The new Earl of Sandwich location at Downtown Disney District had its grand opening this week. The location also features Gordon Ramsay at The Carnaby, a new concept from Earl of Sandwich founder Robert Earl. We had the opportunity to interview Earl, as well as Chef Damien Brassel.
Robert Earl & Chef Brassel Interview
Earl said this Earl of Sandwich takes a “fresh, new approach” to the restaurant with more space and light, as well as new innovations like the cookie program and The Carvery. With The Carvery also comes a new signature Pastrami Sandwich.
“We’ve become world-famous for our hot, toasted sandwich,” Earl explained, “but when you do a pastrami, it’s more of a carving exercise. We don’t toast that bread. It’s all about the meat and how we’ve cooked it in the ovens immediately behind.”
Upstairs, Gordon Ramsay at The Carnaby is themed to London, England in the 1960s. Earl, who hails from England, said, “During that time, everything was happening. Music, food, fashion, all at once. We were becoming the premier country in the world. And so we’ve tried to recreate exactly that.”
He explained, “Disney helped us to cultivate this concept.” The story of the Swinging Sixties is in “the music, the ambiance, the look and feel, the way the staff are dressed, everything. And then, of course, the food.”
On Ramsay’s involvement, Earl said, “We had this beautiful concept. We had everything right, but then we got the opportunity for Gordon Ramsay to brand it. We’re talking about one of the most talented chefs in the world. And he’s given us all his signature dishes, all those wonderful things that we salivate over. Very British but also very acceptable to the U.S.A.”
Chef Brassel, who works all of Ramsay’s restaurants, said it took six to seven months to finalize The Carnaby’s menu, collaborating with Earl and Ramsay. Right now, it’s only operating for dinner from 4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. but they plan to expand into breakfast and lunch soon.
Earl thinks The Carnaby will be at the forefront of the reimagined Downtown Disney District. “I think that there’s lots of great restaurants [at Disneyland Resort] but this one is going to be award winning. This one is going to be right at the top.”
The restaurant is full of “Instagrammable” moments like murals, but beyond photo ops, Earl hopes families will enjoy it as an “oasis away from the craziness and the frenzy in the park.”
“This is where you can come and have a breath,” he said. “There’ll be lunch, there’ll be a long dinner, there’s terraces where you can see the fireworks.”
Chef Brassel said Downtown Disney District is the “perfect location” and, “It’s amazing coming out here, seeing all the kids and families, it’s fantastic.”
Earl’s restaurant career spans over 50 years, including the founding of Planet Hollywood, a five-year tenure as CEO of Hard Rock Café, and the co-founding of Chicken Guy! with Guy Fieri (which opened its first location at Disney Springs). He thinks the common theme that will never change when it comes to opening new restaurants is “hospitality.”
“To me, it’s about the friendliness of the staff and about the quality of the food and about the offering and about the pricing. All of that together equals hospitality. And I think that if any of those go wrong, it won’t be memorable — or it won’t be memorable for the right reason.”
We asked him what still excites him the most about opening a brand-new restaurant.
“I get the same buzz as when I started,” Earl said. “I am absolutely into this and I have a feeling about [The Carnaby] becoming a chain. About this being a brand.”
Watch our full interview with Earl below.
Check out our full review of Gordon Ramsay at The Carnaby.
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