3. Walt Disney World test kitchen

Walt Disney World seemingly is always thinking up new dishes to serve at its great many dining locations, be they crazy, elaborate new hamburgers or even recreations of old, bygone classics. So, why not create a space where Disney's chefs can try out their newest culinary inventions for real guests, and give foodies a place to try the next big food item at Walt Disney World?

The Walt Disney World Test Kitchen would feature an ever-changing menu of the biggest, boldest new ideas from Disney's chefs. Maybe it's a particular kind of candied apple, or a newly-topped hot dog, or even some new concoction served on a stick – guests would have the option to enjoy these items and then fill out a small survey detailing their feelings about their dish.

Guests could try these options out with the knowledge that their feedback might ultimately determine what does and doesn't wind up at some quick-service restaurants across the property.

Essentially, it'd provide Disney a real-time focus group made up of real parkgoers. And, in return, guests would get a delicious meal and a fun story – and the ability to feel like they're helping in the creation of something new for Walt Disney World. 

4. A pop-up restaurant

Similar to a food truck, a pop-up restaurant gives a chef a low-cost, low-risk way of trying out a new restaurant concept. Essentially, they rent out a space for a sort period of time – often as short as one night – and craft a dining experience that is as transient and ineffable as the concept of taste itself. And, since Disney has brought the food truck experience to Downtown Disney/Disney Springs, why not try to tackle pop-up restaurants too?

Of course, you'd have to do it with a Disney twist.

The idea is this: Disney would approach a group of celebrity and well-regarded chefs to each create a restaurant idea that could live inside the Odyssey building. Then, throughout the year, they'd each rotate their idea through the space, running and operating their restaurant for a short period of time, before closing and allowing the next chef to do the same. Some could be enormous names like Mario Batali or Thomas Keller, while others might be Top Chef-level innovators like Wylie Dufresne or Michael Voltaggio – the goal would be to provide numerous high-level dining experiences throughout the year, appealing to a wide-range of palates and tastes.

The variety would keep guests coming back, but the quality would make this spot one of the most unique dining destinations at Walt Disney World, if not in Florida itself.

5. The food pavilion

Of course, there's always the possibility of being a bit more ambitious, in which case you could expand the building itself and turn it into something Epcot so desperately needs: a new pavilion.

Food has always been something people enjoyed, but in recent years, a love of food has turned into a lifestyle. The television, magazines, and the internet have all made the spread of good food accelerate, and it's become so easy to find excellent cuisine in every city in the country. So, why not create a pavilion to celebrate that lifestyle?

Maybe it would include elements of all the ideas above – somewhere for celebrity chefs to show off, a celebration of Disney's unique dining, etc. – but also include some other, classically Epcot ideas. It might include cooking classes and seminars, a restaurant showcasing the future of food, or a ride exploring how eating for pleasure became such a widespread human pursuit. There are countless ways to explore the concept of food, and an expanded pavilion would allow guests who identify as foodies to really have somewhere they could call home.

The point is, Epcot is a park celebrating humanity and the great things we can achieve when we work together. And, ultimately, food is one of the most intimate ways in which we connect as a species. Cooking for one another, or sharing a meal with someone else, have long been acknowledged as something humans do in all cultures as a way of showing acceptance and love. Food brings us together. It allows us to share our stories and our experiences with one another, even when language cannot -- and I can't think of anything more fitting for Epcot to celebrate with a pavilion than that.