Disneyland v DisneyWorld pt 1: the food

In July, we went to Disney World with our really good friends and their children, we had planned and saved for this trip for two years (more or less) and I wanted to talk a little about that on my blog.
Additionally, I have been an annual pass holder for Disneyland for a few years and it was a lot of fun to see the differences between the two places.

I went to my first Disney Park in the Spring of my senior year of high school.  Every few years our high school band took the trip to Disney World and played at one of their nighttime parades in Magic Kingdom.  It was a fantastic trip combined with the fact it was my first time and I was there with my closest girl friends.  We had 3 days in the parks; Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and MGM (Now Hollywood Studios).  This was about two years after Animal Kingdom opened and if you have only three days that park gets cut.  I remember on that trip Epcot was my absolute favorite.  I loved walking through all of the countries and eating around the world.  I remember thinking 'one day I will come back here with my husband and we will eat in each country.'  I was a teenager who romanticized everything, even Epcot.

Flash Forward 15 years.  This summer we visited Disneyland in June for my Birthday and to get in the Disney mindset, I am so glad that we did that as Disneyland was still very fresh for our Disney World trip and I can safely say that I saw a lot of differences and similarities.  So I am going to break down my thoughts for you here, in my favorite form - LISTS!!

 Disneyland (DL) vs.

Disney World (DW)

I will be breaking this post up into a series as I realize I have a lot to say one the subject, this first post will be about the food.

My favorite part about DW was the food, hands down.  We purchased the meal plan before our trip and this was a hard decision on our part.  They offer 3 meal plans:
- 2 Quick service meals + 1 snack, per day (our friends did this plan)
- 1 Quick service meal and 1 Table service meal + 1 snack, per day
- 3 Meals (can be either Quick service or Table service) + 2 snacks, per day (we did this one)

With all of these plans you have flexiblity in the sense that you get all of your meal points loaded onto your account at the beginning of your trip; so if you are there for 7 days you get 21 meals.  (on the bottom plan).
We were able to eat at every single restaurant we wanted to eat at.  We were also able to buy our friends table service meals with some of our extra ones and they would buy us quick service meals for breakfast.  By the end of the trip we had it down to a science.

We are at the following places:

Cinderella's Royal Table (Magic Kingdom) - this is in Cinderella's castle and you get to meet all the princesses while dining on amazing food.

*This is a picture from our dinner there, it was my friend's birthday and she was presented with a tiara*

Sci-Fi Dine-in (Hollywood Studios) - This is a giant room set up like a drive in theater where you get to eat in a car and watch clips from B-rated movies.  (Our friend's son didn't take his eyes off the screen for the entire 90 minutes we were there)

**Enjoying a S'mores Milkshake**

Askerhus Royal Banquet (Norway Pavilion, Epcot) -Many Disney blogs will tell you that this is the best way to do a character breakfast if you can't get into the other character breakfasts.  We did this because it was our first morning with just my husband and I, and I wanted to eat in Epcot.  If you are with a picky eater (like I was) you can skip it, but I loved it.  The atmosphere was fun and since I am part Norwegian it was like going home as I grew up eating Norwegian food.  At this breakfast, all of the princesses come to your table and greet you.  

The Hollywood Brown Derby (Hollywood Studios) - When we were planning our trip I carved out one night to have a date with my husband.  We were originally going to eat at TeppanEdo (in Epcot Japan) but my Mother in Law had told me how her favorite place to eat there was the Brown Derby.  (They used to go to DW often when my husband was a kid) So taking her advice we cancelled at TeppanEdo and had dinner at the Brown Derby.  I was so glad that we took her advice, as it was one of the best meals we ate at DW.  The food was fantastic and the atmosphere was the old world Hollywood (as it is modeled after the Brown Derby in So Cal).  Our waiter was also incredible, he told us stories and steered us to ordering the tastiest food on the menu.  

50's Prime Time Cafe (Hollywood Studios) - We didn't have reservations for this restaurant, but we were able to get in after a 30 minute wait.  The wait wasn't bad as we were all hot and sitting in A/C was wonderful.  This restaurant is visually stimulating, but that is really all they have going for them.  There fare is comfort food and not great for a picky eater.  

Be Our Guest (Magic Kingdom)- I was really excited to eat at Be Our Guest as I thought it would be similar to Cinderella's Royal Table.  It was completely different.  We ate there for breakfast and as you walk in you are taken to computer screens and you place your order.  Then you find a table in one of three rooms and they bring your food in really neat warming carts.  The food was delicious and the atmosphere was a lot of fun, just different from what I expected.

Try the grey stuff?  It's delicious.  

Don't believe me?  Ask the Dishes 

End Zone Food Court (All Star Sports Resort) -  I didn't have high hopes for the food court in our hotel, but it was awesome.  They had a variety of different foods and it seemed like our group was all eating something different from each other, which was fun.  My favorite was the freshly tossed power salad with salmon, it was a healthy (ish) option and one of the tastiest salads I've ever eaten.  

What they don't tell you if you stay at a Disney resort is that your first morning back home you will be sad you aren't waking up to Mickey Waffles.  

T-Rex (DisneySprings) - We ate here on the last night of our trip, so it was sad.  Since it was a Table Service restaurant we bought for our friends and we had more food than we knew what to do with.  Each Table Service meal is: one appetizer, entree, desert and non-alcoholic drink per person.  That is a TON of food.  We each got an appetizer and we full by the time our meal came.  With the Disney meal plan you will never starve!!

Disneyland does not have a meal plan option to add to your trip.  So I have been to many of Disneyland's nice restaurants, but over the years and not on one single trip.  It is funny that it is easier to pay a set amount in advance then pay that same amount at individual meals.  

The quality and Disneyland is very high just like at Disney World, however with two parks there isn't as wide variety.  That being said dining at Disneyland is just as incredible an experience as dining at Disney World.  

If you are eating with a picky eater you will have a lot of luck at Disneyland at their better restaurants as they are pretty basic Meat, Potato, Vegetable fare.

The following are some of the incredible places to eat at Disneyland.  

Blue Bayou (Disneyland park)- The atmosphere at Blue Bayou is incredible.  It is designed to give you the feel that you are dining outside on a Lousiana night, down by a bayou.  This restaurant is located in New Orleans Square and if you are sitting by the water in the restaurants you can see people going by in boats (riding the Pirates of the Caribbean).  It gives a great ambiance to the Pirates ride as you feel like you are riding through a bayou and the diners feel as if just another boat is floating by.  They do a really good job setting the scene, as Disney always does.

 Carthay Circle (Disney California Adventure) - My brother and I did a brother-sister Disney weekend a few years back as he was in So. Cal on business, we made Carthay Circle our big dinner and it was fantastic.  Carthay Circle takes you back to old Hollywood, specifically old Hollywood Disney as they have pictures on the walls of actors and actresses who have been part of the Disney empire over the years.  *Think Julie Andrews as Mary Poppins*  The food is southern Californian with an eclectic fare.  Cheddar, bacon and jalapeno biscuits are a good example of that.  After eating there my brother declared it the best restaurant he has ever been to, and he travels all around the world.  He still talks about that dinner, many years later.  It was worth the price.  

Ariel's Grotto (Disney California Adventure) - This is one of the main character dining restaurants in Disneyland.  When you enter Ariel's Grotto you immediately take your picture with Ariel and then are seated in a large room where you have a choice of many different options on a prix-fixe menu.

This restaurant is similar to Cinderella's Royal Table and Askerhus as the princesses come to your table, and spend a few minutes chatting and taking pictures.

The main difference between DL and DW's restaurants are simply quantity.  While, there is a lot more to choose from in Disney World, the quality never waivers Disney is Disney.  I will delve deeper in main differences between the parks in another post but I wanted to break this down, as there are a lot of fun experiences to be had at a restaurant in the Disney Parks.