Napa Rose — Restaurant in Anaheim

I have never been to this breakfast before and my sister set it up for our little group. My 5 year old niece was dying of cancer and she really wanted to do this. Aside from the beautiful restaurant and incredible food and service, the princesses are really amazing.

If your child likes princesses- this is a very magical and fun experience for adults and kids. They have themed food for the table that is represents different princesses. After breakfast, the kids can sit and enjoy a short story by Belle. It is a very fun and worth while adventure.

I will say though, this was the last adventure for my niece. Our breakfast was a bit different than most people’s and I want to take a moment to recognize just how amazing the staff are at this place. It’s taken me 3 months to write this review but I was so touched by the Napa Rose manager Miguel and our server Alex. They went so above and beyond and made the experience so special, I couldn’t write about it without bawling my eyes out.

During breakfast, a few princesses came over to see my niece because she couldn’t move. After breakfast, they had several princess meet my niece. Then they took us outside to this little area. Merida and Ariel just talked to my niece like she was another princess. It’s hard to write this but the time outside was so magical. It was so tender and special that I struggle to really convey what that morning felt like. Ariel and Merida would have stayed for as long as my niece wanted but my niece’s pain was getting worse the longer she talked and she couldn’t handle much more. Those beautiful actresses talked to my niece and played games with her. They got down on her level and spoke to her. They whispered special messages just for her. For a brief moment, I saw a little smile on my nieces face that I hadn’t seen in a while.

My 9 year old daughter was in the group and they also made sure to talk to her so she didn’t feel left out even though this was a moment for my niece. My daughter knew this breakfast was for her little cousin, but she and I both thought it was really sweet they tried to include my daughter as well. They talked to my daughter and made her feel special and loved while making sure my niece was the center of attention.

As we were leaving, they found out that the only food my little niece could eat was these Mickey waffles they serve there. She was barely eating at this point and those waffles were the only thing she could take a few bites of. They brought out the chef who makes them to meet her and handled her a bundle of waffles. My sister told me that the next day, the manager came to her hotel room to deliver more waffles just in case my niece needed more.

I know that Disney has a lot of kids who are sick and dying that come through their doors. It must be hard for them to do special things for all of them. That said I will always remember Miguel and Alex and the Ariel and Merida- who made that breakfast so special not just for my niece but for our little group. I know each of the adults in our group felt so much love and care from the staff who took the time to do this for us. My niece wasn’t very responsive but they didn’t notice. They kept talking and engaging anyway. While this moment was so wonderful for my niece and she talked about it a lot, it was more special for the rest of our group and how it has lingered with us months after it has happened.

My niece has since passed away and I am sure many breakfasts have come and gone since we were there. My daughter and I have the pictures and videos of that morning and those moments are ones my daughter and I cherish. My niece isn’t here but that morning lives on in our memory and pictures. We often talk about that breakfast and how magical it was. My daughter wants to come and do the breakfast again in memorial to my niece and remember her last experience with her. I can’t talk about that morning without crying and even writing this was hard. That said- a forever thank you to Miguel, Alex, Ariel and Merida. You will never know how much you touched our...

To our magical friends at Disney,

We recently had a stay for our first time at the Grand Californian. My parents had never stayed at a Disney hotel, and we thought that this experience was truly magical! We were immediately welcomed with the friendly valet staff, had an easy check in despite the longer lines, and were immediately texted that our room was available shortly after. The rooms themselves had amazing views of California adventure, and although my parents and I could not be on the same floor, we felt that the overall rooms were great! We experienced a handful of dining experiences on the property, and were delighted with both the brunch and dinner at Storytellers cafe. The reason for our stay was to celebrate my daughter's 4th birthday with her grandparents there. Storytellers has (and has again) done an amazing job at making someone feel special for their birthday. During the brunch AND new dinner service, the characters embraced her special day and so did the wait staff. They made an excellent experience for our whole party; it was really special to see my dad taking pictures of characters he grew up loving.

Our last morning, we were so excited since we had the Disney Princess Breakfast reserved. After experiencing such an unforgettable experience at Storytellers, we were confident that the breakfast would be even more intimate, special and memorable for my daughter. Now, the venue I was told would be different because of the unavailability of the Napa Rose at the time. But the specialness would still be the same. It is quite a pricepoint to pay, but we were sold on the fact that this would be another Disney successful dining experience. As we arrived, we were greeted by friendly staff. I won't lie, I was very disappointed to be escorted into almost a conference center. This was nothing like what we saw on previous videos, and I completely understand that the change of venue creates a different space, but it felt corporate, dull and almost lackluster of the Disney magic. Besides this, I had high hopes.

As the princesses made their rounds, we experienced almost a warm/cold energy. A staleness/stiffness and almost mundane routine for some of the characters. I mentioned that we were celebrating my daughter's birthday upon arrival. They took down her name (including the spelling). Not once was she acknowledged by anyone. Not once did she get a special greeting/call out from any of the staff or characters. I was almost surprised that characters didn't come back for more greetings to our tables after making the first round. There were not that many guests, and for the pricepoint that we were paying for - it seems as though they would have more time to go up to the characters as guests wanted to. This environment made it feel not personable, and echoed how Storyteller was with a much higher pricepoint. We were happy about the two photo opportunities with princesses. But even this felt slightly rushed as we were corralled in and out. The food was surprisingly lacking. And we were just comparing this to Storytellers cafe. There was nothing I felt was elevated (the only possible appetizer that I felt even slightly elevated to qualify for $142/plate were the lobster bites), everything else were fare that we could find at the other restaurant.

I guess, this is what sticks in my mind the most now for our stay at the Grand Californian. We unfortunately ended on such a disappointing note, and one of the biggest build ups for the weekend. I am happy to speak with whomever about our experiences, because I definitely would like them to hear how high of an expectation we had - and how completely disappointed we felt. We had 6 in our group, and this sentiment was across the board. For such a sought after reservation, we expected more of Disney. That is just how Disney does it, and we almost felt cheated of...

This is easily the best food option in the Disneyland complex area open to the general public (Club 33 requires membership or knowing the right people/connection) but that's not saying much. It's in the Grand Californian hotel, the one that looks like a very fake low quality reproduction of a craftsman style mansion (take a drive to Pasadena, or various neighborhoods in nearby LA or the real deal). This is a fine dining establishment, so expect high prices on top of the already inflated prices for everything disney. This is one of the very rare spots in the whole disney complex that isn't awful food from the freezer that is like eating at a low quality fast food chain (but with much higher prices and employees in theme attire.) Someone actually makes the food here. That's an incredibly low bar, but for a Disney food establishment, that sets it apart. If there's anything at all good about this place it's the attentive, friendly service as you'd expect from a fine dining establishment where you're dropping a few hundred dollars per person. These waiters & hosts definitely don't get paid enough. They would be way better off taking their skills and working at some other nice restaurant in Southern California. As for the food, as much as it's by far the best food in the Disney area, it's still mediocre to just pretty good at its very best. For something billed as the jewel of disney dining, touting fresh, local, farm to table, etc etc. and spending hundreds of dollars per person...it would be normal to expect something special. Really, you're just getting decent/average (or pretty good at its absolute best) food, but with above average service and location close to Disneyland. None of the food stood out as anything special. Don't think I'm swayed due to the high prices. I have no problem spending hundreds of dollars on a meal, but I expect to get what I pay for. I've spent less at multi Michelin star restaurants that are transformative. The wine selection is admittedly pretty good. They have some good, though highly expensive & overpriced bottles on the list. Wine recommendations can be a bit hit or miss. I've received good recommendations as well as some pretty poor ones too (why did that $15-20 glass of cheap twist top swag that's not much better than Stella Rosa get recommended?). The decor and atmosphere...the good news is that it's a fine dining establishment with good service, so at least you're comfortable. The decor is bad though. It looks like a weird cheap tacky attempt at being classy, upscale, and historic mixedoin w/ some cheesy 90s/early 2000s accents, but it all just looks really cheap and trying too hard. Considering how much money Disney has, you'd think they could afford to just buy a historic home/cabin/restaurant and ship it over, or hire some high end architects & interior designers...but I'm not surprised at the poor execution. Any praise for this place, aside from the waiter & host service, is entirely unwarranted. For those saying it's incredible, the best experience, etc...they may be in a Disney cult trance, or they think it's good because the rest is abysmally awful in comparison, or they have no idea what true class and quality is. If Olive Garden is your idea of good Italian and KFC is good fried chicken to you, then no wonder you think this place is so amazing. If you know someone that can get the hook up, like an employee discount or coupon, and you're absolutely stuck in the Disney complex area and have no option to leave...then this place is the way to go. (Again, it's in no way good, but it's less terrible than the rest). At least that way, you're only wasting half of an arm, leg, first born, and your soul in the process instead of paying full price for the mediocrity. Even the least disappointing meal in the Anaheim mouse empire is still a monumental...