Best Character Dining Experience?

[julesthecircusfreak]

Just wanted to hear some people's thoughts on the different character dining options at Disneyland. Trying to choose 1 to dine at for my trip in November and not sure on the differences. Thanks in advance.

 

[Geemo]

We feel we get the BEST & MOST character interactions at the Plaza Inn - Minnie and friends.
We use our MM thru the week and go to the first reservation time on Saturday morning.
With DL opening an hour before general public on Saturdays, we can have an hour in the CB while not burning valuable park time.
We check in at one of the gates nearest DTD, they check our names off the CB reservation list, scan our ticket for the day and we're of to the CB.

60 days out is key to getting the earliest reservation time.

Geemo

 

[Musthavecoffee]

We also like Plaza Inn! There is a ton of characters, food is pretty good.

 

[Metalliman98]

Just wanted to hear some people's thoughts on the different character dining options at Disneyland. Trying to choose 1 to dine at for my trip in November and not sure on the differences. Thanks in advance.

Minnie's at the Plaza Inn has the most characters. We did it this past Wednesday and the characters included: Minnie, Chip, Dale, Pooh, Eeyore, Captain Hook, Rafiki, Gepetto, Pinocchio, Max (Goofy's son), and the Penguin from Mary Poppins. Food is decent; French toast with banana caramel sauce is yummy, as is the chicken fried steak. As Geemo said, you can get the first breakfast and have the characters to yourself for a while. I don't recall the first reservation being available until 10 minutes after the park opens to the general public however.

Ariel's Grotto in DCA does a princess breakfast and lunch. Ariel greets everyone after check in and does photos, and then the rest of the princesses come by the tables throughout the meal. Tiana, Rapunzel, Snow White, Belle, and Cinderella are the princesses I've seen there. We've never done the breakfast, thought lunch food was decent.

At DLH there is Goofy's Kitchen, which does breakfast/brunch and dinner. This one has the best food in terms of quality and selection, but the characters are lacking; usually just Goofy, Chip, Dale, Minnie, and I think Pluto.

At the Grand Californian there is Storytellers Cafe for breakfast and lunch. This is probably the lamest one, the food is mediocre at best and the characters are Chip and Dale and some bears from some early 2000s Disney movie that no one remembers.

At Paradise Pier Hotel there is the Surf's Up breakfast with Mickey. Been several years since I did this one, but the food was decent, and besides Mickey there was Daisy, Minnie, and Stitch, and the characters do a dance party with the kids every half hour or so.

If I were going to rank them, it'd be: Minnie's, Ariel's, PPH, Goofy's Kitchen, and Storytellers.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

We've had good experiences at Goofy's Kitchen (very familiar characters -- a big plus with shy kids) and at Surf's Up (smaller room resulting in more character interaction).

 

[ParkHopper1]

Here is my experience based on several trips to each over the past 18 months:

Have done them all a few times with mostly adults and/or older teens and here is my take:

Goffy's Kitchen: Best Disney "experience" and food selection but food is rather bland to appeal to the masses. Not bad, just nothing great (except maybe for the PB&J Pizza!) Key characters but only make a few quick rounds since the place is so big. We have always left with just a "meh".

Plaza Inn: Bad cafeteria food...bland as bland could be and limited selections...worst food by far in my opinion. Characters can be hit or miss...mostly miss in my times there. Many say this has the best character interaction but the times we were there it was a ghost town.

PCH Grill: Decent selection and decent taste and have a bit more than just they typical breakfast staples. This is one of my favorite go to's for breakfast when taking newbies. By far have had the BEST character interaction as it is a smaller place and they get around more frequently and will spend more time with ya at the table.

Storytellers: Was pretty bad until recently...they seemed to have stepped up their game. Been twice in the last year and have been impressed with the food taste but not a huge selection and would now put them at the top for food taste, but characters can be dismal. Last two times I was there I thought "Gee, if I really cared about the characters in my character meal I would be ticked I paid for this"

Have not been to Ariel's in a while. Dealing with characters while eating that are not hiding behind a costume and I can see face to face creeps me out for some reason!


So all depends on what you want outta your meal:

Best food taste: Storytellers
Best Character interaction: PCH Grill
Best overall Disney "experience": Goffy's Kitchen
Best to avoid (in my opinion): Plaza Inn

 

[Astylla]

We've only done Plaza Inn at DL , but it was fantastic. We did the first seating and had so many great interactions and photos even just being two adults. We never felt rushed and had repeat opportunities with characters!

 

[hootey]

We have always had the most character interaction at Goofy's. Of course Goofy, as well as Pluto, Minnie, Chip, Dale, Gepetto, Ariel, Cinderella, Snow White, Tianna, Belle, and Max. The best way to book character meals is to book your trip thru "Walt Disney Travel Company". Not only will they take care of your hotel reservations but, they will book all your dining reservations as well. Simply tell them which characters you would like to meet and they will book the appropriate days and times. We book ALL our trips to DL thru WDTC

 

[mom2rtk]

We have always had the most character interaction at Goofy's. Of course Goofy, as well as Pluto, Minnie, Chip, Dale, Gepetto, Ariel, Cinderella, Snow White, Tianna, Belle, and Max. The best way to book character meals is to book your trip thru "Walt Disney Travel Company". Not only will they take care of your hotel reservations but, they will book all your dining reservations as well. Simply tell them which characters you would like to meet and they will book the appropriate days and times. We book ALL our trips to DL thru WDTC

Goofy's used to be our favorite too. But since they changed the character line-up, not so much. Now you meet Goofy, Pluto, Minnie, Chip and Dale. And that's ONLY Goofy, Pluto, Minnie, Chip and Dale. No more random fun surprise characters.

It was a really disappointing change.

Also as an FYI, character meals cannot be booked until 60 days out. If you are booking your hotel reservation before 60 days out, they won't be able to book dining for you yet.

 

[MinMou]

We were at DL last October, and did 3 (!) character meals.
We skipped Ariel's Grotto, because our little one is all boy and this one is all princesses.
We also skipped Storyteller's because the only characters our son would have recognized were Chip and Dale, and we figured he would meet them elsewhere.

We did Goofy's Kitchen for dinner the night we arrived, and our little guy's eyes almost popped out of his head when he saw Goofy standing there to greet people. Needless to say, it was hard to get him to focus on eating! We went to Plaza Inn the next morning, and I got an early reservation so that we could get into the park before the crowd. Even though they don't take a picture of you with Minnie when you enter, I think the number of characters you meet and the amount of interaction you have with them makes up for that. Our last day, we did breakfast at the PCH Grill. We never got to see Daisy because there was a fire drill while we were there! But we had fun meeting the other characters here, and the Hawaiian theme.

If you are interested in the food, I can't really tell you much. None of it was memorable for being wonderful or terrible. We found things for our semi-picky toddler, and I found things that met my own restrictions. We were really more focused on the Disney experience, and all 3 of these places provided that.

DH thought that the Plaza Inn was the best place for really getting to interact with the characters. It certainly had the friendliest atmosphere, and maybe it was because we saw more of the face characters instead of the fuzzy characters. Peter Pan sat down nearby and talked with everyone. I explained to Peter that our son wasn't as familiar with him as he was with Jake, and Peter Pan started asking him about Jake and the Neverland Pirates.

I would say that if you had to pick one, you need to decide who you need to see and what else you want to do in the parks.
*If you don't want to spend much time outside the parks, then stick to Plaza Inn (DL) or Ariels' Grotto (DCA).
*If you want a dinner experience, then you have Ariel's Grotto and Goofy's Kitchen to pick from.
*If you want to meet Mickey, then your only choice is PCH Grill. The only other place you are guaranteed to see him in the park is in his house in ToonTown, and there is less of a wait here. But the Meet and Greet at ToonTown is free.
*Those who have an early reservation at the Plaza Inn can go through a special gate and get into the park faster. Bring a copy of your reservation with you though.
*You can get special access to World of Color by dining at Ariel's Grotto, if you buy the package.
*CharacterCentral.net can tell you what characters have been seen at each of the venues.

Whatever you decide, have a great time!

 

[mom2rtk]

We were at DL last October, and did 3 (!) character meals.
We skipped Ariel's Grotto, because our little one is all boy and this one is all princesses.
We also skipped Storyteller's because the only characters our son would have recognized were Chip and Dale, and we figured he would meet them elsewhere.

We did Goofy's Kitchen for dinner the night we arrived, and our little guy's eyes almost popped out of his head when he saw Goofy standing there to greet people. Needless to say, it was hard to get him to focus on eating! We went to Plaza Inn the next morning, and I got an early reservation so that we could get into the park before the crowd. Even though they don't take a picture of you with Minnie when you enter, I think the number of characters you meet and the amount of interaction you have with them makes up for that. Our last day, we did breakfast at the PCH Grill. We never got to see Daisy because there was a fire drill while we were there! But we had fun meeting the other characters here, and the Hawaiian theme.

If you are interested in the food, I can't really tell you much. None of it was memorable for being wonderful or terrible. We found things for our semi-picky toddler, and I found things that met my own restrictions. We were really more focused on the Disney experience, and all 3 of these places provided that.

DH thought that the Plaza Inn was the best place for really getting to interact with the characters. It certainly had the friendliest atmosphere, and maybe it was because we saw more of the face characters instead of the fuzzy characters. Peter Pan sat down nearby and talked with everyone. I explained to Peter that our son wasn't as familiar with him as he was with Jake, and Peter Pan started asking him about Jake and the Neverland Pirates.

I would say that if you had to pick one, you need to decide who you need to see and what else you want to do in the parks.
*If you don't want to spend much time outside the parks, then stick to Plaza Inn (DL) or Ariels' Grotto (DCA).
*If you want a dinner experience, then you have Ariel's Grotto and Goofy's Kitchen to pick from.
*If you want to meet Mickey, then your only choice is PCH Grill. The only other place you are guaranteed to see him in the park is in his house in ToonTown, and there is less of a wait here. But the Meet and Greet at ToonTown is free.
*Those who have an early reservation at the Plaza Inn can go through a special gate and get into the park faster. Bring a copy of your reservation with you though.
*You can get special access to World of Color by dining at Ariel's Grotto, if you buy the package.
*CharacterCentral.net can tell you what characters have been seen at each of the venues.

Whatever you decide, have a great time!

Just an FYI, but Ariel's Grotto is not a character meal at dinner. Goofy's Kitchen is the only dinner character meal.

 

[tlovesdis]

Minnie's Breakfast at the Plaza Inn! We did it a few weeks ago and loved it!!! We saw Minnie, Pooh, Eeyore, Fairy Godmother, Max, Perla, Captain Hook, Rafiki, Chip, and Dale! They came to our table probably 4 or 5 times! It was fantastic! The kids loved it. The food was good too! I am a low carber so it was great for me, veggie and meat omelette, some bacon and some fruit! YUM!!!

 

[MinMou]

Just an FYI, but Ariel's Grotto is not a character meal at dinner. Goofy's Kitchen is the only dinner character meal.

Thank you - I did not know that!

 

[ParkHopper1]

Thank you - I did not know that!

Many of the same restaurants that do character meals will also serve lunch and dinner, but no characters.

 

[ADisneyFamilyof5]

We love Goofy's even after changing from the random characters to the set 5 as PP stated. We found Mickey's at PPH to have great character interaction but the worst food. And Storyteller's had okay interaction and food, but the characters aren't that well known. I had my boys watch Brother Bear a few nights before we left on our trip. They loved the movie and enjoyed the characters more.

We will be doing Goofy's and Minnie's on our trip in November. I was wondering what is the best time to go to Minnie's if you don't want the first seating? We will be dining on EMH at DCA, so I was thinking of a 10:00 reservation time. Will that be leave enough time for characters before they switch over to lunch?

 

[GatorChris]

We liked PCH Grill because you got to meet Mickey. For that reason, it's really the best for character meals. Goofy's Kitchen had a really really good brunch, so food wise, I really liked this place. But the character interaction was just so-so. Ariel's Grotto has good tasting food, and the princess interaction is what you'd expect. But it seemed really pricey, though it may be the same as the others. Storytellers was a big disappointment. Food was just OK, and the character interaction was bad. I really expected more because we love Brother Bear, and the Meeko-Chip&Dale team has been good at other character meals at WDW. But this just seemed like I paid a lot of money for some bananas, cereal, and guys in furry costumes that didn't care.

My biggest beef with all of the character meals is this: NO DONALD DUCK!!! Are you kidding me?!?!? WDW has Chef Mickey's and Donald's Safari Meal at the Tusker House. What does Disney offer.....3 different character meals with Chip & Dale. C'mon, Disney! You can do better than this.

 

[mom2rtk]

We liked PCH Grill because you got to meet Mickey. For that reason, it's really the best for character meals. Goofy's Kitchen had a really really good brunch, so food wise, I really liked this place. But the character interaction was just so-so. Ariel's Grotto has good tasting food, and the princess interaction is what you'd expect. But it seemed really pricey, though it may be the same as the others. Storytellers was a big disappointment. Food was just OK, and the character interaction was bad. I really expected more because we love Brother Bear, and the Meeko-Chip&Dale team has been good at other character meals at WDW. But this just seemed like I paid a lot of money for some bananas, cereal, and guys in furry costumes that didn't care.

My biggest beef with all of the character meals is this: NO DONALD DUCK!!! Are you kidding me?!?!? WDW has Chef Mickey's and Donald's Safari Meal at the Tusker House. What does Disney offer.....3 different character meals with Chip & Dale. C'mon, Disney! You can do better than this.

We love Chip and Dale. A lot. But GEEZ, they are over represented at the character meals! And seriously, I feel like I get ripped off every time they account for 2 of the characters at a given meal. I really feel cheated at Goofy's Kitchen now. They used to have such a great variety of characters. And now 2 of the 5 are identical except for the nose (and embroidered name on their jacket!)

I would sure love it if Donald showed up as one of the fab 5 and Chip and Dale alternated meals or nights or something!

 

[jevs]

Goofy's for us, hands down.

 

[Arielismyfave]

We ate at Plaza Inn and Goofy's Kitchen our last trip.

The character interaction at PI was awesome. We saw 9 characters - some rare like Suzy the mouse from Cinderella! The food was standard breakfast buffet. Good but nothing to rave about.

The food at GK had a variety of breakfast and lunch foods. LO actually wanted seconds of some! There were 5 characters and we almost missed Goofy since he wasn't originally at the beginning photo op.

We did 2 days at DL and 1 day at DCA. I originally also had Ariel's Groto but ended up cancelling due to limited time at DCA.

 

[GatorChris]

We love Chip and Dale. A lot. But GEEZ, they are over represented at the character meals! And seriously, I feel like I get ripped off every time they account for 2 of the characters at a given meal. I really feel cheated at Goofy's Kitchen now. They used to have such a great variety of characters. And now 2 of the 5 are identical except for the nose (and embroidered name on their jacket!)

I would sure love it if Donald showed up as one of the fab 5 and Chip and Dale alternated meals or nights or something!

Maybe it's time to do one of those online petitions that keep going around. Sure, I'd probably get about 17 signatures, but at least Disney would know we need more Donald and less C&D.