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View Full Version : Good eats within walking distance of DL?



Twinsmom
10-20-2002, 03:38 PM
After reading "ALL" of the Uncooked Bacon thread, I would really like everyone's input on food choices within walking distance outside of the Disneyland property. I read about Mimi's, but having never been to the property, I have no idea what all is available and a SAFE distance to walk.

Thanks! ;)

MammaSilva
10-20-2002, 04:02 PM
I would say that the Cocoas on the corner across from Mimi's is as far that direction I would willingly walk, starting at the mimis'.. Millies, a good family style restaurant, we've eaten there a lot and always had decent service and quality food for the price, McDonalds, then you get to Moms Buffett (DO NOT EAT THERE ICK ICK ICK) tony Romas is right near the crosswalk, just past the crosswalk is Dennys and IHOP.......sorry I'm not more help....I'm sure others will share other options........there are a lot of choices....it's just a matter of how far you want/willing to walk for a meal

Matterhorn Fan
10-20-2002, 04:02 PM
There's an IHOP right across the street by the crosswalk. Same menu as other IHOPs, but at inflated prices. Same deal with the Denny's, which is just a short distance south from there.

There's a McDonald's if you walk north on Harbor.

I'm drawing a blank on what else is on that block on Harbor. I've only eaten at the IHOP and Denny's.

You might want to try out Whitewater in the Grand Californian Hotel. Their food's not bad, though it's not exceptional either.

HBTiggerFan
10-20-2002, 06:51 PM
We (MickeyD, BlueEeyore and myself) ate at the Mimis on Harbor last night and both the food and service was excellent. The prices are not inflated from other Mimis either.

crc9998
10-20-2002, 10:52 PM
It depends on what you consider walking distance!

If you don't mind a long walk...there is Carl's Jr on the other side of Orangewood, and a Red Robin, Outback Steakhouse, and Joes Crab Shack on the other side of Chapman.

hawaiimouse
10-21-2002, 01:22 AM
Originally posted by mammasilva
I would say that the Cocoas on the corner across from Mimi's is as far that direction I would willingly walk, starting at the mimis'..

Just wanted to let you know that the Coco's across from Mimi's has been torn down. There is another one on Katella and Harbor if I remember correctly. We usually go there at least once so we can get some pie. Yum!

Like I said on the other thread, Mimi's is my first choice for now, but Millie's (in front of the Fairfield Inn) food was also pretty good and they're both within a 5 - 10 minute walk from the DLR entrance.

tod
10-21-2002, 06:45 AM
Mimi's Cafe is excellent. Bistro-like chain, don't let the French-cute exterior fool you. Good value for the money. They have a website at http://www.mimiscafe.com if you want more information. They're all over the place.

Millie's is also quite good in the unpretentious-cofee-shop mold, friendly service and good food. Also open till midnight, which comes in handy when you're closing in on the witching hour and looking for a nosh.

The IHOP is okay but pricey-for-an-IHOP, and the service, we've found, is iffy, with one waitress who so enthusiastically shook a ketchup botle ("Let me show you how to do that") that she left litle red spatters all over the table, and my kids.

Has anybody tried the Subway and Chinese place on Katella and Harbor?

-T

Twinsmom
10-21-2002, 07:00 AM
Thanks for the great input on good eats outside of DL! This will really help us plan! Thanks also for the Mimis web site since we do not have those in Seattle, to my knowledge.

I am curious about the Outback and Joe's Crab Shack....I am not concerned really about walking 10 or 15 minutes, but the safeness of the area in which my family would be walking. Is the area surrounding DL fairly safe to walk around??? And, approximately how far do you think the walk would be from TGC?


;)

MammaSilva
10-21-2002, 07:49 AM
Twinsmom.....I always stay on Harbor (hotelwise) both for the convience of "hopping" back and forth between the parks/hotel for breaks whatevers and I have never felt "unsafe" ... I've gone over to sit in front of guest services as early as 4am and walked back as late as 1:30 am and while I always suggest people be aware of their surroundings and personal safety, the resort is NOT in an "bad neighborhood"

kennyhues
10-21-2002, 09:57 AM
I visit the resort area every year for the NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) convention. If you think the food value for money at the parks is bad, try the convention center some time. Good grief!

Around the corner from DLR, on Katella at Ball, next door to the Anabella Motel (a nice place to stay, BTW) is Tiffy's, a reasonably priced home cookin' kinda place with antique nickelodeons, an ice cream counter, candy shop, and whatnot.

Despite the higher prices at that Denny's on Harbor, any time I've visited it's been just a little better than most Denny's.

There's an Acapulco down on Harbor that isn't bad, too. A margarita can be a good thing after a day in the parks.

Mammasilva's right, the parks aren't in a bad neighborhood, but anybody could be forgiven for thinking the area is sketchy given the way it used to look. If you haven't been in a few years, you'll hardly recognize the surrounding area. They've really cleaned up the tackiness and blight. and improved street lighting. It feels safer and looks much better, even though it was never truly UNsafe.

ksejr1
10-21-2002, 10:16 AM
i really enjoy the spagetti station

Hojoanaheim
10-21-2002, 10:22 AM
There is an iPIX virtual tour of Mimi's cafe on the hojoanaheim.com website.

Gemini Cricket
10-21-2002, 10:31 AM
I like Millie's cornbread. :)

Pirate Bill
10-21-2002, 10:57 AM
With regards to the IHOP on Harbor... very poor quality food, and even poorer service.

One experience (and our last) went like this. We were there for breakfast. My wife ordered hard poached eggs (like hard boiled). Not rocket science here, but they came out closer to poached easy (very runny yolk). Since she can't eat eggs this way, we asked the server to try it again after waiting for over 5 minutes to get their attention, they acted annoyed that it was a problem, and hurried off.

By this time, I find a rather long and black hair in my eggs (scrambled). My hair is light brown (if I didn't have it shaved). I now have completely lost my appetite. Didn'y bother to ask the server about this one and decided to say something when we went up to pay.

Overall, some of the greasiest breakfast food I've ever eatten. And don't get me started on the pancakes. Almost burnt on one side and they looked like a 4 year old was using the spatula to scrape the things off the grill.

We go up to pay and he askes how everything was. We give him the readers digest version and he also looks annoyed that we had a bad experience. Clear that he's not going to do anything, he asks us if we want to talk to a manager. We say yes. A manager comes out, we tell him the story again and he actually asks us... "so what do you want me to do about it?" Not wanting to make a scene over a $15 tab, he is only willing to take 10% off. We accept and leave.

My recommendation. Stay away from IHOP. We were hungry not 30 minutes later because we didn't eat half the food. I'm not a big Denny's fan either, but I find the one just up the street to be a great place. Very prompt, friendly service and decent food.

One guy's experience. I'll never eat there again.

JeffG
10-21-2002, 11:18 AM
Originally posted by kennyhues
There's an Acapulco down on Harbor that isn't bad, too. A margarita can be a good thing after a day in the parks.


That Acapulco closed about a year or so ago. The Mimi's Cafe that has been discussed quite a bit on this thread is in the location where the Acapulco used to be.

-Jeff

adriennek
10-21-2002, 11:37 AM
Originally posted by Twinsmom
I am curious about the Outback and Joe's Crab Shack....I am not concerned really about walking 10 or 15 minutes, but the safeness of the area in which my family would be walking. Is the area surrounding DL fairly safe to walk around??? And, approximately how far do you think the walk would be from TGC?
;)

I don't know the exact locations of Outback and Joe's Crab Shack, but the poster said they're by Orangewood and Chapman.

I once walked from DL to the Target at Chapman. Granted, it was a warm day but that was not a convenient walk, IMO. It was at least a mile (I haven't clocked on a car, however.) A CM told us it was "walking distance" but we whole-heartedly agreed that day that it wasn't! LOL.

As far a safety, I would feel safe walking down Harbor because it's a pretty well-trafficked street. There are frequently pedestrians on it, often visiting DLR. And I am a person who often walks places around DL because I don't like having to empty and fold my stroller for shuttles and trams-- that one just seems a little far to me. (Keep in mind from Grand Californian, you'd have to walk across the esplanade to get to Harbor before hiking up Harbor to get to Chapman/Orangewood.

If you could find out what Anaheim Shuttle serves the hotels up Harbor, such as the Hyatt, that might be an alternative to get there.

I really like Mimi's. Yes, it's a chain, but I think the food's pretty good. They make great muffins.

Adrienne K

kennyhues
10-21-2002, 12:37 PM
Originally posted by JeffG
That Acapulco closed about a year or so ago. The Mimi's Cafe that has been discussed quite a bit on this thread is in the location where the Acapulco used to be.

-Jeff

How funny. Welcome to the changing face of the "Anaheim Resort Area." It was there last January.

Twinsmom
10-21-2002, 12:54 PM
Thank you all so much for the input! I have never been to DL so I feel much better prepared for food choices. I could definitely use the MARGARITA mentioned at this point to take care of the queesy stomach I had reading about IHOP, not to mention the uncooked bacon thread. BLAK!:eek:

If you ever want to visit Seattle, you have a friend here!

Thanks!

crc9998
10-21-2002, 12:57 PM
The Carl's Jr is at Orangewood and Harbor, and so is a Taco Bell.

The Joe's Crab Shack, Red Robin and Outback Steakhouse are down at Chapman and Harbor (across harbor from Target). It is a walk...but it all depends on what one considers a long walk or a short one! ;)

The walk to them, is straight down Harbor Blvd, and if you stay on the west side of Harbor...you will basically be walking in front of hotels mainly. The area, is not bad if you stay on Harbor, or maybe even in the residental area on the west side of Harbor...but I would stay away from the east side of Harbor, at Orangewood...not really bad, but it dpes tend to change some there. I just looked on Yahoo Map, and it looks like it would be about a 1 mile walk from Katella to Chapman, straight down harbor.

Pirate Bill
10-21-2002, 03:32 PM
This last weekend we ate at both the Red Robin and Outback. Both were excellent. Not too long of a wait either. If you drive, make sure that you expect a long time looking for parking there (anyone that's done this before knows what I mean). It's right by several hotels that, I'm sure, doesn't help the parking situation.

My suggestion is to immediately let someone out to get a spot in line while you search for a place to park. There is a Homewood Suites just off to the right (if the restauraunts are behind you). I've had to park there a couple of times (I know, it's bad but what can you do). That may be an option.

By the way, if you're going to the Outback, they accept call ahead reservations. It's perfect for those busy weekend nights. Here's their info:
(714) 663-1107
12007 Harbor Boulevard
Garden Grove, CA 92840

Hope that helps!!

HBTiggerFan
10-21-2002, 09:36 PM
Both Joes Crab Shack and Outback are located across the street from the Target AdrienneK refered to. It is a long walk.

I just posted a review for Mimis Cafe under the reviews section of MousePlanet :) yummmmmm

Bluestocking
10-23-2002, 10:41 AM
On a related note...

I'm staying at the Carousel Inn next month. Looking at the maps Medieval Times doesn't seem close enough to walk, does any one have any suggestions on how I could get there?

EandCDad
10-24-2002, 05:30 AM
Originally posted by Bluestocking
On a related note...

I'm staying at the Carousel Inn next month. Looking at the maps Medieval Times doesn't seem close enough to walk, does any one have any suggestions on how I could get there?

DO NOT attempt to walk this. It's only about a 15 minute drive (with no traffic) but it is pretty far (7 to 10 miles) and could take you through some very dicey neighborhoods. You might call the hotel and see if they are part of a shuttle system that goes there or knows where you can catch one. Also, try calling Medievel Times and say you are near Disneyland and need to get there and see what they suggest (probably not a unique request for them).

kikid
10-24-2002, 09:25 AM
My family and I always eat at GC. My kids really like Storyteller Cafe, it's not super cheap but average price with great service and very good food. We also like Rain Forest Cafe in DD.
I did eat at a restaurant in DCA, Boudin's, very good soup in a bread bowl the salads looked yummy!

roberts1398
10-24-2002, 09:45 AM
Twinsmom -- Joe's Crab Shack has a website, that will have the phone #. Call them and ask if they have suggestions of how to get there. I'm sure they get calls all the time. May well be on an A.R.T. shuttle route, and if so you can use that, with the limitations being you have to get a pass from the hotel and it only runs 1/2 hour after park closing time.

Also, call your hotel and see if they know. Many of the better hotels have concierge or bellmen who have info like this.

One last thing -- I heartiliy recommend dinner at Storytellers Cafe at GCH. I had a FABULOUS blackened prime rib dinner there last month -- so tender you could cut it with a fork. And it was only $17.99, including garlic mashed potatoes, green beans (delicious) and rolls. Can't remember if it included salad or not. But wonderful meal at a very reasonable price, especially for DLR!

Oh, wait... just remembered, I have a link to the regular transit bus route that runs up and down Harbor ... only $1/person ... here it is... (Needs Adobe Acrobat -- but it has the map and the time schedule ... stops outside DLR main entrance and also at Harbor and Orangethorpe)

http://www.octa.net/busrail/pdf/route043.pdf

Bluestocking -- Re: Medieval Times -- also, call your hotel to see if they offer a free shuttle. Many do. To put the location into perspective, it's very near Knotts.