[00:00:00] Speaker A: But for both of you, do you have a favorite item? And then. And then why is it your favorite?
[00:00:05] Speaker B: Yeah, I would say Mikayba on chicken tender.
[00:00:24] Speaker C: Welcome back, everybody, to another special episode of the DCL Duo Podcast, brought to you by my Path Unwinding Travel and also our good friends over at the DCL Magazine. I want to thank them both for sponsoring our live and bonus shows, including this very special episode that we've put together today.
This episode is going to be a continuation of our deep dive on the Disney destiny, leveraging some of the media panels and interviews we were able to do on board. And today's episode is going to focus specifically on Feast of the Lion King. And so I just want to give you a preview of what you're going to hear today. We'll have a little transition in between to remind you as we move through segments. But first up, we're going to hear from a media panel that was held in Pridelands to give us a glimpse behind the scenes of the development of both the food, the culinary experience and the show there in Pridelands. And so that panel was led by Yolanda Cade, who is the communications and Public affairs Vice president for Disney Signature Experiences. And joining her on stage, you're going to hear from Paul Bryant, who is the show director for Disney Live Entertainment and was really responsible for putting together the Lion King show in the restaurant. You were also going to hear from Denise Case, who is the entertainment creative director of Disney Live Entertainment. They were also joined on stage by Jay Abrusis. I'm probably mispronouncing Jay's name, and I apologize for that, who is a Walt Disney Imagineer. And then on the food side, you're going to hear from Daniel Cohen.
Daniel is the dining services senior manager for Disney Cruise Line. And then you're also going to hear from Eric Damoa, who is the culinary standards manager for Disney Cruise Line. And so let's head over and hear the media panel. Just a quick warning, as I did with the media panel episode that we put out probably a week prior to this show, we did have to enhance the audio because we were sitting in a large room and the microphone was very far away from the speakers. And so at times, the audio may seem a little odd, garbled, a little glitchy.
You will get the gist of everything that's being said. It's probably just going to drop a word here or there. But if that happens, just know it's the miracle of recording in these spaces and let limitations on where we could put our microphones for these panels. So with that, let's head over to this fabulous media panel and give you a glimpse behind the scenes of Pride Lands Feast of the Lion King. After the panel wraps up, we will rejoin you to intro some specific segments we did with a few of the panelists. So let's head over there to the media panel right now.
[00:03:00] Speaker D: Please join me in welcoming the vice President of Communications and Public affairs for Disney's Signature Experiences, Yolanda Cade.
[00:03:09] Speaker A: How's everybody feeling today? Welcome, welcome, welcome. We are so thrilled that you're here today because today we're going to do something really, really special. We're going to go deep into the savannah. Are you all ready for that? So today we really want to spend some time unpacking all of the special details about this first of its kind ever dining experience. It's an incredible adventure. And a head nod over here, he's like, yeah, it's great.
Pride Lands Feast of the Lion King.
And when you think about how special this adventure is, we're doing something that has never been done before, celebrating the iconic story of the Lion King. Like, who loves the Lion King? Right. It's one of my favorites. We are celebrating the iconic music, and you probably heard the great music here, the incredible storytelling that's happening. And all while that's happening, there are these vibrant, incredible flavors of Africa that are being celebrated on this tremendous menu. And we're going to talk a little bit about that as well today. So while you're dining and taking in these incredible flavors, there is incredible music and dancing and celebration happening all around you. Did you all feel that many of you got a chance to do it last night? Right.
So I brought some friends along today who's ready to learn a little bit more about Pride Lands is. We've got some interesting details to share. It's all about the details. Okay? So you got to make them feel welcome. Help me welcome my friends. And I want to tell you, these are the brilliant minds that are behind this. They help bring the magic. Help me welcome show director, Disney Live Entertainment, Paul Bryant.
[00:04:46] Speaker C: Wonder what ain't ready.
[00:04:50] Speaker E: Thank you.
[00:04:51] Speaker A: Director of entertainment creative for Disney Signature Experiences, the fabulous, the one and only Denise Case.
Walthizzy imagineer, J Abrasiz.
Senior manager Dainee stands us that this is all about the food. These are the food men, Daniel Cohen. Daniel Cananelle.
And last but certainly not least, the manager of culinary standards, Eric Damoa. Come on. Oh. Eria from Charis, France.
Okay, so were you all ready to do this?
[00:05:26] Speaker E: Let's do that.
[00:05:27] Speaker A: They said they want to learn everything about Pride Lands. And you think you know, but you don't really know. But today, you're going to find out some things that maybe you haven't heard yet. All right, so let's start with this beautiful design. I mean, just look around at where we are. I mean, don't you feel transported when you enter? You know, from the very first time you walk down the hallway, like, the sights and the sounds right. Of the savannah just greet you. You feel like you're moving, you know, through a portal, and you're expecting Simba, you know, right around the corner, right, to come out, start singing hakuna matata. So, Jay, I'm wondering. We're going to just start jump right in with the design. Tell us about how you and the other imagineers brought this space to life. We don't even feel like we're on a cruise ship, but tell us more.
[00:06:12] Speaker F: Sure. This work. There it goes.
[00:06:14] Speaker E: Okay.
[00:06:14] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:06:15] Speaker F: Not the professional here built these guys are, but. Yeah. Welcome to Private Lens. And the fun thing about this space is, you know, we had this Lion King, what, seven, almost eight years ago now.
And when we talked about originally, we said, okay, but how do we. It's a great story. Everybody loves Lion King. Everybody knows the movies. They've seen the films. They also see Broadway shows. It's seen our state shows.
But then how do we take that fresh look at it? How do we kind of create something new? So we looked early on about how to create this sort of stylized version of a boma. And the boma really is where a gathering place in the Arabic culture where families come, they tell stories, they eat, they. They drink, they have a good time, they laugh, they.
[00:06:55] Speaker A: They.
[00:06:55] Speaker F: They connect as a family. So we really wanted to do that. And of course, Cruise Line gives us the opportunity to do that on, you know, on this kind of stage that we have. So really, this. That we started with that transition period from. In the long hallway that you walk down. This is after sort of stylized savannah look. You see the beautiful grasses and.
But one of the things we had to do in there, which is a lot of fun, was play with the different colors and the textures that you see. So when you see the bright yellow walls, that really represents the sun and the sun rising, right. Which gives us some hope and. And sort of a new.
The dawning of a new day, really. And so that was kind of fun to play with. And how was that going to work? And then as you transition into the space, then you enter, you're down the savannah, you know, entering into the bulma, and again, you look around and you see all the colors. You see the different textures and different patterns we have, you know, the. The different fans on the wall with the artwork, and then the. Obviously, the more technology kind of things with the windows that light up as well, so you sort of getting these little glimpses of the Lion King story. And again, if you look real closely, you start seeing some of our friends, some of the famous animals in the windows that you know from the films. Well, but all that to create this really kind of fun, stylized space of a bulma.
[00:07:59] Speaker A: Love that. Absolutely love that. Let's go a little bit deeper, because I think a lot of the folks sitting with us today will tell you they love on all of those hidden details and even some of the special effects, they can talk a little bit. Can you talk a little bit about some of the things our guests may not have noticed right away because there's so much to take in. So tell us a little bit more.
[00:08:20] Speaker F: Sure, yeah. I mean, some of the great little details that we have, we. We looked at different things for inspiration. And one of the fun things, as you walk down the hallway, you look at the woodwork down on the. On the lower section, and you'll see carbons in there of, like, rafiki and a lion. Ted as well. And those are actually inspired from the Animal Kingdom Lodge at the Banner Parks. And so it was really kind of fun to like, pull that kind of same style into this space as well. So there's little fun nods like that to. To our different spaces. But then, yeah, technology plays a huge part into this. And so it's that kind of. That balance of this keeping this very authentic and very earthy kind of feel in the location, but then bringing the technology as well. So you see these beautiful torch lamps that we have here, and they change different colors with the show, which is really fun.
And then even the windows behind us, which right now don't look like much, you just see the, you know, the. The. The sign to the savannah with the trees in the back. But at night and during the show, they really come to life, and they completely transform the entire space. So that's where the emotion comes in, where you're sitting here and you're like, oh, this is really different. This is really unique. And the lighting will do all that. The technology will just change the space drastically during the show.
[00:09:23] Speaker A: Yeah, and you used the word emotion. And, I mean, just looking at the faces of everyone last night, and for us, it was just very emotional right in this space. Very powerful.
So, Paul and Denise, you are two of the creative minds behind this show.
And we talked about the fact that it's dinner. We're going to talk about the food, but also the show. Can you walk us through the story that is brought to life over the course of the dining experience? Because there is a story and a journey that's happening. Unpack that a little bit for our friends today.
[00:09:54] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:09:54] Speaker E: Well, great. Thank you, Vic, for that question. Thank you for that question here at Book.
So, yeah, the story. We all. Most people know the story of the Lion King. And so we wanted to take a different approach to how we told the story here on the Disney Destiny here in private. Please stop the Lion King. And so what we want to do is make sure that we incorporated everything that Jay just told you guys about with all the architectural stuff. We want to make sure that that was a part of the story as well as telling Simba's journey, which we all know from cup the King Simba went. He had his ups, he had his downs. He had his moments with Scar and all that fun stuff. So we added all that stuff into the show, and we wanted to make sure that from the time you walk down that great hall into this bomber, shall we say, you are now. You all were now a part of this show. Because the through line for Disney Destiny is all about family, and the through line of the show is about family. The through line of Simba's life is about family. Right, Dennings?
[00:10:52] Speaker G: Right.
[00:10:52] Speaker A: And I get.
[00:10:53] Speaker G: The other important thing to note is we have all lived with the Lion King for decades now, right? This is a beloved story. This is a story that has also transcended into the Broadway. Right? We had the Broadway show. There was Lion King one and a half. Whoop, whoop. But hey, hey, there was Lion King 2. There was just this giant songbook, right, of music that we also wanted to tap into. We wanted this show. We've done Lion King, like we said, around the world, many different places, many different ways. We wanted this one to be different and special and stand out. So we decided from the music perspective especially to tap in and represent some of, I think, what our fan favorites. Right? You know, we are one great song, right? We have some of your one lovers out there.
[00:11:38] Speaker A: Come on.
[00:11:38] Speaker G: Right?
[00:11:39] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:11:40] Speaker G: Yeah. We had to do Shadow. Yes. I mean, come on.
[00:11:43] Speaker A: Right?
[00:11:43] Speaker G: You know, we had to do some of these songs. So I love the way we created a story of storytellers who come into this space that tell what is a beloved tale that has become a beloved tale again for what, over 25 years? Absolutely, over 25 years. And so I just love Paul's approach of our troupe of storytellers, our musicians, our dancer. Isn't she beautiful?
[00:12:05] Speaker F: My girl.
[00:12:06] Speaker G: She can f her. She's so beautiful. And she's actually dancing to a piece of music called Serengeti Rain, which was created just for this restaurant. You will not hear it anywhere else in the world. It's so beautiful. It's ours. So that was a big approach for our storytelling Angel.
[00:12:26] Speaker A: Well, let's continue to talk about the live music. Right.
Because the music is such a significant part of this experience, and there's a part of that that is really, really special. The drummers for the drumming is really, really kind of woven into the fabric of the overall experience. But it speaks to the authenticity, and there's a reason that you showcase it in that way. Can you share with them a little bit more about how we integrated that to the show and why?
[00:12:54] Speaker E: Yeah. The thing is, I've learned over the years, and I've been affiliated with this divine king, like, because I've been theme parks and stuff. I have for years. But if you think about it, the drums are very intricate part of the African culture. It is the heartbeat, the breadth of that country or that. That. That continent. And we wanted to make sure that we brought that to this show. And so we brought in drummers playing authentic African drums, African instruments. I think Troy plays about. I think in this bitback here, there's, like, 23 different instruments that he plays throughout your dining experience. But the drumming in the show is live, is authentic, and we worked with some of the best people. Father the storyteller. We brought people in because we want to make sure that authentically we were correct, because we wanted to make sure that we were telling the story in an authentic and truthful way. And the drums and the music in this story is as good as it gets. And I could not be prouder and excited every time I hear that. So the drums throughout the beat, when you guys watch the show, it's all in this room. You'd feel that heartbeat, because the heartbeat and the breath equals life.
[00:14:08] Speaker A: Wow. That was deep.
[00:14:10] Speaker E: Wow.
[00:14:11] Speaker A: She will feel that. That was pretty powerful.
[00:14:14] Speaker G: There's also a little fun fact when we talk music that you may not know.
Like, there are background vocals. There's a better music back that plays that the drummers all play, too. And the singers on that background track are actually the South African members of the Broadway Cast of the Lion K on Broadway. So we went to New York, and they provided all of their wonderful vocals. It was a very special three days in the studio with them. We talk about authenticity, talk about synergy, and we're all family, right? So that was really special to have them sing on the music track for this restaurant. Fun fact.
[00:14:51] Speaker A: That was great. That was fantastic. Now, don't be shy, but if you were singing along to one of the Lion King songs last night, raise your hand.
I saw all of you. We saw all of you see, right? Anita just makes you feel so good. And so to celebrate the music. The music is so iconic. It's so beloved and such part of all of our lives. It really is a great piece. Paula, Denisa, thank you for that.
But we did say that this is, you know, a show and dinner, right? So now we have to talk about the food. So let's talk about the menu.
Most of you died here last night, right? As our incredible rotational dining, which is fantastic and unique to Disney cruise line because you get to sample everything.
And you also got to sample some of the dishes last night. So, Daniel, I want to turn to you and see if you can explain to them a little bit of what the team hoped to accomplish when they developed this menu. And we're talking a little bit about authenticity, and you're delivering something special. Tell them a little bit more.
[00:15:45] Speaker H: Yeah. So this is the creative side.
[00:15:49] Speaker A: It's the food side. You see what side.
[00:15:55] Speaker H: To work with. I mean, it's incredible to be given a project like this, you know, emotionally connected to the stories, the colors of Africa, the music of Africa. And then for our team to be able to, you know, start researching, we have crew from all over the world who we engage. We have a fantastic facility in Orlando, our test kitchen. So chefs went in. We. We. I say our culinary team really, you know, pulled out all the authentic African spices. They. They did a lot of research, got, you know, chefs from that part of the world to come in and help and truly came up with something that I think you will all enjoy. And we look at it, you know, we. We are very careful when we create menus because we know our guests favorites. After 28 years of sailing, we want to give a lot of the dcl familiar and favorite food, but with a bold twist. So we don't want to go too far. We want to keep it authentic, but we have to make sure it's right for families.
And then, of course, we have the added pleasure and fun that we'd always work together on These projects of balancing dinner and a show. Is it a show and dinner or is it dinner and a show?
And, you know, it always, you know, we. We spend a lot of time together, and it always takes time to find that perfect balance.
But that's part of the fun. You know, there are many places you can go and run restaurants and events like this where you really have so many different things to think about and really privilege to work on.
[00:17:28] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:17:29] Speaker A: Fantastic. Thank you so much. You all have really brought it to life. And now, Eric, we're going to come to you because you actually were hands on in creating some of the specific recipes, one dish in particular. Right. So I wonder if you can talk about not only that dish, but what does the process entail?
And then after that, tell us, you know, how does it feel to know that, you know, for the first time, guests are enjoying that dish that you helped create and you're bringing, you know, an authentic experience to them through, you know, through their dare. Talk about that.
[00:18:01] Speaker B: Yeah, sure. Thank you, Amanda. Yeah. I started their tradition. You say? I'm from France. Paris, France. Here I grew up, moved to France when I was four years old.
I was born in Ghana, west of Africa, so I had to go to Ghana from time to time. So working on this project was special for me because I was able to bring some of the dish that I eat it growing up to Disney and the guests who had the chance to experience now in the Disney destiny, I'm talking about their courses.
You really start with a lot of collaboration.
Our chefs, talented chefs with many experience from around the world.
We did intensive research to explore flavors that will fit the story of pioneers Feast of the Lyking.
We did try test ingredients and presentation to ensure that the system is going to work at sea, obviously. And also what we did, we wanted to make sure that every bit of the authenticity that we bring it to the restaurant match the storytelling of. Of of the place. And for that, you wanted to bring some of the Africans to it and warm to the experience.
But like Daniel says, still keeping in mind our guest February and test palate.
[00:19:31] Speaker A: Absolutely. And I'll tell you, home run. We were all really enjoying the food. So, so excited.
And so those are great answers. Now I'm going to ask you a really, really unfair question. Don't worry, they're not listening. You're not listening. Close your ears. Okay. It's unfair question, but what is your favorite item on the menu? I know it's hard to pick, but for both of you, do you have a favorite item? And then. And then why is it your favorite?
[00:19:57] Speaker B: Yeah, I would say Mikayba on chicken tender.
[00:20:04] Speaker A: Wait, the chicken gingers are your favorite on the ride list? If you.
I needed spare. You all love the chicken sandals, right? Okay. It is what it is. Everyone loves the chicken tenders.
[00:20:18] Speaker B: But talking about Thailand specifically, Instabella, I think probably is one special dish. Like you say, all of our dish. Love our dish. So that's why I'm good on the menu. But if you have to pick, one would be the BlackBerry spice or state chicken.
[00:20:34] Speaker A: Everyone was talking about that chest. Yeah.
[00:20:37] Speaker B: So obviously come with the tomato and pepper rice. And that rice actually is my favorite rice that my mother used to cook when I was a kid. So I eat that all the way brain up. And the recipe I do is my. Is my. Is my recipe. Is my recipe. And it's very nice to see the guests, like, last night enjoying the diet dish especially.
[00:20:56] Speaker E: That's from my child, Bootska. Yeah.
[00:20:58] Speaker A: That's fantastic. So much heart and soul, you know, in this dining experience. So thank you for sharing that. Daniel.
[00:21:05] Speaker H: Tough one.
[00:21:06] Speaker C: I know it. All right.
[00:21:07] Speaker H: With the Cape Malay shrimp curry, probably.
[00:21:11] Speaker A: Oh, I really.
[00:21:12] Speaker C: Yes.
[00:21:13] Speaker A: Guests like. Yeah.
[00:21:13] Speaker C: Hospital rice.
[00:21:16] Speaker H: Yeah.
[00:21:16] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:21:17] Speaker H: I grew up in England. We eat a lot of curry, definitely. I think that's. That's. It's hard, though, because there are so many great dishes here. Each various. And please, you know, when you. When you're dining in here, try them and enjoy.
[00:21:28] Speaker F: But not just fantastic.
[00:21:32] Speaker A: Okay. Thank you for indulging me with that.
So, you know, what makes this really special, as we talked about, is the story. It's the setting.
[00:21:41] Speaker C: It's the food.
[00:21:42] Speaker A: Right. The way it all just comes together effortlessly.
And, Denise, because we're here celebrating The Disney Destiny, the 70s ship and our Disney cruise line fleet, what do you think this experience means to our Disney cruise like guests?
[00:21:59] Speaker G: Well, I think, you know, the motif of this ship is heroes and villains, and I don't. I mean, Scar is one of our favorite villains.
He's kind of funny, sarcastic, and he has a good song.
[00:22:12] Speaker A: I mean, come on.
[00:22:13] Speaker G: He had a good song, so. But I think the story between, you know, Simba and Scar, Hamlet, you know, you'd be like, it's just a story that's been told over and over again. It's very special. And again, I think you'll end up.
We guests can really feel the motif of the hero, villain story here in this restaurant. So it not only captures the motif of the ship, it captures a quintessential Disney story with iconic Music, right? Lion King. To me, it is definitely one of my all time favorites, I'm not gonna lie.
But there's just something very special about the Lion King. I think when everyone hears the beginning of Circle of life to this day, you get all the chills, right? There's magical about that song. It's one of, like, I think, you.
[00:23:04] Speaker A: Know, one of our.
[00:23:05] Speaker G: The top in our canon of many songs, you know, it's just so special. And again, it's such a family story and I think the story, it just transcends culture. Right. No matter where you're from in this world, I think everyone can relate. The relatability of this show, this film, this music, this story, it just touches everyone. And I think that's what we're so proud of and that's why we're so excited to finally be. To bring this IP and my king, you know, to a wonderful space that can be shared by everyone. And I think that's what we love. And I really, I think this, I think our service team, I think everyone in the restaurant, I think everybody has fun and I love that too. I think everyone's going to zip you up.
[00:23:47] Speaker F: Dances now.
[00:23:50] Speaker A: We heard Aerith was dancing earlier, so you in the culinary team in the back, it's just. Just joyful.
[00:23:57] Speaker G: It's joyful. You get to. He lives in you and it's just joyful. And we love putting joy into the world, so.
[00:24:03] Speaker A: Absolutely.
[00:24:03] Speaker E: If you don't mind, at least piggyback on what Denise was saying. Because a lot of times I get asked, how do you tell the entire story of the Lion King in a dinner seating? And the thing is, we do that. We. We give you just enough tidbit and the music, then we give you a little bit of dialogue. It tells you what happens within the music. And then when we go into what we call act two, the dinner set, you know, when you think about the Lion King movie, you think about, you know, Scar and falsified you and Scar, blah, blah, blah, blah. We don't need to go through all that. But that was part of what Hijab was. How do we tell that story but yet not go that deep into it, but get through the full arc of the show? And that's what I love about the way we've done this show, because we give you that opening, ah, it's a Ganga. And then we go into the dinner set where we talk about Shadowlands and all that stuff, which is the dark sort of despair where somebody feels like he's all alone. We do the hakuna matata, which involves.
[00:24:55] Speaker I: All of you guys.
[00:24:56] Speaker E: And I saw all of y' all last night. Yeah, Sakuna matata. I saw.
[00:25:01] Speaker A: We had our lights on.
[00:25:02] Speaker E: You know, we had a moment, and it was just. It was just one of those things. And then, you know, to add those special elements, like the tossing of the lights, it was like. That was so special. And to get our dining room, you know, service and all that stuff involved. It has truly been a magical experience for me to sit back there or sit where you guys are sitting and watch this show come to life. Each and every night. Each and every time that we. I shouldn't say every night. Don't say that. Each and every time we do the show. So just to piggyback on Denise that full arc. And it is all about family. And the through line of Disney cruise line is about family bringing people together, meeting new people, sharing dinner and dining with folks. So this has been just a joy for me. And there's my duo for the day.
[00:25:46] Speaker A: Jay, did you want to add any last words? No.
[00:25:49] Speaker F: I mean, I think these guys said it all in equity. The star of the show is really the food. Absolutely. And the show itself. And so, you know, you're talking about the whole. You know, about the audience kind of coming alive, but really the whole space comes alive. I think that's my most favorite part about all of this, is the way this whole room just transforms from the show to the food to the entire atmosphere that we've created. And so, yes, there's lots of little fun, little details that we could talk about, but really, once you see the show, once you feel it, and I don't know. I mean, just now I'm getting goosebumps just talking about the show, and. But when you watch it, everybody just gets it. You just get pulled right into it. It's such a. It's got so much heart and so much story, and it's just great to be part of this family and share with all this new family as well.
[00:26:27] Speaker E: This story couldn't be told without all of it. Yeah, that's all it is, is a very. Oh, sorry. This is a very important part of the story. We cannot do what we do without Bear. What you do, what you guys do. So I saw. It's one big happy family.
[00:26:43] Speaker A: Well, that's what we just sing off for our waitress. I think we're supposed to. Are you leading the. Your ears a solo. We're supposed to sing off.
[00:26:49] Speaker C: Oh, yeah.
[00:26:50] Speaker A: Okay.
Once you don't you sitting there.
Well, listen you know, I am personally just so moved by this experience. We all were.
We love that all of our guests see themselves in it. So I want to thank you all. We even really unpacked this for hours and hours. But for sharing the insights, the special details, the thoughts and the feeling that went into the food, the process, the story, the song, and the venue. Thank you for sharing with all of us today. So we really appreciate all of you being here. Help me thank the panel, please. We're here.
Thank you for being there. To thank all of you for joining us today. There's much more going on around the ship, so we want to tell you. Remember, Hakuna Matata. Have a great day and we'll see you around the Destiny. Thank you so much.
[00:27:39] Speaker E: Thanks, everyone.
[00:27:42] Speaker C: All right, well, I hope you enjoyed hearing from some of the creatives and culinary creatives behind Pride Lands Feast of the Lion King. Now what we're going to do is progress through a series of, like, one on one interviews that we were able to do with a few of the folks here.
First up, we're going to be talking with Daniel Cohen, the dining services Senior manager, Disney Cruise Line, and Eric Damoa, the culinary standards manager for Disney Cruise Line, to get their thoughts on the food experience in Pride Land's Feast of the Lion King. Can you just introduce yourselves for our audience out there?
[00:28:19] Speaker J: My name is Daniel Cowan.
[00:28:20] Speaker H: I'm senior manager of Dining Standards and Service Excellence.
[00:28:24] Speaker B: My name is Eric Danois. I managed to Asia of Kunai Standard.
[00:28:27] Speaker C: I am so curious. You mentioned during the panel that balance between is it dinner and a show or a show and dinner. How do you strike that balance and keep everyone engaged through. Through dinner as well?
[00:28:39] Speaker H: It's a fine art that really, I think only Disney can do because, you know, if you do go out many places in the world, you either have a great dinner or a great show. But to get both together, it's an art form and it's not easy. So we work a lot with our, you know, Disney Live entertainment partners and it's, you know, give and take, volumes up, volume down, timing, you know, we change timing and we test and we trial until we find what we think is the right balance.
[00:29:06] Speaker C: So, yeah, Chef, the menu is, is one of the most sort of innovative I've seen on the cruise line. Maybe Tiana's is up there for us as well.
How did you balance that, you know, need to showcase African flavors with what's going to be a very diverse audience and palate?
[00:29:26] Speaker B: Yeah, we wanted every bit to capture the spirit and warmth of the African inspired dining experience, still keeping in mind our guest preference and the taste palettes. So it was, it was. I wouldn't say it was a challenge, but it was a fun walk to. To balance. Day two. Obviously, you know, we didn't want it to go too much into the really African flavor because I don't think our guests will understand. So you have to still bring the.
The. The culture, the flavor from Africa without going overboard where the guests can enjoy as well the, The. The food that we offering.
[00:30:00] Speaker C: And now you mentioned that you grew up in Ghana and then immigrated to the uk.
[00:30:05] Speaker B: Yeah. So basically I was born in Ghana.
I moved to the. To France when I was four. Yeah, France when I was four years old. But obviously my parents, my family are from Ghana, so we do go from time to time. So I was in a special seat when working on this project because I have the experience of the region or the flavor. So obviously with the team, because I don't do everything myself, we have a team of talented chefs working together. So I was always the last.
How you say, the last call, like you bring a dish to make this, because I have more experience with the flavor of African dish. So, yeah, that was a fun, fun thing to work on.
[00:30:47] Speaker C: Let me ask you just both one last question, which is, what do you hope people take away from the food experience as coupled with the show and that food experience? What are you hoping people leave with?
[00:30:57] Speaker H: I. I think for me, what I've seen and been and privy to, listening to people who have dined, you want them to enjoy the whole experience together.
The show, the food, the service, and make it one holistic experience as opposed to just picking one thing. So we hope that it all complements each other. That's what we're really looking for.
[00:31:18] Speaker C: Anything to add there, Chef?
[00:31:19] Speaker B: Yeah, for me, what I hope is that obviously cuisine is very specific and around the world, people know Indian cuisine, Italian cuisine, European cuisine, but not so much about African cuisine. So that's why working on this project was very special for me, particularly to bring to our guests what is actually the African cuisine can bring in terms of flavor. So I'm very happy that guests, when they come on board of our ship, in particular Disney, Disney, they expand Paradolent feast of the ranking and see what the African cuisine is all about.
[00:31:52] Speaker C: Thank you.
[00:31:53] Speaker E: Thank you both.
[00:31:54] Speaker H: Thank you very much.
[00:31:55] Speaker B: Thank you.
[00:31:56] Speaker C: All right, well, just a big thank you to both Daniel and Eric for spending a little bit of time with us and sharing with us sort of the culinary vision that they were going for with Prideland's Feast of the Lion King. But let's make that vision a reality. And so for that, we're going to head over to talk to Andy Bell, who is a culinary manager for table service dining on Disney Cruise Line. Andy's going to walk us through some of the menu items available on both night one and night two. If you're on a five night or longer sailing, you'll get a night two menu, potentially depending on your dining rotation.
So we're gonna talk to Andy a bit about some of the specific food items on the menu for Pride Lands. And then at the very end, we're gonna hear very briefly from Grace Huertas. Grace is a pastry chef on Disney Cruise Line, and she is gonna talk just very briefly for just a minute about some of the dessert items available in Prideland's Feast of the Lion King. So let's head over and chat with both of them. Can you just introduce yourself for our audience?
[00:32:51] Speaker J: Yeah, My name is Andy Bell and I'm culinary manager for table service restaurants here at Disney Cruise Line.
Yeah, we can, we can talk about the food and, you know, we had a lot of fun putting the menu together, the development, once we got the concept and said how exciting this place was going to be.
So, yeah, I'll talk about some of the food items that are in front of us. This is a selection of the menu.
And, you know, throughout the menu, we, we try to be traditional cooking methods, you know, so you'll see a lot of grilling, slow, slow roasting, braising. And a perfect example of that is the braised ras hanout lamb shank. So the ras el hanout is, you know, a top of the range spice blend.
So we've seared the lamb shank with the seasoning and slow braised it. And we serve it over cracked bulgur wheat with summer squash and spinach. So melted in the mouth.
Like I mentioned, slow, slow, braised.
Very traditional and comforting.
[00:33:58] Speaker C: It looks like a little bit of pomegranate in there as well.
[00:34:00] Speaker J: And then to finish it off with just a little bit of puff, we have pomegranate.
[00:34:04] Speaker C: And what are we looking at here?
[00:34:06] Speaker J: Here, Then the front is actually our vegetarian dish. It's an entree and it's a twist on the classic babati from that region, which is typically a meat based.
So it's a baked dish with an egg souffle. And so our twist is we've done masala, lentils and forest mushrooms, so apricot golden raisins. So Lightly curried, slightly sweet.
And then we serve it with a turmeric and pine nut pilaf rice.
[00:34:41] Speaker C: I love that. I mean, sometimes the vegetarian dish is not on the cruise line, but sometimes people go to places, they get a vegetarian dish, and it's not. This is very flavorful.
[00:34:49] Speaker J: Again, we get a lot of requests, and they're popular. You know, some people that maybe not, you know, they just grab. Gravitate towards the food. You know, it doesn't matter.
[00:35:00] Speaker C: I recognize the Corvino here because I think I had that last. Is that the Corvino?
[00:35:03] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:35:04] Speaker J: So this is actually the snapper from. From the second rotation. So it's Swahili marinated snapper. And, you know, we have coastal spices from that region in Swahili, and actually, six spices go in the marinade.
And we serve it. It's glazed with a co. Coconut and tamarind glaze. And then we serve it over coconut rice, and it's served with a roasted pineapple and capsicum compote. So very fresh.
Once you get the compote with the spices, Oh, I mean, it's fantastic dish.
[00:35:40] Speaker C: And now this looks like the chicken dish that the chef said was one of his favorites. Yeah.
[00:35:45] Speaker J: And we've already seen after a few days of. Of sailing, that this is. This is a guest favorite already, which is great for us, you know, and it's a babe spice marinated chicken breast.
So babe is an Ethiopian spice blend. So we're marinating for 24 hours. So the flavors are right deep into the. Into the chicken, and it's slow roasted. And then we serve it over tomato and roasted red pepper rice. We fry plantains, and then to finish it off, we have a vibrant green harissa sauce. So, like Chef Eric was talking about, he grew up on this rice, so we had an expert right there to help us develop it.
And like I said, the feedback's been really good so far, so we're super excited.
[00:36:31] Speaker C: What are we looking at here? This almost looks like a falafel of some sort.
[00:36:34] Speaker A: Yep.
[00:36:34] Speaker J: So again, we're using the top of the range spice brand, the Ras Al Nude.
So it's falafel, and a little bit, you know, a nod to the region is freeke, which is an African ancient grain.
And we're serving it with Romanescu pickled red cabbage. And the dressing is a turmeric tahini. So nice. And again, the colors are popping, you know.
[00:36:58] Speaker C: Oh, the presentation. It looks delicious, for sure. And I don't know, what is this? Is this on a night Two menu or.
[00:37:05] Speaker A: Yep.
[00:37:05] Speaker J: So this is the night too. And this is a creamy black bean and pepperdew dip, and we serve that with toasted banana bread. So again, creamy black beans blended with a slight tang from the pepper juice. And then, like I said, toasted banana bread is your. Your vessel. And, yeah, we're happy with that one too.
[00:37:27] Speaker C: I'm gonna have to try that one on the next sailing. And then I'm curious about this scallop dish.
[00:37:31] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:37:32] Speaker J: So the dish we're looking at right now is pan seared scallops, and we're actually serving it with a pearled farro risotto. So instead of the traditional Arborio rice risotto, Farro's another ancient grain.
So we have the risotto made from that, and then we finish it with the gremolata and arugula drizzle. So again, a little bit different twist, but towards authenticity.
[00:38:00] Speaker C: Thank you, Chef Andy. That's just the food, the flavors, everything is just wonderful. So thank you so much for that. And, Grace, are you the pastry?
[00:38:10] Speaker D: I am part of our wonderful pastry team that had an opportunity to work on some of these pastries.
We wanted to make sure that we kept things authentic and had some new offerings for everybody to enjoy and explore. And apart from doing some research, we found that malvu pudding is a beloved pastry item that is very African. So we added that to the menu, but we wanted to add a different twist to it and add chocolate, because most of the world's chocolate is grown in Africa.
It's garnished with a tuile that contains ground Ethiopian coffee, which is the birthplace of coffee.
So it's my personal favorite because it has chocolate in it. But everything is very tasty.
[00:38:51] Speaker C: We had the milk tart last night, and it was delicious. We'll definitely get that one again. But this looks amazing as well.
I'm curious.
We noticed on the menu, like, a lot of the restaurants on the cruise line will have a signature dessert, and this menu didn't have a signature dessert called out. Can you talk a little bit about, like, what, you know, what went into that? And I'd also love to know the millisar is your signature dessert. Okay, fantastic. Well, it was good. Signature dessert. What's your favorite dessert? If you had to pick one, my.
[00:39:19] Speaker D: Favorite one would be the malva pudding. This one. But the milk tart is a very close second.
[00:39:24] Speaker C: Thank you so much, Chef Grace.
[00:39:26] Speaker D: You're very welcome.
[00:39:27] Speaker C: All right, well, a big thank you to both Andy and Grace for spending a little bit of time with us on board to chat through the specific food items that are on the menu for Pride Lands. Last up, we were really excited to spend some time with Paul Bryant.
You may remember from the media panel itself that Paul is the show director for Disney Live Entertainment and had a heavy hand in developing this Pridelands Feast of the Lion King show experience. And so we were really fortunate to hear from Paul about what that show meant for him, what he was hoping for for the experience, what the vision for that show was. And so let's head over there and spend just a few minutes with Paul hearing a bit more about the show you can expect to see in Pride Land's Feast of the Lion King. Paul, can you introduce yourself for our audience and what you do?
[00:40:15] Speaker I: Yeah, my name is Paul David Bryant and I'm a creative show director for Disney Live Entertainment and I'm based out of California, out of Anaheim, out of the Disneyland Park.
[00:40:23] Speaker C: Can you tell me what this show means for you personally to produce for this restaurant and the show, elements of it, how they resonate with you personally?
[00:40:32] Speaker I: Well, I'd love to. It's this show. I've been a part of this show for quite some time now. The Lion King telling this story and to bring it here on the Disney Cruise Line and put it in this format of a dining show was really, I don't want to say it was challenging, but it was somewhat challenging because you have to think people are trying to eat, they're trying to, you know, socialize with their family and stuff like that. But we also wanted to make sure that we were telling the story of the Lion King the way that it should be, but we're telling it in a different fashion and we don't have like characters or animals on stage. It's storytellers. There are two storytellers, Shaha and Mwangozo, who basically take us on this journey and tells us the story of the Lion King. And basically we are giving you all the musical highlights and then with dialogue, we're giving you all the filler so we don't have to tell you the entire story because you have to eat. Because the food is great, the service is great, but you have to eat. And so we're doing all the fun, light hearted numbers. But then in what we call Act 2 is where we sort of go on the more, I don't want to call it darker, but the more subdued side of the music and we use music from lion king. Lion King 1.5, Lion King 2, the Broadway company songs that you won't Hear. And we infuse all that into telling this story. And we could not be.
And so me being a part of that and having the Disney Company ask me to be a part of that and create yet another version of this story was truly an honor for me and rewarding.
[00:42:04] Speaker C: So how do you keep. This is a big space, lots of different sight lines for different tables. How do you keep the whole restaurant engaged in the story throughout?
[00:42:15] Speaker I: Well, that is fun because it's basically doing theater in the round. And the fun part of actually designing the show and staging the show, one thing that was brought to mind was there are folks all around you. So we have to make sure that we make everyone feel like they are part of the show and that we're performing specifically for them. So when you watch the show, you'll see our actors moving in strategic ways to make sure that they're playing to one side or the other. And if they're not talking or singing, our drummers, our African drummers, and our dancer is also facing in a different direction. And I. During rehearsals, I said, I never want anyone to be looking at anybody's backside too long, you know. So throughout the show, people are constantly moving. But we did it strategically where it wasn't just moving for movement's sake. They moved with a purpose and intention. So we wanted to make sure we encompass the entire dining room, because it is. It is huge.
[00:43:09] Speaker C: You know, you mentioned specifically, you don't have the characters like Simba and Puma, Pumbaa and Timon and such. How do you think the show. How do you want the kids to engage with the show as they're watching?
[00:43:23] Speaker I: Well, what's really fun is our two characters, our two storytellers. Every now and then, they will. What we call. They step into a role and out of a role, basically. Meaning they start off as storytellers and then, like, first just can't wait to be king. Be prepared. They would don a new. A piece of costume or prop or something, a headdress or something to become Simba or a cape and a scar to become Scar. They step into the role, they sing the role, and then they remove the costume piece and they're back to storytelling. So that's the art and that's the fun about being, you know, a storyteller. Because as a kid, I remember my dad would, you know, take, like, a rock or something and tell us a story, but keep us engaged, you know, talking about this rock, being a superhero or something like that. So that is the way that we've approached this we just add a piece, take off a piece, or we'll change the texture of their voice, like in Hakuna Matata, you know, they're a little bit more rowdy and a little bit more fun and stuff like that. So it's really using our guests, making them use their thought process or their minds. And then we're trying to evoke those characters as much as we can without getting too deep. Because you're here to enjoy the show and eat. So we don't want you to have to think too hard. We want to put it in front of you.
[00:44:32] Speaker D: I was curious about how you feel. The servers, I want to call it, interrupt the show because. But they have to serve food sometimes while the show is going on. What's your take on that? And whether or not it is an interruption or an integration of the show and of the food experience as well.
[00:44:50] Speaker I: Thank you for that, Craig. That's really good. And that's always the question, how do you do this? The thing is, we knew what we're doing, what we're getting into when we came in. We knew there was going to be service. We knew there's going to be silverware and plates and all that stuff. We still do the show and the servers. The team is just so conscious of what's going on, they're trying to do it as much. But what we said from the beginning, we don't want to get in your way, and we don't want you to get in our way. So that's why most of our stuff is held on stage instead of in the aisles. And we know there's gonna be that. But we've got a job to do. And this is the thing. If you wanna listen, you can listen. Cause you know the story of the Lion King, you know the music, and if you wanna watch the visual, you can stop eating for a moment and turn and look. But it doesn't bother us at all. And we've gotten used to it now because they have to serve, you have to eat. And we want you to enjoy the show as well.
[00:45:39] Speaker C: Let me ask you one last question, Paul. Which is what song in the show most resonates with you or most tugs at your heart?
[00:45:46] Speaker I: I think there's so many of them. But the one that.
The one that really touches me is Shadowland, which is the one at the end.
At the end of what we call Act 2. And the reason is because she's talking about how the land that Simba and his pride grew up on is now destroyed.
Sometimes you can you can relate that to certain things in life, shall we say? We don't want to go there, but, you know, but the hope that she sings about, about rebuilding and coming back. So it's just, it's something that I think touches everyone, no matter what country you're from, because everywhere in the world there's been destruction or something. But she talks about how there's hope and how the pride will come back. So if I had to choose, if you're asking me to choose, that would probably be the one. Shadowland.
[00:46:35] Speaker C: Amazing. You have done just a phenomenal job marrying the entertainment and the food. It's just amazing. So thank you, Paul, for spending some time with us.
[00:46:43] Speaker I: Thank you for the questions. Thank you guys for coming and I'm glad you enjoyed the show.
[00:46:47] Speaker C: All right, well, a big thank you to Paul for spending a little bit of time with us there, chatting through the show experience that was developed and the concepts behind it. We just super appreciate the time with Paul and all of these spokespeople from Disney Cruise Line to give us this glimpse behind the scenes of how this restaurant came to being, the food experience, the show experience, how those are balanced together. And so just a big thank you to Disney Cruise Line and the Disney Parks for having us on this special media preview to be able to get that kind of insight. I know Sam and I really enjoyed our dinner in Pridelands. Now, we did not get to try everything on the menu. We didn't get the Night two menu and we won't actually get that menu for about a year now because the cruises that we're going on next are both four night cruises. So we won't get the night two menu until we're back on board next year at the holiday time for two five night cruises. And that will also depend on the dining rotation we're in. But I know we enjoyed the show. I know that the food was very flavorful and inventive. We're looking forward to trying out a few of the newer dishes when we're on board, probably when this show comes out, when we're on board for the maiden voyage and the Thanksgiving version of the cruise.
But for now, we're going to leave it there. This deep dive episode there. Hey, if you've been enjoying our destiny Content. Just a big plea to first help us share this content, help others find this content, share it online, repost it on social media for us. Your word of mouth marketing for our show is what drives new listeners to hear our opinions, to get these special experiences from us. So please help us share this content.
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