Magic Kingdom A-Z: The Village Fry Shoppe (And Its Many Incarnations)

This post is part of a series that tours the Magic Kingdom from A to Z. For other posts in this series, click here.

It’s been a while since we’ve had something to eat on our tour of the Magic Kingdom, so let’s head to Fantasyland and grab a snack before our journey comes to a close. For this snack, however, we must travel back in time to the days when what we currently know as Friar’s Nook was called The Village Fry Shoppe.

In the 38 years the Magic Kingdom has been in operation, the snack building once known as The Village Fry Shoppe has had quite a history, changing names perhaps more than any other attraction or restaurant in all of Walt Disney World. The origins of this dining location date back to the opening of the Magic Kingdom when the facility was named Lancer’s Inn. With Fantasyland designed to look somewhat like a medieval fair, the Lancer’s Inn is themed as a place where jousters would stay and dine while competing in the village’s tournament. In operation from 1971 to 1986, Lancer’s Inn served pizza, snacks and soft drinks to Magic Kingdom guests.

In 1986, Lancer’s Inn closed and was replaced by another quick service restaurant named Gurgi’s Munchies and Crunchies. For those who aren’t familiar with Gurgi, he is a character from the Disney animated film The Black Cauldron, based on the second book in The Chronicles of Prydain series. Gurgi is sort of a part man, part animal creature that speaks in rhymed pairs, including the phrase “crunchings and munchings.” Gurgi’s was your typical counter service restaurant, serving chili cheese dogs, chicken sandwiches, kids’ meals, sides and drinks. Gurgi’s holds a special place in my mind and heart as it was the restaurant my family often ate at during our first trip to Walt Disney World in 1988. I’ll never forget the Happy Meal-style kids’ meals that included an entree (chicken nuggets or grilled cheese, I think), a cookie, chips and a Disney PVC figure. I recall my sisters and I (ages 9, 7 and 4 at the time) having quite a collection of Sorcerer Mickey figures by the end of that trip. For more details on the restaurant, check out Scott Osborne’s Destination: Disney blog.

After operating for about six and a half years, Gurgi’s Munchies and Crunchies closed in February of 1993 and re-opened as Lumière’s Kitchen. While I don’t know for certain the reason for the name change, I’m guessing it was because very few guests knew who Gurgi was but everyone knew of Lumière, the maître d’-turned-candelabra from the hit animated film Beauty and the Beast. Like Gurgi’s, Lumière’s Kitchen had a small menu, serving a few entrees and kids’ meals, as well as the typical sides and drinks. A photograph of the sign for Lumière’s Kitchen can be seen at the Web site Walt Dated World.

Over time, Lumière’s Kitchen became a seasonal restaurant, closing for lengthy periods of time, including a period of several years. Then, in 2006, Lumière’s Kitchen became The Village Fry Shoppe, one of many McDonald’s locations that opened in Walt Disney World theme parks. Sponsored by McDonald’s, The Village Fry Shoppe was popular among families with picky eaters for serving McDonald’s fries (thus the name Fry Shoppe). In addition, The Village Fry Shoppe served hot dogs, carrot cake, apple and caramel dippers (I’m not certain if they were served in McDonald’s packaging), jello and the typical assortment of hot and cold drinks.

The Friar's Nook - Signage

In March 2009, The Village Fry Shoppe closed as part of Disney’s removal of all in-park McDonald’s locations. Only a couple weeks later, a new restaurant named The Friar’s Nook opened in the same spot. The menu was mostly the same as that of The Village Fry Shoppe, with the addition of caesar salads and chicken parmesan sandwiches. The sign outside of The Friar’s Nook includes the Roman numerals MLXXI, representative of 1071 in Arabic numerals. Instead of referring to an event that took place in 1071 AD, the numbers stand for 10-71 or October, 1971, the month in which the Magic Kingdom opened. In early October 2009, Disney began refurbishment of the exterior of The Friar’s Nook. Just a couple weeks later, on October 29, 2009, WDWMAGIC.COM reported that The Friar’s Nook is schedule to move to an “on-demand” (aka seasonal) operating schedule.