Korean culture—alongside Chinese and Vietnamese cultures, which also observe Lunar New Year—takes center stage in the 2025 Lunar New Year festivities at Disney California Adventure (DCA), a theme park in Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. From Jan. 17 to Feb. 16, the park is featuring various entertainment and food offerings inspired by the three Asian cultures.

Hanbok (traditional Korean clothing) makes a debut in Disneyland Resort, as iconic Disney characters Mickey and Minnie Mouse wear Hanboks for the first time to meet and greet guests at Paradise Gardens during the month-long celebration. Designed by illustrator-designer-author Ann Shen, the Hanboks were brought to life by Korean American costume designer Grace Kang and her teammates at Disney Live Entertainment. Kang conducted comprehensive research about Hanbok and used fabrics imported from Korea to maintain the authenticity and accuracy of the outfits. 

Mickey and Minnie Mouse wearing Hanboks at the Disney California Adventure Park. 

Seeing Mickey and Minnie Mouse in Hanboks warmed the hearts of many people—both theme park guests and netizens alike—especially Koreans and Korean Americans. One Korean American mother named Catherine Eum even shared an Instagram Reel on Jan. 23 about how she made it a point to find similar-looking Hanboks for her kids upon learning that Mickey and Minnie Mouse would be wearing Hanboks for the Lunar New Year celebrations at Disneyland Resort. 

A screenshot from an Instagram Reel shared by Catherine Eum showing her kids, Emily and Elias, wearing matching Hanboks with Mickey and Minnie Mouse at Paradise Gardens in Disney California Adventure Park. (Catherine Eum)

Meanwhile, the wide selection of Korean, Chinese, and Vietnamese Lunar New Year food offerings at DCA includes new Korean-inspired food and drinks like spicy gochujang (fermented chili paste) Korean chicken tacos and peach makgeolli (rice wine) cocktail, in addition to Korean dishes previously introduced into DCA’s Lunar New Year menu, such as bulgogi (stir-fried marinated meat) pizza. 

The menu was curated by a team led by Daniel “Duke” Brown, a Korean American chef who has been with the Disney Company for six years and is currently in charge of overseeing the culinary offerings for Disney California Adventure. He has over 25 years of experience as a chef in various locations, learning about different food techniques and discovering his Korean heritage through food. 

In an email interview facilitated by Disneyland Resort Public Relations from Feb. 1-2, Brown discussed the Lunar New Year menu, particularly the Korean food offerings. He said, “Every year, the culinary team gathers information and feedback from guests from the festival. We meet, cook, eat, and we push ourselves to see how we can not only showcase tradition but also showcase our unique style here in Southern California.” He describes their diverse chef team as “storytellers” who not just highlight their knowledge of food but also get to share unique, personal stories in their food offerings.

As for the Korean dishes in particular, Brown said that with the spotlight on Korean culture this year in the resort, he wanted to pay homage to tradition while keeping true to how he learned about cooking from his mother, a Korean who migrated to the USA in 1975 from Seoul’s Sungbuk-dong. “We were the only Korean family in a small town in the 1980s, and she shared our heritage through food while learning from the different cultures around us. She would add local ingredients and dishes to her Korean food to make it approachable to others. She was the first person that I saw making okra kimchi, bulgogi tacos, kimchi meatloaf, as well as various dishes she put a Korean spin on. I wanted to represent how she taught me about food,” Brown shared.

From this goal came about one of the new Korean dishes featured in DCA’s 2025 Lunar New Year menu: the scallion pancake tostada. “While conceptualizing items for this year’s Lunar New Year, I looked to popular Asian dishes as well as traditional food that tell my story. Scallion pancakes are widely popular, and kimchi jeon (pancake) is something that I love. So, the team and I worked on a Korean scallion pancake,” Brown said. To show their creativity in making a dish that is innovative, different, as well as fun and easy to eat, Brown and his teammates treated the pancake like a tostada, topped it with bulgogi made using his mother’s own recipe, added kimchi aioli, and put scallion salad on top for a distinct scallion flavor.

Left: A screenshot from an Instagram Reel shared by D*Kababayan about the scallion pancake tostada at Disney California Adventure Park. (D*Kababayan) / Right: Chef Daniel “Duke” Brown. (Daniel “Duke” Brown) 

The scallion pancake tostada “was a hit,” as Brown said. Many guests enjoyed the Korean dish, with some saying it was the best food they tried for Lunar New Year. On Jan. 22, food content creator Adrian Danganan shared on his Instagram page, Eat with Adrian, that the scallion pancake tostada is his favorite Lunar New Year food at DCA and gave it a 10/10 rating. In addition, D*Kababayan, a page dedicated to connecting the Filipino community through Disney-related things, shared on Jan. 29 an Instagram review of the scallion pancake tostada, highly recommending it also with a rating of 10/10.

Screenshots from an Instagram reel posted by Adrian Danganan about the scallion pancake tostada. (Eat with Adrian)

“Seeing guests of all cultures love the dish as well as Korean guests comment that they can tell the bulgogi tastes authentic fills me with pride. I get to celebrate my mother/family and tell our story the same way my mother did. Through this dish, it’s like a piece of our legacy will live on with the legacy of the Disney Company,” Brown said.

Brown describes being able to share his Korean heritage through the food offerings at California Disney Adventure Park, especially this Lunar New Year, as a “life-changing” experience. He shared, “In 2016, before I worked at the Disney Resort, I came to a Lunar Festival and was in awe of the diversity and celebration of Asian culture. I remember telling my wife that I would have a dish at this festival one day to celebrate my culture. I applied shortly after to Disney. This is the third year a dish of mine has been able to be part of the festival, and with each year, I feel more and more proud that I achieved my goal.”

“Throughout my decades of culinary experience, I have never worked at a place that has given me a venue to express myself in an authentic way. I welcome all to come and see what I, as well as many chefs who have similar stories, want to share about our cultures. As a Korean American, I am still trying to get in touch, as well as learn more about the beauty of Korean culture. I hope all who come and try our food offerings can see the hard work, love, and stories behind all we do,” Brown said.