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This past weekend Club 33 served its final guests before closing for extensive renovations as part of a multi-month expansion. The private Disneyland restaurant has remained relatively the same in layout and appearance for many years, enjoyed by guests daily while tucked away behind a discrete door in New Orleans Square.
The now ongoing expansion will add a new kitchen, lounge, and entry as well as updated decor throughout the restaurant. But it will do so at the expense of one famous room that’s been there since the beginning. So before the changes take place, take a full tour of Club 33 in the video and photos below, as it has been seen for decades.
Related: VIDEO: Club 33 tour at Disneyland with Trophy Room, elevator, balconies over New Orleans Square
Video: Club 33 tour including the Trophy Room, elevator, dining room, and balconies
A visit to Club 33 has always begun by approaching the green New Orleans Square door marked “33.” When the expansion is complete, this will no longer be the entrance, instead of taking over the former Court of Angels and nearby store.
A hidden doorbell signals staff inside to let patrons into the lobby where guests await their dining time. From there, guests may proceed to the second floor either by stairs or by a very special elevator, duplicated from one Walt Disney saw in Paris and wished to have in his park. The future of this lift is unknown as this entire lobby area will no longer be part of the public area of Club 33.
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Upstairs on the landing, the Club 33 logo is hard to miss, marked on menus and a case full of pricey but quite desirable merchandise.
Artwork depicting Walt Disney dining at Club 33 is also seen in this hallway, though he never actually saw it competed. The club was created to entertain his friends and business associates in the park.
Also noteworthy nearby is the phone booth, assembled from pieces of a similar one seen in the Disney film “Happiest Millionaire.”
The most famous dining area of Club 33 is the Trophy Room. This room features an animatronic vulture and chandeliers housing hidden microphones that, as the story goes, Walt wanted to use to interact with his guests. None of it was ever activated. Now, this room is becoming a part of Disney history as it will be transformed into a new kitchen. Elements of the room are reportedly being moved elsewhere inside the restaurant.
Down the hall, a small sitting area leads to the bar, buffet, and main dining room of Club 33.
The decor of the dining room will change as part of the Club 33 renovation project, though it will keep its overall elegant, but comfortable feel.
For lunch, Club 33 has traditionally served a buffet while offering table service for dinner. This is changing with the expansion, due to California’s buffet laws, instead of giving guests a la carte choices for lunch service.
And after a fine meal, Club 33 guests are free to wander its many balconies overlooking various areas of New Orleans Square. Additional balcony space is said to be included among the new features being added to the restaurant as part of the expansion.
Through its exclusive access to high-paying members and their guests, Club 33 has become a legendary part of Disneyland in its decades tucked away in New Orleans Square. Now it’s getting even bigger with an expansion that is consuming some previously unused areas of the park as well as some parts that will no longer be public. When it reopens in a few months (date still to be determined), those who have the privilege of dining there will be treated to enhanced sights, sounds, smells and tastes aimed at retaining the famous restaurant’s legacy. But those who have been there before will surely always miss the history that was felt inside the classic establishment as the Trophy Room becomes a permanent part of the past.
More photos of Club 33:
