After recruiting Michelin-level chefs to open new dining spots at the Downtown Disney District, Disneyland appears to be going after its own star with the return of its fine dining restaurant, Napa Rose.<\/p>\n
After being closed for renovations for\u00a0nearly a\u00a0year, the award-winning restaurant at Disney\u2019s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa reopened Feb. 6. The overhauled restaurant features a $188-per-person tasting menu in the dining room, which showcases an elegant vine-shaped chandelier, and an \u00e0 la carte menu at the bar. The chef\u2019s counter seating, which overlooks the bustling exhibition kitchen, returns with expanded seating for $250 per person.<\/p>\n
Part of the old lounge area has been converted into a private dining space.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis whole design I thought was really fun,\u201d Chef Andrew Sutton told the Business Journal. \u201cIt\u2019s almost like two restaurants.\u201d<\/p>\n
Disney and restaurant executives noted that the restaurant was due for a modern update.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe took the time to do this thoughtfully\u2014honoring the story of the space while allowing the restaurant to evolve into who we are today,\u201d said Sutton, who has\u00a0been with\u00a0Napa Rose since the Craftsman-themed hotel opened in 2001.<\/p>\n
Sutton is also the Disneyland Resort\u2019s culinary director of signature dining.<\/p>\n
He told the Business Journal at a media event on Feb. 3 that\u00a0almost the\u00a0entire Napa Rose menu had been updated,\u00a0save\u00a0a few\u00a0nods to fan-favorite dishes\u00a0such as the smiling tiger (now called the Laughing Tiger) and the mushroom\u00a0cappuccino.<\/p>\n
The latter serves as an amuse-bouche to start the lavish four-course tasting menu in the main dining room, where \u00e0 la carte ordering has been scrapped.<\/p>\n
Sutton said that offering a small bites \u00e0 la carte menu in the bar and lounge, and a separate prix fixe menu in the main dining room, allows his team to \u201cdivide and conquer.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also noted that he can offer more value with a set menu, especially at a time when proteins are more expensive.<\/p>\n
New dishes include the Colorado rack of roasted, boneless lamb with dried fig-orange gremolata and a sorpresine pasta with California crab broth and Pacific uni butter.<\/p>\n
Napa Rose is known for its wine program, which includes\u00a0more than 13,000 bottles from approximately 1,500 labels.\u00a0All these wines had been previously stored in a cellar downstairs.<\/p>\n
The hotel\u2019s general manager, Nicholas Hockman, said the renovation allowed Disney to showcase its collection, with 3,800 bottles from the cellar now on display in the dining room.<\/p>\n
Walt Disney Imagineer Katrina Mosher, who helped redesign Napa Rose, noted that the renovation was \u201ca passion project\u201d for the Imagineering team.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the things at the Grand (Californian) that we always try to do is push for better design for a modern-day audience,\u201d Mosher said during the event.<\/p>\n
Michelin at Downtown Disney<\/p>\n
GM Hockman hired Napa Rose\u2019s General Manager Jess Soman in 2023.<\/p>\n
With his background in Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star and Michelin three-star dining, Soman is said to \u201cinform the restaurant\u2019s polished and attentive service.\u201d<\/p>\n
Napa Rose only added a couple new cast members, Disney\u2019s term for employees, who previously worked at local places such as Nobu Newport Beach and Michelin-star restaurant Knife Pleat at South Coast Plaza.<\/p>\n
Disney executives told media guests during the preview event to pay attention to the level of service throughout the night.<\/p>\n
The shift comes during an overhaul of Downtown Disney\u2019s food and drink offerings also.<\/p>\n
In 2024, Disney and Patina Restaurant Group recruited Michelin-honored Chef Carlos Gayt\u00e1n to open three new Mexican cuisine restaurants at the shopping center.<\/p>\n
Currently under construction are a full-service steakhouse called Arthur & Sons Steak and Bourbon and a quick-service eatery known as Pearl\u2019s Roadside BBQ, both led by Michelin-honored Chef Joe Isidori.<\/p>\n
2026\u00a0also marks\u00a0the 25th\u00a0anniversary\u00a0of\u00a0the Grand Californian hotel, its restaurants,\u00a0the Downtown Disney\u00a0District\u00a0and Disney California Adventure Park.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the end of the day, Disney is about people, right? It\u2019s about the service that we provide. It\u2019s about the stories which we tell and the manner of which we tell it,\u201d Hockman said.<\/p>\n
More Theme Park Dining<\/p>\n
In Buena Park, Knott\u2019s Berry Farm is preparing to debut an all-new themed restaurant.
Knott\u2019s will replace the Johnny Rockets venue on the west side of the park with a new chicken and fries concept called Crafty\u2019s Kitchen, with the renovation scheduled to begin on April 15.<\/p>\n
\u201cCrafty\u2019s Kitchen will bring together Knott\u2019s culinary excellence featuring clever chicken dishes and boysenberry, of course, with a continuation of Crafty Coyote\u2019s story,\u201d Senior Vice President and West Coast General Manager Raffi Kaprelyan said in a statement.<\/p>\n
The restaurant, themed after the park character, will feature a self-service line where guests can choose from a variety of dishes, including wings, tenders, fries and boysenberry pie shakes.<\/p>\n
The update was revealed the day after FAT Brands, parent company of Johnny Rockets, Round Table Pizza and Fatburger, announced Jan. 16 that it had filed for bankruptcy protection (Nasdaq: FAT). At the time, the company said its portfolio of more than 2,200 locations was \u201cexpected to remain operating as usual during the chapter 11 process.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith its fun signage and spirited atmosphere, Crafty\u2019s Kitchen promises a flavorful, mischievous dining experience unlike any other in the park,\u201d Knott\u2019s Berry Farm said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After recruiting Michelin-level chefs to open new dining spots at the Downtown Disney District, Disneyland appears to be…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":180486,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[163,165,164],"class_list":["post-180485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-anaheim","tag-anaheim","tag-anaheim-headlines","tag-anaheim-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=180485"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180485\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/180486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=180485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=180485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=180485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}