There are/were small nods to them at Universal Studios, with the now-closed Monsters Café and the still active Monster Movie Make-up show. Arrive at the show early enough to check out the exhibits in the lobby, with information about horror film directors and artifacts from the films. The live show is somewhat scripted, but with audience participation even the repeated gags make it fun to revisit. The hosts show film clips from many old monster movies, so it’s a great primer for families that may need to be reintroduced.

We found ourselves with an hour of extra time on a rainy summer afternoon. We waited most of the weather out in the lobby of our hotel, the Helios Grand, but decided to make a dash to the nearest park land as soon as the storm broke a bit. The Burning Blade Tavern, located at the back corner of Dark Universe, was a great spot to hunker down for drinks and snacks. We passed some of the time chatting with a “monster hunter” who was circulating the room to warn guests about the perils outside the bar.

The menu at Das Stakehouse is a glimpse into the vampire world of Darkmoor, with the stories of the monsters shown through the impressive decor. Like most of the restaurants in Epic Universe, the experience is a more upscale quick service, with mobile ordering on the app and table delivery. The cleverly themed and delicious “Our Favorite Vegan Familiar’s Stuffed Cabbage” was a great example of how Epic Universe has elevated its plant-based offerings for its vegan and vegetarian guests, even if it looked like real worms!

The queue for Monsters Unchained might be longer when outdoor rides have rain delays, but it’s still a great place to spend time when there are few other options. There are many rooms winding through the castle, each themed around a different monster’s origin story. 

The queue for Monsters Unchained moves very quickly and loads a lot of passengers. It was our second favorite ride in Epic Universe, and we rode it four times over our two days in the park. It was open during the early hour for hotel guests, and because there was a delay in running the rides in Super Mario World, we headed to Dark Universe. We were able to ride Monsters Unchained and Curse of the Werewolf in less than half an hour total.

If you don’t mind sitting with strangers, or if you are riding alone because spinning rides and roller coasters aren’t favored by your family, the single rider line was much shorter than standby during our entire time in the park. 

Epic Universe has stepped up with its character meet and greets, especially in Isle of Berk and Dark Universe. Meeting Frankenstein’s Monster and the Bride was one of the best character interactions we’ve had. They weren’t scheduled at specific times, so we had to ask staff members the next time to return as we passed by when the line had been closed off. 

One of the biggest challenges for a summertime visit to Epic Universe is that the park closes not long after sunset, leaving little time to see the many cool features of the lands after dark. While the rides of Darkmoor can easily be experienced during the day, it’s worth a quick trip back through the portal later to see the Burning Blade Tavern and Darkmoor Castle lit up at night. More monsters roam through the town in the evening also.