The Disney Fast Food Restaurant That Could’ve Been

Come one, come all! It’s time for a short Disney history lesson.

Now, we all know that Disney has given us iconic theme park food, like the classic Dole Whip, Mickey pretzels, and so much more ( and if I named them all, we would be here all day.) But were you aware that they were trying to create iconic fast food you could have right in your hometown mall? Let me tell you about a little something called Mickey’s Kitchen!

Back in the early 1990s, Disney had a vision: a fast-food restaurant that would bring Disney magic to everyday dining (while also giving guests another reason to shop at the Disney Store.)

Thus, Mickey’s Kitchen was born, created to compete against big restaurant chains like McDonalds and Burger King. But, this was not any ordinary fast food restaurant. The concept was to serve healthier meals, to compete with typical fast food fare, and to appeal to families looking for a fresher option.

Two test kitchens were created in 1990, with one in Montclair, California, and the other in Woodfield Mall in Illinois. The menu consisted of Disney themed dishes including Goofy’s Burger, the Supercalifragi-Chicken salad (try to say that 3 times fast. I couldn’t even say that correctly in one clear take), Salads-in-Wonderland, Soup-a-dee-doo-dah, Mickey’s Meatless Burger, Pinocchio’s Pizza, and fries shaped like Disney characters.

And to rival Happy Meals, the kids meals were called Mouseketeer Meals while the drinks were named Bibbidi Bobbidi Beverages. The restaurant space had as much Disney magic, with vibrant colors and Disney characters everywhere you looked, including a statue of the Very Merry Unbirthday scene from Alice in Wonderland.

Despite how charming this fast food restaurant was, Disney felt that the restaurant did not have enough foot-traffic to continue investing in this project. Mickey’s Kitchen sadly closed in 1992, and never made another Soup-a-dee-doo-dah again.

But all is not lost—out of the ashes rose a phoenix: Disney’s partnership with McDonald’s. This collaboration brought us iconic Disney themed happy meal toys and even theme-park experiences, like the sponsorship of Dinosaur (the red, yellow, and white tubes on the ceiling of the attraction are the final reminders of that) and the fry cart that used to reside in Frontierland (also Petrifries at DinoLand U.S.A.!)

Mickey’s Kitchen now lives on in photographs and videos as well as in the hearts of those of us who never had the opportunity to struggle when ordering a Supercalifragi-Chicken salad (I don’t know why I can’t say that easily but I hope I’m not the only one.)

Well folks, I hope you enjoyed this small history lesson on the Disney fast food restaurant that could have been .Please make sure to study for your next pop quiz—and by that I just mean stay tuned to us for all the latest in Disney news here on AllEars!

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Would you have eaten at Mickey’s Kitchen if it still existed today? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!