Universal Studios Hollywood has joined the list of theme park foodie events with A Taste of Universal. Although our West Coast park is not known for its vegan fare (Universal Studios Florida seems to have more to offer), I checked out the menu ahead of time and there were definitely some options I was excited to try – and enough variety to eat my way through the five items included with my ticket price.
I attended on Friday, April 8, which was the closing weekend for this event. Even though it was advertised that all attractions would still be closed, this was the day the park started to come back to life. Shops and dining locations were open as planned, but select attractions were also open for short periods including Revenge of the Mummy, Jurassic World, and both Harry Potter rides. We also saw a soft opening/technical rehearsal for The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash, which would have its official grand opening when the park reopened on April 16.
event info
open weekends & select weeknights, march 12 through april 11
adults: $44-49, includes 5 food items
children: $25, includes 3 food items
beyond bbq cheeseburger
jurassic cafe / jurassic park
THIS was the best theme park burger I’ve ever had! I had hoped they would make this a permanent menu item, but it looks like the current version they’re serving elsewhere in the park doesn’t include jalapeños or the fancy sauce. The version at this event was described as a beyond burger plant-based patty with house-made bbq aioli, american cheese & crispy fried jalapeños on a vegan bun. Even though the vegan options at USH are sparse, if they kept this burger permanently I would not be mad about it, and would look forward to eating it every time. Bring this back!
spiced cashew brittle
available at multiple locations
I was looking forward to trying this, and the flavor was good, but the texture felt like it could crack a tooth. My teeth flashed before my eyes with every bite. Was it worth risking it all for a little bit of pumpkin spice? I ate a couple pieces and took the bag home, but ended up throwing it away.
beyond mulita
tortilla chips with guacamole
cocina mexicana / hollywood and dine
The beyond mulita was pretty tasty, though not my favorite – I think if I had gone in reverse order with this as an appetizer, and saved the jalapeño burger for the grand finale, I would have appreciated it more. A little something extra like lettuce, radishes or pickled onions would have made it much better, but then again, this is theme park food. I also got a separate order of chips & guacamole, just to use up the five items that came with my ticket, and try a variety of items for my review (at this point the only other thing I hadn’t tried was an order of fresh fruit). In retrospect, if I wanted to get something more exciting (and higher value), I could have taken another jalapeño burger to-go!
mother nature burger
krusty burger / springfield u.s.a.
It seems like this burger has changed over the years (it used to be a black bean patty with guac), but the current version is described as a beyond burger with lettuce, tomato, pickles, and veganaise on a vegan whole wheat bun. It was very satisfying, and just as good as any basic vegan restaurant burger I’ve had, if not better. I was actually pretty stuffed by the end of the event, and took this burger home with me for the next day and it held up pretty well. (I’m not sure why you’d ever need to take a theme park burger to-go and need to know how it holds up as leftovers, but just in case, there you go.)
I really enjoyed this event, and it was my first visit back to Universal in about a decade! I look forward to stopping by again when the park is fully open, and hopefully seeing more vegan options in the future? These foodie events are a great way for theme parks to test the waters with new items, and they’re also showing us what they’re capable of. Adding one or two more vegan items to their permanent menus would be a big step toward making the park more vegan-friendly. If you’d like to see more vegan options at Universal Studios Hollywood, make sure to request them!
vegan DYNAMITE 
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