“Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is animation left in the world.” (Walt Disney) Walt said those very words over 50 years ago and his words have stayed true to this very day. Disneyland and Disney itself as a company is always expanding and always evolving. Speaking of evolving, Disneyland has actually just welcomed a brand-new land to the park; Pixar Pier! Pixar Pier brings about all sorts of new rides, food offerings, and even new shopping. Pixar Pier is actually a re-theme to the once Paradise Pier that was at California Adventure Park at the Disneyland Resort. Paradise Pier opened with California Adventure Park on February 8th, 2001. The land was a fictional Victorian style boardwalk with games and rides that had no Intellectual Properties attached to them. Paradise Pier was a boardwalk similar to the likes of the boardwalk in Santa Monica.
The land opened with the Sun Wheel, S.S. Rustworthy, Disney’s Electrical Parade, Maliboomer, Mulholland Madness, Orange Stinger, Original Boardwalk Games, and the California Screamin’ along with multiple shops and dining locations. Fast forward 17 years later, Paradise Pier has changed drastically with zero original opening-day attractions left and has now even gotten a name change. Now, it is called Pixar Pier and is home to 4 different Pixar Neighborhoods that have unique Pixar themed experiences! With the re-theme of Pixar Pier, it brings about 4 new rides, 1 new restaurant, 5 new snack stands, and 2 new shopping experiences. With this huge change, you may be wondering just what is this new land all about? If that is you, then look no further as this will be an in-depth guide to all things Pixar Pier!
Rides
The big thing that has changed is the rides in the land. The newly themed area has gotten 4 new rides, but when new things come, old things have to leave. The new rides we have gotten are the Incredicoaster, Jessie’s Critter Carousel, Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind, and the Pixar Pal-A-Round. The Incredicoaster replaced the California Screamin’, Jessie’s Critter Carousel has replaced King Triton’s Carousel of the Seas, Pixar Pal-A-Round has replaced Mickey’s Fun Wheel, and lastly, the Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind is going in a new area that is not replacing any rides. First off we have the Incredicoaster.
The Incredicoaster is essentially a re-theming of the California Screamin’. The Story goes that to honor the Incredibles heroic work, they were dedicated to a roller coaster in their name. You are then invited to the grand opening event of this coaster in which you will get to ride their new ride with the Incredibles. Due to Edna Mode and Jack-Jack being too short to ride the coaster, they then have to stay behind in the VIP lounge area. Jack-Jack then vanishes with his inter-dimensional powers and then ends up on the coaster putting himself in danger. It is then up to the task of the Parr family and you to then ride the coaster and save Jack-Jack!
The next ride you can go on is Jessie’s Critter Carousel. It is themed around Woody’s Roundup from Toy Story 2 and features all sorts of ‘crazy critters’ you can ride! Unfortunately, the ride is not yet open with the rest of Pixar Pier and will not be open till sometime in 2019. You can “saddle up on one of 56 adorable friends, choosing from a turtle, snake, buzzard, armadillo, bunny, deer, raccoon, ram, skunk and two cozy logs inhabited by a family of owls.”
The Pixar-Pal-A-Round is a re-theming of Mickey’s Fun Wheel. Don’t worry, it is essentially the same exact ride, just with a different name and gondolas with Pixar Characters! Even Mickey’s face is still featured front and center on the front of the Ferris Wheel. You can expect to find themed gondolas to Cars, Coco, Inside Out and more!
The very last ride you can go on at Pixar Pier is the Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind. This ride is not really the best ride when it comes to creativity as this ride is essentially Flik’s Flyers from A Bug’s Land at California Adventure. What we mean by essentially, is that it is exactly the same ride as Flik’s Flyers but with a complete re-theme to Inside Out. Is it going where Flik’s Flyers is currently located? No. It is going to a new location in Pixar Pier. The reason Pixar Pier is getting a version of Flik’s is the whole entire Bug’s Land will be demolished making room for the brand-new Marvel-themed land coming sometime after 2021. Imagineers felt that a reincarnation of the ride needed to be still alive so here we are with Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind. Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind is along the same lines with Jessie’s Critter Carousel as this ride will not open until sometime in 2019.
Food
As with any themed land in a Disney park, there is always going to be specially themed food. Here in Pixar Pier, there is a total of 6 places for food. We have 5 snack-vendor carts and 1 table service restaurant/lounge. The first vendor you can visit is called Angry Dogs. Angry Dogs is in the Pixar Promenade neighborhood and you have two options for a quick snack; the Angry Dog and then the Slightly Annoyed Dog. Angry Dogs is inspired by Pixar’s film Inside Out and has Anger cooking the hotdogs with his fiery explosion. The Angry Dog is essentially a spicy all-beef hot dog with a bag of Spicy Cheetos Hot Fries and costs $7.99. The Slightly Annoyed Dog is a regular plain hot dog with a ‘slightly’ spicy kick and comes with a bag of Classic Lays for about $6.99.
The next stop on the amazing culinary journey for Pixar Pier is the vendor called Poultry Palace. Poultry Palace is based on the Toy Story Toon called “Small Fry” in which the toys of this fast food restaurant named Poultry Palace come alive at night. Poultry Palace is located in the Toy Story Boardwalk Neighborhood of the Pier. As in the name suggests, Poultry Palace serves up some yummy chicken. The offerings you can get are a 3-piece chicken drumstick box with coleslaw for $9.99, a Jumbo Smoked Turkey Leg for $11.49, Corn on the Cob for $4.79, and a large bag of chips for $3.19. The signature dish of this snack vendor would be the chicken drumstick box as the box you get the meal it looks exactly like the vendor itself which is a unique and fun little souvenir to take home with you!
After going to the Poultry Palace you may want to stop for some dessert so a good place to do so would be none other than Jack-Jack’s Cookie Num Nums in the Incredibles Park Neighborhood! Jack-Jack’s Cookie Num Nums is based on the scene in Incredibles 2 when Jack-Jack desires to be fed cookies, or well in his baby language calls them ‘num nums.’ Jack-Jack’s Cookie Num Nums offers the Jack-Jack Cookie Num Num which is essentially a giant warm, gooey, chocolate chip cookie pie that you can get for $6.00, The Incredicookie which is a gluten-free thumbprint cookie with blackberry jam inside and can purchase it for $6.00, and then the Jack-Jack Shortbread Cookie which is a shortbread cookie with chocolate covering the top and a picture of Jack-Jack in the middle which is again, $6.00.
If your sweet tooth is not in the mood for cookies, another option is in the Toy Story Boardwalk Neighborhood in which you can find Señor Buzz Churros! Señor Buzz Churros is inspired by the scenes in Toy Story 3 when Buzz is accidentally switched into Spanish mode. The snack vendor serves up 2 different kinds of churros and that is the Caliente Churro (Hot Churro) and the Azúcar de Canela Galaxia Churro (Cinnamon Sugar Galaxy Churro). Both churros are $5.25. The Caliente Churro is a spicy hot cinnamon churro while the Cinnamon Sugar Galaxy Churro is a plain regular churro.
The last food vendor location is yet another place for dessert in which you can go to if cookies and churros are not what your sweet tooth craves. This place is called Adorable Snowman Frosted Treats and is in the Pixar Promenade Neighborhood. Adorable Snowman Frosted Treats is based on the scenes in Monsters Inc. when Mike and Sulley travel through the door and end up in the Himalayas in which they find the Abominable Snowman who likes to make snow cones. He decided to come to Pixar Pier and set up shop selling his delicious treats to people! You can get the It’s Lemon! in a cup or cone, It’s Chocolate! in a cup or cone, or It’s Vanilla! in a cup or cone.
Other options are the Pixar Pier Frosty Parfait, the It’s Snow-Capped Lemon!, and a Barq’s Root Beer Float. The It’s Lemon! is essentially a lemon version of the classic Dole Whip we know and love making it also completely dairy free. The It’s Chocolate! and It’s Vanilla! are basically chocolate and vanilla ice cream. As for the Pixar Pier Frosty Parfait, it is a combination of the It’s Lemon! with a blue raspberry slush swirl. Lastly, the It’s Snow-Capped Lemon! is the It’s Lemon! in a cone dipped in white chocolate. Regular size for the It’s Lemon, It’s Chocolate and It’s Vanilla is $3.79 for a cup or cone while a large size in a cup or cone is $4.39. The Pixar Pier Frosty Parfait is $5.99, the It’s Snow-Capped Lemon! is $4.59, and then the Barq’s Root Beer Float is $5.49.
The Main Course
Now if you are in the mood for chilling for a bit in a nice, well-themed area with some small snackable plates, some great drinks, and even some bigger entree-sized meals, look no further than to the brand-new Lamplight Lounge! Lamplight Lounge replaced The Cove Bar and Ariel’s Grotto combining the space into one which is now the Lamplight Lounge! Lamplight Lounge as described by the official Disney Parks Blog is that it is “Renovated from an old warehouse factory, the location has kept many features of the original two-story building. The steel structural elements as well as concrete and brick walls were exposed and repaired to tell the story of its past. The original wood boards from the factory were refinished and given new life as ceiling panels and floors. The furniture style echoes a relaxed feel and the end result is an open, airy and bright place that is organic yet sophisticated.”
“Lamplight Lounge celebrates the creativity, inspirations, and personalities of the artists and storytellers who have brought Pixar stories to life. Guests will discover the artistic marks that the Pixar “regulars” have left throughout the lounge: concept art, a quick sketch on a napkin, Knick-Knacks and collectible toys of beloved Pixar characters will adorn the space.” Lamplight Lounge serves “California casual gastro-pub cuisine presented along with unique signature cocktails.” To view their complete menu please visit their official page here and to make reservations you can either make one online here or call (714) 781-3463 anytime from 8:00 AM to 9:00 PM Pacific Time.
Boardwalk Games
Before January 8th, 2018 there were 4 unique carnival-style games at Paradise Pier. The games consisted of Goofy About Fishin’, Casey At The Bat, Bullseye Stallion Stampede, and Dumbo Bucket Brigade. Except for Bullseye Stallion Stampede, all the other 3 games closed to make way for the brand-new games coming to Pixar Pier. June 23rd, 2018, was the grand-opening of Pixar Pier and so with it, 3 brand-new games came! Replacing Goofy About Fishin’, Casey At The Bat, and Dumbo Bucket Brigade, we now have La Luna Star Catcher, WALL-E Space Race, and Heimlich’s Candy Corn Toss along with Bullseye Stallion Stampede.
Pixar Pier Shopping Experiences
With the new food, rides, and boardwalk games, the very last thing that is new would be the new shopping experiences. There are actually 2 new shopping places but one is a store for merchandise and the other is a candy store. The store for merchandise is called Knick’s Knacks and is based upon the Pixar Short Film Knick Knacks. Inside you can expect to find a slew of various Pixar related items for sale.
Now for the candy shop, you can go to Bing Bong’s Sweet Stuff Confectionery which will be serving up yummy candied/caramel apples, fun cakes pops, and other goodies all themed to Pixar characters and Pixar movies. Knick’s Knacks is currently open while Bing Bong’s Sweet Stuff Confectionery is not yet open but will be open later this summer. Both stores are in the Pixar Promenade Neighborhood of Pixar Pier.
With so much to do, so much to eat, Pixar Pier has it all! Pixar Pier has got amazing food for you to try in one of the vendors like Angry Dogs, unique cocktail drinks at Lamplight Lounge, has wonderful rides for you to enjoy like the Incredicoaster, fun carnival-style games to try and beat like WALL-E Space Race, and even some great places to shop like Knick’s Knacks! On your next visit to California Adventure Park at the Disneyland Resort, make sure to stop by and have some fun at Paradise Pier!