Come to the Kabaret!

I visited Walt Disney World for the first (and so far only) time in 1995 with my sister. I scrutinized guidebooks for weeks, or maybe even months, in advance to plan the best strategy to see all the sights and beat the crowds. When I go on vacation I like to see everything there is to see. In fact, more than one person has likened a vacation with me to a ‘death march.’ Say what you will, but we don’t miss anything.

After studying all the attractions Disney World had to offer, we made a bee-line for the top one. Space Mountain? The Tower of Terror? Pirates of the Caribbean? No, The Land at Epcot Center.

I read lengthy descriptions of an animatronic show at The Land called the Kitchen Kabaret. It featured singing food, of course, including the Cereal Sisters performing “Boogie Woogie Bakery Boy.” The thought of a single attraction that combined my loves of food with eyes and music of the 1940s was almost too much. So you can imagine my shock and disappointment to find the Kitchen Kabaret gone, and replaced with Food Rocks. Yes, it was still singing food, and yes, it was thoroughly enjoyable, but for all these years I’ve had a gnawing sense of disappointment about missing the original Kitchen Kabaret. All of my careful planning was for naught.

But now, thanks to the miracle of YouTube, I have been able to fulfill my dream and see the Kitchen Kabaret! The following is a two-part, painstakingly-edited video of the Kitchen Kabaret posted by YouTube user Scottof83:

Part I


Part II



And for those of you who prefer music from the second half of the 20th Century, here is a two-part video of the Food Rocks show courtesy of YouTube user TerryT1976:

Part I


Part II



One thing that always puzzled me about my Food Rocks experience was the lack of merchandising. Every attraction at Disney World shunts you into a shop of doo-dads at the end. In this case, when I was eager to snap up some Food Rocks gear there was nothing. My only souvenir was the following peapod magnet, not expressly made for the attraction:

I now must conclude that my visit was after the Kitchen Kabaret items were removed and before Food Rocks items were introduced, as I have found plenty of evidence for their existence. In fact, an informative website about Lost Epcot shows the merchandise that was available. Naturally, I took a look at eBay to see what I could find. I was amazed to see a complete set of 8 Kitchen Kabaret pins go for $215!! Needless to say I won’t be getting any Kitchen Kabaret items any time soon, but at least I’ve seen the show now.

I was saddened to learn that Food Rocks has itself been replaced, and not by singing food, but by some bird’s eye view of beautiful scenery called Soarin’. Why anyone would want to see that is beyond me. I’m sure a 21st century update with Jel.Lo, Pea Diddy, and the Food Fighters would have been a hit.