Secrets to where to Disneyland employees eat - Hidden Mickey Book Fan Club Blog v002

The Hidden Mickey Book Fan Club BLOG! - v002

The OFFICIAL HIDDEN MICKEY FAN CLUB!

Secrets to where to Disneyland employees eat
By David W. Smith
Hello Hidden Mickey Book Fans!
Like our Hidden Mickey novels, we hope to inspire some adventure in our readers; consider it a 'quest' to decipher some 'inside' information about Disneyland and things related to Disney.
While some people might believe that the 'cast members' of Disneyland live off the remains of unfinished Mickey Ice Cream bars or Popcorn found in the bottom of discarded popcorn boxes, the truth is, there are two employee cafeterias at Disneyland. The first one is off Main Street near the hub. As you approach the Tomorrowland entrance, there is a First Aid center just past what used to be the old general store at the end of Main Street. Just past this First Aid center is a Cast Member's entrance which leads to back stage. Just past this entrance is one of the two employee cafeterias.
Author Nancy Temple Rodrigue with her Dad and Brother in 1962

The second one is on the west side of the park below New Orleans Square. Actually, it isn't really below the Square, it is behind part of Pirates of the Caribbean, and down a large tunnel that starts just behind Indiana Jones and the left side of Pirates.
Another entrance to this cafe is to the right of the men's restroom in New Orleans Square, just to the left of the Disneyland Railroad train depot in the Square. Down a short hall past the men's restroom is a door that leads to a stairway. This stairway takes you down to the DEC, or Disneyland Employee Cafeteria (that is what it was called when I worked there). It was nicknamed the PIT, not because of the perceived quality of food, (which was actually not bad!), but because when it was opened back in the early 1970's the walls inside were painted like race cars. Hence the name PIT, short for Pit Stop.

There are numerous break areas around the park for cast members too. Behind the Hungry Bear Restaurant in Critter Country, there is a covered patio with a ping pong table and chairs to relax or read in. In between Frontierland and Adventureland is a semi-circle of shops and food stops. In the middle of these shops is an open area with stairs that lead up to second floor offices. There are covered break areas up on the balcony of this second floor. These are the offices of various managers of the west side operations.

There are break areas in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland too as well as one behind Toontown.


So there you have it.
The cast members of Disneyland don't depend on the guests for their meals, unless of course one of the guests asks one of the cast members out for dinner!
Which happens frequently!

Well... that's it for this issue...
Enjoy, and have a Great Hidden Mickey Day!
 


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If you don't see HIDDEN MICKEY in your local bookstore, please ask the Store Manager to order it, or contact us with the Bookstore name & address, Managers name, (plus their Phone and/or eMail if possible). We will contact them and maybe even set up a Book Signing there.


ABC News Interviews "Hidden Mickey" novel series author Nancy Temple Rodrigue


Unmarked Disneyland Treasures

Going through my Disneyland mementos, I came across some badly crumpled plastic leis that I had saved from the Tahitian Terrace when our family had dinner there in the late 1960's.

The Tahitian Terrace had been mentioned in one of my novels, Hidden Mickey Adventures 4: Revenge of the Wolf.  In Chapter 7, Walt and his team of Imagineers are going through the Park on their customary walk before the Park opened for the day, seeing how everything looked.  On this day, Walt especially wanted to see the Tahitian Terrace that was under construction.  The centerpiece of the restaurant was a huge African coral tree.  Walt decided that the branches were so low that they would obstruct the view of the nearby Jungle Cruise boats as they returned to the dock.  He had asked that the base of the tree be cut in half so a few feet could be added to the structure, and he wanted to make sure the work was done.
As I remembered the wonderful times we had at the Tahitian Terrace, I realized that there are no markings or stamps or anything on this lei that would indicate it was from Disneyland's past.  There is only my memory of when we got it and the fact it has been in my collection for decades.
This lei recalled other items I had gotten through the years at Disneyland, but didn't have any markings on them that said they, too, were from the Park.  Here are a few of my items:

This lovely little fan was bought at the One Of a Kind Shop that used to be in the entrance to New Orleans Square.  It was a wonderful shop that had a little of everything from around the world.  The only marking on this fan is a small sticker that says Made in Spain.

Many of you remember the Candle Shop on Main Street.  Located in the same building as the Emporium, it was stuffed to the brim with candles of all shapes and sizes.  This yellow rose, its leaves long crumbled, was purchased there, probably in the early 1970's.

The last unmarked treasure I am sharing is this wooden wall hanging of two darling teddy bears.  This was from the days of the Country Bear Jamboree and Bear Country.  The shop was in the far back edge of the land, attached to the Mile Long Bar.  I believe the store was called the Wilderness Outpost.  This has hung in my kitchen since 1976 or 1977!
So, these have been a few of my special unmarked Disneyland treasures.  How about your collection?  Do you have some memorabilia that has no Disney markings, but you can recall exactly where it was purchased inside one of the Parks?  How about sharing some of your pictures with the other readers!  We would love to see your pictures and hear about your memories!
Be sure to check out all of my Hidden Mickey and Hidden Mickey Adventures novels to find more exciting, fascinating history about Walt Disney and his treasure of a park: Disneyland. Share them with your Disney-loving friends. Here are quick links to all the books:

Here are the links to buy them on Amazon:
Hidden Mickey 1: Sometimes Dead Men DO Tell Tales!
Hidden Mickey 2: It All Started...
Hidden Mickey 3: Wolf! The Legend of Tom Sawyer's Island
Hidden Mickey 4: Wolf! Happily Ever After?
Hidden Mickey 4.5: Unfinished Business - Wals

Hidden Mickey Adventures 1: Peter and the Wolf
Hidden Mickey Adventures 2: Peter and the Missing Mansion
Hidden Mickey Adventures 3: The Mermaid's Tale
Hidden Mickey Adventures 4: Revenge of the Wolf
Hidden Mickey Adventures 5: When You Wish
Buy a Bundle and Save! The links below will give you a choice of Hardbacks or Paperbacks at a special price, and I sign all the bundle sets:
Hardcover Bundle - 5 Hidden Mickey Novels
Paperback Bundle - 5 Hidden Mickey Novels
Hardcover Bundle - 5 Hidden Mickey Adventures Novels
Paperback Bundle - 5 Hidden Mickey Adventures Novels

The beautiful cover art on all novels is Available to Purchase! Beautifully created, numbered and limited edition prints of this artwork is now available on beautiful 12" x 18" Canvas.
Here are the links to buy them:
Hidden Mickey 1
Hidden Mickey 2
Hidden Mickey 3
Hidden Mickey 4
Hidden Mickey 4.5
Hidden Mickey Adventures 1
Hidden Mickey Adventures 2
Hidden Mickey Adventures 3
Hidden Mickey Adventures 4
Hidden Mickey Adventures 5

There are only a few beautiful Hidden Mickey Heart Pendants left.
First introduced in Hidden Mickey 2: It All Started... and featured throughout both series of novels. 
Limited edition
30 carat lab created RUBY on a 14K Yellow Gold Vermeil "Hidden Mickey"

Here is the link to buy one:
Hidden Mickey Heart Pendant with 16" chain
Hidden Mickey Heart Pendant with 20" chain