Back to "Boy" themes!

[DISNEY1975]

Its been a while since I last visited WDW. 2021 to be exact. My kids are now grown with youngest graduating from college next Spring. But, lucky me, I now have a grandson from my oldest, who will be 4 next year and I am planning his first trip to see Mickey and Friends! For the past 20 years, its been all about the princesses, Im clueless about what restaurants are themed more towards boys. Can anyone recommend some dining venues other than those with Mickey and Friends? Is Jake still at Hollywood and Vine? TIA

 

[jimmymc]

Tusker House has the standard Mickey and friends, but they're all in safari outfits, which might be cooler for the 4 year old.

Crystal Palace has Pooh and friends, if he's still into them.

Ohana breakfast has Lilo and Stitch

1900 Park Fare has the odd assortment of:

• Aladdin
• Cinderella
• Mirabel
• Princess Tiana

I think everywhere else is either Mickey and Friends or Princesses.

 

[BrianL]

It's not a character meal, but the Roundup Rodeo BBQ might be a good place. It's got general Woody/Toy Story themes. If you want a more expensive meal, Space 220 has kind of a mind-blowing atmosphere. If he's into space stuff, that could be a good one. He's probably a little young to appreciate Sci-Fi Dine-In, though that's another decent choice.

 

[DWillowBay]

T-Rex, in Disney Springs, was always my boy's favorite.

 

[Bellex917]

I think at that age he may have a real interest in an area that can easily be matched with a meal:

Space- Space 220
Animals- Coral Reef or Rainforest Cafe
Dinosaurs- TRex Cafe
Star Wars- Docking Bay 7 (quick service)

I don't think you can go wrong with the classic Disney characters though! Chef Mickeys was my son's fave, but I preferred Tusker House!

 

[Skippyboo]

Hollywood and Vine Breakfast is Fancy Nancy, Doc McStuffins, Vampirina and Goofy in his Roadster Racer suit.

Garden Grill is Farmer Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale plus you rotate through the Living w the land set. Family style too so you don’t have to get up and go to the buffet.

 

[sponica]

For character dining, my standbys are Garden Grill, OHana breakfast with Stitch, and Topolinos. We enjoyed the food at Tusker House when it was family style post COVID, but I won't go back until the kids are older. If I wanted to get up every 5 seconds to get someone food, I can do that at home for free .

My kids really enjoyed Sanaa....at least looking at the animals from one of the people pens before dinner. So if that's an option, I would do that.

 

[Skippyboo]

He might like Sci-Fi Dine in at Hollywood with the dining in the cars but I don’t know if the movie trailers might be scary to him.

Oga’s Canteen for a drink- plenty of non alcoholic beverages plus it’s super cool inside.

 

[GrumpyInPhilly]

T-Rex, in Disney Springs, was always my boy's favorite.

And the food is pretty good as well.

 

[80sTerraceCafeFan]

This post does bring up a valid point as we see things like Tom Sawyer Island and the shooting gallery go away, even if not dining. The pirate restaurant coming may bring some flavor outside of the often omnipresent princess theming. I know you asked for non Micky and friends, but honestly those characters are some of the most non-princess style that appeal to all kids - at least I enjoyed them as a young boy!

I would vote Chef Mickey's if kids are 4ish - the characters are the classic Mickey, Goofy, Pluto with Minnie, the atmosphere is lively (sometimes more than adults care for) - and the monorail is flying by is still cool

Garden Grill with Chip, Dale, Mickey Mouse, and Pluto in their farmer gear in the (slowly) spinning restaurant.

Coral Reef with the fish tanks could be interesting for them and Whispering Canyon with the fun servers and western theme may be a decent option.

Anything in GF would not be my choice

 

[blue oranda]

My boys are 5 and 3 now. When the older one was 3 we actual did do CRT and the princesses made a fuss with the boys. I took it off the list for now, but I think they still might like it for some reason, as you are still eating in the castle.

We did the Snow White dining at artist point too, they liked that one with the dwarfs. Eating in the “forest” was cool to them, and we all dressed up in peasant like Renaissance style outfits too to make it more fun for them.

Coral reef and space 220 were hits.
They didn’t like shiki-sai too much and the food choices were not good for them.

Sci-fi they liked eating in the car. The reel didn’t scare them.

For mickey and friends, they liked them all. You can’t go wrong with any of those. Pick the outfits you like the best.

 

[sponica]

We did the Snow White dining at artist point too, they liked that one with the dwarfs.

I always forget about this one, even though I've gone there. When my sister went, it was one of two character dining she did with her kids, the pictures of my at the time 8 year old nephew with the dwarves were hilarious.

 

[ShannyMcB]

My boys are big topolinos fans! If your grandson has any aversion to noise it is a nice alternative to chef Mickey’s.
Whispering canyon was a hit too. No characters but a fun vibe.

 

[Dug720]

Boys can like Princesses and girls can like Mickey & Friends (and other things like fish, dinos, etc.).

Interests don't have inherent genders.

 

[BrianL]

Boys can like Princesses and girls can like Mickey & Friends (and other things like fish, dinos, etc.).

Interests don't have inherent genders.

Of course, this is absolutely true, though it's probably safe to say that boys are more likely to like certain things above other things. Maybe at 4 years old it doesn't matter much. I certainly watched my share of "princess movies" as a kid - well the three of them that there were - and liked them just fine. I might not have been as keen on a Disney Princess dining experience though.

 

[Pens Fan]

When our son was little his favorites were Rainforest Cafe and Coral Reef. Thankfully he outgrew them by the tween years , but we never missed them when was younger. I will mention that if your grandson is sensitive to loud noises, Rainforest might not be the best choice. Some children can be frightened by the thunderstorm sounds, though it never bothered our son. He also got a kick out Sci-Fi Drive Inn, though he was a bit older at that point.

He was never really into meeting any characters - when he was five he asked me why I thought he'd want to go say hi to someone in a Mickey costume - so we never bothered with character meals. Still, I'd think any with the some of the Fab Five would be a hit with most children (Tusker House, Chef Mickey's, Hollywood and Vine for lunch or dinner, Topolino's breakfast, Garden Grill).