Event Details | Reader Reviews

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Event Details

LUNCH WITH AN IMAGINEER -- Join a member of the creative team behind our latest theme park and resort projects for an informal, intimate lunch at the Disney-MGM Studios' legendary Hollywood Brown Derby. Guests at the Imagineer meals get the VIP treatment, starting with seating in the swank, private Bamboo Room at the Brown Derby. You'll get a glimpse of the creative process as these talented men and women share what it's like to work in the most magical place in the world.

Each party will receive a souvenir designed exclusively for this experience that can be personalized by the Imagineer.

You may book the experience up to 60 days out through WDW-DINE; there is a 48 hours cancellation policy.

Program is offered Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 11:30am Lunch.

Prices:

On December 5, 2005, we had an opportunity to have lunch with an Imagineer, Jack Blitzer, Vice President of Ride Development. There were seven people; one included my teenage stepdaughter. The meal was a succulent oyster Brie, Cobb salad, an entree (I had pan-seared grouper with asparagus, my stepdaughter had the Thai Chicken bowl, and the other option was steak), and vanilla bean creme brulee with a gingersnap.

The conversation flowed easily for all involved. Mr. Blitzer gave us a historical background on himself and the Disney Imagineering. He told us little known facts about the parks and told about a "Hidden Mickey" on the Soarin' ride that most people miss (hint: don't blink when the golf ball flies past your head). He also told us that the parks had inside jokes but they have cut down on that because it was getting out of hand. The jokes were: mileage on the signs are really birth date of the Imagineers involved on the design or creation of the ride or pavilion; and the names of some Imagineers were augmented so that only the few on the inside knew who it was on boxes and posters in the entrances of rides. We found out that some projects that were on the board, are still there but just on hold until the need appears -- Beastly Kingdom is
one. The need for a thrill ride was more pressing than another area in Animal Kingdom, so the new Everest was built prior to Beastly Kingdom. Jack was so informative and personable that we lost track of time and it was 2:30 PM before we wrapped it up for the day.

This is a definite "Must Do" if you like to find out inside info about the parks. The price was a little steep but it was well worth every penny. My fiance and I are planning on doing the dinner "Dining with the Imagineer" when we go back.

*****

I had lunch with seven other guests, one very adorable baby, and Show Producer (MGM) Theron Skees on February 7th. What a terrific event! The food was delicious, the service excellent, and our Imagineer was friendly and full of interesting stories. I would highly recommend this event to anyone interested in learning more about WDW and the creative process that goes into making the parks and attractions.

Theron was involved in the development of the Tower of Terror and had many interesting stories to tell us about that! He told us about a typical day, about the process of attraction development, about how he got to this job (he started out in construction!), and many more things. Since we were in the Bamboo Room of the Brown Derby, he was even able to tell us about how that was put together and how they matched the original Bamboo Room in Hollywood.

He also talked about the attention to detail at WDW and said they have an entire library of reference materials so they can be sure things are correct. Even the sidewalks have stamps in the concrete that match what would have been used in that time and place.

He said they tell cast members that when window washers come to WDW on holiday, they look at the windows to make sure they're clean; when concrete workers are on vacation, they are checking out the concrete, and so on - so every detail has to be right because otherwise someone will notice and it spoils the illusion for them.

I enjoyed not only the stories we heard, but the enthusiasm this Imagineer has for his job. I'm hoping to book another "dining with an Imagineer" event next time I go.

*****

Julie - June 2004

We did lunch with an imagineer and it was wonderful! There were 8 of us (3 were children) and the imagineer was a graphic designer for Disney. He was very informative and asked us a lot of questions about how we felt about WDW (the good and bad) and what our favorite rides were. He said he had done this lunch before. The lunch was in a private room at Brown Derby and we had our own wait staff. They were excellent. I had the lobster bisque (yum), cobb salad, grouper (yum) and the dessert, which was a bananas foster cheesecake.(!). My DS,10, ate the rolls (he's a chicken fingers kind-of-guy). The meal was to last 1 1/2 hours but we were there 2 1/2 hours. We brought home our personalized menus and a huge plate which was signed by the imagineer. It was great!

*****

William and Judith Stathas - May 2004

On May 28, 2004 we had the honour of joining 7 other guests for lunch with an Imagineer. We were escourted into the Bamboo Room of the Brown Derby, where we met Rhonda, Show Producer, Walt Disney Imagineering - Animal Kingdom.

We were all presented menu's, with our own names on and special lunch items, including the Borwn Derby famous Cobb Salad and Corn and Oyster Chowder as starters.

With orders taken the conversation went on to Rhonda, an imagineer of 28 years, working in the Magic Kingdom and now the Animal Kingdom. There was an open exchange between just about everyone in the group - all Disney fans of many years and many visits.

The set time had come and gone and no one was in a hurry to leave. The meal and service was superb, exactly was you would expect from the Brown Derby. But the best part was being able to share a meal with an Imagineer.

When the gathering finally broke up we were presnted with special plates to commemorate our time together, signed by our Imagineer host. We now proudly display ours in our dinning room.

We hope this program is available again during our next visit. It was a great time.

*****

Carol - December 2003

My husband and I married on Dec. 9, 2003 at Walt Disney World location the wedding chapel. That in itself was a fantasy for another post. I was highly interested in having dinner with one of Disney's employees, so my husband booked us for a lunch at the Brown Derby (MGM).

When we arrived they had our reservation, but not with the imagineer much to my disappointment. True to Disney magic, the concierge managed to get us in that evening for the dinner, and at the lunch price since the fault was with the reservation person (always carry a copy of your reservation number, it sure pays when they mess up!) We went back to the Brown Derby at the magic hour and were shown to the Bamboo room. This is a small private room for an intimate dinner. We shared the table with one other couple and Mr. Jason Surrell of Disney. What a thrill to not only have a 5 course dinner with complementary wine for each course, but to meet and talk with one of Disney's engineers! It turns out that Jason had a part in creating Pal Mickey (again another story but a fabulous item), and he was responsible for the script of the Haunted Mansion. I think we overshot the time frame for the dinner, but Jason did not seem to mind, not only was it our first time on this plan, but his as well! After dinner we recieved personalized menus that Jason signed, a commerative plate about the imagineers and of course got several photos of us with Jason. It was truely a memoriable experience, one my husband said almost out did our wedding (not quite). This is coming from the man who only signed us up for the imagineer dinner cause I desired it. Now he wants to do behind the scenes trips next time we go to Disney!

*****

Tracey - December 2003

I think I was part of the other couple in Carol's report from December 2003. There was another couple who had just been married and were supposed to have had lunch, but had their reservation lost and were bumped up to dinner. I guess she beat me to submitting a report! =)!

When making the reservation, we asked if anybody ever requested a specific Imagineer and the CM said that you could make such a request and you'd be surprised at how many people got their choice.

Our dinner was on December 10, 2003 with Jason Surrell, Show Writer, Walt Disney Imagineering. [On a side note, Jason recently wrote a book on the Haunted from conception of the attraction to the movie. The book also covers each park's version. It is a great book for Haunted Mansion lovers!]

I pulled out our menu and dinner consisted of the following:
Introduction (I believe both were served): (1) Coconut Shrimp with Gingered Beets, Musuna-mandarin Orange Salad and Citrus-soy Dipping Sauce (Wine Pairing: Honing Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley 01) and (2) Individual Classic Cobb Salad with Chopped Greesn, Turkey Breast, Bacon, Egg, Tomatoes, Crumbled Blue Cheese, Avocado, and Cobb Salad Dressing (Wine Pairing: Rock Bare Chardonnay, McLaren Vale, Australia 01); Center Stage (Choice of One): (1) Sesame-seared Tuna Mignon with Wasabi whipped Potatoes, Sugar Peas, and a broken Ginger-soy Viniaigrette (Wine Pairing: Conundrum, Rutherford California 01) (2) Thai Noodle Bowl with Barbecue Breast of Chicken, Snap Peas, Bok Choy and Shiitake Mushrooms in a Red Curry Broth (Wine Pairing: Gewurztraminer QBA, Valckenberg, Pfalz 02), or (3) Center Cut Filet of Beef with Dijon Crushed Potatoes, "Bernaise Aioli", Crisp Onion Rings, and Merlot Jus (Wine Pairing: Joseph Phelps Caber! net Sauvignon, Napa Valley 00); Finale: Warm Deep Dish Apple with Maple Nectar, Black Pepper Spiced Ice Cream, and White Cheddar (Wine Pairing: Antingua Muscat Merryvale, Napa Valley) Coffee, Tea and Non-alcoholic Beverages included.

I remember all of the food was delicious! I cannot comment too much on the wine since I rarely drink wine. I had the filet for dinner and it was superb! My only complaint is that the servers keep the meal on a fairly tight schedule and, apparently, I am a slow eater and with food that good, I wanted to savor all of it! =)!

After dinner, Jason signed the commemorative plate and menus and posed for pictures. A tip to future participants in this event, carry a map of each park with you as your Imagineer may be assigned to a specific park and may sign your map of that park! Jason was assigned to MGM and had actually worked on the Bamboo Room at The Brown Derby where the meal took place. (He was pretty excited to have dinner in the room and told us the history of the Bamboo Room.)

After dinner, our walk out of MGM was through a deserted park! I don't remember seeing any other people except for the other couple from dinner. It was a great time to get pictures without crowd issues!
The manager at the Brown Derby was also to be commended, he treated us like stars and was extremely gracious and accomodating.