Universal Studios Hollywood has jumped on the food festival bandwagon. Now almost all the Southern California parks have a festival or something else going on which allows guests to see the parks (without rides). The Universal event is a first step toward reopening the park with attractions, perhaps as soon as later in April.
Knowing that the event would sell out quickly, several of our staff purchased tickets for opening day. This being Universal’s very first food festival ever, and the first time most of the team members have been on the job in a year, we knew there would be at least a few hiccups while they figure things out. Let’s see how they did . . .
Taste of Universal Studios Details
Tickets are going fast. Only one day in March was left when we wrote this, but all dates in April were available.
- Days Offered – Friday to Sunday, beginning on Friday, March 12th through at least April 11th.
- Hours – noon to 7:00 p.m.
- Cost – Tickets range in price by day and are much cheaper for children:
Adults:
$44.00 ($48.18 with tax) – FRI
$49.00 ($53.66 with tax) – SUN
$54.00 ($59.13 with tax) – SAT
Children (3-9):
$25.00 ($27.38 with tax) – FRI/SAT/SUN
Discounted admission tickets are available for Universal Annual and Season Pass members
- What’s Included in the Price: Your ticket includes admission to the park, 5 tastes of food (3 items for kids), and the ability to shop throughout the park.
- Where to Purchase: Tickets for Taste of Universal are ONLY AVAILABLE ONLINE
- Health and Safety: Like all local parks, Universal Studios Hollywood is working closely with local health and government officials to implement new health and safety procedures that include controlled capacity to enforce physical distancing and required face coverings.
- What’s Open: Most of the Upper Lot of Universal Studios Hollywood is now open, except for rides and shows. You’ll be able to shop in most stores, and most restaurants are participating in the festival.
Our Review of Taste of Universal
It’s been a long year stuck at home and there’s a lot of pent-up demand by fans to see their favorite theme parks again. That resulted in a quick sell-out for the early days of this event. But if you act quickly, you can still grab a spot for early April. Then, if everything works out as theme parks hope they will, the parks should be ready to add rides by mid to late April. This festival is a baby step in allowing that to happen by giving the park time to staff and train team members, prepare safety procedures, and work out any issues before the bigger crowds arrive as soon as next month.
When Knott’s Berry Farm held their first festival of the year last July, they experienced all sorts of capacity issues, resulting in long lines at food booths. It took them a couple of weeks to work through those issues and improve things so they could serve guests faster. That’s the same situation we experienced at Universal this weekend. The event itself is great, and it’s wonderful just to be in the park again, but as the day goes on, lines for food get longer (especially at popular locations). There was a time that the Krusty Burger line wrapped around the building all the way to the entry of the Studio Tour. A similarly long line developed at the Three Broomsticks in Wizarding World of Harry Potter. But, many lesser-known locations had short waits— you just had to be willing to compromise.
There are some patterns that might help you avoid the longest lines. When we arrived at noon, there were no lines at all. It took about an hour for things to start feeling busy. By 2:30 pm, there was almost an hour-long wait for Three Broomsticks. However, by 5pm, the location was empty! Conversely, there are few people waiting for Lard Lad Doughnuts during much of the day, but as folks get ready to leave, they visit the location to use up the last punches on their festival card and take a little something home.
Overall we enjoyed the event. While lines are always frustrating, they are also part of the theme park experience. And we do think Universal will work out some of the kinks in the next few days.
It was nice just to wander around, seeing the shops, taking photos and videos of the characters, looking at the incredible view of the valley from the top of the Starway, and sitting down in the outdoor patio of the Three Broomsticks for a Shepherd’s Pie and Butterbeer.
As far as how much time you need to experience it all, allot at least a few hours. We had expected to stay just a couple of hours but ended up staying until well after dark.
We’ve outlined various elements of the festival for you below.
Taste of Universal Food
Unlike many of the other Festivals in SoCal, Universal has mainly adapted existing menu items to be festival-sized. The Three Broomsticks, for example, has reduced its menu to just three entrees for the festival and made the portions smaller.
The Fish and Chips (which were delicious by the way) was one plank of fish and a bunch of french fries. But, overall, the portions seemed fairly generous. Popular items may sell out as the day goes on, particularly pre-prepared items such as some desserts.
Here are the menu highlights, though there are nearly 70 items altogether, 30 of which are new for the event:
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
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- Butterbeer
- Fish and Chips
- Shepherd’s Pie
- Sticky Toffee Bread Pudding
- Turkey Leg
Springfield, U.S.A.
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- Krusty Burger
- Suds McDuff’s Hot Dog
- Lard Lad Donuts
Minion Cafe
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- Grilled Cheese with Meatball
- Chicken, Bacon & Ranch Mac and Cheese
- Hazelnut Banana Pudding (sold out quickly)
Hollywood and Dine
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- Brisket Slider
- Chili Relleno
- Clam Chowder in Sourdough Bowl
- Beyond Burger w/ BBQ Aioli, American Cheese & Crispy Jalapeno (vegan)
- Elote Corn on the cobb with Lime Crema
- Hot Chicken Sandwich
- Korean Hot Dog
- Loaded Nachos all topped with choice of Tinga or Carnita & Birria
- Mini funnel cake
- Queso Street Tacos
- Tortilla Cut Chips with Guacamole
City Snack Shop
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- Giant Pretzel,
- Spicy Pomegranate Glazed Turkey Leg, and the debut of the
- Crepewich (Banana and Nutella, Strawberry Chocolate, Club, or Spinach and Berry)
Plus, stroll the Upper Lot and check out all the windows, quick serves, and outdoor vending locations. You’ll find popcorn, churros, even Universal’s first attempt at beignets!
A Constellation of Characters!
We were delighted to see so many characters in the park. They are mostly located behind planters and other items to encourage guests to keep a safe distance. But we saw Homer Simpson, Hello Kitty, a minion, and the Hogwarts Express Conductor:
Universal Studios Shopping
Most of the big stores were open for the event. They do keep track of capacity, but it was mostly unnecessary since the shops were uncrowded.
The main event here is the grand opening of the Secret Life of Pets store, which will be the shop the upcoming new ride will exit you into. We also enjoyed the Animation store and the shops of the Wizarding World of course.
Surprisingly, the Kwik-E-Mart seemed to get a lot of traffic during the event. Likely because this is also where Homer Simpson does his photo spot.
Wizarding World has the most open establishments. Aside from the Three Broomsticks and two Butterbeer carts, you’ll also find Honeydukes candy shop, Ollivanders wands, the Owl Post, Zonko’s Joke Shop, Wiseacre’s Wizarding Equipment, Dervish and Banges, Gladrags Wizardwear and Filch’s Emporium of Confiscated Goods!
A Video Walkthrough of Taste of Universal
Let me take you all on a complete video walkthrough of the event so you can get a better idea of what to expect and if the event seems right for you and your family. You’ll also get to see me dumped on by a surprise rainstorm. Didn’t bother me in the least, I was riding a theme park high.
Final Thoughts on A Taste of Universal Studios
Even though there were no rides or shows, this event costs only half as much (or less) than a visit during regular park operations, it also includes food. So, we think it’s a pretty good deal, especially for those of you who are just looking to see a theme park again and enjoy the scenery.
And there was SO much new stuff to see, and old things to enjoy again.
It was particularly fun to see the entrance to the upcoming Secret Life of Pets ride, a family-friendly dark ride with animatronics and physical sets.
Looks like they’ll be doing a virtual queue for this one.
And do a bit of exploring.
Although the Lower Lot is closed, you can take one flight of stairs down to enjoy the view of the valley.
And you can even see the construction for Super Nintendo World:
Take a gander at the shooting schedule for the studio.
Lots of props have been used to decorate the upper lot. It’s worth taking some time to check it all out.
The buildings near the new Secret Life of Pets ride have been dressed to look kid-friendly. Lots of decoration here and things to see in the windows.
There’s a lot of artistry in some of these new windows, like the rolled paper sculptures in the Bookstore window.
And if something looks amiss behind the Mystery Machine, that’s because “Hudson Gate” was the entrance to the Walking Dead attraction. Even the wrecked helicopter has been removed.
In the central plaza, you’ll find some cars from the Fast and the Furious.
While we were a bit annoyed at the length of the lines that developed at some food locations, we also spent a lot more time at the event and enjoyed it much more than we expected. The upbeat music playing everywhere, character moments, and super friendly team members really made it feel like a real festival.
We would suggest setting your expectations correctly, it’s not the same vibe as when Universal is in Theme Park mode. But it’s still enjoyable just to stroll through the themed areas. Walking through Hogsmead and seeing Hogwarts Castle is always a thrill. They’ve even got the wand experiences open, so you can make fire appear in a chimney, stop the plates from spinning, make the quidditch snitch fly, or silence a bubbling cauldron . . . don’t have a wand? Don’t worry, they’ll gladly sell you one.
We have a feeling that Universal will continue to improve on this event, but they should be shifting to regular theme park mode as soon as mid to late April. We hope they learn enough from this event to possibly add more seasonal festivals in the future. And perhaps it will be the catalyst to help the park focus more on tasty food in the future.
Butterbeer anyone?!
Our thanks to David Yeh for most of these photos!
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