We have been watching the BoardWalk promenade get quieter for two years now and it has been genuinely hard to witness.
If you have spent any real time at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT area resort corridor, you know what the BoardWalk is supposed to feel like. The promenade along Crescent Lake at night, with the lights reflected in the water and the street performers and the hum of a place that is genuinely alive, is one of the best things at Walt Disney World that does not involve a theme park. It is the kind of experience that makes guests feel like they are staying at a resort rather than just a hotel near some parks.
And then Big River Grille closed in January 2024. And Jellyrolls closed in April 2025 after nearly 30 years. And the Promenade Fine Art Gallery closed in October 2025. And the west side of the promenade has been noticeably thinner ever since.
This week something changed. Two project filings appeared in the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District’s public database for locations on the BoardWalk promenade. They are listed as Project Amazon and Project Bubbles. Disney has not said a word about either of them.
We are cautiously very interested.
What the Permit Filings Actually Show
Project Amazon is filed at the former Big River Grille and Brewing Works location. That space has been sitting empty since the brewery closed at the end of January 2024. Disney previously hinted at a replacement concept but never announced one. The former Big River Grille space still has a full kitchen infrastructure in place, which makes a food and beverage replacement the most logical read. Whether that means a new restaurant, a bar, a lounge, or something else entirely is not specified anywhere in the filing.
Project Bubbles is filed at the former Promenade Fine Art Gallery, which closed in late October 2025. This one is newer and the name has gotten people speculating. A bath and body retail concept would make sense for a space that was previously a retail location. A champagne bar or lounge would also fit the name in a pretty obvious way. We are not going to pretend we know which it is. The CFTOD database does not tell you that and Disney certainly is not.
Here is what the database does tell you: both spaces now have active project filings. That is more movement than either of them has shown since they went dark.
And then there is Jellyrolls. The dueling piano bar that ran at the BoardWalk for nearly three decades closed in April 2025. The signage came down. The interior is currently being gutted. There is no named filing for that space yet in the database, but the active demolition work suggests one is coming. Three spaces in close proximity on the same stretch of the promenade: two with active filings, one with an ongoing gut renovation.
Something is being planned. We just do not know what yet.
A Note on Reading These Filings
Disney picks these names specifically so that they do not reveal anything useful. Project Amazon could be named after the river. It could be a reference to nothing. Project Bubbles could mean a champagne concept or it could mean absolutely nothing about what is actually going in. The project name is a bureaucratic label, not a clue Disney left for us.
What the filings do tell us is real and useful even without the names: these are not abandoned spaces. Permits are being pulled. Plans are being made. At some point between now and whenever these projects are ready to open, Disney will make an announcement and we will all know what is actually coming. Until then, the filings are meaningful confirmation that the vacant spaces on the BoardWalk promenade are being treated as active development opportunities.
What This Means for Your Disney Trip
We cover the dining and entertainment side of Walt Disney World closely and we want to be honest with you about what the BoardWalk promenade is like right now for guests visiting.
The west side of the promenade is thinner than it has been in years. If you are staying at the BoardWalk, Yacht Club, Beach Club, Swan, Swan Reserve, or Dolphin and you are counting on the promenade as your evening entertainment anchor, the current selection is reduced compared to what it was two or three years ago. AbracadaBar is still there and it is genuinely excellent. Ample Hills Creamery is still there. ESPN Club is still operating. But the gaps are real and noticeable.
What the permit filings tell future guests is that this is not the permanent version of the BoardWalk. Something is coming to at least two of these spaces and possibly all three. When that happens, the promenade conversation changes significantly. The EPCOT resort corridor is already one of the most walkable and atmospherically distinctive parts of Walt Disney World. A fully activated promenade with new dining and entertainment in those spaces could make it genuinely special again in a way it has not been for a couple of years.
For guests visiting soon, plan your BoardWalk evening around what is currently open rather than what you remember being there or what you hope might be open. Check current listings before you make the walk. For guests whose trips are further out, watch for Disney’s eventual announcement about what is coming to these spaces. When it drops, it will be worth paying attention to.
We are keeping a close eye on all three of these BoardWalk spaces and will have full coverage the moment Disney makes any announcement about what Project Amazon, Project Bubbles, or the former Jellyrolls space are becoming. If the BoardWalk dining scene is something you follow closely, this is the story to watch for the rest of 2025 and into 2026. Check back here when the news breaks. The promenade deserves a proper revival and these filings suggest one might actually be coming.
