PDA

View Full Version : Downtown Disney® District Unveils Plans for Two New Dining Locations



Darkbeer
10-20-2003, 10:37 AM
Disneyland Resort Press Release

DOWNTOWN DISNEY® DISTRICT UNVEILS PLANS FOR TWO NEW DINING LOCATIONS


Popular Entertainment District to Add
Tortilla Jo’s and Jamba Juice


ANAHEIM, Calif., October 14, 2003 – Downtown Disney District, the bustling entertainment, dining and retail district at the Disneyland® Resort, announced plans for two new restaurants as part of ongoing efforts to provide a variety of dining and entertainment options to its guests. Joining the lineup are Tortilla Jo’s, an authentic Mexican restaurant and Jamba Juice, a healthy alternative featuring blended-to-order smoothies, snacks and soups. Both of these are added on the heels of the latest restaurant to open in Downtown Disney, Napolini, a quick-serve Italian kitchen.

“Downtown Disney is a continuously growing part of the Disneyland Resort,” said Randy Baumberger, senior vice-president of resort operations and sales at the Disneyland Resort. “Tortilla Jo’s and Jamba Juice are two diverse options added to the growing collection of unique dining locations we feature at Downtown Disney, and we look forward to providing the same high-quality service and surroundings our guests have come to expect.”

Tortilla Jo’s

Centrally located in Downtown Disney, Tortilla Jo’s is set to open in March 2004. Exuding the ultimate spirit of Mexico, the restaurant emphasizes casual family dining at a great value. With lively nighttime entertainment and expansive areas available for entertaining, the restaurant is sure to become a hot destination for the late night crowd, as well as a lively special events venue.

Designed to accommodate a range of tastes and hungers, the restaurant features an expansive main dining room, seating 150, serving an authentic mixture of Mexican culinary traditions and a second floor accommodating 70 guests inside and 90 on the patio. The convenient over-the-counter taqueria stand, resembling an authentic street vendor taqueria stand, will appeal to those seeking a quick bite to eat and grab & go, and the open-air cantina will offer a casual bar atmosphere with spirited food and will accommodate up to 60 people.

Menu offerings will feature the best in Mexican cuisine, including a hand-made tamale and tortilla station, tableside guacamole preparation and a rotisserie oven.

Jamba Juice

Serving blended-to-order smoothies and healthy snacks, Jamba Juice features a convenient and nutritious dining alternative. Slated for a mid-November 2003 opening, Jamba Juice will be located near the World of Disney.

Nutrient-rich concoctions include freshly squeezed juices, fruit, vegetables, nonfat frozen yogurt, dairy-free sorbet, ice, and exclusive Juice Boosts – nutritional supplements designed to provide a variety of benefits. Established in 1990, Jamba Juice has more than 350 company and franchised/licensed stores in 24 states nationwide and the District of Columbia.

It’s a whole new world of magic at the Disneyland Resort, featuring two theme parks, an entertainment district and three hotels. All within walking distance are: Walt Disney’s original theme park, Disneyland, “The Happiest Place on Earth”; Disney’s California Adventure™, a salute to California through Disney storytelling; Downtown Disney District, a public esplanade of dining, family entertainment and shopping; the luxurious 745-room Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel®; the 502-room Disney’s Paradise Piersm Hotel; and the 990-room Disneyland Hotel. For general information call (714) 781-4565 or visit www.disneyland.com.

safetybar
10-20-2003, 10:07 PM
Great. Following the DCA trend, "authentic street vendor taqueria stand", something else that we can get the "real thing" right down the road.

LegolandMC
10-21-2003, 06:01 AM
Jamba Juice??? Yay!!!! :D

Everytime I leave the parks, and am walking through DTD, I always think to myself that I want a smoothie/Jamba Juice type drink....now I can get one. :D

merlinjones
10-21-2003, 06:04 AM
I really do hope they have an authentic street vendor taqueria stand with afforable prices and good carne asada... and hopefully fish tacos too. Affordable fast food for the people is missing at Downtown Disney, except for those great Napolini pizza slices (which cost about a dollar too much, but taste really good).

SoCalDisneyLover
10-21-2003, 06:14 AM
I'm still trying to figure out what the difference is between the place they're opening, and the place which was closed more than 1 year ago(Arriba Arriba). They shut down a Mexican Restaurant, and now they're opening a similar one in the same location. Sounds like a recipe for failure to me. And what is taking them so long? I think Disney is purposely slow sometimes. Couldn't they have opened this place by now?

Matt Hamand
10-21-2003, 07:02 AM
Originally posted by SoCalDisneyLover
I'm still trying to figure out what the difference is between the place they're opening, and the place which was closed more than 1 year ago(Arriba Arriba). They shut down a Mexican Restaurant, and now they're opening a similar one in the same location. Sounds like a recipe for failure to me. And what is taking them so long? I think Disney is purposely slow sometimes. Couldn't they have opened this place by now?

This assumes that the only reason that Y Arriba closed was because it was a Mexican restaurant. My father owned a couple of restuarants, believe me there are a ton of reasons why they fail.

Maybe it had bad food, bad management, a poor business model, crappy staff, that awful pink decor. . . Any number of reasons.

justagrrl
10-21-2003, 07:25 AM
I've never heard of Tortilla Jo’s and a quick search online didn't turn anything up.

Have you ever heard of them before?

cstephens
10-21-2003, 10:28 AM
Originally posted by SoCalDisneyLover
I'm still trying to figure out what the difference is between the place they're opening, and the place which was closed more than 1 year ago(Arriba Arriba). They shut down a Mexican Restaurant, and now they're opening a similar one in the same location. Sounds like a recipe for failure to me. And what is taking them so long? I think Disney is purposely slow sometimes. Couldn't they have opened this place by now?

The difference isn't in what kind of restaurant, but who runs the restaurant, imo. I ate at Y'Arriba Y'Arriba once, and it's the only place at DTD that I'd completely warned people away from. The food wasn't very good, and the prices were fairly high.

As for taking so long, yes, it's partly Disney. They'd been talking about trying to open the restaurant in time for Cinco de Mayo last year - obviously, that didn't happen. Disney has to approve the name and decor (among other things), and that process took a while.


Originally posted by justagrrl
I've never heard of Tortilla Jo’s and a quick search online didn't turn anything up.

Have you ever heard of them before?

It's not a chain or anything, so no, you wouldn't find anything about them yet. The restaurant is being run by The Patina Group, which also runs Catal Restaurant and Uva Bar and Naples Restaurant and Napolini in Downtown Disney.
Here is Patina's website (http://www.patinagroup.com/) if you're interested.

justagrrl
10-21-2003, 10:53 AM
Originally posted by cstephens

Here is Patina's website (http://www.patinagroup.com/) if you're interested.

Aww...that's too bad. I wish they put in something with normal food. And yes, Mexican food can be very normal. Just browsing throught their other menus makes me think it's going to be another snooty-pa-tooty-food-is-waaay-overpriced sort of place. Maybe not overpriced so much as more then I'm willing to spend on dining at/near an amusement park.

genenpet
10-21-2003, 10:58 AM
Wish they would get Bongos from WDW. LA is starting to get some good cuban food, would be nice for Dland to get some too.