Bongos Cuban Cafe will be closing its Disney Springs location this August. Owners Gloria and Emilio Estefan announced the closure, along with the opening of a new restaurant, Estefan Kitchen, at the new Margaritaville Orlando Resort.
Bongos has been a Disney Springs fixture, with its distinctive architecture and giant pineapple for the past 22 years.
When announcing the closure, Gloria Estefan told the Orlando Sentinel, “They (Disney Springs) are growing in a different direction, and we are growing in a different direction. So we thought a fresh start is wanted.”
Bongos locations have also closed at the Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood, Florida, and the American Airlines Arena in Miami.
Estefan’s husband and business partner, Emilio Estefan, sees this as an opportunity to expand beyond their original Disney Springs roots. “And we wanted a nightclub,” Emilio Estefan told the Orlando Sentinel. “I think that’s a part of the Latino experience.”
Will you miss Bongos when it closes this summer? Let us know in the comments.
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I am so sad. That has been my favorite restaurant for several years. I’m going to Disney springs this weekend and was going to go there. I’m so very sad…We loved the food and décor….
We enjoyed the food and experience at Bongos and were just talking of including it on our next visit. Sad to hear this information.
I don’t think anyone is going to miss Bongos. It has never had good ratings or a good reputation. I’m surprised it took this long. In all these years I’ve never heard one good thing about this place. I love the look of the restaurant and it definitely makes you want to go in there, but because of the reviews I was never willing to give it a shot.
If they are closing why did they let me make a reservation in October