The Disneyland Book of Secrets 2014: One Local's Unauthorized, Rapturous and Indispensable Guide to the Happiest Places on Earth (178 page)

Guests can expect to find the typical
DCA
fruit cart fare here: Apples, bananas, berry bowls, carrots, grapes, hummus, pickles, trail mix, and so forth, as well as juice and water.  Less healthy treats include chips ($3 per bag) and sodas.  As of this writing, you’ll pay between $2 and $4 for the food items, and between $2 and $4.50 for each beverage.  If you want a drink or a light nosh while you’re exploring
DCA
’s
Hollywood
district, this is a great place to stop. 
Did You Know? 
There really is a Fairfax Market in Los Angeles, a large farmer’s market at Fairfax and 3
rd
.  Guests who want to visit the real McCoy should proceed to 6333 West 3
rd
Street.  The famous Farmer’s Market began in 1934, when local farmers congregated on the patch of land at Fairfax and 3
rd
known as Gilmore’s Island and sold produce and flowers from their trucks.  An instant success, the market flourished and grew over the years.  Its famous clock tower was added in 1941.  The Farmer’s Market has hosted auto shows, circuses, and petting zoos, and more than a decade into the new millennium is still one of L.A.’s biggest tourist attractions, as well as a local hot spot.  The Gilmore of Gilmore’s Island was a successful entrepreneur and oil man who built Gilmore Stadium, home of L.A.’s first professional football team, the Bulldogs, and Gilmore Field, home of Hollywood’s minor league baseball team the
Hollywood All Stars
(in which
Walt
owned a partial interest).  As a local,
Walt
visited the Fairfax Farmer’s Market, and it’s said that he sketched some of his
Disneyland
designs while dining there.  For more fun facts, visit the Fairfax Farmer’s Market website at
www.farmersmarketla.com
.

Mad T Party Production Truck
(Formally:
Studio Catering Co.
)
(S)

[
FastView:
 
Delicious non-alcoholic beverages available in novelty cups.
]

Like the
Little Red Wagon
in
Disneyland
,
Studio Catering Co.
operates out of a truck and has a simple, tasty menu.  The
Little Red Wagon
is all about corn dogs. 
Studio Catering Co.
used to be all about sandwiches and salads, but its appearance and menu change to fit the district’s latest nighttime extravaganza.

Given Hollywood’s glamorous history, you’d think that
Hollywood Pictures Backlot
would’ve have included at least one upscale, table-service restaurant on the scale and with the quality of a
Blue Bayou
or
Wine Country Trattoria
, or at least an elegantly decorated
buffeteria
, a Hollywood-themed version of the
Plaza Inn
.

And when this corner of the park opened it
did
have an establishment with four counter service eateries based on Hollywood landmarks: 
Hollywood and Dine
.  But
Hollywood and Dine
didn’t last long.  When
Hollywood Pictures Backlot
was refurbished as
Hollywood Land
, a more glamorous eatery modeled on one or more of Hollywood’s famous old restaurants wasn’t added, but Guests seeking fine dining need only visit the nearby
Carthay Circle Restaurant
, at the heart of
Buena Vista Street
, for a glimpse of glamorous old Hollywood charm.

DCA
’s
Hollywood Land
offers fast, simple snack counters and snack stands, the franks at
Award Wieners
, fruits and veggies at
Fairfax Market
, and beverages at
Schmoozies
.  All three of those eateries are located on
DCA
’s
Hollywood Boulevard
, and, especially on peak days in summer and during the holiday season, lines can be long.

Studio Catering Co.
(presently the
Mad T Party Production Truck
) is the only snack shop off the beaten track, as it were, tucked away in the northwest corner of the district in the backlot area near the
House of Cards
.  Consequently, it sometimes has shorter lines than the snack counters on the boulevard.

You c
ouldn’t fault the authenticity of the original
Studio Catering Co.
  The bright red truck was precisely the type of catering truck you’d find at real film and television studios and location shoots, where cast and crew members hurriedly queue to grab morsels between long hours of setting up and filming.

A real catering truck, of course, would have a much more robust menu, but part of the efficiency of
Disney
snack trucks is the simplicity of their offerings.  Guests who visited the original
Studio Catering Co.
could choose the
Grilled Chicken Breast Caesar Salad
for $8.49, or one of three sandwiches for $7.99 each.  There was a
Grilled Veggie Sandwich
,
Roast Beef & Cheddar Cheese Sandwich
, and
Turkey Club Sandwich
.  All were served on focaccia bread, which was
au courrant
in Lalaland (aka Los Angeles).  Marinated slaw was served on the side.

Lo and behold, along came
ElecTRONica
in 2010, and the truck was re-designed, and painted, and sold ElecTRONica-themed snacks and beverages.

Then, in summer 2012, the
Mad T Party
replaced
ElecTRONica
.  The truck was re-designed and re-painted (no one re-purposes like the
Imagineers
!) to fit the trippy
Wonderland
environment.

The truck is a deep purple now, adorned with pink hearts. 
Although the
Mad T Party
only happens at night, you can buy beverages at the truck all day.  Sorry–no snacks–only drinks.  But what drinks!  Sure, there are the standard sodas, Fuze drinks, and waters for $3 - $3.59, but there are also specialty drinks that are absolutely mad!

The unique drinks are non-alcoholic, and are called
Twisted Chesire Concoctions
.  Each will run you around $4.50.  The
Chesire Chiller
is pear-flavored. 
Hatter’s Mandarin Fury
is orange-flavored. 
Jabberwocky Juice
tastes of Granny Smith apples. My fave,
Tweedle Blue
, tastes like cotton candy.  These chillers are delightful, but sometimes the machines break down–so don’t set your heart on a particular flavor.  Be ready to order whatever flavor is available.

For an additional $3 - $3.50, your concoctions will be served in souvenir sippers that you can wash and keep as mementos of your visit.  The
Mad Hat T-Cup
is styled like the Mad Hatter’s mercury green topper, down to the famous “10/6” price tag.  The blue
Mad T Party Sipper
is emblazoned with a hot-pink
Chesire Cat
face.  The
Wiggly Yard
is an elongated, undulating, neon-yellow-green container resembling a contemporary update of antique, spiraling drinking horns.

This
Mad T Party
truck was open even before the
Mad T Party
took
DCA
by storm; when my neice and I roamed nearby
Condor Flats
sipping from
Mad Hat T-Cups
, before the
Mad T Party
caught fire, Guests were intrigued by the souvenir cups.  People wondered:  Where did we get them?  How much did they cost?  Did the drinks taste good?  So, if
you
want a deliciously mad drink, and a conversation-starting souvenir cup, get thee to the
Mad T Party Truck
!

After darkness falls, and the
Mad T Party
begins, Guests can purchase alcoholic drinks at a little stand called
Drink Me
near the
Hollywood Backlot Stage
, or at the
House of Cards Lounge
near the
House of Cards
.

Drink Me
and
The House of Cards Lounge
share the same menu.  (
Drink Me
wins, style-wise, for its colorful potion bottles and its inverted chandelier.)  The
Croquet Tini
(like a Cosmopolitan) or
Mad Hat-Ito
(think Mojito) or
Mad Long Island Iced T Party
cost a whopping $11.50 and up each–but they
glow
.  Beers are more economical: 
Royal Milliner’s Brews
are
Blue Moon Beer
or
Fat Tire Amber Ale
for around $7.50 each.  Non-alcoholic offerings at
Drink Me
include sodas and water for $3 - $4, or a
Wonderful Underland Cotton Candy Lemonade
for about $4.

Guests who want snacks should exit through the
Rabbit Hole
and visit the snack carts parked near
Gone Hollywood
, or visit
Award Wieners
. 
Gone Hollywood
(and the more distant
Trolley Treats
&
Atwater Ink & Paint
) often sell
Mad T Party
-themed snacks like lollipops, candies, and confetti popcorn.  At the
Mad T Party Truck
and
Drink Me
and the
House of Cards Lounge
, it’s all about the lunatic beverages! 
Did You Know?
  In its earliest years,
Studio Catering Co.
was called
The Between Takes Truck
and it used to serve beer.  The truck’s name, location, and menu were changed during a 2006 backlot refurbishment which included the addition of dark ride
Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue
. This truck, which has gone through so many costume changes over the years, might be one of the backlot’s most versatile players.
Did You Also Know?
  When
Walt
designed his new
Buena Vista Street
studio in the late 1930’s, he included many elements that would pamper and energize employees.  Many team members had been with
Walt
and
Roy
for years, working in the cramped
Kingswell
and imperfect
Hyperion
studios and loyally enduring all kinds of shortages, extreme temperatures, and technical and facility challenges. 
Walt
and his staff from the early days knew what it was like to grab cheap meals from food trucks.  The success of
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
finally gave
Walt
and
Roy
the clout to borrow enough money to create an elaborate, high-tech studio complex from the ground up, and one of the features
Walt
insisted on was a pleasant studio cafeteria where employees paid
less than cost
for their tasty meals. 
Character Vision:
  Guests who have valid
Disney Visa cards
and want a private audience with
Disney characters
(usually
Minnie
or
Stitch
) should venture to the
House of Cards Lounge
(across from the
Mad T Party Truck
) between about 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. daily.  A discreet blue sign shows cardmembers where to queue, and there is a Cast Member on hand to manage the queue and answer questions.  Lines are very short; within minutes, you and up to five companions (who do not have to be cardmembers) will be ushered behind the
House of Cards Lounge
to meet a
Disney character
.  It’s a nice change of pace from contending with the long, crowded meet-and-greet lines of, say,
Main Street
.  The character greets you and your party, and poses for a picture or two.  The pace is relaxed and unhurried, the character’s attention fully focused on you and your companions.  A
Disneyland photographer
is on hand to take a photo that will be loaded onto a photocard or directly onto your
Annual Pass
if you’re a passholder.  Present your photocard at
Kingswell Camera Shop
on
Buena Vista Street
for a free–yes,
free
–5” x 7” print of your photo session, yours to keep and enjoy.  The photographer will also be happy to snap a picture using
your
camera or cell phone.  For many
Disney Visa
cardmembers, this meet-and-greet perk surpasses other rewards!