Sunday Brunch: L'Artisan des Glaces

by Reuben Gutierrez

2 June 2013

Though the earth's pathway says otherwise, last week was the official start of summer with Memorial Day Weekend and the first day of June. Epcot's World Showcase knew the perfect way to jump into the coming months of fun in the sun by opening the brand new L'Artisan des Glaces, a new ice cream parlor or glacier in the France Pavilion.

The new glacier takes the space once occupied by the popular Boulangerie Patisserie, which has since moved into the Les Halles. While the bakery had an efficient system of a counter display on either side, the ice cream parlor opens up the space with a single counter the length of the shop and two displays. Just as the Patisserie brought in guests to the back street of the France Pavilion, the glacier is sure to do the same, especially with the heat of the summer already in full swing.

L'Artisan des Glaces (the Artisan of Ice) is decorated in pastel shades with a cool shade of blue colored wall. The cast is brightly dressed in whites accented with bright colors and despite the cold temperature of the product, the ice cream parlor is incredibly warm and inviting. The small entryway is decorated with items used to make ice cream. My favorite was the old fashioned bottles of milk, which are recreations of classic French milk bottles from a Normandy dairy.

The menu is diverse with a wide enough selection to make everyone happy. They even offer sorbets in addition to ice cream, an unexpected and welcome option, especially to those with dairy allergies and intolerances.

Orders are priced by the scoop, served in your choice of a cup or a cone.

The French are proud of their liquors

I ordered the Mango Sorbet. Most people think sorbet is like water ice or shaved ice or whatever you like to call it. While the latter is simply crushed ice with a flavored syrup, sorbet is water and the fruit (not flavoring, actual fruit) made into a frozen dessert. Very dense and delectably rich in natural flavors, the sorbet is a terrific alternative to ice cream. I'll have to try it sometime with the liquor as not only is it served in a martini glass, but it is also the popular and traditional way to enjoy a sorbet.

The most surprising part was that your frozen dessert order is served in a cup or cone at no extra charge. I'm not a big ice cream eater, but I know typically a cone cost extra, and even more if it's a sugar waffle cone and not the cheap wafer cones. Cynics may say the ice cream is overpriced to cover the cost of the maybe-they'll-order-it-cone, but I say Disney World charges what it wants, the people will come, and so they are rewarded with a free waffle cone. A nice surprise that may have me more inclined to eat ice cream and sorbet!

Whoever the artisan may be, he or she makes an excellent frozen dessert. I look forward to finding relief to the oncoming summer days at Epcot France's new glacier, though in my research, I found it quite curious that they are not so common in the actual country itself. Ice cream is sold in supermarkets and at restaurants, though one would more typically find them at bakeries in the summer time primarily. Ironically, L'Artisan des Glaces was once a bakery itself. Be that as it may, I'm sure guests and locals trudging under the relentless Florida sun would be glad to have this glacier year round.