REVIEW: Why You Should SKIP This Epic Universe Restaurant

Are you ready for Epic Universe? Universal Orlando’s new theme park opens to the public on May 22nd, and the hype is real.

We’ve been spending some quality time in Epic Universe, which means we’ve had a chance to check out some of the restaurants in the new theme park. Now, we’re coming in with our hot takes and reviews. We previously checked out The Oak & Star Tavern in Celestial Park, but now we’re back for another review.

Background

The Oak & Star Tavern is located in a “cosmic garden” in Celestial Park. You’ll dine. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served here. The menu focuses on barbecue.

Here’s what you need to know about dining at this restaurant.

Atmosphere

Inside, you’ll dine beneath the boughs of the ancient starlight-filled oak tree.  The color scheme features shades of brown, and as you can see, there are plenty of tables and chairs available.

You’ll order at the counter, and you’ll see some beautiful wood carvings on the back wall of some of the creatures that call the ancient oak tree home.

But enough about that, what are we eating?!

Food & Drinks

We ordered the Huli Huli Pork Sandwich for $17.99, which is smoked kalua pulled pork, huli huli sauce, and tropical coleslaw, on a pan sobao bun. We’re just going to start with this: our bun was stale. So that’s already a strike against this sandwich.

The pulled pork itself was fine and nice sweet and tangy flavors. Once you take a few bites and hit the little chunks of pineapple, the sandwich gets more interesting and tastes even better.

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You can get one side with the sandwich and we went with the Mango Bread (which you can also order separately for $4.99). This was a lovely, sweet bread that we would eat all the time if we could. It’s moist, it breaks apart easily, and the quality is great.

We also ordered the Three Cheese Mac and Cheese for $4.99 as an additional side. It was very cheesy, but we really couldn’t taste each individual cheese used. It was just cheese, cheese, and more cheese. It does have a nice little crust on top and comes in a fun skillet.

However, this mac and cheese is nothing to get too excited about. Picky eaters would probably like it, but it’s nothing special.

Magic or Tragic?

This Epic Universe restaurant is a must-visit if…

• You’re craving barbecue-style dishes. That’s what’s on the menu here and you can even get platters with multiple meats.
• You’re dining with picky eaters. This is a spot that’s sure to please picky eaters. There is plenty of standard fare that most people would enjoy eating.
• You want a quick meal in Celestial Park. If you’re in Celestial Park and it’s lunch or dinner time, it’s easy to pop in here and grab food.

You should skip this Epic Universe spot if…

• You want something more unique. The food here isn’t anything special or anything you want to write home about.
• You want a table service restaurant experience. This is a quick service restaurant, so you won’t get that attentive service you would get at a sitdown place.
• You’re visiting another land in Celestial Park. We wouldn’t cross portals to visit this restaurant and would probably eat elsewhere if we’re not in Celestial Park when we get hungry.

We’ll just say it — this restaurant is perfectly fine, but we wouldn’t actively seek it out again just for the barbecue and sandwiches. However, we might return for the Mango Bread, which was our favorite thing here. We think picky eaters might like The Oak & Star Tavern, though.

In the meantime, we’ll be on the lookout for more restaurant updates from Epic Universe and beyond. Make sure you stay tuned to AllEars for the latest Universal news and more!

REVIEW: Someone Needs To Physically Restrain Me from Eating 10,000 of This Epic Universe Snack

Have you eaten at this Epic Universe restaurant before? Tell us in the comments.

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