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My family had a wonderful time at Jazzy Holidays at the Hollywood Brown Derby this year, and we wanted to share our experience with you.
But let me back up for a minute to explain what I am talking about. Hollywood Brown Derby is a fine dining restaurant at Hollywood Studios my family has eaten at multiple times. We discuss the restaurant in our Hollywood Studios Restaurant Guide. You can find the Hollywood Brown Derby (fittingly) on Hollywood Boulevard; we discuss the different sections of Hollywood Studios in our Hollywood Studios Guide here.
But during the Jollywood Nights events at Hollywood Studios, the Hollywood Brown Derby becomes Jazzy Holidays at the Hollywood Brown Derby! Jollywood Nights is a special, after-hours Christmastime event at Hollywood Studios that started last year. We talk about Jollywood Nights in more detail in our Jollywood Nights Guide here.
My family had a great time at Jollywood Nights last year, but we did not try Jazzy Holidays. This year, we decided to try it for the first time, and we had a great time!
Live Entertainment
So how does Jazzy Holidays at The Hollywood Brown Derby differ from a regular visit to the Hollywood Brown Derby? Well, for one thing, there’s the great live entertainment! When we were there, we had a wonderful pianist playing music.
The entertainment changes every half hour. We also got a lovely singer.
They play a great mix of music. We heard holiday favorites like “Santa Baby”, “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”, and “Sleigh Ride”. But there’s also Disney songs like “Cruella Deville” from 101 Dalmatians, “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the Beast, and “I Wanna Be Like You” from The Jungle Book.
But I must say there was one negative of the live entertainment. Initially, we were seated right beside the piano. The music was quite loud and right in our ear. But when we mentioned this to the server, they were really nice and moved us to another seat. In fact, they even moved our drinks for us!
Reserving a Table
Speaking of being seated at a table, I must add that you should reserve a seat before you go. It wasn’t hard for us to book a table during the evening. Once we decided to visit, there were multiple times available and we just chose the time that worked best for us based on the entertainment we wanted to watch during the night. Once the time came, we checked in and sat and waited for the text that our table was ready. There wasn’t a long wait at all, though.
Jazzy Holidays at the Hollywood Brown Derby Menu
The Hollywood Brown Derby is a pricey restaurant during the day so I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised the menu was a bit pricey here. But I guess I initially expected prices along the lines of the rest of the specialty food and drinks at Jollywood Night, which are often under $10. You can check out these food and drinks in our Jollywood Nights Food & Drink Guide.
But – the menu is really good. Here it is, by the way:
Food
- Pork Belly Bao
- Korean BBQ, Crispy Leeks & House-Made Kimchi
- $14
- Tofu Bao
- Seared Tofu, Crispy Leeks & House-Made Kimchi
- $12
- Chorizo Arancini
- with Salmorejo Tomato Sauce & Parmesan Dust
- $14
- Shrimp Cocktail
- with a Spicy Avocado Spread & House-Made Cocktail Sauce
- $16
- Sticky Chicken Wings
- with Sweet-and-Spicy Soy
- $15
- Jazzy Holiday Sliders
- Bison and Pork, Onion Jam, Bibb Lettuce, Dulce Gorgonzola Cheese & a Brioche Roll
- $18
- Hamachi
- with Caper Aioli, Dijon-Avocado Mousse, and Citrus-Champagne Vinaigrette
- $17
- Charcuterie
- Cured Meats and Gourmet Cheese, Accompaniments, Toasted Sourdough
- $19
Cocktails
- Spiced Pear Martini
- Grey Goose Vodka, Pear Syrup, and Lemon Juice
- $17.50
- Peanut Butter Whiskey Cream
- Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey and Espresso Martini Peanut Butter Whiskey
- $17.50
- Espresso Martini
- Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Tia Maria Coffee Liqueur, Crème de Cacao, Disney’s Coffee Blend
- $16.50
- Peppermint Schnapps Sipping Chocolate
- Tito’s Handmade Vodka and Peppermint Schnapps
- $17.50
- Sugar Cookie Martini
- Stoli Vanilla Vodka, Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur, and Disaronno Originale Liqueur mixed with Milk and Sugar and topped with Holiday Sprinkles
- $17
- Old Fashioned
- Knob Creek Kentucky Straight Bourbon, House-Made Orange Syrup, and Maraschino Cherries
- $19.50
- Side Car
- Courvoisier VS Cognac, Cointreau Orange Liqueur, Sweet-and-Sour
- $17
- Pomegranate Whiskey Sour
- Crown Royal Blended Canadian Whiskey, Pomegranate Juice, and Sweet-and-Sour
- $16.50
- Hollywood Lights
- Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum, Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Pineapple, and Cranberry
- $17.50
Wines By The Glass (5-ounce pour)
White
- Nicolas Feuillatte Reserve Exclusive Brut, Chouilly
- $21
- Sartori Family Pinot Grigio, Veneto ’21
- $12
- Honig Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley ’22
- $13
Red
- Chappellet Mountain Cuvee Proprietor’s Blend, Napa Valley ’21
- $20
- Crossbarn Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast ’20
- $20
- Catena Vista Flores Malbec, Argentina ’20
- $13
Premium Ales and Beers (16-ounce Draft)
- Samuel Adams Seasonal Lager
- $12
- Stella Artois Lager
- $12
- Blue Moon Belgian White Ale
- $12
- Cigar City Jai Alai IPA
- $12
Non-Alcoholic Specialty Beverages
- The Sleigh Bell
- Ginger Beer, Rosemary Syrup, Pomegranate, Cranberry, and Lime Juice
- $6.79
- Blueberry Smash
- Blueberry Syrup, Lemon Juice, Sprite, Rosemary
- $5.29
- Holiday Mickey Hot Cocoa
- House-Made Hot Cocoa topped with Whipped Cream, Caramel-Chocolate, White Mickey Ears, and Holiday Sprinkles
- $5.49
Food & Drink Review
So what did we think of this food and drinks? Well, as it turns out, while it is expensive, it was delicious.
For example, I really loved the Shrimp Cocktail.
The shrimp was cooked to perfection It was so good. And while the spread was called a “spicy avocado spread”, I did not find the spread spicy at all. Which could be a good or bad thing, depending on your perspective.
Speaking of spicy, the Salmorejo Tomato Sauce with the Chorizo Arancini was in fact quite spicy.
Which again, could be a good or bad thing depending on what you want. But regardless of your opinion on spiciness, I think you will like the Chorizo Arancini. The Arancini itself is really good.
Speaking of really good, we really liked the Jazzy Holiday Sliders.
It was really good! The onion jam in particular was really good.
We also liked the drinks we ordered. This includes the Samuel Adams Seasonal Lager.
And it also includes the Honig Sauvignon Blanc.
Atmosphere
I must also say the atmosphere was really nice. It’s really nice after a day at the theme park to sit back, relax, and be waited on. There weren’t too many people in the restaurant when we were there so it was very intimate and nice. It was just a really nice part of the evening.
Conclusion
Jazzy Holidays at the Hollywood Brown Derby is a fun and relaxing place to visit during Jollywood Nights. The food and wine are good, the vibes are great, and the live entertainment is great, too (as long as you don’t sit too close!).
The only negative is that is a bit pricey (as you can see from the menu), so if you want to save money during your Jollywood Nights visit you might want to skip this experience. But otherwise, I think you’ll enjoy it.
And speaking of cost, you can find out how to save money on Jollywood Nights tickets here.