Disneyland quietly opens a new restaurant in the Disneyland Hotel
The Lounge at the Disneyland Hotel has a large bar and soft seating areas. For years, the space sat vacant, part of that never actually reopened. And then, without fanfare, The Lounge at the hosted its first guests Thursday. The space is so new that it doesn’t even have a listing on the Disneyland website yet, and you can’t find the menu online. It’s furnished with a collection of couches and armchairs and has a dozen or so seats at the bar. The drinks are classic cocktails — think martinis, Hemingway daiquiris and negronis — and the food is mostly bites designed for sharing. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Advertisement Article continues below this ad Caesar salad with salmon, alongside truffle fries, at The Lounge at the Disneyland Hotel. It’s a small area with a smaller menu, but it’s exactly the kind of place the Disneyland Hotel needs: somewhere to eat outside the parks that doesn’t require a reservation, that offers a quiet break from the sensory overload of the Disneyland Resort as a whole, and that serves easy, elevated food and timeless cocktails. Until The Lounge opened, the only dining options at the hotel were character dining, quick-service and tiki-style fare at , where the libations are tasty but tend toward the sugary. The space used to be , the bar outside Steakhouse 55 that served a scaled-back version of the fine dining steakhouse’s menu. Both places shuttered during the park’s pandemic closure — but although the parks and hotels reopened, . In the summer of 2021, Disney officials confirmed the steakhouse was permanently closed, much to the disappointment of guests who loved its breakfast offerings and dark, high-end dinner service geared toward adults. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I happened to be at the Disneyland Hotel on opening night to cover the launch of that day and luckily stumbled my way into a spot at the bar. When I arrived, the lounge had been open about an hour — ever — and it was very full. The Lounge at the Disneyland Hotel occupies the former lounge space of the now-closed Steakhouse 55. From the cocktail menu, I ordered an Aviation ($17) made with Hendrick’s gin, Luxardo maraschino, creme de violette and lemon, and then I perused the food menu. The offerings included chicken wings ($22) with house-pickled carrots and celery and Roquefort blue cheese; a four-cheese pizza ($21) and a charcuterie pizza ($24) with prosciutto, pepperoni, sausage and sugo di pomodoro; and a Wagyu cheeseburger ($26) with housemade spread and cheddar on brioche. I went with a classic Caesar salad ($20) with croissant croutons and added grilled salmon ($9), plus some truffle fries ($18) with fresh herbs and parmesan. A vodka martini with blue cheese truffle olives. Advertisement Article continues below this ad They might have been the most expensive fries I’ve ever had, but at the same time, I think the price reflects two things: First, they’re sized to share, and second, they will likely be the most popular menu item and take the place of larger orders people might otherwise make. The dish is priced to reflect opportunity cost. They’re also . Despite the price tag, I would (and will) order them again. The salad needed a little bit more love: It was just iceberg lettuce with a scattering of parmesan and grape tomatoes, with toasted slices of croissant on top and not much dressing. I really enjoyed the salmon, though, which was cooked perfectly and had a crispy salt-and-pepper crust. The lounge opens at 5 p.m. nightly and has live music. At that point, even more people had shown up, including a few friends — so I settled in with a vodka martini ($20) with Lillet Blanc and blue cheese truffle olives. I eventually ordered the only dessert on the menu, the molten chocolate cake ($15) with hot fudge, whipped cream, almonds and Luxardo cherries. Advertisement Article continues below this ad As we chatted, performers came out: a jazz singer and a pianist, who fit the upscale vibe nicely. But it was Disneyland, after all, and it made perfect sense that Minnie Mouse, Chip and Dale, Pluto, and Goofy all walked by every few minutes on their way to and from Goofy’s Kitchen from backstage. Molten chocolate cake with — of course — a Hidden Mickey. Now, the lounge has gotten a jewel-toned makeover, and it has fans of the former steakhouse daring to dream that something is in the works for the larger space. The footprint of the lounge is essentially the same, but the walls are deep teal, and the furniture is complementary blue-green shades with pops of gold. Over the sleek bar hang white, green and red bubble glass lighting fixtures. There’s no overt Disney theme, but it seems like the decor might make more sense once Disneyland reveals what’s going in the old Steakhouse 55 space. Advertisement Article continues below this ad — — — — Advertisement Article continues below this ad
Publish Date : 2023-10-03 11:00:00
Image and News Source : sfgate
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