Longtime chef Brian Piasecki takes us behind the scenes of our favorite Disney foods.
A trip toDisneylandused to be all about the rides , the blast of fireworks , and produce a coveted hug and picture with Mickey Mouse . Now , it ’s about the food . Although the classics , like massive turkey legs and invertebrate foot - long churros disperse in cinnamon sugar rest , there ’s so much more to devour in the Magic Kingdom .
But how are these new cup of tea and drinks — from glowing blue Milk River that hails from the fictional desert planet Tatooine to Shawarma wraps reminiscent of New York City plant in the Marvel campus to “ the gray stuff ” fromBeauty and the Beast — break ?
Brian Piasecki , the culinary director atWalt Disney World , has the reply . As a chef at Disney World for over 31 class , he has seen it all — and has worked at a reach of eatery from Epcot to Animal Kingdom . “ From a food and beverage standpoint , we ’ve spring up up a passel , ” Piasecki explains . “ Food in the offset stage of our ship’s company was really there as an amenity . Now , we have the unique power to take a dining experience and intertwine it with our unbelievable IP . ”
Green tea-raspberry parfait served at Disneyland during a Lunar New Year celebration|MediaNews Group/Orange County Register/Getty Images
The journey for a dish or drink to make it to Disney park is a farsighted and arduous process that can take up to four years of ideating , recipe development , testing , and scaling . All of this happen at the Flavor Lab — a top - secluded location where chefs come together with Imagineers , architects , and barman to fetch to life visions of new restaurants and dining experiences . “ We always start with : ‘ What ’s the story ? ’ ” Piasecki enunciate . “ One of the first steps that we take is sit down with Walt Disney Imagineers to really understand their visual sense — tell us about the texture in the restaurant , the report , the backstory . ”
From there , Piasecki — alongside his squad — insert what he calls the “ culinary naughty sky , ” where any idea can be contrive out and nothing feels unrealizable . The outer space , Piasecki describes , is extend in whitened boards occupy with notes , a brainstorm in constant motion . The team scours the internet to see what new foods are trending or what point node are gravitate towards . This is the prison term to chase after delicious dreams .
Then , it ’s back to reality . “ After we do all of that crazy blue sky work , we start to peel it back a little turn . What ’s really naturalistic ? ” Piasecki says . Logistics come into romp — how much outer space is in the eatery versus the kitchen ? How many Edgar Guest can be seat ? How many dishes can realistically be made ?
Chef Brian Piasecki|Photo courtesy of Disney World
Although some dish crafted in the Flavor Lab finger like quick winner , especially in terminal figure of taste , Piasecki also has to keep scalability in mind . “ Can I systematically produce this is a interrogation that we have to ask ourselves now , ” Piasecki says . And with the continuation of supply chain disruptions , Piasecki also has to think ingredients and the vessels the intellectual nourishment and drinks are surrender in and whether or not the supplying chain can tolerate them .
One of Piasecki ’s gallant accomplishments was overtake the food options at the Regal Eagle Smokehouse in Epcot ’s American Adventure with a pick of regional barbeque options vagabond fromMemphis - stylepork ribs to Kansas City fume poulet toTexas brisketsandwiches . Barbecue is catchy — it require meter to prepare savour and an raiment of spiciness to get the rub just right .
“ I do n’t think anyone was really proud of the food that was at the American adventure — a fried runt basket , a hot blackguard , and a hamburger was n’t really the best representation of what American culinary art is , ” Piasecki explains . But Piasecki knew the story of barbeque across the nation was more compelling and , with his squad , found a way to shine a Libra the Scales of flavor and efficiency needed in a quick overhaul restaurant . There ’s even a works - based barbeque optionmade from jackfruit .
Blue and green milk from Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge|Photo courtesy of Disney World
When it comes to Disney solid food , aesthetics matter , too . Although dark milk does n’t actually exist in real life , it feel tangible enough to guests . The shade of blue has to be just ripe . “ The guest has an melodic theme of what blue Milk River is going to seem like , because they ’ve seen a glimpse of it in a movie from 40 class ago , ” Piasecki laughs . “ Part of our job is to make trusted it ’s as unquestionable as potential — a intelligence I use loosely because blue Milk River did n’t really be . ”
But Piasecki eff they ca n’t just bestow food for thought coloring to a methamphetamine of Milk River and call it a day ; there ’s an expectation from Disney - departer that what they ’re drinking is meant to replicate Milk River from a bantha . That means experimenting with rude dyes and land on avegan coco - baseddrink that tastes vaguely of pineapple plant juice .
There are a lot of intricate item that go into a plate of nutrient you might use up before ride in a Matterhorn bobsled — a mere segment of a 24-hour interval at Disney . But feeding guests is Piasecki ’s pridefulness and joyfulness , his integral vocation . “ We do n’t sit down back and rest on our laurels and say , you know what , we have enough food for thought for the X amount of multitude here today — we have pizza , Warren Earl Burger , and chicken nuggets so we ’ll be fine , ” he explains . “ It ’s so much more than that . ”
For dishes that seem more trend - forward , likeboba milk tearolled out during Lunar New Year orbirria tacos , the growth can be expedite . This tends to happen for pop - up intellectual nourishment fete or other timely event . “ The fete have a much shorter time of development so they have the power to be a little chip more on trend . Still , it commute so quick , ” Piasecki explains .
But Piasecki has also base a method acting of keeping iconic Disney treats relevant . “ Look at something likeDole lash , which has been around forever and is a basic with our fellowship , ” he pronounce . “ Now we have Dole party whip cubicle that are serving Dole whip nachos , there are Dole whips with dissimilar types of flavorings , sangria . We can be voguish around our essence mathematical product . ”
The same goes for churros , with flavor that extend upon the original cinnamon - lucre software . Some iteration have included lemon tree bar , chocolate peanut butter , and a Maleficent - urge churro covered in chocolate cookie crumbs for Halloween .
To be a chef at Disney property for over 30 years , you must be a lot of things : creative , excite by prospect of providing top - tier cordial reception , soak with a sense of childlike marvel , and every bit as obsessed with Disney IP as guests . Whether it ’s brainstorming dishes from a faraway galaxy in the Galactic Star Cruiser or the wide-eyed comfort of a grill cheese and Lycopersicon esculentum soup from Jolly Holiday , Piasecki oversees it all .
Despite the challenge and differ day - to - days , some of which admit sample 50 different iteration ofshrimpbefore landing place on the correct recipe ( Piasecki says it gets to a point in time where he has to spit food out ) , the results are worth it for the excitement guests have seeing their beloved Disney favorites come to life .
“ There is that little bit of , countenance me pinch myself , you know ? Do I really get paid to do this because this is like the good line ever , right ? ” Piasecki smiling . “ Where else can you have dinner and find out fireworks over top of Cinderella ’s castle ? There ’s one place in the world to do that — and that ’s what keeps me hail back . ”
