On May 30, Disneyland Resort announces the Disneyland Hotel has completed several major renovation projects to the property. Notable among them are opening of Tangaroa Terrace and Trader Sam’s – Enchanted Tiki Bar. As with many recent refurbishments and renovations at the domestic theme parks, the combination of Disney history with “immersive” experiences informed the hotel changes.
One of the central areas for the renovations is its dining and drinking options: Tangaroa Terrace, billed a “fast casual” restaurant, and Trader Sam’s – Enchanted Tiki Bar. Both look back to the early days of Disneyland. In 1962, Disneyland park opened the Tahitian Terrace in Adventureland, closing in 1993. It featured Polynesian/Tiki theming, architecture and Polynesian dining and entertainment which were popular when the restaurant first opened.
Tangaroa Terrace, which offers both inside and outside seating, hails back to that time in look and offers Island-inspired food for breakfast lunch and dinner. The restaurant offers a selection of casual fare, from salads and sandwiches to prepared items for “Grab-N-Go.”. Familiar items on the menu, with Island flavors, are burgers, chicken, and vegetarian dishes prepared with tofu.
The restaurant’s specialties include cinnamon-spiced oatmeal cakes and fruit compote, Hawaiian and Kalua pork flatbreads, miso-glazed salmon. Guests can order using a touch-screen to order items, which are then delivered to their tables. One “Grab-N-Go” attention grabber is the sweet potato cake with guava cream cheese icing.
Immersive and interactive area the key words for Trader Sam’s – Enchanted Tiki Bar, referring to the “Head” Salesman found on the Jungle Cruise boat ride. It boasts special effects and Disney storytelling, plus a few elements in its theming to recall former attractions and Disney history.
Trader Sam’s is conceived of a place that focuses on Sam’s travels, providing guests with a view of his world through the artifacts and memorabilia he collected along the way. The bar features live music performed on the patio each evening, among other bits of entertainment.
As its name suggests, Trader Sam’s draws upon both the Jungle Cruise and Enchanted Tiki Room in décor and props. Tikis, carved columns and figures, and shrunken heads are found throughout the area. But guests can see references to other bits of Disney history, such as the new Cascade Falls and Old Unfaithful, both of which refer to Disneyland’s former Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland attraction. Other elements include an Orange Bird bank, a map of the Temple of the Forbidden Eye and photos of Walt Disney and Dick Van Dyke. The bartenders play the role of retired Jungle Cruise skippers who now work for Sam.
Early reports from Disney fans suggest that Trader Sam’s is the closest thing the domestic parks currently have to the now-closed Adventurers Club, the interactive bar experience at Walt Disney World’s Downtown Disney which was themed as a 1930s “explorers’ club.” It’s worth noting that there are also a few Adventurers Club props featured in Trader’s Sam, including photos of the Colonel (and Audio-Animatronic figure central to the club’s “show”), the sinking-ship-in-a-bottle, and pictures of some of the cast.
The bar will serve a selection of signature cocktails – the flaming Uh Oa Shipwreck Island, Mosquito Mojito or the non-alcoholic Schweizer Falls – that have their own stories attached. The tropical tiki menu includes panko-crusted Chinese long beans with Sriracha mayonnaise and tamarind-glazed Island pork shanks with green papaya slaw.
With these renovations, along with those to its pool area and themed suites, the Disneyland Hotel is nearing completion of its two-year transformation. The work at the Disneyland Hotel is a part of a larger expansion project at Disneyland Resort, notably at Disney California Adventure. That park’s multiyear expansion project includes the just-opened Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure and World of Color, and which will add the new Cars Land in 2012.