By Pablo Cavada, MWN
“When Andy came back from camp, he created a rodeo for fun by taking all the toys he had in his room, office supplies and cardboard boxes and created a rodeo to play with,” explains manager Cándido Rivera, explaining the idea behind Roundup Rodeo BBQ, a new attraction that opens to the public on March 23 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios’ Toy Story Land. “Then you can see figures bigger than reality.”
When visitors enter the venue they become Andy’s honorary toys, coming face-to-face with figures of their own size.
“They have to pay close attention because suddenly someone will say ‘I think Andy’s mom is coming’ and the whole staff will freeze because obviously we don’t want Andy’s mom to realize that we as toys are alive; and then they say ‘she’s gone’ and everyone starts walking again… so there are many surprises and many details,” says Andrés Ovalles, Project Manager of Walt Disney Imagineering, who in collaboration with Disney Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney World Food & Beverage, created the new attraction.
“This took years, because we had to perfect the idea of having a restaurant in Andy’s backyard, it had to be something he created,” explains Ovalles, and adds that “one of the things I like is that here you will see characters from the first ‘Toy Story’ movie to the last one… so what we want is for all ages to have that nostalgia because at the end of the day they are all Andy’s toys so he can put them and make them interact and play as he wants”.
The flavors
Metro had the opportunity to sample the Roundup Rodeo BBQ menu, which would have no better start than some homemade cheddar butter rolls with sweet bell pepper jelly that really make a difference and take you back to your grandmother’s kitchen, followed with a grilled menu where the smoked ribs whose meat comes off in your mouth are a standout.
Obviously, for non-meat eaters there is a very similar plant-based option, all accompanied by 3 salads and 4 side dishes to choose from, plus a variety of desserts.
Chef Jerry González, explains that “it is a family restaurant, in which everything will be served at the center of the table to share and it is a completely homemade experience as it was done in the past here in the United States, all baked, all smoked, and that is how we try to emulate it.”
This will be the world’s first Toy Story-inspired restaurant with table service, so the menu (the same for lunch and dinner) is meant to be simple and allow you to experience all the adventures that come inside this true Disney World box of surprises.
