While visiting Disneyland Paris and using the Premium Half Board Dining Plan, we were able to dine at some of the top restaurants at the resort. On our last night of our trip the concierge at our hotel was nice enough to snag us a reservation at one of the fanciest places. We were excited to cap off our trip with a dinner at California Grill, located inside the luxurious Disneyland Hotel. While there is a California Grill in Florida, these two restaurants are pretty different from each other. Read on to hear our experience at this signature location (and for some of our best food photography to date!) Also, if you want to see all of our articles about Disneyland Paris you can see them listed at the bottom of this post or we recommend to start here: 2 Disney Loving Americans Go International (Part 1): How to Plan a Trip to Disneyland Paris.
Atmosphere
The Disneyland Hotel in Paris is the highest priced resort option and feels similar in style to the Grand Floridian in Walt Disney World. The hotel features victorian style and has an upscale vintage feel. This carries over into the California Grill restaurant with the same rich fabrics, white trim, and intricate decor. You will also find some California themed artwork on the walls as well. The restaurant is located on the second floor of the hotel and is centered to look right down the entrance to the park and Main Street. We scored a table for two next to a window with a great view of the castle. Our table was sat with a white table cloth and fine china. It certainly felt like an elevated dining experience although we did not feel out of place in park clothes. While to us it felt like a more quiet and adult option, we did see some families with small children in the dining room with us (who appeared to possibly regret the decision as they were bored and running around while the parents hurried to dine and leave.)
Inside the lobby of the Disneyland Hotel in Paris.
We loved our view at our table for two.
You can see some California theming mixed into the decor.
The Food
The California Grill has one of the most expensive menus on property. While we were able to use a dining credit from our Premium Meal Plan here, it is good to note that the specific menu for plan participants to choose from is VERY limited. Make sure you like the options before you commit or you may end up with an exorbornate bill.
We were able to order from the right side of the menu marked “Menu Premium”. (Click to enlarge)
We were able to choose a non-alcoholic drink and stuck with our staple of Fuze tea and Perrier fine bubbles. We were also provided bread service to start. We enjoyed the fresh baked rolls with crusty outside and a nice butter. From the menu we were each able to choose a starter, main, and dessert. Here is what we chose:
Starter: Roasted Beetroot Salad €20
with creamy Sainte-Maure goat’s cheese and Champagne vinaigrette
Julie ordered this and loved it. The beets were colorful and flavorful and went so well with the goat cheese. The presentation was outstanding and the salad dressing a perfect addition.
Starter: Smoked Duck Tart €30
with a seasonal mushroom vinaigrette
Andrew wasn’t really in love with any of the offerings but decided to try a classic duck option. While it was good, it wasn’t his favorite (but to be fair duck isn’t his favorite either.) This was probably the only item from our meal that wasn’t one of the favorites from the week.
Entree: Unilateral Cod €50
with Tarbais beans, coconut milk and kaffir lime emulsion
Julie ordered ordered this fish and was very impressed. It was full of flavor and it had an interesting balance of tasting rich and satisfying, but felt lighter and healthier at the same time. This is by far one of her most favorite fish dishes she has ever had. The beans were a unique side dish that she enjoyed as well.
Entree: Tenderloin of free-range pork confit €50
with lemons, satay sauce and lomo crips, roasted potatoes and grated truffle
Andrew chose the pork dish and found the meat tender and flavorful. He also really loved the sauce as well as the tasty potatoes on the side.
Dessert: Cheese Trolley €25
five cheese selections with accompaniments
When there is cheese Julie can’t say no, and this cheese plate was one of the most impressive. I mean look at this assortment and portions! They were all delicious and Julie was in cheese heaven.
Dessert: Intense Dark Chocolate Ball €25
with melting white chocolate centre, matcha green tea financier and raspberries in lemon and thyme
Andrew loves chocolate and was wowed when this amazing dessert arrived to the table. While it tasted mainly of chocolate there were some unique flavor undertones within it. This was the most memorable sweet dessert fo the trip both for flavor and presentation.
Service
Our server, although we didn’t grab his name was very skilled. We also noticed he had too many language flags on his tag to count (how cool to be able to speak to that many different people!) At first he was quiet but once we struck up conversation he was very friendly. He balanced his time between taking care of us pretty seamlessly while also trying to keep the kids next to us from destroying the whole restaurant. Our whole meal flowed well from a service standpoint, and we believe some of the best servers are most likely stationed here.
Final Thoughts
Of the five sit down meals we had in Disneyland Paris, this would rank second on our list. With that being said California Grill is certainly expensive and we aren’t sure if we would have chosen to dine here if paying cash. But with the Premium dining plan this was a no brainer to experience it. Just looking at what Andrew ordered would have been a value of 105 Euro (before even counting his drink). That is way above what we paid for the meal voucher. We had heard that the food in the resorts would most likely be better than inside the park gates and we would have to agree as this food was a highlight of the trip. We were able to find great dishes we thouroughly enjoyed (with the exception of the duck tart). The presentation and fancy atmosphere was also very enjoyable. We almost wished we would have made this a dress up date night, but being a last minute decision that wasn’t in the cards. Our only complaint was the horribly behaved kids at the restaurant, and that is not the fault of the restaurant. We highly recommend if you have the Premium dining plan to give this restaurant a try. This meal will certainly leave a lasting impression on us, and was the perfect way to say Au Revoir to Disneyland Paris.
