plaza inn @ disneyland

anaheim, ca

website

visiting disneyland for derek's birthday - he elected not to wear the birthday pin, for fear that everyone saying "happy birthday" to him in an overly cheerful voice would get annoying. but he did elect to get fried chicken. we shared a plate (so as to save room for more disney snacks) - green beans were decent, the mashed potatoes were ridiculously buttery and delicious, and derek was very happy with the fried chicken - surprisingly moist and tender.

big thunder ranch barbecue @ disneyland

anaheim, ca

website

for derek and myself, a trip to disneyland is as much about the snacks as it is about the rides. and the cheerful disney music accompanying your every step. and the mental gymnastics of determining the optimal allocation of fast passes. but this past june was our first time visiting big thunder ranch barbecue. turns out, it's all-you-can-eat! if we had known that in advance, we would have prepared to be hungrier. sadly, we only had the stomachs for one extra bucket of ribs and chicken. meat was decent. beans and coleslaw were both very good. cornbread was completely tasteless. still, a pretty good option if you've managed to avoid snacking on corn, churros, frozen bananas, corn dogs, or popcorn throughout the day and can actually eat enough ribs and wings to justify the price.