We've had the dinner buffet at Storyteller's many times through the years. The buffet is extremely limited -- selection isn't even half that of Goofy's Kitchen or PCH Grill. Unlike those options, Storytellers also has menu service, and it seems most guests prefer to order from there; if there isn't enough people eating at the buffet, the food gets stale pretty quickly. There's nothing wrong with limited buffet options -- the Mission Inn in Riverside has a limited dinner buffet (except on holidays, when the spread is huge) and the food is fantastic. But the food at Storyteller's (and other Disney buffets) is just so-so even when it's fresh.
We ate at Goofy's Kitchen for Christmas Dinner. It was pretty much the average Goofy's Kitchen experience, lightly decorated for the Holidays; while they did add traditional Holiday entrees, most of the buffet was the same as you'd expect to find any other time you visited. Afterword, we walked through the various hotels and checked out their offerings -- PCH Grill had characters, but mostly the same food as Goofy's Kitchen, and Storyteller's had a limited buffet that focused solely on traditional Holiday entrees and desserts.
The only
Disneyland dining experience that we've ever thought was "over the top" is the annual Thanksgiving Dinner at the Disneyland Grand Ballroom. It's an absolutely beautiful event. Unfortunately, the price has been swelling -- from $43 per adult (12 & up) from our first visit in 2003, to $87 in 2014, to $181 in 2019. (Food options have actually decreased, although they do now provide one mimosas on the house). Thus, after 16 years, we went elsewhere. The Disneyland Grand Ballroom use to also host Easter and Mother Day's buffets, but those have recently been discontinued.
What's interesting about the Disneyland Thanskgiving Dinner is that while its appetizer station features premium offerings -- such as fall salads, jumbo cocktail shrimp, imported cheeses, King Crab legs, etc. -- the actual hot entrees are the exact same as those offered at Storyteller's, Goofy's Kitchen and PCH Grill. Given this, I would highly recommend Goofy's Kitchen or PCH Grill (provided the characters are there on Easter) over Storyteller's.
For years, WDW/Disneyland was our Holiday dining destination -- we feel as if the food quality at Disneyland has really declined in recent years, but maybe it's because we've ventured elsewhere and the food was never that great to begin with. One thing is for certain: the price hasn't declined!!!
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