LAMPLIGHT LOUNGE
ADDRESS: 1313 Disneyland Drive, Anaheim, CA 92802
WEBSITE: https://disneyland.disney.go.com/dining/disney-california-adventure/lamplight-lounge/
It was last month that my friends Nate, Ruby, and I decided to plan out a trip to Disney California Adventure in order to partake in their annual Food & Wine Festival. Even though we’d be eating an excessive amount of food throughout the entirety of the day, we were still looking to see if we’d be able to grab a reservation spot at one of the more popular restaurants within the California Adventure park, the Lamplight Lounge. Lucky for us, the night before our park visit, another party cancelled their reservation and we swooped in to grab it.
Our reservation time was at 5:50PM, and we ended up getting there a bit early, after a full day of walking around the park both eating and enjoying the various rides. They ended up being able to seat us early, and I have to say, we probably got lucky with our seating arrangements. We were on the outdoor patio area, with a completely unobstructed view towards the other side of the Pixar Pier, with the sun setting behind the Incredicoaster and the Mickey Ferris wheel. To top things off, the weather was just that right temperature where it was cooling off and you only needed a light jacket to be comfortable.
I’d heard a lot about how good the food was at the Lamplight Lounge, and their menu definitely reflected quite the variety of items to choose from. As to be expected with food inside the Disney parks, all of the entrées as well as most of the appetizers were priced over $20 for dinner. The one dish that I had heard multiple people talk about was the Lobster Nachos, which sounded quite fantastic with all of the different toppings of black beans, cheddar cheese sauce, pico de gallo, serrano chiles, and chipotle crema. But with all of the food that we had already eaten throughout the day, the three of us didn’t feel like we’d be able to finish it all had we ordered it.
We instead opted to share an appetizer and two entrées between the three of us, which definitely seemed manageable. For the appetizer, we went with Salmon Poke. On the entrée side, the Al Pastor Pork Chop and the Salmon PLT Sandwich were the picks. We thought that the portions would be a good amount to share, while at the same time us having enough room to be able to finish it all. (For context, I had already eaten about eight small plates of food during the course of the Food & Wine Festival prior to us sitting down at the Lamplight Lounge.)
At a place like the Disney parks, I don’t think that you can use your traditional meal times to gauge how busy or not busy that a place might be. I think that people are pretty much packing the restaurants throughout the day; although our reservation timeslot was lined up more with prime dinnertime, it was definitely jam-packed throughout the entire place. But with that being said, I thought the kitchen still did a good job with keeping on top of our order, with us receiving all of our food about 20 minutes after we sat down.
One thing that stood out for me was that the plating of the food seemed pretty nice, especially so for the Salmon Poke and the Al Pastor Pork Chop. The subtle light blue color of the plates worked well to contrast with the colors in the food, and that definitely checked the box visually. I decided to get started with some of the Salmon Poke, which was also served with some fried wonton chips for dipping. Ponzu-glazed salmon is mixed with edamame, pineapple, cucumber, and pickled radish, all on top of creamy avocado mousse and finished with seaweed salad, microgreens, furikake, and togarashi. The sweetness of the pineapple paired well with the salmon, and the freshness of the cucumber and pickled radish helped bring a brightness to each bite as well. It was certainly a nice way to get things started before moving on to the other heavier items in store.
Next up was the Salmon PLT, a spin on the more common BLT, but using pancetta instead of bacon. The sandwich was stacked high with a grilled salmon filet, the aforementioned pancetta, lettuce, and roasted tomato, finished with lemon-bacon aioli. The menu indicated that the sandwich was typically served on focaccia, but it looks like we got a standard hamburger bun instead. Even so, that didn’t take away from the sandwich, which had a strong salmon flavor that was complemented well with the lettuce and tomatoes. I didn’t get much lemon flavor from the aioli, but the smokiness from the pancetta was definitely present. Those fries were definitely solid as well, fried crisp on the outside and still soft on the inside.
Finally, it was time for some of the Al Pastor Pork Chop. The pork itself had a spot-on cook to it, just slightly pink in the middle and still really moist. The char from the outside of the pork chop had a sweet and smoky component to it, likely from its residual marinade while cooking. The pork chop rested on a Oaxaca cheese polenta, along with roasted red chili butter and green chili sauce, finished with pineapple relish and charred onions. Sweet, savory, spicy, and acidity were all showcased here, and it was probably my favorite of the three dishes.
When you’re coming down the spiral staircase into the main restaurant area, there is a display case at the bottom with rows of the classic yellow and blue ball with the red star on it, which became synonymous with Pixar. Well, I felt like that ball on my way out of the restaurant, trying to roll up the staircase with how full I ended up being. I could definitely see why this spot is one of the most popular dining locations while in California Adventure, with its great selection of food and drink, along with some spectacular views to take in on a nice day. Dining reservations at Disney open up 60 days in advance, and I’d say that this is one that should definitely be amongst the top contenders on your list if you’re planning a visit.
Let’s now take a look at the Lamplight Lounge Dish Spotlight. Asterisks (*) below mark my recommended dishes.
** Salmon Poke **
Ponzu-glazed salmon mixed with pineapple, cucumber, edamame, and pickled radish, sitting on creamy avocado mousse and topped with seaweed salad, microgreens, furikake, and togarashi.
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** Salmon PLT **
Grilled salmon filet with crispy pancetta, lettuce, roasted tomato, and lemon-bacon aioli, served on a bun and paired with French fries.
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** Al Pastor Pork Chop **
Grilled marinated bone-in pork chop, served on Oaxaca cheese polenta, roasted red chili butter, and green chili sauce, topped with pineapple relish and charred onions.
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** Lobster Nachos **
Lobster meat with black beans, aged Oaxaca cheddar sauce, shredded cheese blend, pico de gallo, sliced Serrano chiles, and chipotle crema.
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** Curried Cauliflower **
Roasted cauliflower tossed in curry powder, with pickled golden raisins, cilantro, and toasted pine nuts, served with harissa and tzatziki sauce.
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And finally, here are my rankings for Lamplight Lounge:
Food: 4.75 / 5
Quality, fresh ingredients that paired together really well, with a great mixture of flavor profiles. It can sometimes be tough to find good restaurant food while inside the parks, but I thought that the offerings here definitely stand out and make you want to come back again.
Atmosphere: 5 / 5
There really doesn’t seem to be a bad seat in the house, between the indoor lounge area, the bar, or right on the waterfront, with the spectacular views of the rest of Pixar Pier. Even if you have been walking around the park for most of the day, this area was a fantastic way to sit down and relax for a little bit.
Service: 4 / 5
I thought that our service ended up being pretty standard, with our waitress Zandra helping out to take our orders and also provide us drink refills throughout the meal.
Price: 4.5 / 5
The higher prices are to be expected if you’re dealing with food inside the Disney parks, but I thought that the quality of the ingredients and just how good the flavor combinations were meant that those higher price points were something I’d be happy to pay again.
Overall:
18.25 / 20
(91%)
Categories: California, Restaurants
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