Restaurants for Toddlers

[Tzbwilsonfam]

I know Disney caters to families, and every restaurant at WDW besides V&A is "kid friendly" but my question is this......

We are going to be celebrating our son's 2nd birthday this April at WDW. I'm considering Chef Mickey's for Breakfast and my hubby things Coral Reef is a good idea since it has the aquarium.

I'm also considering Mickey's Backyard BBQ. Does anyone have experience or advice with this particular eatery with kiddos his age??

Any other suggestions??

TIA

 

[pumba]

we always decided to take our grandkids to buffets ..so that they didnt have to wait for food to be ordered before they could eat...we just loved the atmosphere of Crystal Palace for dinner and we still tend to go back to that ..also one that the food would be pretty fast and ready is Ohana...nothing spectacular for the kids to do..but the food and the amount that comes out ...wow...also the wait person asked if we wanted a kids meal also..but the grandkids loved the food that was offered....Tusker House for breakfast is good too..kids loved Mickey and pluto and some of the rest...

 

[KateP85]

I absolutely hate Chef Mickeys, but I agree that a buffet is a good idea with a toddler since they can get food straight away. Tusker House and Crystal Palace have been popular with my toddler, with good food options for kids and adults and good character interaction. Hollywood and Vine also does a character breakfast with characters from Disney Junior, if your son likes those shows.

 

[jennab]

We honestly ate where we wanted and just brought DS along! He had fun looking at different things everywhere. I felt like service was usually pretty quick when they see you have a child and don't want to just sit around. We did do some fun character meals like H&V (he loved to get up and dance) plus Chef Mickey's, Tusker, Crystal Palace, Cape May, Ohana.

 

[DMCastner]

Things to consider with your toddler: patience, noise, and energy level. DS5 was not the type of child where we could do a full park day and then expect him to sit through dinner (no matter if it was buffet, table, or QS) and sit patiently. He was tired, we were tired.. it just wasn't a good combination. However, I'd consider this with DS1 whose temperament is the opposite of DS5's. In making your ADRs I'd definitely factor in your child's napping times and patterns. Breakfast at Chef Mickey's is crazy but the kiddos love it. We've also enjoyed Ohana breakfast, Garden Grill dinner (AYCTE, family style so everything comes to you and has characters), and Whispering Canyon (we've done lunch and dinner).

 

[kastoney]

I'm gonna go with @jennab here and say he really doesn't care. We did a bunch of character meals when my daughter was 2 (note I'm not a fan in general) and realized she could of cared less if we were eating with characters or eating at a signature restaurant. She was in disney to ride some rides and food was just a nuisance from her mission. So for us this meant eat where we want and let her follow ; )

 

[Ava]

We just got back from a 10-day trip, and the best meal for my 2-year-old by far was Hollywood & Vine. She LOVED the dancing/singing/parading and just had an absolute blast. And all the adults thought the food was good. H&V sometimes gets bad reviews for food on here, but we all enjoyed it. (We also had one of the first lunch seatings, which may have helped since all the food was very fresh.)

She also really liked Crystal Palace & Tusker House, since she knows/loves all those characters. (We also did Akershus, but that was more for my DD6. DD2 doesn't really know Princesses yet, except Elsa. LOL.)

I would second the advice above to do breakfast or lunch instead of dinner with a toddler. Also, make the reservation for 15-30 minutes before his normal meal time so he's eating by the time he's accustomed to; even if you check in 10-15 minutes before your ADR time, you'll most likely have to wait a bit to be seated.

 

[pezaddict231]

Our DD's favorite is Hoop de Doo, she loves the show and has seen it twice now. I would see how he does with the characters first, some kids are scared of them. It takes DD a few days to warm up to them. She also really loved lunch at Sanaa, she loved the animals and the pizza lol. We've done signature meals with her and she enjoys those too, so it doesn't need to be a character meal to be fun.

 

[AtlantaDisneyDreamer]

We took our 2 year old to Cape May breakfast and she loved it. She ate a lot, and she LOVED meeting Mickey, Minnie, and Donald. I think it may depend on the characters your toddler likes. We knew ours loved Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, so we focused on meeting those characters. Cape May was also not a loud madhouse, as we have heard Chef Mickey's described. It is also cheaper, if paying OOP.

Some toddlers also love Crystal Palace, if they care about Winnie the Pooh.

 

[HopperFan]

I know Disney caters to families, and every restaurant at WDW besides V&A is "kid friendly" but my question is this......

We are going to be celebrating our son's 2nd birthday this April at WDW. I'm considering Chef Mickey's for Breakfast and my hubby things Coral Reef is a good idea since it has the aquarium.

I'm also considering Mickey's Backyard BBQ. Does anyone have experience or advice with this particular eatery with kiddos his age??

Any other suggestions??

TIA

I would go with CM and Mickey's BBQ for his age but I probably would not do Coral Reef for the following reasons:
- It has always had a reputation of making you wait long after your ADR to get seated. Whether they over book or just can't figure out the length folks stay at their tables I don't know but the lobby is always packed with folks sitting (even on floor) waiting to get in. Not exactly enjoyable with a toddler, especially if they are hungry.
- There are a limited number of tables next to the aquarium. All other tables are set up in stadium style seating. The expectation is every table has a view and you are to sit at your table, there is no up close viewing area. If you are put at a table far away, it may be difficult for him to be that far.

At his age and for his birthday I would stick with places he'll have lots of fun and do Character Meals while he's young, or provide some additional perk, like AKL restaurants where you can also explore the animals.

 

[jacknsally19]

At 2 my DD loved Mickey with her entire being, so we did Chef Mickeys for her 2 yr bday. We did an early dinner at 5. She loved it so much - she basically exploded with joy. There are pictures of Mickey everywhere which she totally freaked out about - I mean the theming is so on point. They gave her a birthday card with the signatures of all the characters and a Mickey cupcake. So I think it's pretty awesome from a 2 yr old perspective. I do think Coral Reef is a nice idea if you are concerned that your kid will be scared of characters. Hollywood and Vine is a great option too particularly if your child likes Disney Jr. The other restaurant that my DD loved at that age was Biergarten. We timed it so we dined while the polka band played and she got to get up and dance.