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I ate everything at Cafe Daisy in Disneyland’s Toontown — Here are my favorites from best to worst

March 22, 2023

The new Cafe Daisy at Disneyland walks a culinary tightrope by offering a few fun and tasty theme park meals for adults while delivering a menu geared to fussy kids looking to fuel up fast so they can get back to playing in the refreshed Mickey’s Toontown.

The Cafe Daisy quick service restaurant opened this week in Mickey’s Toontown after a yearlong reimagination of the family-friendly themed land geared toward the grade-school crowd and their parents.

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If you approach Cafe Daisy like you would a McDonald’s Happy Meal or a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party, then you’ll probably leave satisfied and satiated. But if you start comparing Cafe Daisy to most other restaurants at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, then you probably won’t be happy.

Cafe Daisy is closer to Alien Pizza Planet or Galactic Grill than it is to Bengal Barbecue or Flo’s V8 Cafe. If your taste runs more toward Carthay Circle or Napa Rose, then you should run for the exit of Toontown and eat someplace else.

Ranking my favorites on a menu mostly geared for kids is always tough. I tried to balance the needs of the 3- to-9-year-old crowd and their parents with my own tastes and expectations. Here are my favorites at Cafe Daisy ranked from best to worst.

Toontown ‘Tater Chips during a preview of Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

1) Toontown ‘Tater Chips

House-made Potato Chips with Chili-Cheese Sauce – $7.49

It feels a little strange to say my favorite thing to eat at Cafe Daisy are the potato chips — but it’s true.

They are totally addictive and truly delicious. I could have eaten them all day.

The chili cheese sauce is little more than movie theater nacho cheese with canned chili mixed together — but it went well with nearly everything on the menu.

The serving size is relatively small so you will want to get your own chips and dip. The chips minus the chili cheese sauce are served with a few other items on the Cafe Daisy menu. If you run out, just grab one off your kid’s plate when they’re not looking or they lose interest.

Daisy’s Dressed-Up Dog during a preview of Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

2) Daisy’s Dressed-Up Dog

All-beef Foot-long with Chili-Cheese Sauce, Mac ‘n Cheese and Parmesan Potato Crispies with House-made Chips – $14.49

The “dressed up” part of the Daisy Dog was the best bite I had in Toontown. Disneyland chefs piled all the best parts of the Cafe Daisy menu onto the hot dog for a crunchy, savory, cheesy bite of junk food deliciousness.

The foot-long hot dog in a traditional-sized bun was comically hilarious to look at and thematically appropriate for the cartoon land — but I had to cut off the two ends of the dog so I could get to the business part of the meal in the middle. I didn’t want to eat a bunch of naked hot dog just to get to the good stuff.

The naked ends of the footlong dog didn’t go to waste — I dipped them in my leftover chili cheese sauce. Parents can also offer the uneaten ends to their picky eaters who only want the hot dog without the bun.

The Cafe Daisy hot dog is much better than anything you’d make at home on the stove. The quality of the dog was somewhere between Wienerschnitzel and what you’d get at a German deli.

Cafe Daisy sells a plain dog for $1.50 less, but why bother. Unless your kid is really hungry for a hot dog and nothing else.

Pepperoni Pizza Flop-Over and Cheesy Pizza Flop-Over during a preview of Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

3) Pepperoni Pizza Flop-Over

Pepperoni, Mozzarella, Provolone Cheese with Tomato Sauce – $10.49

I was really excited about the creative flop-over pizza and Disneyland’s culinary team didn’t disappoint.

I understand this is roughly equivalent to two slices of pizza folded in half — but I loved the concept and the presentation. Something about parmesan and oregano sprinkled on the bottom of the crust just called out to me.

The flop-over reminded me of standing in front of a New York City pizza joint eating a late night folded slice after a long day of sightseeing.

That folded presentation does make for a greasy experience — especially if it takes a while for your entire order to be assembled. Cafe Daisy has been fairly slammed the first few days of operation.

The parchment paper the flop-over is served in can get pretty greasy the longer it takes you to eat. Keep lots of napkins on hand and be careful not to drip the ruby red grease on your Mickey Mouse t-shirt.

Picnic Time Watermelon Lemonade (Disney)

4) Picnic Time Watermelon Lemonade

Minute Maid Lemonade Light with Watermelon Premium Syrup and Watermelon Gummies – $6.49

Lemonade is my go-to drink and I’m always looking for a way to plus-up the standard issue summer refresher.

A squirt or two of watermelon syrup added a little jolt of flavor to the drink and the cute watermelon gummies that sunk to the bottom were a nice finishing touch.

Estefani Arevalo takes picture of her daughter, Everlyn Arevalo, on a new picnic blanket in a grassy area at Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

5) Mac & Cheesy

$7.49 or toddler-size for $4.99 at Cafe Daisy

The run-of-the-mill mac ‘n cheese tastes better than you might expect. It’s creamy, cheesy and tasty.

I’m not sure I would order a side of it, but it was a surprisingly good accompaniment on the Daisy Dog.

Cafe Daisy lists the Mac & Cheesy under the Toddler Meal section of the menu and that seems about right. It’s perfect for the average preschooler’s palette. And you’ll enjoy eating your kid’s leftovers. It would be a shame to let it go to waste.

Daisy’s Goody-Goody Donuts during a preview of Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

6) Daisy’s Goody-Goody Donuts

House-made Mini-Donuts with Cinnamon Sugar – $5.99

The cinnamon sugar donuts are made fresh at Cafe Daisy on a Krispy Kreme-style conveyor belt. They’re cute and perfect for sharing — but nothing to get too excited about and hard to enthusiastically recommend.

It’s pretty much impossible not to do the math on the five tiny donuts that cost $6 and look like the leftovers at the bottom of an Entenmann’s bag you have sitting in your pantry.

Disneyland does sugar better than anyone — so don’t waste your time on these mini donuts. The cost-to-benefit ratio is too low even by Disneyland standards. There are plenty of other places in the park to get your sugar fix.

The Cafe Daisy iced tea and cold brew during a preview of Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

7) Sweet Tea or Cold Brew Coffee

Granny Goof’s Garden Sweet Tea with Honey-Mango Syrup and Mango flavor-filled spheres – $6.49Cold Brew Coffee Caramel Mudslide with Sea Salt-Carmel-Toffee Sauce topped with Whipped Cream – $6.29

I’m bundling these two together since it’s really a dealer’s choice whether you want your caffeine injection via iced tea or iced coffee.

Both of these are syrupy sweet if that’s what you’re looking for — which is not my cup of tea (or coffee).

The common problem with Disneyland iced drinks is the syrup gets stuck on the ice and you end up only getting a hint of the flavor until you reach the bottom of the drink when you hit all the syrup that has collected with the melted ice.

The Cafe Daisy menu also offers black coffee, decaf and nitro cold brew without the added flavors.

Minnie’s Mini Corn Dogs during a preview of Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

8) Minnie’s Mini Corn Dogs – $7.99

The kiddie corn dogs were a huge disappointment in large part because Disneyland makes one of the best corn dogs in the world.

It’s wildly unrealistic to think Disneyland would ever hand-dip thousands of little one-inch hot dogs every day — but that’s what I wanted. Sadly, I didn’t get anything close to the perfection served from the Little Red Wagon on Main Street USA.

Disneyland is a victim of its own success in this situation. These mini corn dogs are intended for kids, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be delicious.

This epicurean travesty is a crime against corn dogs and the perpetrator should be thrown in the Toontown Dog Pound Jail.

Spring Garden Wrap during a preview of Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

9) Spring Garden Wrap

Romaine and Quinoa Wrap with creamy Lemon Dressing and Toasted Pumpkin Seeds with House-made Chips $12.99

On a menu full of fun foods, the Spring Garden Wrap was a boring veto vote that seemed like an obligatory afterthought.

The Cafe Daisy garden wrap was like eating a bowl of crunchy lettuce and little else. It’s like Disney took all the best parts out of a salad. There just wasn’t much going on to recommend to anyone.

Disney has added a ton of meals in recent years without meat, poultry, seafood, shellfish or eggs. You can do much better at Disneyland if you’re looking for a veggie/vegan/allergy-friendly option.

Pepperoni Please Pizza during a preview of Mickey’s Toontown inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, March 18, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

10) Pepperoni Please Pizza

Pepperoni, Cheese and Tomato Sauce – $7.49

This cafeteria pizza tastes exactly like it looks: Bad.

This is on the menu simply for kids who refuse to eat anything.

I would never feed this to my kid — and thank goodness she has enough good taste and sense to never eat anything like it.

But if you know your kid’s appetite and you just want to enjoy your day at Disneyland without getting into a food fight, then this will do the trick.

There’s a cheese-only version of the softball-sized pizza for the finickiest eaters. The one saving grace of this kids meal: It comes with a Mandarin orange, applesauce and either bottled water or milk.

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Cafe Daisy knows its audience. The Toontown quick service eatery is the lowest common denominator for the 3- to 9-year-old demographic that knows what it wants and isn’t afraid to tell you. Fortunately, Disneyland has plenty of other better places to eat. Save your appetite and go someplace other than Toontown.

Orange County Register

News Details

I ate everything at Cafe Daisy in Disneyland’s Toontown — Here are my favorites from best to worst

1) Toontown ‘Tater Chips

2) Daisy’s Dressed-Up Dog

3) Pepperoni Pizza Flop-Over

4) Picnic Time Watermelon Lemonade

5) Mac & Cheesy

6) Daisy’s Goody-Goody Donuts

7) Sweet Tea or Cold Brew Coffee

8) Minnie’s Mini Corn Dogs – $7.99

9) Spring Garden Wrap

10) Pepperoni Please Pizza

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