Are character breakfast buffets basically the same?

[luckycharliegirl]

1. PCH Grille, Goofy's Kitchen, and Storyteller's Café.... what are reasons I would choose one over another? From what I see, the menus are basically the same. Looks like the characters outfits are different but that doesn't matter to me. So how do I choose one??? Thanks!

 

[Bev317]

I think it depends on what characters you want to see. We picked PCH Grille because it has Mickey and Minnie.

 

[amyg1975]

Yes, it is all about the characters at each. However, my husband loves Surf's Up with Stitche because they have chilaquiles, which the other places don't have!

 

[ImDMous]

Storytellers has chilaquiles also, and they are delicious! Probably the same recipe, but you never know....

We've only done Storytellers for breakfast, the food seems much better there than the cafeteria stuff at Plaza or Goofy's. We really like PCH Grille for dinner though, maybe we'll give breakfast a try some time.

 

[amyg1975]

Good to know about Storytellers, that is the one character meal we haven't done!

 

[agamble]

I think all the menus vary slightly with Minnie's being the most basic and Goofy's being the most elaborate. Ariel's is different from all of the others because it is a sit down meal with a limited menu you order from. We have only been to Minnie's (twice) and Storyteller's (once). I'm trying to decide whether we return to Minnie's for our trip or pick something else. Minnie's is in Disneyland, it's a nice location, and there are a ton of characters for kids to meet. The breakfast is basic fruit, waffles/sausage/potatoes, pastries, and omelet station with serve your own drinks. Storyteller's was a very similar buffet with a few extra items and an actual server who took drink orders. But Minnie's is the only one where you can meet more than 5 characters, and it's the only one in Disneyland. Mickey's and Goofy's meals include characters that we can meet at the parks, so they're not a big draw for us. Ahh...decisions, decisions. I think no matter which one you choose you'll enjoy your experience. Minnie's is slightly cheaper than the others.

 

[luckycharliegirl]

Thanks, agamble. I didn't see Minnie's on the list? I heard food is good at Goofy's and when my husband heard there is smoked salmon, he was sold. So on the list, it goes!

 

[Malcon10t]

The food is better at Storytellers. But I prefer the atmosphere at Surf's Up. There is a wider selection of food at Goofy's than the other places. At Goofy's, Surf's Up, and Storytellers, you have a server to refill drinks, clear plates, etc.

Minnie's can be fun, but characters can be hit or miss (out of 5 visits, 2 have have had great character interaction, 1 we saw 4 characters, and 2 we only saw 2 characters in 90 mins.) No servers at the table. Occasionally, 1 might stop by to pick up dirty plates, but usually only after you have a stack or ask someone.

 

[agamble]

Thanks, agamble. I didn't see Minnie's on the list? I heard food is good at Goofy's and when my husband heard there is smoked salmon, he was sold. So on the list, it goes!

There are a total of 5 character meals. I notice the list you have is the list of the three from the hotels. Minnie's is located in Disneyland at the Plaza Inn and DCA has a character meal with Ariel and other princesses. Goofy's offers dinner, but apparently not lunch. I didn't realize this until someone pointed it out recently. Ariel's offers breakfast and lunch. The other three only offer breakfast.

 

[Disney Dudette]

We had breakfast at Minnie's on our last trip and we saw a lot of characters who all took lots of time at our table with our girls. Minnie Mouse, Pooh, Eeyore, Gipetto, Fairy Godmother, Tigger, and Captain Hook... Malcon10t, I cannot believe you only saw 2 characters in 90 min That is discouraging! We have a reservation for Minnie's for our April trip and now I am curious if that is a frequent experience and we just got lucky the last visit? Anybody else see that few of characters? We may consider giving Storytellers a try instead..

 

[VandVsmama]

We've done Minnie's character breakfast and saw 7 characters and some of them around to visit more than once. We are going back to Minnie's on our next trip this June

 

[lcp9]

Based on our experiences, Goofy's kitchen is the best selection of food (esp for picky toddlers), but kind of a schlep if you're already in the parks for the day. Ok characters, Minnie is the most important to one of my kids and she's always been there. Plaza Inn has the best selection of characters and ok food, awesome that it's in the parks already so a late breakfast doesn't take a big chunk of the day. Ariel's is great for princesses but the food was terrible - we prefer to just go meet princesses rather than pay for the food there, but it is nice to get 4 (or 5) in one go.

 

[Mysteryincorp]

We've been to Minnie's breakfast twice and both times had amazing character interactions and saw at least 5 characters. Gepetto even took my daughter out of the restaurant to meet Pinocchio, he was fantastic and really went above and beyond. I will say both times, Minnie was the least interactive both times, it really was just st a quick photo, move along (you meet her when entering the restaurant). Food was great too, not as big of as election as the others but still really good.

 

[luckycharliegirl]

There are a total of 5 character meals. I notice the list you have is the list of the three from the hotels. Minnie's is located in Disneyland at the Plaza Inn and DCA has a character meal with Ariel and other princesses. Goofy's offers dinner, but apparently not lunch. I didn't realize this until someone pointed it out recently. Ariel's offers breakfast and lunch. The other three only offer breakfast.

Ok thanks!! I didn't realize Minnie's was Plaza Inn.
Thank you all for all the help!

 

[Malcon10t]

We've enjoyed the interaction at Surf's Up the best. You usually will see Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Stitch, and Daisy. We have also gotten Goofy and Max on a couple trips.

 

[VandVsmama]

Based on our experiences, Goofy's kitchen is the best selection of food (esp for picky toddlers), but kind of a schlep if you're already in the parks for the day. Ok characters, Minnie is the most important to one of my kids and she's always been there. Plaza Inn has the best selection of characters and ok food, awesome that it's in the parks already so a late breakfast doesn't take a big chunk of the day. Ariel's is great for princesses but the food was terrible - we prefer to just go meet princesses rather than pay for the food there, but it is nice to get 4 (or 5) in one go.

I agree about Ariel's. Really overpriced for what you get plus all the princesses have time to do is say a quick hello, sign an autograph, take a picture, and move onto the next table. When we went to Minnie's breakfast, the characters played little games with my kids and got them to laugh a lot, Minnie came over to our table twice and gave us lots of kisses...but maybe it had something to do with my kids' hair was done up in 2 buns kind of like Minnie Mouse ears.

Regardless of which character meal you go to, I have noticed something kind of interesting. Guests who don't really "talk" or interact much with the character will get a quick hug, autograph, and picture. Guests who talk to the character and have a conversation (which is possible even if the character can't talk out loud & can only talk with gestures) end up with a much better experience.

 

[GeneralTso]

Goofy's is the biggest and loudest (dancing, high energy). It's got the most food choices as well. This is our favorite. Characters rotate so you most likely will see more than 5.
Our second favorite is Plaza Inn. If you've got girls though, Ariel's is the way to go. Princesses galore. Usually more than 5 as well if you're there over an hour.

The interaction at Surf's Up is really cute, beach theme, etc.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I agree about Ariel's. Really overpriced for what you get plus all the princesses have time to do is say a quick hello, sign an autograph, take a picture, and move onto the next table. When we went to Minnie's breakfast, the characters played little games with my kids and got them to laugh a lot, Minnie came over to our table twice and gave us lots of kisses...but maybe it had something to do with my kids' hair was done up in 2 buns kind of like Minnie Mouse ears.

Regardless of which character meal you go to, I have noticed something kind of interesting. Guests who don't really "talk" or interact much with the character will get a quick hug, autograph, and picture. Guests who talk to the character and have a conversation (which is possible even if the character can't talk out loud & can only talk with gestures) end up with a much better experience.

At WDW, my son gabbed to all the characters, telling them about the pins on his lanyard, mom's Minnie fingernails, which rides he rode, etc. Minnie came over to see my fingernails. Rapunzel and Flynn told him all about searching for Pascal when he mentioned his Disney Kingdoms game. The more interactive you are, the more they respond in kind.

 

[luckycharliegirl]

Malcon10t, thank you for the pic!! looks super cute!

 

[Winnowill]

We've always gotten characters galore at Plaza Inn. No fewer than 9, sometimes as many as 12. I filled up all but two pages of an autograph book there once.