Nearly two weeks ago, I was one of the lucky people invited to “A Taste Of Knott’s”, an event designed to introduce the new and improved menu items at Knott’s Berry Farm!
That’s my I’m-too-excited-to-want-to-pose-for-a-photo face in the middle there, which is very out of character for me. I’m a poser(generally). I’ll admit it!
I haven’t been to Knott’s Berry Farm since I was in High School, and back then I wasn’t into food as much as I am now, therefore I have no real previous experience on which to base any sort of comparison. Thanks to Russ Knibbs, the new Vice President of Food & Beverages at Knott’s, there is great, cool, spectacular new stuff going on at Knott’s! Some things may still need a little work, but they have taken a huge step in the right direction! When my husband and I visit theme parks, which admittedly isn’t that often, we love to seek out the more exotic food choices. We’d opt for Quiche Lorraine over plain ‘ol eggs and bacon any day. We don’t have kids, so the sky is the limit as far as what food choices we make, and Knott’s has made a valiant attempt to provide some enticing new options!
The first stop of the night was Spurs Chop House (which is located across from GhostRider). Wait!! No! No it wasn’t! First stop was the BAR to scope the brews and wines they had to offer. We were pleased to discover that they had an IPA from Noble Ale Works, a local craft brewery! Very impressed!
THEN we made our way to Spurs Chop House. Their new offerings were Cajun Lime Salt Riblets, Bruschetta, and Hawaiian Ahi Poke. Yum Yum!
The Hawaiian Ahi Poke won the dish of the night as far as I was concerned!
The Ahi Poke Tuna($11.99) is marinated in a sublime sesame vinaigrette, and mixed with green onions. They build it up on a crispy fried wonton, add a base of whipped avocado, the sashimi grade tuna tops that, and is drizzled with just the right amount of wasabi cream and seaweed. It was sooo good. A little awkward to eat, but I always make things harder than they are. Big surprise there – NOT! My husband cracked the wonton in half, and he had no problems! When I go back to Knott’s, I’m going straight for this one – no negotiations.
We tried like crazy to pace ourselves – there was so much food to try! It helped that Knott’s provided some entertainment (that was also easy on the eyes. 😉 )
The runner up to the best dish of the night is Goldie’s Honey Garlic Salmon served with a Baby Spinach Salad.
At $13.99, this dish is worth every penny! I am thrilled that an amusement park has this caliber of dish to choose from. You can acquire this healthy meal at Ghost Town Grill, which is located across from the Blacksmith. The salmon is char broiled, and paired with a baby spinach salad which is dressed in a honey soy dressing. It is to die for! It’s light enough that you won’t get bogged down, yet can keep your energy up to continue hitting up those rides!
The other dishes that deserve honorable mentions, in order of goodness are:
-
Vegetarian Black Bean Burger
($13.49 and available at Ghost Town Grill, located in Ghost Town across from the Blacksmith)
It’s a spicy black bean patty served with mayo, provolone cheese, and fried onions! You have a choice of mashed potatoes, french fries, or green salad. The burger itself is sooooo great. It packs a bunch of carbs and protein to keep you going throughout the day, but wont weigh you down. If you want a one-stop shop for food, I’d go for this one. -
Coasters Cheeseburger
($13.99 available at Coasters, located next to Xcelerator on the Boardwalk)
It has jalapeno chips on it. I mean, c’mon!!! Perfectly cooked & juicy 100% beef burger patty topped with JALAPENO CHIPS, BBQ sauce, lettuce, tomato, cheese. I’m a picky burger eater, and this one is up there. The jalapeno chips are a genius move. I ate a whole bag of those once by myself. -
Meatball Sandwich
($7.49 and available at Hollywood Hits, located across from the Bumper cars in the Boardwalk area)
The hubs is a picky meatball sandwich eater. He says that the perfect meatball sandwich has to have tender, juicy balls (his words, not mine!), the right roll, the perfect sauce, and this sandwich right here fits the bill perfectly. You get a lot of bang for your buck here too, so if you’re watching your wallet, this sandwich is for you. -
Slow Cooked Ribs
($11.99 and available at Fireman’s Brigade BBQ, located in Ghost Town)
You know how ribs can be. Sassy, saucy, fall off the bone… These ribs are perfect. They fall off the bone, and in my case, fell into my lap! The inner goof-ball can’t be tamed! Don’t take a date to eat these ribs. Prepare to get messy. I have no shame, and the sauce got all over the place. If I have to pay for a little piece of heaven in that manner – and these ribs are just that – then so be it. -
Fully Loaded Funnel Cake
($10.99 and available at Ghost Town Grub, not to be confused with Ghost Town Grill, and is located across from the General Store)
– All of your childhood memories will come flooding back with this HUGE funnel cake! It is exactly what your brain dreams of when it thinks ‘funnel cake’. It hasn’t changed much, but with the Boysenberry topping and soft serve vanilla ice cream, it is a dream come true! My advice, however, in the spirit of not being wasteful: Make sure you have AT LEAST 4 people to share it with. It is obscenely huge.
After stuffing ourselves, we had free reign of the park! I’m not much for crazy coasters, but luckily my friend Carolyn Scott-Hamilton (Healthy Voyager), and her husband, Dan were familiar with the rides at Knott’s, and took it easy on me.
For stuffed belly-friendly rides, check out The Pony Express and Jaguar! They were perfect rides after stuffing our faces!
All in all, it was a fantastic evening full of new food discoveries, connecting with friends, and good, old-fashioned fun! Next time you plan to visit Knott’s Berry Farm, jot down some of the items featured here that strike your fancy and seek them out. It will put the icing on an already incredible experience!
*A HUGE “Thank You!” to Knott’s Berry Farm, LaLa Castro and Tanya Salcido from GigaSavvy for inviting my husband and I to this event! Sweeeet!
What fun! I have only been to Knotts Berry Farm once, but after reading your blog, I want to go again!
Cathy, me too!! I definitely want to go again.. that Ghost Town is AWESOME!! Love the geode shop too!
The only places I used to eat at, when I worked there, were the chicken dinner and the deli. both were in the front. but the deli was replaced with something else, so no bueno.
Some of those dishes looked good enough to go there just to eat the food. Great job on the pictures using what you had with you. Those are the most difficult ones to make a good composition and lighting out of. The funnel cake picture and the wanton plate were my favorites. Great job Natalie! 🙂
Thanks, Brian!! Unfortunately my camera was in the shop that week getting repaired, so all we used, really, were our iPhones! We had the point and shoot too, but were live tweeting the event, so it just made sense to use just the iPhone. The prettier pictures were provided by Knott’s, so I can’t take credit for those! Thanks for reading, friend!!
Such a fun four hours! The burger paired with the Noble Ale EBS was “slap your momma” delicious!