My Disneyland dining reviews, with pictures

[Sherry E]

I deleted the posts that are steering this thread too far away from Dining talk and planning (including my own posts). Back on topic...

There actually is a Food Porn thread (I can't recall if that's what it's called, but it is something like that) in the Disneyland Community section -- I think it was started by General Tso. Mary Jo moved it to DL Community so we could keep this thread here, in this forum. So the one in DL Community is just for photos only -- not for planning or discussion or anything (much like we have other photo-only threads in DL Community). This thread (and any Dining thread that comes next) will be a combination of food photos, reviews, discussion, questions, answers, etc. -- essentially, what it's already been. A sort of "dining master thread," for lack of a better phrase.

 

[figment_jii]

I've got the structure planned if we did want to start a new dining thread!

Tomorrow (2/3) is National Carrot Cake Day, so if anyone has any carrot cake photos from DLR...tomorrow would be a great day to share them! Today (2/2) is National Heavenly Hash Day (I'd never heard of that before)...if anyone has DLR photos of that, I'd love to see 'em!

 

[Sherry E]

Good grief, Charlie Brown. Heavenly Hash Day? Is there any restaurant at DLR that has ever sold hash? I honestly have no clue.

Coming up this month alone (I can't believe we're already in February!), there are a few good food holidays and a few odd ones (and I'm sure this is not all of them, but just a smattering):

National Fettuccine Alfredo Day
National Bagel and Lox Day
National Cream Cheese Brownie Day
National Peppermint Patty Day
National Plum Pudding Day
National Tortellini Day
National Cream-Filled Chocolates Day
National Almond Day
National Cabbage Day
National Crab Stuffed Flounder Day (<< )
National Chocolate Mint Day
National Cherry Pie Day
National Sticky Bun Day
National Margarita Day
National Cook a Sweet Potato Day
National Banana Bread Day
National Tortilla Chip Day
National Chocolate Covered Nut Day
National Clam Chowder Day
National Pistachio Day
National Chili Day
National Kahlua Day
National Strawberry Day (because it makes sense to have National Strawberry Day in a month when strawberries are not even in season???)
National Chocolate Souffle Day


ETA: This is also National Cherry Month, National Grapefruit Month, Canned Food Month and Great American Pie Month.


And, the month finishes off with a morbid touch of irony after all of that eating... February 28th is:

National Tooth Fairy Day
Rare Disease Day USA

 

[figment_jii]

Good grief, Charlie Brown. Heavenly Hash Day? Is there any restaurant at DLR that has ever sold hash? I honestly have no clue.

I don't even quite know what Heavenly Hash is! I tried looking it up and there is such a range...from something that's a Cool Whip salad to rocky road like chocolates! Had you heard of Heavenly Hash before? I don't recall seeing anything called "Heavenly Hash" sold in DLR...they have the "Peanut Butter Heaven", which is amazing, but I'm guessing it's not the same.

National Strawberry Day (because it makes sense to have National Strawberry Day in a month when strawberries are not even in season???)

Well...National Gingerbread Day is in June...and June is so known for gingerbread, right? Maybe they put all of these things in a bowl and they drew out the names to pick things for a specific day...there is certainly no correlation between day, season, and item.

 

[Sherry E]

I don't even quite know what Heavenly Hash is! I tried looking it up and there is such a range...from something that's a Cool Whip salad to rocky road like chocolates! Had you heard of Heavenly Hash before? I don't recall seeing anything called "Heavenly Hash" sold in DLR...they have the "Peanut Butter Heaven", which is amazing, but I'm guessing it's not the same.


Well...National Gingerbread Day is in June...and June is so known for gingerbread, right? Maybe they put all of these things in a bowl and they drew out the names to pick things for a specific day...there is certainly no correlation between day, season, and item.

I've heard of hash (and I think I ate it as a child when on a trip somewhere), but I don't know what Heavenly Hash is.

Yes, of course -- June is synonymous with gingerbread, isn't it?

I only looked as far as the month of February, but from what I can recall of the assorted food holidays in the second half of the year, there were very few that made sense as far as their placement. I don't know who designated which dates would be assigned to which food holidays, but they clearly had a sense of humor. I think you might be on to something with the 'drawing names from a bowl' idea.

Back to Valentine's Day food for a minute...

I noticed that Pam Brandon did not specify in today's Parks Blog which treats/foods would be available before Valentine's Day (unless I totally overlooked it). She kind of makes it sound as if they won't be available until 2/14, but that cannot be true for all of the items. She never answers questions in the blog, so it's probably pointless to bother asking for clarification.

Things like the Stage Door Cafe's red velvet funnel cake have got to be available before Valentine's Day, I would think?? The Valentine's Day Sundae at Clarabelle's has got to be there before 2/14. Same for the Valentine sugar cookie and the baked heart & teddy bear-shaped breads at Pacific Wharf Café, and the cherry-apple smoothie at Schmoozies. And there have got to be Valentine's Day-themed cupcakes or cake pops or something (even though they were not mentioned).

I do wonder about the red velvet pancakes at River Belle Terrace, and if those will be a Valentine's Day-only food.

 

[figment_jii]

My guess is that all of the snacks/treats will be available before (and probably for a bit after) Valentine's Day. The special TS menus for Valentine's Day might be limited to that day or the weekend (unless it's something that seems like it could stay on the menu as part of a seasonal change in menu items). I remember for Mardi Gras that the menu items were available for more than just the day of Mardi Gras, so perhaps Valentine's is similar. Hopefully, some in the parks now or soon can report back on what treats they've found!

 

[Halloweenqueen]

uI wanted to share one of our favorite dining experiences of our trip. I had called to make sure it was okay to make a reservation at Big Thunder BBQ for dessert only. We made a reservation at 7pm for our first evening of our vacation. We planned to go to Plaza Inn for dinner. It started to sprinkle that evening, which made it difficult to find a table indoors for the seven of us. We decided on R. Zocalo and found a covered table next to the Big Thunder Mountain queue that even had heat lamps. We enjoyed our dinner then had an easy walk to Big Thunder.

We were seated quickly and our server came to take our drink orders. The skillet desserts, we were told, take about 20 minutes to create. We ordered the seasonal cobbler (apple cranberry), chocolate chip cookie, and s'mores skillet.

We had great service, our drinks were refilled promptly and we enjoyed the entertainment.

Soon our skillets came to the table.

Up first, our chocolate chip cookie with vanilla ice cream. The skillet was very warm, yet the ice cream didn't melt too quickly. Baked perfectly...crispy edges and gooey middle. We were given warmed chocolate sauce to pour on the cookie.

Next came the cobbler. Everyone agreed at the table that this was the hands down favorite. Great apple cranberry taste. Not too much topping.

Finally, the smores skillet. This was the one my kids were looking forward to the most. Maybe we were expecting something different, but we found this one to be our least favorite. The brownie seemed undercooked and the crackers were kind of stale.

We were worried that we had ordered too much, but there were only gram crackers left. The seven of us had no trouble at all finishing. The kids said they wished we had ordered an additional cobbler. With four teenagers I bet they could have finished that one as well.

Fantastic service throughout the meal. The chef checked in on us, my coffee never cold, and even one of the performers sat with us a bit. She said that dessert only is becoming really popular and we can see why. Our bill, with tip was under $50.

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

Halloweenqueen, that looks and sounds wonderful! I had never even considered Big Thunder BBQ for dessert only, but now I'm going to add that to my list!

 

[figment_jii]

Laissez les bons temps rouler! It's Mardi Gras today. To celebrate, here's a picture of the Mardi Gras cupcake from French Market (2014).

 

[2tinkerbell]

I have a question regarding dining at DLR on Mother's Day. I am running the TinkerBell 1/2 Marathon that morning - so by the time I finish (I am slow), shower, nap, and get ready for the Parks it could be around noon. Does DLR do something special for Mother's Day as far as dining is concerned? I don't think that I would be up for the traditional Mother's Day Buffet at the Disneyland Hotel as I don't want to get dressed up (especially with heels) and that seems like it is a fancy occasion.

 

[figment_jii]

There was a brief blog entry on Mother's Day dining last year and it mentions two brunch buffets plus a few other dishes at a couple of the TS locations. I haven't seen anything posted on the Disney Parks Blog for this year, but it probably won't happen until we're closer to when reservations can be made. I can't honestly imagine that you'd need to wear heels for the brunches. Neither PCH Grill nor Storytellers are fancy dining locations, so it seems unlikely that they'd suddenly have a dress code that morning (especially PCH Grill).

 

[disneyobsessed808]

those desserts look so good! i often want to go to the bbq but it seems like weird place to dine solo so i never actually get to go.

 

[2tinkerbell]

Thanks! I was thinking that the Royal Buffet at DLH might be fancy, but, read that they have discontinued that anyway. I will watch for this years Mother's Day offerings.

 

[figment_jii]

I hesitate to post this, but the Disney Parks Blog has an entry highlighting some of the food offerings for the Lunar New Year Celebration in DCA.
Happy Lunar New Year! Celebrate with Good Eats in Disney California Adventure Park, February 19-22

(I saw "hesitant" because when I was there a few years ago, most of the offerings were over-priced, even by Disney Theme Park prices. The bao (one) were $5.25 and the mini-cookies (five) were $4.)

 

[Cats2]

I have a question regarding dining at DLR on Mother's Day. I am running the TinkerBell 1/2 Marathon that morning - so by the time I finish (I am slow), shower, nap, and get ready for the Parks it could be around noon. Does DLR do something special for Mother's Day as far as dining is concerned? I don't think that I would be up for the traditional Mother's Day Buffet at the Disneyland Hotel as I don't want to get dressed up (especially with heels) and that seems like it is a fancy occasion.

They used to have a really nice Mothers Day brunch at DLH with princesses and characters. They would even bring in Cinerella's coach for pictures. Apparently they had offered this brunch for over 20yrs. They cancelled it last yr, and Disney Dining's response was it was canceled due to the half-marathon?!? (Tinkerbell wasn't held in May last yr). We were lucky enough to experience the brunch for 2 yrs. Went to Storytellers brunch last yr--nowhere in the same league. Sigh. This is what the buffet had been: http://www.disunplugged.com/2010/05/04/mom-will-love-her-royal-brunch-at-the-disneyland-hotel/

 

[Gisele]

While your driving on over to that evening diner, give this a listen....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCX8VJIYgM8

Swim suits optional..... first though I must take lessons.... lol

 

[figment_jii]

Today is National Strawberry Day! In honor of that, here is the strawberry funnel cake from the Stage Door Cafe in DL.

Pancakes with strawberry topping from the River Belle Terrace in DL.

 

[SirDuff]

I don't even quite know what Heavenly Hash is! I tried looking it up and there is such a range...from something that's a Cool Whip salad to rocky road like chocolates! Had you heard of Heavenly Hash before? I don't recall seeing anything called "Heavenly Hash" sold in DLR...they have the "Peanut Butter Heaven", which is amazing, but I'm guessing it's not the same.

Here (Canada - or potentially Ontario), Heavenly Hash is a type of ice-cream that is similar to Rocky Road - chocolate ice cream with chocolate chunks, nuts, and marshmallow swirl.

 

[figment_jii]

To those that are going soon, it sounds like Jolly Holiday is getting some new items!
New Spring Menu Begins Today at Jolly Holiday Bakery Café in Disneyland Park

 

[Diznygrl]

This is probably a weird question but I figured this is a good place to ask. Has anyone ordered a kids pasta meal at Plaza Inn lately? Just wondering if they still include a small breadstick with the meal along with the carrots and apples. The official menu doesn't say, and a Google image search gives me various results.