Over the years, I have heard a lot of people who are planning a trip to Disneyland ask the same questions. One of the most common questions has to do with food: How much should I budget for food at Disneyland? A Disneyland food budget is going to look different for different guests, but thankfully, it’s easy to plan how much you’ll realistically spend ahead of time.

Eating is essential at a theme park like Disneyland when you’ll most likely be there all day and for at least a few meal times. For some people, a trip to Disneyland is an excuse to indulge and splurge on Mickey-shaped offerings and diet sabotaging delights. For other people, they are on a strict budget or strict diet, and they need to plan accordingly. Either way, it’s helpful to know where to find food you would enjoy eating while at the parks and how much that food is going to cost.

The Disneyland app makes it super easy to plan your food budget before you ever even set foot on Disney property. You can see where restaurants and food carts are located, what’s on the menu, how much the food costs and even pictures of what the food looks like.

Sometimes I feel that it’s easier to show how to do something than to simply explain it, so I made a video where I demonstrate how to use the Disneyland app to plan a food budget. I include details about the three types of dining options at the Disneyland Resort, how to use the mobile order feature and some of the restaurants that I recommend. Check it out below.

As I mentioned in the video above, there are three types of dining options at Disneyland: food carts, quick service restaurants and table service restaurants. If you want to eat at a table service restaurant, you will most likely need to make reservations well in advance; however, it is sometimes possible to dine at these locations without a reservation if you get on the walkup list which you can access through the Disneyland app.

Some of my favorite Disneyland food items are the Dole whip, churros, and anything in a bread bowl. The lobster mac and cheese I had in a bread bowl from Harbor Gallery was especially delicious. For table service restaurants, I recommend Blue Bayou.

Over at the Disney California Adventure Park, I recommend trying all of the treats at Terren Treats in Avengers Campus. Smokejumpers Grill, Flo’s V8 Cafe and Pym’s Test Kitchen are great as well. For table service restaurants, I recommend Lamplight Lounge.

As I also mentioned in the video above, if you are on a strict diet or a strict budget, you can bring in outside food. There’s even a McDonald’s right across the street from the parks, and I have seen quite a few Happy Meals in strollers. Other guests like to bring in Uncrustables or other easy to eat and pack snacks. As long as you don’t have loose ice, you’re good to go.

Do you enjoy trying to food offerings at Disneyland, or do you prefer to bring in your own food? Do you prefer to eat at carts and quick service restaurants to save time and money, or do you like to relax and splurge at a table service restaurant?