Dig into Knott’s Berry Farm’s 2018 Boysenberry Festival (UPDATED!)

Knott’s Berry Farm’s annual Boysenberry Festival is back!  The annual food fest returned over the weekend and will run daily this year through April 8.  Compared to Disney’s ongoing Food and Wine Festival at Disney California Adventure, the Knott’s Boysenberry Festival is smaller and more home-spun but definitely packs a lot of bang for its buck. We joined our friends from MouseInfo over the weekend and got to sample this year’s festival offerings, let’s take a look!.

UPDATED MARCH 27:

 
After visiting the festival a couple time we got a little frustrated that Knott’s in-park Festival Guides inexplicably lack a full list of boysenberry festival food items and locations. When you’re in the park, there’s no easy way to find out what’s available and where to get it unless it’s on the tasting card. So, we dug around and updated the post with the FULL LIST of eats and drinks for this year’s Boysenberry Festival. We also added pictures of a couple more food items we tried! We hope all of this helps you when you visit the festival over the next couple weeks! —Andy

 

From the moment you step into the park, you know it’s time for the boysenberry festival.  Oversized boysenberry vines have taken over, crates of giant boysenberries are scattered around, and lots of bright floral throughout the park set the tone for the springtime festival.

 

The majority of the Boysenberry Festival takes place in Ghost Town, which is fitting.  Ghost Town grew out of the success of Walter and Cordelia Knott’s little roadside berry farm, giving their guests something to do before and after buying some berries and enjoying that famous chicken dinner. Ghost Town helped make the farm a bonafide roadside attraction in early Southern California, long before Disney moved into nearby Anaheim.

 

A replica of the original roadside berry stand sells boysenberry plants during the festival.  I love this so much — it’s such a charming nod to the park’s earliest days for this festival, which is truly a celebration of the theme park’s history and its founders.

 

Decorations throughout Ghost Town celebrate the star that made it all possible: the boysenberry.

 

 

Festival signage gives little historical trivia tidbits.

 

But what about the food?  The best way to tackle the Boysenberry Festival is to grab a tasting card, which is available at select locations for $30. The tasting card changes every year with the latest culinary creations and lets you sample 8 of the most popular items at each year’s festival.  In previous years, the tasting card let you get only one of each item on the card but this year you can mix and match — so if you want to try all eight items, go for it!  If you want to skip an item and double up on another, feel free! If you want 8 orders of the amazing boysenberry sausage — you can do that, too!

 

Many food items can be found at festival food stands scattered throughout Ghost Town, with other items found at select dining locations.  Your tasting card tells you where to head for each item.

Boysenberry Festival Food Tasting Card

8 choices of 8 options for $30
Available for purchase at Sutters Grill, Pemmican Pickle, Calico Saloon, Churro Factory, Ghost Town Bakery, Spurs Chop House, Gold Trails Hotel, General Store, Little Spurs, Ghost Town Candy, California Store
 

Slow Cooked Boysenberry Short Rib at Spurs Chop House

with Boysenberry Hoisin Sauce, Buttery Basmati Rice, Chopped Green Onions

Cheddar Cheese Pierogis with Boysenberry Sour Cream at Spurs Chop House

with Fresh Frozen Boysenberries, Sautéed Yellow Onions, Applewood Smoked Bacon

Boysenberry Cheese Quesadilla at Ghost Town Bank Stand

with Mozzarella and Cotija cheeses, Boysenberry Salsa, Boysenberry Sour Cream

Boysenberry Elote at Gold Trails Hotel Stand

with Boysenberry Mayo, Boysenberry Butter, cayenne, lemon pepper, and parmesan cheese

Boysenberry Coconut Macaroon at Ghost Town Bakery side Window

Dipped in Chocolate Ganache

Boysenberry Humus with Grilled Pita Bread at Indian Trails Stand

Boysenberry Sausage on a Bun at Wilderness Dance Hall Stand

with Boysenberry Ketchup, Relish and Mustard

Half-Pound of Boysenberry Chicken Wings at Spurs Chop House

with Boysenberry Buffalo Sauce

 

Boysenberry Festival Wine and Craft Brew Tasting Card

6 choices of various wine and beer tastings with a cheese and fruit plate for $25.
Wine and craft brew options in the list below.
 

Complete Festival Food and Drink Line-Up

NEW items for 2018 are highlighted in boysenberry purple!
 

Ghost Town Grill

• Daily Specials
• The “Walter Knott” — Iced Tea & Boysenberry Punch)
• Boysenberry Milkshakes
• Boysenberry Pie Milkshake (NEW!)
• Boysenberry Ice cream
• Boysenberry Salad
• Boysenberry Pie Slices & Cheesecake
• Boysenberry Wine

 

Spurs Chop House

• Slow Cooked Boysenberry Short Ribs (NEW!)
• Cheddar Cheese Pierogis with Boysenberry Sour Cream (NEW!)
• White Chocolate Covered Boysenberry Cheese Cake on a Stick (NEW!)

 

Spurs Chophouse Stand

• Half-Pound of Boysenberry Chicken Wings

 

Spurs Patio: Wine & Beer Bar

• Boysenberry Draft Beer
• Boysenberry Wine
• Assorted Wines

 

Gold Trails Hotel Stand

• Corn on the Cobb “Elote” with Boysenberry Butter and Boysenberry Mayo (NEW!)

 

Indian Trails Stand:

• Boysenberry Humus with Grilled Pita (NEW!)

 

Wilderness Dance Hall Stand

• Boysenberry Sausage on a Bun (NEW!)

 

Calico Fry

• Regular Shoestring Fries in a Cone
• Deep Fried Alligator & Fries with Boysenberry Aioli in a Cone

 

Fireman’s BBQ

• Boysenberry and Apricot Pulled Pork Sandwich

 

Churro Factory

• Boysenberry Stuffed Churro
• Boysenberry Churro Sundae with Boysenberry ice cream

 

Mix-It-Up

• Boysenberry ICEE
• Boysenberry ICEE Floats
• Boysenberry Lemonade
• Boysenberry Ice Cream Cone
• Boysenberry Cookiewich

 

The Bank Stand

• Boysenberry Cheese Quesadilla (NEW!)

 

Calico Saloon

• Boysenberry Draft Beer
• Boysenberry Wine
• Boysenberry Cream Soda

 

Pemmican Pickle & Popcorn Cart

• Boysenberry Cotton Candy

 

Ghost Town Grub

• Funbun — Fried Cinnamon roll with Boysenberry Cream Cheese Topping
• Funstick — Fried Cheesecake on a Stick with Boysenberry Sauce
• Boysenberry Dessert Flautas

 

Ghost Town Bakery

• Boysenberry Pie Slices
• Whole Boysenberry Pie
• Boysenberry Tart
• Boysenberry turnovers
• Boysenberry Cheese Cake
• Boysenberry Cup Cakes
• Boysenberry Panna Cotta
• Boysenberry Macaroon (NEW!)
• Boysenberry Bubble Tea/Boba (NEW!)

 

Cordelia’s Pie Kitchen

• Build-Your-Own mini Boysenberry Pies

 

Gourmet Coffee Hut

• Boysenberry Latte
• Boysenberry Hot and Shaken Tea
• Boysenberry Assorted Pastries
• Boysenberry Bubble Tea/Boba (NEW!)

 

Wilderness Dance Hall and Beer Stand

Over a dozen hand-selected wines from around the world and over a dozen craft and imported beers, including:

• Boysenberry Draft Beer
• Boysenberry Cider Draft Beer
• Elysian Space Dust IPA

 
New craft beer selections for 2018:

• Bootlegger Far Out IPA (NEW!)
• Golden Road Wolf Pup Session IPA (NEW!)
• Lindemans Lambic Strawberry (NEW!)
• Ayinger Celebrator Dopplebock (NEW!)

 

Wagon Wheel Pizza

• Boysenberry Pizza

 

Strictly on a Stick

• Boysenberry Corn Dog

 

Boardwalk BBQ

• Boysenberry Corn Bread (NEW!)
• Boysenberry BBQ Sauce
• Boysenberry House Salad with Fresh Berries and Boysenberry Vinaigrette

 

Wilderness Broiler

• 2-foot Hot Dog on a Boysenberry Bun (NEW!)

 

The Boysenberry Elote, a grilled corn on the cob covered in boysenberry mayonnaise and parmesan cheese is a big hit of the festival already.  Everybody in my group loved this one — fresh grilled sweet corn, tangy-sweet boysenberry mayo, and salty parmesan cheese.

 

The Boysenberry Cheese Quesadilla is an interesting idea but it didn’t quite land for us.  The cheese — a mozzarella and cotija mixture — didn’t get melty enough and the boysenberry tortilla didn’t taste like much.  That boysenberry salsa saved the dish, however, and was super flavorful and came with a fairly decent spicy kick.

 

Our hands-down favorite item this year is one we didn’t expect to wow us. The Boysenberry Sausage on a Bun was way more flavorful than I ever expected, juicy and savory with the perfect amount of boysenberry sweetness running through it.  Douse it with the boysenberry ketchup or boysenberry mustard available and it’s seriously a knock-out dish.

 

I love hummus and was super excited for the Boysenberry Hummus but this ended up being a big miss for us.  The hummus had the right color to fit the boysenberry fest, but the flavor didn’t work.  Didn’t really taste much like anything except some pretty middle-of-the-road hummus.  Bummer.

 

The amazing Korean-style boysenberry short rib from the last couple festivals was replaced with a new slow-cooked version this year.  It’s a heartier portion and instead of the BBQ char of the Korean-style short rib, you’ve got tender pieces of slow-cooked meat instead.  It’s a bit fattier, a little heartier, and still delicious but maybe not quite as delicious as last year’s version.

 

Last year we had boysenberry cheese ravioli and unlike a lot of folks, I really enjoyed it.  This year’s ravioli surrogate is the Boysenberry Pierogi, a cheese and potato dumpling covered in caramelized boysenberry-bacon onions and paired with boysenberry sour cream.  This dish was a good effort but didn’t quite work for my party.  I liked all of the elements of the dish individually but none of it really worked together for me.  I still think it’s worth trying — it’s a unique idea, just don’t expect any sort of culinary revelation with this one.

 

The Boysenberry Chicken Wings are a great standby from when the festival first started a few years ago and still a worthy feature of the tasting card.

The dessert option on this year’s tasting card is the Boysenberry Coconut Macaroon, which was kind of surprising.  It’s not your average macaroon — dense and chewy with boysenberry flavor throughout, not just in the boysenberry white chocolate it’s dipped in.  I’m not a big fan of coconut, so I usually don’t like macaroons but this one almost tasted more like one of the Girl Scout’s Samoas cookies, which I can get on board with.  Would I spend a tasting card tab on this item?  Probably not, but it wasn’t bad.

If the macaroon isn’t enough of a dessert for ya, the Boysenberry Cheesecake (dipped in boysenberry white chocolate) is sure to hit the spot… it’s super delicious but beware – it’s crazy sweet.

 
New this year (and not on the tasting card) is Boysenberry Cornbread at the Boardwalk BBQ. This was actually pretty good, moist cornbread with just a hint of boysenberry sweetness. It’s a nice side option if you head to the Boardwalk BBQ for a proper meal.

And if you need something to wash it all down, the Boysenberry Beer or Boysenberry Cider (or get it half-and-half!) is a great option!

 

 

The boysenberry isn’t just about food — Ghost Town gets turned into a crafts fair with dozens of third-party vendors selling charming, home-spun arts, crafts and good during the festival.  Knott’s also offers its own selection of merchandise and delicious boysenberry take-home items during the event.

 

Shop ’til you drop throughout Ghost Town during the Boysenberry Festival.

 

 

 

 

 

The livery stable in Ghost Town is Old McDonald’s Barn during the boysenberry festival, with a variety of barnyard animals out for guests to visit.

 

 

 

Don’t forget to visit the Catawampus!

 

Calico Town Hall has historical photos on display along with continuous showings of a great mini documentary on the history of the boysenberry, the farm, and Walter and Cordelia Knott.

 

 

 

The Wilderness Dance Hall is home to wine and craft beer tasting along with the new “Tied Up in Knott’s” art show tribute to the park.

 

The original art on display is for sale, with prints for many pieces available in the nearby Mystery Lodge gift shop.

 

 

 

 

 

If you visit Knott’s during the festival, be sure to pop over to Camp Snoopy where you can meet the world famous Easter Beagle!

 

 

 

 

 

So is the Boysenberry Festival worth checking out?  Unequivocally, we say yes.  With Knott’s and Disney both offering up food festivals this time of year, So Cal theme park foodies have some great options in the spring months.  Which one is better?  It’s hard to compare — Disney’s is of course pricier but it’s also serving up fare that aims for gourmet in a more polished event.  The Knott’s event is a lot more home-spun with down-to-earth food.  The food is quality but not exactly gourmet and there’s nothing wrong with that.  For an event that intends to pay tribute to its unique history and humble beginnings, the Boysenberry Festival hits the mark quite well for Knott’s and we look forward to it every year.  This year’s tasting card line-up perhaps isn’t as strong as it’s been in previous years but with the chicken wings, boysenberry sausage, elote, and pierogies — there’s still plenty of good stuff here and the added flexibility of mixing-and-matching with this year’s tasting card really increases the value.

 

And don’t forget that the tasting card only scratches the surface of the foodie options at the festival.  There’s over 75 boysenberry eats and drinks, so if the tasting card options don’t get your attention, there’s tons more available to try throughout the park.  Add in lots of charming live entertainment (much of which we missed when we visited but plan on returning to check out), a crafts faire, and the Easter Beagle — there’s no doubt: the Boysenberry Festival continues to be a must-do for Southern California theme park fans.