In Disneyland a visit to the
Blue Bayou is a must. That's the restaurant that is inside Pirates of the Caribbean on the patio in the lagoon. Great food, almost always good service, and the uber-coolness of dining inside Pirates of the Caribbean on the patio of a southern mansion with the boats floating by in the bayou just beyond your table. They copied this concept for Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Paris, but WDW doesn't have one. They tried to correct this mistake with that restaurant inside the Mexico pavilion at Epcot, but it didn't turn out nearly as good. The Blue Bayou is a Disneyland tradition, and something that shouldn't be missed when visiting Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom.
In DCA the
The Vineyard Room is also very, very good. The view and atmosphere isn't is as good as Blue Bayou, but the food is delicious and the option of ordering a cocktail or wine does wonders for the lack of atmosphere.
In the Grand Californian there is of course
The Napa Rose. Certainly the best restaurant in all of Disney's North American parks or hotels. It offers not only the best food in Disney's universe, but it is very highly rated by the Zagat Survey and other restaurant critics as one of the best restaurants in Southern California. It has more sommeliers on staff than any other restaurant in North America. Seriously, it's that good.
Down a few notches from the pinnacle of The Napa Rose, but still certainly good, is
Granville's Steakhouse at the Disneyland Hotel. It's a steak house that was recently remodeled to resemble a 1950's supper club. The black and white pictures on the wall of Walt eating with mid-century celebrities are wonderful, and I do admit that the steak and sides were very good. The service was excellent when I ate there in early '05. Not quite as perfected as the primo steak houses like Ruth's Chris or Morton's, but definitely very good.
Yamabuki's at the Paradise Pier Hotel is an excellent Japanese restaurant. Their sushi chefs are wonderful, the service is about as good as it comes, and the traditional japanese dining rooms with the tatami mats are always fun. It's popular with Japanese tourists and staffed entirely by Japanese CM's, but Westerners are very welcome there too.
And at Downtown Disney
I highly recommend Catal. It's owned and operated by Joachim Splichal, owner of the Patina Group and some of LA's most famous and well run restaurants. The food is California Continental, the wine list is fabulous, the bartenders make a mean Gimlet, and the foie gras and the escargot appetizers are always perfect. It's also nice that it's on the second story, above the crowds and noise of Downtown Disney. Ask for a balcony table if you're there near fireworks time.
Places to avoid at the DLR are the following;
Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen in Downtown Disney. The food is fairly good, not great, but the service is mediocre at best and oftentimes horrible. The last time I ate there a few weeks ago, only because Catal was closed for a private event, it was just as bad as I remembered from my previous visit in '04. The service was sloppy, ridiculously slow and ungracious, and the food didn't make up for the frenzied atmosphere and the unpolished presentation. Skip Ralph Brennan's unless your a sadomasochist or from New Orleans and have a chip on your shoulder.
Naples Ristorante in Downtown Disney. It looks festive and fun and California casual, but it's really horrible. The service is some of the worst I've ever experienced at that price point. The wait staff is made up of punky 22 year old guys in wrinkled shirts who stand around talking about when they're going to get to go surfing next while they pretend there aren't tables full of hungry diners around them. The hostesses are snotty little things in tight slacks who seem overwhelmed with the entire operation, and can't offer any real assistance or grace. The pizza has crust that is measured in millimeters, I kid you not. The toppings are fresh and tasty, but the microcrust and the thin application of sauce absolutely ruin any chance that you'll enjoy your meal. The rest of the salads, starters and short list of alternate entrees are decent, but the horribly unattentive service means you'll likely starve before anything arrives at your table. It's really, really bad. But they get enough dumb tourists who are drawn in by the trendy furnishings and hip style of the place that they seem to be able to stay in business. It's a pathetic excuse for a restaurant, and if it was open anywhere but a tourist zone it would have gone out of business years ago.
Also to be avoided is
Ariel's Grotto in DCA. This is a Character Dining location, and the service is spotty and generally unpolished. This is obviously the low man on the totem pole when it comes to DLR table service dining because the CM's are some of the least accomplished in the art of service. The food is aimed at the 6 year old crowd, with a few entree's designed to keep darling little Kelsey's parents from starving. The whole operation really only exists to get people to fork over some cash so their little daughters can meet the Disney Princesses, and the food service is an afterthought. If you value having edible meals and decent service, avoid Ariels' Grotto like the plague.
And finally, I hope you realize you are visiting Disneyland during the very busiest week of the year. 
If you haven't already made reservations at any of the places listed above by calling (714) 781-DINE then you are probably out of luck. Disneyland will be packed to the rafters, and the main entrance will be closed by the middle of the day every day you are there. You couldn't pick a busier time to visit Disneyland if you tried, and I doubt there are any reservations left for The Blue Bayou, The Napa Rose, and perhaps Catal. You might have better luck with The Vineyard Room because it's in DCA, but it's still iffy. Call (714) 781-DINE immediately and see if anything is left at any of those restaurants. Good luck!
