A favorite of park-goers for years, the Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival was tabled during the pandemic, instead a “limited capacity experience” called  “A Touch of Disney,” ran in March and April 2021. But this year organizers say the festival is back and more delicious than ever.

It’s an over-the-top foodie experience that continues through April 26 with tastings at the Festival Marketplace, special family-friendly entertainment, and a chance to discover wines, spirits and craft beers curated from across California for those over 21. Disney chefs and guest chefs will offer tasting seminars and signature events.

“It’s back and full force,” said Michelle Harker, manager, event programming and production at Disney. “We’ve got such a huge array of chefs that are coming, all of our breweries, wineries, distilleries and more. So, we’re just super excited to have it back in its scale and have the guests enjoy it again,” she said.

Each year since its start in 2006 — it ran annually until 2010, then returned in 2016 — cooking demonstrations have been a highlight. Local and national celebrity chefs step into the spotlight at the Hollywood Backlot Stage.

“We are taking an opportunity to really celebrate the community and a lot of our local restaurants,” Harker said. “That doesn’t mean just specific to the city of Anaheim, but L.A.County and up and down the coast as we can, and also these celebrity chefs.”

She was referring to guest chefs which include Calabasas resident Jet Tila, co-host of “Iron Chef America” and recurring judge on Food Network’s “Cutthroat Kitchen,” “Chopped,” “Beat Bobby Flay” and “Guy’s Grocery Games;”  Nyesha Arrington, former chef of Leona in Venice and Wing Lam, Wahoo’s Fish Taco co-founder. Local favorite Jamie Gwen, a radio personality and “Cutthroat Kitchen” winner, will also be on hand. “She has been with us at least for the last 10 years and is back again this year,” Harker said.

Social media chefs are also represented, such as Alejandra Tapia, a popular TikTok chef based in Visalia, and former telenovela actor Omar Fierro, whose Spanish cooking videos made him a YouTube star.

Harker’s colleague Luis Madrigal, chef of Disney California Adventure Park Special Events and Festivals, makes sure the guest chefs have everything they need.

“I give them the overview of the stage where they’re doing their demo. I tell them what kind of ingredients I can get, and what kind of ingredients I can’t get,” Madrigal said. He even has to lay down the law if they get a little too creative.

“They can’t bring a torch gun,” he said. “Somebody wanted to amaze guests and they were hoping to bring a live crab on stage. So I had to be the one to let him know, you can’t do something like that.” Madrigal was concerned the kids would think of “The Little Mermaid” and of course no one would ever want to do anything that would hurt Sebastian.

Madrigal makes sure all the food is prepped and he prepares anything that needs more time than the demo would allow. “I provide the magic behind the rice that takes 30 minutes to cook,” he said. “I’m the one that’s ahead of the game for them.”

Guest chefs love the assistance and are typically thrilled when invited to participate.

“I will be on stage Easter Sunday and my family will be there that weekend and I will be cooking out of my new cookbook,” Tila said. “We just released a cookbook about two weeks ago, called ‘101 Thai Dishes You Need to Cook Before You Die.’”

He will be making Street Style Basil Pork Over Rice with a Fried Egg and he’s proud to cook an Asian dish that speaks to his background. Born in the U.S., his family is Thai and Chinese; he speaks Thai and Cantonese. They were among the first to open Thai markets and restaurants when that ethnic cuisine began to soar in popularity in Southern California. His uncle Sam Tila operated the Royal Thai restaurant in Newport Beach for 39 years.

“I have immense pride in hopefully being a little piece of Thai food’s success in America,” Tila said. He gets many social media messages, some from fans with no experience with Asian cuisine or culture at all.

“They say, ‘I don’t really know Asian people, but dude, you’re super cool.’ And that’s equally as important … if I’m the positive first impression that they have,” Tila said.

The chance to present one’s heritage food to a demo is a welcome opportunity, said chef Shachi Mehra, founder of Adya in Anaheim, who will prepare Fresh Jackfruit Chaat with Spiced Shrimp.

“Basically you just opened somebody’s eyes to something new and interesting and delicious,” she said. “And that’s such a good feeling if I can do this demo, and pique somebody’s interest in Indian food or jackfruit. That’s one more person talking about something that they wouldn’t be if I wasn’t there.”

Guests won’t be able to sample food at the demonstrations but there will be many opportunities to taste. The most convenient way is to buy a Sip and Savor Pass, which includes eight tabs redeemable for select dishes and nonalcoholic beverages at Festival Marketplaces and tasting-size portions at participating dining locations.

Park-goers don’t need an extra ticket for the demos though. “Your park admission gets you into these demos,” Tila said. “So, for weeks, it doesn’t cost anything more to see some of your favorite chefs.”

CHEF DEMOS SCHEDULE

Local chefs’ restaurants are noted, along with time slots of chefs featured in this article.

Sunday, March 13: Jamie Gwen, host of radio show, “Food & Wine with Chef Jamie Gwen;” Rafael Molina

Saturday, March 19: Bret Thompson, Pez Cantina, Los Angeles

Sunday, March 20: Shaun O’Neale

Saturday, March 26: Alejandra Tapia

Sunday, March 27: Omar Fierro

Saturday, April 2: Jamie Gwen

Sunday, April 3: Rich Sweeney

Saturday, April 9: Shachi Mehra, Adya, Anaheim, 5:30 p.m., Fresh Jackfruit Chaat with Spiced Shrimp

Sunday, April 10: Justin Warner

Saturday, April 16: Ernie Alvarado, Urbana Anaheim; Paolo Dungca

Sunday, April 17: Jet Tila, 5:30 p.m., Street Style Basil Pork Over Rice with a Fried Egg; Paolo Dungca

Saturday, April 23: Kevin Bludso, Bludso’s Bar & Que, Los Angeles, 5:30 p.m., Down-Home Mac and Cheese

Sunday, April 24: Nyesha Arrington, former chef of Leona, Venice and Native, Santa Monica

Related Articles