The annual Lunar New Year festival at the Disneyland resort is perfect for foodies who love to sample and share while grazing from one food booth to the next on an Asian-inspired epicurean adventure.
I set out to taste all the new food items available this year at the six festival marketplace booths during a soft opening preview on Thursday, Jan. 16 at Disney California Adventure.
The 2025 Lunar New Year festival celebrating Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese cultures and traditions officially kicks off on Friday, Jan. 17 and runs through Feb. 16 at the Anaheim theme park.
Sip and Savor passes ($48 for the general public, $45 for Magic Key annual passholders) allow visitors to purchase a prepaid card with six digital coupons good for individual items at food and beverage stands throughout the festival.
The 2025 festival celebrating the Year of the Snake also features a parade-like procession starring Mulan, the “Hurry Home” introduction to the “World of Color” water show, live music and Disney character photo ops.
Let’s take a closer look at the five best new things to eat at the Lunar New Year festival marketplace booths.
1) Chocolate Firecracker
Lucky 8 Lantern festival marketplace booth
Light chocolate mousse, chocolate ganache filling, chocolate almond dacquoise, popping candy, dark chocolate shell ($7.50)
It’s especially great when high expectations are exceeded.
There’s always one thing on the menu during any of Disney’s food festivals that I hope and pray will taste as good as it looks and sounds.
This year’s top candidate was the Chocolate Firecracker. It looks fun and tastes even better.
The Chocolate Firecracker is everything I wanted it to be. Soft mousse and delicate cake on the inside. Subtle chocolate shell on the outside. Topped by flavorless Pop Rocks that add a bit of surprise and crunch without competing with the triple-chocolate flavor profile.
This is an absolutely perfect treat. If you only eat one thing at Disney’s Lunar New Year food festival, make it the Chocolate Firecracker. You won’t be sorry.
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2) Pho Dip
Wrapped with Love festival marketplace booth
Sandwich with sliced beef, rice noodles, shaved jalapenos, pickled onions, and Pho broth dip ($9.50)
What I love about Disney’s food festivals is when the chefs take a familiar concept and adds a little twist to it. In this case, it’s a French dip sandwich with Asian flavors.
The sandwich delivers a delicious flavor combination of savory beef, delightful pickled onions, a hint of jalapeno heat and creamy dressing on a super soft hoagie roll. The kicker is the Chinese Five Spice dip that brings all the tastes together.
By Disney standards, the Pho Dip is a decent-sized portion at a food festival where that’s not always the case.
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3) Mandarin Orange Cream Puff
Wrapped with Love festival marketplace booth
Puff pastry filled with citrus cream and Mandarin compote ($8.50)
On the outside, the pastry looks like a Concha-style Mexican sweet bread in the shape of a sliced orange.
The real surprise is when you dig into the dessert. You better be careful. I recommend starting with a fork rather than biting into the pastry unless you want to wear the cream puff filling during the rest of your visit.
The inside is filled with a tangy Mandarin marmalade. The orange filling oozes out like chocolate from a lava cake.
Disney often goes too sweet with its desserts. But not here. The cream puff is just right.
4) Fire Chicken Wings
Red Dragon Spice Traders festival marketplace booth
Barbecue wings with sesame-seaweed crunch ($9)
The “fire” in the name of the wings certainly delivers – but in a Disney way. I would call this “theme park spicy” – enough heat for you to notice, but nothing that a sip of whatever you’re drinking can’t cool off.
The Korean-style barbecue sauce was delicious and plentiful – but the chicken was a bit dry.
This is a great dish to share with three wings as you continue to sample your way around the food festival.
The wings were in short supply during the soft opening preview – and the long lines at the booth suggested they might be a popular choice when the festival gets into full swing.
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5) Spicy Gochujang Chicken Tacos
Red Dragon Spice Traders festival marketplace booth
Street taco with yuja citrus cabbage slaw ($8)
Don’t be fooled by the “tacos” in the menu description. This is a single street taco – which makes the $8 price tag a bit steep even by Disney standards.
The twist here is the Korean flavors on what looks like an otherwise ordinary Mexican taco.
The Gochujang pepper paste gives the taco a spicy, savory and slightly sweet taste.
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Char Siu Pork Shanks
Bamboo Blessing festival marketplace booth
Slow-cooked pork dish served with rice and pineapple chutney ($9.25)
Not all the new foods were available during the soft opening preview — so I’ll have to try the pork shanks another time.
But that’s the best part of Disney’s food festivals. There’s always something new to try next time. And fortunately I’ve got one item left on my Sip and Savor pass.