It’s a dining celebration! If you’re looking to get into the parade spirit after a delicious meal at Disneyland Park, then you’re in for a treat. Plaza Inn has a new dining package that offers reserved viewing of Mickey’s Soundsational Parade with the purchase of a midday meal. How does this dining package work and is it worth it? We’re here to tell you all about it.

Mickey’s Soundsational Parade Plaza Inn Dining Package

Guests can make a reservation for the Plaza Inn Dining Package between 1:30 PM to 4:00 PM. When you walk into the restaurant, you will check in with a Cast Member inside, to the left. Here you will choose your entree and pay for your meal, as well as receive a lanyard and Fast Pass for Mickey’s Soundsational Parade. The reserved viewing area will be available for the second show of the day if the parade is scheduled for two shows.

For the entree, adults can choose a pork chop with traditional BBQ sauce, penne pasta topped with marinara sauce and parmesan cheese, or apple salad with green apples, blue cheese, chopped walnuts, and dried cranberries tossed in a sweet apple vinaigrette. Each entrée comes with a fountain beverage or bottled water, a petit apple salad (excluding the apple salad entrée option), specialty mashed potatoes, a buttermilk biscuit, seasonal vegetables, and a slice of layered cake. For children, there is a chicken tenders plate with mashed potatoes, seasonal vegetables, their choice of applesauce or carrots, and a slice of cake, as well as small bottled water or low-fat milk.

The cost for the adult meal is $40 and the cost for the kid’s meal is $25. Annual Passholder discounts do apply. We chose the pork chop entree for our meal. So for $40 how did we feel about this meal? Let’s break it down into each item first.

Pork Chop With Traditional BBQ Sauce

We opted for the pork chop instead of the penne pasta and we weren’t disappointed. The portion size ended up being bigger than we expected and there was a decent amount of BBQ sauce on it, so we didn’t feel the need to ask for more. The meat was cooked well and it wasn’t too fatty, either. The BBQ was a little more sweet and tangy than traditional BBQ sauce, but we really liked how it paired with the pork. The only complaint is that the pork chop was served lukewarm. It would have been more enjoyable had this been served hotter.

Petit Apple Salad

The Cast Member serving the meal asked if we wanted the blue cheese, but we opted out of it. And honestly, we can’t see how it’s necessary, as this salad is delicious enough without it. The sweet apple vinaigrette didn’t have a strong apple taste, but that didn’t make it less enjoyable. The dried cranberries and the walnuts paired really well together and gave each bite of salad a more flavorful taste.

The apple salad entree is a bigger version of this. So based on this petite version, we recommend giving the full entree a try too.

Specialty Mashed Potatoes

As we checked in for our meal, the Cast Member politely informed us that the potatoes are supposed to be purple, so we didn’t need to be alarmed. We thought this was pretty funny and we wonder how many guests will be hesitant to give these a try.

Despite their unusual color, these mashed potatoes tasted pretty normal to us. Similar to the pork chop, they were served lukewarm and we would have preferred to eat them warmer than that. But they were thick, not at all runny, and the skins were mixed in. Overall, this isn’t a terrible side dish.

Buttermilk Biscuit

Again, another item that was not served warm. This biscuit is baked well enough. It’s crisp and flaky on the outside, but soft and chewy on the inside. But because it wasn’t served warm, it was a pretty average biscuit.

Seasonal Vegetables

Much like the petite apple salad, this side dish was a winner. Admittedly, we aren’t the biggest fans of corn; we think it’s a pretty boring vegetable. However, this couldn’t be less boring. The lima beans, tomatoes, and onion made the corn much more interesting to eat. And this was the side dish we found ourselves wanting to return to over and over for another bite. Plus, the colorfulness of this side dish reminds of the Mickey’s Soundsational Parade floats, so we thought this tied in really well with the theme of the Plaza Inn Dining Package.

Layered Cake

First off, there is no explanation of the flavors of this layer cake so we were a little frustrated trying to figure that out on our own, based on taste. From what we can tell, this cake is made of cream cheese frosting and fruit-flavored layers. There is a very thin layer of fruit between the orange cake layer and cream cheese filling, which added a freshness to each bite. Overall, we really loved this. It’s similar to the Celebration Cake at Plaza Inn for Get Your Ears On, except that it has cream cheese frosting instead of buttercream. We’re huge fans of cream cheese, so we actually liked this cake more because of that. It was moist and fresh, so we think this is a great dessert to end the meal.

When you’ve finished your meal and are ready to watch Mickey’s Soundsational Parade, you will find the necessary information on your Fast Pass. It will tell you where and when check-in is for the parade, as well as the time of the performance. Check-in will take place in front of Walt’s Statue on Main Street, U.S.A.

As far as the reserved parade viewing, benches and chairs are set up for guests along the Hub, just across from Plaza Inn. Guests will be able to get a perfect view of Mickey’s Soundsational Parade as it makes its way along Main Street, U.S.A.

There are some things that can be improved upon, like the warmth of the food, but overall, we think this experience is worth the cost. If a full, hearty meal is what you’re looking for at Disneyland, you can’t beat the Plaza Inn Dining Package. And if you’re a fan of Mickey’s Soundsational Parade, having a reserved viewing spot to watch the parade is a huge benefit. You can enjoy your meal in peace, knowing that you don’t have to stake out a spot for hours before it starts. That is a huge win in our book.