Finnegan's Construction Walls Start Coming Down at Universal Studios Florida, and the Regal Cafe Sign Is Back on Its Corner

The Regal Cafe sign is back on its New York street corner. Nine months after Finnegan's Bar & Grill closed for its refurbishment, the first stretch of its makeover has come out from behind the walls at Universal Studios Florida.

Photographer bioreconstruct shared the photos, which WDW News Today ran on Tuesday as a first look. Part of the construction walls, scaffolding and scrim is gone, though the pub itself is still closed.

The refurbished Regal Cafe corner, with its new striped awning. Image: bioreconstruct

The Regal Cafe corner comes out first

The corner of the building that carries the Regal Cafe facade is now clear of walls. According to WDW News Today, it has been freshly painted brown and has new beige and striped brown awnings. The signs on its walls and windows look refreshed or replaced, with no visible design changes from before.

The big hanging Regal Cafe sign has returned too, out over the sidewalk. It was not lit in the photos, so whether the neon has been updated is still WDW News Today's guess rather than a confirmed detail.

The Regal Cafe sign back on its bracket over the sidewalk. Image: bioreconstruct

Why this corner first? According to WDW News Today, The Blues Brothers Show, which performs across the street, uses the Regal Cafe facade as its technical booth, and this stretch of New York also hosts Downtown Clowntown, a Halloween Horror Nights scare zone, so this corner was probably finished first. That last part is WDW News Today's guess, not something Universal has said.

The Finnegan's entrance is not finished

The pub's own entrance has been revealed as well, but it does not look complete. It is the same blue-green as before, just freshly repainted, with the same gold designs on the windows. Still missing: the Finnegan's signs and the awning.

The Finnegan's entrance, repainted but still without its sign and awning, with construction walls still up beside it. Image: bioreconstruct

WDW News Today expects the bigger changes to be inside. WDW News Today reported in April that the interior had been gutted and part of the facade torn down, and it now says work has also recently begun on the attached Priscilla Hotel facade.

When does it reopen?

Not yet. Finnegan's closed on January 12, 2026, and Universal's Temporary Closures list gave its return only as "Winter 2026" in the October 8 screenshot of that list we published on October 9. Inside Universal's weekly roundup this week also says Finnegan's "is scheduled to reopen in Winter 2026."

So part of the exterior is finished, but WDW News Today does not expect the pub back this year, and the latest listings give nothing more precise than Winter 2026. What are you hoping changes inside: the menu, the bar, or nothing at all?

Sources

• WDW News Today, "First Look at Refurbished Finnegan's Bar & Grill Facade as Construction Walls are Removed in Universal Studios Florida" (October 13, 2026)
• bioreconstruct on X (photos)
• Inside Universal, "What's Happening at the Universal Parks: Week of October 12, 2026" (October 12, 2026)
• WDW News Today, "Finnegan's Bar & Grill at Universal Studios Florida Gutted Amidst Closure" (April 23, 2026)
• Parks Magic, Universal's Temporary Closures list (October 9, 2026)

Image credits: bioreconstruct (all photos, via WDW News Today).