DCA's Hollywood Lounge Shut Down By County Health Inspectors

[TP2000]

Well, that's sort of a salacious headline, isn't it? I didn't mean it to sound so exciting, but I guess it's accurate. Here's why...

I was at dinner tonight with a gaggle of friends who all escaped migrated from California to Utah in the past half decade or so. For whatever reason, the discussion touched on the fact that Utah restaurants don't have an inspection score posted in their windows from the local health authority like California restaurants do. So when I got home I summoned up the OCRegister to see what sort of strip mall hash joints and parking lot stir fry tents had been shut down by the Orange County Health Authority this past week. I used to love reading that weekly column in the Register!

And I was shocked, SHOCKED I tell you, to find....

What the heck is the Hollywood Lounge? I had to Google. It's a booze stand in the old Hollywood & Dine food court in the dead-end corner of DCA where you go to be immersed in stucco warehouses and sterile concrete plazas. The Hollywood Lounge sells a lot of boozy and hyper-colored drinks to Mom and Dad, and a few drinks that look hyper-colored boozy but aren't for the kiddies, because that's just as healthy as giving them candy cigarettes to pretend to smoke, right?

How do they not have running water at a place like that, I wonder? It was built 25 years ago as a permanent restaurant food court. Surely the pipes still work. But I guess the folks at the Hong Phat Deli (rodent infestation) and Ramona's Carniceria (cockroach infestation) can commiserate with TDA on their one day closure of the Hollywood Lounge (no water supply). Misery loves company, and all that.

Orange County restaurants shut down by health inspectors (June 19-26)

There were 11 restaurants and food establishments ordered closed by Orange County inspectors from June 19 to June 26.

www.ocregister.com

 

[Disney Irish]

Well, that's sort of a salacious headline, isn't it? I didn't mean it to sound so exciting, but I guess it's accurate. Here's why...

I was at dinner tonight with a gaggle of friends who all escaped migrated from California to Utah in the past half decade or so. For whatever reason, the discussion touched on the fact that Utah restaurants don't have an inspection score posted in their windows from the local health authority like California restaurants do. So when I got home I summoned up the OCRegister to see what sort of strip mall hash joints and parking lot stir fry tents had been shut down by the Orange County Health Authority this past week. I used to love reading that weekly column in the Register!

And I was shocked, SHOCKED I tell you, to find....

View attachment 867594

What the heck is the Hollywood Lounge? I had to Google. It's a booze stand in the old Hollywood & Dine food court in the dead-end corner of DCA where you go to be immersed in stucco warehouses and sterile concrete plazas. The Hollywood Lounge sells a lot of boozy and hyper-colored drinks to Mom and Dad, and a few drinks that look hyper-colored boozy but aren't for the kiddies, because that's just as healthy as giving them candy cigarettes to pretend to smoke, right?

How do they not have running water at a place like that, I wonder? It was built 25 years ago as a permanent restaurant food court. Surely the pipes still work. But I guess the folks at the Hong Phat Deli (rodent infestation) and Ramona's Carniceria (cockroach infestation) can commiserate with TDA on their one day closure of the Hollywood Lounge (no water supply). Misery loves company, and all that.

Orange County restaurants shut down by health inspectors (June 19-26)

There were 11 restaurants and food establishments ordered closed by Orange County inspectors from June 19 to June 26.

www.ocregister.com

Note it wasn't a one day closure, it closed and reopened the same day (June 23rd). And I suspect its because the water was temporarily shutoff for other work that is happening in the area. So nothing nefarious here, just a temporary closure.

Also just for everyone's reference this is the Hollywood Lounge -

Its just to the right of Monsters Inc literally just a few steps away -

And will be permanently closing at the same time as the Monsters Inc (or shortly there after) in about 9 months (Spring 2026) to make way for Avatar.

 

[CaptinEO]

So they were operating without even being able to clean dishes? That's insane.

 

[DLR92]

Kinda gross…

 

[TP2000]

Note it wasn't a one day closure, it closed and reopened the same day (June 23rd). And I suspect its because the water was temporarily shutoff for other work that is happening in the area. So nothing nefarious here, just a temporary closure.

As you seem to imply this was a voluntary closure by DCA restaurant managers, a slight correction to your sentence.... "just a temporary closure caused by Orange County health inspectors shutting the place down for no water supply".

This was not a voluntary closure by the DCA restaurant managers. They were forced to close by health inspectors.

If a restaurant somewhere in OC doesn't open for the day due to construction (or for a million other reasons), the Orange County Health Authority doesn't send an inspector out to officially log the closure. These are restaurants where a health inspector showed up on a random inspection visit and found violations to the health code, and thus shut the restaurant down until the violations could be fixed.

The long running newspaper column in the OC Register is very clearly labeled "Orange County Restaurants Shut Down By Health Inspectors", and explains the weekly list of naughty restaurants in a concise opening sentence: "Restaurants and other food vendors ordered to close and allowed to reopen by Orange County health inspectors from June 19 to June 26." .

Orange County restaurants shut down by health inspectors (June 19-26)

There were 11 restaurants and food establishments ordered closed by Orange County inspectors from June 19 to June 26.

www.ocregister.com

 

[John park hopper]

So they were operating without even being able to clean dishes? That's insane.

They had a dog that licked the plates clean

 

[lazyboy97o]

So they were operating without even being able to clean dishes? That's insane.

It’s an outdoor walk-up counter that mostly sells drinks. Blind guess would be that they were still selling bottled items because anything requiring the soda fountain would have simply been unavailable.

 

[TP2000]

So they were operating without even being able to clean dishes? That's insane.

Kinda gross…

Yeah, exactly.

I just did an 8 second Google search just now and found the report. There were actually several problems the inspector found, but it was the lack of running water and the inability for CM's to wash their hands during food service that caused this booze stand to be shut down.

"Inspector Comments: Observed the handwash sink to be inoperable resulting in no means of washing hands. Maintain potable water at all food facilities."

The other issues you can read in the inspector's report that suspended their restaurant license were;

"Inspector Comments: Observed single use champagne flutes being stored at the back area that is not fully enclosed. Discontinue this practice. Store all food, utensils, and food contact surfaces in a manner and location that protects from potential contamination."

And

"Inspector Comments: Observed the interior of the wooden storage cabinets to be deteriorating. Maintain all equipment in good condition."

Which led to this result from the health inspector that day...

50. Permit Suspension - Imminent Health Hazard

Inspector Comments: IMMEDIATE HEALTH PERMIT SUSPENSION AND CLOSURE The permit to operate the above named food facility is hereby temporarily suspended, and the facility is ordered immediately closed under theauthority of Sections 114405 and 114409 of Division 104, Part 7, Chapter 13, Article 3 of the California Health and Safety Code

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/print/?task=getPrintable&path=orange-county&pKey=177BD540-2093-49FC-8D83-F4D55353EFF4

You can look up any restaurant closed by health inspectors and read their findings here at this handy County website. It's almost always a naughty list of mom-and-pop greasy spoons and odd little places in OC's grungy strip malls. It's rare to see a corporate chain restaurant, fancy place, or franchise shut down.

And it's unheard of to see a Disneyland restaurant shut down!

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/restaurant-closures

 

[TP2000]

It’s an outdoor walk-up counter that mostly sells drinks. Blind guess would be that they were still selling bottled items because anything requiring the soda fountain would have simply been unavailable.

We posted at the same time, but see my post just above.

They were shut down by the inspector primarily because their hand wash sink was inoperable and CM's working there had no ability to wash their hands or access hot and cold water during the busy (boozy?) operation of this food facility.

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/print/?task=getPrintable&path=orange-county&pKey=177BD540-2093-49FC-8D83-F4D55353EFF4

 

[TP2000]

I then had to Google the menu for the Hollywood Lounge myself, just to see what passes as a "cocktail" at this place.

My Gawd... Someone hold my bottle of bitters and catch my whiskey stones as I almost faint!

Here's what the "cocktails" look like. They all run about $17 to $20 apiece.

Forget being shut down by the Orange County Health Authority for no running water, this place should've been shut down by the Environmental Protection Agency for leaching chemicals and toxic dyes into the environment. And I love that they cut out the food chain middle man by placing plastic glow-in-the-dark dice in one of them, just to get those petrochemicals a chance to go right into your system.

Disney won't give you a straw anymore (cost cutting disguised as moral superiority), but if you give them $20 bucks they'll put two plastic cubes with glow chemicals inside right into your drink for you! Make that make sense.

Dining Menu

disneyland.disney.go.com

 

[lazyboy97o]

We posted at the same time, but see my post just above.

They were shut down by the inspector primarily because their hand wash sink was inoperable and CM's working there had no ability to wash their hands or access hot and cold water during the busy (boozy?) operation of this food facility.

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/print/?task=getPrintable&path=orange-county&pKey=177BD540-2093-49FC-8D83-F4D55353EFF4

The little kiosks that only sell prepackaged snacks and bottled drinks are also required to have running water. But do you think the people at the Emporium are washing their hands before handling snacks and drinks they sell?

 

[TP2000]

The little kiosks that only sell prepackaged snacks and bottled drinks are also required to have running water. But do you think the people at the Emporium are washing their hands before handling snacks and drinks they sell?

I would imagine that Disneyland CM's are trained on the California and Orange County health codes that apply to each work location, and are expected to follow them. That would come down to issues of training and on-site management, obviously. And Disneyland today isn't the Disneyland of yesteryear when it comes to standards and practices.

This closure wasn't a case where an errant CM forgot to wash their hands when they came back from break. This DCA location was shut down because there was no running water at all, and yet the location was opened for the day and doing business to paying customers. What's most alarming is that some DCA Dockers-clad manager or three apparently knew this was the case before they opened up this booze stand for the day.

And then the health inspector stopped by on an unannounced inspection. Oops!

The last time a health inspector visited this DCA location was October, 2024 and they passed. I wonder how long the water hadn't been inoperable here? Was it really just bad luck and June 23rd was the first day the water wasn't working? Or had it been out for days? A week? Longer? Did a fed up CM tip off the OC Health Authority to come check out the Hollywood Lounge? Or was it really just coincidence the water wasn't running on the one day of the random inspection?

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/permit/?permitID=69E2ED08-B4CF-4BB5-BA73-10F1C7E7230B

 

[Disney Irish]

Yeah, exactly.

I just did an 8 second Google search just now and found the report. There were actually several problems the inspector found, but it was the lack of running water and the inability for CM's to wash their hands during food service that caused this booze stand to be shut down.

"Inspector Comments: Observed the handwash sink to be inoperable resulting in no means of washing hands. Maintain potable water at all food facilities."

The other issues you can read in the inspector's report that suspended their restaurant license were;

"Inspector Comments: Observed single use champagne flutes being stored at the back area that is not fully enclosed. Discontinue this practice. Store all food, utensils, and food contact surfaces in a manner and location that protects from potential contamination."

And

"Inspector Comments: Observed the interior of the wooden storage cabinets to be deteriorating. Maintain all equipment in good condition."

Which led to this result from the health inspector that day...

50. Permit Suspension - Imminent Health Hazard

Inspector Comments: IMMEDIATE HEALTH PERMIT SUSPENSION AND CLOSURE The permit to operate the above named food facility is hereby temporarily suspended, and the facility is ordered immediately closed under theauthority of Sections 114405 and 114409 of Division 104, Part 7, Chapter 13, Article 3 of the California Health and Safety Code

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/print/?task=getPrintable&path=orange-county&pKey=177BD540-2093-49FC-8D83-F4D55353EFF4

You can look up any restaurant closed by health inspectors and read their findings here at this handy County website. It's almost always a naughty list of mom-and-pop greasy spoons and odd little places in OC's grungy strip malls. It's rare to see a corporate chain restaurant, fancy place, or franchise shut down.

And it's unheard of to see a Disneyland restaurant shut down!

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/restaurant-closures

It was still a same day “closure” (if indeed it was actually closed) and reopen situation. Again I suspect it was a temporary disruption in water due to other stuff going on in that area, ie the area is about to be razed due to Avatar. And Disney promptly turned back on the water after getting the notice. If it was a multi-day closure then I would raise my hands in the air in disgust as you seem to be doing.

 

[Disney Irish]

I would imagine that Disneyland CM's are trained on the California and Orange County health codes that apply to each work location, and are expected to follow them. That would come down to issues of training and on-site management, obviously. And Disneyland today isn't the Disneyland of yesteryear when it comes to standards and practices.

This closure wasn't a case where an errant CM forgot to wash their hands when they came back from break. This DCA location was shut down because there was no running water at all, and yet the location was opened for the day and doing business to paying customers. What's most alarming is that some DCA Dockers-clad manager or three apparently knew this was the case before they opened up this booze stand for the day.

And then the health inspector stopped by on an unannounced inspection. Oops!

The last time a health inspector visited this DCA location was October, 2024 and they passed. I wonder how long the water hadn't been inoperable here? Was it really just bad luck and June 23rd was the first day the water wasn't working? Or had it been out for days? A week? Longer? Did a fed up CM tip off the OC Health Authority to come check out the Hollywood Lounge? Or was it really just coincidence the water wasn't running on the one day of the random inspection?

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/permit/?permitID=69E2ED08-B4CF-4BB5-BA73-10F1C7E7230B

And just as always you make a lot of assumptions without any facts to back it up. How do you know any of this? You come with your wild claims to stir up some outrage. When reality is probably much simpler, inspections happen all the time. And this is just a simple disruption in the water supply that was quickly resolved same day.

Btw, if it was really actually closed due to some violation the building would have been tagged with an actual notice for the public to see, even if for a day. And being its 2025 with everyone having a camera on their phone it would have been a big story on all news channels, all the socials, and every Disney fan site including this one, with about 50 different pictures of the notice. So given it wasn’t and only now just posted by you, this is a big huge giant sized nothing burger.

 

[lazyboy97o]

This closure wasn't a case where an errant CM forgot to wash their hands when they came back from break. This DCA location was shut down because there was no running water at all, and yet the location was opened for the day and doing business to paying customers.

The Emporium opens every day without running water or employees following food service hand washing guidelines. The Emporium sells prepackaged foods and bottled drinks.

 

[Disney Irish]

I then had to Google the menu for the Hollywood Lounge myself, just to see what passes as a "cocktail" at this place.

My Gawd... Someone hold my bottle of bitters and catch my whiskey stones as I almost faint!

Here's what the "cocktails" look like. They all run about $17 to $20 apiece.

Forget being shut down by the Orange County Health Authority for no running water, this place should've been shut down by the Environmental Protection Agency for leaching chemicals and toxic dyes into the environment. And I love that they cut out the food chain middle man by placing plastic glow-in-the-dark dice in one of them, just to get those petrochemicals a chance to go right into your system.

Disney won't give you a straw anymore (cost cutting disguised as moral superiority), but if you give them $20 bucks they'll put two plastic cubes with glow chemicals inside right into your drink for you! Make that make sense.

Dining Menu

disneyland.disney.go.com

This is a theme park kiosk not a full bar, you want a full bar walk a few steps and go to Carthay. They make premixed drinks that come out of a machine, think frozen margarita machine.

Most guests at a theme park don't have a palate for alcohol like you do. So will accept a frozen margarita type drink out of a machine.

Btw, you can get a straw at Disneyland.

 

[lazyboy97o]

This is a theme park kiosk not a full bar, you want a full bar walk a few steps and go to Carthay. They make premixed drinks that come out of a machine, think frozen margarita machine.

Most guests at a theme park don't have a palate for alcohol like you do. So will accept a frozen margarita type drink out of a machine.

Btw, you can get a straw at Disneyland.

And those same type of drink dispensers are allowed to be set out as self-service where people who don’t believe in germs are able to use them.

 

[TP2000]

The little kiosks that only sell prepackaged snacks and bottled drinks are also required to have running water. But do you think the people at the Emporium are washing their hands before handling snacks and drinks they sell?

Did you used to work at The Emporium? You seem to be very focused on the The Emporium selling bottles of Coke at some back cash register.

I had no idea The Emporium had a cooler of Cokes and a little shelf of bagged caramel corn on sale. Where is this in the store exactly?

And if those CM's selling pre-packaged Cokes and bagged candy are subject to the Orange County Health Authority regulations, then you darn well better be assured that an inspector has visited them.

So I went to the County website, and I found that the Emporium passed its most recent health inspection, way back in 2023. And yet I'm still struck by the thought.... what was your point about the Emporium again?

https://inspections.myhealthdepartment.com/orange-county/print/?task=getPrintable&path=orange-county&pKey=D688CA1A-D69E-4121-9573-512B75C0EE65

 

[Mr. Sullivan]

Why does it matter that this drink stand was closed for a few hours

 

[TP2000]

Why does it matter that this drink stand was closed for a few hours

In the big ballgame of life, it doesn't really matter.

But, apparently, several of us here have been interested enough to post and respond about it.

As I just said above, I'd been reading that weekly update of health code shutdowns in the OC Register for going on two decades. It was always a list of odd sounding little restaurants in grimy strip malls in unfashionable parts of the county. But this time, this one time, it included a place at Disneyland.

And they got shut down because they had no running water. Which is a pretty big violation of the health code when you are making food and beverages to serve to customers. Luckily, with a bunch of plumbers and staff on hand and at the ready, DCA management got it fixed and figured out how to turn the water back on within hours. Yay!