The Best Family Restaurants In Anaheim, California For 2024

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If you are looking for the best family restaurants in Anaheim, you have come to the right place. Anaheim is home to plenty of fantastic kid-friendly restaurants and we have compiled a list of our favourites for you to choose from.

Whether you are looking for a casual dining experience or a more upscale option, we have something for everyone on this list.

Kid-Friendly Anaheim Restaurants

If you’re visiting Anaheim in the USA, there’s a good chance you might be there for a special reason – a visit to the Disneyland theme parks.

Or perhaps it’s sport that takes your fancy, and you’re looking to catch a game or two. The Anaheim Mighty Ducks perhaps?

Regardless of your reasons for visiting Anaheim, you will be happy to know there are so many great options for dining out!

Anaheim has an abundance of restaurants, fast food and diners to suit every taste and budget. In fact, you may even have trouble narrowing it down because there are so many options and cuisines to try.

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The Pizza Press

Most kids love pizza! It’s one of the easiest meals to suit a family and you can usually find pizza toppings to suit everyone’s taste.

The Pizza Press was just around the corner from our accommodation and one of the highest-rated restaurants in the area. We had to check it out!

They have a fun news-press theme with decor & pizza names to match, like ‘The Chronicle’ and ‘ The Tribune’, plus the added bonus of craft beers to keep the dads happy!

But the coolest part was the fact the pizzas were prepared right there in front of you, made to order… and you can even ‘publish’ your own pizza! Perfect for the fussy diners! And fun for the kids to watch.

The pizzas were great. You can dine in or get your pizzas to go and overall they had a quick turnaround, although it was quite busy when we went.

Notable – Cheap eats. You can create your own pizza or salad, all made right in front of you.

Location: 1700 S. Harbor Blvd, Anaheim (Several other locations in the USA also).

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers

If you’re looking for a great burger, with plenty of options, which is also kid-friendly, Red Robin is a great choice!

We did not have a rental car when we were in Anaheim, so it was quite a walk from where we were staying, but thankfully it was worth it as it was one of the best burgers of our whole trip (the only strong competitor was from Yard House next to Staples Stadium back in LA).

Red Robin has a choice of lots of unique burger toppings, plus the favourites and they are huge!

But there is much more than burgers on the menu including a fantastic kids menu that comes with bottomless sides and some healthy options too. Love this!

Bottomless soft drink is also included and as much as I said I wouldn’t need more than one of the giant Cokes, I went for the refill, just because I could!

Notable – Kids menu, colour-in kids menus and crayons and a cool tabletop tablet that you can use to order, pay or purchase an unlimited games pass for $1.99US to keep the kids entertained while they wait for their meal. Fun!!

Location: 12007 Harbor Blvd, Garden Grove and other locations throughout the USA.

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.

Are you a fan of Forrest Gump? If so, you need to visit a Bubba Gump Shrimp Co! We expected gimmicky and overpriced and yes, it is on the slightly higher priced scale, but not unreasonably so.

The menu is huge, so deciding can be a challenge when you want to try it all. But that means there is something for everyone! And they have a pretty impressive drinks menu. You could even just do a happy hour session if so inclined.

Seafood is the theme of course, with shrimp done in many ways… just like in the movie! There is fun Forrest Gump themed decor too.

Cocktails, a kids’ menu… with kids’ meals coming out in a cute boat box. We enjoyed it!

Notable – Colour in kids menu with crayons, fun kids meals, cocktails and speciality drinks (some even come with a souvenir glass and fun Forrest Gump theme.

Location: 321 West Katella Ave, Anaheim (other locations throughout USA and internationally).

FiRE & iCE

Our last night spent in Anaheim called for something great for dinner, so we headed to FiRE & iCE in the Garden Walk complex.

Fire & iCE is an interactive dining experience where you get to choose all your own ingredients and watch them cooked right in front of you on the giant BBQ by one of their skilled chefs.

We have similar restaurants back home in Australia and they are always great fun. What stood out most with this place was the fact it incorporated Mongolian, Italian, Cajun & US flavours and ingredients.

There is a set price for your meal and it is all you can eat, so it makes for a great value dining option that is fun too!

You get to choose your own ingredients – meat/protein, veggies, sauce and seasoning then take it all over to the BBQ in the centre and watch the chef cook it for you while you wait. So yum!!

Plus the staff were amazing. Very attentive with table service and checking to make sure everyone was enjoying their meal, plus the chefs were great to chat to while they cooked. Very friendly atmosphere. The kids loved it!!

Notable – Create your own stir fry, wrap or pizza using a huge selection of ingredients, cooked in front of you. Great atmosphere, friendly staff. Unique dining experience!

Location: Anaheim Garden Walk complex on West Katella Ave.

Denny’s

Ok so if you’ve been to Denny’s, it’s probably not somewhere you go when you’re looking for a first-class dining experience, right? But it is affordable and family-friendly.

Plus there is one directly across from the Disneyland Resort, so if you’re wanting to keep your costs down when visiting Disneyland, you can duck across the street for a quick meal at Denny’s before heading back in for more fun.

Or in our case, a hearty breakfast before beginning our adventure on day 3 of our stay in Anaheim.

Denny’s does breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus they stay open late. 24 hours in many cases, and it has a large menu with breakfast foods, burgers and the usual diner fares.

The meals are huge. In fact, as an Aussie, the fact that my breakfast came on 2 full-sized plates was kind of crazy! Lucky I was sharing with a toddler! The food isn’t spectacular, but it fills your stomach and keeps the kids happy with their great kids’ menu!

Notable – Kid-friendly restaurant menu, affordable, open late.

Located everywhere in the USA. There is one right across from Disneyland but they are all around Anaheim and beyond. Check the location map.

Dining Precincts In Anaheim

If you’re looking for somewhere with plenty of dining options in one place, these dining precincts are a great option!

Packing House

The Packing House is an upmarket food court in Anaheim’s Packing District, with local vendors & bars all within a renovated, historic 1919 citrus-packing house.

It is a great option for families looking for a casual dining experience.

The food court style set-up means that there is something for everyone and the open seating area means a little more freedom to move around and burn off some energy while you wait for your food compared to a traditional restaurant setting.

You will find The Kroft, Pie Hole and Han’s Homemade frozen treats all within the Packing House along with plenty of other great options!

Anaheim Gardenwalk

If you are looking for even more options for kid-friendly Anaheim restaurants and dining, the Anaheim GardenWalk complex, where both FiRE & iCE and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co are located is full of dining options.

Some are on the higher price scale, but there are also some budget-friendly options too, with a great atmosphere & close to Disneyland, at 400 West Disneyland Way. Check out the website.

Plus if you are travelling with kids, there is an indoor play centre and a bowling alley too!

You will find Johnny Rockets, The Cheesecake Factory, P.F. Chang’s Chinese Restaurant and plenty more. This is a fantastic foodie hub!!

Downtown Disney

Of course, we couldn’t talk about family dining in Anaheim without mentioning Downtown Disney.

This pedestrian-only district is packed with restaurants, shops and entertainment options and is the perfect place to spend a day or evening with the family.

There are plenty of great places to eat at Downtown Disney, including Wetzel’s Pretzels, Naples Ristorante e Pizzeria and more.

Some of these dining options may be a little more on the expensive side compared to other dining areas in Anaheim, however, you will easily find something the whole family will enjoy!

Or there is always a huge range of dining options inside the Disneyland parks if you happen to be visiting the parks.

Which of these best places to eat in Anaheim are you looking forward to trying?

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Do you have a favourite place to eat in Anaheim?