Disneyland- Carthay Circle Restaurant

Modeled after the former Los Angles theater where Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs premiered, the Carthay Circle Restaurant, in Disney's California Adventure, is a Disneyland must do.

As soon as we walked through the restaurant's doors, we found ourselves transported to old Hollywood. Oh how I love old Hollywood.

Our table was not quite ready, so we were invited to have a seat in the lounge.  We did not mind.

The lounge had a glamorous, classy, cozy feel. It was exactly the kind of place where those who wanted to see and be seen would sip a pre-movie premiere martini. As I took a seat I imagined I was wearing a sparkly evening dress with a string of draping pearls, instead of my t-shirt and sneakers.

We barley turned the first page of the drinks menu,

when someone came to fetch us and take us to our table.  We were given a choice to take the elevator or the stairs.  We chose the stairs. After ascending the stairs, we were lead through a pictured lined hallway before entering the spectacular dining room.

The details were amazing. The upholstery on the seats, the design on the tables, the lights, and of course the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs mural painted on the ceiling.

A picture really can't do it justice. You could give yourself a crick in the neck staring at the beautiful art work.  

Our excellent server Mark, offered to show me around the rest of the restaurant.  Walt and Snow White memorabilia abounded in the various dining rooms.

I was just in time to get a peek at the three private dining rooms before that area became unavailable.

My seat in the restaurant faced the doorway where people first enter the dining room.  It was fun to see newcomers suck in a breath as they saw the gorgeous dining room for the first time. At one point I saw a woman enter who looked familiar. It took me a few seconds to realize that it was Kelly Rippa, who was currently filming her show at the park. The hosts did a great job of casually ushering her into the restaurant just like she was your average park goer. She was promptly whisked to one of the back rooms before most people even noticed her.

Carthay Circle is one of three California Adventure restaurants that offer a World of Color dinner package.  The package includes a pre fixe menu and tickets for a special viewing spot for the World of Color show. 

After being handed our special menus, we set about making our choices.

Just a note about our sever Mark.  Although we were not his only table, he treated us like we were extra special patrons.  Disney service can definitely spoil you.

For my starter I got the Carthay Circle salad, mainly because of the honey-goat cheese.

It was light and tasty.  Shannon got the coconut broth with pineapple glazed pork.  I got to have a little taste and it was very good.

Through all of my research I learned that the pork chop was the thing to get at Carthay Circle, so for my entree I got the thick cut pork chop with warm heirloom potato salad and grilled orange blackberry salsa.

My pork chop was cooked just right. It was juicy and flavorful, but the real star was the orange blackberry salsa. I could have gobbled up a whole bowl of that salsa.  The potato salad was full of fresh herb goodness.

Shannon got the grilled Angus steak with black bean chili and mango tomato salad. 

He said it was delicious.

Like the starters, we wanted to divide and conquer the desserts so we could try both of them.

Shannon got the chocolate Crème brulee tart with chocolate sauce and marinated raspberries.

He really liked his dessert, but did admit that I was the dessert winner.

I got the Meyer lemon & macadamia nut semifreddo.  Where have I been, or more to the point, where have semifreddos been?  I will now look for them on every dessert menu I encounter. 

A semifreddo is gelato, sobrbet, or ice cream, mixed together with whipped cream, then frozen. My semifreddo was delicate, tart, and wonderful.  I ate it slowly because I didn't want it to end too soon. 

Before leaving, Mark handed us our World of Color passes, and went over the instructions of where we had to be and when. 

To exit the restaurant we walked through yet another dining room, and the outdoor terrace, 

before exiting through the iron gate.

It's a bit of a strange time machine feeling as 1930s Hollywood fades behind you, and you find yourself once again in a bustling California theme park.

If you are visiting Disneyland, I would recommend having dinner at Carthay Circle restaurant at least once. It offers a lovely, relaxing respite, and it's not only a delight for your mouth, but a delight for your eyes as well.