Where to eat?

[SamandWill1921]

Last time we went to Disneyland we just kind of ate when we were hungry, and ate whatever was close by. I feel like I missed out on some fantastic food doing that and would like to plan our meals a little better this time.

What is your favorite place to eat in either park?

Any advise is appreciated. Thank you very much.

 

[belle'ssister]

In Disneyland we like:
PLAZA INN - chicken dinner is good, a good size too. I'll share one with my five year old granddaughter when we're there next week.

BLUE BAYOU - It's table service and if we go there we try to get a waterside table. It's kind of spendy, but you can go and just order dessert and still enjoy the atmosphere by the water.

RANCHO DEL ZOCALO - counter service, but has lots of seating. Again good sized portions - favorite is tostada salad.

California Adventure:
PACIFIC WHARF CAFE - yummy soups and salads in a bread bowl. If you want you can get the soup or salad in a container and take the bread bowl to snack on later.

TASTE PILOTS - Bleu cheese burgers are good. People say their breakfast burritos are good too.

FLO'S - Will try this for the first time next week. The themeing is supposed to be really good and have heard good things about the banana french toast as well as the pork, roast beef and turkey entrees.

Grand Californian:
NAPA ROSE - excellent, high quality and nicely presented upscale dining. It is spendy.

 

[Goofy_Mom]

I love these threads

My two cents: for DL table service we like Big Thunder Ranch BBQ, all you can eat fixins of chicken and ribs and beans and coleslaw. We always pay a little more to get the dessert of the chocolate chip cookie bake with ice cream and hot fudge. sooooo tasty. The Plaza Inn gets our vote for counter service and the Golden Horseshoe gets runner up.

For DCA: I haven't found a place I LOVE when it comes to table service here. We do like the Cove for lobster nachos and tri tip sliders. (haven't been to the parks since before they opened carsland, so I have no input on the food there)

For the hotels: We like Tangaroa Terrace/Trader Sams. Great food, not to pricey and the drinks are fantastic.

 

[KateDrake]

I love these threads, though I have to admit sometimes I wonder why people like some of these places! Oh well, I'm sure they feel the same way about a few of my recommendations! Food is so subjective, so that can make it tough. I'd recommend taking a peek at the menus either here or at allears.net before you go to get a better idea if it is something you like.

For DLR, we like:
Cafe Orleans - Pommes Frites, Monte Cristo, Gumbo and great people watching!
Big Thunder Ranch - BBQ ribs and chicken, with sides like corn, beans, coleslaw, etc.
Rancho del Zocalo - Decent Mexican with portions big enough to share
The Hungry Bear - Burgers, sandwiches with sweet potato fries or onion rings. Food is just average, but the location is fantastic.
Jolly Holiday Bakery - Great for a giant cinnamon roll for breakfast. Good for lunch with sandwiches and soups.
Blue Bayou is just OK as far as food goes, but the atmosphere is truly spectacular. It's something you should do at least once in your life.

At DCA:
Pacific Warf Cafe - Love the shrimp Louis salad and soup in bread bowls.
Boardwalk Pizza and Pasta - Good flatbreads and some inventive pastas.
Paradise Garden Grill - Meat skewers with sides of pita bread, cucumber salad and couscous or rice ( for some reason I'm blanking on which). You pick a type of meat and a dipping sauce, but they are always willing to let you try more than one sauce!
I haven't had a chance to eat at Flo's V8 Cafe or Carthay Circle yet, but I'm planning to on my next trip, because I've heard such great things!

 

[PinkBudgie]

Flo's V-8 Cafe- We went there in July and loved it. We will be back. Had the beef loin but may give the turkey plate a try next time. Tip- you can take your food from anywhere and sit outside on the patio for an awesome view of RSR.

Taste Pilots Grill- Like the ribs there for something different from normal park food.

Whitewater Snacks -in GCH. Love the chicken sandwhich with guac and roasted chili peppers. This place is also quiet and uncrowded. Good for a break from the parks.

Cafe Orleans-Love the gumbo and pommes frites and beginets. We like sitting outside with a view of the river and boats.

Hungry Bear- good burgers, beautiful, quiet place to sit by the river. Downside- no real french fries to be had here.

RB Jazz Kitchen for lunch. DH and I split a flilet mignon buger and then split a chocolate bread pudding for dessert. YUM! (Thanks to my sister, Lavenderpeach, for that yummy introduction! )

Bengal BBQ- Love getting the spicey Banyan beef and the veggie skewer together. We ate them in the Aladdin's meet and greet area which was open when we were there. Pretty and peaceful back in there!

Carthay Circle- Good food and good service. The House Biscuits are soooo yummy! We also got the gorditas and of course our entrees and then were able to get WOC tickets in the "reserved area".

What we didn't like- The Chicken Verde Cone from the Cozy Cone. The bread cone was thin, hard, and untasty. The chicken verde inside was good for one bite, after that it started making both of us feel sick. Yuck!

Award Wieners- Not horrible, just not very exciting or worth the price.

Rancho- we like this place, nice area to sit. You can fill up your water bottle here easily too. Next time we will split a meal though. It is filling and I don't like to walk around the parks feeling so full.

 

[llump41]

Out of all the times we have been, we rarely eat in DCA. But our fav DL spots are.
Plaza Inn-Fried chicken is awesome and a very generous portion.

Thunder Ranch BBQ- the all-you-can eat lunch is great. Others have had poor service but we didn't. Will do this again.

Rancho del Zocalo- Again great food and one place were you can get your drink refilled.

Used to love the Hungry Bear but now hate it. Burgers are over cooked

JMHO.

 

[caltex]

DL
Good
-Plaza Inn: the fried chicken and pot roast were very good; better than 50's Prime Time in WDW. I also had fried chicken at DTD's House of Blues and it did not compare to the Plaza Inn's chicken.
-Bengal BBQ: the safari and banyan beef skewers were tasty.

Bad
-Jolly Holiday Bakery: the sandwiches were all bread and little meat. The chicken Waldorf was tasty, but there was very little in the sandwich.

DCA
Good
-Ariel's Grotto (lunch): the cioppino portion was small, but I enjoyed it. The tri-tip was a little over done. The antipasti tower and dessert were very good.
-Flo's V-8 Cafe: the NY strip loin, pork loin, and turkey breast were all good. The roasted corn and mashed potatoes were the best sides...the beans were very tangy (not my family's preference). The apple cheddar pie was okay and the chocolate mud pie was sweet/rich.
-Paradise Garden Grill:the skewers (beef and chicken), pilaf, cucumber salad, and pita bread were good plus there was live music.
-Corn Dog Castle: Corn dogs and hot link corn dogs were awesome.
-Cove Bar: the lobster nachos were awesome; the spinach-artichoke dip was good.
Bad
-Cozy Cones: the verde scramble cones were bland and there was not much egg or verde.

For Adults
-Trader Sam's in DLH: great theming, cool, and quaint. Service can be slow if busy because there is only 1 server. You can order virgin drinks for the kids. The drinks are expensive, but worth trying at least once. The krakatoa punch was the best drink I had there. The hippopotomai-tai was good as was the uh-oa!, but the shipwreck was too strong for my tastes. BTW the pupu platter was very good. Last tip, get there before 4:00 or you may not get a table.

 

[mrsmoku]

Don't miss out on the Little Red Wagon corndogs! Its not fancy at all but these are the best corndogs you will ever have...its true!
Blue Bayou is fun. It more about the atmosphere than the food in my opinion but the food is still quite yummy! We have had the mahi (not on the menu anymore i think), the surf and turf (quite good but super small) and the jambalaya (tasty!). We are more of outside, counter service, eat while we walk people but I do love going to blue bayou! Fun fact: the larger first drop in pirates is located under the women's bathroom so if the riders are screaming loudly, you can hear them in your stall!
edit: I forgot to add the winery in DCA. AMAZING!! We stopped for lunch last year in July and we were seated right away. I got this salad with gouda cheese and apples or pears (can't remember!) and it was so fresh and light but filling. Too much heavy food gives me a stomach ache but this salad was perfect and filling. My husband got a sandwich of some sort and also loved it.

 

[disneegrl4eva]

DL

-Jolly Holiday Bakery: the sandwiches were all bread and little meat.

-Corn Dog Castle: Corn dogs and hot link corn dogs were awesome.

that sux that you didnt like the JHB...I loved it but then again my sandwich was the beef and cheese one and it was chocked FULL of meat, melty gooey cheese and yummy horseradish sauce with onions....it was sooooooooooo good...

I totally agree with you on CDC...my favorite!! i love the corn dog and the cheese dog...take one bite of corn dog and one bite of cheese dog and

OP I dont know if you are a breakfast person but if you are and are interested in character dining, imo, the best 2 places for that are: PPH for Surfs Up! with Mickey and Friends and DL Minnie and Friends Breakfast...LOVE those 2!!

 

[caltex]

OP I dont know if you are a breakfast person but if you are and are interested in character dining, imo, the best 2 places for that are: PPH for Surfs Up! with Mickey and Friends and DL Minnie and Friends Breakfast...LOVE those 2!!

I agree with Surfs Up! - good buffet with Mickey, Minnie, Daisy, Stitch, and Pluto.

 

[tinytinkmom]

Whitwater Snacks at GCH... Love the nachos and sandwiches! This is our favorite restaurant to escape the parks!
Royal Street Veranda at DL or Pacific Wharf Cafe at DCA... Love the bread bowls at both of these places!!

 

[JadeDarkstar]

we are eating at two sit down this oct trip
cct and bb
and then golden horseshoe or stage door cafe for one night
and the plaza inn Minnie breakfast for my sons b day its our fav chr meal.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Reading this is making me so hungry!!!!

Disneyland:
Plaza Inn: chicken
Cafe Orleans or Blue Bayou: monte cristos
Bengal BBQ: anything but the super spicy beef
Jolly Holiday Bakery: tomato basil soup and roast beef sandwich

Disneyland Hotel: Trader Sam's, loved the wings

 

[Disneyland1084]

Blue Bayou for dinner. It's pricey, but SOOO worth it!

 

[rokstedy]

Last time we went to Disneyland we just kind of ate when we were hungry, and ate whatever was close by. I feel like I missed out on some fantastic food doing that and would like to plan our meals a little better this time.

What is your favorite place to eat in either park?

Any advise is appreciated. Thank you very much.

Do not miss lunch at Fiddler, Fifer, and Practical cafe on Buena Vista Street in DCA.

I love dinner at Rancho Del Zocalo or French Market.

Get breakfast off site if you can. Disney hasn't figured out breakfast yet.

 

[DisneyZach]

I think in DCA, the best food is at Ariel's Grotto. Their tri tip is AMAZING! I really like the gumbo in Disneyland but I forgot the name of the little place you get it at. Oh well

 

[PinkBudgie]

I think in DCA, the best food is at Ariel's Grotto. Their tri tip is AMAZING! I really like the gumbo in Disneyland but I forgot the name of the little place you get it at. Oh well

That was Cafe Orleans. We went back twice to get more!

 

[SamandWill1921]

All of this is wonderful! Thank you so much everyone. Last time we had breakfast at Denny's every morning, drank only water, and walked out of there for $15. We will probably do that again since it saves so much. I wanted to do a character breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen but we get a character breakfast on our cruise just days before so I think we can skip it this time. I'm so excited! 31 days until we leave for our cruise and just 39 days until we are back in DLR!!!

 

[mybestieismickey]

I was talking about where we want to eat next trip with DH next trip. I suggested we return to the Plaza. We love the chicken alfredo and it used to be a don't miss. Two trips ago we ate breakfast there and skipped it last month to try Flo's. I was informed last night that Flo's was replacing the Plaza. I was surprised. So now, Flo's is higher on our priority list apparently.

We don't plan out every meal, but do have a list of "try to hits."

Some of our others are Corn Dog Castle, White Water Snacks, Golden Horseshoe (I need chicken nuggets. It's the rule.), and Jazz Kitchen Express for bengeits. Also, Earl of Sandwich will be opening in DTD soonish. I love them, but DH says the sandwich isn't big enough to fill him. I'm pretty sure he's the only person I've heard say that.

Typically, we don't do sit down at DLR, but occasionally will throw something in. We tend to save our table service time for WDW. Which come to think of it, is silly. We visit DLR way more often and do fewer rides when we're there than we would at WDW. Hmmm...

 

[mouseymommy]

Here is a list of our favorite places.

Carnation Cafe for soup, especially around parade time.
Plaza Inn for chicken.
Hungry Bear for the fried tomato sandwich and onion rings
Big Thunder Ranch BBQ, good food and cute show.
Troubadour Tavern for the potatoes. My DH's favorite!
JHB for cinnamon rolls and the beef sandwich
Matterhorn Macaroons. AMAZING!
Pacific Wharf for soup bowls
Taste Pilots for the blue burger
Whitewater snacks for nachos
Flo's for breakfast, we haven't had lunch/dinner there yet

Have fun on your cruise, I hope we can take our family in a few years.