Carnation Cafe

I so wish 4 stars were possible. The service is spectacular despite the crowds and our reservations were met right on the dot. However, it is CROWDED. The tables are very close together and the prices do not match the type of food that is served (over priced). This was my first time having lunch here and I’m pretty sure I’ll stick to their breakfasts because the lunch was mediocre at best. They really stack the reservations on top of each other so there’s always a lot of people lingering around the maitre de/​foyer. The squishing in guests and stand-​by line seemed to cause grumpy kids, which meant lots of crying.

Definitely recommended.
This is the best price/​quality food you will find in Disneyland.
Their burgers are really good.

Finally had a chance to try Carnation! I Left disappointed though! We were told the wait was 15 mins, but waited about 30 mins. Then our waiter took for ever to come over and take our drink order. Then, after waiting about 15 minutes for our food, they bring the wrong food for my husband and waited another 10 minutes for his food.
I ordered the Chicken Fried Chicken, it comes with mashed potatoes and grilled veggies. It’s just like a chicken fried steak at other restaurants. It was ok, nothing special about this plate. My husband’s food was good, he got the Sourdough Bacon Cheese Melt. It comes with fries.
I love everything about Disneyland, including all their overpriced goodies, and I really wanted to like Carnation. Not sure if I’ll come back for lunch or dinner, but I would come back to try their breakfast! Maybe that won’t be disappointing!

So as a season pass holder and a frequent to this particular restaurant I felt it was time to leave a review.
First tip is to call in a reservation or make sure to check in there at least a half hour before you feel like eating as there is typically a pretty good wait.
While waiting they do give you a buzzer of which you can walk all over main street where it works and even if you have a long enough wait you can catch Great moments with Lincoln.
Second suggestion is to have breakfast or lunch there as Oscar the oldest Disneyland employee in all the parks and a wonderful gentle man works greeting people during those times. Oscar was hired and worked alongside Walt himself.
And as far as the food goes we find all the meals really good and I personally can vouch for the eggs Benedict for breakfast and their cheeseburger at lunchtime is flavorful and of good size.

The best part about Carnation Café, by far, are the appetizers. Fried pickles? Yes, please! I don’t even eat pickles and last time I was here I got them FOR DINNER. They’re incredible. Walt’s favorite chili? INCREDIBLE. Baked Potato Soup? Cheesy goodness in a bowl. Service is always fantastic, food comes out with LIGHTENING speed… it’s no wonder this place is so hard to get into! And the atmosphere, sitting in the middle of Main Street, is awesome! Love it!

You «must» have a reservation in order to eat here, beware! Even if the place has only a few people.

I would give this place 5-​stars, but that is simply because it is a Disneyland restaurant. However, this restaurant – standing alone – is nothing over the top. In fact, I usually turn to the Plaza Inn or the Jolly Holiday Café for a quick lunch in Disneyland (and I think you’d be fine there). I wanted to try this place because it is located right on Main Street, U.S.A. and you can people watch if you get an outside table, which is always good!
I made a reservation, showed up late, but was still seated outside. As always, it was Disneyland service, so the service was perfection! I ordered the fried pickles, which had a great breading to pickle ratio (yes, that’s a thing) and the Spinach Salad with Grilled Chicken. I don’t really get how hard-​boiled eggs and pickled onions go with grilled chicken, spinach, portobello mushrooms, and feta cheese, so I opted out of those add-​ins. They were perfectly accommodating!
I have no qualms over the food. The salad, if you order it, is ALL spinach with the additional items on top. I loved the portobello mushrooms. Why the three stars? Because it was nothing extraordinary… It was good – just not amazing! I still love you, Disneyland (always!)

I can’t believe that of all the times we have been to Disney we have never tried the Carnation Café! Our last trip we tried it two times and it was great, for what it is… A Disneyland restaurant!
Word to the wise, if you get the fried pickles definitely let them cool down A LOT. Thought that they were cooled and took a bite and the juice burned the crap out of my tongue. Whoops. Otherwise they were super tasty!
The first time I tried the Sourdough Bacon Cheese Melt and it was rather uninspired. The second time we had lunch there I tried the roasted turkey sandwich and I liked that one much better.
They have a good number of Kid friendly staples for those picky eaters. All in all it is a cute little place and DEFINITELY would recommend going on the Disneyland App before hand and trying to get a reservation, because being on Main Street and close to a lot of the action, this place fills up quickly! We were able to book a table about an hour before we were ready each time and show up right on time for our reservation!

With my list of Disneyland restaurants I haven’t eaten at dwindling, it’s been tough to find ones that piqué my interest. While going through old check-in’s, I realized I mistook the ice cream parlor next door for this place we’ve always passed by without noticing. With the promise of ‘home-​style’ cooking and a menu full of American comfort food, it wasn’t a tough sell to get me to try it out.
That excitement was pretty short lived.
Inside, the décor pushes the 1920’s home look room a bit hard. Before we were seated, we were asked if there were any allergies in our party, to which we explicitly replied, «yes, to shellfish.» Upon sitting, our waiter was friendly, happy to answer questions, but then handed us an ‘Allergy Menu’ with a couple of dishes that had shrimp in them. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate that this menu exists, I just think it’s funny that we were specifically asked if any particular food might kill one of us, and then they proceeded to advertise it on everything.
By the way, the item my shellfish-​allergic mother eventually ordered was not on the ‘Allergy Menu’ due to it containing Worcestershire Sauce … because, as the head chef told us, it might have been made with shrimp.
We started with the Fried Pickles, which were served as a breaded, full spear. I’ve had these elsewhere and they’re usually served as fried slices, making them small, quick bites that are good, only because of whatever sauce they come with. Here, the larger spears only serve to remind you that you are eating a hot pickle. When you bite into one, it’s unappealingly soggy and fills your mouth with a warm sourness that can’t really be covered up by the accompanying dressing. Not a good start.
My favorite lady and I shared the Chicken-​Fried Chicken. Having gone to the Plaza Inn up the street multiple times, we were expecting similar portion sizes with here just having a higher price. What we got amounted to a chicken strip with a small scoop of gravy that was barely enough for a single person. The taste was alright, though fairly generic, and the potatoes that came with it tasted suspiciously like they came out of a box; though, this may have just been a large amount of cream cheese mixed into them. The dinner roll on the side, however, was definitely store bought. Grilled vegetables were the only saving grace, fresh and delicious.
Our son had the Kids’ Meal Mac & Cheese, which he ate all of, though I know I personally preferred other versions they have at the park.
My mother opted for the, ‘shrimp-​free’, Homemade Meatloaf. This was actually not bad; it was juicy, with a nice taste, and topped with a ketchup glaze that definitely lived up to it’s comfort food, home cooking promise. Not as good as my own, but at least it wasn’t disappointing. Well, I lied, there were still those boxed potatoes on the plate. She also had a Vanilla Malt which is delicious no matter where you have it.
Malt notwithstanding, it was a disappointing visit to a non-​cafeteria style meal at Disneyland. Usually you expect a bit more from a sit-​down place in the Magic Kingdom. Here, it was basically just a higher price on the check.
— — — -
And for the Disneyland Reviews List:
Taste — Or the Overall Flavor: * *
It’s not terrible, it’s just not anywhere else in the park that could be much better. Yeah, those fried pickles may be disgusting, and the potatoes are either out of a box or with so much cream cheese that you need an ice-​cream scoop to serve them, but it’s just as edible as you can find at a Marie Calendars or some place similar.
Convenience — Of the Seating & Service Options: * (and a half)
Table service and proximity to the park entrance, paired with not a large amount of seating, make this a fairly popular place. On a crowded day, you can expect a wait of around 15 – 20 minutes for a table. While the service may be nice, the food itself may not be worth that.
Value — Will you walk away satisfied?: *
Every place in Disneyland is relatively over priced; the trick is to find food that will make you not want a snack two hours later, despite what you pay. Typically, paying around $ 10 per person is what you should expect, but still have a filling meal.
This place definitely takes a big step over the $ 10 threshold. Mix in smaller portion sizes, drinks, and a possible appetizer to help fill you up, and you are walking into a place with a substantially lower value.
Kid Factor — Is there entertainment for the young ones?: * *
They have crayons to color with and a cute theme to the place, but there’s not much else to hold the attention of young minds. If you want to sit for a while, don’t expect this place to keep your children entertained. About the only chance you might have is a parade going down Main Street, but with a low vantage point and people standing on the sidewalk between you and the floats, you won’t get to see much.

The price is steep but the experience is worth it! Especially if you get seated outside (which you can try to request) — you can watch the passing parades! I wish I was here for brunch, but dinner had to do. I wasn’t so hungry so I got the potato bacon soup and it was delicious! Also served with a dinner roll and butter, yum. It kept me warm in addition to the space heaters they have outside.
I also had a chocolate malt which took a while to come out because they had to remake it but the servers are very attentive and always checking on you and telling you the status of your food. I love how everyone at Disneyland is always so caring for their customers.
Bonus points for them for having these pagers to alert you when a table is ready– which means you can walk around the block and look around in the shops while you wait. For dinner time, it was only 20 minutes on a Saturday night, wow! Overall I had a great experience here, I just wish the food was more filling for the price you pay.

In all my years of going to Disneyland, I somehow managed to not have eaten here. I admittedly miss when the inside part used to be the bakery that had yummy fresh baked chocolate chip cookies (the ones they have now in the park are awful) but I was excited to finally eat here and for breakfast to boot. As with most places at Disneyland, the menu is limited so you won’t have to ruminate over the 1,000 choices for hours.
I went with the Eggs Benedict and my friend ordered the Apple Granola Pancakes. The portion sizes aren’t huge but just enough to get you full. The Eggs Benedict come with potatoes on the side and the Pancakes had a good sized sausage on the side. Coffee will set you back about $ 3.25 here just for a plain cup of black coffee so I suggest getting your coffee at the Starbucks across the way if you don’t mind the potentially long line. It moves pretty fast and you spend about the same on coffee, if not less.
We got a seat on the patio which is definitely the nicest place to sit. Watching the people go by on Main Street always makes for a good time. Service was great as it almost always is at a Disney dining establishment.
Most importantly, make a reservation via the Disneyland website. They were only taking reservations when we went and the park had only been open for a couple of hours. Be aware you do have to put down a credit card and if you don’t cancel by 24 hours prior, they’ll charge you $ 10. But it’s easy to call and change your party size if you need to do that. Our party went from 3 to 2 and it was really easy to call the day before and change it.
All-​in-​all definitely recommend trying this place at least once for breakfast. It’s worth it and pretty inexpensive as far as Disneyland sit down places go.

Good thing this Disney trip was planned a month in advanced. It gave me time to read Unilocal reviews and really map out the entire day. Carnation Café was one of those spots I wanted to hit. They only accept reservations so be sure to plan accordingly. Came through here for brunch and boy was I starving after that nemo ride.
Service is outstanding, but truthfully all service is pretty good at Disney restaurant in my books. The host was very friendly and the waiter was awesome. I had the eggs benedict since I was craving eggs. The biscuit was toasted perfectly. The sauce was heavenly, not too much and not too little. The eggs was cooked just right and the taste was extremely tasty and delicious. I’m glad I made the RVSP here because this place rocks.
It was a great start to my day. The food gave me just the right amount of energy I needed so I can enjoy the rest of the day. The atmosphere was marvelous and the whole dining experience leaves me wanting another Disney trip. Overall this is a solid joint to hit for a quick brunch meal but like I said, they only take reservations only now.
PS Located on Main Street

Disneyland only has a few places worth noting when it comes to table service dining. In general each restaurant has a very limited menu so you better pick wisely.
On my most recent visit to Disneyland I chose to dine at the Carnation Café again because its always been good to me. I love their signature Chicken Fried Chicken plate. Everything is delicious, though it’s a little small for the price. Service is another strong point of Carnation Café and definitely better than most of the other table service restaurants at Disneyland. After a long day of walking and waiting in line it’s nice to have someone cater to your.
The Love List
— Chicken Fried Chicken
Buttermilk Fried Chicken Breast served with Mashed Potatoes, Country Gravy, and Seasonal Vegetables. This was really good, except for the token cafeteria bread roll.
— Homemade Meatloaf
A special blend of Beef and Pork served with Ketchup Glaze, Mashed Potatoes, Mushroom Gravy, and Seasonal Vegetables. I love the mushroom gravy with their mashed potatoes. Ketchup Glaze was a bit sweet but the gravy evened it out.
— Joffrey’s Coffee

Make reservations before you go! If you don’t you will have to wait at least 30 minutes! If you do make a reservation, remember to keep it because they will charge you for missing your reservation. I only came here for the fried pickles but their baked potato soup is also amazing! Their chili was alright.
Get the fried pickles and dunk them in the baked potato soup. Then get a side of fries and dunk them in the chili!

One of three spots in Walt’s place that offer Vegan entrees (Blue Bayou, Rancho del Zocalo).
Ordered the Chef’s Vegan Burger –House-​made bean and vegetable patty, tomato, lettuce, pickled red onions, and vegan chipotle-​mayonnaise on a multigrain roll. It pleasantly surprised as the best bean based patty that I have had, (Reminded me a lot of a crab cake) and the chipotle mayo make the burger burst with flavor. So good you will honestly not feel left out as the others in your party potentially chow down on beef, and will be beating them in the saturated fat and cholesterol department.
Not to be missed if you are looking for plant based in the park.

In love with this spot! Excellent service– I mean excellent– every server that passes by (yours or not) acknowledges you and asks if you need anything. Water glasses always filled to the rim as well.
And the food exceeded my expectations! My sourdough bacon and Swiss medium rare burger was amazing! It was so juicy and rich in flavor. With every bite I could taste each ingredient! Ahh so mouthwatering just reminiscing. Maybe I was just starving by this point in the day (9pm), but I was truly in love with this meal. The fries were thin and crispy, just how I like them!
My friends got the shrimp mushroom garlic pasta with broccoli, and the shrimp Cobb salad with blue cheese and veggies, and the fried pickle appetizer. All of which they seemed to really enjoy.
We made reservations for this restaurant on purpose, so we can have a perfect view of the parade and firework show! Which we did! We watched the parade on the outside terrace, that has a perfect view of main st., and we continued watching the firework show in the street ride outside. It was a perfect way to end our day!

The worst thing about this place is the wait, taking account that there are several hundreds of people in Disneyland. Our wait time wasn’t really that bad about 45 min. We can walk around the alley or shop around the nearby shops.
Customer service was good as well waiters and waitresses dressed like mid aged 1800’s and setting was like a Scottish pub with the feeling of Disney on every corner.
The food was exceptional. I had the sourdough bacon melt which is to die for! It’s sooooo good. Top it off with a hot cocoa for the winter weather !

Disneyland is severely overcrowded at times, and to eat at Carnation Café, you need to call and make a reservation. While the food is good, it’s not a call in to make a reservation and still wait 20+ minutes to be seated good. Since it’s on Main Street, it’s one of the busiest restaurants at Disneyland.
I have to give it to the servers and cooks for feeding this overcrowded park while keeping their consistent high Disney standards. It’s as efficient as it can get considering the good quality you still get even though they have to feed massive crowds.
Great pasta and good appetizers. Not my go to spot next time, but glad I tried…

Awwwwwww the frightfully spicy chicken sandwich is no longer on the menu!!! Fear not though, apparently Carnation Café had such a positive response to that glorious sandwich the master chef is considering bringing it back in a month or two. So keep checking in to see if they brought it back and keep me posted.
To fill my belly, I settled for the baked potato soup and the sourdough bacon cheese melt.
Baked potato soup 4.5÷5
This bowl of soup was pretty dang delicious!!! It was as yummy as it was visually rustic and pleasing. The hot potato soup melted the cheese thoroughly adding a wonderful cheesy kick to each and every bite. Let’s not forget about the crunchy bacon… let’s just leave it at bacon. Yum! I’ll most definitely be ordering this again.
Sourdough bacon cheese melt ²⁄₅
The fries that accompanied the sandwich was absolutely delightful. Each fry was seasoned and fried to perfection. I could have used more of it. Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said about the sandwich. The entire thing was so greasy and heavy. So much so that the sourdough couldn’t contain all the lipids and nearly disintegrated from getting too soggy. There isn’t quite anything as displeasing as meat wedged between soggy bread.
I’ll be coming back once and if they ever choose to bring back the frightfully spicy chicken sandwich… all that goodness… how I crave you so

We were happily seated outside here for lunch on a Sunny Friday.
Here’s what I had:
FRIED PICKLES w/​DIPPING SAUCE — $ 6.49
Dill pickle spears dipped in Parmesan and panko, fried golden brown and served with house special sauce.
This was a fun snack that was crispy on the outside, soft and sour/​tangy on the inside and creamy when dipped. It was good.
BAKED POTATO SOUP — $ 6.49
With bacon, cheddar, Montgomery jack, sour cream and chives.
This was as awesome as it sounds! such a great idea! I love baked potatoes! This thick and creamy soup was cheesy and the bacon bits were crispy! I loved it!
HOMEMADE MEATLOAF — $ 14.49
Special blend of beef and pork, served with ketchup glaze, mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy and seasoned vegetables.
This dish also comes with a roll with butter… it’s a big meal and I suggest sharing because you don’t want to feel extremely full at Disneyland, haha. It was all around good. I love mashed potatoes that have the skin mixed in with! This is a great dish and I’m sure many people come here for this! I would suggest sharing because it’s a decent portion and you would want to make room for other goodies at the park without the comatose feeling! ;)