Good morning from Disney’s Hollywood Studios! Let’s see what’s happening on this fine summer day.
Construction / Maintenance
The last of the parking lot and entrance construction is happening as we speak just outside the turnstiles.
This area between security and the Skyliner station / bus loop is being repaved and landscaped.
Just across from there, they’re working on finishing the new security bag check building. The first phase of it is already open, with just this part and the surrounding area left to be finished.
They’re really making good progress.
Back on Grand Avenue, near the future entrance to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, you can get a glimpse of the work going on at the back of the former Great Movie Ride show building.
They recently removed the billboards that were here. Looks like they’re patching up the holes.
I can’t tell if this portion of the building is being repainted or just cleaned. It would be interesting if this building gets the same grey paint job the Muppet*Vision 3D show building.
The Guest Experience Team kiosks got a nice upgrade today with some new umbrellas emblazoned with their logo. This really helps with visibility for the guests needing help or directions.
Merchandise
Disney’s goal of replacing all the black pin cards with white ones seems to be almost complete.
The D-Tech kiosks at Star Wars Launch Bay have something new to choose from now: magnets! This location only has Star Wars designs (obviously), but there’s a whole range of other options at other parks available as well.
They’re a pretty good size, too. They had some on display behind the counter.
I mentioned some new Star Wars clothing in my post the other day, but there seems to be even more to choose from now!
One of my favorite shops in the park is the Stage 1 Studio Store near Muppet*Vision 3D. They have a really nice range of Disney artwork available, including cels.
They have a nice selection of collectible postcards and such as well.
This Little Mermaid sticky note collection caught my eye. I like the designs.
I think the find of the day though was this Toy Story 4 mystery pin blind box. For some reason it was only available here so far, and nowhere else in the park.
PizzeRizzo
PizzeRizzo is, in my opinion, not as respected as it ought to be. Sure, the food is… not good, but the atmosphere is fantastic!
The entire restaurant is filled to the brim with Muppet references. Some of them are much more obvious than others.
This looks like your average photo of New York City, right? Wrong.
About a third of the photos on the walls all have Muppets hiding in them.
Other fun subtle jokes include this map of Los Angeles…
…with the sewer delivery route mapped out. (They’re rats, get it?)
You can also find this reference to an early Muppet project, The Jimmy Dean Show (you know, the sausage guy) which predates Sesame Street.
Even if you’re not a Muppet fan, there’s still interesting things to be found, like this Subway sign that used to be on the Streets of America in this very same park.
That’s it for today! Do me a favor and give PizzeRizzo some love. The Muppets need all the support they can get. If you can’t stand the pizza, get the salad, it’s actually not bad.
Is the pizza place open as of June thanks
PizzeRizzo should be open at least through the Summer!
Lovely to see muppets still going strong at the Studios. Thank you Henry. I’m sure they have enough of a following for more muppet attractions.
I remember Rowlf from the Jimmy Dean show! I was just a kid, but that was my favorite part of the show. Thanks for showing the photo and for the reminder!
If they would hire me to consult and create some edible pizza Pizzerizzo might actually be a foodie stop on the Disney food tour!!
We went to PizzeRizzo on our last visit and also really enjoyed the meatballs. We are big fans of the muppets too!
I was just in WDW and was pleasantly surprised to find PizzeRizzo open! I’m a Muppet fan, and my husband and i are raising Muppet fan children. Thank you for including these awesome photos!!
When we used to rave to friends/family about WDW, we’d comment about how good the value was, but also how the food was great – not just amusement park fare.
So, it’s pretty sad they can’t make a decent pizza. If you can make incredible attractions, how can you not make a decent pizza? (Esp at these prices)