Just Goofy Enough to Work

The thing about brunch buffets is that unless you have a hollow leg, it’s pretty hard to get your money’s worth. Just try consuming 30 bucks’ worth of eggs Benedict, stuffed chicken breast and chocolate caramel cheesecake in one sitting.

And it’s worse when you factor in the kids. You plunk down $10 to $15 a head and they won’t touch anything but the scrambled eggs and the chocolate pudding.

And since brunches are rarely offered in kid-friendly settings, the little ones quickly become bored and ornery, and you’re forced to hurry through breakfast to spare your fellow diners.

If this sounds familiar, then check out Goofy’s Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel.

Their character breakfasts, served from 7 to 11:30 a.m. daily, offer a modest but satisfying selection of yummy treats to please everyone, from peanut-butter-and-jelly pizza for the kids, to omelets made to order for Mom and Pop. On weekends the breakfast expands into a brunch from noon to 2:30 p.m.

Cost for everything is a reasonable $15.95; $8.95 for ages 3 to 11, and $3.95 for toddlers. (Adults pay $2 more for brunch on Saturdays and Sundays.)

It includes bottomless glasses of fresh-squeezed orange juice, milk (chocolate milk if you ask), sodas, coffee and tea. From the bar you can also order cocktails and fancy alcohol-free concoctions for the kids.

But what really makes this breakfast fun is the bubbly throng of Disney characters who work the room, greeting diners and entertaining with their table-side antics.

On a recent visit, we rubbed elbows with Baloo the Bear, Dale (of Chip & Dale fame), Minnie Mouse, Pluto and a delightfully manic Mad Hatter, whose nonsensical ramblings and silly songs had my sons (ages 5 and 11) red-faced and giggling.

Leading the happy troupe was Goofy, turned out like Escoffier himself.

The characters bounce from table to table shaking hands, doing slapstick, signing autographs and posing for pictures.

At regular intervals the costumed menagerie forms a conga line, and kids and characters dance their way to the center of the restaurant, where they do the “Macaroni” dance to the Tiki Room theme song.

The dining area is decorated with effervescently colored walls, warm colorful lights, and cartoon-like shapes reminiscent of Disneyland’s Toon Town.

Bright yellow Formica tables, covered with crisp, white paper, reminded me of a 1950s kitchen.

At the center of the buffet area is a large serving station for kids, laden with pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage, crunchy potato cakes, cereals, fruit and pastries and three kinds of pizza.

My favorite item was the peanut-butter-and-jelly pizza, a fun little pie made from a thin bread crust smoothly coated on one side with peanut butter and artfully garnished with swirls of grape jelly.

My kids were smitten with the Mickey Mouse-shaped waffles, which you can smother in creamy butter, sticky maple syrup, whipped cream and other tasty toppings.

For the adults there are omelets, a lox-and-bagel bar, lean bacon, link sausage, oven-roasted potatoes, biscuits and gravy, and an assortment of breads, sweet rolls and muffins.

Be sure to save room for the fluffy and sweet bread pudding topped with a gooey caramelized crust.

Other menu items change daily. The day we went, they offered baked ham with fruit glaze, eggs Benedict, breakfast burritos and fresh asparagus with red peppers.

Pastries fill out the dessert table, but the best topper to your meal is a trip to the soft-serve ice cream station, where you can make sundaes with a variety of toppings.

You can make a reservation, but they’re not required. And if you find yourself waiting for a table, cool your heels at Goofy’s Theater, a cozy little screening room across the way where you can sit on wide, carpeted benches and watch Disney cartoons on a big-screen TV until your name is called.

After your meal, take in some of the sites or go window shopping on the hotel grounds. Or don your mouse ears and spend the day at Disneyland.

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Goofy’s Character breakfasts are served from 7 to 11:30 a.m. daily in Goofy’s Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel, 1150 W. Cerritos Ave., Anaheim. Brunch is served Saturdays and Sundays from noon-2:30 p.m. $15.95 for adults; $8.95 for ages 3-11; $3.95 for ages 2 and younger. Adults add $2 more for brunch on weekends. For reservations, call (714) 778-6600.