Downtown
Disney is ‘downtown’ fun
By Sonya Smith
On-line Forty-Niner
Downtown
Disney offers good food, live music and
plenty of places to shop, but it comes at
a high price.
 The
“Downtown District” is an avenue lined with
shops, restaurants, the Grand Californian
hotel and a movie theater that opened two
years ago along with California Adventure.
The first thing to keep in mind when going
to eat at Downtown Disney is to make reservations
in advance. Rachel Rayes, a hostess at the
House of Blues said “on a Friday or Saturday
night after 6 p.m. the wait can range from
45 minutes to an hour and a half.”
To
make reservations, call the Disney reservation
line at (714) 300-7800. Parking is free
for the first three hours, can be validated
for another two hours at the movie theater
or restaurants and after that you are charged
$6 per hour.
With so many restaurants available, it is
hard to choose where to eat. Since all of
the restaurants offer a full bar as well
as indoor and outdoor seating, you can best
decide based on what kind of food and atmosphere
you are looking for.
ESPN Zone offers a lively atmosphere filled
with televisions, some of the booths even
feature a flat screen television on the
table. ESPN Zone also has an upstairs game
section that features virtual games, indoor
rock climbing and bowling.
Rainforest Café features indoor seating
that makes you feel like you’re in a jungle,
complete with thunderstorms every half hour.
Another restaurant that offers entertainment
is Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen that offers
live jazz music from Kenny Sara and the
Sound of New Orleans from 7 to11 p.m. on
Friday and Saturday nights.
The House of Blues also offers live music,
with bands such as 3 Doors Down, Bone thugs-n-harmony
and Something Corporate coming up in November
according to the House of Blues calendar.
These shows are available to all ages and
the tickets range from $15 to $30 each.
Another restaurant is Naples Ristorante
e Pizzeria that has Italian food along with
a broad selection of wines. If looking for
a romantic setting, try the outdoor patio
upstairs that offers a full view of Downtown
Disney.
The shopping offered at Downtown Disney
is different than what would normally be
at the mall, but expensive.
Some of the other stores are the Build a
Bear Workshop, where you can create your
own stuffed animal and Something Silver,
where you can find an assortment of silver
jewelry. These are both great places to
find a birthday or anniversary gift.
Downtown Disney impressed 25-year-old Jason
Jacobs and 22-year-old Daniel Barker. They
both took advantage of the $5 pizza and
soda deal at Naples Ristorante e Pizzeria
and caught a movie at AMC Theatres, but
they could only afford to window shop.
“I like the music and it is fun to just
walk around and check it out,” Jacobs said
of Downtown Disney.
Overall, Downtown Disney is a fun place
to go for a romantic date, but the prices
are high enough that it should be left for
special occasions.
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