FIRST LOOK and Review: Brunch at Disney California Adventure’s Lamplight Lounge!
We recently shared that Lamplight Lounge on Disney California Adventure Park’s Pixar Pier began taking reservations for an all-new brunch service. And this weekend saw the first brunch service in this eclectic spot! Let’s see how this fabulous restaurant is charming guests for brunch!
Lamplight Lounge
Lamplight Lounge’s Brunch Menu is created in the same artistic style as the table service restaurant’s lunch and dinner menus. In fact, the kids’ portion of the menu is called Budding Artists, a play on the animation theme. You can see on the menu below which items we chose to enjoy!
Brunch Menu at Lamplight Lounge
Click here to read about our experience when Lamplight Lounge opened last summer.
Lamplight Lounge is a self-proclaimed California gastro-pub, so we expected satisfying pub food with a fresh twist for brunch. We were not disappointed. In fact, from the first colorful drink to the last tasty bite, the restaurant delivered. It IS interesting to note, however, that many of the ingredients you’ll find on the lunch and dinner menus were also incorporated into brunch. So there’s an efficiency piece happening here when it comes to the restaurant options that means that if you don’t like what’s available for lunch or dinner, you probably won’t love brunch either.
First up: the Mimosa Flight. This quartet is four little glasses of fruity happiness!
Mimosa Flight
The flavors are (from left) Grapefruit and St. Germain, Orange Juice and Ginger, Watermelon, and Peach/Mango Puree and Creme de Peach. Each was delicious, but I really gravitated toward the Peach/Mango. Orange-Ginger and Watermelon were my least favorite; the ginger was just a little too prominent for me, and I’m not a huge watermelon fan. But overall, these are a really fun way to start brunch!
Mimosa Flight
Also fun: the Cinnamon Toast Cocktail. Cereal milk is totally a thing, and this is like cereal milk taken to the next level!
Cinnamon Toast Cocktail
The components include Stoli Vanilla Vodka, Frangelico, Rumchata, and Cinnamon Cereal-Infused Milk — but there’s also a bunch of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal mixed in there, too. It was super fun to drink, like sipping milk from the bottom of a cereal bowl, but with a buzz.
Cinnamon Toast Cocktail
I tried several dishes on the brunch menu, including three savory entrees. First up is a trendy food done gastro-pub style: New York Avocado Toast. Crisp, grilled Sourdough Bread forms the foundation for Avocado Mash, New York Steak, a Sunny-Side-Up Egg, Arugula Salad, Piquillo Butter Sauce, and Pickled Onions.
New York Avocado Toast
The Avocado Toast itself is a balance of distinctive, thoughtful ingredients. From the umami of the steak to the freshness of the arugula to the bite of the pickled onions and the richness of the egg, everything was in balance. As for the Avocado Mash? Kind of an afterthought, if you can believe it! The other, stronger flavors definitely edged it out.
New York Avocado Toast
The Brunch Burger is another multi-component dish that had me wondering if it might be too much of a good thing. But I’m happy to say this one, too, was thoughtfully designed.
Brunch Burger
The grilled burger is Lamplight’s custom blend, and it’s topped with American Cheese, one Egg-Up, Roasted Green Chile, Lettuce, and Paprika Aïoli. A Toasted Amish Bun wrangles the burger.
Brunch Burger
The burger was… fine. It was meaty and flavorful but not mind-blowing. The bright yellow American Cheese was great, as was the smoky Paprika Aioli. I also appreciated the roasted green chile, which added a very slight heat. Notice there’s also a golden-fried potato pancake under the chiles. That is not in the burger’s description, but it was easily my favorite part of the dish! Lamplight does potatoes VERY well, and this was no exception!! Super flavorful and delicious.
Brunch Burger
So this is a stack-of-napkins kind of burger, between the aioli and the runny egg yolk. Keep that in mind if you’re trying to keep your look on fleek (that means egg yolk-free, right?).
Brunch Burger
But here’s the absolute sleeper hit of the meal: the vegan Potato Flautas. These were sensational — literally a sensation. They consist of Plant-based Chorizo, Vegan Piquillo Crema, Serrano-Tomatillo Salsa, Arugula Salad, and Escabèche — but they are totally greater than the sum of their parts!
Potato Flautas
Between the Plant-Based Chorizo crumbles, the Piquillo Crema, the Escabeche, and the Serrano-Tomatillo Salsa, the Potato Flautas were super-spicy and delicious. That heat was a huge win for me — energizing and exciting to eat. And vegan! We love to see a vegan dish that’s creative and — even more importantly — really good.
Potato Flautas
I tried the only truly sweet brunch entree, too: Indulgent French Toast. And you’re definitely going to want to unleash your sweet tooth for this one — or share it with someone who loves sweet, too. You KNOW if you follow us that I love sweet — the more icing on a cupcake the better — but this one…there’s no way I could finish this alone. It was HUGE, and very monotonous in flavor. Sheer sugar power here, and not something I could do again unless I had something savory to break it up.
Indulgent French Toast
The French toast itself is Cinnamon-Brown Sugar Challah Bread — a bread of enriched dough that is already pretty indulgent. Irish Cream Whip, Maple Syrup, House-Made Almond Brittle, and Macerated Berries complete the dish.
Indulgent French Toast
The Almond Brittle is a key component here, adding the only real texture to the dish. I loved that — and maybe could’ve stood to have a second texture to contrast with the softer elements.
Indulgent French Toast
But it probably comes as no surprise that Irish Cream Whip is delicious! AND it’s SALTED! I loved the light sprinkling of coarse salt on top of this whip. It was honestly my favorite part of the dish.
Indulgent French Toast
But wait! I’m bringing you a bonus sweet addition to the meal! Because we were dining toward the end of the brunch service, I was able to order Donuts from the lunch/dinner menu! You’ve seen these before on DFB, but they’re still great. The presentation is great; the pillowy-soft donuts are in a box with red tissue paper. It’s like a gift box that’s also super convenient if you need to carry these out with you.
But I recommend eating them straight away because the consistency is light-as-air. And with the berry and chocolate sauces, it’s so indulgent! These are definitely worth asking for if you are brunching at Lamplight Lounge.
Donuts with Sauces
I think we can all agree that gift boxes should always come with sugary, pillowy donuts. And that Lamplight Lounge slayed the brunch game! All of the dishes were flavorful and thoughtful, with playful elements of color and taste that set this restaurant apart. If you can fit a California Adventure brunch into your Park schedule, I recommend trying Lamplight Lounge.
Brunch is served Saturdays and Sundays from 8:15AM — 12PM (lunch will start at 12:30PM). Note that Monday through Friday, there is no brunch service, and lunch begins at 11:30AM.
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Which brunch item would you dig into first? Let us know in the comments!
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