Four plates at Le Gobelet Noir: schnitzel with fries, sausage platter, veggie soup, and antler-topped chocolate dessert.

REVIEW: Trying Theme Park Matzo Ball Soup and More at Le Gobelet Noir in Epic Universe

Katie Francis

We reviewed everything on the menu at Le Gobelet Noir in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic at Epic Universe.

A gold label for Le Gobelet Noir in Gothic font, with a skeleton hand and goblet over dark wood.

Location

Aerial view of a theme park area with labeled attractions and Le Gobelet Noir cafe referencing the Harry Potter universe.

Le Gobelet Noir is in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic, tucked away in the Quartier de Nicolas Flamel.

Exterior

Old, rustic building with timber beams and stone base; Le Gobelet Noir sits along a narrow, cobblestone alley.

The exterior of Le Gobelet Noir is a time-worn auberge (small inn). A sign with a three-dimensional goblet hangs above the entrance doors.

Interior

Inside, guests will find multiple dining areas set in a dark atmosphere, with large casks behind the registers, a wine cellar-style room, and more.

Check out our full restaurant tour to see more.

Menu

Check out the full menu (with prices) for Le Gobelet Noir.

Reviews

Handheld Reviews

Warm Beef Sandwich – $17.99

Shaved corn beef, butterkäse, German mustard, and hearty multi-grain bread

A Le Gobelet Noir sandwich with corned beef and cheese on oat bread, served with fries and ketchup.

For a theme park beef sandwich, this is not bad. It’s a little dry, but it could be worse, so we’re not complaining too much. The multigrain bread is excellent; it’s perfectly toasted and a little buttery. Universal’s steak fries are always great. We wouldn’t run back for this dish, but it’s solid.

Rating out of 7: 5

Wizard’s Brew Bratwurst Sandwich – $16.99

Roasted bratwurst, caramelized onions, Wizard’s Brew beer cheese, and German mustard, served in a pretzel bun

A plate with golden fries, ketchup, and a cheesy sandwich on a marbled table at Le Gobelet Noir.

The pretzel, sausage, mustard, caramelized onions, and beer cheese in this dish are the same that come with the Alchemist’s Platter, which we review later on. That being said, the sum of all these parts is much better here. The pretzel bun is soft, and we love this as a sandwich.

Rating out of 7: 6

Entree Reviews

Jägerschnitzel – $17.99

Crispy pork cutlet, brown mushroom gravy, and tavern fries

A breaded cutlet with brown sauce, fries, and extra sauce at Le Gobelet Noir; another dish in the background.

It’s hard to mess up schnitzel, and we think this is really good. The breading is perfectly seasoned, with just the right amount of salt. It’s crispy and not at all greasy. The pork cutlet is quite thick, and the mushroom gravy is nice. This is a nice, big portion, and we would get this again. We love it.

Rating out of 7: 7

Coq au Vin – $17.99

Red wine marinated chicken breast, mushrooms, pancetta, pearl onions, and pommes purée

Braised meat with gravy, carrots, and potatoes over mash, elegantly served at Le Gobelet Noir on a marble table.

The chicken here is tender and juicy, but this is a tiny piece of chicken for the cost. The sauce here is a little sweet, but definitely salty. The mashed potatoes are good for quick service. For $18, this dish seems on the small side. We think this should have come with a side salad or something similar. This is good, but it’s an awful portion for the price.

Rating out of 7: 2

Beef Goulash – $18.99

Hearty beef stew with tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, and Hungarian paprika; served with egg noodles

A bowl of pasta with tomato sauce, served with a bread roll at Le Gobelet Noir atop a marble table.

The bread that accompanies this dish is hard as a rock, and is the same as the bread included with the Lentil Stew. We found there was an inconsistency in the tenderness of the beef in our serving; one of our reviewers said their piece was tender, while the other said the beef was not tender at all. Our noodles were dry and not cooked well.

A black Le Gobelet Noir bowl with beef stew and egg noodles, garnished with herbs, on a marble table.

The overall flavor of the sauce, however, is fantastic. The flavor between the vegetables and sauce is a great base, but the rest of the dish fails to match in quality.

Rating out of 7: 3

Herb Crusted Cod – $19.99

Potatoes and caramelized leeks in a creamy broth

A black bowl from Le Gobelet Noir with scallops, green herbs, and crispy strips on a mottled surface.

The creamy broth here is so heavy, it almost comes across like cod in a clam chowder. The fish is cooked pretty well with some chewiness, but it has a prominent fishy smell that’s overwhelming. This is just not great, we wouldn’t recommend it.

Rating out of 7: 2

Lentil Stew (Vegan) – $13.99

Hearty stew of lentils, vegan bacon, and root vegetables; served with an artisan bread

A bowl of dark soup with herbs, served at Le Gobelet Noir with two bread rolls on a marble countertop.

Like that which comes with the Beef Goulash, the bread that accompanies this dish is hard and not very fresh. It might be good if you dip it in the stew, but you don’t want to eat it alone.

The lentils here are quite soft, when we’re used to them being on the chewier side. The taste is very flavorful and well-seasoned overall. We applaud Universal for including this as a vegan option.

Rating out of 7: 4

Knödel Soup/Salad Combo – $13.99

Rich chicken broth, knödel, roasted chicken, house greens salad, herb brioche croutons, and Champagne vinaigrette

A bowl of chicken vegetable soup and salad with croutons from Le Gobelet Noir, served on a marbled countertop.

This has no right to be as good as it is; it’s very solid. It’s not life-changing, but if you had told us five years ago that a theme park was going to serve matzo ball soup, we would tell you that we’re not going to touch it (but would review it anyway).

This soup has the right amount of salt. The vegetables are nicely cooked, and the chicken is tender. If you’re in the mood for a hot soup in hot Florida weather, this will hit the spot.

The salad that comes with the soup is good, but the Champagne vinaigrette is interesting. It’s not overpowering, and it tastes as described. The greens here are excellent, and the croutons are straight out of a bag, but that’s fine.

Rating out of 7: 5

Ancient Forest Salad – $12.99

Kale, arugula, frisée, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions, beets, and herb vinaigrette

A fresh green salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions served at Le Gobelet Noir on a marble surface.

This is a great salad, though the dressing could offer a bit more flavor to the overall dish. We like the serving size and the temperature at which it’s served, especially given the weather. This is super refreshing. There are a lot of fresh ingredients here, and a good combination of them.

Rating out of 7: 5

Alchemist’s Platter – $27.99

Smoked sausage, potato & cheese pierogies, marinated beets, pickled egg, caramelized onions, warm pretzel, German mustard, and cheese fondue

A Le Gobelet Noir plate with sliced sausage, pickles, pretzel bread, pierogi, beets, and dipping sauce.

A lot is going on with this dish. The sausage is perfectly servicable, but salty. The mustard is good, but we wish it were spicier. The pickles (which were not listed on the menu) are nice, crunchy, and sweet. The pierogies are excellent, with warm and soft potato inside. They’re hard to cut through but easy to chew.

The pickled eggs are very sweet, and we don’t taste much vinegar. The red color is from red beets. The cheese fondue is alright, but the pretzel here is terribly dry.

We had high hopes for this platter, but it was disappointing. Other than the pierogies, everything was very standard. We’re not sure how Americans will feel about this dish, and wouldn’t recommend you try it, especially not at this price.

Rating out of 7: 3

Dessert Reviews

Baklava (Vegan) – $6.99

Pistachio, walnuts, vegan anglaise, and coconut nectar

A slice of baklava on a dark plate at Le Gobelet Noir, served with cream sauce and crushed pistachios.

This is so good, we would never guess that it was vegan. It has a honey-like and buttery sweetness to the pastry, but it contains neither to keep the dessert vegan. The mix of nuts here is impossible not to like. This dessert is phenomenal, and we love this. It’s no less good for being vegan in comparison to other baklava we’ve had elsewhere.

Rating out of 7: 7

Black Forest Cake – $7.99

Chocolate cake, vanilla mousse, and cherries

A hand holds a Le Gobelet Noir chocolate dessert with a tree-shaped decoration, topped with cream on a brown plate.

This tastes like chocolate-covered cherries, and as such is very cherry-heavy — but not in an artificial way. The chocolate cake is rich and tastes nice with the cherry. You also get a creamy texture from the whipped cream. The tiny tree is nice, dark chocolate, and is not sweet.

Rating out of 7: 7

Specialty Beverage Review

Le Breuvage Sombre du Gobelet Noir – $7

Dark brew with mixed fruit, topped with the eyes of Plimpies (yogurt popping pearls)

A dark-colored Le Gobelet Noir drink with ice and white boba in a Harry Potter cup on a marble table.

We expected a lot more flavor from this, but it’s really just a light, refreshing juice. It is much sweeter at the bottom versus sipping from the top. It tastes as advertised, but we couldn’t tell what fruit flavor was involved here. The yogurt popping pearls don’t add much.

Rating out of 7: 3

Video

Stay tuned for our video review!

Overall

We like how Eastern European this restaurant is, in comparison to Cafe L’air De La Siréne, which has a very French menu. The majority of this menu is very middle-of-the-road, with a few hits and a few misses. There are some items here that we’d never expected to enjoy in a theme park, but they’re worth returning for.

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