ROAD TRIP,

everybody!!! Today we are cruising over to Flo’s V-8 Cafe!

Located in Cars Land in Disney California Adventure, it’s the perfect place for a quick fuel up.

Atmosphere

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Stepping into any place in Cars Land is seriously like walking right into the Cars film. That’s no less true of Flo’s V-8 Cafe. It’s designed to remind you of one of the old Route 66 stops: gas pumps outside (“Eat at Flo’s and Get Gas!”), a retro diner inside. An evening visit is always great, with all that glowing neon.

That said, a daytime visit is just fine, too (especially because breakfast here is awesome)!

Checkered floors, bright colors and some great oldies tunes complete the whole vibe inside.

Any little (or not-so-little 😉 ) Cars fans will have a blast scoping out all the details including trophies, wall art and other knick-knacks.

We haven’t grabbed our food just yet (well get to that shortly, of course!), but once you do, your next adventure is choosing a seat. Sounds easy, right? And technically speaking it typically is, since there are so many spaces to choose from. You can sit in one of several themed rooms, including Doc Hudson’s medical office/museum.

Anyone need an X-ray of their engine?

And that’s just indoors. Don’t forget that you can enjoy watching the cars on the Radiator Springs Racers attraction zoom on by if you’re sitting outside.

You could have an absolute field day checking out all the details in here, and even after exploring it all several times I still seem to pick up on something new with each visit.

Case in point: Disneyland lighting details are just the coolest (super fun examples include the overhanging lights at Tomorrowland Terrace and Clarabelle’s Hand-Scooped Ice Cream). And at Flo’s? Check out the headlight lamps!

Now let’s drive on up to the menu and see what’s cookin’!

Eats

Like any good route stop, Flo’s serves up breakfast (it was gone for a while, but it’s back these days — hooray!), lunch, and dinner. No matter the time of day, the menu features classic American home-styled comfort foods, along with a few twists like the Chicken Tamale dish and Brioche French Toast for breakfast, or the Veggie Tater Bake for lunch and dinner.

The selection isn’t huge, and I can’t help but wish there was a bit more to choose from. With all the seating available to draw a lot of people, a larger menu would make a bit more sense here. Still, you could also attempt to piece together a decent meal by mixing up some of the awesome sides selections.

I visited Flo’s late at night after a looooooooong day. I knew it would be the perfect comfort food to enjoy while relaxing and looking out the window at the amazing Cars Land nighttime view. I chose to go with the Roast Beef and Cheddar Sandwich. Typically it comes with coleslaw, but I upgraded my side to Macaroni and Cheese.

As for the sandwich, the tender meat is served on a garlic chive bun, which creates a nice flavor combo with the caramelized onions tucked inside.

Like an old-fashioned melt, there is a decent amount of cheddar cheese melted throughout the sandwich, but I couldn’t pick up on too much of the horseradish aioli.

The Macaroni and Cheese is pretty much the same side that you can find in other quick service spots throughout the park, and speaking of all things comfort food, I’m a fan of it. Overall, there was nothing super-memorable happening on the plate; but the meal served its purpose as fuel to get me back to the hotel.

Now, let’s talk desserts. The choices at Flo’s are perfect compliments to the whole retro diner feel, with nothin’ but classic milkshakes and pies. I settled on my favorite a while back: the Chocolate Mud Pie. Seasonal offerings, however, are also available, so this time I went with Coconut Cream Pie.

The individual pies in their own foil pans are such a cute touch, going nicely with the mom n’ pop stop feel. The Coconut Cream is topped with a whipped cream that almost has a homemade feel to it in texture. The flaky, soft crust was a great base for the custard cream (most of the coconut flavor was provided by the toasted coconut flakes on top).

The pies here are the stars of the show. Well, the pies and breakfast. Those are the two things I would absolutely recommend Flo’s for.

Overall

My position stands: Flo’s V-8 Cafe is for sure one of the best quick-service spots around when it comes to atmosphere and attention to detail. But for the meal offering the most “oomph,” I’d still choose breakfast over lunch or dinner. Or just stop in for pie! That said, it’s well worth seeing no matter the time of day. Even if comfort food isn’t your thing, stop by for a shake or pie for a chance to sit down and take in some great Cars-inspired atmosphere!

Have you visited Flo’s V-8 Cafe? Let us know in the comments below!