An Overview of the Six Pixar-Themed Marketplaces at Pixar Fest

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When Disney released details of what to expect during Pixar Fest in 2024, one of the offerings mentioned were several Pixar-themed marketplaces in the Hollywood Backlot area. If you’ve ever attended a Food and Wine Festival or Lunar New Year, you’d know exactly what those “marketplaces” are.

If you don’t know, they’re essentially themed food booths with certain elements having to do with whichever festival is taking place. For example, during Food and Wine, one of the marketplaces was called “Garlic Kissed” and featured food items related to - you guessed it - garlic.

They’ve proven to be insanely popular, so it only made sense for Disney to theme after some of Pixar’s most beloved films and use them to elevate the offerings during Pixar Fest.

In this post, we’re going to take a look at the names of these marketplaces, which film they’re themed after, and images and descriptions of what each one is going to offer. Unfortunately, I can confirm that there will not be a Sip and Savor Pass for sale during this event.

While Pixar Fest begins April 26, the marketplaces below won’t be available until May 10

1) “The Spark” - Inspired by Soul

Inspired by Pixar’s hit film Soul, “The Spark” will offer several brand new food and cocktail offerings, in addition to an exhaustive amount of beers and seltzers. The booth’s sole entree offering is the Supper Club Chicken & Potato Waffles with peach cobbler sauce and cinnamon-herb crumble. For dessert is the Half Note Jazz Cake which, by the website’s own admission, is essentially a basic red velvet cake.

The Great Beyond, one of two crafted cocktails at this booth, is made with gin, maraschino liquor, violet & blue curacoa syrups, lemon juice and pear nectar. The second cocktail, SPARK-ler, seems like it’ll be on the sweeter side with a concoction of varying syrups including mango, pineapple and cotton candy.

2) 4Town Fav*4*ites - Inspired by “Turning Red”

The Turning Red marketplace is the one I’m most looking forward to, as all of the offerings look stellar! First, the Red Panda Bao is a jumbo bao stuffed with vegetables, pork and a chili-garlic sauce. The word “jumbo” in the description indicates a single bao per purchase, though a sizable one.

You can follow this up with the Panda Apocalypse, a pan-baked, chocolate-layered brownie and New York-style cheesecake topped with orange and red cream cheese frosting. Finally, wash it all down with the Nobody Like U Cooler, a non-alcoholic beverage made with Joffrey’s Raspberry Rose Tea, white cranberry, lime & orange juices and cherry syrup, garnished with an orange wedge gummy.

3) Gusteau’s To-Go inspired by “Ratatouille”

It would’ve been criminal for Disney to feature Pixar-themed marketplaces at Pixar Fest and not include the most food-relatable IP in their portfolio. After all, Ratatouille’s entire premise was centered around a rat who loved to cook.

Gusteau’s To-Go’s criminally small menu consists of the Ratatouille Pizzetta topped with mozzarella, eggplant, squash, zucchini, a drizzle of tomato sauce, and a wedge of French camembert. The only other food offering is a macaron themed after Chef Gusteau, with creme brulee mousse and a caramel center.

The two alcoholic offerings, the Le Critique Cognac Sidecar and Little French Daiquiri, make up the only drinks on the menu, with no non-alcoholic options.

4) Portorosso Pasta inspired by “Luca”

Representing Italy, the Luca booth features only one food offering, but may be the most interesting of the bunch that has the potential to “steal the show”. It’s the Portorosso Pesto Pasta, Portorosso being the fictional Italian town where the movie is based. The dish is ribbon pasta tossed in a basil pesto with potatoes and green beans mixed in.

The non-alcoholic Sea Monster Lemonade consists of white grape juice, lemonade and peach syrup garnished with blue citrus mango jellies. Rounding out the drink offerings, the adults-only Silenzio Limoncello! has a Limoncello base with amaretto & Aperol liquors, blood orange syrup, lemonade and house-made oregano tea and garnished with micro daises.

5) Hanger Management inspired by “Inside Out” 

The Hanger Management marketplace offers a simple menu consisting of two variations of a basic macaroni and cheese dish. One of which is traditional yellow mac topped with a handful of Cheeto puffs and the other being the “angry” version topped with hot Cheetos. In all honesty, this is quite disappointing and uninspiring as it looks to be nothing more than boxed mac and cheese.

The cocktail appears to be a variation of a Maker’s Mule. It’ll have a bourbon base with watermelon liquor, candied orange & watermelon syrups, and orange & lime juices topped with ginger beer and garnished with watermelon candies.

I feel Disney dropped the ball here (the food, specifically). The food offerings are about as basic as it gets without any real creativity added whatsoever. Considering all of the mood elements featured in Inside Out, this marketplace could’ve been the stand-out with multiple incredibly creative dishes.

6) Elemental Table inspired by “Elemental”

If you’re looking for plant-based options, the Elemental marketplace is for you. Food offerings include a BBQ-spiced IMPOSSIBLE chicken dish with hot mustard sauce, pickles and charred onions, followed by the Kol Nut Whoopie Cookie Pie baked with cocoa powder and filled with cream cheese frosting and topped with crushed cinnamon candies.

The drink offerings, both of which are tequila-based, are visually stunning and will undoubtedly be popular. First is the H2O-rita made with tequila, blue curaçao syrup, lychee nectar, yuja purée and lime juice garnished with a rock candy stick. Lastly, the Exothermic Margarita consists of tequila, ancho chile liqueur, passion fruit nectar, lime & grapefruit juices and agave nectar garnished with a rock candy stick.

While there are some disappointments on the menus of the marketplaces (Hanger Management, specifically), overall, I’m looking forward to sampling the majority of them.

Of the all the cocktail offerings, the two at the Elemental marketplace are sure to be the clear stand-outs as they’re the most Insta-worthy of the bunch. As it pertains to food, I’m most looking forward to the jumbo bao at the Turning Red marketplace and the pesto pasta dish at Luca’s.

I’m going to reiterate my stance on what I believe is an epic let-down at the Hanger Management marketplace. I wish Disney would have gone the BBQ route here, offering a creative version of the classic pulled-pork sandwich with several emotions represented in different variations, or something similar.

Despite this, I’m predicting Pixar Fest will be a massive success. More and more, guests are clamoring for more “non-standard” Disney. Usually, that comes in the form of an After Dark event where in order to partake, you’d have to pay for another ticket.

Special events like Pixar Fest and Season of the Force, however, are available to all guests who hold a regular ticket or Magic Key, making it accessible for everyone to enjoy. With Pixar Fest looking like an un-official “foodie festival”, I hope to see it become a part of DCA’s annual line up of festivals. Time will tell.

Planning a trip to Disneyland? If so, be sure to stay on top of ride closures by reading (and saving) my 2024 Disneyland Refurbishment Calendar. To see all the activities taking place at Pixar Fest, read Pixar Fest 2024: 10 Things to Know. Additionally, to see the newly transformed Pixar Place Hotel, read my Tour of the Pixar Place Hotel post. Lastly, for deals on Disneyland tickets and vacation packages, see my friends at Get Away Today.

Our Experience at Great Maple Modern American Eatery in the Pixar Place Hotel

During the D23 Parks Panel event in 2022, Disney released a slew of details pertaining to the soon-to-be newly rechristened Pixar Place Hotel. Among them was a new location for Southern California favorite, Great Maple Modern American Eatery restaurant.

After waiting months and much to the delight of Disney fans, Great Maple opened its doors to guests on November 15, 2023, a few months prior to the official re-opening of the newly branded Pixar Place Hotel.

This is the fourth location for the brand, with its flagship in nearby Newport Beach and two others in Pasadena and San Diego, respectively. The menu is the same for the latter two and Anaheim locations, but differs slightly from the San Diego location.

Great Maple features a unique, all-day menu, meaning you can order from the brunch or cocktail menu no matter the time of day. Brunch favorites include French Toast Logs, Smoked Bacon Scramble, Cajun Shrimp Biscuit Benedict and the Fried Chicken and Maple Doughnuts dish.

If brunch isn’t your thing, you can order from their “mains” offerings, including Soda Pop Baby Back Ribs, Maple Pecan Crusted Salmon, Lemon Shrimp Pasta, in addition to a variety of sandwiches and burgers. And least we forget, they offer delicious, house-made doughnuts topped with maple and bacon, in addition to seasonal offerings.

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Restaurant Location, Entrances and Reservation Difficulty

As previously stated, Great Maple is located on the bottom level of Pixar Place Hotel, in the space previously occupied by the often loathed PCH Grill. There are two entrances to the restaurant, one from within the hotel and another from the sidewalk along Disneyland Drive. For those who are wondering, you do not need to be a guest of the hotel to dine here.

It doesn’t particularly matter which entrance you use, as the street-side entrance takes you through a small hallway before leaving you at the hotel’s interior entrance, anyway. I doubt the street-side entrance will be used often, as hotel guests are already inside anyway.

Furthermore, if you’re getting dropped off via an Uber or Lyft, your driver will likely drop you near the hotel lobby, as it’s a safer and less stressful option for them. Additionally, if you’re walking to the restaurant from the parks or Downtown Disney, you’ll likely use the backside entrance to the hotel before making your way to the restaurant’s interior entrance.

The only guests I can see who will utilize this entrance are those coming from the Grand Californian Hotel and Spa across the street, as the crosswalk places you just feet away from it, or off-property guests walking up from the southern end of Disneyland Drive or Katella.

It doesn’t seem that Great Maple has caught on fire in Anaheim just yet, as reservations are easy to come by right now. As I type this, reservations are available in one hour and continue throughout the day. Looking ten days out, they’re wide-open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. (By the way, reservations are made via the Disneyland website or app).

They’ve only been open a few months, so as time progresses and word gets out to more locals and out-of-state visitors, I wouldn’t be surprised to see that easiness subside a bit, though I don’t predict it’ll reach the level of difficulty of the likes of Napa Rose and Lamplight Lounge.

Despite that, if you’re keen on dining at Great Maple, I would still recommend securing a reservation, just in case. You never truly know what crowd patterns will be like at the resort these days and as previously stated, word will eventually get out about Great Maple. There’s always the possibility of sitting at their 360-bar if they’re full, which you can order food from and usually doesn’t have much of a wait anywhere you go.

Great Maple Interior, Our Entree Selections and Service

Great Maple features a stylish, brightly-lit interior with a modern-contemporary flare. Touches of gold and white can be found throughout, with a variety of blue and cream hues making up the fabric of the benches in the booths.

On the walls throughout the restaurant are portraits of some of Pixar’s legacy characters, such as Buzz Lightyear and Jessie in the back patio, and Woody and Bo Peep near the restaurants main entrance. The portraits are original drawings of the characters, drawn to appear as if the characters themselves posed for them. They’re done in the noir art style, which I found to be a nice touch, personally.

There’s tons of seating in the interior, with many booths and standard tables capable of hosting a variety of party sizes. The restaurant’s capacity expands with the addition of the open-air patio, with additional booths and table-top seating. This is where we sat. We appreciated the fresh air, soft sunlight and low traffic noise from Disneyland Drive.

One negative I will get into now is the volume of the music. In the main area of the restaurant, it wasn’t too bad, but I feel like they cranked up the speakers in the back patio to drown out the traffic noise. Personally (and this could just be because I just turned 40), I found the music to be way too loud, as it was difficult hearing my wife or our waitress speak.

The menu is all-day, meaning you can order breakfast, lunch, dinner or craft cocktails at any time throughout the day. We were here right around brunch time and already had a good idea of what we wanted to order. It’s a good idea to research the menu before going (it’s actually a tip from my “10 Best Disneyland Dining Tips” post).

Since it was my birthday, I ordered the Fried Chicken and Doughnuts plate ($27). If you order this, you’ll receive a hearty portion of two pieces of fried chicken and likewise, two of their popular maple bacon doughnuts, both of which come with a lite drizzle of maple syrup and powdered sugar.

While I had no issue clearing my plate, this entree could easily be split between two children (or even two adults if you don’t have huge appetites). I would’ve preferred to have had only one doughnut with the two pieces of chicken myself, but I digress. The chicken was fried to perfection, with absolutely no overly crunchy or burnt parts anywhere. I have no idea what their seasoning mix is, but it’s delicious, regardless.

Kisha ordered the Cajun Shrimp Biscuit Benedict ($27), another featured entree from their brunch menu. The plate is made up of cajun buttered shrimp, cooked arugula and two poached eggs on a white cheddar biscuit, topped with a cajun hollandaise sauce. Served with it is a sour cream and onion scalloped potato square.

She reports that there was nothing about the dish she didn’t like. The shrimp was cooked to perfection, which is generally hard to come by in a restaurant setting. Additionally, she felt there was just enough sauce, the entire dish was seasoned well and the biscuits weren’t dry at all. We both agreed that the dish would also be a good split option for families.

We also ordered a couple of cocktails with our meal. It may not have been noon yet but hey, time doesn’t count when you’re on vacation, right? I ordered the Maple Bacon Old Fashioned ($18) and my better-half ordered the Expresso Martini ($22).

The former is made with bacon washed bourbon, maple syrup and Angostura bitters, served with a piece of torched bacon. I’m no connoisseur of whiskey, but I’ve had my fair share of old fashioned cocktails and can say that while it isn’t the best one I’ve ever had, it was definitely unique, tasty and easily drinkable.

The latter of the above cocktails on the other hand, the Expresso Martini, was easily one of the best cocktails to ever grace my tastebuds. When Kisha let me try it, I immediately regretted not ordering it. This drink is made up of vodka, Kahlua, Baileys and Cafe Moto Expresso, topped with cinnamon powder and coffee beans. It’s expensive for sure, but it’s so good that it would be criminal not to try it at least once.

Finally, to top off my birthday brunch, it was suggested that I try their seasonal doughnut, which has the same frosted base as their usual maple bacon option, but instead of bacon, it was topped with Lucky Charms, which hit me right in the millennial feels.

You can purchase these doughnuts in a plate of three for $9, or order a single (not advertised on the menu), which is what I did. I forgot to look at what the price was for one doughnut, but I imagine it was around the $3 mark. The doughnut was just ok. The Lucky Charms were more of a novelty than anything, as most of them fell off as I ate it. If you’re deciding between this or the maple bacon, the choice is obvious.

Finally, let’s discuss the service. To put it simply, it was fantastic. Our waitress was so kind, friendly and prompt. Even when we came back two days later to sit at the bar for a quick drink, she walked by, immediately recognized us and spoke with us for a moment. I wish I could remember her name because she was truly amazing.

It wasn’t a busy day when we dined, so we received our orders promptly. The gentleman who brought out the food and drinks was also friendly and kept checking on us throughout our meal. After we had paid the bill, he surprised me with a bowl of ice cream for my birthday, and treated me to a solo rendition of the “Happy Birthday” song. Was it awkward? A little bit, honestly, but it was an awesome gesture nonetheless.

All told, before tip and after my Magic Key holder discount, our final bill was $109.43 for the two of us. Even by Disney standards, that was hard to swallow. We didn’t exactly budget for this, though, as we splurged on a few side options and cocktails, so it wasn’t completely surprising.

If you’re a Magic Key holder, definitely take advantage of the discount. Since this is a third-party restaurant, key holders receive a flat 10% no matter the key tier. Another way to bring down the price, as mentioned above, is to split entrees between children. The two we ordered, plus many more, are totally splittable.

Due to the prices, we both agreed that we wouldn’t eat here every time (or even every other time) we visit, but we do feel that the quality of the food, portion sizes and great service make it a worthy destination and help ease the pain of the menu prices a bit. In my book, Great Maple Modern American Eatery is a welcomed and fantastic addition to the resort restaurant line-up.

Planning a vacation to Disneyland? For information and advice on tickets, read 10 Best Disneyland Tips: Park Tickets. To learn about Advanced Dining Reservations and other aspects of dining such as Mobile Order and Mobile Walk-Up, read my 2024 Disneyland Dining Guide. If you’re visiting during Pixar Fest, read Pixar Fest 2024: 10 Things to Know or for Halloween visits, read Disneyland Halloween 2024 Guide.

I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU

Have you dined at Great Maple yet? What was your experience and which entree/cocktail did you try? If you haven’t dined here yet, are you planning to give it a try or does Great Maple not seem like it’s for you? Do you have another on or off-property restaurant to recommend? Sound off in the comment section below.