A celebrity chef restaurant, at Disney, and everything on the menu is under $10?
Welcome to the newest restaurant in Disneyland's Downtown Disney — Asian Street Eats by Chef Hung Huynh.
The restaurant stands in front of the shuttered Rainforest Cafe on the western edge of Downtown Disney, where the resort had planned to build a hotel before abandoning the project. Since then, Earl of Sandwich has reopened, and Disney used the old ESPN Zone building for a Mickey Mouse pop-up exhibit. Now Asian Street Eats is serving fast-casual bowls and wraps for Disneyland visitors looking for another takeaway option as Disney works on a long-term plan for this end of the shopping district.
The team behind Asian Street Eats invited several reporters out today to sample the menu. I ordered the Grilled Chicken Mixed Bowl [$8.95], which also included corn, caramelized onions, carrots, cucumbers, scallions, and cabbage. The toppings sit upon a base of purple jasmine rice, though you can swap that for greens if you are looking for a lower-carb option.
In lieu of chicken, you could select Tofu [$7.95] or Braised Beef Short Rib [$9.95]. You also get your choice of sauce: the chef's favorite Spicy Avocado, Spicy Teriyaki, Teriyaki, Sesame Citrus Soy, Sriracha Aioli, and the wonderfully named Miso Honey.
All three protein options were wonderful, so it's really just up to what mood you're in at the moment. I preferred the Miso Honey sauce, but I'm a sucker for miso. I could see the chef's point on the Spicy Avocado, though. If you want a little kick in your bowl, pick that.
But if you want something more unique from the former "Top Chef" winner, order the Scallion Pancake Wrap, which offers the same three protein options as the bowls, at the same prices.
This one comes pre-dressed with the Sriracha Aioli and a hoisin sauce. Yeah, it's an Asian burrito, but the scallion pancake offers more flavor and more bite than any tortilla, standing up well to the spicy fillings (which are basically everything on the bowl save the rice and the corn).
Chicken or vegetable pot stickers [$5.95] complete the simple menu. But it's a welcome one in an area that offers plenty of meals that can cost a family of four north of $100.
Tweet
Looks like your run of the mill "build your entree" fast casual place that's popping up all over the country. The prices are certainly attractive, but there's nothing new or groundbreaking here. There was an Asian off-shoot of Chipotle called ShopHouse that failed pretty miserably (I liked the idea of multiple Asian cuisines - Chinese, Indian, Thai, Korean - in a single location though operating costs were extremely high because of that flexibility). However, independently developed copies like Bibibop and Rasa are holding their own, so there's definitely a market for this style of food. I do wonder if a fast casual restaurant like this can survive with the sky high rents of Downtown Disney and limited foot traffic of prospective customers.
Miso Honey?! That’s rich! This will undoubtably sail over the heads of most Disneyland guests (and more importantly, park executives), and that’s probably a good thing lol
This place has some of the same foods as a place in culver city i want to called ms chi which is owned by another top chef person who have been making these meals for years
This looks god awful. Also, I wish the headline could have said "Disneyland" instead of "Disney".
Man....this really looks so bland. I would not have guessed it was asian-inspired if not for the name of the restaurant. And it's SoCal. Lots of Asians and asian restaurants around, so Disney, either do it at least as good as what you can get locally, or don't do it. This is...just...ugh. So bad.
This article has been archived and is no longer accepting comments.
I would be hard pressed to serve street fare that is any less Asian. I mean at least pickle the carrots and include daikon radish. Cabbage??
Joe