I’ve been attending Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights since long before I started writing about it.
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I have memories of ducking into Revenge of the Mummy for an impromptu ride when the inevitable downpours of the September season struck.
I remember telling my companion (not a coaster fan) that Revenge of the Mummy was “just a dark ride” to get him in line, as he balked at the monitors showing clips of folks on the ride.
“That looks like a roller coaster,” he said.
“It’s not,” I reassured him.
“This really seems like a roller coaster,” he said, navigating the lap bar into place.
“I mean, it’s kind of a coaster, but it’s not like there are inversions or anything,” I said. “Wait ’til you see the scarabs!”
Thunder boomed ominously outside.
“See?!” I said, gleeful. “We’re not getting wet!”
It was glorious. For me, anyway.
But he lived. We took selfies with pharaoh hats and headbands in the gift shop.
I recall with fondness the naughty nurses hawking boozy blood bags and syringe shots. I miss them.
And on more than one occasion, cry-laughing, “Jackass”-style, as the park’s most dedicated chainsaw clowns scared guests so effectively that they actually fell down. Or, even better, knocked *other* people down trying to get away.
If you were a fan of the “Bill & Ted” show era, you’re laughing along with me. I miss that, too.
First look, eek and ick: Halloween Horror Nights 2026
I still have a favorite house: 2009’s “Silver Screams,” and its gorgeous vintage theater facade. Inside: vignettes repping films classic and contemporary, “Phantom of the Opera” and “Shaun of the Dead” among them.
In fact, I was so enthralled walking through The Pit sequence in the “Army of Darkness” section that the scareactor playing Ash jump-scared me better than any other, before or since.
Good times.
And so last week, as I strode through the streets of San Francisco, appropriately foggy after the rain, I had a weird epiphany. I haven’t missed a HHN in ages, and yet, it felt like I had forgotten how much I love it.
Maybe it was all the Ozzy shirts from tours long past, worn by fans who’d come to pay tribute to the late rocker via the Ozzy Osbourne: Prince of Darkness house. Maybe it was the house vibe at Club Horror. More likely, it was the chocolate bat I’d blissfully decapitated before falling headlong into the sugar-rimmed Ultimate Sin-amon cocktail.
There have been a multitude of unexpected stamps on my bingo card this year. To this, we can add enjoying a batched, bright-red, cinnamon whiskey drink at a theme park — especially in a souvenir cup that doesn’t light up.
I miss the light-up cups even more than I miss the nurses.
I didn’t take anyone on the food and beverage team to task over this, though. Especially not Jens Dahlmann, vice president and executive chef of culinary operations at Universal Orlando Resort, leader of the visionaries who bring such foodie festivity to the paper boats and themed containers that so delight guests.
In fact, the goodies we’re tasting this year began taking shape more or less when the 2025 season wrapped up.
“That’s every year,” says Dahlmann. “But especially in 2026, because we are celebrating 35 years of Halloween Horror Nights. We kind of had to step it up a little bit more, and in partnership with our entertainment and operations partners, we’ve dreamed up a very craveable, scary, delicious feast. Lots of treats for our guests.”
“Craveable,” in fact, comes up more than once as Dahlmann and I go through the rundown of goodies, whether subtly or obviously themed.
I can never taste everything, but I went with a mental checklist — plates that grabbed me visually, ingredients that naturally drew me. And I’m never beyond taking recommendations from the man with the stamp of approval in his hand or from the guests’ top-picks roster.
It was one of Dahlmann’s own favorites this year that I’d dig into first, and likely the one I’d place at the top of my sample stack: the pot-stickers lasagna, a contained-yet-fiery feast that came courtesy of this year’s “Evil Dead: Burn” house.
This one clocks in at $10.99, but with three hefty, ground pork-stuffed dumplings, I felt wonderfully stuffed, too — and it’s just what the doctor ordered if you plan on consuming alcohol as you cavort.
“I just love dumplings,” says Dahlmann. “And love Szechuan-style cuisine, so this one is right up my alley.”
Mine, too.
The “lasagna” distinction comes from the layering of these delicate but ample wontons. A smattering of chili crisp on top fulfills the promise of the burn.
“Hellraiser” hit theaters when I was 17, an impressionable age for burgeoning horror fans to absorb its insane practical effects and body horror. It was my favorite house this year (nostalgia for the win!), and though I didn’t partake of Pinhead’s Skin & Meatballs dish ($11.99), it’s one that delivers the camp it should.
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“This one was definitely pushing the boundaries a little bit,” Dahlmann laughs, noting that the most horror-centric foodies will appreciate it. “It’s an intense house. They’re tearing the skin, the flesh, from the bones, and so we kind of went deep. It might be too much for some guests.”
It looks pretty good, actually. If you don’t think about the inspiration too much.
“Torn pasta sheets are blanched to a very soft texture,” he explains. “It sort of mimics skin. And then we pair it with housemade spicy meatballs.”
Ozzy fans were out in droves, paying respect to the legendary metal monster who passed away in July of 2025. The tributes run deep park-wide. Food and beverage is no exception.
The Prince of Darkness cake has been about as alive on social media as it gets, with fans and influencers doing what comes naturally: biting the head off the chocolate bat that tops this delicate pastry.
“It’s a carrot cake,” Dahlmann explains. “Though to look at it you wouldn’t know. Carrot cake, cream cheese mousse icing that’s very fluffy, and it’s coated in a dark chocolate shell.”
Dahlmann said the team did their research.
“Carrot cake was one of Ozzy’s favorites,” he says.
I’m not sure what Osbourne would think of the Ultimate Sin-amon cocktail I so enjoyed, but never in a million years expected to, but the theming at his bar was pretty spectacular.
Drinks here go for between $10 and $19. My companion enjoyed the cold-brew-centric Black Rain as we headed back toward the Stranger Things-themed fare, stopping for shots for the couple for good measure.
The lines said this franchise is still super viable. And that the F&B team knows what guests want.
El’s Battery Jerky ($16.99) comes in a cool souvenir can, inspired by the snack that Hopper hands off near the start of the final season, while the Upside Down Chicken & Waffles are an evolution of the Eggos young El enjoyed in Season 1.
“She was small then,” Dahlmann says. “But now, she’s a teenager, so the dish — it’s a potato and cheese waffle with crispy chicken pieces — got a little more grown up, too.”
Dahlmann says the Battery Jerky (mac and cheese studded with battery-sized bits of beef jerky) is the hero item at the kiosk, though.
As an Oscar-winner, “Sinners” almost needed to inspire its own winner menu items. They staked it hard, I am happy to report.
Annie’s Juke Joint Catfish & Grits ($11.99) and its adorable tiny Tabasco bottle, Chow’s Southern BBQ Eggrolls ($10.99) and the Pecan & Whiskey Bread Pudding and its crunchy flake-salt dusting ($8.99 and an unlikely hit for walking around in the humidity) all smashed it.
Ideal for mop-up and for fueling us to go another three houses.
“The bread pudding is probably the most popular dessert this year,” Dahlmann said, though I’d venture that the Meat Grinder Red Velvet, a gory confection if ever there were, is giving it a run for its money.
Last year’s new kid on the block, the Death By Cheese Stick, is holding firm at No. 1 this year.
The massive Death By Cheese Stick was a newcomer last year but warrants a re-mention, as it’s still the number-one seller in 2026. Comes with spicy marinara and definitely big enough to share … and fortify.
“They’re still king, but there are a couple of items on its heels,” Dahlman says.
We tried it, and it’s easy to see why the hand-breaded log of a snack does well. It’s pub food through a carny filter: walkable, shareable and, using Dahlmann’s word of the season, craveable.
And like so many other things at HHN: memorable.
Find me on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter or Instagram @amydroo or on the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: [email protected], For more foodie fun, join the Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group.
Pictures: Halloween Horror Nights 35th anniversary at Universal Studios
If you go
Halloween Horror Nights, Universal Orlando’s annual fright fest, will be held on select dates now through Nov. 1. Tickets: universalorlando.com/hhn/en/us/tickets
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