Top 5 Foodie Favorites During My Magical Visit to the Disneyland Resort

I’m a Florida girl at heart. I grew up in the 70’s in south Florida where me, my brother and my parents frequented what is now one of the most visited theme park attractions in the world, Walt Disney World. There was just something about the man and the mouse that kept us intrigued and coming back for more and more and more.

I lived and breathed Disney World and fantasized as a young girl that I was Snow White with seven little followers and that some day my prince would come. I think every young girl has a favorite Disney princess that she dreams about, every young boy a Disney hero. It’s part of what makes Disney so magical, not only for little ones, but for grownups as well.

One year when I was around 9-years-old, my parents decided to take us to Disneyland in California for a week’s vacation. Wait…what? There’s another one of these fantasy lands that exists? As you might suspect, it was awesome. They had princesses, too. And Snow White hung out in California? This place was A-OK with me. I was happy to stay a while, and we did just that.

Sadly, that was our only trip to Disneyland when I was a kid, however, fast forward about 40 years and I’m at “The Happiest Place on Earth” once more.

Recently, I was invited with my family to attend the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration at the Disneyland Resort. I was going back to Disneyland and boy was I thrilled! As expected, Disneyland had grown over the years. There was now a park called Disney California Adventure Park and Downtown Disney. This was cool. All the more places to eat, and for those of you who know me, I’m a foodie to the extreme. I love trying new restaurants and experimenting with different foods.

 

Over the years I’ve eaten tons (OK maybe not tons) of fabulous food at the Walt Disney World Resort and have been very happy with their dining options. Now it was time to check out what Disneyland had to offer. I have to admit, I was just a little bit excited to try all the tasty looking eats throughout the parks.

So here are my top 5 foodie favorites during my stay at the Disneyland Resort. There were so many restaurants that I would have loved to try, but they’ll have to wait for my next visit.

1.  Goofy’s Kitchen – Located at the Disneyland Hotel, we totally enjoyed this character dining, buffet/family style restaurant. Breakfast and dinner is served daily and advance reservations are highly recommended. The food was outstanding and I guess this must be one of Snow White’s hang outs as well. She was happy to see me again…

2. Big Thunder Ranch Barbecue – Located in the Disneyland Park in Frontierland, we had such a good time this evening at this family fun outdoors restaurant, and the chow was finger-lickin’ good. Again advance reservations are highly recommended and I understand why.

3. Blue Bayou Restaurant – Located in the Disneyland Park in New Orleans Square, this restaurant was really nice. A little dark for those who don’t care for dim lighting, but I enjoyed the atmosphere, very romantic. And what’s really cool about this venue is while you are dining, boats with passengers go floating by on the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. Advance reservations highly recommended.

4. Hungry Bear Restaurant – Located in the Disneyland Park in Critter Country, this quick serve, casual dining was perfect for lunch. A rustic retreat, nestled in the shadows of Splash Mountain, we sat out by the banks of the Rivers of America with alovely waterfront view. Very relaxing.

5. Naples Ristorante e Pizzeria – Located in the Downtown Disney District, this casual dining restaurant offers magnifico Italian Cuisine, and I am a sucker for la buona cucina (good cuisine). I would highly recommend this spot for dining and reservations are taken for lunch and dinner.

Overall, I didn’t want my visit to end. I enjoyed my time immensely at the Disneyland Resort and will always have wonderful, magical memories of this time. Oh, and I also had my first Dole Whip! Well, I had one every day actually, but who’s counting?

Next visit to the Disneyland Resort: The CHURRO!