Disneyland turkey leg restaurant expands to keep up with viral demand

Disneyland has started construction on the expansion of a popular Fantasyland restaurant to help keep up with demand for the fan-favorite Turkey Legs with a cult following and Garlic Cheesy Brats that started out as a viral menu hack.

The Disney Scoop Guy posted a video to Instagram on Thursday, April 23 from the Anaheim theme park that shows an A-frame roof and vertical supports popping up above construction walls just east of Edelweiss Snacks.

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Disneyland filed a building permit with the city of Anaheim in November to remodel the Edelweiss Snacks alpine chalet in the shadow of the Matterhorn Bobsleds and Disneyland Monorail, according to Theme Park IQ.

The permit calls for a new walk-up window at the existing restaurant, a 518-square-foot prefabricated outdoor dining structure and a 168-square-foot shade canopy, according to Theme Park IQ.

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The Edelweiss Snacks food stand just beneath the Disneyland Monorail tracks always has a long line of customers waiting to purchase Jumbo Smoked Turkey Legs ($14.49) and Garlic Cheesy Brats ($13.79).

The Fantasyland eatery also sells Cheesy Garlic Pretzel Bread ($8.29), Matterhorn Puff desserts ($6.79) and Frozen Slush drinks ($7.29).

The Turkey Legs sold at Disneyland are sourced, cured and pre-smoked by a company in Texas and then smoked in hickory for six more hours at the park.

The “comically enormous drumsticks fit for a fairy tale giant” are so big that Disney periodically debunks false rumors they are actually emu or ostrich legs, according to Yelp.

Disney has sold Turkey Leg t-shirts, collectible pins and air fresheners to satisfy the cult following.

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The 1.5-pound Turkey Legs are sold elsewhere throughout the Disneyland resort at Ship to Shore Marketplace, Poultry Palace and outdoor vending carts.

Disney Parks in Anaheim and Florida sell about 2 million turkey legs per year, according to WDW News Today.

The Garlic Cheesy Brat started as a viral menu hack with parkgoers stuffing Smoked Bratwursts inside sliced Cheesy Garlic Pretzel Bread.

Disneyland chefs spotted the online trend and added the Garlic Cheesy Brat as a seasonal menu item at Edelweiss Snacks and it soon became a year-round sensation.

Edelweiss Snacks extended its standby queue to corral the snaking line of hungry Disneylanders waiting to buy a Garlic Cheesy Brat, according to MiceChat.

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Edelweiss Snacks offers mobile ordering via the Disneyland app for visitors who want to order a Turkey Leg or Garlic Cheesy Brat in advance and avoid the long lines.

Disneyland also sells the Cheesy Garlic Pretzel Brat at Maurice’s Treats.