Tangierine Cafe Review in Morocco at Epcot

Tangierine Cafe

For a look at all of Epcot’s quick service reviews, see this post.

Location: In Morocco, across from Spice Road Table. Note that it isn’t “Tangerine” like the fruit, but “Tangierine” like the city, Tangier.

Food Type: Moroccan meats and vegetarian items.

Tangierine Cafe Menu:

For the full menu on DisneyWorld.com, see this.

Tangierine Cafe offers a separate coffee and pastry bar in the back left corner of the establishment that few people visit. There’s virtually no indication that it’s there.

Larger: https://i2.wp.com/easywdw.com/reports14/tangierine_cafe_baklava_epcot_3.jpg.

Pricing on these items will be updated after the venue reopens, but the above will give you an idea about what’s available in the back.

Unique Items: Everything.

Advantages:

• Some of the highest quality, most unique quick service food at the theme parks.
• While more expensive than most other meals, portions are larger.
• Usually plenty of seating, though a lot of tables are outdoors.

Disadvantages:

• It might just be bad luck, but service has always been indifferent at best.
• Food is on the expensive side, for the most part.
• The menu, at least initially, may not appeal to everyone.

Value: Above average. While expensive, the food is very good and portions are large.

Reputation: High. Tangierine Cafe is a favorite of many looking for food that’s a little different.

Food Choices:

Shawarma Chicken and Lamb Platter:

A cast member will shave the meat off of vertical roasters and then place each piece delicately on your plastic plate. Topped with a tzatziki (think cucumber) sauce, all of the meats are tender and flavorful. The lamb is my favorite, but the chicken offers a bit of variety. You can opt for just chicken or just lamb if you have a personal preference or dietary restriction for a dollar less.

The Moroccan bread is fresh and pairs nicely with the hummus. I could do without the parsley-heavy tabbouleh, but you may enjoy the lemon-forward side of greens more than I do. A small scoop of couscous rounds things out. Two people could comfortably share one of these entrees. While you might not come away stuffed, there are certainly enough other interesting items around World Showcase to fill that tum-tum throughout the day. This is one of my favorite entrees on property and a great variety of flavors.

Vegetarian Platter:

With Hummus, Tabouleh, Lentils, Falafel, and Marinated Olives with fresh Moroccan Bread. This is a hidden gem on the menu, whether you order it as a deconstructed falafel wrap or as a way to get all of the sides plus the falafel, wrap, and hummus, for much less than the price of three sides.

Mediterranean Sliders:

This is three Pita Pockets – Lamb, Chicken, and Falafel with Lettuce, Tomatoes, Onions, Cucumber, and Tahini Sauce. Tangierine Cafe Serves them alongside Lentils, Hummus, and Tabouleh. This is another way to try the shawarma and falafel, only this time in an easy-to-pick-up sandwich.

I prefer the meat straight up, but the lettuce adds a little bit of a crunch, while the crispy onions add a subtle piquant quality, with the cucumber working to cool things down a bit. Tahini is a type of sesame seed paste. If it had a bigger presence here, I feel like it would be easier to give the nod to the Sliders over the Shawarma, but it just hasn’t been there in my opinion.

For the same money, and with many of the same ingredients as the Shawarma Platters, you might go with the Sliders Combo instead. If you don’t like any of the ingredients, you can simply pull them out or request that they be left off. It may also make sharing easier if one person is mostly interested in either the Lamb, Chicken, or Falafel. You can simply pass the Sliders around and each person can grab theirs.

Falafel Wrap:

Served with Couscous and Lentil Salad.

This is basically a bigger version of one of the Mediterranean Sliders without the Tomato. You can also go with Chicken or Lamb if you prefer. I like a variety, so the Sliders Combo is my choice, but if you’re more set on your ways, you may instead prefer the Wrap. The ingredients are similar with onion and lettuce dominating the falafel in this instance.

Moroccan Kefta Sandwich

With Seasoned Ground Beef, Grilled and served with Fresh Salsa and Fries. It turned out to be sort of a Moroccan hamburger with diced tomatoes on a thick, dry roll. The beef was cooked to death and the fries were among the worst that I’ve had anywhere, which makes some sense, since they sit there forever waiting for someone to be dumb enough to order the one thing on the menu that comes with fries. Tangierine Cafe goes back and forth on whether they offer this as a sandwich or a wrap. It’s currently a wrap, which may improve the quality as the bread overpowers this one. Still, the Kefta is little more than burned hamburger meat. You may have better luck.

Kids’ options are just a Hamburger or Chicken Tenders, neither of which sound particularly promising considering how few they must sell. It’s possible that most kids wouldn’t get close to a Falafel Wrap anyway. They can always share an adult entree.

Baklava

While frozen and defrosted, Moroccan baklava is a nice introduction into the nutty world of layered filo dough. The number of varieties that Tangierine Cafe offers may be lower than usual for the foreseeable future, but it’s a tasty treat to add to a meal.

Tangierine Daiquiri 

Knowing full well that I was about to be ripped off, I ordered the Tangierine Cocktail, which is a short pour of triple sec underneath half strawberry/half tangerine non-alcoholic slush. It was a sugary, refreshing waste of money. Just about all of the drinks available around Morocco, outside of the restaurants, are similar.

Sangria and Mimosa

The mimosa is straightforward and features about three ounces of cheap sparkling wine topped with two ounces of orange juice. The sangria is a worse value proposition, offering about three ounces of cheap Spanish sangria for too much money. Drinks are best purchased elsewhere.

Seating

Seating inside is typically more comfortable, but you’ll also have more people walking by as they order food and peruse the options.

My preference is to select one of the outdoor, covered tables away from as many people as possible. This is usually easier earlier or later in the day.

Overall, Tangierine Cafe is a delight, offering chicken, lamb, and falafel in a variety of ways. Waits to order are typically nonexistent, and seating is more plentiful than most quick services, making for an easy overall transaction. The flavors are typically robust, without the food being so heavy that you won’t be in the mood to try some other items later in the day.