Home » We messed up… things I’ve Learned Drinking Around the World Showcase: A Day at Epcot

On our recent 10 day family vacation to Walt Disney World, we had only one completely kid-free day. The grandparents had our kids and our plan was to enjoy a beer or drink, with some snacks mixed in, in all of the Country Pavilions. We accomplished our goal and had a blast enjoying, almost, everything we ate and drank. However, there were definitely some things we would have done differently to make the experience even better! Here are tips for each Country Pavilion that could help you with your own drinking, I mean, trip planning.

Mexico: We started in Mexico for our “World Tour”, enjoying a refreshing Frozen Lime Margarita from La Cantina San Angel and sharing a nachos, which was plenty for two. Although delicious, the nachos were our first mistake lol. They were so filling that we were both full before our second stop. If we are mentioning mistakes, I have to admit that we also didn’t go into the Aztec Pyramid to see the Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros. It would have been a great, air conditioned stop to allow us more time to digest before our next Country. Be sure to stop and have a listen to the Mariachi Cobre band for some authentic Mexican mariachi music.

Norway: While in Norway, we decided to skip the “Frozen Ever After” ride without the kids since we had already been on it.  However, if this is your only day at Epcot, it is a must-do! We thoroughly enjoyed our AAS, pronounced “ouse”, Pilsner, but were still so full from our nachos that we didn’t get a snack.  If we could do it again, we would definitely find some room to enjoy the traditional Norwegian Eplekake, apple cake with caramel drizzle, and School Bread, a sweet roll filled with custard and dipped in coconut.

China: At this point, all the beer and water made a bathroom break a must.  Here’s our pro-tip for China- there’s no bathroom!  The bathrooms are located every two countries- Norway, Germany, America, Morocco, France and the United Kingdom. After your bathroom break, be sure to stop into “The House of the Whispering Willow” and see the Shanghai Disney exhibit showing how Chinese culture inspired the awe-inspiring attractions in the six lands of fantasy. 

Germany: Germany holds some of my favorite memories from our Honeymoon at Disney 15 years ago.  We relived some of it, enjoying a delicious Konig Ludwig Weissbier and a Jumbo Pretzel with LOTS of mustard.  We sat on the same bench as 15 years ago, chatting and laughing as we enjoyed our meal. Our reminiscing was cut short a bit by a rain shower and we hurried over to Italy. We should have stopped into the “Biergarten” restaurant to peek at the courtyard with the authentic German decor and costumes and to catch a snippet of some traditional polka music. Don’t forget to get a selfie in front of the clock tower and listen to the hourly chime of the glockenspiel. 

Italy: We are definitely beer people and chose to have a Menabrea Bionda Lager from the La Bottego Italiano.  However, I can’t believe that we didn’t stop to get some Italian wine! It’s Italy!!! But, we did get our picture in front of the Neptune Fountain, which pays tribute to the Trevi Fountain in Rome. We also dropped a coin and made a wish! We were there too early to catch Sergio the Italian Juggler and Comedian, but be sure to check the schedule for his showtimes, as I hear it is well worth it.

The American Adventure: My husband said it best, “we messed up!” lol. We grabbed a Sam Adams Seasonal  Summer Ale while in America, much to my husband’s dismay!  It wasn’t until our way out of the Pavilion that he saw Block and Hans, which had a dazzling array of craft beer options. As we were trying to pace ourselves on this insanely hot and humid day, we didn’t think adding in more beer at that point was a great choice lol.  However, we now know that we should scope out all the options before picking our food or drink for each pavilion. We did, however, get to see “Voices of Liberty” in the American Adventure Pavilion. This 8-part a capella group was exceptional, performing American folk songs with an ethereal, otherworldly beauty and purity.

Japan: The Japanese Pavilion was so beautiful.  We arrived just in time to listen to the “Matsuriza” taiko drummers at the large pagoda modeled after the Horyuji Temple, built in the 17th century. As a pro-tip, this is definitely the spot to stop, sit and relax.  Going up the stairs to the right of the pagoda leads to a beautiful, shady sitting area surrounded by bamboo, Japanese Maples, and the soothing sound of falling water as you sit and relax! This is where we sat to enjoy our Kirin Light beer, the “Coors Light” of Japanese beer. 

Morocco: The architecture in Morocco is stunning, providing endless picture taking opportunities. Several of the stores and the main restaurant was closed when we were at Epcot, limiting us a bit. We did end up getting the Baklava, which was absolutely delicious! We can’t wait to go back and see what changes they have completed in this Pavilion!

France: Well, I actually laugh every time I think about our France experience.  We were fairly hungry at this point in our “beer tour”, and decided that we would go for one of our favorite snacks, a cheese plate. We waited in line to get up to the counter where a rather abrupt server asked us what we wanted.  They were out of our first beer choice, the Kronenbourg 1664, which was disappointing.  We settled for a Stella Artois with our cheese plate, which included… only cheese and lettuce lol. There was not a cracker or piece of bread on it. In our hangry state, we were not about to wait in line to get bread with our cheese and decided to just stand and eat our cheese and lettuce- a pretty sad sight I’ll tell you- although still fairly delicious.  With a Stella as our only beer choice, tasty, but nothing new or exciting for us, I wish that we would have tried a French wine or a delicious looking Grand Marnier Slushy! Don’t forget to walk towards the back of the Pavilion to see the new “Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure” ride-we skipped on this day, but made sure to ride it later in the week with the kids.

United Kingdom: The United Kingdom Pavilion was beautiful, but what I remember the most was the delicious scent of fish and chips wafting throughout the whole area. My husband is not a fan of fish, so we opted to wait for Canada for our dinner. I still think about missing out on that fish and chips lol. We did stop into The Rose and Crown and were actually able to get right up to the counter for a drink. There was a nice selection of beers, ales and Irish whiskey. Everyone should stop in the “Crown and Crest” shop to look and find your family’s coat of arms. They have options to have it placed on different store merchandise.  

Canada: Walking into the Canadian Pavilion felt very much like home. We missed the band, Alberta Bound, at the The Mill Stage, but were pleasantly surprised by the hidden waterfall we stumbled upon.  After going through the shops, we went up the stairs and to the back of the Pavilion to see the canyon, waterfall and pool that provided a lovely cooling mist that was just what we needed after a long, hot day.  The Victoria Gardens were so beautiful and serene with the green grass, flowers and “mountain view”. We didn’t want to go to a sit-down restaurant and decided to stop at The Outpost to get some poutine. The poutine was definitely underwhelming. The french fries were cold, the cheese was barely melted and the gravy was fairly plain. Next time, we would stop at Le Cellier Steakhouse and get the fancy Le Cellier Beef Bourguignon Poutine with fresh-cut french fries, gruyėre, beef bourguignon gravy, garlic aïoli, and truffle (I’m drooling just writing that!)

Despite the overwhelming July heat, we had a fantastic day at the World Showcase in Epcot. We were full of good food and drink and had managed to rack up almost 30,000 steps. We fit so much into our one day, but love that there are still more things for us to do, sights for us to see, and food for us to eat and drink on our next trip to Epcot.