Carnation Cafe or Plaza Inn for outdoor ambience

[BriannaRuth]

Which is better for just soaking up Disney, especially sitting outside for DINNER?

 

[tenneycjt]

I love carnation cafe alot outside.

 

[Indiana Scott]

We alway eat at both and really, theyre both fantastic for just watching activety on MS.

 

[Drusilla99]

We eat dinner almost every time at the Plaza. The castle is in the background, reservations aren't needed, plenty of seating, good food selection, lots of people watching, and the parades go right by. Also, since it's a walk up only restaurant, my teens take off a lot after eating to do a ride and I can stay to people watch and have a nice seat with my beverage.

 

[5forMickey]

We've only done Carnation Station for breakfast but it's a must for our family, usually more than once a trip. I actually think it is very reasonably priced for the food also. I'd do both!!!!

 

[mom2rtk]

Lots more outdoor seating at the Plaza. CC is very small outside, so no guarantee you will be seated there. But PI is counter service and CC is table service, if that matters to you.

 

[tenneycjt]

How's the food at the Plaza for dinner? i've heard both bad and good?

 

[Indiana Scott]

How's the food at the Plaza for dinner? i've heard both bad and good?

I've never heard anything bad about PI but I'm sure somebody has something against it.
We like it very much. The chicken dinner is wonderful and the decoration and architecture are beuatifully executed. It's the only space n the parks designed by Lillian Disney.
We like to sit n the glass solarium and people watch Main Street. It's always quiet in there and makes for a nice break from the noise and activety of the parks.

 

[figment_jii]

If sitting outdoors is really important to you, I would opt for the Plaza Inn. Being a CS location, you can usually select your own table. Carnation is a TS location, so you have to request an outdoor table and they aren't always able/willing to take requests (I've only been there once when this happened, but the CM refused to take a seating request; most of the time, they'll just tell you it'll mean a longer wait). So at Carnation, there is a chance you could end up sitting inside. In terms of the view, both the Plaza Inn and Carnation have some tables with an excellent view of Main Street and the park, but other tables have an obstructed/obscured view. At Plaza Inn, I would avoid sitting where the shrubbery would block your view. At Carnation, you really don't get to pick the table, so you could end up in the front or the very back of the outdoor patio.

In terms of food, both are great! I really like the fried chicken dinner at the Plaza Inn; I'd say it's one of the most popular dishes (here on the Disboards). The pot roast is also pretty good.