Harry Potter Chicago and a Second Epic Universe Trip!

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Three up to across, tap that play button three times,
and walk through the archway into Dialogue Alley. Hello, and

(00:22):
welcome to Dialogue Allie, the Official Potter Collector podcast about
Harry Potter books, book translations, and all other things magical.

Speaker 2 (00:30):
I'm Carly, I'm Eric, I'm Peter.

Speaker 3 (00:33):
And I'm Melanie.

Speaker 1 (00:35):
The four of us are Harry Potter book translation collectors.
We collect Harry Potter books from all over the world.
Welcome to season five, episode fourteen of our podcast.

Speaker 2 (00:47):
Woo And that was an introduction right there.

Speaker 4 (00:52):
Come, I'm wooing because that was Carly's i think second
time ever in the seasons of Dialogue Alley that she's
done the introduction.

Speaker 3 (01:04):
What's really funny?

Speaker 2 (01:05):
Great mistakes?

Speaker 1 (01:09):
First try first, it's really funny? Is I almost said
introductions episode overview?

Speaker 3 (01:15):
No, that's fine, Tommy conve edited that out, so you're good.
But I did, is Carle? What are we talking about today?

Speaker 2 (01:26):
Yeah? Why are we here today?

Speaker 1 (01:27):
Carlyle Peter's gonna talk about stuff that's as far as
I know.

Speaker 2 (01:35):
That's exactly awesome.

Speaker 5 (01:36):
We're going to talk about this stuff. We're going to
talk about all the Harry Potter stuff. Big news, I mean,
it's it's old news ish, but it's still big news
because still new. Harry Potter Shop has opened up their
second store in the United States, and it happens to
be in my kind of town, Chicago is. It's in Chicago,

(01:58):
downtown Chicago on Michigan Avenue, New the Magnificent Mile, one
block north of the Starbucks Reserve, which happens to be
the largest Starbucks in the world. It's amazing. Yeah, I know, right,
So we went there. No, we didn't go there. Yeah
we did.

Speaker 6 (02:19):
We did go there.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
I think we did.

Speaker 6 (02:20):
We did go there.

Speaker 5 (02:21):
Yeah. I also am battling a little cold. I have
an epic cold that I brought back from every the
eye rolling that all three of you did. So we're like,
we're like, we we have our webcamsons, so we're watching
each other as we record this, and the eye rolling

(02:42):
was like in sync and I loved every moment of it.

Speaker 4 (02:49):
So I guess we're talking a little bit about Epic
Universe as well.

Speaker 5 (02:53):
Yeah we can. We can talk about Epic Universe again too,
So I guess what do you guys want to know?
I'm not really good at just like talking about until
like I've like been asked a question and then I
can talk and then like.

Speaker 1 (03:05):
I want to know your favorite food, yeah, if you
had to eat each.

Speaker 2 (03:13):
Like in general, Carly, our questions are about Harry Potter Chicago.

Speaker 1 (03:18):
I don't know what Peter like, I want to know
the favorite food from each place. I know.

Speaker 4 (03:24):
All I know is the way Peter eats food, like
and he saves like the best bite for last like
that That's what I know. Like I could never tell you, no,
I know your favorite food is like chocolate cake.

Speaker 3 (03:35):
But I feel like like there was.

Speaker 4 (03:38):
One time we were both eating in the Leaky Cauldron
and we had those seasoned potatoes that they serve with breakfast,
and you and I both saved like our most seasoned
potato for our last bite of seasoned potato. And I
just looked at you and I was like, I get that.
I get that so well, because yeah, that's how I

(03:59):
also eat.

Speaker 3 (04:00):
I get it.

Speaker 5 (04:01):
Yeah, like cool o ranch de rito has all the
season on it.

Speaker 3 (04:08):
Yeah, that's the best one. That's the favorite.

Speaker 1 (04:12):
The middle of the cinnamon roll, it's the best.

Speaker 5 (04:15):
The middle.

Speaker 2 (04:18):
All right, that you have to eat to keep a
little bit of the crust. But then you have it
like a protrusion peninsula of the non crust inside.

Speaker 3 (04:25):
That's a good time as well.

Speaker 2 (04:28):
That's what I'm all about over here.

Speaker 4 (04:31):
Oh yeah, I was going to say epic the way
that we're describing.

Speaker 2 (04:37):
So let's let's start an epic. Let's start an epic
universe about the food, because you were just there and
I guess the big the big thing of this trip
was that it was a passholder preview, so it was
probably busier than before because there were a bunch of
passholders there and you stayed at the official on site hotel.

Speaker 5 (05:00):
Yeah, it was. I missed that trip so much I
want to go back. So I spent three nights at
the Grand Helios, which is the Nuance site hotel.

Speaker 6 (05:13):
And oh wow, yeah, it has.

Speaker 5 (05:16):
A dedicated entrance to the theme park with its own security.
So you literally like until you've experienced it, like I
feel like I can't explain it, and until someone doesn't
just going to understand what I'm saying, until they like
actually experience it, not because anyone listening is done, just because.

Speaker 6 (05:33):
It's like such, it's it mind boggling to me.

Speaker 5 (05:37):
Like so the.

Speaker 2 (05:41):
Going Californian, the Grand Californian Hotel.

Speaker 5 (05:44):
And I've never been that. I've never experienced.

Speaker 2 (05:46):
It goes right into California Adventure. Like I haven't actually
physically stayed there because that's where Donk is expensive. But yeah,
they have their own park entrance right from the hotel
that like bops you right up by the Grizzly River
run in California Benure Park.

Speaker 6 (05:59):
It's like amazing.

Speaker 2 (06:00):
It's literally turnstyles and it's like just for hotel guests.

Speaker 5 (06:04):
No, it's it's that's that's as soon.

Speaker 2 (06:06):
As you mentioned that, like that's immediately when I went
to I'm like, oh, I've walked right by that tons
of times in DCA.

Speaker 6 (06:11):
So yeah, no, it is. It is so cool.

Speaker 5 (06:13):
You literally go through security through the turnstile and bam
you're in Epic Universe. Like, yeah, it's amazing.

Speaker 1 (06:21):
That's really cool.

Speaker 5 (06:23):
So the food at the Helios is I mean, I
guess start there with the food. The food is.

Speaker 6 (06:29):
Everything, well not everything.

Speaker 5 (06:31):
I hate. Every restaurant I ate at had like something
that was so amazing. Bar Helios, which is on the
tenth floor and has amazing views of of Epic Universe.
Their food is like to die for. It some of
the best food I've ever had Actually, I mean it's expensive,
but it is. It's good, but it's expensive. Oh yeah.

(06:54):
And then the main restaurant, the food is really delicious.
Breakfast is really delicious. It's just yeah, the food there
is amazing.

Speaker 1 (07:05):
What was the standout It.

Speaker 5 (07:08):
Standout item was probably either the beef kebab because mainly
because of the sauces. They had a gar they came
with a garlic sauce and a chimmy cherry sauce, and
it was like, oh my gosh, so good.

Speaker 1 (07:23):
Especially they didn't have like a bee bread with it. No,
it was just.

Speaker 5 (07:30):
The kebab on a stick, two sauces and perfectly cooked meat.
Their hummus was delicious. The desserts that the baklava was phenomenal.
I didn't think I liked baklova and found out on
this trip that I liked baklova.

Speaker 2 (07:46):
So I think that's my favorite chick one. I think
that's it. I know I rarely eat it, but it's
like the perfect size because I'm not a dessert person.

Speaker 5 (07:56):
Then you will love this. You'll love this baklava. And
then the chicken at the restaurant. The main restaurant is
I say in my vlog that I put out today,
it's the best chicken I've ever had.

Speaker 1 (08:08):
Like it at.

Speaker 5 (08:10):
The Helios Grand Hotel. It's like incredibly seasoned, moist, juicy, delicious.
It's so good. Yeah, so amazing food there, and then
you go into Epic Universe, so really the only food.
So okay.

Speaker 6 (08:26):
I spent three days there, guys.

Speaker 5 (08:27):
I was planning to visit all four areas and really
explore Celestial Park. I spent ninety eight percent of my
time in a ministry of magic.

Speaker 2 (08:40):
I didn't leave.

Speaker 5 (08:41):
The only time I left was to go to Starbucks
get coffee or to go ride Donkey Kong mind cart.
Those are the only times I left. And then I
was back in midst of the magic.

Speaker 2 (08:51):
It was get on the Dark Universe.

Speaker 5 (08:54):
It was it was down the day that I was
able to do. Yeah, so I wasn't able to get
on that. Otherwise I would have been in Ministry of
Magic for like ninety eight percent of the time. But
I mean ninety six percent of the time, and but
it was ninety eight percent of the time instead, So
it is like, okay, So spent three days there, and
granted I was filming videos and you know, doing work

(09:14):
and stuff, but it is so darn immersive, more immersive
than Pogsmeaede or diagon Alley, like the immersiveness of it,
the size of it, the space of it. The characters
just helped so much. They have characters walking around. So

(09:35):
they have a they have three students of Boubaton, an
Ilver Morning student, and a hufflepuff a student or hufflepuff
and yeah, ooh, it happens to be a hufflepuff.

Speaker 1 (09:47):
They're all half buffs and.

Speaker 5 (09:50):
They walk around and they're like, you know, interacting with
each other, and then they interact with the guests, and
there was on the last night, spent like a half
an hour with them just like role playing and interacting
and going around and like looking for magical creatures and
talking about the wizarding world, and like it was just insane.

(10:11):
It's so incredibly MRSA. Then they have an rror there
as well, because you know, it's the time of Grindivald
and Grin of Valds in Paris, and so there is
a little bit of that storyline that I didn't notice
the first time I went. But they do have some
of the like fantastic Beast storyline, but it's not like
in your face, so it's it's yeah, so grinned, so

(10:34):
that they're you know, Grindivald's there, so they're you know,
they're guarding the entrance to the French Frenchman stry magic
and they interact with you. And and then Cosme Aqaujour,
who's the wand Maker, she is out in front of
her store interacting with guests. She's in her store interacting
with guests. So it's like an Olivander experience without having

(10:55):
to wait in line. And it's like only one person
gets chosen. Everybody's chosen. It's like everyone can interact with her.
She'll like be helping some guests and then pull you
in and and talk to you as well, and it's
just really really well.

Speaker 6 (11:10):
It's just immersive. It's so immersive.

Speaker 5 (11:13):
So Universal Creative like killed this section, knocked it out
of the park. And maybe it's because if they felt
like they had to, because you know, Fantastic Beasts had
failed and they had to change things, and but they
they killed it, you know. And then of course, I
mean we talked about the Ministry of Magic Q for

(11:33):
the ride, so I have to.

Speaker 6 (11:34):
Talk about that again.

Speaker 5 (11:35):
If you didn't hear the previous episode where we talked
about epic. Go listen to that. But I mean, then
there's that which is just mind blowing. But let's move
into food because Karl wants to talk about food, unless
any questions.

Speaker 2 (11:47):
No, I want to, I do want to. I do
want to bring up real quick, the e that you
see in the window that you posted. That was like,
that's almost better I think than like the creature kind
of Easter egg over at Universal Studios Park, because like
that happens pretty frequently, but you said it happened so
infrequently that it's it's kind of like it did I

(12:09):
just see that?

Speaker 5 (12:11):
Literally? So in Freeing.

Speaker 6 (12:12):
Okay, so here's the story.

Speaker 5 (12:14):
So my first day there, I happened to be right
by the window where the death happens and saw this,
these two flashes of green light, and like flipped out.
I mean, if if you didn't see the video of
my first initial reaction, I'm like, oh my gosh, like
I think I just saw someone get murdered. You know,

(12:35):
obviously it's just a flash of light, but you know,
you know what I mean, you're immersed in this world,
and so was it that first night? No, it was
so okay, so that was a second night. I happened
to see it again right at the right around the
same time as well. I was in that same spot,
not on purpose, I think I'd mentioned it to who

(13:01):
was with and and said like, oh, you know, I
saw this green flash light and that it happened. So
then that night I stood with my phone out for
forty five minutes trying to capture this green light and
I have the timestamps on the video recording to prove
that it was you know, forty to forty five minutes

(13:22):
and didn't capture it. So it it. I found that
it's it seems to only go off like every hour.
Because then the next night, the last night I saw
it again, got lucky you happened to have my phone.

Speaker 6 (13:35):
Out at the right time. I had just pulled it.

Speaker 5 (13:37):
Out and was focused on the window, and my friend
Diego was like, you know, is it that window, and
It's like, oh yeah, that's that window, and then bam
it happened.

Speaker 6 (13:47):
And so you can actually hear my freak.

Speaker 5 (13:49):
Out moment when I captured it, which just shows that
like I'm well, let me pull it up really quick
because it's kind of funny, like it's it's legit.

Speaker 6 (14:04):
This is my reaction to this happening.

Speaker 5 (14:14):
I was so excited.

Speaker 4 (14:16):
That was so I'm saying that was so cute because
none of us could hear that. I don't know if
you guys couldn't hear it, but we couldn't hear it.

Speaker 5 (14:24):
You'll hear it. You'll hear it on the what you
call it, You'll hear it on the podcast.

Speaker 3 (14:29):
Oh my god, that's so crazy.

Speaker 1 (14:31):
I know if I actually, it's just just.

Speaker 5 (14:37):
Make a long story short version of it. It's just a.

Speaker 2 (14:43):
Right.

Speaker 3 (14:43):
So here's a really important question.

Speaker 4 (14:46):
What what trendy phrase would you say if you saw it?
Considering you have like the well done dragon that has
caught on like dragon fire, if you will anytime the
dragon goes off, like if you see this death flash,
like what would you yell out?

Speaker 5 (15:10):
You would yell out? I mean, Eric has something, and
I'm trying to figure out what he's thinking before before
I let him say what he's thinking.

Speaker 2 (15:19):
Think about think about Beauty and the Beast.

Speaker 6 (15:22):
Oh you're thinking Disney.

Speaker 2 (15:25):
Uh well, you can't French French. It's a French phrase,
but they say it in Beauty the Beast few times.

Speaker 5 (15:33):
Mm hmmm. I have no idea.

Speaker 2 (15:37):
That's it, that's what is it. That's the end, or
if you want to be eric about it, you could say,
god zooks a murder.

Speaker 5 (15:53):
I was thinking we could say something like I'm going
to bet or I'm leaving before anyone before either you know,
before before we get ourselves killed or or s expelled or.

Speaker 3 (16:03):
Something like that, and then oh, yeah, dam someone gets killed.

Speaker 5 (16:07):
And that bam someone gets killed. Yeah, so anyway, but
so so that's that's just that's just another little part
of immersion. Like we got off the rails a little bit.

Speaker 3 (16:18):
Food.

Speaker 5 (16:19):
Ever, we were talking about food. So the food, if
they can keep it up, the food right now is
and I love Leaky Cauldron's food five times better than
the Leaky Cauldron's food, Like it is the best. And

(16:40):
I mean, Disney has some amazing food. This is the
best theme park food I've ever had, and it really
it is incredible, like incredible, the keysche Lorraine, the chicken dish,
the the French onion is fantastic. What else did I eat?

(17:02):
Some beef something some beef dish that was really good,
and then the butter beer crapes are my favorite.

Speaker 1 (17:08):
I was going to ask about those.

Speaker 6 (17:10):
Yeah, the butter beer crape.

Speaker 1 (17:11):
They look so good.

Speaker 6 (17:13):
Favorite butter beer thing.

Speaker 1 (17:15):
Like, what's the best bite, because I think I would
know what the best bite is.

Speaker 6 (17:19):
The best bite is with everything together?

Speaker 1 (17:23):
Okay I wasn't. It looks like it would be the point,
you know how like they fold the crab to where
it like looks like a fan. Yeah, it looks like
that little point at the end where everything is like
sunk in and you get a bite of everything all
at once. That feels like that would be the best bite.

Speaker 5 (17:37):
Yeah, it is. It is so good. Guys. You wait
until you try these crapes. You're gonna love these crapes. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (17:45):
How does the like, how's the how's the flow work
at the cafe? Is it similar to like the picture
of the crape? Oh my goodness.

Speaker 7 (17:54):
Yeah, And everything's so literally everything's butter beer though, So,
I mean the crepe isn't flavored butter beer, but it's
filled with a butter beer cream.

Speaker 5 (18:06):
It's topped with like a butter beer sauce. The whipped
cream is a butter beer whipped cream. So it tastes
like it just it's so well done. It's very sweet.
But I mean, I like sweet Things, So it's if
you don't like sweet things, you won't like it, but
at least try it.

Speaker 6 (18:20):
But it is so well done. It's such a good dessert.

Speaker 1 (18:25):
So I'm excited to try it.

Speaker 5 (18:27):
The flow is very much like Leaky Cauldron, where you
walk in and so they they they actually had less
people during the ap previews than they did for the
team member previews. So the first time I went, it
was a lot more crowded than it was when I
was there the last last three days, and which was

(18:49):
great because I was able to get some really good
content without a ton of people around. So flow wise,
it will be interesting when there are more people. But
it's very similar where you walk in and you go
find a table. I'm assuming they'll they'll bring you to
a table once it gets more crowded, but you just
go to a table and then you order through the
app and you scan the the the QR code and

(19:13):
put in the table number and then they bring it
to your table.

Speaker 6 (19:15):
So it's super.

Speaker 1 (19:16):
Easy and that's awesome.

Speaker 2 (19:18):
Yeah, it's And what was the wait time?

Speaker 5 (19:22):
It was a little it was a little slow, you know,
probably because it's a preview period. They're still getting things
figured out with the kitchen everything, but like the food
took maybe I don't know, and the restaurant wasn't packed
maybe twenty minutes, so fifteen to twenty minutes, which isn't
like crazy, but it's also not like it's not like
quick service.

Speaker 1 (19:42):
Necessarily, so it's not bad though.

Speaker 5 (19:46):
But the food like and the prices are the same
as they are at Leaky Couldron and like to have
food and more food too, like tons of food. I
don't know if I had pictures of the chicken, but
it's like you get half of a chicken that.

Speaker 3 (20:00):
Is like in oh, I saw that. I saw you
post that. It looked really good.

Speaker 5 (20:05):
It's so good.

Speaker 6 (20:06):
All of the food, Yeah, it was delicious.

Speaker 5 (20:09):
So I was very impressed with the food, and I
I again it's like, I hope that they can keep
up the quality of it when it gets busier, because
if they can, I mean they're they're they're.

Speaker 1 (20:22):
Just I bet they can because they should have processes
in place by this point, I would think to ensure
quality stuff.

Speaker 3 (20:31):
Were there new drinks are.

Speaker 5 (20:34):
There is a there's a lavender lemonade which I didn't try,
but I heard it's good. And then there's this this
Acham drink where it's a it's like an iced tea,
and then you pour in this this powder and you
have a stir and you stir it and it changes
colors and it becomes like very you know, like like

(20:56):
potion bottles where you shake them up and they get also,
oh yeah, yah, yeah, it looks kind of like that.
So it changes color, but then it has like a
really cool swirly effect. So that is a new drink.
There are there were a bunch of new alcoholic drinks
which I didn't try, but I heard that they were
really good. So if you enjoy a drink, then there

(21:17):
are probably some really good options.

Speaker 2 (21:21):
And then you know they have any exclusive did they
have any exclusive beers to the Harry Potter Brands section,
because they like, you get the hogs said, you can
get like the Hogshead beer, and it's nothing like.

Speaker 3 (21:34):
Yeah they have that exclusive like Dialogue Dialogue Alliot, I
was going to say, diagon Alley they have. We do
not have our own exclusive beer here, not yet.

Speaker 5 (21:46):
I mean I was I would assume there was something,
but again it's like I don't I don't drink, so
I don't I don't look in I don't like look
for that, and and actually wouldn't be the one person
to even know what it what it was.

Speaker 2 (21:59):
So and I have never had any of the other
ones at the other sections of the park, but I know,
I know that's like a thing that people saw it out.
My sister was like, oh, I gotta go try the
Exclusive whatever, because if it's park exclusive, people love trying, right,
whether it's good or not.

Speaker 5 (22:14):
Totally, I can't find their menu trying to look at
the menu of the Sirene. You mean, sorry, what did
you say?

Speaker 1 (22:30):
I forgot what I was gonna say. Actually it fell
out of my head.

Speaker 6 (22:34):
Oh no, So food phenomenal.

Speaker 5 (22:38):
And I can't really tell you about the food outside
of the park because oh, actually, no, that's not true.
I did eat at the Oh, what's the restaurant called.
It's the kind of like the main restaurant in the
front that has oh it's called The Atlantic. So the Atlantic,
which is a beautiful restaurant. My goodness. It's like you're

(23:00):
in a fish tank and you have it. It's like
right on the water of the fountain or one of
the fountains, and it's kind of at like eye level
the water is and they have these giant, like huge,
probably four to six feet long, stained glass fish that

(23:21):
are suspended from the ceiling and they light up at
night to like and glow, and then it makes you
feel like you're in a fish tank because the whole thing,
the whole the whole wall is just glass that looks
out into epic universe. And then eventually they're on this track,
so eventually they're gonna like move around.

Speaker 6 (23:40):
The restaurant lit up.

Speaker 5 (23:43):
To make them work out.

Speaker 6 (23:43):
They're swimming, like just amazing.

Speaker 5 (23:45):
And the food there I didn't wasn't super happy with
the appetizers. They were kind of just bland and flavorless.
But the I had the filet and the fleet was
really really good and the toppings are the side dishes
were fantastic too, So so that was the other other
food option that I that I had, or the other
food item I eat there. But the food again a ministry,

(24:09):
top notch, top notch.

Speaker 1 (24:11):
Food, excellent. I can't wait to go.

Speaker 2 (24:15):
I wonder how that will compare to the other parts
of the park, because I mean, I know the food
at Super Mario. What is it? World ari a world,
superintended World. There we go. My brain is sleepy, I
know that that's like fun looking food. I don't know
if it's necessarily like great tasting food, but it's like

(24:36):
a fun experience to get the food. But at the
other two universal parks, like I always end up eating
at the boat at either Harry Potter are Yeah.

Speaker 3 (24:45):
Because the quality of the food there is the best food.

Speaker 2 (24:48):
Probably that's the best food in the whole park. And yeah,
I'm just wondering if that is the same. I know
you didn't really try other stuff in the other areas,
but if that's going to be a similar vibe, because
I mean, I know where I'm going to eat first
when I go to this park. It's going to be
in the Harry Pottery Cafe, like is in the other
in the other two two parts two parks.

Speaker 4 (25:07):
I imagine that isle of Burke would have like really
good like barbecue, Like if they don't have like a
good barbecue place, like that's a missed opportunity.

Speaker 2 (25:17):
Like that's the place where you should call the dragon Burger.

Speaker 4 (25:19):
It should be like you know, it should be like
called dragon fire and everything is cooked with fire.

Speaker 3 (25:25):
And like that's where you yeah.

Speaker 4 (25:28):
And that's where you would get like your smoked turkey
legs from that you get any theme park ever.

Speaker 3 (25:34):
You know, so I would like to think that that's
my head canon.

Speaker 5 (25:39):
They have the mead Hall, which is like you know,
meat and fish and barbecue. So they do have something
like that.

Speaker 2 (25:45):
It's called the meat ball, the mead meat Hall mead.
Oh that makes sense.

Speaker 5 (25:54):
Making pronouncing very well. So I've seen like I've seen
videos about like the you know, the best foods in
epic or whatever, and always on the list is from
Isle of Burke. It's as a barbecue mac and cheese.
It's some sort of mac and cheese and like a
like a cone.

Speaker 3 (26:14):
Like a bright oh I have I think I have that.

Speaker 5 (26:18):
Yeah, So that's always on the list. And then the
other thing that's always on the list is the Donkey
Kong Country Float. It's like a floating a banana ice
cream comes in a.

Speaker 6 (26:31):
Really cool cup.

Speaker 5 (26:33):
So those those two items are always on the list.
The but of Bear crapes are always on the list.
The Keish Lorraine is on a lot of the lists.

Speaker 6 (26:40):
Uh Dark Universe.

Speaker 5 (26:43):
I don't remember actually what items are on there, but yeah,
so anyway.

Speaker 6 (26:48):
Great food, just so good food. Brains, yeah, brains.

Speaker 2 (26:52):
And raw meat, bag of blood just a bag of blood,
a bag old blood, your.

Speaker 5 (27:01):
Choice of blood type always.

Speaker 2 (27:07):
The Donkey Kong Ride.

Speaker 6 (27:09):
Donkey Kong Ride was very cute.

Speaker 5 (27:12):
It's a little bumpy, but it works because you know,
you're on like a rickety track, but it's it's cute.
It's more intense than I was expecting, which was good
and just overall fun. I was in the back. I
think if you were in the front, you'd be you'd
get a better view of the track, so it would
the effect of like, you know, jumping the track would

(27:34):
be greater. It is like a tiered car, so you
are like above the front row a little bit, but
there's you still don't see it very well. So if
you have the choice, I would definitely say, you know,
riding the front. And I also heard that riding in
the front it's less bumpy, which seems interesting because it's
just a two seater car, so I don't know how

(27:55):
that would make that much of an effect. But yeah,
that's what people are saying. But it's very cute and
very fun and I love Donkey Kong, so so that
was a blast. I was hoping to meet Donkey Kong.
I heard that, Yeah, it is so but like you
can meet Donkey Kong, which is so fun. But he

(28:16):
he wasn't out because I guess the costume had just
been shipped from Japan. They were having issues with the
costume and they had to ship a new costume or
something over here from Japan or whatever. So I didn't
get to meet Donkey Kong. But hopefully one.

Speaker 1 (28:31):
Day next time.

Speaker 3 (28:33):
Next time, I mean, aren't you planning on going for
opening Day?

Speaker 5 (28:38):
I'll be there, yep, I'll be their grand opening Day?

Speaker 3 (28:40):
Is that the next time that you're going?

Speaker 5 (28:43):
As of right now, so they still have some they
still have some ap previews. So it's like, if I
have time and can do it, I probably won't stay
the helios unless it's cheap, which it won't be.

Speaker 3 (28:57):
So you know, can you talk price of about healing?

Speaker 5 (29:03):
Yeah? Sure, yeah it's fine. So I paid like an
average of five hundred dollars a night. Yeah yeah.

Speaker 2 (29:11):
Where like where on the tier list was the room
you stayed in.

Speaker 5 (29:15):
I was kind of like a mid tier, so I
was like the standard park view room, so I had
a view of the park. I've noticed some dates where
it's in the three hundred range, low three hundreds, and
that's like a standards room. Yeah, so that would face
like the pool or which is gorgeous. The pool is beautiful,
so it would be a great view in itself.

Speaker 4 (29:36):
But it's like staying at the Bolagio in Las Vegas
and not getting a fountain view room.

Speaker 3 (29:42):
Like what's the point.

Speaker 4 (29:43):
I feel like, if you're not getting like a view
of seeing the park, then like why even bother? I mean,
obviously there are a lot of other parks for staying there, right,
like the restaurant and the like ease of just crawling
into bed when you're done at the park because you're
literally right there. But I feel like if you don't
get a view of the park, then like what are

(30:04):
you doing?

Speaker 2 (30:05):
And that's why it's poster and you put it on
the window.

Speaker 5 (30:10):
Now, but that's but no, that's that's why that Yeah,
that's why I went for a park view room because
it's like if I'm gonna stay here, I'm gonna stay here. Yeah,
do it right? So what was the other question?

Speaker 3 (30:24):
Oh?

Speaker 6 (30:24):
Yeah, oh so so maybe if I can.

Speaker 5 (30:27):
Swing it, I'll pop down for a couple more days
and shoot some more content.

Speaker 3 (30:34):
What videos do you have like left on your list?

Speaker 5 (30:37):
Food? I didn't get to food because I was feeling
very well, but I need to I need to order
everything off the menu and do a video try and everything,
you know, both at at at the cafe as well
as the what's it called? I just forget the name
of the other restaurant, the the Goblet, the Goblet uh

(31:01):
n o I rre noir Goblet noir. So that's that's
kind of like the the the Nocturn Alley section of
Wizarding Paris. Yeah, so those are kind of the two
big ones. And then because I filmed all the shops,

(31:23):
I filmed the right queue of Harry Potter and the
Battle of the Ministry, I wanted to film all of
the shop windows. I wanted to film the all of
the Mina Lima artwork. There's it's plastered on every single wall.
It is insane the amount of work that these these
two did and with their team, like it, there's so

(31:46):
much new graphic artwork. It's it's amazing like.

Speaker 4 (31:53):
Them because I feel like I feel like it's just
such a place to fully like exhibit their talent, if
that makes sense, and where their talent is going to
be like truly appreciated, and it just goes to show
like they're so much bigger than so many other projects

(32:17):
or things. You know, I don't know. Okay, wait, speaking
of what.

Speaker 5 (32:25):
Eric just sent me a clip from Mister Bean movie
and it's cracking me up. He's like.

Speaker 1 (32:32):
Passing notes.

Speaker 5 (32:34):
It's this scene. I love this movie so much.

Speaker 2 (32:41):
I love he's ordered. He's on like a train and
he's ordering like coffee and it's in He's in France.
So she's like asking him questions in French and he
just like, would you like a coffee? We She's like,
would you like any sugar? And he's like, nope, your
French is Your French is very good. And he's like.

Speaker 5 (33:09):
That's the other thing. It's like they always, you know,
they always say au revoir like they speak in French too.
It's just it's so immersive. Can't wait for you guys
to see it.

Speaker 1 (33:23):
I can't wait to go. I'm so excited.

Speaker 3 (33:27):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (33:27):
We're planning a Disney trip in January, and Alan and
I kind of are like, do you think we could
sneak away for a day where like everyone's resting, because
we've i mean, we kind of have it figured that
if we want to go to Epic, we have to
go just the two of us, like go for a weekend.

Speaker 3 (33:41):
That's going to be the only way that we could go,
Like we can't take the kids, but like we're like,
oh well, maybe we could like sneak one day in
when we're supposed to be like resting between Disney days.

Speaker 4 (33:51):
And I'm like, I don't know, I can do. I
can't do three park days in a row.

Speaker 5 (33:56):
You have you have to. It's it's so relaxing though
it's like it's not it's it's not a go go
go go feel it. You just it's not feel so
relaxed when you get into Wizard in Paris, like it's
it is a vibe, because it is a vibe it is.

Speaker 3 (34:13):
I just so I hope that that maintains when like
cross me too, Me too, Yeah, because I love the
idea of that. I just like, who knows what it's
going to be like when it's actually like public.

Speaker 5 (34:26):
I don't know, but I had a total switch. Like
I don't know if you guys remember Melon and Eric
you were you were here. I don't know if you
remember when we were talking about Epic last time where
I said it's like Isle of Burke was my favorite
but yeah, Ministry, after this trip like far far above
Isle of Burke for me.

Speaker 3 (34:47):
Now, well, when you spend ninety eight percent of your
time there, I feel like you need to spend ninety
eight percent of time in Isle of Burke and give
that a fair chance.

Speaker 5 (34:58):
Maybe.

Speaker 2 (34:59):
And when there's a when there's enough or like when
there's fewer people where it feels like it's a natural
amount of people for that space, I think that helps
a lot. Like there have been times where I've been
at either Hogsmeat or Diagon Alley where it's been so
wall to wall people that you can't even like stop

(35:20):
and look at a window because it's like you're just
being like shoveled along in the big crowded people. And
like in that moment, I'm like, I don't want to
be here at all, Like I want to go anywhere else.
This is not like it's not immersive, it's not theming,
it's like it's just I think that might on the
top of you.

Speaker 4 (35:39):
My only hope for it could be the fact that like,
like if someone is traveling from like another country and
they want to be immersed in Harry Potter stuff, like
I feel like their first thought would be like I
have to see Hogwarts or I have to see diagon Alley.
It might not be like I need to go to
Wizard in France, you know. So, and I feel like

(36:04):
in Islands and at Universal, you know, any of the
Harry Potter sections, those are the things that are most crowded.

Speaker 3 (36:13):
Like I.

Speaker 4 (36:15):
Always cruise right through Sou's Landing. There's never anybody there.
You can walk onto anything, and then it is bumper
to bumper traffic trying to walk through Hogsmead because that's
just where everybody is and it's it's absolutely crazy.

Speaker 3 (36:31):
So I think.

Speaker 4 (36:34):
That maybe that's the only like saving grace type thing
is like maybe people there's maybe it's that the Harry
Potter people want to see it, but like people from
far away would be more drawn to the other parks,
and also because it's just a new park all around,
hopefully the crowds are like relatively evenly dispersed.

Speaker 1 (36:58):
You took the words everyone wanted it out of my mouth?
Is how like long term the crowds are going to
be affected between the three parks, because I mean, I
would like to go to all three, but I don't
know if I had to choose it would be hard
not to go to, like the Hogwarts and the hogs Meat. Yeah,
I think the big Diagon Alley rather.

Speaker 5 (37:20):
The big draw of that world is going to be
the English Ministry Magic. Yeah, just that ride Q and
the Atrium, which they did a great thing with the
A lot of people are not happy about the virtual
que but the Virtual Q has done a great service
to Harry Potter fans who don't want to ride the

(37:40):
ride because they have taken out all of the switchbacks
in the main atrium so you can go through the
FLU network and you have just this open space to
see the atrium and walk around. They can't have that
with the Virtual Q sore with without the virtual queue.

(38:01):
So that's that's a big benefit to the Virtual Queue.

Speaker 1 (38:05):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (38:06):
I like Witness.

Speaker 4 (38:08):
I like when Universal does like rides like that, Like
I don't know if you've I'm sure you have, like
the Jimmy Fallon ride. I've been on it one time
because like not my cup of tea. I don't like
motion kind of rides like that, but I like the
queue in that. Okay, you walk on this line and
then it's the same. They do it for smugglers run

(38:30):
at Disney, where like you get to like this main
area and they hands out numbers and then they have
like entertainment and stuff going on in places to sit
and like things to see in this big room and
you'll see a light flash where it'll say like the
color green, if you're the color green, like go to
the next room and like that. It's just really cool

(38:52):
the way they do that. It makes it feel like
you're not waiting a long time in line. So I
like how they do some stuff like that. I don't
know if Ministry is like similar vibes to that, but
if they do something like that, like I love those
kinds of cues, I think that they're really smart.

Speaker 2 (39:11):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (39:12):
So it's just uh, it's you just do it through
the app and you get your You can kind of
select a return time if you can get it. The
second day, I couldn't couldn't get a virtual queue. They
all went really really fast.

Speaker 1 (39:25):
Wow.

Speaker 5 (39:26):
But you can hang out in the atrium until it's
your time if you wanted to.

Speaker 4 (39:31):
Yeah, but could you imagine going all the way there
wanting to go on that ride and then you get
there and then you can't go on it.

Speaker 2 (39:37):
Oh that was me and my wife the first time.
We went to go to Galaxy's Edge in California, and
it was a virtual queue for both the Rise of
Resistance and for the Spider Man ride in Eca, and
we didn't get a Rise virtual que like the first

(39:58):
day that we didn't get one at noon, and like
the next day we didn't get one in the morning.
I'm like, oh my gosh, if we don't get one
at if we don't get this one at noon, like
the whole reason we came here to go on this ride,
and we're good at Disney. We're not like bad at Disney.
We're good at Disney. And we couldn't snag one. And
we finally got one at noon on the last day

(40:18):
that we were there, and that was the only way
to go on it was with virtual Q. So like
I didn't feel like if I didn't get this, I'd
be really upset, until like I didn't get it the
last day in the morning, I'm like, oh my gosh,
Like is our whole trip going to be for nothing
if we don't get on this ride. So like, no,

(40:38):
I think that's going to be a real, a real issue,
especially for people that are like not super versed in
how to use that virtual que technology. And again like
the first time I went to Disneyland after COVID was
over and was back open and there were no virtual queues,
there was no fast pass, there was no Genie. It's
like everything was a stand by que and it was

(41:00):
so different to just be walking around the park and like,
I think, I want to go on this. The line
doesn't look too long, let's go. Like there was no
I gotta be here at this time and then go
here at that time, walking all the way across the
park to go here, and then a bit and even
like in the morning, it's like we'll just wake up,
we'll get there at rope drop and what we want

(41:21):
to do. It's it's great. It was such like a
natural flow because you just kind of find yourself exploring
the park in a natural way and not just running
past stuff because you had to get somewhere. And so
like that's that's what I'm hoping that this gets to,
because yeah, like if you're just breezing through the Ministry
area to get on that ride, and then you got

(41:41):
to breeze back through the other way to get on
Donkey Kong, and then you got to run back to whatever,
like that's not that's not a fun way to experience
any deep park. So I but who knows, it might
be like that for a while, or you might just
be waiting for everything for a very long time.

Speaker 4 (41:58):
But what you don't have to wait for is shopping
at the Harry Potters store in Chicago, which was the
whole reason why we were going to have this episode
to talk about the store, but we just got into
this epic chit chat. No, I want to know what
are some like unique differences between that store and New

(42:20):
York store, because you've obviously been at both.

Speaker 5 (42:23):
The biggest positive differences, I would say are the butter
beer bar. Well, it's I mean it's the largest in America.
I mean there are only two in America. The largest
in America.

Speaker 3 (42:38):
That's hilarious. The largest bar in the United States, there's
only one other one.

Speaker 2 (42:47):
No, the largest replica of the Ministry of Magic Atrium
the largest.

Speaker 5 (43:00):
So it's it is significantly larger and has a lot
of seating, which is great. So that's a big, big
plus and a big difference. The whole store is more
open concept, which I really like. It's it's almost half
the size is New York like it's it's a it's

(43:21):
a it's a big store, but it's a small store,
so it doesn't have a basement and it doesn't have
like very separated rooms, which is good because there's more flow,
there's more open space. The decor, there's a lot more decor,

(43:41):
like a lot more like someone vomited Harry Potter artifacts
and decor in a good way.

Speaker 4 (43:49):
Like it's is that just a chicagan thing that you
say deca decoration? Just put the emphasis on the on
the other I say it like, Peter.

Speaker 3 (44:08):
Eric, is it decor or decor? We have a lot
of Harry Potter decor in this room, thank you.

Speaker 5 (44:17):
Put anyway, there's there's a lot of decor. I'm gonna
say how I'm gonna say it, but there's like there's
there's seriously so much decord everywhere, like it's crazy, like
like I call the top of my shelves the room
of requirements, this is the room of requirements. On a

(44:38):
whole other level, it is beautiful. It's it's it's so
well done. We've got golden eggs everywhere, like golden egg
lights that are open. The goblet of fire is very cool.
I do wish though, that it like looked a little
bit more realistic. It's it's like like if if you've
seen the Goblet of Fire in person, just pictures of

(45:00):
the actual one, it's it's a lot more detailed. This
one's like half the amount of detail on it, like
all the details there, but it's just not detailed like
it could.

Speaker 2 (45:11):
Was it better or worse than the one that they
had at the Dragon Challenge Dueling Dragons?

Speaker 3 (45:17):
Dragon Challenge was wasn't it the Challenge.

Speaker 5 (45:23):
Cup?

Speaker 2 (45:26):
They had the Goblet of Fire there too, did they? Yeah?

Speaker 4 (45:28):
Yeah they did. As you're walking through the queue, they
have the Goblet of Fire.

Speaker 5 (45:32):
Yeah, I thought it was the Triverser Cup. I don't
remember it, so I don't remember. I can't both.

Speaker 3 (45:37):
It was a long time ago.

Speaker 2 (45:38):
I thought they had both. Maybe maybe I'm mistaken, but
I thought they had both.

Speaker 5 (45:41):
They definitely had, remember, So I have no idea. But
it's like it's in the center of the store and
it it it's cool. It changes color, so it'll turn
red randomly and like make a sound like someone has
just put their name in the goblet or it's about
to spit out a name of a Trisard Championship.

Speaker 2 (46:03):
Did you have to wait forty five minutes for that
to happen with you.

Speaker 5 (46:06):
I didn't wait. I just chanced it. Whenever it happened,
I pulled out the camera. The Olivander section is so good.
The whole latch section is fantastic, significantly better than New York.
They have like this this giant window in the back
of the counter that kind of that has a screen

(46:29):
that makes it look like you're looking out onto into
diagon alley, and different things happened. Dementors come or like
the Weasley's car comes flying by, or owls fly by.
It's just it's very cool. The mean A Lima section
is so sad. It is like this tiny little hallway
like which which makes me so sad because men A

(46:50):
Lima has so much amazing stuff. And granted, I know
that store is like half the size, but they could
have allocated a little bit more space for for Mera
and it Wardo, I thought, just because you know, again,
they have so much amazing stuff just for fans to purchase,
so they had to limit what they were selling. But

(47:14):
besides that, it's it's it's a store versus an experience.
It's definitely an experience, but nothing like New York, where
New York has photo opportunities. You know, it's like they
have the Hagrid's part and you can stand in Hagrid's
shoes and see how tall he is. They have the

(47:34):
phone booth, the flu Network elevator, you know, I mean,
even the giant things in there, like the giant chocolate
frog and the the griffin to Dumbledore's office, the giant
snake downstairs, the giant time turner, the phoenix in the front.
You know they have at in Chicago they have the

(47:57):
the stained glass window and the prefixed bathroom, which is
just kind of short. It's small, like it could have
gone all the way to the ceiling but it didn't.
So it's there's nothing that's like the Goblet of Fire
is cool, not as detailed as you know, I would
have hoped it would be, but it's that's kind of

(48:18):
the the big thing about the store that the best
the best thing about the store art wise or you know,
decor wise, decor wise, both both all the decor and
decora people. So you know, it's if like if I
had to choose one to go to, and obviously you

(48:42):
know it's going to be based on where you're located
in the country. But if you if you were given
a choice of New York or Chicago, I would still
choose New York just because there's a lot, a lot
more to see and they have experiences like the wand
Photo Opportunity and and Chicago didn't have any of this.
And I was talking to someone and they said, there's

(49:04):
there's no there's really no room to expand, which is unfortunately.

Speaker 4 (49:08):
That's such a bummer, Yeah, because I feel like even
even right now, like Harry Potter, New York has like
that whole I would say it's the third floor, but
it's the whole, it's the second floor. They have that
whole space that's not being used right now because they
did all of the VR stuff for it, which they're
not doing that right now, and that stuff is like

(49:29):
decorated really cool, like it's all themed out to be
like King's cross Station, and it was just very very
interesting and neat like doing that. So the fact that
they don't have the VR experience, I am so bummed
out that they don't have that anymore.

Speaker 3 (49:43):
I think that that it's so so sad. Yeah, what
a cool thing.

Speaker 5 (49:49):
Yeah, but I mean it's it's amazing, amazing, amazing to
have a store that has all of this Harry Potter merchandise. Again,
the store is beautiful. It is a beautiful store. The
designers did an incredible job decorating it. It's a place
to get butter beer now and you can get frozen

(50:09):
at the Chicago store, and we can't do the case well.

Speaker 4 (50:13):
From the largest butter beer bar in the United States,
I would expect them to have some but.

Speaker 5 (50:20):
Exactly I would sure. And but I heard a rumor
that hot was on its way. So whether that's just
for like, you know, the holiday season or not, but
I heard a rumor that that hot is on its
way to the butterbeer.

Speaker 2 (50:35):
Bar in Chicago. Did you start the rumor?

Speaker 6 (50:38):
I did not, I promise, I promise.

Speaker 2 (50:40):
It came around the store and then someone is like, hey, Peter.

Speaker 5 (50:43):
Hey, Peter, you know I heard Oh really, oh really?

Speaker 2 (50:49):
Would you do that?

Speaker 5 (50:49):
From?

Speaker 2 (50:51):
What is what is the What is your take on
the exclusive merch to that store? Love it compared to
the New York store? I love the Exclusive better selection.

Speaker 5 (51:00):
I think it's less selection, but I prefer the items
in Chicago. I don't necessarily think it's because I'm from Chicago.
I had to like think about that to make sure
I wasn't like biased or anything, but it's I mean,
I personally like more simple things, and they're simple colors.

(51:21):
They're very simple styles, whereas like the New York exclusive
it's like this blue shirt with gold foiling everywhere of
the Phoenix I still like, which I still liked, but
it's like it's it's just so, it's it's it's more simple,
simple colors, is it.

Speaker 2 (51:41):
Is it themed towards the Goblet of Fire.

Speaker 5 (51:44):
No, which is actually interesting. It's really just Harry Potter Chicago,
which again simple, so and maybe that's why I like it.
They do have an exclusive wand, which is the Goblet
of Fire wand, so that would be like the only
exclusive Goblet of Fire that I can think of merchandise

(52:07):
that they have. And eventually that's probably going to not
become an exclusive because the Golden snitchwand was exclusive to
New York and that is now everywhere, and then there
are some other wands that were exclusives that are now
non exclusive, So eventually the Goblet of Fire wand won't
be an exclusive to Chicago. I'm guessing.

Speaker 2 (52:26):
I was gonna say I heard a rumor that the
merchant might hit a little more Goblet of Fire theme.

Speaker 5 (52:31):
Who'd you hear that from?

Speaker 2 (52:32):
In not going? You know? Here there? Everywhere, you're there and.

Speaker 6 (52:37):
Everywhere the food.

Speaker 5 (52:40):
So there's an exclusive food item, and that's the butter
beer popcorn because Chicago is known for popcorn. So I
tasted it. Yeah, it's known for popcorn, So I tasted it.
Actually tasted everything that was there. So I did a
video trying all the butter beer items that's not been out,
that's not been released. But the popcorn I was very

(53:03):
disappointed with because it just tastes like caramel corn.

Speaker 4 (53:08):
So is it in comparison to, like, in comparison to
skinny pop butter beer popcorn.

Speaker 5 (53:17):
I've never had the skinny pop butterbeer popcorn, so I
can't compare it.

Speaker 3 (53:21):
It's delicious. I was literally eating it before we were recording.

Speaker 5 (53:24):
Now does that taste like like butterscotch?

Speaker 4 (53:27):
Or like how's how's it tastes like cattle corn? Honestly,
but it's so good. Okay, that's the thing, Like you
can't go wrong. I mean it's good.

Speaker 5 (53:36):
Yeah, See, I don't know, I don't know why it's
it's so hard to make it, like they could drizzle
it with like a like a butterscotch or I AM
short bread cream or something, just to give it a
little more butter beer flavor. Like they literally it tastes
like they literally just purchased like Garrett's popcorn, but caramel

(53:58):
corn in mass and package.

Speaker 6 (54:01):
So but here's another rumor.

Speaker 5 (54:03):
I did hear another rumor that they are working on
the popcorn and working to fix it. So hopefully they
do fix it, because I was so I was so
excited to try this popcorn and then so sad.

Speaker 6 (54:16):
It's delicious.

Speaker 5 (54:17):
I mean, it's phenomenal popcorn, but it does not taste
like butter beer.

Speaker 1 (54:23):
So that seems like there's a lot of room for
improvement on that then, which is not always a bad.

Speaker 5 (54:27):
Thing, No, not a bad thing, but they probably have
like so much of it that they're just waiting to
sell it before.

Speaker 1 (54:34):
They before the.

Speaker 2 (54:38):
Rumor has it, if you go to the dumpster behind.

Speaker 5 (54:45):
At night, convenience wise, there's a hotel. I mean there's
hotels all over the place in Chicago, but there's one
literally right above the store, and that's the Omni Hotel.
That's where I stayed it was very reasonably priced and
they had a deal and I think they're still doing
that where if you stay at the Omni you get
fifteen percent off merchandise at the store nice, which is

(55:09):
really big. So yeah, so if you're visiting looking into
the Omni and you know, call them double check that
they still have that offer. But if you want to
save some money, it's a good option.

Speaker 1 (55:21):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (55:22):
What else can I tell you about?

Speaker 3 (55:24):
I don't know. I'm looking at all them right now.

Speaker 2 (55:28):
For me, the description it sounds like and obviously I
don't think anyone who hasn't been to New York is
flying to New York just to go to the Harry
Potters store. There's so many other things to do. But
is relative to other things to do in Chicago? Is
there's a.

Speaker 1 (55:48):
Lot of great stuff in Chicago's.

Speaker 2 (55:49):
Amazing enough to like, that's why I'm booking my trip
to Chicago. Or is it like I'm going to do
this and I like Harry Potters, so I should go
to the Harry Potters.

Speaker 5 (55:58):
I think that. I think that's accurate for both Chicago
and New York. You know, like you were saying, it's
like people some people are booking their trip, you know,
to go to the hpn Y. So I don't. Yeah,
I mean I think it's probably about the same, you know.
It's it's it's like, if you're in Chicago, definitely go

(56:21):
to the store. If you're in definitely go to the store.
You know.

Speaker 4 (56:26):
Yeah, they I'm just I'm texting you guys what I
just found, like on the shop site. Because you remember
way back, Peter, when they had like this, the one
section in hpn Y.

Speaker 1 (56:37):
It was like all the.

Speaker 4 (56:40):
Weasley sweaters and they had every letter, but like getting
sizes and stuff was like kind of weird. They have
kids sus sweaters and they have for twenty five dollars.
They have the letter N for Nora for twenty and
its size extra small that would fit her now well,

(57:00):
for it'd be a little big on her now, but
I got it.

Speaker 5 (57:02):
Let's snatch it.

Speaker 2 (57:06):
Extra small is the only size they have in stock.

Speaker 3 (57:08):
I know an extra small would be big on her.
I already have like a hairy one that Peter had
gotten me when I was pregnant, Like do you remember that.

Speaker 2 (57:19):
I just keep pushing the yeah, but you don't have
the plus button.

Speaker 3 (57:21):
But I don't have an N like an authentic n
for twenty five dollars? Do they have a B?

Speaker 2 (57:30):
I just keep pushing the plus button on this end sweatshird,
I met one hundred and five quantity right now.

Speaker 3 (57:36):
You're trying to just now.

Speaker 2 (57:39):
I thought there'd be a maximum. Apparently not wait, like
one five.

Speaker 4 (57:44):
They're an alphabetic. They do have p biggest size is a
small though you small, Peter. We could stretch it. It stretches,
all right, stretch it out. I don't know you like
like working out. Now you're going to be like to
swool for a wool sweater.

Speaker 1 (58:02):
The house mascot Slytherin trunk is really cool.

Speaker 3 (58:06):
T u x d x I n O p q
t u x It.

Speaker 2 (58:22):
Sound like my students now they're like sailed and they're like,
what is that word? S What does that spell? Like?
It's not a word.

Speaker 3 (58:28):
Is in a big phase of doing that right now.

Speaker 2 (58:31):
We we love thath Like, what oh, what's that word?
It's not a word, it's just sounds.

Speaker 3 (58:42):
Making sounds.

Speaker 6 (58:44):
So what else can I tell you guys about the store?

Speaker 1 (58:47):
Sorry? I was shopping, I know.

Speaker 2 (58:51):
See my main question was all about the exclusive merch
so like that's what I want to get a lot
of the stuff that I saw at the New York
store or with stuff that you could buy online, right, Like,
so going there was part of the fun. Getting the
butter beers part of the fun, but also like I
had to make sure I walked away with something. So
like I had the butter beer bottle with the exclusive

(59:12):
New York.

Speaker 5 (59:15):
Guy.

Speaker 3 (59:16):
Literally have that, like right in front of me.

Speaker 4 (59:18):
Let me, let me, I mean, this is a New
York one. It doesn't smell it butter beer. She's empty?

Speaker 1 (59:27):
No, how were the butter beers and the bottles? Were
they good?

Speaker 2 (59:32):
Not? Great?

Speaker 5 (59:33):
Terrible?

Speaker 3 (59:34):
I really I think that they they they will sustain
you until your next like through fix.

Speaker 4 (59:43):
We buy them every single time we go along, like
it's obsessed with them. But yeah, this is the one.

Speaker 2 (59:48):
Or there's no top. That's a pretty bottle. I like
that exclusive label.

Speaker 1 (59:57):
Wow, that's I really like that a lot.

Speaker 2 (01:00:00):
I like how much of your daily sugar is in
that bottle?

Speaker 1 (01:00:03):
Probably all of it?

Speaker 2 (01:00:08):
All? Right, Well you can have two.

Speaker 3 (01:00:11):
Oh, this is forty two percent for this this big bottle.

Speaker 5 (01:00:16):
Ok, this has twenty branch of sugar.

Speaker 1 (01:00:21):
Wow, that's a lot.

Speaker 5 (01:00:23):
Can you buy all these bottles? Are so cool? That
they do.

Speaker 2 (01:00:27):
They are cool and they're great. They're great to put
on shelves, like I am not a trinkety person for
my shelves. I know Melanie likes to decorate your shelves.

Speaker 3 (01:00:35):
I don't those are That's not decorations. That's just piles
of books.

Speaker 4 (01:00:39):
You guys know, I love my piles of books because
my room I turned into See you guys can't see
the chaos that is around me, but my room has
turned into the storage room of all the stuff in
the house.

Speaker 3 (01:00:50):
Oh that's really cool.

Speaker 1 (01:00:52):
I really like that.

Speaker 5 (01:00:53):
It's so simple.

Speaker 1 (01:00:55):
Do they have other colors, because I would stay.

Speaker 2 (01:00:58):
That is that or a navy?

Speaker 5 (01:01:02):
It was black.

Speaker 2 (01:01:04):
It's just a white.

Speaker 5 (01:01:06):
No, it's like that.

Speaker 6 (01:01:08):
It's more like a tan, like a beige. It's like
a beige, like a beige and black.

Speaker 5 (01:01:14):
And then they had this whole new house line. I
don't know if they have it in New York or not,
but an awesome new.

Speaker 3 (01:01:20):
I haven't been to New York in such a long time,
so I don't know. I did. I saw that looks
like a really nice quality of short.

Speaker 6 (01:01:30):
Yeah, very good.

Speaker 3 (01:01:31):
And someone my sister in law has the baby.

Speaker 5 (01:01:34):
I mean, this is this is twenty five dollars, like
at all official Harry Potter.

Speaker 3 (01:01:40):
Merch you know, twenty five dollars water, there you go,
twenty five dollars.

Speaker 2 (01:01:48):
Shirt is eighty dollars and that's not even happening. So
I'd say that's a great deal.

Speaker 1 (01:01:56):
I'd say the twenty five is Ooh, I like that.
I like that like lithering.

Speaker 4 (01:02:00):
Yeah, I saw the helpful puff version of that. It's
real cool. I love a good spirit jersey.

Speaker 1 (01:02:06):
Is that Is that a T shirt or is it
a sweatshirt?

Speaker 6 (01:02:10):
That's a spirit Jersey.

Speaker 4 (01:02:11):
Spirit jersey has its own thickness. I feel like it's
thicker than a T shirt, but thinner than a sweatshirt.

Speaker 2 (01:02:18):
That's really cool.

Speaker 5 (01:02:19):
Here's the Goblin fire alarm. Sorry everyone who's listening. What
I love is the top because it has the maze.

Speaker 1 (01:02:28):
Oh that's really well, that's really awesome.

Speaker 5 (01:02:31):
Yeah, so anyone listening, I will be doing a merch hall,
so I'll be able to show you guys all this
that'll be coming at some point.

Speaker 1 (01:02:38):
I love that.

Speaker 5 (01:02:40):
Yeah, so there's some Oh there was a cup a
new mug. I wanted to show you guys, so talk
most of yourselves while I dig through my bags.

Speaker 3 (01:02:49):
Shipping for the sweater, it's eleven nine cents.

Speaker 1 (01:02:53):
Is do they do free shipping over a certain amount though?

Speaker 4 (01:02:57):
See that's girl math that I don't think I should
be dabbling with right now.

Speaker 1 (01:03:02):
It's because if I want no, no, no, if I
want something.

Speaker 3 (01:03:05):
Too, I don't know. Let's I mean, that's true.

Speaker 1 (01:03:10):
We could I'm shopping on the website right.

Speaker 3 (01:03:12):
Now, but then I would have showing to get it
to the other person anyway.

Speaker 1 (01:03:17):
Yeah, but we can wait till we're shipping other things.
It's not like we don't mail stuff to each other anyway.

Speaker 3 (01:03:22):
That's true.

Speaker 2 (01:03:23):
It's media media mail. You're fraudulent. I'll just like you
shove it inside of a hand book books such a
weird shape, I don't know.

Speaker 4 (01:03:34):
Yeah, like this twenty five dollars sweater is now forty
dollars and like what.

Speaker 2 (01:03:39):
If you are what if you wrapped a book in it?

Speaker 1 (01:03:43):
I'm looking for their like for like the.

Speaker 2 (01:03:47):
Like protection. Yeah, it's a hat like padding.

Speaker 3 (01:03:51):
Oh that's nice.

Speaker 5 (01:03:53):
That's really nice. Four houses, aren't these gorgeous?

Speaker 3 (01:03:56):
Yeah? That's really that's really lovely.

Speaker 1 (01:03:57):
It looks like it's a most sparkling they did.

Speaker 3 (01:04:00):
Yeah, glass did you get fuses?

Speaker 5 (01:04:03):
No, I will be getting all four houses. I need
to go back and get them. But like the bottom
is like the house color, but it's all just still clear.
And this is metal, like a little metal, so you
can't put this in the microwave.

Speaker 6 (01:04:15):
But this was eighteen.

Speaker 2 (01:04:20):
That's very really nice.

Speaker 1 (01:04:22):
Yeah, that's really nice.

Speaker 2 (01:04:23):
What what is the first beverage you'll be drinking out
of that cup?

Speaker 3 (01:04:28):
I hope it's I hope it's butter beer from the World's.

Speaker 1 (01:04:35):
How do the shirts fitter? Do they fit larger? Do
they fit?

Speaker 5 (01:04:38):
We're small, they fit, they fit pretty normal. I feel
fit pretty normal.

Speaker 4 (01:04:47):
But if you're going to get a spirit jersey again,
they have their own thickness and they also have their
own sizing.

Speaker 3 (01:04:52):
Spirit jerseys in general just always run big.

Speaker 6 (01:04:55):
That's true Spirit jerseys.

Speaker 5 (01:04:56):
Yeah. So what else?

Speaker 3 (01:05:01):
Oh I saw that? I don't know.

Speaker 2 (01:05:04):
I don't know.

Speaker 5 (01:05:05):
We're just like chill, like shopping.

Speaker 1 (01:05:07):
I'm not shopping, I'm not We're just like so chill today.

Speaker 5 (01:05:10):
I love that.

Speaker 4 (01:05:12):
This is what like a phone call between all of us,
would all of us?

Speaker 5 (01:05:17):
That's true, it's what we've.

Speaker 3 (01:05:19):
Yes, this is just what we this is how we walk. Yeah,
I don't know. Do they have, like, do they have
those little kids sweaters in store?

Speaker 5 (01:05:31):
Peter, No, they don't. They do have They just have
the hairy ron Christmas sweaters, so they only have to.

Speaker 3 (01:05:42):
Like, can I get it shipped to the store and
then have you pick it up for me? I don't.
It's just principal. I don't want to pay twelve dollars shipping.
It's twelve dollars shipping, well, twenty five dollars. Sweater is
forty dollars. That's girl math that we're not doing girl math.
The girl math is Oh, it's it's twenty five dollars,
but if I spend fifty dollars then it's free shipping.

Speaker 4 (01:06:05):
So then I'm spending fifty dollars instead of forty dollars.
But I get two items.

Speaker 2 (01:06:10):
You get this sweater was fifty five dollars and it
has a slash heat through it, and it's only twenty
five dollars, So it's I've been buying it for the
regular price and you're getting two.

Speaker 5 (01:06:19):
Thinks there you go, Yeah, you can have a ship
to Chicago.

Speaker 3 (01:06:23):
No.

Speaker 4 (01:06:23):
I was just asking if I could get it chipped
to the store, because then I was like, Oh, if
I could get it shipped to the store and do
in store pickup, then I would just have you like
scoop it up the next time you're going to be there.

Speaker 5 (01:06:33):
Yeah, because I'm actually going to be there Friday.

Speaker 3 (01:06:37):
How far away is it from you Friday for me?

Speaker 5 (01:06:39):
I say forty five minutes.

Speaker 1 (01:06:41):
Oh that's bad.

Speaker 5 (01:06:43):
No, it's not bad. Yeah cool.

Speaker 2 (01:06:47):
Yeah. The parking situation, like get Harry Potter Chicago st.

Speaker 5 (01:06:50):
There are so there are lots of parking garages. I mean,
it's going to cost some money to park there, but.

Speaker 2 (01:06:57):
But it's they don't validate.

Speaker 5 (01:06:58):
No, they don't validate, but it is easy at least
to park there. I haven't explored street parking though, so
when I go, I'm going to try that first, because
behind the store there are lots of blocks that have
street parking. So I'll be curious to see if it's
easy to find street parking or if not.

Speaker 1 (01:07:16):
Otherwise, are the neighborhoods like safe to park along the
streets there or no, oh yeah I don't remember they are.

Speaker 5 (01:07:23):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:07:23):
Oh, let's see if they have a discount code a
discount I like the determination they have a spot to
put the discount code in, so they must offer discount codes.

Speaker 5 (01:07:37):
I was like, the sweater already something.

Speaker 3 (01:07:40):
It's already on sale, but I don't want to pay
twelve dollars shipping. I don't want to pay forty dollars
for twenty five dollars sweater.

Speaker 2 (01:07:47):
What what if the code got you free shipping but
it took off the sale price of the sweater.

Speaker 3 (01:07:53):
No, they're not doing it.

Speaker 2 (01:07:55):
But instead of paying sixty free shipping.

Speaker 5 (01:08:00):
Sipping in the sweater, you know you're you're paying forty.
There are thirty seven dollars.

Speaker 3 (01:08:08):
Wait, I might get an additional percentage off if I
sign up for emails.

Speaker 1 (01:08:13):
There you go, oh, then totally.

Speaker 3 (01:08:17):
Then it's then it's maybe but myself to patipping.

Speaker 2 (01:08:20):
So I think we can let you figure this out.

Speaker 5 (01:08:30):
Well, guys, I have any more question.

Speaker 2 (01:08:32):
On your own time?

Speaker 1 (01:08:33):
Because yeah, I know, but I think I think they'll
come up later. Yeah, that's fun, But I'm I've started
talking about.

Speaker 2 (01:08:45):
Books since this is Dialogue Alley briefly. German has new
cover art that's coming out.

Speaker 1 (01:08:53):
I miss it coming out.

Speaker 2 (01:08:54):
Yeah, Carlson's up to their old ways and the.

Speaker 1 (01:08:57):
New like it's wonderful new art. It's lovely. They have
got a few scenes on like books five and I'm
one of the other ones that we've never had on
book covers before, like around the World. And then Solani
is putting out their version of the Stephen Fairch covers,
which are the twenty twenty three French covers that are

(01:09:18):
also in Greek. So I'm really excited to see what Soilani,
which is the Italian publisher, what they do. If they're hardcover,
I'm just gonna have to buy the set. I've already
prepared myself.

Speaker 2 (01:09:30):
To the new Check art that's unique.

Speaker 1 (01:09:33):
I don't know if you yeah, the Check twenty fifth
anniversary that's up for pre order, and it's just the
book one. From what I can see, I haven't found like
a set. It's just the first book, which is nice.
Other than that, I can't think nice for me too.
I can't think of anything else. I've been looking mostly

(01:09:57):
at like the books that have existed.

Speaker 3 (01:10:00):
Can you guys text the group chat with the pictures
of the new German cover art so I don't have
to go digging in our discord find I'll do it
as much as I would to go do that, and
I'm sure it's in a very organized place in our discord,
because if you support us on Patreon, you get access
to our discord, which helps you in all sorts of
ways of collecting different Harry Potter books and different Harry
Potter cover arts. And we've reorganized our discord so there's

(01:10:25):
a way where there's like new releases, and then there'll
be like announcements of what the new releases are, and
then all these information about like here are the pictures
of it.

Speaker 4 (01:10:32):
Honestly, let me just look at the discord. You guys
don't have to text me. Let's see if I can
find it.

Speaker 1 (01:10:35):
I've already texted you.

Speaker 3 (01:10:37):
Oh all right, let's see how long it you'll have
it in several.

Speaker 4 (01:10:43):
Did right under the general tab is new releases fabulous,
And then you just look on that and New German
right there, bada boom, and then everyone talking about it,
which is so cute. I mean, oh, those are cool.

Speaker 2 (01:10:58):
It's love and they're different different, they're different.

Speaker 1 (01:11:06):
Wow, I'm excited.

Speaker 4 (01:11:09):
Where are you guys getting them from? We're ordering from.

Speaker 1 (01:11:14):
Probably Amazon Germany?

Speaker 3 (01:11:16):
Right?

Speaker 1 (01:11:17):
Are they cost effective?

Speaker 3 (01:11:23):
That's my favorite? I love Amazon, It's my favorite one.

Speaker 2 (01:11:28):
Amazon Japan is still my number one especially.

Speaker 1 (01:11:31):
Because Japan is really good too.

Speaker 2 (01:11:33):
Beautiful black box set with the gold foil, it's beautiful,
like well, for an extra seven hundred yen you can
have it in one week shipping like that's like three
and a half dollars.

Speaker 3 (01:11:45):
Guys, is there gonna be a box.

Speaker 2 (01:11:51):
With Carlson?

Speaker 1 (01:11:53):
I want to say, we know there is going to
be a box?

Speaker 3 (01:11:56):
Do I wait for the party?

Speaker 2 (01:11:58):
Do you want the box?

Speaker 5 (01:12:00):
But the thing is I want.

Speaker 4 (01:12:03):
Mel always wants the box. However, does Mel want a
Carlson box? Because I don't listen to any of our
episodes and we've talked about box sets Carlson's boxes notoriously.
While the condition of their books and the quality are
always an O for outstanding, the quality of the box

(01:12:25):
itself is always a tea patrol.

Speaker 8 (01:12:29):
So l Discord Lauren's and the Discord replied and said
that the publisher replied that a box set was.

Speaker 1 (01:12:40):
Currently not the plan, but that they will pass on
her wish. So if they plan one, it could be
our Discord's fault.

Speaker 3 (01:12:49):
Oh my god, you heard it here, folks. Silage ally.

Speaker 2 (01:12:55):
Contracting the publishers.

Speaker 3 (01:12:58):
When did they come out?

Speaker 1 (01:13:01):
September? So we've got some time to budget.

Speaker 3 (01:13:03):
Oh, all right, that's fine, I can. I can make that.
I'm budgeting for.

Speaker 1 (01:13:07):
The French, the New French. I think the new French
books come out in May, though.

Speaker 9 (01:13:14):
New French French, the the Italian Stephen Fair comes out
May sixth check I think is also May.

Speaker 1 (01:13:24):
But those are pre ordered.

Speaker 2 (01:13:26):
I pre ordered.

Speaker 1 (01:13:26):
I did a group order for those, and Peter, I
might have got you one too, I don't remember.

Speaker 3 (01:13:33):
I think you did. You get me one? You might
not have. It's okay if you didn't.

Speaker 1 (01:13:36):
I think I did. I don't remember now if you
put you wanted one in the pre order in the discord,
then I ordered those.

Speaker 3 (01:13:47):
Oh, I don't know. I'm terrible the discord. I'm so sorry, guy,
I love I love every one of you listening, and
I'm so sorry that I'm not active in the discord.
I have a six.

Speaker 1 (01:13:56):
If you didn't put in the discord, I can I
can order if you didn't put one there, it's very easy.
I can either order you want, or I can show
you how and where you're from. But it's easy. I
know I got you. I think one of the site
edged Slovak books though, and same for Peter, was that was.

Speaker 4 (01:14:12):
No, that was what I That was what I wanted
you to get me. That matters a lot more for me.

Speaker 1 (01:14:17):
Okay, well it's it's on the way.

Speaker 3 (01:14:20):
Fabulous, Oh my gosh.

Speaker 4 (01:14:22):
And for all other book conversation news, you could, like
I said, support us on Patreon, have access to our discord.
You can message us on Instagram on any of our
Instagram platforms, mainly at Dialogue Ali podcast is where you
can get in touch with us. But you could get

(01:14:45):
in touch with us your email, you could go to
our website. Our website is getting quite a bit of
traction on some of these like Harry Potter book collector
groups on Facebook, which is like our a goal because
we have a way to see if your Harry Potter

(01:15:05):
book is valuable with this cool little interactive flow chart
kind of thing right on our website which is Dialogue
Alley dot com. And you could see so many video
content things about so many of the epic things that
we talked about today, as always on Peter's channel on

(01:15:28):
YouTube Potter Collector. If you don't know, that's who he is,
He's a Potter collector all these things.

Speaker 5 (01:15:35):
What you what me the Potter who told you that?

Speaker 3 (01:15:41):
Is that guy, the Potter Collector.

Speaker 4 (01:15:42):
Wait, there was one time when you came to visit
and you like just showed up like at my door,
and then we just like went to the park and
like I posted like a picture like on just like
my Facebook or I posted it on Instagram because it
was like Nora's first time going down to slide.

Speaker 3 (01:15:57):
So that was why I like posted the picture. But
you were in the picture because she was you were
putting her down the slide. I love that.

Speaker 4 (01:16:05):
But like it's so funny to me because then like
some random commented on it saying, like, is that the
Potter Collector.

Speaker 3 (01:16:10):
I'm like, no, it's my friend Peter. Leave me alone.

Speaker 4 (01:16:15):
But in real life, like he's the Potter Collector and
he's real cool and he's got so many videos on
all these things and more to come because he's gonna
go back for more epic things and he did a
lot of epic videos and there's gonna be Moore coming out.

Speaker 5 (01:16:29):
Yeah, mucho videos on the way.

Speaker 3 (01:16:32):
Amazing. But for now, it is time to walk back
to the arch right into your daily lives, and we
will catch you next time. Bye bye bye. Yeah

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