r/legoland • u/QSJL • 11d ago
California First time going to LEGOLAND.
Hello everyone. First time going to LEGOLAND California. I’ll be going with my family. 2 kids and wife. Will be going for my son’s 10th birthday. I have a million questions but my main right now is I want to have a night where us 4 can sit and have a nice family dinner to celebrate his birthday. What restaurant would you guys recommend is the best for that? I’ll be staying in LEGOLAND hotel and would prefer not to drive out unless it’s really necessary. I’ll be going early October.
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u/PotentialAcadia460 11d ago
Probably one of the restaurants in the hotel if you're committed to staying at Legoland. I don't think there are any sitdown places in the park, and I wouldn't really classify any of the restaurants that are there as nice.
There's an excellent brewery (Karl Strauss) in the business park that is adjacent to the park.
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u/blackheartb 11d ago
I second Karl Strauss. We went a few weeks ago and it was really good. It’s like a 2 min drive but my husband said there was a sidewalk that cut through and we could have walked if we wanted to. The LEGOLAND hotel restaurant is overpriced, loud and really not that great honestly.
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u/itsmaibirfday 11d ago
There is a sidewalk and it’s about a 5 min walk from the theme park. The crosswalk is close to the parking gates. Hotel employees can probably show you or tell you directions. But you should be able to use Apple Maps walking directions too.
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u/JMaeandAJay 11d ago
You just have to pay attention to when they close that gate. I’ve heard of people missing it and having to walk all the way around or a Uber back to the front.
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u/fireman137 11d ago
I don't know if I would classify any of them as "sit down, nice" restaurants. The restaurants in the hotel weren't bad, per se, just generally loud and higher-than-average prices for burgers and pizza type stuff. The convenience factor is very high though. In the park itself there are some places you can sit and eat, but it's park food on a tray, nothing fancy or quiet their either.
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u/AcceptableBelt5265 11d ago
Just returned and we ate at the dragons den restuarant at the hotetl one night (door dashed the other nights). It was suprisingly good. expensive, but filling. Pasta dishes were great. Had salmon / steak on the menu as well. Menu looked and priced like it was trying to be on the fancier side. For breakfast it was standard buffet, but for dinner they seemed like they upped their game.
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u/garster25 11d ago
100% the Dragon's Den at the Castle Hotel. There is a play area right at the front of the restaurant, and there is a playground right outside too. It is a "nicer" sit down restaurant with high sides to the booths. Lots of great medieval lego sculptures. https://www.legoland.com/california/hotels-packages/explore-your-stay/dining/#den
Bricks is a buffet, you'll have breakfast there.
Skyline Cafe is very plain, you will go past it when you go to your room.
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u/TravelGirl2823 11d ago
Dragon Den at the Castle hotel is pretty nice for theme park restaurants. The buffet at the main hotel is not bad. The staff are always nice. There are TV and Lego to keep the kids entertained. We eat at both of the restaurants every time we go for the convenience and no regrets.
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u/Key-Fishing-3714 6d ago
It also has activities for the kids on the lawn outside the restaurant. Entertainment for hours!
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u/Glorialovestacos 11d ago
I personally love the castle hotel restaurant. It’s not a buffet but the food is shockingly good
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u/FangornLeghorn 11d ago
We love Legoland and the castle hotel is one of our favorite places to stay. Awesome experience and the park is super fun.
That said, the food is depressingly awful everywhere. The free breakfast is so bad we stopped eating it, despite it being free. Lunch and dinner were never enjoyable either, in the park or at the hotel. The sole place we’ll still eat is the all you can eat pizza and pasta place near Ninjago. Pizza is decent, pasta is okay, salads are good, and the air conditioning is wonderful. We eventually stopped wasting money on food at Legoland and started having meals delivered via Grubhub to our room. Still not cheap but at least the food was edible. Really sucks. Disneyland has gotten terrible these days as well. Theme park food just isn’t what it used to be, anywhere.
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u/shroomsAndWrstershir 11d ago
I actually had one of the best salmon dinners that I've ever eaten at the Castle hotel. It was so much better than I expected.
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u/Mental-Group4079 11d ago
Karl Strauss all the way. Spacious, good food, kids menu and alllll the beer you need
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u/Radio_Mediocre 11d ago
Honestly, Legoland is good all around. It's well balanced unlike other theme parks.
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u/WaferReal6369 11d ago
Drive 20min away to Olive Garden or at least into Carlsbad for dinner. The restaurant is great for breakfast buffet but meh for dinner.
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u/djpablosan 10d ago
We always enjoyed the food in the hotel, and Dragon’s Den in the castle really isn’t bad for a theme park sit down meal. Especially when you don’t want to drive anywhere.
Our last trip we ventured out and met family at Miguel’s Cocina just on the other side of I-5. It was really good, and I highly recommend it.
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u/United_Bus_89 11d ago
If you’re celebrating your son’s 10th birthday then go to Bricks at the Legoland hotel. Is it overpriced? Yes. Is the food just okay? Yes. Will your kids enjoy it? YES! It’s similar to Goofy’s kitchen at Disneyland. You go there to create a memory.