Frozen Food – My Top 5 Favorite Disney Frozen Treats!

I’ll have one of each, please!

Warning: The following post may induce massive caloric intake. Proceed with caution!

Keeping things chill, today I’m going to share a list of my favorite Disney frozen treats. Each and every one is a great way to cool down on a hot day while you’re running from attraction to attraction or more often in my case – from show to show!

Nobody does dessert like Disney and these are the ones I simply cannot resist!

5. Mickey’s Premium Ice Cream Bar

That moment before you unwrap it…

• Hard-frozen vanilla ice cream, covered in chocolate, on a stick
• It’s a classic and it’s available all over the Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resorts
• If you need an “on-the-go” cold snack, this is simply the best!

4. Sunshine Tree Terrace – Citrus Swirl

A perfect Citrus Swirl.

• Orange slush with vanilla soft-serve ice cream
• Sorry, I’m not a pineapple fan, so the Citrus Swirl wins out over the Dole Whip for me every time!
• This refreshing snack is available in Adventureland in the Magic Kingdom – I would gladly go to Walt Disney World just to have a Citrus Swirl!

3. Beaches & Cream Soda Shop – Fudge Mud Slide

Words cannot express…

• A brownie covered with Hot Fudge, vanilla ice cream, Oreo cookies, and whipped cream topped with chocolate syrup and a cherry
• It’s worth the extra travel time from one of the Walt Disney World parks to Disney’s Beach Club Resort for this decadent monster of a dessert! I must confess though – it defeated me and I could not finish it!

Character Spotlight: Anna and Elsa at Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resorts

This week we looked at the various “Frozen Fun” shows at Disney California Adventure including Anna and Elsa’s appearance in the Frozen Sing-Along (which is also playing at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort). But if your little princess – or you! – can’t get enough of these lovely ladies from Arendelle, there are still a few more places you can currently find them…

Disneyland Resort

Disney California Adventure

• Get your FastPass for Anna and Elsa’s Royal Welcome. Meet & Greet your favorites daily at the Animation Academy in Hollywood Land.

Elsa and Anna at the Royal Welcome Meet & Greet.

Disneyland

• See Anna and Elsa reenact their Frozen story multiple times a day at The Royal Theatre in Fantasy Faire (show to be spotlighted at a later date!). Getting a FastPass is strongly recommended.

Elsa and Anna with Mr. Smythe and Mr. Jones at the Royal Theatre.

• Anna and Elsa also appear daily on their own float in a Frozen Fantasy Pre-Parade just prior to Mickey’s Soundsational Parade.

Show Spotlight: Freeze The Night! A Family Dance Party

“I’m never going back – the past is in the past!”

Ice Breakers freezing the night.

Today we look at the last of the three “Frozen Fun” entertainment presentations this winter season at Disney California Adventure – Freeze The Night! A Family Dance Party. And once again, I’m not a big fan of this particular attempt to push more Frozen into the park – except for one very special moment…

What is Freeze The Night! A Family Dance Party?

DJ Chill – chillin’ out!

Billed as a Frozen-themed nighttime family event, Freeze the Night strives to provide evening musical entertainment for all ages utilizing a DJ, a dance crew and some hosts leading the crowd in line dances (and occasionally breaking into song).

Other activities here include watching carvers creating ice sculptures and a photo op with a towering puppet version of Elsa’s ice castle guardian, Marshmallow. The second stage at the far end of the area by the former arcade has been removed and this location now provides interactive light games on the pavement for the kids to play.

This production has temporarily replaced the Mad T Party – a show with a major fan following due to its very popular live band playing pop and rock music throughout the evening in a concert-like club-style experience – though still safe, controlled and fun. But Freeze the Night doesn’t feature a band and feels more like attending someone’s big winter wedding than going out to a club.

In terms of attractions, it really is more a successor to the summer afternoon experience that ran for a few years nearby in Stage 17 – Dancing with Disney Characters – which featured cast members and characters and a DJ encouraging kids to dance while their parents watched or every once in a while joined in. It’s also comparable to the Walt Disney World Resort’s Magic Kingdom character dance parties held in Tomorrowland. However, both of those events offer characters for the kids to dance with, which Freeze the Night does not. And both of those events do not include selling alcohol, which Freeze the Night does.

This leads to Freeze the Night being a very strange combination of a nighttime dance party serving alcohol for adults in club-style locations mixed with a family event trying to entertain children late into the cold winter evenings with Radio Disney-type music and tying this into other “Frozen Fun” offerings such as meeting Olaf or participating in a movie sing-along. This is the show’s fatal flaw and why many passersby leave not long after arriving: Freeze the Night tries awkwardly and haphazardly to cater to two totally different audiences and therefore pleases neither for very long.

Who are the performers?

CeCe and the Ice Breakers dance crew.

The hosts for the show are CeCe and Farren. They try to keep the audience upbeat and involved and act as instructors for some of the line dances.

Once or twice each evening (depending on the schedule – though usually at 8pm and sometimes 10pm), CeCe breaks into a rendition of “Let It Go”. This is the BEST moment of the night. This girl did an amazing job with the incredibly vocally-challenging musical number when I saw it and once again made me feel the magic of Frozen, Disney and THAT SONG. Sadly, nothing else at the event compared to this all-too-brief live performance that all ages seemed to enjoy.

I do also want to note that CeCe’s outfit is absolutely adorable – she looks like a little snow princess. But everyone else on stage oddly looks like they stepped out of a J Crew ad for some reason? I don’t quite follow the theming idea here.

The hosts are joined by DJ Chill who keeps things cool with a selection of pop and Disney music, and the Ice Breakers dance crew who periodically join the DJ and hosts on stage to do Stomp-style dance routines.

Show Spotlight: The Frolicking Fjords (and The Tubadors) at Olaf’s Snow Fest

“Arendelle, Arendelle, such majesty…”

The Frolicking Fjords performing the song “Arendelle”.

Yesterday we focused on the “Frozen Fun” show that was most successful in its execution – the Frozen Sing-Along. But I’ll admit, I’m just not as enthusiastic about the rest of the offerings that were introduced simultaneously.

Today we’ll take a look at the entertainment that can be found inside Olaf’s Snow Fest, specifically The Frolicking Fjords.

What are The Frolicking Fjords?

The Frolicking Fjords are a group of four musicians and a singer-storyteller who perform ‘traditional’ songs from the land of Arendelle to entertain the onlookers waiting to Meet & Greet their favorite snowman, Olaf. But for the most part, the song selections and performing style are aimed squarely at the young ones without much for the adults (unless you’re really into songs about hugs or being friends with a reindeer!).

As a “big kid”, I could always enjoy all kinds of performances at Disney California Adventure – for example, the now-retired High School Musical or Phineas & Ferb shows – because they were appealing and fun for a general audience of all ages.

However, the songs and stories of The Frolicking Fjords are really for the very little ones exclusively and that seems a wastefully narrow direction for the show. Even if they didn’t want a constant repeat of all Frozen music, perhaps some actual folk tunes or even just some classic Disney songs could have been performed? I just think there were alternate musical options for this show that could have been enjoyed by everyone – both young and “young at heart”.

It’s certainly not the fault of the performers though, who are clearly doing their best with the material given to them and who bring their full enthusiasm and commitment to every song.

Who are the performers?

The Frolicking Fjords

The group consists of the “Fjord family” of musicians: Henry Fjord on a lute-shaped guitar, Harrison Fjord on the upright bass, the Fjord sisters playing violins and a hostess introducing the songs and singing lead.

Their costumes – especially the men’s outfits and the purple embroidered gowns of the violinists – pull from the brightness of the film’s color scheme and emphasize the nicer details of the ladies’ gowns.

When and where can I find them?

Show Spotlight: For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration

“The cold never bothered me anyway…”

Sing it, Elsa!

Warning: it’s going to get cold around here this week. In fact… it’s getting Frozen!

This week, we’re going to explore a few of the “Frozen Fun” offerings that were added to the Disneyland Resort this winter season.

I’m going to start with my favorite – which is the one I hope sticks around for a while: For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration!

Like many of you, I’m a bit Frozen-ed out by now. I’ve watched the movie multiple times and listened (and yes – sang along loudly) to the soundtrack even more times. When at first Disney’s Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort and then the Disneyland Resort seemed to have suddenly become Fro-zones, I’ll admit, I felt I was being pushed over the edge from “maybe getting to be too much” to “LET IT GO!!!”

Nonetheless, I was willing to try out many of these experiences (with some still left on the to-do list) and see if just maybe there was something that could thaw my quickly-freezing heart…

And that something turned out to be the Frozen Sing-Along which took over the former Muppet*Vision 3D theater. Unlike some other areas that were Frozen over *cough Mad T Party cough*, I wasn’t sad to see this theater re-themed. This poor attraction rarely got many visitors and it made sense to update it to something that did. And what a re-theme it got!

What is For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration?

Hi Anna!

As soon as you enter the newly-rechristened “Crown Jewel Theatre”, you immediately feel like you’ve stepped into Arendelle – with just an extra touch of punny whimsy as perhaps a nod back to the Theatre’s Muppet roots. You pass through the hallway into a lobby filled with Arendelle show posters as you wait to enter the Theatre itself. As soon as you do, you find it transformed with a backdrop from the Frozen movie. (An acknowledgement: as all of the backgrounds used in the show are digital, there are some pixilation and editing issues as the backgrounds change.)

The framework of the Sing-Along deals with the attempt to help an apprentice become a Royal Historian to the court of Arendelle. Along the way, the story of Frozen is told using video clips of many of the favorite songs from the film and the audience is encouraged to sing with the music onscreen, while a few special guests also appear to help tale their tale…

Who are the performers?

Your hosts are Aria, a Royal Historian of Arendelle and her apprentice, Eric, who is still waiting to achieve that rank and title.

There are also THREE very special guests from Arendelle: Queen Elsa, Princess Anna and Kristoff! Those hoping to see a full-fledged show with some of the characters however, may be better off heading for the Royal Theatre at Disneyland. The characters here for the most part make quick run-in and run-out again appearances between song clips. But the visit from Elsa is truly special and let’s just say involves making some magic happen inside the Theatre!

When and where can I find it?

Fictional New Orleans vs. Real New Orleans – Which Would You Rather Visit?

We’ve been celebrating the magic of Disney’s New Orleans for Mardi Gras week. But New Orleans has been the site of many wonderful stories.

A few of my favorites include:

• Anne Rice made it the background to her tales of the Vampire Lestat and of the Mayfair family of witches. All of these books made me want to go visit the real New Orleans to see the beauty and mystery of the setting she described there.

• Currently, one of my must-watch TV shows, The Originals (a spinoff of The CW’s The Vampire Diaries), is set in the midst of territorial disputes between the vampires, werewolves and witches of that version of New Orleans.

• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s Captain Benjamin Sisko was born and raised in New Orleans and his father ran a restaurant there.

• Marvel Comics specified New Orleans as the home of that card-throwing thief, Remy LeBeau, aka Gambit from The X-Men.

And of course, there are Disney’s own interpretations of the location:

Resort Hotels Spotlight: Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter at Walt Disney World Resort

Well, if getting to meet Princess Tiana or see her in a parade isn’t enough for you or your little princess, how would you like to be her guest in one of the Royal Guest Rooms at Port Orleans Riverside?

The lush Magnolia Bend area of Port Orleans Riverside.

Located in the beautiful Magnolia Bend mansions side of Port Orleans Riverside (the other side of that resort being the more rustic Alligator Bayou), a particular treat for all princess fans is to stay in one of the specially-themed Royal Guest Rooms!

A royal welcome from Princess Tiana is found inlaid on a table inside each Royal Guest Room.

The rooms are filled with the symbols of various Disney princesses – from the crowns woven into the bedspreads to the princess pictures adorning the walls to Aladdin and Jasmine’s magic carpet on the floor.

A Royal Guest Room at Port Orleans Riverside.

However, since New Orleans is Tiana’s home, she is your hostess and it is an image of her bayou that adorns the headboards with mood lighting above to fill the room at night if you so choose.

But if all that sounds a little TOO princessy for your tastes, yet you still want some of that New Orleans flavor, how about staying at Port Orleans French Quarter which puts you in the heart of New Orleans where it feels like Mardi Gras all year long?