Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
to
Napa Rose,
one of the finest dining spots in all of Southern California, and even
character meals at eateries such as
Ariel's Grotto
and
Disney's PCH Grill
offer bet-
ter, healthier food than ever before.
Note:
Disneyland dining reservations are the Disney-restaurant equivalent of
Fastpass. This feature is available where noted and gives you the option of picking a
time and cutting to the head of the line. You may still have to wait, but it's from the
front of the line instead of the back.
GETTING IT RIGHT
ALTHOUGH WE WORK HARD
to be objective and accurate, many readers think that
we'retoocritical oftherestaurantsatDisneyland.OneCharleston,WestVirginia,wo-
man came out swinging:
Get a life! It's crazy and unrealistic to be so snobbish about restaurants at a theme
park.ConsideringthenumberofpeopleDisneyfeedseachday,Ithinktheydoadarn
good job. Also, you act so surprised that the food is expensive. Have you ever eaten
at an airport? HELLO IN THERE? … Surprise, you're a captive! It's a theme park!
And a mom from Erie, Pennsylvania, struck a practical note:
Most of the food is OK. In our experience, more of it is good than bad. If you pay
attention to what other visitors say and what's in the guidebooks, you can avoid the
yucky places. You pay more than you should, but it's more convenient [to eat Disney
food] than to try to find cheaper restaurants somewhere else.
unofficial
TIP
It's necessary, we believe, to present both an expert and a popular opinion of each
restaurant.
As you might infer from the reader comments above, getting our dining coverage
right is a bit of a challenge. While researching and reviewing restaurants may appear
tobeastraightforward endeavor,wecan assure youthat it isfraught with peril. We've
read dining reviews by writers who turn up their noses at anything except four-star
French restaurants (of which there are a whole lot fewer than people think). Like-
wise,we'veseenreviewerswhototallyavoidThaiandIndianrestaurants(amongoth-
ers) because they don't understand those cuisines, and we've read critiques absolutely
devoid of criticism, written by “experts” unwilling to risk offending the sources of
their free meals. Finally, we've seen reviews that are wholly based on surveys submit-
ted by diners whose credentials for evaluating fine dining are mysterious at best and
questionable at least.
