Knott's Taste of Merry Farm 2020: General Review

Knott’s Berry Farm, Buena Park, CA

We’re here on the Monday of Thanksgiving week to formally continue the War on Thanksgiving and basically completely ignore Turkey Day by skipping straight to Christmas. That’s because this past weekend marked the start of Knott’s Berry Farm’s latest entry in their ongoing “Taste Of…” series, the Taste of Merry Farm, and we were there on Saturday to take in this winter festival of food and [scaled back] festivities.

As has been the case with the Taste of Calico, the Taste of Knott’s, and the Taste of Fall-O-Ween, the theme park has opened limited capacity to guests purchasing advanced reservation tasting cards to participate in what basically amounts to a gourmet food festival. The past events have limited admission to 15% of park capacity for the spaces open—definitely a welcome cap to mitigate crowding and potential transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus. In lieu of rides or scheduled entertainment, guests can partake in a variety of food and beverages from stands all around the park, all while enjoying the ambiance of the various areas without being packed like during a busy, peak theme park day.

Knott’s is absolutely beautiful all decked out for the holidays.

The “Taste Of…” format has been a great success for Knott’s Berry Farm, with each subsequent iteration growing more and more popular despite incremental $5 increases for the tasting card / admission. But the park has also added value to each version, expanding the open area of the park (and thus capacity), adding more food stands, increasing seasonal park decorations, and programming in unscheduled but socially distanced and safe show and performance moments to provide some amount of additional attractions for guests besides the food.

At night, the Taste of Knott’s takes on an even more magical Knott’s Merry Farm vibe!

The Taste of Merry Farm represents Knott’s broadest scale and scope yet, finally opening up the entire park to guests and decorating just about every square foot of it in beautiful holiday theming. From Ghost Town to the Boardwalk to Fiesta Village to Camp Snoopy, every corner of the park is bursting with Christmas detail and wonderful spirit.

Scrooge and Marley have taken over the Calico Town Hall.

The Christmas Crafts Village has returned to Ghost Town, featuring numerous local vendors offering seasonal wares and mementos that are great for holiday shopping. Additional stalls in Fiesta Village offer expanded retail, as do Knott’s permanent stores. There’s some pretty great holiday merchandise this year too, with our beloved Catawampus featured in some of them too!

The Christmas Crafts Fair is essentially back—just not by specific name. Ghost Town has multiple vendors selling plenty of seasonal wares.

Knott’s has been pimping the Catawampus merch this year. But what the heck is a Catawampus anyway??

There’s also a good selection of Merry Farm merchandise.

The Boardwalk features a distinctively surfside iteration of Christmas—a mix of California cool and breezy beachside holiday ambiance. The amazing winter fountain at Charleston Circle is back—a very popular photo op for guests. Fiesta Village brings a colorful affair, celebrating Navidad with a wide spectrum of colors. The string lights over the fountain area are probably the loveliest part of this themed land.

Christmas on the Boardwalk looks like paradise.

The winter fountain around Charleston Circle Is fine by day but even better by night.

Then again, most Christmas decorations look more extravagant by night.

Lots of ornaments line the roof eaves and arches of Fiesta Village.

However, when it comes to ambiance, Camp Snoopy may be the most magical of them all—decked out with cute figures and a series of “Kelfin’s” manning the rides (gnome versions of the skeleton Kevins from Taste of Fall-O-Ween). As charming as it looks by day, it really comes alive after dark when the whole area lights up with thousands of sparking string lights around trees and wintery projections against rockwork and light up figures and Christmas theming interlaced with the closed attractions. I don’t think Camp Snoopy has ever looked as spectacular at night as it does this year, and it’s an absolute joy to walk through and take in during the Taste of Merry Farm!

Following the fun visual gags from the Camp Snoopy Trick-or-Treat Trail, the Taste of Merry Farm has installed gnomes named Kelfin having fun on the rides.

There are many adorable holiday decorations throughout Camp Snoopy.

At night, though Camp Snoopy really shines with spectacular lights and colors!

The food at the Taste of Merry Farm is Knott’s strongest line-up yet, with terrific winners across a majority of the savory dishes, plenty of delectable dessert treats and sweets (enough to put all of Santa’s reindeer on a sugar high), and some refreshing and tasty beverages too. We loved items like the Turkey Dinner Big Bites, the Turkey Dinner Tater Tots, the Pulled Pork Mac and Cheese, Scrooge’s Spicy Cranberry - Pomegranate Glazed Wings, and Vixen’s Turkey Burger with Cheese, Cranberry Mayo, and Stuffing on a Pretzel Bun, served with French Fries. The Boysenberry Smoothie remained one of the items in the park, period, and the Boysenberry Slushy Sangria was wonderful as well. To avoid upset stomachs, we only tried one dessert this time—the Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Bars with White Chocolate Peppermint Bark. It was very sweet but quite tasty, and a fitting Christmas treat. All of these items are spread across more tasting booths than ever, including in previous dead zones like the Silver Bullet area and Camp Snoopy and the Charles Schulz Theater, which means that there is more liveliness throughout the park.

Ghost Town Grub, next to Goldie’s Place, is one of numerous food stands in the park, some temporary, and some from the regular dining spots.

This does present one downside of the Taste of Merry Farm compared to previous events… it definitely feels busier and a little more packed than any other “Taste Of…” event thusfar. We observed less empty zones of the park to escape the crowds, and social distancing was a bit more of a challenge on the general pathways, especially in the mid-afternooth through early evening hours, compared to previous “Taste Of…” event opening weekend visits. Even previous quieter areas like around Silver Bullet and Jaguar were busier this time, with many more tables occupied throughout the day. The area along Calico Rapids through the Charles Schulz theater was one of the few areas where the crowds were consistently low. Alternatively, the first and last hours of the day were also pretty quiet, even in generally populous areas like the Boardwalk and the streets of Ghost Town.

The level of crowds vs comfort will vary for everyone, but this past week’s visit did seem more crowded than previous opening weekend trips we’ve taken.

A rare quieter area and also a clever use of space—since the Wheeler Dealer bumper cars can’t operate, why not use the open space for seating?

The general activity did lead to some longer lines than we saw in media visits to the Taste of Fall-O-Ween and the Taste of Knott’s, including occasions where unbalanced staffing between the cashiers’ side and food service side of a booth resulted in lots of people waiting to get their food after ordering, clustering people together well within 6 feet distance, and lines stretching longer than usual. Whether it was by chance or not, these were the first time we experienced food wait hitches since the original Taste of Calico, though they were not commonplace everywhere.

This hopefully can be worked out as the park adjusts to the new ebbs and flows of the added capacity. We should note that there were also places with absolutely no lines, and Knott’s food service crew speedily handling orders and keeping guest flow moving. The longest wait we had was about 15 minutes, which occurred once. But we also had walk-throughs with zero wait as well.

As part of their continuing adjustment of operations, Knott’s has dedicated monitors to ensure guests are following the rules.

On the positive side of the park’s Coronavirus-handling strategies, we really appreciated the increased and highly visible presence of employees whose sole task was to reinforce mask-wearing protocol and look for people either not wearing their masks while in the general pathways or not wearing them appropriately. There were numerous park employees holding up little reminder signs patrolling the park, and they gently and politely reminded guests to follow certain rules when they were seen not to be doing so. This included keeping masks on and refraining from eating and drinking when not at an actual table. It wasn’t perfect, since they couldn’t be in all places at once, and we did see a few people with masks below the nose or not on at all for an extended period of time while not eating, but the active endeavor to encourage following of rules was a welcome sight. And its positive reinforcement manner was an appropriate way to handle an issue that has unfortunately become needlessly politicized.

Beyond that added policy, we continued see a strong presence of custodial crew cleaning most tables quickly after guests had left and even sanitizing props and decorations within physical contact distance, just to be safe. All of these measures demonstrate Knott’s attentive thoughtfulness to managing as safe of an experience as possible under the circumstances of operating an outdoor, public gathering environment during a pandemic.

Magnificent Christmas Charleston Circle at night.

The Taste of Merry Farm also features an expansion of the park’s entertainment features. Though formal, scheduled theater shows continue to be on hiatus (that means no traditional Snoopy on Ice Show this year, for example), there have been a number of unscheduled show and performance elements in previous “Taste Of…” festival, and the Taste of Merry Farm feature the most yet.

Ghost Town features a plethora entertainment and character interaction options. Carolers serenade guests with Christmas tunes several times a day. At night, Ghost Town enjoys a modified version of the traditional “Glow and Show” event—just without the “snoap” bubbles. The Wilderness Dance Hall is also home to Santa’s Christmas Cabin once more, where guests can meet Santa and have a socially distanced photo op with him!

Carolers croon from the second floor porch of the Calico Saloon.

A non-snow version of “Glow and Snow” plays every 15 minutes in Ghost Town during the evening. It’s basically an uplifting light show.

Go meet Santa at the Wilderness Dance Hall near the back of Ghost Town.

For health and safety reasons, Santa is masked and held off from guests on the stage and standing back from the edge.

At Calico Park, guests enjoying their food can take in the Magic of Hayden Alcorn, a quippy and hilarious retelling of A Christmas Carol by the Birdcage Theatre Players, a video highlight special of past Snoopy on Ice moments, and a holiday virtual concert by Krazy Kirk and the Hillbillies. Over at the Boardwalk, KNOT radio features slick talking and incredibly clever and silly rapid-fire pun(ch)lines from mid-century radio announcers interspersed between classic holiday tunes. The vocal dexterity of the fictitious radio hosts is a pleasure to watch and listen to. Nearby, Douglas Fir tries to entice passers-by to purchase a decidedly raggled, Charlie Brown-style Christmas tree for the low, bargain price of $700. It’s his last tree, and it perfectly represents 2020!

Hayden Alcorn demonstrates some illusions and engages some prestidigitation at the Caiico Mine Stage.

The Birdcage Theatre Players also entertain with their version of A Christmas Carol. — The Birdcage Theatre Players also entertain with their version of *A Christmas Carol*.

The radio hosts at KNOT Radio are fast and sharp talking and a riot to listen to!

Douglas Fir tries to sell his final Christmas tree—and hilariously riffs and improvs with guests who engage with him.

Fiesta Village features musical entertainment from a DJ at the Fiesta Village Stage, and Camp Snoopy and the Charles Schulz Theater feature socially distanced Peanuts character meet-and-greets. And in the Calico portion of Ghost Town, the Ghost of Christmas Past and the Ghost of Christmas Present make appearances on the upper level porches of the Calico buildings—as does Ebenezer Scrooge himself. Speaking of Scrooge, head over to the Boothill Cemetery after dark to see a Dickensian portrayal of Scrooge’s haunting by Jacob Marley, using the same projection effects that told the tales of some of the deceased at the old Calico graveyard during the Taste of Fall-o-Ween.

The Santa Snoopy meet-and-greet is one of a couple in Camp Snoopy.

The Ghost of Christmas Present manifests on the upper porch in front of Ghost Town.

Ebenezer Scrooge himself paces the upper level of the Calico Saloon, derisively but humorously bantering with passers-by.

The Boothill Cemetery remains home to some mysterious supernatural activity.

It’s a great re-use of the Taste of Fall-O-Ween theatrics to bring some spookiness to the Christmas setting!

Finally, the Taste of Merry Farm also features an art show component that has been present in Knott’s seasonal events lately. This one is the ‘Tis the Season Gallery and Gifts, located right next to the upcoming Knott’s Bear-y Tales: Return to the Fair attraction building. It features an all-new set of Christmas art pieces from many of the artists that have contributed to past Knott’s art exhibits. Interestingly, there’s a decent amount of Scary Farm infused into this Christmas-themed gallery—not a surprise, considering many of the artists have some connection to Haunt, either as scareactors or management or makeup or designer. Originals and prints are for sale for guests who want to take a unique memento home, and we continue to love seeing this showcase of amazing artistic talents!

The ‘Tis the Season Gallery is where the latest art show can be found.

Many of the artwork pieces can be purchased as prints!

All of this makes for a pretty fantastic Christmastime experience that actually makes the $40 admission more of a value than it may originally seem (it’s understandable that some might balk at the price point, considering that the Taste of Calico was $25 for 5 adult tastings, and the Taste of Merry Farm price does not up the number of dishes included. It’s not just about enjoying the food, it’s about enjoying the ambiance and taking in interactive elements similar to Ghost Town Alive! (Knott’s fans will notice many familiar GTA faces in the shows and actor interactions at the Taste of Merry Farm). In this manner, a visit to the Taste of Merry Farm becomes a much richer experience than just feasting of tasty eats (though that is certainly enough of a reason to come too).

Overall, the Taste of Merry Farm continues Knott’s successful and highly enjoyable food festival events that has helped buffet the theme financially since it had to close down back in March. The continued crowds demonstrate an ongoing public demand for entertainment and diversion. Especially now, with the holiday season upon us, and after such a challenging year for many, people are craving some semblance of normalcy and comfort during the most sentimental part of the year.

It’s a tricky balance, though, because at the same time, the Coronavirus pandemic is still raging on and surging even higher than ever—to the point where additional public health restrictions are being implemented throughout the state. To that end, it’s possible that some of the renewed shutdowns may end up impacting this event, especially if things worsen. Ultimately, it is absolutely always safer to stay at home and limit contact with other parties and strangers than to put oneself out in a public setting, and there is nothing wrong with choosing to stay in instead of go out.

The opened up area by Bear-y Tales now allows guests to see all of the queue, and facade up close.

The associated Christmas theming is really enchanting. The purple tone and little touches like boysenberry ornaments are fantastic.

That said, every person needs to evaluate their own comfort and willingness and desire to participate in such events. In our opinion, though the Taste of Merry Farm feels more crowded and occasionally less comfortable than our experiences in the previous “Taste Of…” events, it is still being run in a thoughtful and mitigating manner that is constantly striving to provide the safest visit possible. There is a lot of strength to cooperative mask wearing and social distancing and a demonstrated reduction of transmission risk when this happens, and Knott’s has set up its event to promote this as well as they reasonably can.

Ultimately it comes down to comfort level. And to those who feel comfortable venturing out for a visit, we do recommend the Taste of Merry Farm as a fantastic holiday event that captures the spirit and joy of the Christmas season. We urge everyone who does visit to follow all park rules, keeping their masks on as much as possible and being mindful of distance and interaction with other guests. Just as we said during the Halloween season, our collective cooperation and consideration is what’s going to allow some modicum of continuing normal routines and indulgences while keeping safe and healthy. Lets keep that spirit through the holidays and well into 2021, until this pandemic can be put down for good!

The Taste of Merry Farm runs select dates now through Sunday, January 3rd (barring unexpected government-issued shutdown orders). Most of the dates are already sold out, though more dates may be added similar to the Taste of Fall-O-Ween. The event runs noon through 8:00pm on Sundays and noon through 9:00pm on all other days. Online reservations and purchase of a tasting card are required for admission, though unused tasting cards can be used on future visits—provided that one has a separate, new tasting card for admission.