The annual Lunar New Year Festival at Disneyland Resort is ideal for foodies who like to taste and share as they stroll from one food stall to the following on an Asian-inspired culinary adventure.
I got down to sample all the recent foods available this 12 months on the six festival marketplace booths during a soft-opening preview on Thursday, January 16, at Disney California Adventure.
The 2025 Lunar New Year Festival, celebrating Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese cultures and traditions, officially begins on Friday, January seventeenth and runs until February sixteenth at Anaheim Theme Park.
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Sip and Savor passes ($48 for most of the people, $45 for Magic Key annual passholders) allow visitors to buy a prepaid card with six digital coupons good for individual items at food and drinks vendors throughout the festival are valid.
The 2025 festival, celebrating the Year of the Snake, also includes a parade-like procession starring Mulan, the Hurry Home introduction to the World of Color water show, live music and photo ops with Disney characters.
Let's take a more in-depth have a look at the five best recent edibles in the marketplace stalls of the Lunar New Year Festival.
1) Chocolate crackers
It's especially great when high expectations are exceeded.
At Disney's food festivals, there's at all times something on the menu that I hope and pray tastes nearly as good because it looks and sounds.
This 12 months's top contender was the chocolate cracker. It looks fun and tastes even higher.
The Chocolate Firecracker is strictly what I wanted. Soft mousse and tender cake inside. Discreet chocolate shell on the surface. Topped with flavorless Pop Rocks that add some surprise and crunch without competing with the triple chocolate flavor profile.
This is a fully perfect treat. If you simply eat one thing at Disney's Lunar New Year Food Festival, make it the Chocolate Firecracker. You won't be sorry.
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2) Pho Dip
Wrapped with Love Festival Marketplace Stall
What I really like about Disney's food festivals is that the chefs take a well-recognized concept and provides it a bit twist. In this case, it's a French dip sandwich with Asian flavors.
The sandwich includes a delicious flavor combination of savory beef, gorgeous pickled onions, a touch of jalapeno heat, and creamy dressing on an excellent soft hoagie bun. The highlight is the Chinese five-spice dip that mixes all of the flavors.
By Disney standards, the pho dip is a good portion at a food festival, where that isn't at all times the case.
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3) Tangerine cream puffs
Wrapped with Love Festival Marketplace Stall
From the surface, the pastry looks like a concha-style Mexican sweet bread in the form of a sliced orange.
The real surprise is if you dig into dessert. You higher watch out. I like to recommend starting with a fork moderately than biting into the dough unless you should carry the cream puff filling throughout the remaining of your visit.
The inside is full of a spicy tangerine jam. The orange filling oozes like chocolate from a lava cake.
Disney is commonly too sweet with its desserts. But not here. The cream puff is excellent.
4) Light chicken wings
Stall on the Red Dragon Spice Traders Festival Marketplace
The “fire” within the wings’ name definitely delivers – but in a Disney way. I'd call this “theme park hot” – enough heat to be noticeable, but nothing that a sip of whatever you're drinking can't cool it down.
The Korean barbecue sauce was delicious and plentiful – however the chicken was a bit dry.
This is an ideal dish to share with three wings as you proceed tasting your way through the food festival.
The wings were briefly supply through the soft opening preview – and the long queues on the stand suggested they might be a preferred alternative when the festival is in full swing.
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5) Spicy Gochujang Chicken Tacos
Stall on the Red Dragon Spice Traders Festival Marketplace
Don’t let the “tacos” within the menu description idiot you. This is a single street taco – which makes the $8 price a bit high even by Disney standards.
The highlight here is the Korean flavors of an otherwise extraordinary Mexican taco.
The gochujang pepper paste gives the taco a spicy, savory and barely sweet taste.
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Char Siu pork knuckles
Stand available in the market square of the Bamboo Blessing Festival
Not all the recent foods were available through the soft opening preview – so I'll must try the pork knuckles one other time.
But that's the perfect thing about Disney's food festivals. There is at all times something recent to try next time. And luckily I still have one item left on my Sip and Savor pass.
Originally published:
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