After 32 years as a Disneyland candy maker, English Toffee is still Brian Odell’s favorite thing to make and favorite treat to eat — and he’s not alone.
“That toffee just flies out of here,” Odell said during an interview at the new Disney’s Wonderful World of Sweets in Downtown Disney.
Today, Odell is Disneyland’s longest serving active candy maker. He trained under a mentor who had more than 40 years of service — a park record Odell is still chasing.
“The funny thing is I actually don’t eat a lot of candy,” said Odell, 58, of Garden Grove. “I’m around it all day.”
Odell started working at Disneyland in 1987 as a busboy at Carnation Cafe and a cook at Refreshment Corner. He moved to the Candy Palace and Candy Kitchen in 1993 when he was looking for a change of pace.
“It was something different to get out of cooking in the kitchens,” Odell said. “I felt it was more like a craft position.”
When Odell started at the Candy Palace on Main Street U.S.A. there were only five candy makers. Today, there are 200 candy makers working at six locations throughout the theme park resort at what Disneyland calls the “Sweetest Job on Earth.”
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Odell helped set up Marceline’s Confectionary in 2001 at Downtown Disney and opened Trolley Treats on Buena Vista Street in 2012 at Disney California Adventure.
He was on the launch team for Disney’s Wonderful World of Sweets that debuted at the Anaheim outdoor shopping mall next to Disneyland and DCA on Jan. 22 — but still needs to get trained on the caramel popcorn production process before he can start picking up regular shifts at the new store.
On most days Odell works at the Pooh Corner candy shop in Disneyland’s new Bayou Country, but he’s worked in all six candy kitchens at the resort, including the two mass production backstage locations.
Odell never thought of becoming a Disneyland candy maker until a coworker transferred to the Candy Palace on Main Street U.S.A.
“I didn’t even realize we had a candy store,” Odell said. “I worked two stores down from it.”
As a kid, Odell had no interest in the Candy Palace or any of the other shops at Disneyland.
“I hated going into the stores with my mom. I wanted to go on the rides,” Odell said. “I’m the other way around now.”
His favorite Disneyland ride has been retired from the park since 1995.
“The PeopleMover was the first thing I would ride on when we got here,” Odell said. “I was like, ‘We’re going to Tomorrowland.’”
Odell rarely gets stage fright despite the near-constant audience on the other side of the candy kitchen windows.
“I’m used to being behind the glass and in front of people,” Odell said. “Some people are shy, but I’ve been doing it for so long.”
Working inside a fish bowl requires a bit of showmanship — constantly performing in front of the cameras just a few feet away on the other side of the glass.
“When I started, there weren’t cell phones,” Odell said. “But now, with social media we’re everywhere.”
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The self-taught artist who draws Disney characters as a hobby still occasionally gets intimidated while he’s making caramel apples and cake pops.
“A lot of the little delicate decorating things I have a hard time with,” Odell said.
Disneyland’s caramel apples have become a booming business, selling more than 200,000 apples per year.
“We used to only make caramel apples for Halloween,” Odell said. “We didn’t make them year-round. That’s actually a recent thing. The last 10 years or so. We just made them in the fall during apple season.”
All of the caramel apples, cake pops, crispy rice cereal treats, decorated cookies, dipped marshmallows and caramel popcorn are created in house by the Disneyland candy makers.
“All the products that we’re making were actually developed by the people working here,” Odell said. “All our candies and all the apples are all designed by us.”
The Jack Skellington-themed treats designed for Halloween Time and the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay on the Haunted Mansion were among the most difficult to develop.
“We actually had to sit in front of Tim Burton and get his approval,” Odell said.
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The Disneyland candy makers are still trying to come up with treat designs that will meet Lucasfilm’s approval.
“We tried to do some Star Wars stuff,” Odell said. “We had some really cool little robots and stuff we made out of cake pops.”
The fan-favorite candy canes that have become a Christmas tradition at Disneyland are the most difficult treat to make in the candy kitchen.
“It’s a hard thing to learn,” Odell said. “As simple as they are, they’re really easy to mess up.”
Odell loves the variety and creativity of his candy making job — and the looks on kids’ faces gazing in the candy kitchen windows.
“It doesn’t matter what we’re doing, their eyes are wide and their mouths are open,” Odell said. “Even some of the adults are the same way.”