Sometimes Disney magic takes time. Following nearly eight months of renovations, Napa Rose, Disneyland Resort’s signature fine dining restaurant, is finally ready to bloom.
The Feb. 6 reopening of the California wine country–inspired dining concept inside Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa comes on the cusp of the restaurant’s 25th anniversary. In honor of the milestone year, Napa Rose celebrates with an updated space and an enhanced menu to accompany its extensive wine offerings.
The atmosphere is rooted in Northern California’s Arts and Crafts movement, presented through the lens of Walt Disney Imagineers like Katrina Mosher, the creative director of hotels. Mosher worked with the Disney team to shape the look of the “new Napa,” which features dark wood, earth tones in rich textures and the restaurant’s impressive bottle collection prominently on display.
A private dining room with some of the extensive bottle collection on display at Napa Rose at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa in Anaheim.
(Ron De Angelis/Disneyland Resort)
“I think our designers have done an amazing job of making what I would call ‘Modern Craftsman’ and keeping it very wine-focused,” Mosher said. “As you look around the restaurant, you will see nature-infused details throughout the space.”
Handmade tiles above the fireplace in the 64-seat bar and lounge area, for instance, were created in Pasadena with impressions of grapevines trimmed from the Golden Vine Winery in Disney California Adventure Park pressed directly into them.
The four-course tasting menu, served in the main dining room and on the expanded outdoor terrace, continues the restaurant’s long tradition of elevated cuisine that celebrates the bounty of California’s wine country.
Chef Andrew Sutton, who opened the restaurant 25 years ago, remains at the helm as Disneyland Resort’s culinary director of signature dining while Napa Rose executive chef, Clint Chin handles the kitchen’s day-to-day operations.
“We’re working at the strongest level we ever have,” Sutton said.
There are multiple options for each course and the menu leans on seasonality as much as technique. A first course option of sautéed seasonal fish (hiramasa on a recent night) is accompanied by avocado relish and puffs of lemon foam. A third course option of house-made sorpresine pasta features a rich broth made from California Dungeness crab and butter of Pacific uni. For dessert, a Valrhona chocolate bar is filled with hazelnut praline and caramel, sweet and crackly, like the childhood treat its name evokes.
Handmade sopresine pasta with Dungeness crab and uni butter at Napa Rose
(Ron DeAngelis / Disneyland Resort)
There is an optional wine pairing to go along with the menu, or guests can choose from a wine list of nearly 13,000 bottles across approximately 1,500 labels, which, as would be expected, favors California vintners, but with important global wine regions represented too. The cocktail program is reimagined as a California road trip, with each signature beverage named for a beloved spot in the Golden State, for example the tequila-based “Coronado Breeze” or the spirit-forward “Cannery Row.”
While the staff’s intention is to create a sophisticated, elevated experience, the restaurant also acknowledges it might be a guest’s first experience in fine dining.
“This is a beautiful restaurant, this is a fine dining restaurant, but Disney welcomes everyone, right? We wanted to make sure that we have something for everyone, ” said Nicholas Hockman, general manger of Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa.
Napa Rose takes on the challenge of being accessible enough for the casual diner but impressive enough for the more worldly guests.
Cocktails at Napa Rose at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa in Anaheim.
(Ron De Angelis/Disneyland Resort)
They achieve this through warm, friendly service and a variety of ways to indulge in what the restaurant has to offer. In the bar and lounge area, an à la carte menu is available that features bites like Hawaiian ahi tuna carpaccio or warm rosemary olive focaccia. There’s also a caviar menu featuring imported Golden Imperial Osetra Caviar. A vegan tasting menu is offered in the maining dining room, with plant-based interpretations of the regular menu’s dishes. Even children get their own three-course tasting menu that includes options like grilled cheese with tomato soup and applewood smoked ham, served with mashed potatoes, apple sauce and tempura green beans.
“No matter who you are, what type of experience you want to have at the Disneyland Resort, we have something here for you,” Hockman said.
The reimagined Napa Rose joins a growing collection of elevated dining options at Disney’s Anaheim property. Earlier this year, Disneyland Resort announced the addition of yet another concept from a celebrity chef joining the Downtown Disney District. “Gordon Ramsay at the Carnaby,” opening above Earl of Sandwich, makes Ramsay the third Michelin-starred chef to bring culinary clout to Disney. The other two are chef Joe Isidori of the forthcoming Arthur & Sons Steak and Bourbon and Pearl’s Roadside BBQ and chef Carlos Gaytán of Paseo, Centrico and Tiendita.
The bar at Napa Rose at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa in Anaheim.
(Ron De Angelis/Disneyland Resort)
The refocusing at Napa Rose reflects Disneyland Resort’s increasing investment in its food and beverage offerings. Hockman said its also reflects Disney’s history and heritage.
“Walt Disney changed the manner in which we consume entertainment, the way that we spend time with our families, the way that we celebrate, and this case, the way we celebrate while breaking bread,” Hockman said. “That’s what this restaurant represents.”
Napa Rose is located at 1600 Disneyland Drive, at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa Anaheim. The restaurant officially reopened on Friday. Reservations can be made at disneyland.disney.go.com