The moment Star Wars fans have been waiting for has finally arrived! The New Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland is open and the first round of guests have started to explore the planet of Batuu. Jarod and I were lucky to snag reservations for their opening weekend so I wanted to bring you a helpful guide to this new land! It's beautiful, it's immersive, and it's safe to say Disney knocked it out of the park with this one.
First of all, we had reservations for the 8 AM to 12 PM time slot. I highly recommend if you are someone that’s going during the reservation phase you show up at 6 AM to check-in. It’s early, but trust me when I say there are plenty of people that will be there just as eager to get into the park as you are!
If you want to have a chance to get in to Oga’s Cantina this has to be the first thing you attempt. You can send one member of your party to wait in line and if you can’t get in right away they will text your cell phone at a time when you are allowed to return. We got in line for the Cantina first thing and were able to go into the Cantina around 8:40 AM. At this time people were already being turned away and told that they didn’t have anymore available reservations for the 8 AM to 12 PM time frame. Some people were REALLY upset. I felt lucky to get in! So don’t sleep on this if it’s something you want to see.
While we waited for our reservation it was the perfect time to snap a picture in front of the Millennium Falcon and grab some colorful popcorn from Kat Saka’s Kettle. It’s called the Outpost Popcorn Mix and tasted like fruity pebbles to me! The menu says it’s a combination of sweet and spicy flavors but it mostly tasted sweet. Definitely a good snack to pass the time.
When we were finally brought into the Cantina we were told it was a limit of two drinks per guest and a 45 minute window of time before we would be asked to leave for the next reservation. We did have to wait quite a while to order drinks, but once we were inside it was very clear how busy they were. Either way you can kill time by taking in your surroundings and chillin out to the jams of a familiar robot, DJ R-3X.
Once we had a chance to order drinks we decided to order all four at once. We figured if it was a long wait to order, it would be a long wait before they arrived. It was an accurate assumption! So don’t hesitate to order everything in one go. I didn’t bother ordering any food because I felt like it wasn’t what we came there for. After all, this is the first time you’ve ever been able to order an alcoholic beverage in Disneyland (aside from the exclusive Club 33).
At brunch time you can order their version of a Bloody Mary called the Bloody Rancor. It comes with Tito's Handmade Vodka, Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur, Spicy Bloody Mary Mix, and a cute little “Rancor” bone on top that honestly doesn’t taste like much of anything. Also, full disclosure here, I did not like this drink. I LOVE a good Bloody Mary but this one was disappointing. I would not order this again.
Thankfully there were other cocktails to try so I wouldn’t feel completely bummed about my first drink choice. Our server recommended the Jet Juice which was right up Jarod’s alley since it was one of their few bourbon based drinks. It may be the smallest drink, but it packed a punch! It has Maker's Mark Bourbon, Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur, Cedilla Açaí Liqueur, White Grape Juice, and Lemon Juice.
The other two we ordered were tasty as well. The Jedi Mind Trick which has Ketel One Botanical Grapefruit and Rose Vodka, John D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum, Bols Blue Curaçao, White Grape Juice, Lime Juice, and Grapefruit Bitters. It was a pretty drink that tasted good, but pretty standard. I was looking for something more exciting. Enter.....
My favorite of them all, the Fuzzy Tauntaun! It has Cîroc Peach Vodka, Bols Peach Schnapps, and Simply Orange® topped with Tangerine, Pure Cane Sugar, and "Buzzz" Foam. Believe me, it does give you a little buzz! Almost like a lip plumper that gives your mouth a little tingle. It’s a weird sensation at first but the drink is so delicious that it didn’t bother me. After being disappointed with my Bloody Rancor I was happy to have this drink!
After a good buzz from our drinks at Oga’s Cantina it was time for our next food adventure. The BLUE MILK! If you don’t know what the heck blue milk is, don’t be scared. It’s actually a very refreshing beverage. They also have a Green Milk but I heard it wasn't as good. I'll admit I had no idea what this stuff would taste like myself, but surprisingly it was delicious! Basically it's a smoothie consistency that tastes like tropical coconut.
Side Note: I tried to order a Blue/Green Milk swirl because I had seen other foodies doing so on Instagram and was told they don’t do that. If you see someone with that particular concoction it’s because they purchased both milks and combined it themselves. For as fun as it looks that’s way too much struggle for me. Just give me the blue milk straight up please!
While enjoying our Blue Milk we waited in line for the new ride Smuggler’s Run. It was only a 15 minute wait at this point which was really surprising. The ride itself was fun, however if you’re not a pilot on this ride I feel like you don’t get the full experience. Jarod and I ended up as gunner’s and even though it was fun, you have to stare at the wall in order to make sure you’re hitting the right buttons. Because of this you miss out on a lot of the cool visuals. Next time we go back I’ll definitely request a pilot position.
After a fun flight on the Millenium Falcon it was time for lunch! Docking Bay 7 Food & Cargo seemed like the place to grab a good bite to eat so we went there for our next food adventure. We ordered two lunch entrees and two desserts. I have to admit that although a lot of this combinations sounded a bit odd, everything we had was delicious. They really did a great job with the food offerings at Galaxy’s Edge!
For the lunch entrees we ordered the Smoked Kaadu Ribs and the Roasted Endorian Tip-yip Salad. Both had very unique flavors and the meat was cooked perfectly! The sticky pork ribs come with a fluffy blueberry corn muffin and pretty purple cabbage slaw. 5 Stars, would recommend. The salad had marinated chicken, mixed greens, roasted seasonal vegetables, quinoa, and pumpkin seeds, tossed in a flavorful green curry ranch. Loved this one as well. It made me look forward to going back to Docking Bay 7 to try more of the menu!
Next up are the desserts from Docking Bay 7. They only have two on the lunch menu so we decided to try them both. The Oi-oi Puff is a Raspberry Cream Puff with Passion Fruit Mousse. It was really flavorful and sweet. However, my favorite dessert was the Batuu-bon. It’s a Chocolate Cake with White Chocolate Mousse and Coffee Custard. If you like chocolate and coffee then this is the dessert for you!
To wrap up our trip to Batuu we walked around and explored as much of the new land as we could before our reservation was over. There is so much to look at and do that it’s a little overwhelming at times, but we know we will be back. One thing I really wanted to do that I missed out on was the Droid Factory. After seeing everyone else's experience with building a droid I know I’ll have to try this next time!
Have you been to Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge yet? If so what was your favorite treat? Let me know in the comments. Either way I hope you found this guide helpful for your next visit to Batuu!
Jarod Octon
Natasha