A NEW restaurant is opening in Disneyland on September 7th — Tiana’s Palace! This spot is themed to Disney’s The Princess and the Frog movie, with a menu that’s inspired by the flavors of New Orleans cuisine.

We got to try out the all-new menu that’s available here, and we’re sharing our FULL REVIEW with you now! Will this spot be worth a visit once it opens? Which menu items are the BEST? Let’s find out!

Atmosphere

Tiana’s Palace is replacing the old French Market Restaurant, and Disney updated some of the decor to reflect the new theme. All of the updates were taken from the Disney Imagineers’ observations in New Orleans during their research trips, especially the black-and-white tiled checkered floor.

They also expanded the dining area with more patio seating and added a new Mobile Order waiting area under the Banyan tree. The waiting area is to the left-hand side of the Mobile Order window and is for guests who ordered their food ahead of time and are waiting to pick it up.

Disney said that the restaurant will be especially beautiful at night when all of the popcorn string lights are lit along with the “Tiana’s Palace” sign (which twinkles), the steamboat chimneys, and the big amber “T.”

Inside the restaurant, you can find Easter eggs that nod to the Princess and the Frog movie, like these ceramic frog decorations.

You’ll be able to see the big bass drum from the “Firefly Five Plus Lou” band!

There’s a big blue skylight in the restaurant, along with more popcorn lights and lily-shaped sconces. More lily designs can be found in the skylight.

There will be a large mural inside as well, which depicts the bayou from The Princess and the Frog. Look closely, and you’ll see Ray and Evangeline as stars!

In a nod to Tiana and Naveen’s journey as frogs, there are lilypad light fixtures around the dining room.

Music — particularly Jazz music — will be a big part of the atmosphere. Disney musicians put together a score for the restaurant that’s made up of Jazz pieces from the 1920s (when The Princess and the Frog story takes place). Their goal was to make the dining area feel authentic and also not overwhelm the space with too much noise.

Note that Tiana’s Palace is NOT a character dining location, but you might be able to find Tiana elsewhere in New Orleans Square.

Menu

Disney Imagineers did a ton of research to discover which menu items should be available at Tiana’s Palace. They traveled to New Orleans to learn more about the culture and cuisine and came back with a menu that reflected the unique blend of flavors found in that city.

John State (the culinary director of food and beverage at Disneyland) and Lindell Skinner (operations manager of food and beverage at New Orleans Square) worked together to create this menu. Lindell was born and raised in New Orleans! Some of the ingredients in these dishes are sourced straight from New Orleans.

Disney said that they’re encouraging guests to indulge in dessert first, and we’re not ones to say no to that, so let’s talk about the beignets! These are modeled after a lemon icebox pie, with a tart filling and lemon glaze. There will be an “action station” inside the restaurant where guests can watch the chefs fill the beignets.

There are a couple of different gumbo options available here. You can get the House Gumbo or opt for the 7 Greens Gumbo, which is a plant-based option. You can choose to add chicken and andouille sausage to the 7 Greens Gumbo if you want.

There’s a Cajun Spice Half Chicken on the menu, along with a Muffuletta Sandwich and a Beef Po-Boy. One more entrée is the Gulf Shrimp and Grits.

For sides, you can choose between buttermilk cornbread, baked macaroni and cheese, red beans & rice, coleslaw, cheesy grits, and plant-based heirloom rice.

There are three kids’ meal options: a Roasted Chicken Drumstick…

…a Toasted Ham & Cheese Sandwich…

…and Classic Baked Mac and Cheese. All come with a Cuties Mandarin orange and applesauce, plus the option of either water or milk.

If you’re looking to add more heat to your meal, there will be a condiment station with hot sauce options.

Disney said that new eats might come in the future, too, so we’ll be watching for updates all the time!

Let’s taste some food now!

Eats

We already mentioned that Disney wants us all to start with sweets at this restaurant, so of course we began our meal with a fan-favorite dessert: the BEIGNETS! The house-filled beignets here have a lemon ice box pie filling and are topped with a lemon glaze. These are GREAT. 

That glaze makes them taste like a classic glazed donut on the exterior. SO. GOOD.

They’re a great combination of tart and sweet, and the filling is super smooth. They’re not greasy at all. We thought they were fresh and delicious, and we can’t wait to have them again! Beignets will be the only dessert offered at Tiana’s Palace (for now).

OK, on to the savory. We tried the 7 Greens Gumbo, which is plant-based and made with white beans, okra, yams, sweet potatoes, and heirloom rice.

This is a nod to the gumbo z’herbes dish that you can find in New Orleans, which is traditionally served the Thursday before the Easter holiday. We thought it was really good — a total comfort food. The vegetables are fresh and crunchy (not mushy), and it’s a very hearty meal with all the veggies and rice. It’s not very spicy at all, and it was well seasoned. We really couldn’t tell it was plant-based.

You can also get it with chicken and andouille sausage for some added protein and spice (although, of course, it wouldn’t be plant-based with those additions).

The other gumbo option is the House Gumbo, which is made with braised chicken, andouille sausage, and heirloom rice. The stock used in this dish is house-made (and is different from the stock used in the 7 Greens Gumbo). The gumbo also has okra, which isn’t generally used to make gumbo, but Disney chefs wanted to add an ingredient that wasn’t super popular in order to introduce guests to new flavors they might not have experienced before.

Unlike the plant-based gumbo, we thought the House Gumbo was SPICY! It had tons of great, savory flavor. The chicken was moist and tender. We loved it, but you might want to skip this one if you’re not into spicy food.

The Muffuletta sandwich stacks mortadella, salami, rosemary ham, cheddar, provolone, and house-made olive relish on toasted New Orleans sesame seed bread. New Orleans culture and cuisine are made up of a diverse blend of different cultural influences, and this sandwich represents the influence of Italian flavors.

The chefs talked about how important the bread is in this sandwich. It’s coated with sesame seeds and is very light, which helps the ingredients inside stand out. The olive relish (which has at least 12 ingredients) adds another level of flavor.

The Beef Po-Boy has slow-cooked beef smothered in gravy and comes dressed with shredded lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise on New Orleans French bread (which is sourced from Louisiana). It was very important to the chefs to get this New Orleans classic right.

What really stood out to us about this dish was actually the pickles! Both sandwiches are served with house-made pickles, which we thought were ridiculously good.

The Po-Boy itself was great too! The beef was very tender, and the roll had a nice crunchy crust. The lettuce and tomato tasted fresh.

The sandwiches are both also served with a side of red beans and rice — a staple of New Orleans. We thought the red beans were a little spicy and had great flavor.

Next, we have the Gulf Shrimp and Grits. The shrimp are grilled and tossed in a creole sauce and then paired with cheesy grits. The creole sauce is made with bell peppers, garlic, tomatoes, hot sauce, and onions.

The grits are slow-cooked with chicken stock and cream and finished with cheddar and butter. These were SO creamy and flavorful, and the texture was nice.

We also tried out some of the sides! The Buttermilk Cornbread was incredible.

It was moist but a little crispy on the outside and just the right balance of sweet and savory.

Other sides (besides the cornbread and red beans & rice) include baked macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, cheesy grits, and plant-based heirloom rice.

Drinks

There’s a specialty coffee drink available here: the Joffrey’s Coffee Chicory Cold Brew, which is topped with sweet cream.

Disney Imagineers found that chicory is often used to flavor coffee in New Orleans. The combination was made famous by Café Du Monde, a very famous cafe in New Orleans.

We thought this was pretty good! It has a strong but not overpowering flavor that’s slightly sweet, which comes from the cane syrup (which is sourced from New Orleans). It’s a woody, earthy taste with a hint of chocolate.

Specialty Souvenirs

A Ray Firefly Glow Cube is available with the purchase of a beverage.

You can also get a Lily Pad and Lotus Cup Ceramic Set, which comes with a house-filled beignet.

Overall

We really enjoyed our meal at Tiana’s Palace Restaurant. Disney has clearly done a lot of research to make the menu as authentic as possible, and it shows in the flavorful dishes.

Some of the highlights for us were the beignet (that was amazing), the spicy House Gumbo, the cornbread, and those incredible house-made pickles. Is it weird to highlight the pickles when they’re really just an extra on the side? We don’t really care — they were fantastic.

We think the atmosphere looks really fun, and we love all the nods to The Princess and the Frog.

Nosh or Not

Head straight to Tiana’s Palace when it opens on September 7th if you…

• Want a quick, tasty, unique meal. This is NOT your average theme park food! We loved the variety of flavors, and we thought everything was well-seasoned and delicious.
• Are a big fan of Disney’s The Princess and the Frog movie. Disney said that there will be plenty of nods to the movie, including in the music and the decor. It’ll be like you’re dining at Tiana’s restaurant that she opens at the end of the film!
• Think Disney can’t do spicy food right. We know it’s hard to believe that there’s actually spicy food in a theme park, but that House Gumbo was not messing around! If you’re craving some spice, we highly recommend that.

You may want to skip this new option if you…

• Are looking for a quiet, relaxed, sit-down meal. The atmosphere of this restaurant seems to be more lively and energetic, and because it’s a counter service restaurant, you’ll need to get your own food and seat yourself.
• Aren’t a fan of New Orleans food. We thought the chefs did a great job of bringing authentic New Orleans flavors to this menu, but if you’re not a fan of gumbo, shrimp & grits, or po-boys, there aren’t really many other options available for you here.
• Are interested in classic theme park food. Looking for corn dogs, funnel cake fries, and brightly-colored slushies? You can get those in Disneyland, just not here!

Stay tuned to DFB for more updates on all the latest Disney news!

Click here to learn more about Tiana’s Palace Restaurant.

Which of the new dishes would you want to try? Let us know in the comments!

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. Today, we were invited by Disney World to attend their media preview of Tiana’s Palace Restaurant. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ

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