Dining at California Adventure
You can read about Disney's famous character meals in Chapter 7, the Disney hotel restaurants are described in Chapter 4, Chapter 14, describes dining options in Downtown Disney, and Chapter 15 offers some suggestions for other places to eat around Anaheim.
Throughout California Adventure, there are many dining areas, most of which offer fast food. You can find sit-down dining in three places and can make a priority seating reservation at any of them by calling (714) 781-3463 up to sixty days and at least two weeks in advance.
Prices for each of the dining spots listed here (like all other prices quoted in this book) are likely to change.
The Vineyard Room at the Golden Vine Winery
Location: Golden State
Meals: Dinner only
Price Range: $30 or more per person
The beautiful dining-room mural and balcony views of Paradise Pier make the Vineyard Room a special enough place, but the menu is equally unique, featuring food and wine designed to complement each other.
FAST FACT
Alcohol is served at several dining locations in Disney's California Adventure. However, Disney security will not tolerate disorderly conduct from people under the influence of alcohol.
While its menu includes some items suitable for children, the Vineyard Room is better suited for adult diners.
Wine Country Trattoria at the Golden Vine Winery
Location: Golden State
Meals: Lunch, dinner
Price Range: $10 to $20 per person
More relaxed and casual than the Vineyard Room, the trattoria still reflects California Wine Country's emphasis on fine cuisine. They serve lasagna, pasta, grilled sandwiches, and salads in an atmosphere reminiscent of a Napa Valley winery.
Ariel's Grotto
Location: Paradise Pier
Meals: Lunch, dinner
Price Range: $10 to $20 per person
If you or your kids want to dine with the Disney princesses, this is the place to go. Ariel and her royal friends Snow White, Belle, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella all show up here to meet and greet diners.
Many people visiting California Adventure prefer a less expensive and less formal lunch or dinner experience. Hollywood & Dine (in the Hollywood Pictures Backlot area) and the Taste Pilot's Grill (in the Condor Flats area) are both great places to stop with the family for lunch or dinner. So are the fast-food spots at Pacific Wharf, which include the Pacific Wharf Café, a favorite stop for clam chowder or soup in a sourdough bread bowl, and Cocina Cucamonga Mexican Grill.
FAST FACT
Many of California Adventure's shops and attractions make a joke from the names of California places. Some are more obvious, like Maliboomer (Malibu), Bur-r-r-Bank Ice Cream, or Baker's Field Cookies. Others are merely cute: Award Wieners, Taste Pilot's Grill, or Pizza Oom Mow Mow. There's also Man Hat 'n Beach (Manhattan Beach), Rushin' River Outfitters (Russian River), and Cocina Cucamonga, named for Rancho Cucamonga in San Bernardino County.
For snacks, you can buy cotton candy, shaved ice, hot dogs, and other items from vendors all over the park.
TRAVEL TIP
Just a short walk away from California Adventure is Downtown Disney, which offers an even greater selection of theme-oriented, sitdown restaurants suitable for the entire family.
