Part of the new Disney Jollywood Nights hard-ticket event at Disney’s Hollywood Studios offers exclusive dining experiences, including Jazzy Holidays at the Hollywood Brown Derby.
The official description of the experience reads, “During Disney Jollywood Nights, this iconic restaurant transforms into a smooth jazz joint — where you can enjoy holiday music, craft cocktails, and an exclusive menu of light bites in a sophisticated setting. Capacity is limited.”
Due to the limited capacity, a queue system is in place. To join, guests can scan a QR code beginning at 8 p.m.
Menu for the Hollywood Brown Derby During Disney Jollywood Nights
The menu includes the usual daytime cocktails available at the Hollywood Brown Derby, as well as eight small bites.
Menu Items
Pork Belly Bao – $12
Korean BBQ, Cucumber Slaw, Soy Vinaigrette
We preferred this version of the bao to the tofu option, though we don’t really think this is that great, either.
Our pork belly bao had a good amount of saltiness thanks to the soy vinaigrette. The barbecue sauce adds a tangy flavor that bounces off of the soy nicely. This dish feels very run-of-the-mill in comparison to the regular offerings at the Hollywood Brown Derby.
Tofu Bao – $12
Seared Tofu, Cucumber Slaw, Soy Vinaigrette
We found the tofu bao to be pretty boring. You can definitely taste the soy vinaigrette, but outside of that, this dish isn’t that interesting.
We’d go as far as to say that this bao is so basic, we could probably make it at home. Unless you really like the flavor of soy sauce on the back end, you’ll find this option to be quite bland.
Oyster Rockefeller – 14
Spinach Foam, Shaved Parmesan, Rocoto Pepper Relish, Salmon Caviar
A lot is going on with the Oyster Rockefeller. The Rocoto pepper relish has some kick that we enjoyed.
The oyster is nicely fried but pretty salty. You can taste the spinach foam, but it’s a light spinach flavor. There’s also a slight hint of parmesan.
All of the ingredients come together nicely. This dish is different and interesting, and we liked it a lot.
Shrimp Cocktail – $13
Classic Cocktail Sauce, Citrus Pearls, Avocado Mousse
For $13, you get three shrimp. After consulting the shrimp calculator, that’s over $4 a shrimp.
This is a pretty basic shrimp cocktail. There is a fishy aftertaste on the back end, as though the shrimp had just come out of the ocean. Otherwise, this is a standard shrimp cocktail and we would skip it on future visits.
Crispy Duck Drumettes – $14
Spicy Orange Glaze, Carrots, Kumquats
For as good as they look, the Crispy Duck Drumettes were kind of a disappointment.
They are expertly cooked, but the spicy orange glaze is really overwhelming. All you get from them is a citrus flavor that drowns out the flavors of the carrots and kumquats. We also don’t recall it being very spicy, either.
Derby Sliders – $14
Bison and Pork Belly, Taleggio, Fig Stout Jam, Arugula
These sliders were a big hit with our group. The fig stout jam steals the show, and the arugula adds a nice crunch. Joining the bison and pork belly blend and taleggio cheese, these sliders offer a great blend of flavor. The meat was cooked to about a medium.
True, they’re $7 each, meaning they’re not the best value, but they are very good.
Tuna Carpaccio – $14
Mezcal Pickled Vegetables, Salsa Macha, Avocado Crema, Lavash
This was another winner for us. The lavash is perfect, and the thinly sliced tuna is extraordinarily flavorful. The salsa macha makes it super spicy, but this is well-countered by the Mezcal pickled vegetables. The avocado crema also cools things down a bit.
Again, not an amazing serving size for $14, but this was our favorite of everything we had.
Charcuterie – $15
House-made cured meats and accompaniments, blue cheese mousse, toasted sourdough
We find it weird that the description says “house-made cured meats,” when this charcuterie offers only one type of meat — duck — cooked two ways. The more normal way the duck was prepared leads to the meat being very dry with no flavor; the other meat is a pâté or terrine, which is fine but heavy on the fig flavor.
We like the blue cheese mousse, and love that honey was present — but this makes us wish this were a cheese board instead. The everyday charcuterie board at the Brown Derby is better than this, and a better value, for that matter. We would skip this, even though the blue cheese mousse is phenomenal.
Non-Alcoholic Cocktails
Zero Proof – Spicy Pineapple Margarita – $7.49
Seed Lip Garden 108, Habanero Lime, Pineapple Juice
Blueberry Smash – $4.99
Blueberry Syrup, Lemon Juice, Sprite, Rosemary
Cocktails
Bees Knees – $15
Molet’s Gin, Honey Syrup, Lemon
French 75 – $15
New Amsterdam Gin, Lemon Juice, Prosecco
Espresso Martini – $15
Stoli Vanilla Vodka, Kahlua, Espresso
Derby Vodka Martini – $18
Grey Goose Vodka, Dry Vermouth
Derby Gin Martini – $17
Moley’s Dry Gin and Dry Vermouth
Old Fashioned – $19
Knob Creek Bourbon, Bitters, Luxardo Cherries, Orange
Side Car – $16.50
Courvoisier VS Cognac, Cointreau, Sweet-&-Sour
Pomegranate Whiskey Sour – $16
Crown Royal Whiskey, Pomegranate Juice, Sweet-&-Sour
Hollywood Lights – $17
Captain Morgan Spiced Rum, Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Pineapple, Cranberry
Overall Thoughts on Jazzy Holidays at the Hollywood Brown Derby
Out of everything on the menu for Disney Jollywood Nights, we’d say that the Oyster Rockefeller, the Derby Sliders, and the Tuna Carpaccio are the things to get, as everything else was super disappointing.
In addition, we found the Jazzy Holidays experience to be lacking in entertainment.
What was advertised as a jazz band inside the restaurant was actually just a piano player, with a single strand of illuminated garland in front of him and another on his piano.
This had to be the least effort put forth of anything we experienced the entire night.
You can watch some of the jazz stylings from inside the Brown Derby below:
Check out more of our food reviews from Disney Jollywood Nights:
- REVIEW: Cocktails at the Tower of Terror Bar for Disney Jollywood Nights — Twilight Soirée at the Tip Top Club
- REVIEW: Christmas Gertie Cookie & Ice Cream at First Ever Jollywood Nights Event in Disney’s Hollywood Studios
- REVIEW: Spicy Korean Chicken, Brisket Reuben, & S’Mores Funnel Cakes Provide Range of Flavors on Disney Jollywood Nights Exclusive Menu at Epic Eats
- REVIEW: Meatball and Polenta, Exlclusive Flatbreads, and Tiramisu Puff Arrive at PizzeRizzo for Disney Jollywood Nights
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