We bring you a lot of stories every single day. Sometimes it’s hard to keep up. So in case you missed anything from our feed, we have rounded up all our stories in one place to get the news at a glance. Here is your Daily Recap for Saturday, January 9, 2021.

Walt Disney World

Magic Kingdom

• Guests at headed to the Magic Kingdom today are receiving push notifications from My Disney Experience indicating that Space Mountain is currently unavailable
• Tom Sawyer Island and the Liberty Square Riverboat are closed for refurbishment through February and as we’ve been keeping an eye on their progress, we noticed today that the Harper’s Mill sign was removed
• Liberty Square Market, a quick service location at the Magic Kingdom, will close for refurbishment on January 11, and is expected to last three weeks
• Despite the chill in the air, we came out Magic Kingdom to check on what might be new here and bring you a photo report, and we weren’t disappointed

EPCOT

• New to the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts is Festival Favorites, a booth where favorite dishes from festivals past make their return, and we have your full review of their offerings
• We reviewed everything at The Painter’s Palate food studio, which is inside World Showplace next to Festival Favorites, to tell you what’s good
• Vibrante & Vívido is a brand new food studio created for the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts that invites guests to “Enjoy bright, fresh flavors in dishes both savory and sweet — like a passion fruit mousse or a chilled seafood cocktail”
• EPCOT describes L’Art de la Cuisine Française food studio by saying, “discover delightful French treats and baked goods, from savory to sweet,” and that sounds right up our alley so we tried everything on the menu
• When Goshiki debuted at last year’s EPCOT International Festival of the Arts, we were delighted with most of what the menu had to offer, and this year is no different
• The Funnel Cake Kiosk is a favorite of ours during the different festivals around EPCOT, as they always add a special dish to their menu and for the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts they’ve created a Red Velvet funnel cake that’s covered in “pixie dust”
• EPCOT asks us to “savor the bold flavors of Morocco” at the Mosaic Canteen food studio during the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts but we found this location to be lackluster last year, and it didn’t get any better this year
• Last year for the Festival of the Arts the Refreshment Port served a favorite item of ours, the Lobster Chips, and this year it’s become Lobster Poutine, which may even be better
• If you’re looking for a sweet treat during the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts, might we suggest heading over and trying the Decadent Delights food booth, which offers Raspberry and Lemon Soft Serve
• EPCOT asks us to “prepare to be amazed with these hearty braised bites and traditional Old World delights” in regards to the Cusine Classique food booth, a location available in the Germany pavilion during the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts

• Pop Eats! is a food studio available during the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts that usually pairs savory foods with a modern art twist, and this year’s Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese just screams Warhol
• While the menu for Deconstructed Dish didn’t see many changes from last year’s appearance at the EPCOT International Festival of the Arts, that doesn’t mean you should skip this booth as it offers an unusual take on some classic dishes, newly redesigned for 2021
• For every food festival, each Joffrey’s stand inside EPCOT always goes out of their way to create a special beverage and doughnut pairing and this year, all of the food and beverage pairings are “art-inspired”
• El Artista Hambriento has been a part of the Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts since its inception in 2017 and after they debuted an entirely new delicious menu last year, we were more excited than ever to see what’s new for this year
• The Painted Panda is a favorite of ours during the International Festival of the Arts, bringing savory food dishes and creative beverage options, and while this year’s new Pork & Water Chestnut Meatballs may have been a letdown, the “Panda” Bubble Tea makes it worth the trip
• The Artist’s Table is another booth we look forward to during the Festival of the Arts, as it typically brings beautifully crafted, yet still savory, bites of food and between the Pan-Seared Scallop and the Beef Wellington, we know this will be one you don’t want to miss
• Citrus Blossom is normally part of the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival but this year, EPCOT decided to keep the booth around for Food & Wine, Festival of the Holidays, and now the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts, though the menu for the booth hasn’t seen too many changes either

• Historically, we haven’t had good luck with L’Arte di Mangiare, the food studio located in the Italy pavilion during the International Festival of the Arts and at this year’s festival, the Fried Risotto Balls and Lobster Ravioli keep the disappointment consistent
• During the 2020 International Festival of the Arts, we were less than impressed with the dishes Masterpiece Kitchen had to offer but this year, the booth has upped their game to become at least hit-or-miss with their dishes
• Refreshment Outpost has added some specialty items for this year’s edition of the Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts including a bright blue beer, a Plant-Based Bratwurst, and a Warm Brown Sugar Stuffed Pretzel with Banana Soft-Serve Ice Cream
• We took the Wonderful Walk of Colorful Cuisine through the Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts to try some treats, and we rounded up all the awesome items on the walk
• We came to EPCOT yesterday to check out all the final preparations being made for the Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts, which is now open, so consider this photo report a retrospective

Other Walt Disney World News

• Hours at all four Walt Disney World theme parks have been extended January 24 through January 30, 2021
• Disney has announced operating hours for its four Walt Disney World theme parks and Disney Springs for the week of March 21 through March 27, 2021

Disneyland Resort

• The Guardians of the Galaxy weren’t the only heroes being considered when Disney looked to reimagine The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Disney California Adventure as before the attraction became Guardians of the Galaxy — Mission: BREAKOUT!, other Marvel heroes like Spider-Man and Doctor Strange were considered
• There’s one less eatery at Disneyland Resort, as Asian Street Eats no longer sits outside the old Rainforest Café building

New Merchandise

• There are three new iPhone cases available at Walt Disney World, including the “I <3 My Disney Dog” phone case we spotted at Disneyland Resort a few days ago
• Disney Parks have provided pop culture with some of its most iconic images and now Loungefly pays tribute to some of those icons with a new mini backpack, available at Walt Disney World
• The parade of items celebrating feline and canine friends marches on at the Disneyland Resort, and today we got a look at two new pieces of apparel that warm our hearts, mostly because they’re snuggly fleece sweatshirts

WDW News Today

🔴LIVE Tom Plays Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom One Last Time

That’s it for today, we hope you enjoyed this Daily Recap. Thanks for stopping by, and we’ll see you tomorrow!

Charly Shelton