The first Friday of March kicked off Disney’s annual California Adventure Food & Wine Festival at the Hyperion Theater. Dozens of new items were being unveiled and the food tour featured a handful of professional chef demos which explained the recipes and the thought processes behind them; the drinks on the other hand were all self-explanatory.
As a rule, I don’t drink alcohol, but for the sake of professionalism, I did take a few swigs just to be thorough. To supplement the lack of liquor expertise, I had my wife and lovely plus one, Breean, rate and try the dishes with me. While half of the foods for this season were presented during the introductory live food demos, the rest were scattered about the park and become a full-day scavenger hunt to the the right restaurants and stands and their designated meals.
Pro-tip from Nana (the kind and clever Food & Beverage Cast Member who took our orders): Make sure you order everything you want to eat throughout the day at one of the stalls and keep that ticket with you to bring to each designated food stop, and they will just check off your list at the pick-up line. This saved us the longer wait times of having to stand in line and order each item at each place.
Food Ratings
Even though there are a bevy of new items, remixes and variations to choose from, our recommendations, on a scale of 1 to 10 are:
Top Picks:
- Bulgogi Bowl – 10/10
- Ramen Mac & Cheese – 10/10
- Watermelon Mojito – 10/10
- Tiki Punch – 10/10
Strong Choices:
- Spinach and Artichoke Grilled Cheese 9/10
- Mickey Mouse Macaron – 9/10
- Strawberry Guava Lemonade 8.5/10
Solid Options
- Carbonara Pizzetta – 8/10
- Junior LA Street Dog – 8/10
- Pickle Whiskey Sour – 8/10
- Wine Flight – 8/10
Mid-Tier
- Chicken and Waffle Mole – 7.5
- Torta Ahogado – 7/10
- Paloma Flight – 7/10
Lower Tier
- Sirloin Gruyère Mac And Cheese – 6.5/10
Other items of note include the Sirloin Gruyère Mac And Cheese (a 6.5/10 in my opinion and even lower in Breean’s), which, while a great idea, in actuality leaves a bit more to be desired with its curdled cheese and slightly overcooked meat. The pepper slices added a nice bite and crunch, but it couldn’t save the overall meal. Aside from that, there was a Cherry Cobbler Pot de Creme that wasn’t quite up to par, with a very canned-tasting cherry preserve and a granola-esque topping that doesn’t carry the crunch it should.
Hands down the favorite was the Bulgogi Bowl at Lucky Fortune Cookery by the Port of San Fransokyo and the Ramen Mac & Cheese at Peppers Cali-Ente; both hearty and totally satisfying meals that had us going for seconds. The Bowl, which we were able to grab towards the end of the night, features the perfect laying of rice, diced beef bulgogi, crunchy veggies and a flavorful drizzle of sauce. The Ramen Mac & Cheese used a savory pick of cheese, a special blended crumb topping for an exquisite crunch and a chili sauce (which wasn’t too spicy) for an extra punch.
Sweets and Drinks
Additionally, the Mickey-Shaped Macaron with Snickers Bar Pieces was an incredibly rich chocolate dessert that got high marks from us both. Don’t let its size fool you, it’s definitely enough to share between two people. On a similar note, the non-alcoholic beverages I sampled were sweet and refreshing, with the California Punch feeling like a perfect summertime sipper, and the Strawberry Guava Lemonade with its dollop of creamy foam on top was good to the very last drop.
If you prefer a little more buzz to your beverages, the featured Paloma Flight, which starred the Cantarito-Style, Blood Orange and Black Cherry Palomas, also hit the spot, with the Black Cherry being the favorite. This trio was inched out, however, by their White Wine Flight counterpart, which had more consistent satiety across all three drinks. Honorable mentions include the Hot Honey White Sangria and Pickle Whiskey Sour for their unique flavors, but the overall winners were the Watermelon Mojito and Tiki Punch.
Suffice it to say, Disney’s California Adventure Food & Wine Festival Sip & Savor Pass for the March 6-April 27th 2026 season is worth every dollar, bite and swallow, and whether you’re in it for the sweets or the savory there’s something on the menu for everyone.
Elijah Isaiah Johnson is a writer/illustrator/animator. His most recently published works include the Amazon best-seller Nightmare Detective, Noir is the New Black, the Comixology Indie best-selling series Leaders of the Free World, The Formula and much more.
