With the almost endless amount of options for restaurants in Anaheim, it can feel like an overwhelming task to find the right restaurant to satisfy your cravings. But have no fear! To make your life a little bit easier, our local guide has handpicked the 16 best restaurants that Anaheim has to offer.
The 16 Best Anaheim Restaurants:
Craft By Smoke & Fire
Craft By Smoke & Fire is one of the best rated restaurants in Anaheim for good reason. Their barbecue is absolutely phenomenal and is second to none.
Every single item here is beyond delicious and I’ve never had anything that I disliked and believe me, I tried everything.
If its your first time, you got to get some of that perfectly cooked brisket, which is tender and just pulls apart so easily or spring for the the smoked pastrami, which is just oozing with tons of flavor, or ever better, get both!
Or…. you could opt for maximum decadence and get the most beastly sandwich ever, The Mac Rib. It’s a monster of a sandwich and consists of two smash patties, brisket, a dinosaur-sized short rib, cheese, onions, and is all held together by 3 buttery Texas toasts.
Wear your loosing fitting pants when you eat here, you are going to walk out a few pounds heavier.
195 W Center Street Promenade, Anaheim, CA 92805
Trader Sams
Located in the Downtown Disney, Trader Sams is no doubt one of the best bar and restaurants in Anaheim and definitely one of the most fun.
At it heart, Trader Sams is a tiki bar that benefits from having that Disney magic and charm imbued throughout its entire space. It is immaculately decorated with over 1,600 items, including memorabilia from Disney rides and movies.
The drinks are the star of the show and you can order a variety of craft drinks that come in neat little themed cups. My go to drinks is the Zombie, which consists of three types of rum, tropical juices, falernum, and cinnamon. The most fun part of the experience is when certain drinks are ordered and the bar comes alive with animatronics, lighting, sound effects and the patrons are given a mini show.
The food menu is Asian inspired and you can find a vast selection of items including, poke, ramen, Hawaiian cheeseburgers, and much more.
It is a super popular restaurant and bar, so book a reservation in advance and chose inside seating because you don’t want to miss the storm that passes through the bar!
1150 Magic Way, Anaheim, CA 92802
Roscoe’s House of Chicken & Waffles
Roscoe’s needs no introduction. It’s reputation precedes itself. And for those who have never been and are harboring this perception that Roscoe’s is all bark and no bite, let me reassure you that Roscoe absolutely delivers when it comes to serving delicious food.
The chicken and waffles is not some gimmick. It works and the marriage of flavors is oddly beautiful.
Get some fried chicken thighs, a waffle or two, slather the waffle in butter and syrup, get some cornbread and some greens and you have yourself a meal worthy of being some prisoner’s last meal.
If you’re looking for a killer meal from one of the best Anaheim restaurants, look no further than Roscoe’s.
2110 S Harbor Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92802
Nguyen’s Kitchen
Nguyen’s Kitchen is easily one of the best Anaheim restaurants. When you come to Nguyen’s Kitchen, just don’t expect traditional Vientamese fare. They take the essence of Vietnamese food and put a modern spin on it.
On the menu you will find things like bulgogi short-rib banh mi, grilled pork noodles and jumbo tiger shrimp rice bowls.
At first I was a bit weary of the moniker ‘modern Vietnamese’, but one bite of the grilled pork noodles instantly made me see the light. Everything here is great and they just know how to put a great deal of flavor into everything they cook.
445 S Main St. #B Orange, CA 92868
Pour Vida Tortillas & Taps
Pour Vida is the relatively new kid on the block and has already establised itself as one of the best restaurants in Anaheim.
Pour Vida is not your typical taco shop and that is most apparent when you you walk through its doors and notice the abundant use of bright colors and neon lights.
It becomes even more apparent when you take a look at the menu and notice things like an In-N-Out inspired taco, vanilla bean braised short rib tacos, concha breakfast sandwich and meat and cheese ‘smashies’.
For all its bright lights and novelty, Pour Vida delivers on all fronts. The food is fantastic and has tons of flavor. They have a huge selection of refreshing drinks, including craft cocktails, beer and wine and the desserts are out of this world. Oh, and if you were wondering, the burger taco is amazing! Order two, trust us.
215 S Anaheim Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92805
BrewBerry Cafe
For the best breakfast and brunch in Anaheim, look no further than BrewBerry Cafe.
Situated right next to Disneyland and within a 12 minute walk, BrewBerry Cafe is the perfect spot to load up on food before you head to the happiest place on Earth and spend a grueling 12 hour day waiting in line and bouncing from attraction to attraction.
On their menu you will find a vast selection of items, including breakfast sandwiches, omelettes, waffles, pancakes, crepes, sandwiches, salads, smoothies and much more. BrewBerry Cafe has something for everybody and even the pickiest of eaters.
1770 S Harbor Blvd Suite 120, Anaheim, CA 92802
PokiNometry
With poke’s popularity exploding over the last few years, its no surprise that you can find a poke restaurant on every corner of every neighborhood.
However there are a few poke places that locals know serve the freshest tasting fish, while providing a damn good value for your money. PokiNometry is one of those places and locals will readily back up that statement.
The fish is fresh, the options are numerous and you can walk out of there feeling happy and full and not drained of your money.
184 S Harbor Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92805
Naples Ristorante E Bar
Naples Ristorante E Bar is one of the best restaurants in Downtown Disney and is a excellent choice for anyone visiting Disneyland or California Adventure and want some really good Italian food for lunch or dinner.
The menu has an excellent array of appetizers, salads, pizzas, and specialty pastas. My favorite things to order are the calamari, spaghetti and meatballs, lasagna, any of their pizzas and of course dessert. Specifically the pistachio gelatto is heavenly.
They have a great outdoor patio, with tons of room and a super cool bar where you can grab a drink or two before you get seated.
Downtown Disney, 1550 Disneyland Dr, Anaheim, CA 92802
Cortina’s Italian Market
When you ask locals who serves up the best Italian sandwiches in Anaheim, there will be no hesitation or stutter when ‘Cortina’s’ comes out of their mouth. The sandwiches here are head and shoulders above the competition and one bite of their prosciutto or meatball sub and you will instantly see the light.
Oh and they serve pizza too! Really, really good pizza! Some of the best in Orange County in fact. Their margherita pizza will turn any frown upside down and could honestly be used as a substitute for Prozac.
And you better save some room for dessert because you must order the cannoli. It’s so good, it will change your damn life!
Oh and ot only can you dine on some of the best Italian food in Anaheim, but you can also purchase a bunch of authentic Italian groceries from the marketplace next to the restaurant! What’s not to love about this place?!
Cortina’s easily gets one of the top spots on our list of the best Anaheim restaurants.
2175 W Orange Ave Anaheim, CA 92804
The Ranch Restaurant
The Ranch is one of the best rated restaurants in Anaheim for good reason. The food and the service is phenomenal!
At its core, The Ranch is a steakhouse that serves up the finest cuts of meat. Whether you are in the mood for steak, porkchops or Chilean seabass, The Ranch has you covered!
And if you can muster some energy after your meal, they have a saloon next door where you can drink it up and dance the night away to some live country music.
1025 E Ball Rd Anaheim, CA 92805
Tacos Los Cholos
Tacos Los Cholos is one of the best places to eat in Anaheim. It started as a popup in the parking lot of a seafood restaurant with their signature tacos al carbon. The success of the popup led to two wildly popular brick and mortar restaurants, that have been serving some of the best tacos in their respective neighborhoods.
At Tacos Los Cholos, a large mesquite grill is the centerpiece of the kitchen with beef ribs, costilla, arrachera and ribeye steaks smoldering on the grill. All of which make their way onto corn tortillas with garnishes of onion and cilantro.
When ordering, there are three tiers of tacos; regular, premium and prime. The prime options offers filet mignon or ribeye, while the premium options offers the choice of costilla, arrachera and cecina.
You can’t go wrong with any of the choices, they are all damn tasty, but definitely spring for a costilla taco. The meat from the costilla comes off a beef rib and is just so tender and full of flavor.
821 S State College Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92806
Goofy’s Kitchen
Goofy’s Kitchen is the best restaurants for kids in Anaheim.
Located inside the Disneyland Hotel, Goofy’s kitchen is open to everybody, guest and non-guest of the hotel.
It’s a buffet with tons of great food, including favorites from Mexican, Italian, Asian and American cuisine and it has a carving station for the meat lovers.
The best part of the dining experience is that on any given night you will see Goofy, Mickey, Minnie, Donald and many more beloved Disney characters come out and interact with the diners.
There is a complimentary 3-hour parking at the Disneyland Hotel self-parking and $35 for each additional hour after. Reservations are highly recommended.
1150 Magic Way, Anaheim, CA 92802
J’s Korean Cuisine
J’s Korean is the spot when you are in the mood for some modern Korean comfort food.
On the menu you will find things like chicken wings, bibimbap, kimchi fries, soft tofu, chicken sandwiches, burritos, tacos, rice bowls, tteokbokki and much more. The whole menu is delicious and they just know how to cook mouth watering food.
My personal favorites are the Korean Chicken Sandwich and the Bibimbap Burrito.
Oh and they even have Taco Tuesdays where you can get great deals on their Korean tacos. Load up on those bulgogi-kimchi tacos!
The intention here is clear: This place is out to make you a regular.
114 W Commonwealth Ave Fullerton, CA 92832
Kaiba Japanese Ramen, Sushi & Grill
When you are in the mood for Japanese food and have a hard time deciding between ramen, sushi, rolls, teriyaki or udon, come to Kaiba and have it all!
Usually when a restaurant offers too many options I get wary that the quality of the food will be watered down, however you should put any fears aside when you visit Kaiba, because while they do many things, they do them each exceptionally well.
The ramen is excellent, the sushi is quite good, the rolls are huge and tasty. Everything here is just delicious and you will have a hard time finding anything that you dislike. There’s a reason why this is one of the best rated restaurants in Anaheim.
820 N Euclid St Anaheim, CA 92801
Tortilla Jo’s
If you are in the mood for some really tasty Mexican food while visiting Disneyland or California Adventure, exit the park and stroll through Downtown Disney and stop when you get to Tortilla Jo’s.
You have all the usual suspects here; guacamole tacos, burritos, nachos, enchiladas, tamales, and much much more.
If you need help in figuring out what to get, I got you covered!
Start with guacamole and chips and get a refreshing strawberry mint margarita to help you wash it down. When you are ready for your entree, order the 2-plate combination with the chile relleno and the enchiladas. Don’t get too full, because you want to save some room for dessert, specifically the deep fried ice cream. This is a recipe for a successful lunch or dinner.
If its not too cold, sit outside on the patio or the balconey. There is sweeping views of the promenade and each is equipped with their own bars.
Definitely Tortilla Jo’s on your list of Anaheim restaurants to eat at.
Downtown Disney, 1510 Disneyland Dr, Anaheim, CA 92802
The Kroft
You have your fill of food options when it comes to the Anaheim Packing House, but one restaurant that you definitely need to try when you go there is The Kroft.
They specialize in comfort food, specifically sandwiches and poutine….yes you read that right poutine! The national dish of Canada and a favorite among drunk college students who need something to soak up all the alcohol and help them sober up.
They have 7 varieties of poutine including: chicken tikka masala, loco moco, chicken katsu curry, braised beef, cheeseburger fries and my favorite; the country fried chicken, which includes chicken nuggets, bacon, country sausage gravy, cheese curds and green onions.
To help you wash everything down, they have craft beer from local Long Beach and Anaheim breweries, as well as wine.
Mariska is a recovering attorney who gave up her professional job to discover new perspectives of life while traveling in a 2009 Ford Transit.
She has been living the van life for 3 years and has not looked back since.
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