Calling All Disney Experts!

[Jen0504]

Ok, well we are unable to get into Chef Mickey the entire week we will be at WDW. I made reservations at Crystal Palace for lunch instead. Is this a good alternative to Chef Mickey? If not PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let me know where would be another good place to go. I have 2 teenage sons, and they really wanted to go to Chef Mickey after seeing it on the Food Network. You guys are so knowledgable and great....I just know you will be able to help.

 

[disney queen]

do they like pooh and friends?

 

[disneygirlinnj]

If they dont' mind Pooh, Tigger, Pigglet, etc...then I say it's perfect. I've actually been reading a LOT lately that the food at Crystal Palace is a million times better than Chef Mickeys

 

[Tiggs14]

We did both while at Disney last week. Crystal Palace was very disappointing both for the food and the service. Chef Mickey's was really good both for the food and the service.

I'd say keep trying for a Chef Mickey's reservation...if you can't get that everyone in our party really enjoyed OHana. We did breakfast with Stitch, Lilo, Pluto and Goofy.

Good luck.

If they dont' mind Pooh, Tigger, Pigglet, etc...then I say it's perfect. I've actually been reading a LOT lately that the food at Crystal Palace is a million times better than Chef Mickeys

 

[webray]

You can see Mickey a lot of places in the parks and Chef Mickey's is NOT the place to go if you expect to feed teenage boys with good food. Our two year old grandson wouldn't even eat the food, lol. This place has really gone down hill over the years, not sure why people even book it any more.

Food is good at Crystal Palace.

 

[MelliJ]

I've been to Crystal Palace at least once a year, every year for the past 10+ years. I enjoy both the food and the atmosphere. I think over the years the selection has gotten a bit smaller, but the quality seems the same to me. Next week is my first try at Chef Mickey's, so we'll see. I can't imagine loving it so much that I would not return to CP.

 

[Poohbug]

I would stick with your CP plans. CP has much better food than Chef Mickeys and it is right in the park.

CP lunch/dinner is nice but my favorite is breakfast. French Toast is worth the price of admission alone but everything else is good also.

 

[ktlm]

We love CP both for the food and the characters, but it is Pooh and Friends rather than Mickey and the gang. If they really want a Mickey meal, Tusker house at AK has a character breakfast with Mickey, Donald, Daisy, Goofy (and we saw Pluto, but someone said he isn't always there). The food was really good. Frankly, we were very excited to eat dinner for the 1st time at Chef Mickey's on our last trip and we thought it was terrible (characters were good, but food was bad). Even my 3 year old DD doesn't care to go back there.

 

[tami82]

You need to be persistent and check many times throughout the day, especially around the 45 day mark and week or two leading up to your trip. I was lucky enough to get a 5:00 cancellation a week before our trip (this was our arrival day dinner so i gave up the 2nd night for which i had gotten a reservation around the same time). Also the week before we went they had put up a whole block of times for chef mickeys and a bunch of other restaurants, they do not put the seatings out all at once. I didnt think the food at CM was bad there were many things i enjoyed. If i had to pick a bad one it would be 1900 park fare.

 

[lucienne78]

'Ohanas breakfast has Lilo, Stitch, and Mickey Mouse. It gets rave reviews. I'm trying it for the first time in a week tomorrow

 

[Jen0504]

Thanks......I knew I could count on you guys! I'm going to keep the reservations at Crystal Palace for now, and pray that something comes up at Chef Mickey's before we go. I'll just check every day. We don't go until the first week in December, so that gives me plenty of time to be persistent.

 

[purpliequeen]

OK I will admit that I'm a girl, and thus I don't really understand how teenage guys think. I loved Crystal Palace, but that's because I like the Pooh characters.

The food is pretty much the same- they're buffet restaurants- and they're all going to be hit/miss. It totally depends on when you're there and how long the food's been sitting out. Most of the buffet restaurants (with the exception of the buffet restaurants in Epcot's World Showcase and Boma) serve American food- so it's the typical scramble eggs, pancakes, etc. for breakfast; roast beef, fish choice, veggies, mashed potatoes, etc. for dinner.

I would go for the ambience and characters:
http://allears.net/din/cb.htm

And keep trying for Chef Mickey's! Who knows... there may be a cancellation. Good luck!

 

[Best Aunt]

I took my teenage nephew to breakfast at Cape May Cafe (Beach Club) last year. I didn't tell him it was a character meal until after we sat down. Minnie came over and played tic-tac-toe with him on the placemat. He said that she cheated! I think he got a kick out of it. I'm not sure which characters are there now. We went on a Sunday morning. It was not a mob scene at all. I would definitely go back.