This past weekend, for my husband’s birthday, we decided to try one of the new Fantasmic! Dinner Dining Packages at Disneyland Park. We were all excited that Fantasmic! was back after more than a year, and we hadn’t eaten at the River Belle Terrace since it was converted to a sit-down restaurant, so I made reservations for Saturday night for three.
We arrived for dinner about 10 minutes early and were seated quickly. The dining package includes a choice of soup or salad, an entrée, baked beans, an additional side and dessert. The soup was a southern-style corn chowder topped with roasted corn relish. The salad was a mix of arugula, apples, gorgonzola, dried cranberries, candied pecans and a choice of ranch or apple vinaigrette dressing. My husband found the soup to be fairly bland but my salad was fresh, crisp and delicious.
For our entrées, we had a choice of BBQ Chicken, BBQ Tofu, Pork Spare Ribs, the Catch of the Day, Pulled Pork Sandwich, Brisket Sandwich or Fried Chicken Sandwich. Our side options were Tangy Coleslaw, Tater Bites, Potato Salad or Seasonal Vegetables. Both my husband and I ordered the ribs with seasonal vegetables. Our son opted for the fish and tater bites. None of us were impressed. The ribs lacked spice and were served on the cool side of room temperature. The baked beans tasted like they came out of a can and the Brussels Sprout (yes, I just got one, cut in half) was tasty but the carrots were not. My son’s fish had no flavor at all. My husband even remarked that it was like all of the food had been seasoned for hospital patients. What a bummer for his birthday dinner.
I had my fingers crossed that dessert would be better, but I noticed that several people at other tables had left their desserts half-eaten. Not a good sign. Both my husband and son ordered the Maleficent Dragon, which was a dome of dark chocolate with a caramel mousse inside and a blackberry ganache center sitting on a milk chocolate cookie base. It was certainly a good looking dessert, with a chocolate dragon head on top and candy flames. My husband ate about half of his but my son only took 2 bites. I ordered the seasonal caramel parfait. It was mostly caramel pudding with a couple of tiny pieces of pound cake inside. I did finish mine, mostly because the service size was tiny. It could have been described as a dessert shot.
Overall, if you haven’t already guessed, we were very unhappy with our meal. It definitely wasn’t up to usual Disney Dining Standards. The cost was $45.00 per adult (not including tax or tip). There is also a children’s menu for kids ages 3 to 9 for $25.00. Annual Passholder discounts are available.
The good news is that the seating for Fantasmic! was excellent. The section reserved for River Belle Terrace guests was at the very front, just right of center. The section opened at 8:00 PM for the 9:00 PM show. We arrived at 7:55 and there were already a couple dozen people lined up. We were seated in the second row. Not too shabby! Guests were asked to sit on the ground so I would recommend bringing a blanket or small cushion to sit on.
Fantasmic! recently re-opened with an updated show. New scenes, characters and technology are all very well-done and add to the experience of what was already a terrific attraction. That alone was worth the price of dinner, but next time I will opt for the dining package at the Blue Bayou instead.
