Spoodles to Close!

[Crazy Hakim]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla., March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Chef Cat Cora and Disney are joining together to open an exciting new family dining restaurant at Disney's BoardWalk Resort. Kouzzina by Cat Cora will feature a menu of Mediterranean-style cuisine that pays tribute to the chef's Greek roots.

The restaurant, to be owned and operated by Disney, is scheduled to open by fall 2009 in the space currently occupied by Spoodles.

 

[Brian_WDW74]

I wonder if Disney was caught offguard by that Orlando Sentinel blog post and decided to go ahead and announce this. Regardless, I think it makes perfect sense, given the Mediterranean-style menu Spoodles currently has. I'll definitely have to give the new restaurant a try.

 

[Mouseaholic!!!]

I'm a Food Network fan and like Cat Cora's style.

I had not eaten at Spoodles in a long time so I guess I will not miss it as much as others may who dine there often.

I think this will have to go on our .... let's try list for the next trip.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

This is good news IMO.

 

[DisFlan]

We've always enjoyed Spoodles, but I'd be very interested in trying a Cat Cora restaurant. I hope it's a great new addition to the Boardwalk.

DisFlan

 

[disneychic]

I think this is great news! I've eaten at Spoodles a few times and we did enjoy the food. I just think that the addition of Cat Cora is very cool! I'm a fan of Iron Chef America. Very cool news

 

[Luv2Roam]

We have always enjoyed Spoodles. But a Cat Cora restaurant...

 

[jfinke]

While I welcome the addition, I don't understand the replacement of a successful and popular restaurant.

 

[mickey2000]

While I welcome the addition, I don't understand the replacement of a successful and popular restaurant.

Would a 2 credit meal answer your question!

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

Cat Cora? There's already a Todd English restaurant in the area and they hardly fill up. While I personally welcome the quality of a celebrity chef establishment, especially one owned by Disney because I am hopeful this may signal a departure fromthe usual 'family fare' resataurants, I am still concerned that with the Disney name on it all procurements and chef ideas will still need to be signed off on by some lunkhead at Disney.

Cautiously optimistic but realistically expecting Disney to screw it up.

 

[MJMcBride]

as long as they get rid of the horrible pizza

 

[wdwbill]

The pizza used to be great. I Several years ago they stopped making it on site, and they were pre-made somewhere else. The slices used to be larger and much better tasting!

 

[wdwbill]

The pizza used to be great. Several years ago they stopped making it on site, and they are now pre-made somewhere else. The slices used to be larger and much better tasting!

 

[Uncleromulus]

Interesting that the place will be owned and operated by Disney. Usually restaurants with "names" connected (Shula's, Bongos, Pucks, Blue Zoo) are not part of the "official" Disney restaurants

 

[MJMcBride]

I had the pizza several years ago and found it way too greasy and rubbery.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Spoodles serves breakfast, not just dinner.

Flying Fish, the signature restaurant at the BoardWalk Resort, serves only dinner. Flying Fish has excellent but expensive food. Spoodles, next door, serves breakfast and dinner. The food at Spoodles is good, and the prices are typical of Disney's non-signature restaurants. For DDP participants, Flying Fish takes two TS credits, while Spoodles takes one TS credit.

It is a good combination. It means the guests at the BoardWalk Inn and BoardWalk Villas have places to go for table-service breakfast, casual table-service dinner, and fine dining dinner. (Unfortunately, neither restaurant serves lunch.)

I fear that Kouzzina by Cat Cora will be positioned differently than Spoodles, with higher prices and higher-end food to reflect its celebrity chef status (and the fact that Cat Cora and Disney both want to make a lot of money). Another fear is that breakfast will go away. I hope my fears are unfounded.

Ideally, Kouzzina by Cat Cora will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner -- with Cat Cora's celebrity status drawing a lunch crowd that Spoodles was unable to attract. And, ideally, the prices will be in line with other non-signature restaurants at WDW.

 

[jfinke]

Would a 2 credit meal answer your question!

True...

 

[DisFlan]

Surely they wouldn't make Kouzzina a dinner-only, 2 credit TS - not that close to another one (Flying Fish). That would really limit the dining options on the Boardwalk. There aren't many breakfast options on the BW now (even with Spoodles), and if we're gonna burn 2 TS credits, I'd rather do it at the Cali Grill or Jiko.

DisFlan

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Surely they wouldn't make Kouzzina a dinner-only, 2 credit TS - not that close to another one (Flying Fish). That would really limit the dining options on the Boardwalk. There aren't many breakfast options on the BW now (even with Spoodles), and if we're gonna burn 2 TS credits, I'd rather do it at the Cali Grill or Jiko.

They haven't announced one way or the other if Kouzzina by Cat Cora will require one TS credit or two for people on the Dining Plan.

The press release calls it an "exciting new family dining restaurant," not a new Signature restaurant. That wording suggests that it will not require two TS credits, but we won't really know until they tell us more.

Disney seems to have decided that guests don't want table service breakfasts. For example, the Turf Club only serves lunch and dinner. Boatwright's Dining Hall recently discontinued breakfast. In both cases, counter service breakfasts are available nearby, but sometimes it's nice to be served freshly made food on real plates by a real server.

Considering that the BoardWalk Inn is a convention hotel and claims to be a full-service, deluxe hotel, I don't see how Disney can get away with not providing a table service breakfast option to BoardWalk Inn guests.

But it would seem strange for a celebrity chef restaurant to serve bacon and egg breakfasts.

We'll find out soon enough.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

Cat Cora? There's already a Todd English restaurant in the area and they hardly fill up. While I personally welcome the quality of a celebrity chef establishment, especially one owned by Disney because I am hopeful this may signal a departure fromthe usual 'family fare' resataurants, I am still concerned that with the Disney name on it all procurements and chef ideas will still need to be signed off on by some lunkhead at Disney.

Cautiously optimistic but realistically expecting Disney to screw it up.

Amen to that!