Need your help choosing places to eat

[jabead]

My family of 5 (DH, me, and 3 kids - ages 6 - 12) are planning a trip to Disneyland this summer (haven't been since 1995). Can you recommend some places to eat (both fast food and sit-down) in the parks? Also we've been to WDW several times and all love the character meals there. I've heard a little about the one at Goofy's Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel. In your opinion, is this the best one? What characters do they usually have there (is it usually the same ones or different ones?) Also I heard about a character breakfast in the park at the Plaza Inn. Would appreciate opinions on this one too. Do they still have Pooh characters here? Can you make PS for these like at WDW?

[teri]

Goofy's Kitchen Character Meals are a family favorite for us. We have eaten there 4 times, twice of those for family birthday parties. Minnie and Friends Character meal at Paradise Pier is also nice - I haven't seen teh new show though. There is a character breakfast at the Grand Californian Storybook Cafe which is supposed to be nice. Avalon Cove in DCA just changed from a Wolfgang Puck restaurant to a Disney Character meal, and it gets pretty good reviews for a new place. Plaza Inn character breakfast is fine, although the scramble-buffet system can be confusing for kids. (If you have more than one kid and you have to negotiate trays through the checkout line, you start to appreciate the value of fixed-price restaurants.)

PSs are recommended, but not always necessary.

Blue Bayou is my all-time favorite Disney themed restaurant in all of the Disney universe. River Belle terrace is a wonderful breakfast place, no characters but plenty to see there. There are several places in Downtown Disney... you will have no problem finding places to eat! :)

[jabead]

Thanks for the info Teri. Do you remember some of the characters that you've seen at Goofy's Kitchen? Are they pretty much always the same ones, like at the WDW character meals? Also do you have any recommendations for the California Adventure park?

[cuterlt]

It was great.... The food was great! And the characters interacted well. It is a nice place too.
We also liked the plaza inn (which we went to accidentally) which was all the pooh characters when we went. It was really good too - good food and lots of interaction, even with those of us who aren't blessed with children. Both were wonderful.
Don't eat at Tomorrowland Terrace - that was pretty bad.

[Judy from Boise]

In DL, I love the River Belle Terrace for breakfast.....but you have to eat outside to get the full enjoyment:)

For lunch/dinner I love to get the jambalaya at The French market, sit outside and listen to jazz:)

my tip is avoid eating in Fantasyland !

[teri]

Gotta agree about Fantasyland. Low end. They really need to do something about that.

[Party Teacher]

We love Redd Rockets Pizza Port in the back of Tomorrowland for pizza's and gourmet salads. Also we always stop at Bengal BBQ (across from Indy) in Adventureland for chicken skewers.

At DCA, the chicken strips and sliced apples with warm caramel sauce at Strips, Dips 'n Chips in the Paradise Pier area back by the Carousel are a must do for us. We also like Hollywood & Dine in the backlot area for chinese food.

Party Teacher