Disney finally talked about the food in Monstropolis, and the headline is a ramen bowl with fishcake sliced to look like eyeballs.
The details come from a Disney Parks Blog interview and video with Chef Brian Piasecki, Director of Culinary and Concept Development, and Evan Rosenthal, Beverage Director. Disney’s own description of the food: “grossly fun.”
Quick Summary
- Harryhausen’s is the table-service restaurant, built to match the film — including an Audio-Animatronic head sushi chef with eight tentacles at the center of the dining room
- Several ramen options are being explored, with tonkotsu broth, alkaline noodles, fishcake cut to look like eyeballs, and green eggs
- Harryhausen’s menu goes well beyond sushi
- Archie’s Scare Pig Pizza is the quick-service spot, inspired by Monsters University
- Archie’s will bring Blort — the soft drink from Monsters University — to Disney’s parks for the first time
- One Blort idea Disney shared: a purple frozen version topped with Scream Apple Foam
- The Monsters University Alumni Club sits next door to Archie’s; the Scareporium is the land’s retail location
- Parts of Monstropolis open in 2027
The Design Problem They Were Solving
The approach described is familiar dishes with monster-inspired changes, each one meant to remind you of a character or a scene from the films.
The team said the real challenge was making food that is true to a monster’s experience while still being something you actually want to eat. Early questions were genuinely strange ones: do monsters slurp or chew? Does this dish have too many eyeballs?
Their answer on the second one, per Rosenthal: you can never have too many eyeballs.
Rosenthal also said that when the culinary team asked Disney’s creative partners whether a dish had gone too far, the answer was sometimes to push it further — brighter, bolder.
That is a useful signal. The usual failure mode for themed restaurants is a kitchen quietly sanding down the weird parts until the food is just food. This sounds like the opposite instruction.
Harryhausen’s
Harryhausen’s is the table-service restaurant, and Imagineers are building it to match the film closely. That includes the head sushi chef — a new Audio-Animatronic figure that prepares food with eight tentacles, positioned in the center of the dining space.
An animatronic chef working the middle of the room is a real commitment. That is not a background figure; it is the centerpiece of the dining experience, and it means the room is built around the show rather than around table count.
The menu will include more than sushi, which is worth saying plainly because the name and the film both point hard at sushi.
Piasecki singled out a ramen bowl as a dish the team is proud of, and Disney says several ramen options are being explored. The ingredients named:
- Tonkotsu broth
- Alkaline ramen noodles
- Fishcake sliced to look like eyeballs
- Green eggs
Tonkotsu broth and alkaline noodles are not shortcuts — that is how a real ramen shop builds a bowl. The eyeball fishcake is the gag layered on top of technique rather than in place of it, which is the right order.
Rosenthal described Harryhausen’s in the films as an upscale night out, and said Disney wants it to be fun for guests of all ages. The menu is meant to work for younger and older guests both.
Archie’s Scare Pig Pizza
Archie’s is the quick-service location, inspired by Monsters University and built to feel like the college pizza place monsters hit after class.
Rosenthal said the team started from memories of neighborhood pizza shops and added unexpected touches. That is a sensible foundation — the thing that makes a college pizza spot a college pizza spot is not the pizza, it is the atmosphere.
While not confirmed by Disney, we can assume that Archie’s Scrare Pig Pizza will be located where Pizza Rizzo was previously located within Muppet Courtyard. The question is whether or not Disney switches up the pizza it previously served. In general, the pizza at Pizza Rizzo was not a fan favorite, but it did have a cult following.
Blort Is the Real News Here
Archie’s will bring Blort to Disney’s parks.
Blort appears in Monsters University — it is the can sitting next to Mike when he falls asleep studying with a slice of pizza. Nobody has ever seen or tasted it on screen, which means the beverage team had to invent what it actually is from nothing.
One idea Disney shared: a purple frozen version topped with Scream Apple Foam. Disney was clear this is a possibility rather than a confirmed menu item.
A fictional soft drink with no established flavor is a gift to a beverage team and a trap at the same time. Butterbeer is the obvious comparison, and it worked because it had a defined identity people could anticipate. Blort has none, which means Disney gets to decide — and also means there is no fan expectation to satisfy or betray.
What Else Is in That Corner of the Land
Two more locations were named:
- Monsters University Alumni Club — next door to Archie’s
- Scareporium — the land’s retail location
Clustering the Alumni Club beside Archie’s reinforces the college-campus pocket of Monstropolis, which suggests the land is organized into distinct neighborhoods rather than one undifferentiated themed street.
The Caveat That Matters
Read the language carefully. Disney said menu items are “being explored.” Several ramen options are being explored. The frozen Blort is “a possibility, not a confirmed menu item.”
None of this is a menu. It is a culinary team showing their work roughly a year or more before opening. Items will change, get cut, or get renamed. The eyeball fishcake is almost certainly safe — it is too good a hook to lose — but treat specific dishes as direction rather than promises.
For related reading, we have also been tracking the three competing versions of the Glob Theater pre-show concept art, which is its own lesson in how much changes before opening.
Timing
Disney has confirmed that parts of Monstropolis will open in 2027. Parts, not the whole land, and that phrasing has been consistent.
Whether Harryhausen’s and Archie’s are in the first phase has not been confirmed. Table-service restaurants with heavy animatronic work tend to be the later pieces of a phased opening, so do not assume the ramen is waiting for you on day one.
The Bottom Line
Eyeball fishcake in a properly built tonkotsu ramen, an eight-tentacled animatronic sushi chef in the middle of the dining room, and the first real Blort anyone has ever tasted.
Monstropolis dining is shaping up to be the most interesting food story at Walt Disney World in years. Parts of the land open in 2027.
20% Off site-wide, plus Free Shipping on all orders of $65+
Over 75+ Designs! Your next park shirt is just a click away
Looking To Book Your Dream Disney Vacation?
Your Disney vacation should create unforgettable memories that last a lifetime.
Whether you’re a first-time Disney vacationer or looking to plan your next magical adventure, it isn’t enough just to go on a Disney vacation. We want you to talk about your vacation for years to come and create memories you’ll cherish forever. Vacation is calling! Are you ready to answer?
Meet the Author: Nate Bishop
I’m a die-hard Disney fan with 38 years of visits under my belt, having stepped into Disney World 120+ times. Proud to be a Disney Annual Passholder, a Vacation Club member since ’92, a Castaway Club Member, and a runDisney enthusiast. Oh, and I’ve graduated from the Disney College of Knowledge. Need Disney insights or planning tips? I’m your guy!
LAST UPDATED: