Welcome to another Universal Arena podcast. I'm Nick. I'm Melody, and I guess that's now a thing. What's a thing? Your stupid welcome. I don't like it. I don't. I don't care what you don't like. We are here to talk about Universal, not your feelings. Okay. Sometimes your feelings. I'm pretty sure. Okay. I don't care about your feelings right now. Alrighty. You can submit a complaint later. Okay. Small talk? No, my word. I keep getting those SunPass scams, where it's
like, oh, this is your final notice. We're going to put a lien on your vehicle if you don't pay up. I also get the ones where it's, oh, you have an outstanding balance, or like, this charge is huge. Please contact to fix this if this was not you. I'm like, well, I know it wasn't. The weird thing about the SunPass one, though, is I got one a couple days ago. You got one on the same day. My dad got one on the next day and
then my mom got one last night. Fun. So apparently my dad called because my family's all on one SunPass account because it's easier that way. And he called FDOT. For those of you who do not know what FDOT is, it is the Florida Department of Traffic. And that's who these people are making themselves seem like. So he called them, and apparently they were aware of this scam, and hundreds of millions of people's information was leaked from the Suncast. So that's why everybody's
getting these. So I have a response written in
my note that I found on Reddit. Apparently this dude... replies to these people with this message it says thank you for reaching out to the criminal self -report fbi hotline your information is important to us and an agent is being assigned to your case please know that any effort to make false claims or obstruct this new investigation can result in federal charges is this the best number for our agents to reach you at is that a i haven't sent one yet is it bad to pretend
you're the fbi so my thing is Does this fall under impersonating a police officer? Because in my mind, no. Because I'm doing it to a scammer who's trying to scam elderly people. But I'm also not, you know, going out in a police uniform saying I'm the FBI. Eh, I wouldn't. I'll just leave it at that. I kind of want to. Because what is the scammer going to do? Take me to court saying, oh, I thought you were a police officer. Here, judge, I was trying to scam him and I thought
he was the FBI. This isn't right. Yeah, but the whole thing with courts, it doesn't matter what's right. It's what the law says. Right, but I don't think a scammer is going to go. It's like, okay, it's like a drug dealer going to court over, oh. My drugs were stolen. My drugs were stolen. So I don't think they're going to. Yeah, okay, continue on. Anyways, any other small talk? Epic Universe open today. That's going to date this episode a lot. Previews for the Passholders open
today. Ah, okay. By the time this episode comes out, which should be... That's the calculator, not calendar. I mean, you could use the calculator. So this is coming out on the 26th. Okay. By the time that has happened, we have gone to Epic for the first time. And you will probably have... I'm still debating, should we do a bonus episode with our... We're going to the preview, if you haven't heard already. The Passholder preview. We're going on the 20th, which is this Sunday.
And we're going to be taking our mics. We're going to be recording our experience and reporting back to you because I've never been to a brand new theme park opening. I guarantee you a lot of our listeners never been to a brand new theme park opening, so they might want to know what it's like. So we're going to do our best to record our experience. So I'm debating, do we do it as a bonus episode and just throw it out there as soon as... We come home. Give it little editing?
Well, yeah, we edit it, but throw it out as soon as it's ready, or do we wait until after the opening of Epic? Who knows? I would say let the listeners decide, but like I said, this is coming out after we go to Epic. Yes. So you guys will know if we do it before or after. We'll figure it out. Anyways, opening. They are opening the parking lots at 9 a .m. Okay. Two hours before the park opens for the preview. Yes. Hotel guests
can get into the park at 10 o 'clock. And I am getting mixed reviews on if any rides are open for the preview. Not the preview, the early hour. Okay. So some people are saying, oh yeah, I'm queued up in this ride. And then Universal comes out and says, no rides are open. And then another Universal employee comes out and says, Stardust Racers is open. All in the same day? All in the same day. Fun. So the communication is terrible right now. Hmm. It'll get cleared up. It'll hopefully.
Eventually. What are we doing today? I don't know. What are we doing today? Part two of our deep dive into Universal Studios. Yes. Why did you look confused? Because I have not pulled it up yet. What are we on today? So in our last episode, we covered... Where did my notes go? Okay. I somehow switched notes and thought I accidentally deleted all of my notes somehow.
That would be really, really bad. Yeah. Anyway, in our last episode, we covered the opening of Universal Studios and all that info, as well as Minion Land, Hollywood, and New York. So in this episode, we're covering the rest of the park. If you want to know which lands we're going to cover, then listen to the episode. Oh, that's kind of rude. So before we get into that... Socials! Where can they find us, Melody? Oh my word. Another... Oh. You can find us on... Oh my gosh. Can you
even do it? Apparently not. You can find us on Instagram and Twitch slash X. You can find us at another universal what? Would you like to see what the line is like to get into Epic Universe right now? Can I say what our Instagram is? Another universal podcast. On Instagram. On Instagram. There you go. Have fun. Here is the opening line that was taken two hours ago. That's great, considering I don't even know where this line goes. The fact that you can't even see the turnstiles into the
park. Or, you know, the Kronos. So we're going early. Got it. Yes. We're planning on leaving our house at 8. That should get us there right at 9, 10. Mm -hmm. We don't need to have first parking. Well, people were lining up at the parking garage at 7 o 'clock this morning. Anyway. So now I'm debating, should we just leave as soon as we wake up? Who knows? Can I finish socials? They got the Instagram. It has all the socials in it. And another UOPOD on Twitter slash X.
There you go. You're welcome. Now I'm debating on leaving at 7 now. I don't want to wait in long lines. Ride queues? Sure. Great. I don't mind waiting in the long ride queues because it's a new queue. I can look at every little detail while I'm standing in one spot for 10 minutes. And it's fun. But waiting outside in the blistering heat? It's not going to be that hot in the morning. I don't care. It's going
to be miserable. That, we still need to decide, do we want to splurge on some Express Passes? Because that's another thing. Express Passes sold out this morning. Keep in mind, park opened at 10 for early access guests, 11 for quote -unquote normal people. Express Pass was sold out at 9 .30. Online? Can you buy it in person? No, you cannot buy a preview. before, you can only buy in -person at guest services at the entrance to Epic Universe. That is the only place you
can buy it. Okay, good to know. So the fact that it's sold out before the park even opens for early entry is concerning. It was probably people seeing how many people were going were like, ah, Express Pass. But then on the other hand, I have to juggle these two things. Do I buy Express Pass and either wait in a long line for Express or wait in a long line for normal queue? And not to mention, not all the rides, it's not guaranteed
that all the rides would even be open. From what I am hearing, there is not many delays happening. Okay. At least as for today. I think one ride, when somebody posted the ride times, one ride was delayed. Okay. And it wasn't even Ministry of Magic. And I'm also hearing mixed reviews on Ministry of Magic. So before we said, there's a virtual queue for it, and it's opening every, like, 12. Two, three, four, you know. I don't think we talked about it. Oh. I thought we did.
Nope. Unless it was in the last deep dive episode. I think it was in the bonus episode. No, I just edited the bonus episode. It is not mentioned. Okay, well, here. News to you guys. They're doing a virtual queue as of this recording. And when I took this photo on Sunday, last Sunday. Which, give the date. Oh, I don't know. It just says Sunday at the top of my picture. So the 13th of April. Yes. At 944. That's when I took the
screenshot, so. obviously earlier in their day, they put out a sign that says, Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry. How to get a virtual return time. Step one, sign into your Universal Orlando account on your phone. Make sure your passes are linked. Not your passes, your Epic Universe Day tickets are linked. And then step three, choose an available virtual line. And then the virtual return times at the time of this photo was 12, 3, and 6. Those were the times
you could get virtual. They would release the virtual times. I had just read a post from somebody saying, oh, they might not be doing that anymore and they might just drop them randomly. Fun. Not fun. And then hopefully the last thing we're going to talk about, Epic, because that's not our episode today. Whatever. We didn't realize this when we booked our preview thing, but it's on Easter. Oh, yes. So we have no idea if that's
going to affect our trip at all. Because, you know, a lot of people celebrate it, but we don't know if they're planning to go to Epic to celebrate it, which is weird. I'm hoping not. I'm hoping everybody's going to be like, oh, it's Easter. We need to spend it with family. Or do their Easter egg hunts. Let's go do our Easter egg hunt and we can do Epic on Monday. I'm hoping that's what a lot of people are doing. I checked yesterday and only four days are sold out for
the Passover preview days. And the 20th is not one of them? I don't think so. I'm checking right now. Yeah, so, what's today, the 17th? Yes. Okay. Today sold out, the 18th sold out, 19th sold out, and the 26th is sold out. Okay. Oh, wait, hold on. What? And May 3rd is sold out. 3rd? Yep. Oh, it's a Saturday. Yeah. Okay. I think the preview stops on that Thursday, May 8th. I might be wrong, though. Anyway, not important. But our day is still opened. Good. So I'm really
crossing my fingers that... It's going to be busy. It's going to be busy. It's not going to be as busy as... Christmas? Christmas. It's not... No, as a normal park day. Okay. It's going to be busy, yes, but not as busy as full park opening. When we go in May, it won't be as busy. I'm also a little peeved that they opened it up to hotel guests, too, and Visa card holders. I just find that weird. Okay, so here's how the previews worked to my knowledge. Yeah, I know. Whatever.
We're never going to get to our deep dive. We'll get to our deep dive. So first it was team members only. Then they opened it up like a couple weeks later to team members and friends and family. And then that went on for a while. And then they opened it up to pass holders. So pass holders got first dibs at park tickets. But then like a day or two later, they said, oh. Also, hotel guests and Visa card holders can get tickets.
It's just the weird... Pass holders didn't get their own set block of time, which I guess I'm fine with, because realistically, how many people, hotel guests, are actually going to go and buy day tickets? I'm also hearing it's very limited, because you can only buy it in the hotel lobby. Oh, okay. But then Universal also pulled a sneaky one, and I think it was a week ago, they opened it up to, not opened it up, they let hotel guests
buy their tickets early. So some hotel guests were buying their preview tickets for, you know, today or tomorrow. Mm -hmm. A week ago. Okay. I just find it annoying. Anyway. Anyways, deep dive. Deep dive. Hopefully. We'll see. Yes, because I'm going to make you shut up. So the first land we're going to get into for today. San Francisco. That. Home of the... Oh, wait. I should also say real quick where I'm getting the information and what we're covering. Yes, you should say
that. So I got all of these attractions and stuff off the Universal app. And the things that we're covering are the attractions, entertainment, dining, shops, and guest amenities. Why are you looking at me like that? Because I was loud. You're loud. So back to San Francisco. Home of the best ride at universal resorts. Any universal resort. That's including Japan, Hollywood, the upcoming UK park that we haven't talked about. It's totally happening. We have. I don't remember
this. In the bonus. Okay. Well, it's happened. Great Britain. We talked about it. And I think Back to the Future is confirmed because I saw a photo that they had a patent. They basically patented the name Back to the Future. Yay. Continue. Whatever. Still not. Fast and Furious. Supercharged. The best ride. That was loud. Our kids are napping. Be quiet. They can't hear me. Anyway, it's Fast and Furious Supercharged. Best ride ever. Honestly. You go on. You've got an amazing pre -show. Good
pre -show. Then you have an even better ride. You sit on a themed bus. Okay. There's flashing colors everywhere. It's a family. You're with family. Not my family. It's still family. Not to me. You see the rock. She's holding a big gun. Isn't it like a bazooka? I don't know. Or a rocket launcher? I don't know. Okay. Okay. It's a great ride. Okay. Immersive. This ride is getting way too much attention. We should move on. It's a table ride. Okay. They need to
gut it. It needs to go. Why is it still here? Because they opened it recently enough where shutting it down is kind of admitting that it was a failure. They need to take it in the backyard like Old Yeller. Like the... Should I take that out? Nope. They need to... Like the dog in the Halloween Horror Nights houses. Okay, just stop. Where half of the body's flopping around in the dryer. We're not encouraging animal cruelty. Oh, no, I'm not encouraging animal cruelty. I'm
encouraging Fast and Furious cruelty. Okay. It's terrible. The end. That's the only ride in this area. Anyways, now we have Richter's Burger Co. Which we've been to a couple times. It's a theme park burger. Yeah, it's very generic theme park burgers. With the exception that every once in a while there's like a hur - not a hurricane, an earthquake type thing. It's pretty cool. I mean, like, there's nothing to write home about. They have a Coca -Cola freestyle machine, too.
There are people who, like, talk about the burgers at - Universal, and they're like, oh, this burger is so good, or like, oh, I prefer Mel's over this burger. They all taste the same to me. They all taste the same. What are you talking about? So I need somebody to educate me on the different burgers, because apparently I'm not getting it. I'm trying to think of any place that I would even go to get a burger. So like, Rector's has the mushroom burger, whereas like, Mel's has
the barbecue onion ring one. I still prefer mushrooms. But it's just like, they're still burgers. The same patty, they're not even that different. I don't get it. You'll like the next one. And the same thing for the milkshakes. Oh my word. They're the same milkshakes across the park, with the exception of like, Toothsome's. Okay, Toothsome's has a legitimately good milkshake. Whereas all the other ones, it's basically just soft serve in a milkshake bottle. I don't get
it. They're good, yes. But they taste just like soft serve, and that's it. If I don't have an acquired taste like everyone else, I'm just going to blame my sense of smell. Whatever. So you can't come at me and say that my taste is bad. I'm just going to blame it on my lack of smelling ability. Moving on. Chez Alcatraz. Probably the best bar there because you got Murph. Murph is great. I did not get Murph. You saw Murph, didn't you? Probably, but I did not get him to do my
drink. He made me a really good, I think it was like a margarita or something. Why are you talking so quietly? You went from really loud to really quiet. Because I'm thinking. Because I can't remember what he made me, but it was really good. Because I was like, oh. And not the shark attack. Can I have a strawberry margarita? And he goes, oh, I don't got strawberry. I'm like, I got lime. And I'm like, that's a little bitter. Like, do you have anything else? And he's like, I don't,
but I can make you something. I'm like, sure, make me something. I think it was like watermelon or something like that. I don't know what he made, but it was good. Very tasty. Moving on. If you go to Chez Alcatraz, definitely get the shark attack. Comes with a nice little show. It's okay. I found it. It's okay? I found it okay. I like the show. It's really good. The demonstration is worth getting it for. You're fired. You're fired. We already talked about
this. I'm applications for a new co -host. Please DM me. How about an application for a new co -host that actually stays on topic and doesn't spend the first five minutes on Epic? I'm trying to move on. I'm sorry, a brand new theme park is opening and I'm excited. Oh, wow. You're totally moving on. I had a dream about it last night. Okay, it's so close I'm dreaming about, you know, messing up the day. And I have a dream of people being taken over by giant hats. That's weird.
I had a dream that it was Sunday, and for some reason we missed the opening of the park, and we still had to drive to Epic Universe. But Melody's just like, oh, I gotta finish my game first. And she was playing this weird, like, Minecraft -y game, but it didn't look like Minecraft. We have been playing a lot of Minecraft lately. Yes, we have. And it's like, oh, I got to finish my game. I'm like, we got to go. So you had a reverse role dream then. Yes. Anyways, San Francisco
Pastry Company. I think I walked into this place. No, I have never walked into this place. I need to pull it up because I don't even remember what it looks like. According to this, it's across Lombards, across the street from Lombards. Do you have a picture? It's a pastry. Wow. Not what it looks like. Well, I guess if you like pastries, go here. Never been. I've never been there. We're finding out a lot that we haven't been to. That's the purpose of this deep dive, is to go into
everything. We need to start visiting more things. Maybe we're even... Maybe our listeners are even learning about places that they never knew about. I guess. Moving on. Lombard's Seafood Grill. Never been there. Nope. I want to. Mainly because I've never... I don't like seafood. No, you don't. And... And it's like a nice sit down place. And half the time we're like, oh, we got to go do this other thing. So we always get quick food unless we have a designated nice place we're
going to for dinner. Yeah. I guess we'll try it. We'll go on Sunday. And I think this next one is the one you thought about. Yes. San Francisco Candy Factory. We've been in there. Yes. Haven't bought anything because you were too scared to go talk to the TM at the counter because we were trying to find the Cyclops Cup. Oh, yeah. And that's where we thought it was. Well, I'm glad I didn't because it would have been a waste of
time. Yes, it would have, but still. Well, you were just as afraid, apparently, if you couldn't go ask. No, I wanted you to go ask. I didn't really care about it that much. Anyway, very colorful place. Amazing pictures. We've seen it. We've never been inside. We keep seeing TM standing outside trying to awkwardly get people to go get their pictures taken. I feel bad for them. Yeah, because no one ever does. I don't know how that place is still open. I don't either.
Maybe because they don't know what to replace it with. Probably. And then we have caricatures. That thing. Not listed on the app because it's probably not Universal Run. So this is where our little table that we sit at all the time is. Right behind that caricature thingy. And across the street from Amazing Pictures. Yes. So now you guys know exactly where we sit, and you can go sit in the same table we sat at. We have talked about it, though. For two years.
Two years? I thought we found it recently. Like, within the past six months, at least. No, we went last year for HHN. We sat there when we were waiting for the... That's within the last six months. Oh, what? Yes. Oh. Because we didn't go the year before. Whatever. Anyways. You can take pictures at the table we sat at. It's a famous table now. Wow. But yeah, it's not listed on the app, but it's in that area, so I put it on our list. Good job. The Wizarding World of
Harry Potter Diagon Alley. Yay! Yay! And seeing as to how big this list is, and keep in mind, this used to all, this entire list, was one ride. One ride. It went from Jaws to all... We're about to talk about. To be fair, this is a lot of shops. Okay, so? Anyways, first you have Hogwarts Express Kings Cross Station. Which is technically not in Diagon Alley. Kind of, but it's... It's outside. It's Harry Potter. Yes. It's in the same block. Yes, but it's not behind the wall. No. It's an
actual train station. Yes. A working train station. Because you've got to get tickets, then you go get in line to go on an actual train. You have to scan your tickets, too. Okay. You just rained on my parade, didn't you? Yeah. How rude. Although I don't think train stations have an express line, do they? I doubt it. I don't go on trains very often. I don't go on trains either. You've been on more trains than I have. Yeah, but I've been on subways. There's definitely not an express
line for subways. Yep. Moving on. We have Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts. Good ride. Good ride. As long as they keep the 3D. I don't know how I'll feel if they take it away. Because we have talked about the possibility of it being taken away, and I don't think it was. If they take it away, that just ruins the ride. Yeah. Not completely, though, because Gringotts still
has its queue, and that is very well done. I read a review from somebody who said, like, the queue for Ministry of Magic basically just makes the queue for Gringotts look like a seven flags, a six flags ride. I mean, if that's true... then the Ministry of Magic queue has got to be absolutely mind -blowing. You've seen the... No, I haven't seen anything. You haven't seen the artwork for it? I saw... Yes, I saw artwork, but I don't ever actually base stuff off the artwork, because
that's just not real. Well, it's pretty close. Well, woo -woo. Anyways. Night bus. Night bus. It's a bus that stays there. Purple. It's a character meet -and -greet. Yes, because you can meet the bus driver. Also, technically not in Diagon Alley. It's on the outside of it. It's fine. Close enough. You can talk to the bus driver and the little talking head thingy inside the bus. Yep. We have not done that. We should do that. I think we have gone to the back of the bus and kind of
like looked in. We can do that in September. Oh my word. Ollivander's Experience in Diagon Alley. Have not. This we have done. No, we haven't. We did it a long time ago. No, we didn't. Yes, we did. Not in Diagon Alley. No, we did. Nope. It was in Islands. Oh, that's stupid. Because there's two Ollivanders. Yes, which is stupid. Doesn't quite make sense, but that's fine. I think it is, in the books, I think it's Diagon Alley, not in Hogsmeade. Because Hogsmeade is
where they go during the school year. Diagon Alley is where they get all their school supplies. Yes. So I don't know why Ollivanders is in Hogsmeade. Who knows? Probably just because they want a spot to have wands. Anyway. You can watch the show later. There's a cool show that you should definitely go see if you have time. Which is called... Oh, you're talking about... Talking about Ollivanders. Yes. I like the show. And normally they always choose kids to participate.
So maybe, hopefully someday, our kids... You have two options. Either bring a kid or chop your legs off and be small. Okay. Child size. Anyway. Blend in with the children. I hope our children will be chosen someday. That was a joke. Please don't chop off your legs to blend in with the children. No, because you won't. That's a terrible idea. Just like I also hope our kids will be chosen for, we'll talk about it later in the next episode. Tales of Beetle and the
Bard. I have not seen this show. I haven't either. Like, I don't even think I've glimpsed it. I've never even, yeah, I've never seen it in passing. It's always something like, I keep hearing about it, but I have never seen it. Like the Celestina Warbeck. The next one. I don't know if that is seasonal or not, because I remember talking about it for Christmas. No, I think it's year -round. Was it introduced in Christmas time when they decided to keep it then? Maybe. You're the one
who did all this. I remember, I definitely remember talking about it in a Christmas episode. Like, all this stuff is Christmassy. Oh, maybe. So, I don't know if they decided to keep her, because she was good or something. Oh, wait, Celestina? Yes. Oh, no, I think it's year -round. I've seen her. Why did she show up on the Christmas list? Maybe she was doing like a special Christmas themed one. And I might have brought this up before, but fun fact about Celestina Warbeck,
she is Molly Weasley's favorite singer. Yes. The Fountain of Fair Fortune. Food. Yes. I put it in, I put food in parentheses because it also sounded like it's a fountain you can go to. It is not. But it's not. Isn't it this, the water cart with like the little potion vials? Let me look at the map real quick. Probably. Or. No, wait. This is where we get our butterbeer. Our frozen butterbeer. Oh. Yeah. Not the cart. It's an actual building across the street from the
bathrooms. Is the cart on here? I don't think so. Well, I'm going to talk about it real quick because I really want to do it one day. So basically, it's this cart. They have a whole bunch of ghillie waters because they don't have, you know, normal bottled water in this land. It's all Harry Potter themed. Like you won't find any Coca -Cola machines
in there either. Nope. Gilly water. Yeah, so there's this gilly water, and you buy a vial of potion, quote -unquote, and it's basically just flavor, and you just add it to your water or shake it up, and then you can drink it, and it's flavored. You have flavored water at home that you don't even drink. But I want this flavored water, because it's cool. Fun. Moving on. Florian Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. We have been here. Yes. We have gotten the Butterbeer Ice Cream.
And some brownie thing. I think it was like a butterscotch or something. I cannot remember what it was. No, it was a chocolate brownie thing. All I remember is that it was light tan in color. It was really good. I would be happy if they actually have a menu on. Oh, they do? A menu. Hold on, maybe I'll find it. Why do you keep giving me side eye like that? It's a little weird. I don't know. Okay, they definitely do not. Oh, wait. Is it hard pack ice cream? Is that? Oh,
wait. Toffee? No. Oh, salted caramel blondie. That's what it was. That's it. That was really good. And now it makes sense because the, I think the butter, butter beer is also not on here. There used to be a butter beer. Either that or I'm not seeing it. Oh, well. Oh, no. Butter beer ice cream at its own section. Because what we were going to do was get the butter beer and the salted caramel blondie in one cup, but they were apparently two different ice creams, so
we had to get them in separate cups. So because of the butter beer, you can't mix it with something else. It was, I think it was a different machine. Ah. And I think it had to do something with trademark. Because it was the same thing with the frozen butterbeer and normal butterbeer. You cannot get, you used to not be able to get the white cream that's on top without it. Because just the drink, if I'm remembering correctly, is gluten -free or some allergy thing. That it's, you know,
safe for that allergy to consume. But the cream was not. Okay. I think maybe vegan? I don't know. Get it. So the Butterbeer carts would not sell you the Butterbeer without the cream. Okay. So probably just safety -wise. They're like, nope, separate cups. It's fine. No, trademark -wise. Well, trademark to whatever. It's not safety. Whatever. Shut up. Move on. Oh, no. It's going to blow up if you combine them. Leaky cauldron. We have been here once. A long time ago. To the
point where... Back when we were dating. I might have gotten, like, what, the bangers and mash? I think that's what I got. No, I think... I got the bangers and mash. And I got... I think you got some fish thing. Probably. It was definitely during COVID because we waited in a short line. No, you always wait in a line there. A short line because everyone was spaced out. I think you had to join like a virtual queue and then actually join the queue. No. You ordered your
food first. They confirmed that you ordered it. And then once you have ordered it, whenever a table freed up, then they would go and seat you. That's fine. But yes, I remember going when it was COVID. That's it. So that was a while ago. It was a long time ago. And before we were married too, so. The Hopping Pot. This is also another Butterbeer place. Have we? I feel like we've been here. I've been there. I go here with Connor
all the time. Yeah, I was going to say, I remember waiting in line, but I don't think I've ever actually gotten anything. I've waited in line with you, but I don't think I've ever gotten anything. Because I just waited to get Butterbeer from our normal place. Or maybe I have gotten butterbeer here. I don't know. I think you have. Moving on. Borgen and Burke's. We have been in here. We've walked through here. We haven't gotten anything. That's true. It is a very cool store.
I do like going through it. It's the dark wizard store. The dark alley. In the dark alley. What's that alley called? Nocturne Alley? Nocturne Alley. Yeah. Which is a whole kind of thing to go to begin with. Yeah, very cool. Very crowded now that people are finding it. Oh. Very unfortunate. Yeah. Next, we got Shutter Buttons. We have not been to Shutter Buttons. I have never been to Shutter Buttons. I didn't even know Shutter Buttons was a place. I'm pretty sure it's a photo thing.
Pretty sure. Ah. At Shutter Buttons, guests will find an assortment of photo frames and albums, stationery, and other photo -type accessories. Here's the outside of it. Kind of looks like a barbershop a little. Fun. Well, the coloring. Yeah. Moving on, we have Madam Mad Malkin's robes for all occasions. I think we've been in here just to look around. Isn't this where we got our robes? Still no. Still islands. Oh my word.
We really did this wrong. Yes. Whatever. We've been in here, we just looked around, and probably to also escape rain. Probably. Yeah. Obviously a place where you can get robes and other clothing. Ollivander's Wine Shop in Diagon Alley? Didn't we already talk about this? The first thing was Ollivander's Experience, which was the show. This is the store. Okay, there you go. Now you have the store that's in the same building. Whiskery's Wizard Equipment? Wise Acres. Sure, that thing.
Wise Acres Wizard Equipment. Another place where I do not recall going in here. I don't think we've ever been in here. Let me see where it is. Yeah, it's by the bathroom area. So maybe we went in there a little bit, but I do not recall. I don't remember going in there. It's by the lockers for Gringotts. Oh, isn't that the shop? The exit shop? Maybe. Let me see it. Yeah, that's the exit shop. Okay. That's probably why we never knew what it was called because we were always
exiting, not entering. I never do much shopping in exit shops unless they have signed Jurassic Park or Back to the Future merch. They tend to be busy because people are exiting the line. Yeah. Or exiting the ride. Scribulous. I don't know what that is. Would you care to enlighten us? Find all the writing supplies a witch or wizard could need, including feather quills, parchment paper, journals, and postcards. Wait, can you actually get feather quills here? Yeah.
In the picture it shows. Let me see that. They're obviously colored, but oh well. What a feather quill. Well, I know where we're going in September. We are going in there in September now. Well, I would like to see the Death Eater, so it's another reason to go in there. That is true. Ow. No, I am not good. So sneezy. Gringotts Money Exchange, talk. Why do you have to laugh at me? Because your voice cracked. Whatever. We haven't done this. I would like to. Ow. Stop making fun
of me. It's a condition. Sure. I would like to get some money exchanged someday. Why? To have, like, Gringotts money. And if I remember, you can actually use Gringotts money to buy stuff. My only problem is, it's a glorified gift card. Mm -hmm. So the way the money works, you go into this gift exchange, you hand them real money, they give you fake money, and the fake money, it looks cool on the front, but on the back there's
a barcode. Ah. just scan the barcode like i said i think what would be like a cool collectible i guess but what would be cool is if they hand you this fake money you know with maybe with some like security strips on it so the tm can like hold it up to like be like oh yeah this is authentic and then they take it from you they don't scan it and then they exchange it for more wizard money at change change i guess But if you take it to like a shop outside of the wizard
area, they'll just give you normal money for it. Okay. It'd be like an actual currency that you could use. Next. Well, I don't have much to say about it, so. Okay. Wands by Gregorovitch. Yeah, that. Another place to get wands. Isn't this just a cart? I think so. I think this is the cart. If I can look it up real quick. No, it's a purple building. Oh, it's in Nocturne Alley, I think. I don't think so. No? No, I don't
think so. No, it's definitely not because it is very close to the next thing we're going to say. Well, not the next thing. Well, it's along the main road. Oh, never mind. I know where it is now. Purple Building. Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Another shop I have not been into. Actually, I think I have. We've been in here because I pointed out the Dolores Umbridge thing going across the wire. Right. Because it was a reference to the movie when they did the same thing there.
Yeah. Because we went in to look at it. We didn't buy anything. No. It's a very cool shop to go into. What do they sell? A lot of candy and prank stuff, I think. Now I want to go in there and get a prank item so I can prank you. Ha ha. I don't think a prank works when I see you buy it and know what to expect. You said you're going to see me buy it. I have a car and my own annual pass. I can go by myself. I'm a big boy. Sugar Plums Sweet Shop. I don't think we've been in
here. I have never been in here. It's just a lot of stores. Actually, no, I think I have been in here. It was like when me and my parents went a long time ago. I remember I really wanted a piece of candy. That's the outside. Yep. Bright pink. I've been there. We don't, for us two together, we tend to not go to a lot of stores in Diagon Alley just because they're always so busy. People are trying to go into the stores to maybe avoid crowds. I just hate going. It just gets really
crowded. Every time we go to Universal together, we always walk past Diagon Island and be like, oh, do we want to go to something in there? And I'm like, I literally just pop my head and I'm like, I don't want to walk through that. And if anything, we're going to ride Gringotts and then get right out of that area. We do not spend time in there because it's too crowded. Too crowded. People crowding the streets to take pictures of the dragon. Why does everybody have to line
up right in the middle of the street? To take their super photo. Because you gotta get the perfect angle. Whatever. Quality Quidditch supplies. I think we've been in here just to look at stuff. I feel like you bought something from here. Didn't you buy like a shirt from here or something? Considering I don't have any shirts, I doubt it. I remember you got something and they're like, oh, do you want this engraved or something like that? Still islands. The whole engraved
thing was definitely islands. I don't remember this. But maybe I got my Hufflepuff hat here. Or my headband? Oh, I think you did. Okay. No, you got the headband in City Walk. Yes. Because I remember you found something else. You're like, I don't know which one I should get. I'm like, it's your hair. It was either that or, like, the dino eating my head headband. Well, you didn't get that one, and I said you should. I probably should have. Yes, you should. Oh. That would
have been funny. Yes. Moving on. Guest services? King's Cross Station. What's a guest service? Oh. Are they guessing the services? Shut up. Guest. Guest. Yes, this is the place where if you are sad that you didn't get park -to -park, they will happily take your money to get you park -to -park. Yep. Or if you just have questions. Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts Lockers. This is lockers. That's where you put your stuff. Yes, I think they always put the lockers if there's
an option to purchase a locker. I thought that was everywhere. I know, but that's probably why it's on the map. Maybe. I don't know. And then public conveniences. I put it on here because I found it funny that it's not restroom. It's public convenience. That's funny. World Expo! Yay! We have Men in Black Alien Attack. Nick's favorite ride. One of my favorite rides. I'm pretty sure it is. At this point, you go out of your way to go on this ride. I do. But I also
go out of my way to go on Velocicoaster. But you don't. Yes, I do. No, you don't. I have to ride Velocicoaster almost every single time I go. Yeah, but you don't go out of your way. Because it's never out of my way. Okay. Excuse you. I think it was just a tree rubbing against the window. Hurricane? No. Anyway, it's Men in Black. It's Men in Black. Only ride in this area. Great riding. You zap some aliens. I got 999 ,999. I just realized that there's stuff missing on
this list again, but that's okay. Wow. Did I get that high score by cheating? You'll never know. Yes. Is it cheating if it's... I don't think it's cheating. Nobody else was in my cart, so I didn't bother anybody. So shooting my own exhaust port is theoretically a valid method. Okay. Just don't do it if you have other people in the cart with you. The end. Or no one else in the cart that will be bothered by you. The MIB gear. This is the exit shop. Yep. Cool store.
They used to have a bunch of signed merch. They always have the big... glaring section of, like, anime in the middle of the store. That always bothers me. Yeah, that's a little weird. Not because it's anime or whatever. It's just, like, this is not the right store. No. I don't need to see Yu -Gi -Oh! when I'm coming out of Men in Black. I think that's the anime. Yeah. Anyways, they also have a bunch of signed merch that I always cry that I want to get but I can never
get because it's too expensive. Now, if my Passholder discount applies, then I might actually get it. Then you have the lockers. Don't even talk about lockers. And then you have a service animal relief station. I have actually seen this. You have? Yeah. If you're looking at the Coca -Cola place, do you know what I'm talking about? There used to be a big alien in there. It's a building. It has like five freestyle machines in there. And it's its own specialized building for Coca
-Cola freestyle. If you look to the right of it. Okay. I was going to say, speaking of that. That's not on the list. Why is that not on the list? I have no idea. Neither is, like, the lemonade cart that's across the street from that. That's really weird. But if you look to the right of it, there's, like, a little patch of, like, turf grass. Okay. It's pretty cool. You just... Normally, those are, like, more hidden. This is just kind of me, like, yep, there you go. Anyway, you skip
guest services for Men in Black. I think it's the little stand -up spot where they're always selling, like, the vacation packages or something. Oh, yeah. Anyways, Springfield, The Simpsons Ride. I'm still salty that it's not Back to the Future. Oh my word. I do love Krusty's Big Head. That's honestly kind of cool looking. Also, rest in pieces land. Oh yeah. Is it confirmed? No, it's not confirmed, but we know it's going away. Once Epic is fully running, you think they're
going to start working on Springfield? More than likely. I think the one spot in Islands is going to be first, because that's just empty. Whereas this place, they at least have something. Oh. And then once that's up and going, I think this will be next. Okay. Then we got Kang and Kodos. Whoa. Kang and Kodos twirl and hurl. I have not twirled and I have not hurled on this, so it is false advertising. Oh. I was going to say, you've definitely read in this. I was like, oh,
you mean twirling. Well, you twirl in a circle. You're going in a circle. Doesn't that count? No. Okay. Duff Brewery. Jack likes this. Oh, okay. We're moving on. Yes, we are moving on. I have not been to here. Duff Brewery. No. I know we're doing in September. You insist that I like beer, but I apparently need to actually try it. You've liked it. What do you mean I've liked it? I've never had it. Moving on. Lard Lad Donuts, the place you have been to. Yes.
It's a big pink donut. I think you can also get small pink donuts. Didn't we not like the donut? Or was it a bad timing for the donut because we weren't hungry enough to eat it? I think it was a bad timing because we only ate like half of it. Because for some reason I'm remembering pink. stale donut. Wait no I think we got it at the very end of the day. Ah. And they were about to close. So yes stale. So probably stale. It's a big pink donut. What do you want? Yeah.
Then bumblebee man's taco truck. Everybody talks about how this place is so good. They are good just overly priced. It's not even that good. Well I mean they're not like amazing. Okay we used to live in Pensacola right and there was this one taco stand. Okay. They had the Best little tacos I have ever eaten. The meat was nice, juicy, flavorful. The tortilla that it was on was so good. Do we not have one here? What, a taco stand? Yeah. No. Oh. Well, there
is one. I keep wanting to try it, but I never do. It's next to the Walgreens. No, we should probably go to it someday. We should. Move on. Anyways, it's so good. And those tacos. They're like 75 cents per taco. You want these Bumblebee Man tacos? It's going to cost you 11 bucks for three small tacos. Yeah. And I counted it. Seven chips. Oh. That is all. Yeah. Well, I mean, if you don't want normal burgers and stuff and you do want tacos in the park, they're not awful.
But like, okay. But they're also pretty crowded. They're crowded? The portions are small, so I don't even think it could be counted as a lunch. Now, for children, yes, Jack would eat that for a lunch. Rose could eat that for a lunch. But me, a grown adult, I don't think so. Who likes to eat food. I do like to eat food. If you want something small, but that's also expensive, then here you go. There it is. Luigi's Pizza. I thought this was in Nintendo Land. This is in the food
court type thing. Oh, yeah. That's where a lot of these next things are going to be. There's like a food court. You wait in a big line and then you go wait in little individual places. Or you could do mobile order and just mobile order it and pick it up right at the front. Don't you still have to go inside to do it? You still have to go inside, but you don't have to wait in the ginormous line. Oh. Unless mobile order also has a ginormous line. I don't remember how
it works. I don't know if you order, then you wait in line, then you actually have to still go. No, so there's the big queue. and then there's a small window for mobile order. If you mobile order, you go up to the queue, I mean, to the small window. Somebody will come up and be like, can I see your mobile order? You flash them your order with the order number. They look at it, and then they go and either find it or start making it. Okay. So I don't think we've... Have
we gotten pizza from here? We haven't. We always get the burger from here. Okay. If we eat here. I think we've only eaten here at... I've eaten here twice. I only remember eating here once on purpose. We ate here together once. Because I remember it raining. Yeah. I ate here once when I was alone, and I didn't know what to eat. Anyway, we got Lisa's Tea House of Horror. I think this was like a vegan, vegetarian place, and that's why we've never been here. Probably.
And that's why it's called Tea House of Horror. Flaming Moes. Yes. Never been here either. I think this is the drink. Probably. I think we went here for the milkshakes? Where did we go for the milkshakes? I don't know. There's a drink place in this fast food. I think they just handed it to you. There was like, no, there was a dedicated drink place where you got your drinks and your milkshakes. But I don't remember which one it is. I don't know. Moving on. Frying Dutchman.
Isn't this the fried chicken? No, it's seafood. Oh. Moe's Tavern? I'm pretty sure that. Wait, I'm going to look it up. Because what's the difference between Flaming Moe's and... It's also really hard to click on these, because I am fully zoomed in on the map, and because they're all in one area, it's hard to click. Okay, so Moe's Tavern is definitely alcohol. See? Picture the guy holding a beer tap thing. And then, yeah, so I also see a picture of Lisa's tea house, and then of horror
is written in red underneath. Because I think of a whole bunch of salads and stuff. Mm -hmm. And then, okay, let me click this one little wine that's hidden behind the rest. Thank you. Flaming Moe's is just a picture of the sign, so that is not helpful at all. This is probably where you get your drinks, because it says, enjoy this famous bubbling non -alcoholic concoction, as well as a variety of other specialty fruit
-flavored drinks. Oh. So who knows? Because that's the picture for it, which is not helpful at all. That is not helpful. Anyway, move on. Cletus Chicken Shack. This is the chicken place. Yes. Krusty Burger. You get your burgers from here. Mm -hmm. Simpsons Games. This is like the little carnival waste your money area. Pretty much. This always feels so out of place. It really does. Well, not for this land. No, not for this land, but also at the same time it is because
it's still like a very - Tacky. Empty area because no one's really doing it. Yeah. Anyways, Quickie Mart, this is, you know, your themed merch shop for Simpsons stuff. It's also like a supermarket, which is actually kind of fun. Yeah. And then Duff Kiosk. I don't know what this is. Do you really need me to look for it again? If you want to. Duff Kiosk is a shop. It is... There's no picture. Oh. It just says, take home a souvenir from this merchandise kiosk. So it's probably
just a little place. And lastly, DreamWorks Land. The newest addition to Universal Studios. Yeah. And we have yet to do a lot of this. That is correct. We will. Eventually. Someday we will take a day just to take Jack and Rose to go through this place. By the time we take them, he's going to need his own pass. Oh, yeah. He turns three in less than a month. Nope, a little more than a month. First, we have King Harold Swamp Symphony. Have you done this? Because I have. I have not
done it. I've done it. I've seen it. I've done it. Okay. I think me and Connor walked through here. I'm like, dude, we gotta go step on the leap. Make the frog sing? Yeah, that thing. So we did. Pretty fun. Basically step on, um, what are those things called? Leaf? Circles. No. Lily pads? Lily pads. That's it. And each lily pad corresponds to a frog. It's pretty fun. Strict swamp for little ogres. Haven't done that. No.
What is it? Is it a... There's no picture. It's just a picture donkey with two of Shrek's kids. Let me see. Oh. Is it? I want to say it's a playground. It says it's a playground. Your little ogres can climb and slide through Shrek's playground as Pinocchio spouts hilarious white lies. Okay. Plus they can splish, splash, and spray people with water in a swampy play area. Lovely. Take home a soggy child. Poppy's playground. Another playground. Another playground. But. Trolls themed.
Trolls. Troller coaster. We have been on this. We have. Multiple times. Yes. It's a good coaster. It's a good kid coaster. Yes, it is. Jack liked it. Yes, he did. Eventually, Rose will also go on it. No, he didn't. He was indifferent to it. He didn't dislike it, which is a good thing. He wasn't sad. No. He just doesn't like it if it's still at the beginning. That's correct. And once we get moving, he's like, okay. Everything's fine. I think I would rather have him be indifferent
than freaked out. That's true. So. Poe's Kung Fu Training Camp. We have seen it, but it was not doing anything when we went through it. Because I think it's a show type thing. So the show wasn't running, so it's just like a big empty area. No? No. Oh, that's Poe Live. That's Poe Live. And what's this? Oh, this is the water area that you tried to avoid. Yep. And I don't think it's working right now. We have almost been hit by water before. Oh. And now we have a tiny child
with us. Moving on, we have Shrek Swamp Meet and Greet. You skipped something. Dreamworks Character Zone. Lots of characters. Meet characters here. Like the trolls, Shrek, Donkey. Then you have Shrek Swamp Meet and Greet, where you can meet Shrek, Fiona, and Donkey. Yes. Then you have Mama Luna Feline Fiesta. Is this based off of Puss in Boots? Pretty much. I don't know anything about it. It's... There's like these screens in front of you and there's a bunch of cats.
And there's like things you can like do to make the cats like do stuff. I don't know how to explain it. It's actually kind of fun. It's meant for kids. So every time I'm there doing it and a kid walks up, I kind of just awkwardly walk away. Maybe take your child more often. They don't want to be as awkward. You can pretend like you're doing it for Jack, not yourself. I guess. And welcome to another Universe Orlando podcast.
Oh, wait. This isn't a new episode. You know, in the past, like, at least three episodes, we have had to do this. Yes. So what happened was, little tiny baby woke up, halfway, not halfway, we were nearly done recording, and then she woke up, we brought her in here, she didn't want to sit still, she just wanted to play, so we took her downstairs, we're like, okay, we'll just record, you know, tonight. Well, that never happened, and then another day passed, What were we doing
that day? Oh, right. Play Minecraft. And now it's today. And we're going to Epic Universe tomorrow. Woo. We're dating this episode now. You're welcome. Well, it's, what, a week away from... Yeah, my... I'm sorry about last week's episode. I don't know why it didn't post. But it's posted now. Good job. I got an email telling me that it was. Congrats. So... Anyways, we left off at DreamWorks Imagination Celebration. What is this? I think we were about to look it up.
I'm pretty sure I deleted what we were about to get into so that this sounds better, but... Spark your imagination with an incredible new live show featuring characters from Shrek, Kung Fu Panda, and Trolls. This spectacle combines live actors, animated characters, and dancers. Please arrive 15 minutes early as doors close prior to show start. So it's just a little kid show. It's a little kid show. Okay. In a kid area, so not that surprising. Poe Live. Another
show, but this one's outside. No, it's not. So the Poe Live thing, think that turtle thing at Disney where the turtle's talking to you. Turtle? Yeah, the crush. Oh. Oh. Okay. You see it on Instagram all the time? Yes. It's basically that. There is an actor, you know, behind like a screen who's, you know. doing it, but you see Poe. Okay. I thought it was like one of those big characters that come out to take pictures just kind of like waving arms around and pretending to kung fu
fight and stuff. No. Okay. I think that's what it is. I know what that part is. I don't know if there's other characters that come out as well. I would have no idea. I haven't seen it yet. We should probably go see it since we have a child now. We should probably show him the movie first. Probably should. See you at least. Maybe we'll recognize it. We need to go show them Scooby -Doo. Yes. We've talked about that one in our last episode. Yes, we did. DreamWorks
Imagination Cafe. I have not been here. Have not been here. Is it a whole cafe? Like a whole inside dining place? No, it's the... I tried explaining to you where it is and you don't understand. You get the pizza tots from here. Pizza fries. Pizza fries? Yes, because I've gotten pizza fries. I've pointed it out multiple times, and you keep not understanding where it is. Okay. All I know is that it's on the way to E .T. Yes, it's on the right, if you're looking towards E .T. Next.
We should eat there. It actually has some pretty good stuff. Swamp Snacks. I want to go here, even though it's just a pretzel and cheese. You want green -dyed nacho cheese? Yes. For $13? Yes. Is it $13? No idea. Let's see how much your pretzel costs. No, it does not say what's here. Shoot. Just Coca -Cola Freestyle available. Whatever. And snacks and beverages. It's in the range of $13 for a small little Shrek -shaped pretzel and nacho cheese that they were like, drip, drip
of green food dye. I still want it. Whatever. Trolls Treats. That's where you get the fun -shaped ice cream. I don't recall seeing this, but I wouldn't. I think I've seen it. Is there a picture? No. You know, I'm realizing that Universal, they really need to take a picture of the facade of the thing. So when people look at this, be like, oh, where's Troll Street? So they look at it and they're like, that's helpful for the listeners who can't physically come into our room right
now and see what we're looking at. It's literally just a picture of a jumping troll. Branch. Sure. Don't worry, it took me forever to say it. Remember his name anyway. Okay. Like, it would be more beneficial to have a picture of the building. Yes, because this next one also doesn't have a picture of the building. High five hideaway. That is the dumbest picture for this ever. What is it? A cloud. The cloud person. But then the side is just a zoom in on his hand and five away.
So it doesn't even show the full name of the store. It's just, it's dumb. Anyway, yeah, it's a store. And this high five hideaway is the last thing that we are covering for Universal Studios. Yay. Yay. There you go. Deep dive into studios. You're welcome. So next episode, and hopefully it'll be two weeks from today that you're listening to, or when this is posted, because who knows when you're listening to this. That's correct. It could be 20 years from now. You never know.
Anyway. Next episode, we will start with islands and cover lands that are, or islands that are in islands. Who knows, maybe we'll do it from Epic Universe. No, we're not doing a whole deep dive while at the park. We could do it at lunch. That'd be interesting. No, I want to focus on food. What are we eating tomorrow? Mac and cheese. I don't think we ever actually officially picked dinner. I think we're just going to be trying a lot of food. Yeah. Anyway. We'll talk about
it. Bye -bye. Got to go to sleep early, wake up early. So, whoop. Whoop.