Disney California Adventure's Food & Wine Festival is back in 2026, with delicious food and drinks to accompany it. If you're like me and a trip to the Disneyland Resort is as much about the attractions as the food, this festival is not to be missed.
This year's Food and Wine Festival kicked off this past weekend and will run until April 27, 2026. For those who may be familiar, the focal point of Food & Wine is a selection of booths offering unique flavored entrees and snacks, some desserts, and a ton of alcoholic and some non-alcoholic Beijing. You could easily spend an entire day at California Adventure sampling all the festival has to offer, but I recommend bringing stretchy pants or planning to take a bunch of laps around Pixar Pier.
Trying the food at the California Adventure Food and Wine Festival
This year's Food & Wine Festival selection includes a good mix of new dishes and returning favorites. I sampled as much as my stomach could handle, plus some other food around the park, and it's another successful season for DCA. There's something for any culinary palette, assuming you're at least a little adventurous.
The key to the Food & Wine Festival is the Sip & Savor Pass, which is like a bundle for various booths. You can purchase a 4-item or 8-item pass at a cheaper rate than purchasing multiple items individually. The pass doesn't work for alcoholic beverages, though, but it does work for anything else at the booths, as well as select items from quick service restaurants around the park. If you are going to take advantage of the Food & Wine Festival, I recommend getting the Sip & Saver pass.
Of the new foods I tried, there were several that were instant hits for me. Food & Wine always has some form of mac and cheese and this year's iteration was ramen mac and cheese which, despite the recognizable cheesy flavor, had a faint hint of ramen flavor. For a little added punch, the dish comes with a side of chili crunch, which has been all the rage lately and adds a nice spice to mac and cheese.
There were also plenty of dishes with a little kick, from Tajin Habanero Seasoned Wings to Chicharron Nachos. I am not crazy about spicy food but I enjoyed the taste of these two dishes. The nachos packed a bunch of flavor, while the wings had that signature tajine flavor that you see a lot in Disneyland resort food.
Last year, my hands-down favorite item at Food & Wine was the musubi fried rice and it's back (at the Golden Dreams booth). The combination of the salty spam with the sweet glaze is addictive, and the rice and egg balance out that intense flavor combo.
And you can't go wrong with a Mickey-shaped macaron made with Snickers bar pieces. There is no other way to describe this dessert other than decadent. If you're a fan of Snickers bars, or the flavors in Snickers bars (chocolate, caramel, almond), this will knock your socks off.
Avengers Campus is one of my favorite dishes this season
Outside of the food booths, many vendors and quick service restaurants around Disney California Adventure have some new seasonal items to coincide with the food and wine festival. Pimm's Test Kitchen at Avengers Campus has a spinach and artichoke grilled cheese that's phenomenal, Aunt Cass Cafe has a banana caramel bread pudding that's divine, and I'm a big fan of the Asian burrito at Studio Catering Company.
There's honestly so much food around the park that you'll need at least a few days to try everything that catches your eye, and you can't go wrong with the many items available during the Food and Wine Festival. I'm not much of a drinker, so I budget out for food but I tried the Bourbon Peach Tea Lemonade and it was dangerously good. Hope you know what I mean.
Soaring back to California once again
Along with the Food & Wine Festival, Soarin' returns to its original Soarin' in California for the duration of the season. Soarin' Around the World is a fun motion simulator, but I just love how Soarin' Over California captures the vibes of the state. The Patrick Warburton safety video at the start is one of my favorite pieces of Disneyland media (next to Boo by the Robot from Star Tours), and being immersed in the sights and smells of California is a real treat.
On the entertainment front, Food & Wine brings a jammin' chef show alongside The Little Mermaid – Ariel's Undersea Adventure. Think of it like Stomp but using kitchen utensils to make music. It plays a few times throughout the day and is a great show to watch while you enjoy some food or a nice cold drink. Disney usually likes to use tons of characters that bring magic to its shows, but I love how simple this one is with just Chip and Dale and a few actors. It's a lot of fun.
Of course, Disney California Adventure has a lot more to offer along with the Food & Wine Festival – great rides, fun characters to meet, and some great design elements. It's still the 70th anniversary celebration, so you can get those bonus points at Toy Story Midway Mania and cap off the night by watching the World of Color: Happiness water show.
The Food & Wine Festival may not have the pantries or ride overlays of Halloween or the holiday season, but it has plenty of food and means it's always a good time in the parks. And with new Avengers rides in the works, as well as Coco Ride and an Avatar-themed expansion planned for California Adventure, there will be even more bonuses surrounding the annual event over the next few years.
Disney California Adventure's Food & Wine Festival runs through April 27, 2026. GameRant was invited to an exclusive media preview for this coverage.
