We’ve been attending Knott’s Berry Farm’s Boysenberry Festival since it started back in 2015. Each and every year, we talk about the imaginative food and the fantastic entertainment offerings. 9 years in and Knott’s isn’t slowing down! In 2024, Knott’s is offering up 90 different delectable dishes as well as world class entertainment for this years Boysenberry Festival. With Tied Up in Knott’s Art Show, Riverboat Revenge, Boysenberry Fun and Games, Boysenberry Pie Eating Contest, The Craft Fair, AND MORE…there is plenty to do during your visit to Boysenberry Festival.
Of course, we can talk about how much we love the shows and entertainment offerings… (always top-notch and a joy for all ages!) But Knott’s Boysenberry Festival, more so than any other event, is all about the food. We tried several different Boysenberry offerings over our visits, and what you’ll find here is our definitive list of food (that we have eaten so far) from this years Boysenberry Festival! We will start from our lowest ratings, to the best ratings! Speaking of which, the only way to truly enjoy the Boysenberry Festival to it’s fullest, is to get yourself a Tasting Card! For $55, you can get 6 tastings and it will 100% save you some money in the long run. Also, you can easily share some of these tastings with how large the serving sizes are!
Warm Spam Musubi with Boysenberry Soy Sauce
Going into the event this year, we were both super excited about this offering. This Duo definitely loves a good warm Spam musubi; Add boysenberry soy sauce… perfection! Unfortunately, on the day we went (on opening weekend) they did not yet have the boysenberry soy sauce and were serving it cold. While there was nothing wrong with this, still a delicious snack in our opinion, it was not the item that was advertised with the tasting card… and so we were left disappointed. In our honest opinion, if you are out of the key ingredient of one of your dishes, it would be better to just say you did not have it that day rather than give a poor substitution. We cannot give this one a rating, since we did not actually eat the dish being served on the tasting card. ?/10
Boysenberry Rimmed Espresso Martini with Lavender Sprinkles
If you like espresso martinis, you have come to the right place! This offering was way larger than either of us expected, and quite strong as well! The boysenberry rim and lavender sprinkles gave the drink a nice sweetness that was definitely needed. This offering is getting a low rating based on the fact that we really wish there was more boysenberry incorporated into the drink. Value wise… it is definitely worth a punch on your tasting card, but it was just a little too much espresso martini with too little boysenberry for this Duo. 3/10
Charcuterie Board with Boysenberry Mustard and Boysenberry/Apricot Jam
Nikki loves a good charcuterie board! The salty, savory, sweet mixture is the perfect accompaniment to a nice cold boysenberry beer or glass of wine. This offering was definitely simple and tasty! The cheese and meats went so nicely with the Boysenberry Mustard and Boysenberry/Apricot Jam. Value wise, it is definitely not the biggest bang for your buck, but still a nice treat. 6/10
Lemon Bar with Boysenberry Compote
What is this? A list of Nikki’s favorite things?!? You guessed it… Nikki LOVES a good lemon bar. (Anything lemon really…) This dessert was super sweet and delectable, with the perfect amount of tart boysenberry compote on top to cut though the richness of the lemon bar. While this dessert does not have the biggest serving size, this Duo were more than happy to share this snack as it was so rich. 7/10
Boysenberry Sausage and Hot Honey Pizza with Ricotta and Basil
You can almost always count on Prop Shop Pizzeria to serve up delicious food offerings during any Knott’s food event. The Boysenberry Sausage and Hot Honey Pizza with Ricotta and Basil was large and very tasty! The hot honey gave this dish a kick of flavor that was nicely balanced by the ricotta cheese. Our only critique of this super tasty dish needed WAY MORE Boysenberry! The boysenberry sausage was really the only element of boysenberry in this dish and while delicious, was not enough for us. This slice would have been absolute perfection if only the boysenberry was incorporated a bit more. 7/10
Boysenberry Bundt Cake
This was definitely one of our favorite desserts that we tried on our visit! The Boysenberry Bundt cake was lovely and moist, with just the right amount of boysenberry flavor infused throughout the whole thing. Once again, this was not exactly a shareable portion, but definitely worth a tasting in terms of boysenberry infusion and overall tastiness! 7/10
Boysenberry Elote
What can we say about the Elote with Boysenberry Butter that hasn’t already been said! We look forward to this offering every single year! Corn on the Cobb smothered in boysenberry butter and cheese?!?! yes please! Even though Gabe doesn’t like eating Corn on the Cobb (because he says it gets stuck in his teeth) he makes an exception for this one every time, that’s just how good it is. Alternatively, they do serve Esquite with the same elemtents. 8/10
Boysenberry BBQ Chicken Wings
Along the same lines as the Elote, the Boysenberry BBQ Chicken Wings are such a classic dish at this event. Deliciously cooked chicken absolutely coated with boysenberry BBQ sauce means that this classic dish is always a win in our books. At 5 pieces, this is another option that is not necessarily shareable… but definitely worth it. 8/10
Boysenberry Cider
*NOT PICTURED BECAUSE NIKKI DRANK IT TOO FAST FOR ME TO TAKE A PICTURE*
No notes! While we usually prefer to order our drinks a-la-carte, (normal size is larger than the tasting card size) We will forever highly recommend the Boysenberry Cider! slightly sweet and always refreshing, especially on warmer days in SoCal! 9/10
Boysenberry Blonde Ale
See notes for Boysenberry Cider! It wouldn’t be a trip to Boysenberry Festival without a nice refreshing Boysenberry Beer! Even Nikki, who is not a beer drinker, looks forward to this treat every year. And maybe a few times throughout the year as well… 9/10
Pork Loin with Mashed Potatoes and Boysenberry Mustard Sauce
Sleeper hit of the event for us! This portion size was epic! Definitely shareable and very tasty. We asked for an extra side of boysenberry mustard sauce and would absolutely recommend you do the same. 9/10
Mini Funnel Cake with Boysenberry Ice Cream
It’s a funnel cake with boysenberry ice cream on top! Need we say more?! Don’t let the title fool you, this was definitely not wat this Duo would consider “mini” by any stretch of the imagination! We shared this treat happily! 9/10
Double Stuffed Baked Potato with Boysenberry Pulled Pork
For us, this was the winner of the season! A twice baked potato with a heaping helping of pulled pork, all for one tasting! The value alone makes this worth it, but it was also so delicious! We went ahead and added sour cream and butter before digging in, and absolutely loved it. We highly recommend this dish, especially if you’re looking to share…or eat it all yourself. We won’t judge anyone! 10/10
OVERALL
Even with some minor hiccups, Boysenberry Festival remains one of our favorite events (outside of the spooky season) at Knott’s Berry Farm. Year after year they continue to delight with fresh culinary inventions and reimagined favorites. The quality and value also continue to soar; we definitely think one could happily spend a few days at Boysenberry Festival. The team’s passion and excitement for this event is so very apparent and is one of the many reasons it’s turned into a beloved spring tradition for so many people and families. This year, we decided to spend the night at the newly remodeled Knott’s Hotel and make a whole weekend out of it, and it was a magnificent idea!
Next year, in addition to all the incredible offerings, we hope to see an expansion of entertainment offerings during Boysenberry Festival. While we love the current slate, we’d love to see some new shows or variations of current shows. Knott’s always does a fantastic job at creating family driven entertainment offerings and we know could cook up something special.
Knott’s Boysenberry Festival runs daily, March 8th – April 7th | Fri-Sun, April 12th-28th, 2024
Theme Park Duo 