News

There’s a Jurassic World tiki bar headed to Universal Studios Hollywood this summer

Written by
Stephanie Breijo
Advertising

When it comes to relaunching the Jurassic Park raft ride, Universal Studios has seemingly spared no expense.

The theme park closed the iconic splashdown in August to make room for a new Jurassic World-themed revamp, and it doesn’t stop there. This morning the park announced some liquid news that gives even the 84-foot waterfall drop a run for its money: Just in time for the ride’s summer relaunch, Universal Studios Hollywood is unveiling an all-new tiki bar—and we refuse to believe that you aren’t familiar with the concept of attraction to fun drinks.

Throw on your best Nedry-style Hawaiian shirt because Isla Nu-bar is already in soft-open mode, serving tropical vibes, cocktails and collectible tiki mugs from a thatched-roof, open-air setting next to the ride’s entrance. The name of the walk-up bar is, of course, a spin on Isla Nublar, the franchise’s fictional “cloud island,” but instead of dinos amok and Bryce Dallas Howard, you’ll find drinks topped with pineapple leaves and edible orchids.

Expect blended concoctions of piña coladas and tropical margaritas, plus tiki-bar stalwarts like painkillers, rum runners and mai tais all served in (unfortunately-not-dino–themed) collectible cups. If anything gets us moving in herds, it’s a tiki drink on a hot day—that, or food. 

Roasted snapper from the new Jurassic Café
Photograph: Courtesy Universal Studios Hollywood

Nearby Isla Nu-bar is the Jurassic Café, which is undergoing its own revamp. Executive chef Marie Grimm is sprucing up the menu with a few Costa Rican-inspired dishes, including sweet corn cakes with mojo pork or mojo jackfruit; citrus-glazed chicken; roasted red snapper; chorizo-and-potato empanadas; and pomegranate guacamole served with plantain chips. Every entrée gets accompanied by rice, beans and a green papaya salad, with zero compsognathus trying to steal your food.

While the launch of Jurassic World: The Ride is still set vaguely for “summer,” both the bar and the café are currently soft-open, meaning that they’re keeping limited hours and you’ll most likely find them serving food and drink if you stop by as early as today. 

We still don’t know much about the splashdown’s exhaustive revamp, but we do know this: You’ll still climb onto a raft, but you’ll be touring Jurassic World as opposed to the original park, complete with cameos by actors Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard and BD Wong. The new ride will also feature both animatronics and digital displays, which bring you face to face with the gargantuan and hungry Mosasaurus in her tank as well as the film’s fictional Indominus rex. You can glimpse the new ride in this commercial, below, to see what kind of dinosaurs they have cooked up in that lab:

You may also like
You may also like
Advertising