isn't Disney Springs. People at the Boardwalk are resort guests. They aren't cruising in and spending $50-$100 on a whole cake to take home because home is a 1000+mile flight somewhere else. Obviously if they are going to sell cakes here, it is "by the slice" to dessert seekers that just ate at Flying Fish or Trattoria.

All I'm trying to say is the amount of space they have vs what looks like a business model of serving high quality cakes/tea to a small and intimate number of clients seems to not match up well with the footprint they are moving into at the cost I'm sure Disney is imposing on them for a piece of incredibly valuable real estate. The grand Floridian tea room is SMALL and hard to get reservations for because it NEEDS to be small. Afternoon tea is something that should be small, quiet and intimate. It doesn't work in a huge loud open space like the main dining room at BoG. I hope they take these things into consideration when remodeling ESPN.

Also the tea menu doesn't look very allergen friendly. And we have some allergies. I hope part of coming to Disney is that Disney will expect them to produce many allergen friendly options so if we ever try this we aren't limited to a cup of tea and a slice of cucumber because everything else is off limits. At $65 per person, I need to know I can actually enjoy several offerings.

https://thecakebakeshop.com/pages/broad-ripple-menu#tea

 

[Boardwalk III]

As a 20-year BWV DVC family I have to admit I’m a bit perplexed on this restaurant choice. Two grown sons (now early 30’s) who both loved ESPN. Admittedly the food wasn’t very good and the ambience left something to be desired, but it was a great place for a family to get a bite to eat, and the sports theming was fun for many.

When I first read this news yesterday I was enthused. Mainly because money is going back into that empty space, and also because the cake shop looks adorable and I do enjoy a good afternoon tea. But I don’t think I’m the primary demographic for the future of the Boardwalk area! And my 30-something guys (who still stay at BWV) will never have an interest in setting foot in there .

I hate to say it, but I can’t imagine it lasts more than a few years, unless it becomes a Princess character meal destination or something.

And with regard to the lobby coffee shop idea - good plan but I do fear this will be the end of the Bellevue Lounge which is indeed a shame. Sigh. Also holding my breath on the lobby renovations. Most comfortable chairs ever!

With that said, the only thing certain in life is change, so we’ll roll with it!

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

As a 20-year BWV DVC family I have to admit I’m a bit perplexed on this restaurant choice. Two grown sons (now early 30’s) who both loved ESPN. Admittedly the food wasn’t very good and the ambience left something to be desired, but it was a great place for a family to get a bite to eat, and the sports theming was fun for many.

When I first read this news yesterday I was enthused. Mainly because money is going back into that empty space, and also because the cake shop looks adorable and I do enjoy a good afternoon tea. But I don’t think I’m the primary demographic for the future of the Boardwalk area! And my 30-something guys (who still stay at BWV) will never have an interest in setting foot in there .

I hate to say it, but I can’t imagine it lasts more than a few years, unless it becomes a Princess character meal destination or something.

And with regard to the lobby coffee shop idea - good plan but I do fear this will be the end of the Bellevue Lounge which is indeed a shame. Sigh. Also holding my breath on the lobby renovations. Most comfortable chairs ever!

With that said, the only thing certain in life is change, so we’ll roll with it!

I was wondering if the coffee shop was going into the Bellevue Lounge. Not sure where else they would put it.

 

[Neener16]

Also the tea menu doesn't look very allergen friendly. And we have some allergies. I hope part of coming to Disney is that Disney will expect them to produce many allergen friendly options so if we ever try this we aren't limited to a cup of tea and a slice of cucumber because everything else is off limits. At $65 per person, I need to know I can actually enjoy several offerings.

https://thecakebakeshop.com/pages/broad-ripple-menu#tea

I was also disappointed at what’s going in there and the assumed lack of allergy friendly options. I can’t see a place like that succeeding, but maybe it’s not what we are all picturing.

 

[The Mayor]

I was wondering if the coffee shop was going into the Bellevue Lounge. Not sure where else they would put it.

I sure hope it’s not replacing the Belle Vue! It’s one of the very few relaxing places to unwind after a long day with a nice beer or cocktail. But as you said, where else is there to put it that has outdoor seating?