Sunday Brunchies and Crunchies: Pretzel
Philosophy
29 January 2012
Through a happy accident, loyal readers may have
noticed the past several weeks have been about Disney theme park
snacks, and aside from Maurice's Popcorn for Beauty and the Beast
week, they have all been Mickey Mouse themed. In continuing with
this month's tradition, we bring you one of the newest Mickey Mouse
treats: the Mickey Mouse pretzel!

Out of all the Disney snack foods, I've tended to
stay away from pretzels. Even if my stomach rumbles at the sight of
those golden brown pretzels sprinkled with a coarse salt as they
spin in the soft light, I reason with myself not to get them. At the
Disney price, the quality of the pretzel is just not worth it. Walt
Disney World snack stands have fallen into the unfortunate
convenience of serving reheated frozen pretzels at their pretzel
stands. I've seen them and prepared them for BoardWalk Joe's Coffee
cart when I worked at that resort. Many guests may recognize them as
the same Super Pretzels you find in movie theaters, sports stadiums,
and your grocer's freezer. Disney does not use Super Pretzel, though
the product they use are of a similar quality. Ironically, the ones
they use are manufactured at the snack food plant near my home in
New Jersey. I know, I read the box!
While the Super Pretzel is still an okay snack and
quality product, my family and I stay away from them because we have
been spoiled and grown accustomed to hand-rolled, freshly baked
pretzels at our local Amish Farmer's market (read about my first
rant on Disney pretzels here:
http://fromscreentotheme.com/SundayBrunchMinandBill.aspx).
Such a fresh, delicious pretzel product would be difficult to
produce efficiently for the high volume needs of the Disney theme
parks, so the Super Pretzel is their best bet. But still, why pay
$3.99 plus tax for a pretzel you can get in your supermarket? Better
yet, shopping malls all over the country offer fresh hand rolled
pretzels for a cheaper price and in different flavours. My
penny-pinching brain always reasons 'You can get so much better
elsewhere, get a better Disney treat instead. Look churros!' Churros,
popcorn, anything else will save the day for my rumbling tummy.
Speaking of churros, I was with my friend Kelvin,
strolling through Frontierland past the Turkey Leg cart when we
spotted the neighboring Churro Wagon. My opinion towards the
reheated frozen pretzel had changed drastically once I saw the
little beauties hanging out with the churros: the Mickey Mouse
pretzel! No question about it, these were the Super Pretzels I
despised, but yet in this form they were irresistible. My chef
instructor always said eye appeal is buy appeal, and the Mickey
Mouse pretzel certainly had both! Months and months of craving
pretzels were thwarted by my logical brain, but the mouse that
started it all was the mouse that ended it all. I had to have this
new Mickey Mouse treat no matter the cost. $4.50 is a lot for any
snack item, let alone a pretzel, but this one was special!

We close this month's Mickey Mouse shaped snack
Sunday Brunchies and Crunchies series, with a thought. A picture on
a candy bar, circular shaped vanilla ice cream dipped in chocolate,
tri-circle pretzels; these are all just snacks you can find anywhere
else for a lot cheaper, but guests will continue to pay more than
normal because of its shape. Is it the snack they really want? Is it
the joy they get from eating something in the shape of a beloved
character? The Disney Theme parks have countless food items in the
shape of Mickey Mouse that may otherwise sell normally for the
product it is. Presenting the food as Mickey Mouse really adds
character, warmth, happiness, and so much more, I could go on and
on. Here I am, a logical thinking human being, and a single change
to a known product is enough to change my mind about it. The comfort
of seeing a beloved face combined with the novelty of a familiar
product in a new form proves that we eat with our eyes to bring joy
to our hearts. Mickey saves the day again.