August 28 update: We're nearing the launch of Disneyland's new Adventureland restaurant, Tropical Hideaway, and as it is with every Disney project—especially when it comes to those food-related—the fandom is getting hungry. But today, Disney Parks Blog is tiding all of us over with a bit more intel on what we can expect from the Jungle Cruise-adjacent concept, which is set to open later this year.
We already knew that the new space will include a patio and a traders' market, but now we've got an idea of just what we'll be eating and finding there: Disney promises "a variety of unique food and beverage items," including steamed bao in at least three iterations: spiced vegetable, kaffir lime chicken, and bulgogi beef. We can also expect chilled ramen salads, tropical-inspired snacks and, for dessert, pineapple lumpia that's stuffed with pineapple and sweet cream cheese before hitting the fryer.
As we mentioned in our original story last February, a permit had been filed for "open flames and torches"—and it looks like Tropical Hideaway will offer that, and more. Today's post promises seating on the "open-air dock" patio, which overlooks the Jungle Cruise's waters, plus "flickering torch lights [that] will illuminate the area, transforming The Tropical Hideaway into an enchanting nighttime venue." Read Disney Parks Blog's full post here.
Photograph: Courtesy Disney
Original February 23 story:
In a surprise announcement yesterday, Disney dropped a simple but effective Adventureland bomb that’s got longtime fans hungry for more: Disneyland is scrapping Aladdin’s Oasis and adding a new food outpost with tables overlooking the beloved Jungle Cruise ride.
“This new experience will soon appear along the tropical shores nestled between the Jungle Cruise and ‘Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room,’” the release on the Disney Parks Blog says. “This one-of-a-kind destination will be a popular rest stop for Adventureland locals and weary explorers alike. Guests will be able to rub elbows with their favorite skippers in an exotic traders’ market, featuring all of the sights, sounds and flavors of the tropics.”
Sporting a name that's likely a nod to the adjacent Tiki Room’s theme song—“Welcome to our tropical hideaway, you lucky people, you”—the Tropical Hideaway will sit on the former grounds of Disney’s long-running restaurant, Tahitian Terrace, a Polynesian-inspired eatery that stood from 1962 to 1993 before transforming into a theater for a former Aladdin live show. There’s no word yet whether the Tropical Hideaway will replicate Hong Kong Disneyland’s modern quick-and-casual, all-halal Tahitian Terrace restaurant, nor Disneyland’s original Tahitian Terrace concept—which included Tahitian dance shows that involved live firewalking.
Disney’s fandom is second to none, with parkgoers and brand enthusiasts keeping a close eye on legal matters; rumors of Tahitian Terrace’s return sprouted up in 2015 when popular fan site MousePlanet caught wind of a permit the park filed with the City of Anaheim for “OPEN FLAMES AND TORCHES ‘TAHITIAN TERRACE.’” At the end of December another fan site, Walt Disney World News Today, noticed a new permit for the space that included plans for an interior remodel and extension of the wood deck, plus new guardrails, stairs and access ramps, and the demolition of Aladdin’s Oasis’s exterior wall.
The Tropical Hideaway’s not the only Disney dining news; just this week the park also announced the June 23 launch of Lamplight Lounge, which is replacing California Adventure’s popular Cove Bar as the area transitions into Pixar Pier (don’t worry, yes, it’ll still serve cocktails and Cove Bar’s lobster nachos). There’s also a Ballast Point Brewery slated to open in Downtown Disney later this year, in addition to an expanded Naples Ristorante e Pizzeria, and a new burger-and-beer spot that’s “reminiscent of a classic American luncheonette but with a distinctly New York vibe.”