The Grey Stuff at Disneyland

Who hasn't wanted to try the Grey Stuff? Now, you can at Disneyland. Growing up, Beauty and the Beast was a classic Disney princess movie that most of us loved. As an adult (and now a foodie), my favorite part of the movie is the scene where Lumiere sings "Be Our Guest" and shows Belle all the foods that they serve. One of the dishes he offers Belle is the grey stuff. Many people have speculated what the grey stuff really is, but Disney has made their own versions for guests to enjoy in Disneyland and Walt Disney World. And with the release of the new live-action Beauty and the Beast film, Disney has temporarily reimagined the Village Haus Restaurant into the Red Rose Taverne. As soon as I heard about the changes, I was immediately excited to be able to finally try the grey stuff.

So, on a little bit of a rainy day, I headed to Disneyland to try out the Red Rose Taverne. This was actually a few days after the takeover began. I lined up well before the restaurant opened (11 am) to avoid the huge line that formed the days prior.

On the outside, the building is the same but the Village Haus signs are now covered with Red Rose Taverne banners. 

Two of the windows at the front of the restaurant were changed to rose stained glass windows. 

This big curtain welcomes you as you enter while also hiding some of the Pinocchio decor.

I tried Gaston's Brew which is an apple-mango punch with passion fruit foam. It's so funny how much this looks like beer. It is really fruity and delicious. 

And finally, here is the Grey Stuff Gateau. It is a white chocolate mousse flavored with cookies and cream, red velvet cake with a raspberry and raspberry jam in the center sitting on a shortbread cookie, and topped with crispy chocolate pearls.

It actually is pretty delicious. The mousse is like a light whipped frosting with a hint of the cookies and cream flavor. It goes pretty well with the red velvet cake and raspberry. The chocolate pearls give a little bit of a crunchy texture to the dish. The shortbread cookie was like a little bonus that I ate at the end. If I'm able to eat at Red Rose Taverne again before it is changed back, I will have to try one of the savory dishes but also save room for more of the grey stuff. For now, the restaurant will remain indefinitely.

Red Velvet Pancakes from The Buttermilk Truck

Gourmet food trucks have been incredibly popular for several years now. I have developed a list of a few trucks that I follow in the Los Angeles area. Since breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, The Buttermilk Truck had to be on my list. 

I have tracked down the truck a couple times before and each time I have been drawn to their red velvet pancakes. They are delicious! The mini pancakes are fluffy and rich. Each one has 2 or 3 chocolate chips for just the right amount of chocolate. The chocolate flavor would take over if there were any more than that. The pancakes are sprinkled with powdered sugar and topped with a cream cheese maple butter. I like to put a little extra maple syrup on top of my order of pancakes. Yes, this picture above shows an ironing board (not sure why) they had set up as a table to stand and eat your pancakes.

On this particular day, The Buttermilk Truck launched the sale of their very own red velvet pancake mix. I took my mom along with me to the farmers' market to try them out. When we arrived, we went right to the truck and tents they had set up with a photo booth and display of their mix and shirts for sale. They had quite a few people wearing their Klippy tank tops and tee shirts greeting customers. (Klippy is the mascot that you see on the truck and the can of mix.) Right away, they helped us get our pancake mix. Then, my mom and I decided to buy our own Klippy tanks. Finally, we ordered the infamous red velvet pancakes from the truck. 

I was curious to see what my mom's review would be. She is not usually into red velvet (and not a fan of cream cheese), so I was surprised that she was willing to order red velvet pancakes. Here's what she had to say: "I've heard so much about the Buttermilk Truck and even seen it on TV so I was all in to go give it a try. The thoughts running through my head were: That's not gonna fill me up; I want PANcakes not CAKE; and cream cheese...really? After the first bite I realized I was wrong, wrong and wrong!!! I am officially hooked and will proudly slip into my Klippy tank top (That I got at the truck) and zip up the freeway to grab some more soon." She better not go without me!

For those of you not in the L.A. area and can't make it to the truck, you can now order the mix online or maybe find it in a Sur La Table across the country starting in August. In L.A. and Orange County, the mix is available in Bristol Farms and Surfas. More information is available on the Buttermilk Truck's site. The price is $11. They also have recipes for red velvet cupcakes and brownies both using this mix, on their site.
I look forward to recreating these pancakes at home. I'm excited to try the cupcake and brownie recipes as well. I might post how they turn out later in my blog. The next time I visit the truck, I will have to try some of the other menu options. They all sound so good. I can't wait to find them again. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.