As our trip sadly entered the last full day, we had one of our favorite meals saved. We LOVE to have breakfast at Akershus with the princesses. We liked everything about this meal in the past so it was one of the first I booked 180 days out just to make sure we got it.
Epcot had an early entry that day so we got a Soarin fastpass right away and due to Test Track being closed the line went from 10 minutes in the stand-by to over an hour in about 12 minutes of real time while I was waiting for my family to catch up (our daughter had a toe injury as we were walking to the bus). The line for that ride all trip was CRAZY! Instead of waiting an hour, we rode Living with the Land again and killed some time shopping.
The counter serve restaurants were attaching a 20% off coupon to the receipts at different times to be used at Emporium, Mouse Gear, Mickeys of Hollywood, Keystone Clothiers, Island Mercantile or Disney Outfitters if you used it before noon. We basically did all our shopping at Emporium (and ran up a monster bill), but got 20% off which helped. Since we were leaving the next day, getting the items shipped to the hotel wasnt an option, so we just had it waiting at the gate when we left the park! If they have that deal going all the time, it is worth it. Just go in around 11:00 when the parks are getting crowded anyway and get your stuff a little cheaper. Our receipts said it is done August 15th but hopefully they will extend it.
We barely made it to the restaurant for our 9:45 reservation, but we were there in time, just a touch sweaty for the Belle picture. Here, if you didnt know, the picture is free for everyone.
We got seated fast and went up to the cold bar with various fruits, meats, cheeses and danishes. Here are a few selections:
After a few minutes, out platter came out which was eggs, sausage, bacon and the best breakfast potatoes ever. All of this was cooked perfectly. I have a recipe for the potatoes and once or twice a year we have princess breakfast for dinner at home just to hold us off between trips!
We are not on the adventurous side at all, so we never ate anything here but the breakfast, but I have first-hand testimony from friends that it is great also.
The character interaction here is very good always. The princesses have been on their game every time we go. This time we ran into the same issues as we did at Chef Mickeys with people cutting off the princesses for additional pictures and autographs which caused us to have to wait until after the bill was paid to meet Ariel. They had two different little parades while we ate where the KIDS were encouraged to go to the princess in THEIR ROOM and follow them around. Parents were told to stay seated and get pics from their seats, but a select few didnt listen and were bumping into people trying to eat and were grabbing the princesses after the parade, which caused Ariel to lose her place and skip us. It was no big deal because they went and got her, but it is irritating at any rate.
The service here as been wonderful the past two times, but this time I have to say it was below average. I think there were two reasons for this. The first was because we had a trainee there learning the ropes. His name was Epson and he was doing the best he could. The regular waiter, Geir, was getting a little annoyed with him. We had to ask for refills a couple of times. I am always willing to excuse this if it is someone earning their ears as the badge says. The kid was trying and I know how tough it is starting a new job when I speak the same language as everyone, but this kid has to deal with English, Spanish, Portugese, etc. Ill forgive them on that one.
The other service issue is that we felt rushed the whole time. This was the only restaurant where we had that feeling. They brought us our bill before our platter even came out! It felt almost like they were not bringing us refills so we would leave. A large part of this is we did have a 9:45 and they were trying to turn over the restaurant for lunch, but if you are going to charge nearly $100.00 for breakfast and accept 9:45 reservations, you better allow the people with that reservation the same time allotment as someone with an earlier reservation! If you cant do that, cut off the reservations at 9:00! I have heard a few complaints about the meals in the castle for feeling rushed, which (plus spending only one credit) is why we usually meet the princesses here.
That being said, the meal here was top-notch, and we will go back. I am on the fence as to whether we will try and do another late breakfast or get something closer to 9:00. The 9:00 would work because you could get there at 8:00, ride Soarin get a fastpass after riding then go to breakfast. It is also a great place to meet Belle, Cinderella, Aurora, Snow White and Ariel in a more personal way.
The service issues may have been a one time thing and they were not really that bad, I just felt I had to mention it because we never had that experience there before and am hoping it was an aberration, not a trend!
I think next time we go I'll tell them just to give me noodles, shrimp, chicken, and dessert. Need to make sure I have enough room for all my favorite stuff! 
There was also no entertainment at that time....
