Credit: DisneyDisneyland dining is back! Well, sort of.
Onsite dining has officially returned to Downtown Disney at the Disneyland Resort in Southern California as state restrictions have loosened amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Read More: CA Gov. Lifts Stay-at-Home Order, Impacting Disneyland Resort
California State officials announced on Monday that the stay-at-home orders and curfew throughout the state have lifted and pandemic-era restrictions will continue to be monitored on a county-by-county basis.
The Southern California stay-at-home order enacted by California Governor Gavin Newsom had caused the Disneyland Resort to ban onsite dining. As of this week, however, that order has been lifted, and the Downtown Disney District (including, by extension, Buena Vista Street inside Disney California Adventure) shall be allowed to welcome Guests to dine at several restaurants on property, as long as they adhere to the current guidelines in place. Only outdoor dining (not indoor dining) is allowed.
Related: Disneyland Cancels All Dining Reservations Due to New Restrictions
Per the Orange County Register‘s coverage:
The order had been in place in the San Francisco Bay Area, San Joaquin Valley and Southern California, covering the majority of the state’s counties. The change will allow businesses such as restaurants to resume outdoor operations in many areas, though local officials could choose to continue stricter rules. The state is also lifting a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew.
“Together, we changed our activities knowing our short-term sacrifices would lead to longer-term gains. COVID-19 is still here and still deadly, so our work is not over, but it’s important to recognize our collective actions saved lives and we are turning a critical corner,” Dr. Tomas Aragon, the state’s public health director, said in a statement.
Read More: CA Theme Parks, Tourism Pushed Back ‘a Full Decade’ Due to COVID-19
The City of Anaheim also Tweeted the following:
As of Monday morning, California’s regional stay home order is lifted, with Anaheim and Orange County returning to purple Tier 1 guidelines. See more at http://Anaheim.net/reopening.
As of Monday morning, California's regional stay home order is lifted, with Anaheim and Orange County returning to purple Tier 1 guidelines. See more at https://t.co/7mhv2Bmq2n. pic.twitter.com/h6uUBjPMQy
— City of Anaheim (@City_of_Anaheim) January 25, 2021
As a reminder, the stay-at-home order enacted by Gov. Newsom prevented Disneyland Resort from offering any onsite dining, as all restaurants in the regions under the stay-at-home order were limited to offering takeout or delivery only. Retail locations also had to limit capacity to 20%. Now, with Orange County in the purple (widespread) tier for COVID-19, capacity at Downtown Disney will still have to be limited, but dining will be allowed, as long as it is outdoor-only.
However, as soon as it was announced that dining could return to the City of Anaheim, there were plenty of Disneyland Resort fans who braced themselves for the availability of dining reservations to return to Carthay Circle in DCA, a restaurant that was highly popular during the brief time it had been operating at the reopened Buena Vista Street. That restaurant hasn’t reopened yet, but we’ll update our article with more information pertaining to Carthay Circle dining reservations as it becomes available.
Disneyland Resort also updated the official website to indicate that eating and drinking are no longer banned. Previously, the website displayed the following message:
Guests are not permitted to open or consume any food or beverage items on property, and food and beverage items must be taken to-go, for consumption off property only.
However, now the website no longer displays that message, as outdoor dining allowed in Orange County again. As of Tuesday, January 26, the top of the website displays this message:
The Downtown Disney District, including Buena Vista Street, is open with select retail and dining locations. Ongoing updates on additional restaurant and food and beverage location openings will be forthcoming. View Open Dining Locations.
The Downtown Disney webpage on the Disneyland Resort website also states:
The Downtown Disney District, including Buena Vista Street, is open with select retail and dining locations. Ongoing updates on additional restaurant and food and beverage location openings will be forthcoming.
We have implemented new health and safety measures based on guidance from health authorities, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and appropriate government agencies.
Related: End of Stay-at-Home Order Allows Disney Cast Members to Return to Work
Yesterday, Five Fires (@thecalibae) took to Instagram to share an update at Buena Vista Street. The signs that had been taken down when the stay-at-home order was enacted have now been put on display again in order to let Guests know that “face coverings must fully cover nose and mouth and be worn at all times except when actively eating or drinking while outside, stationary, and physically distanced.”
The day that the restrictions were lifted — Monday, January 25 — Downtown Disney Guests were allowed to eat food from locations that were previously open but only serving food to go (including Marceline’s Confectionery and Wetzel’s Pretzels). As long as they were stationary and not in the middle of a walkway, Guests were once again allowed to consume food and beverage on property. And now, as mentioned above, the Disneyland Resort official website indicates this, as well, with more updates to come. View open dining locations here.
Note that as dining returns to Disneyland Resort’s Downtown Disney District and Buena Vista Street, a number of health and safety restrictions are still in place. View the most up-to-date policies on the official website here.
Related: Amid CA Restrictions, Disneyland Locals Fly to Florida to Visit Disney World
Currently, the Southern California Disney theme park destination is showing its commitment to public health through a public service awareness campaign across Orange County and Los Angeles County. You can read more here.
As a reminder, Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park — as well as the hotels of the Disneyland Resort (Disneyland Hotel, Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel, and Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa) — are still temporarily closed amid the ongoing pandemic. Per the reopening guidelines for California theme parks, Disneyland and Disney California Adventure are not allowed to reopen until COVID-19 cases in Orange County significantly decrease.
Over in Florida, Walt Disney World Resort continues to operate amid the pandemic. Disney Springs reopened in May, followed by all four Disney World theme parks in mid-July.
Stay tuned to Inside the Magic for the latest news on Disney Parks operations.