by Donald Wood
Last updated: 5:00 PM ET, Fri December 16, 2016
Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom will begin serving alcohol on Friday, Dec. 23.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, Tony's Town Square Restaurant, Liberty Tree Tavern, Jungle Navigation Co. Ltd. Skipper Canteen and Cinderella's Royal Table will start serving beer and wine during lunch and dinner.
The four establishments adding alcohol will join the Be Our Guest Restaurant, which became the first in the Magic Kingdom to serve beer and wine in 2012. Only full-service restaurants at Disney World will serve alcohol, and there will continue to be no standalone bars or to-go options.
A Disney spokeswoman said the change comes due to numerous requests from guests.
Other parks in the Disney Parks portfolio like Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot already serve alcohol, as do the company's biggest local competitors-Universal Orlando and SeaWorld Orlando.
Walt Disney was against alcohol being served in Magic Kingdom, but University of South Carolina assistant hospitality professor Scott Smith believes the other parks have set a precedent that excessive drinking and unruly behavior would not be an issue.
"I don't think Walt (Disney) is going to be spinning in his grave as long as it's done tastefully," Smith told the Orlando Sentinel.
One major positive to serving alcohol at the Magic Kingdom is the financial benefit. With beer and wine more profitable than food and easier to store, adding it to the menu at the higher price-point restaurants should result in higher profits.
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