The Disneyland Book of Secrets 2014: One Local's Unauthorized, Rapturous and Indispensable Guide to the Happiest Places on Earth (205 page)

Not interested in sampling a skewer?  Order a
Beef Gyro
for $12, a
Greek Salad
for $8.50, or feed your sweet tooth with a serving of
Baklava
for $3.69.  It’s lovely to see the resort expanding its menu choices to include interesting, more grown-up flavors and textures in its cuisine.  The
Baklava
, for example, is a little poem of pastry, chopped pistachios, walnuts, and orange-flower-flavored syrup.  Another dessert choice is the
Strawberry Brownie and Strawberry Skewer
for $5.

Beverage choices are standard–coffee, juice, milk, soda, tea
, or water, ranging from $2 to $3.50 each, or
Blue Moon
or
Samuel Adams
beer for $7 each.

If you order early in the day, just after the park has opened, you might encounter some delays; I had to wait almost fifteen minutes for my
Grilled Steak Skewer
, for example, the first time I visited
Paradise Garden Grill
.  But the restaurant was so new; the paint had hardly dried; and the quality of the food was high enough, and the portion substantial enough, that it was well worth the wait time.  And service has speeded up in the years since then.

Some veteran Guests might miss the old
Burger Invasion
, but many are thrilled with the fresh new fare.  So the next time you’re at
Paradise Pier
, give skewers a chance! 
Did You Know?
  Craving a burger while you’re at
DCA
?  File a flight plan for the
Taste Pilots’ Grill
in
Condor Flats
! 
Did You Know?
  What used to occupy the space now filled with charming terraces, palm trees, and tables?  The good old
S.S. rustworthy
, the nautical water-play area sponsored by McDonald’s.  The tiny firefighting ship was demolished to make way for the new
Paradise Pier
dining area.  “Rust in peace” little
rustworthy
!

Paradise Pier Ice Cream Co.
(Formerly
Catch-a-Flave
) (S)

[
FastView:
 
Soft serve ice cream and root beer floats.  Prepare for long, slow lines during peak seasons.
]

Service is typically friendly but slow at this ice cream counter on the northeast shore of
Paradise Bay
.  Formerly called
Catch-a-Flave
and painted in cool whites and laid-back pastels, this ice cream spot had a vibe that was pure California chillaxed.

By winter 2010 it was renovated to resemble an old-time seaside ice cream parlor; the color is vibrant eggnog-gold.  But Type A personalities take note–though the style is now retro, the service is still surfer-dude mellow!  Prepare to be patient when you queue, or grab a seat on a nearby bench, Zen-out
, and enjoy the beauty of
Paradise Bay
while a Type B pal waits in line!

Paradise Pier Ice Cream Co.
sells a limited assortment of sodas and coffee, ranging from $2.79 to $3.50 each, but the focus here is
Chocolate
,
Vanilla
, or
Chocolate-and-Vanilla Swirl
soft serve ice cream.  A regular cup or cone is $3.49.  A large cup or cone is $3.99.

The ice cream use
d to have a twist, literally:  A twist of colorful, flavored syrup injected into your soft serve.  The flavors were
Bubblegum
,
Butter Pecan
,
Chocolate
,
Cotton Candy
,
Grape
,
Lemon
,
Orange
, or
Strawberry
.  But new ice cream machines installed in 2010 weren’t designed to inject flavored syrup, so the special twist was discontinued.

Want something more substantial than a cup or cone?  Order a
Beachfront Float
for $4.59, a frothy blend of vanilla soft serve and your choice of Barq’s Root Beer, Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, or Sprite.

That’s it for the menu, and with such a simple selection you’d think
Paradise Pier Ice Cream Co.
would be as fast and efficient as, say, the
Little Red Wagon
over at
Disneyland
.  It’s not. But on a hot summer day, the wait for these ice cream treats is worth it.  My brother, a self-professed ice cream fanatic, includes this on his short list of the best spots at
DCA
. 
Did You Know?
  The eatery’s former name
Catch-a-Flave
was a nod to The Beach Boys’ 1963 song “Catch a Wave”.  The Beach Boys joined forces in 1961, a quintet of surf-loving relatives and friends who became the lyrical troubadours of the So Cal beach scene and So Cal lifestyle in general.  Of their many hits, “Little Surfer Girl” and “Good Vibrations” are, like “Catch a Wave”, standout surf culture anthems. 
Kid’s Eye View:
  I like it a lot, but there’s usually a long line.

Paradise Pier Character Meetings and Performers

The most exceptional character you’ll meet at
Paradise Pier
just might be the
Audio-Animatronic
Mr. Potato Head
that stands outside
Toy Story Midway Mania!
serving as barker.  Barking real phrases voiced by the inimitable
Don Rickles
,
Mr. Potato Head
is a new-generation
AA
figure with fluid gestures, realistic cartoon eye movements, and the ability to discern salient Guest features, for example, whether a Guest is wearing a light shirt, or has glasses, etc.  Whether gently insulting Guests or trying to drum up business for
Toy Story Midway Mania!
,
Mr. Potato Head
is always lively and entertaining.

Other
Disney-Pixar
characters that appear in
Paradise Pier
are the
Green Army Men
, who drive up in a green Jeep and conduct an interactive show.  Clad head to toe in molded green plastic, with faces and hands painted perfectly to match, the
Green Army Men
bark out their dialogue with the crisp, deadpan, military aplomb of their
Toy Story
counterparts and draw big applause from Guests.  If you or your kids are
Toy Story
fans, check the
DCA Entertainment Times Guide
for
Operation:  Playtime!  Featuring the Green Army Men
show times during your visit.

A
major concentration of
Disney
characters in
Paradise Pier
can be found at
Ariel’s Grotto
, the restaurant at
Paradise Pier
’s northeastern entrance, just over the bridge.  Be prepared to pay about $20 to $30 each for you and your little ones to meet
Disney Princesses
like
Ariel
,
Aurora
,
Belle
,
Cinderella
, and
Snow White
while you dine.  Bring your cameras and an autograph book or pad of paper to collect princess autographs.  If you can swing the price of the meal, the
Disney Princess
fans in your group will be enchanted.

On October 14, 2010,
Duffy the Disney Bear
joined the
Disney
meet-and-greet characters at
Paradise Pier
.  An adorable stuffed bear in a white-and-blue sailor cap and sailor shirt,
Duffy
is a teddy bear that
Minnie
made for
Mickey
to keep him company on a long ocean voyage. Sometimes Guests can meet him near
Treasures in Paradise
.
Duffy
merchandise and dolls are for sale at resort stores.

Among the more recent
additions to the characters you’ll see along
Paradise Bay
are the lovable and ever-ingenious
Phineas
and
Ferb
, animated
Disney Channel
stars who began visiting the pier near
Ariel’s Undersea Adventure
in June of 2011.  The boys’ customized
Mobile Party Mobile
brings Guests a
Rockin’ Rollin’ Dance Party
that includes a DJ playing lively
Phineas
and
Ferb
tunes, and
Fireside Girls
leading Guests in fun dance moves.  Check your park guide for exact times, but the boys are usually rockin’ and rollin’ at 10:30 am, 11:30 am, 12:30 pm, 1:30 pm, 3:25 pm & 4:25 pm.  During the holiday season, the show gets an extra bit of holiday
pixie dust
.

Summer 2011 also saw the introduction of the
Paradise Garden Bandstand
, where a wide variety of bands entertain Guests dining near the
Paradise Garden Grill
and the
Corn Dog Castle
.  This picturesque gazebo hosts Dixieland, swing, jazz, country, and Latin bands–you never know what great music you’ll encounter on this shore of the bay.

During the holiday season, Guests
used to find
Santa Claus
near the giant Christmas tree overlooking
Paradise Bay
. 
Santa
sat near
Ariel’s Grotto
and
Treasures in Paradise
, ready to pose for photos, sign autograph books, and wish Guests a “Merry Christmas”.  However,
Santa
’s new meet-and-greet spot, beginning in winter 2012, is the lovely
Elias & Co. Department Store
on
Buena Vista Street
.

The newest mini-show on the edge of
Paradise Bay
is
Instant Concert! … Just Add Water
.  Watch
Maestro Goofy
–resplendiferous in a tux with polka-dotted bow tie and cummerbund–as he conducts the fountains of
Paradise Bay
.  The music is synchronized to the fountains; the musical selections vary, but are peppy, and, like the conductor, a little goofy, in one case accented with clanking cow bells and sounds of laughter.  An unseen narrator reminiscent of
Disney
animator
John McLeish
, narrator of
Goofy
’s classic
How To
cartoons (c. 1940’s), narrates the concert, lending a modicum of dignity to the event.  Guests wandering
Paradise Pier
who suddenly see
Goofy
conducting the bay’s fountains experience a real
magic moment
.

Of course,
Paradise Pier
’s greatest
smorgasbord
of
Disney
and
Disney-Pixar
characters is served up in the nightly
World of Color
shows that began lighting up
Paradise Bay
on June 11, 2010.  You can’t meet these characters or get their autograph, since they’re giant images projected on the fountains and mists of
Paradise Bay
, but you’ll feel dazzled and enveloped by your favorite characters as never before!  And since the introduction of
Glow with the Show
, where Guests’ glowing
Ear Hats
are synchronized to the show,
World of Color
delivers even more world-class astonishment.  Images of
Frozen
characters appear in
WOC
’s
Winter Dreams
extravaganza beginning during the 2013 holiday season.

Sunshine Plaza
(
Buena Vista Street
renovations began January 2011;
Sunshine Plaza
closed forever August 29, 2011 as the intensive stage of renovations launched.  This is a “lost land”.)

Sunshine Plaza At-a-Glance
  (DCA’s “Lost Land” – R.I.P. 2011)

Amenities:
 
Guest Services

Attractions:
 
Glow Fest/ElecTRONica

Gear:
 
Engine Ears Toys
,
Greetings From California

Grub:
 
Baker’s Field Bakery
(L, D, S)
,
Bur-r-r Bank Ice Cream
(S)

Sunshine Plaza Introduction

Sunshine Plaza
no longer exists, except in the photographs and memories of those who visited it between 2001 and 2011.  Construction of
Buena Vista Steet
, which replaced
Sunshine Plaza
, began on January 1, 2011.  By August 2011,
Sunshine Plaza
was completely closed, never to re-open.  Guests can no longer see the places or experience the foods and entertainment described below.  The author includes this chapter nevertheless as a historic record of one of
DCA
’s lost lands.

* * *

From
Opening Day
in February of 2001, until its permanent closure in August of 2011,
Sunshine Plaza
cheerfully welcomed Guests to
Disney California Adventure Park
with enormous ceramic tile murals (the largest in the world) that depicted dozens of images of California; a small-scale replica of the Golden Gate Bridge across which the
Monorail
trains ran; a central icon in the form of a bright California sun; and California-themed tunes playing over hidden speakers.

Guests visiting
Disney California Adventure
in 2010 and 2011 savored
Sunshine Plaza
, because they knew that by 2012 it would be completely re-themed.  Rather than presenting a celebration of the state of California, rendered in a palette of blues, purples and oranges, reds and golds,
DCA
’s new entrance district,
Buena Vista Street
, is a vision of stucco and gleaming glass and clean Art Deco lines, a hyperreal evocation of the Los Angeles that
Walt
encountered when he moved to California in the summer of 1923.

Sunshine Plaza
is now only a scattered collection of memories and photos and videos. By autumn and winter of 2010, tarps draped the walls that had been adorned with colorful ceramic murals, the golden sun sculpture (irreverently nicknamed the
Hubcap
in its early days) had been dismantled, and construction walls had been erected in the plaza’s heart.  In January 2011, after the holiday celebrations ended,
Sunshine Plaza
’s face lift began in earnest.

Few Guests will miss
Sunshine Plaza
, which never had a clear connection to
Walt
or to
Disney
.  While bright and fun, it simply didn’t belong at a
Disney Park
.

Southern California has always been an interesting mix of the classy and the kitschy. 
It’s a region that cheerfully jumbles French Baroque and Greek Revival elements in its structures, that puts Victorian homes cheek-by-jowl with Googie architecture, that erects buildings shaped like hot dogs, vinyl records, giant donuts, dinosaurs, and hats.

Of course, you can find
outlandish signs and buildings shaped like strange things (birds, elephants, ketchup bottles, whales) all across the United States.  That’s good old American roadside architecture!  But L.A., Hollywood, and Southern California beaches have always been particularly famous for kitschy signs, and kitschy buildings, and blinking neon, all designed to catch tourists’ attention.

Sunshine Plaza
was built very much in that spirit.  It’s not that the enormous murals weren’t beautiful–they were.  Their organically flowing, kinetic images of California waves, shores, forests, mountains, and wildlife truly captured the natural and recreational beauty of the Golden State, and were the classiest parts of
Sunshine Plaza
.  The artist personally placed each tile by hand to ensure perfection.  It would have been nice if the
Sunshine Plaza
murals had been preserved, perhaps displayed in another part of the resort, rather than being destroyed like the
Mary Blair
murals in
Disneyland
’s
Tomorrowland
.  (Rumor has it that the
DCA
mural tiles were ground down, and the chips mixed into poured terrazzo floors at the
Disneyland Hotel
.)

The individual elements of
Sunshine Plaza
were fun.  The murals, the miniature Golden Gate Bridge, the intricately wrought metallic sun sculpture painstakingly shaped to dazzlingly reflect the sunlight, the
California Zephyr
train cars, the little Mission-style tower echoing L.A.’s Union Station–winners all, when viewed on their own merits.

The problem from
DCA
’s
Opening Day
onward was that when you put all of these elements together, and added the ginormous, cartoony signs for
Sunshine Plaza
’s stores, the result was a visually dissonant jumble.  Of course, that was the point.  The designers wanted the entrance to
DCA
to look like a busy, bright postcard, the kind that reads “Greetings from California”.  Vacationers used to send them back home to make friends and family a little jealous.

M
any of us have received or sent one of these postcards at some point in our life, a postcard crawling with mish-mashed images of California beaches and sunsets and orange groves and the front of Grauman’s Chinese Theater, postcards with glaring yellow lettering and the oranges colored so brightly that they burn your retinas.

Many Guests never understood one of
Sunshine Plaza
’s hidden-in-plain-sight secrets:  If you viewed it from the plaza between
Disneyland
and
DCA
,
Sunshine Plaza
looked
exactly
like a California picture postcard, with the sun setting behind the Golden Gate.

Sunshine Plaza
dramatically succeeded in mimicking one of these postcards, and that was an enormous problem for the
Disney Theme Park
.  With its dissonance and kitsch,
Sunshine Plaza
was the apotheosis of everything
Walt
disliked in family recreation. 
Walt
disliked the little motels and tourist traps that sprang up around
Disneyland
, and he probably would have disliked the cluttered, tourist-trap look of
Sunshine Plaza
.

From that perspective
,
Sunshine Plaza
epitomized where the original designers of
DCA
went wrong.  In crafting the original park, they neglected some of
Walt
’s philosophies and aesthetic mandates, and focused so narrowly on California themes that
Walt
and
Disney
were all but left out of the equation.

Imagineer
drafts and color renderings of
Buena Vista Street
, the land designed to replace
Sunshine Plaza
, presented a completely different vision, one that
Walt
probably would’ve liked:  Just as
Disneyland
’s Guests are welcomed by a charming, orderly
Main Street
evocative of
Walt
’s childhood, from 2012 onward
DCA
’s Guests are welcomed by a charming, orderly
Buena Vista
Street
evocative of
Walt
’s early years in Los Angeles.

The neat lines of Art Deco dominate the entrance gates.  The entire district
of
Buena Vista Street
is as clean and neat and aesthetically pleasing as a hyperreal rendering of early Los Angeles should be.  The miniature Golden Gate Bridge was re-themed as the
Hyperion Bridge
, based on an iconic L.A. bridge just down-the-street from
Walt
and
Roy
’s studio at
2719 Hyperion
.  Construction on the new bridge began in July 2011, immediately after the unveiling of the new entrance, which is modeled after the famous
Pan Pacific Auditorium
.