When Walt Disney looked to expand his company's theme park empire from Disneyland -- a first-of-its-kind theme park in California -- to Florida, he wanted to bring many of its features to the new park. He was, however, a little smarter as he put together the land for what would become Disney World.
At the time, the corporate Walt Disney (DIS) quietly bought up enormous plots of land in central Florida under a variety of shell companies. Walt Disney the person wanted to not just recreate Disneyland but also to be able to expand on a near-endless basis.
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Walt wanted his company to build not only a theme park but a city. That vision never exactly happened, as the "Experimental, Prototype, City of Tomorrow" (Epcot) was ultimately built as a theme park designed to show off new ways of living, an idea that has largely been abandoned.
When it launched, Disney World had many of the most popular rides from Disneyland and it leaned heavily on Disney's iconic characters. The company has continued that model as it has built new parks (albeit with a much-expanded library of intellectual property).
And when Disney World opened until fairly recently, it was a dry park. Walt Disney believed that customers didn't need alcohol to have a good time and that it had no place in his parks.
Disney has, of course, embraced alcoholic beverages, making them a key part of the experience at Epcot and readily available at Disney's Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom. Magic Kingdom still sells beer, wine, and liquor only at sit-down restaurants in an odd sort of tribute to the founder.
Now, one of Disney's most-iconic characters is being celebrated, in a way Walt would not approve of.
Image source: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Disney Adds An Indiana Jones Bar
Disney has an Indiana Jones ride in California, but that ride has never made its ways to the East Coast. The ride mechanics actually exist at Disney World's Animal Kingdom, but they are themed to "Dinosaur" rather than to the swashbuckling archeologist.
Hollywood Studios does have an Indiana Jones presence as a long-running stunt show. The "Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular!" runs multiple times each day.
Now, however, with a new film in the series, "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny," set for a June 30 release, the theme-park company plans to add more "Indy" to Hollywood Studios.
The theme park will open "Indiana Jones: Den of Destiny" ats Hollywood Studios beginning June 9 for a limited time, according to Disney reporter Brooke Geiger McDonald. Disney will offer three cocktails themed to the iconic character at the pop-up bar:
- L'Atlantique Green Tea: Pomegranate green tea, blood orange, lemon juice, and agave nectar
- The Adventuress Margarita: Corazon Blanco Tequila, passion fruit papaya green tea, cucumber, lime, and agave
- The Weathered Fedora: Old Forester Bourbon, sweet vermouth, vanilla. cinnamon, star anise, ginger bitters, and nutmeg served over an ice spare
The bar will also sell a chocolate treat on a stick called "Marjon's Medallion."
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One of Disney's most popular bars is "Oga's Cantina," at Star Wars Galaxy's Edge at both Disneyland and at Disney World's Hollywood Studios. An immersive experience, the cantina enables patrons to visit an iconic Star Wars setting -- a colorful intergalactic bar -- while also sampling some alcoholic beverages pulled from that world.
Disney offered this fanciful description in a news release before Oga's Cantina opened in 2019.
"Oga’s Cantina is the kind of establishment that attracts some of the most interesting and disreputable characters in the galaxy. And you never know when a stormtrooper or a familiar face will show up," the company said.
"Patrons of the cantina come from across the galaxy to sample the famous concoctions created with exotic ingredients using 'otherworldly' methods, served in unique vessels. With choices for kids and libations for adults, the cantina will make for a great stop."
The menu consists largely of drinks designed to seem familiar while also playing off Star Wars.
Those offerings include a "Fuzzy Tauntaun," the "Bloody Rancor," and, of course, the "Dagobah Slug Slinger." Oga's does not sell the famed famed Blue and Green Milk that Luke Skywalker is known to like (he's straight edge). Those beverages are sold in a kiosk at Galaxy's Edge.
