Character dining at Hotels

[Scottish_Maleficent]

Could someone tell me which hotel has character dining on Thursday and Friday evenings? Can they be booked in advance?
How do they compare to Disney?

Thanks

 

[macraven]

the website of UO has all the details on the character dining at the hotels. the info there would be current on the individual hotel websites.

all three have them.

i hate to say what night as i only go in october the last 3 years with prior to that june and oct trips. not sure if they flexuate on days of the week.

2 years ago, the character dining was on saturday at hrh.
other events go on besides character meals at the hotels for families and kids.

if you like luas, rph has that in the evenings also.
it's not a bad show or food at that one.

 

[coastergirls]

We did a scooby meal at Portifno last year I think it was on the saturday night. Have to say there is no comparison to Disney whatsoever. It is not a character meal as such it is a meal with some characters who wander through the restaurant every now and then. I would not do it again the meal was average overpriced for what it was, food was lukewarm and the service was terribly slow. That was at Trattoria . Have to say I can't think of a good thing to say about it!

 

[Scottish_Maleficent]

We did a scooby meal at Portifno last year I think it was on the saturday night. Have to say there is no comparison to Disney whatsoever. It is not a character meal as such it is a meal with some characters who wander through the restaurant every now and then. I would not do it again the meal was average overpriced for what it was, food was lukewarm and the service was terribly slow. That was at Trattoria . Have to say I can't think of a good thing to say about it!

Mmmm, maybe we won't bother then......

 

[Fan2CSkr]

The character meals at RPR - Islands Dining Room, HRH - The Kitchen and PBH - Trattoria del Porto.

Last month we had two delicious dinners at Trattoria del Porto and have eaten there many times prior. Islands Dining Room is one of our favorites and the servers are so very nice there as well as the atmosphere and food is great! The Kitchen at HRH has a great menu with some nice specials in a very comfortable setting.

We have caught a character meal there many times and the adults enjoyed it as much as the kids. I would say to absolutely give it a try. The characters do change but we have seen, scooby doo, shaggy, shrek, beetle bailey, spiderman, grinch and woody woodpecker. Others as well that I forget at the moment. The interaction has always been better than at Disney with more time spent at the tables.

So we had a different experience than coastergirls, but we have also experienced the character meals lots of times, Im sure they have off nights. The onsite restaurants also have other themed nights that are fun have a look at the schedule online at www.universalorland.com but remember to check closer to your dates as things can and do change.

http://www.universalorlando.com/ht_rpr_dining.html
http://www.universalorlando.com/ht_hrh_dining.html
http://www.universalorlando.com/ht_pbh_dining.html

 

[macraven]

very well said fan2csker.

i have not heard of many dissatisfied with the hotel character dinners.
most people rave about all the attention that is shown to their children.

the morning breakfast at IOA is great.
the food is ok but it is the interactions with the characters that impressed us.

 

[Scottish_Maleficent]

We did the breakfast at IOA last time and enjoyed it.
We'll keep our options open.

 

[2002Disneybride]

I need a little clarification from experienced US people!
This is from the RPH site...My DS is 2 so obviously he would be eating with us. They have a character meal on Mon and Tues--is that a buffet too?

You call and make reservations for these right?
Thanks in advance!

Daily Breakfast Buffet
Featuring an array of breakfast items and unlimited refills on coffee and juice.

Monday – Friday 7:00am – 11:00am Saturday & Sunday 7:00am – noon

Adults: $14.96
Children (ages 3-12): $7.25

Kids Dining Room
Featuring kiddie-size tables and chairs, flat screen TV playing cartoons, a Bali-style play area, and a special children’s buffet with all their favorites like chicken nuggets, macaroni & cheese, pizza, fruit, cookies and more. A great value at only $3.99 per child (ages 3-12)

Nightly Entertainment
Monday – Universal Orlando® Character Dining
Tuesday – Universal Orlando® Character Dining
Wednesday – Doctor Cardoo, our local Witch Doctor
Thursday – Face Painter & Balloonist
Friday – Hula Dancer & Strolling Musician
Saturday – Universal Orlando® Character Dining
Sunday - Hula Dancer & Strolling Musician

Islands Seafood Buffet
Served on Friday evenings from 5:00-10:00 pm, the buffet features a raw bar, seafood entrées, soups and salads, hand carved meats, crab legs and dessert!

Adults: $32.95
Children: $17.95 (ages 3-12)

Islands Dinner Buffet
Served on Saturday evenings from 5:00pm - 10:00pm, the buffet features a taste of the islands with a scrumptious spread of menu items including an array of salads, vegetables, beef, seafood, and poultry entrees and an action station.

Adults: $24.50
Children: $9.75 (ages 3-12)

 

[macraven]

make the ressie in advance. many times you can make it the day you want it for but if you are going when it is at peak/high season, make it in advance.

your child at age 2 would not be charged and eat off your plate.

saturday night would be more crowded than during the week.

 

[PlutoLuvr]

We've eaten dinner at the Kitchen at HRH many times, weren't looking to do a character meal -- at least the way WDW sets up their character meals -- and twice characters have stopped by our table out of nowhere. Once was Woody Woodpecker and another time was Scooby. They each hung out for a few minutes, waited for pictures, etc. Scooby was most interested in licking the women and looking for scraps from our plates

Our dinners at the Kitchen have always been superb, everything from filet mignon to southwest-style personal pizza.

I'm not fully caffeinated yet; I guess my point is: Even if you don't scope out a character meal per se, don't be surprised to have a character stop by your table when dining

Here are photos of our unexpected fuzzy guests

ETA: Sorry my post got so wide! Don't know how to fix that.

 

[Fan2CSkr]

PlutoLuvr, your pictures are great! Thanks for sharing them.

 

[jayster]

RPR has a good character dinner, Disneybride's response seems to sum it all up! great job!

 

[coastergirls]

Glad to hear our experience was a one off. I was so disappointed with it. I will definately try again elsewhere probably at RPR when we are there later in the year.

 

[Ub_Iwerks]

We ate at RPR's Islands. It was a buffet, but I think you also had the choice of ordering from the menu. The kids buffet and dining room was so neat.I wish we had eaten there earlier in our stay. Curious George was there and very fun. We were on our way to the park, so we didn't stay long.

The breakfast at IOA had great character interaction, but the food was not anywhere as good as the Disney character breakfasts.

 

[macraven]

the character breakfast at confisco grille in the early morning is not known for the food but the interactions of the characters.

they will spend as much time with you as you want them to.
lots of time for photo shoots with them. spidey will jump on your table and do his typical moves he is known for.

they talk to you and sometimes personalize your visit with them.

that is what we liked when we did it. heck the boys were so excited, they didn't eat much food at all. we did it for the thrill of talking to spidey and the gang. it was well worth it for our group

 

[rpbert1]

If you are staying at a Universal hotel ,do you need to make reservations for any dinner , or do you just show your room key to get a table

 

[Fan2CSkr]

If you are staying at a Universal hotel ,do you need to make reservations for any dinner , or do you just show your room key to get a table

Of the three hotels the only restaurant I ever make reservations at is Tchoup Chop and Mama Della. If its off season I only make it at Tchoup Chop. If you have a large party that could change things. Usually when you enter they ask if you are a guest, no need to show the key.

 

[rpbert1]

Thanks Fan2CSkr,
Just last year we arrived late in the evening and went to get something to eat and was told we needed a reservation for the restaurant , it was at either Jakes or Islands, but we got a table outside at the waterfall , so no problem with it.
was just wondering if reservations where needed , as we usually ate at Citywalk or at the parks last year, but will eat at the hotel a few of the days this year

 

[dpuck1998]

On our last trip to IOA/UO we ate Breakfast at confisco grille. The food was limited but the character interaction was the best we've had ANYWHERE. I drink the mickey kool-aide and love, but the interaction with spidey and my then DS 6 and 5 was AWESOME! I assumed is was because there were only 5-6 tables in the resturant when we were there, but sounds like this is the norm. I can't say enough good things about the spidey character at this meal. Hopefully this man gets paid well and sticks around!! Here is a photo that you might enjoy. My oldest was giving his brother rabbit ears and spidey busted him and did it to him too!

 

[Leanne1977]

On our last trip to IOA/UO we ate Breakfast at confisco grille. The food was limited but the character interaction was the best we've had ANYWHERE. I drink the mickey kool-aide and love, but the interaction with spidey and my then DS 6 and 5 was AWESOME! I assumed is was because there were only 5-6 tables in the resturant when we were there, but sounds like this is the norm. I can't say enough good things about the spidey character at this meal. Hopefully this man gets paid well and sticks around!! Here is a photo that you might enjoy. My oldest was giving his brother rabbit ears and spidey busted him and did it to him too!

Fab pic!!

We are hoping to book this for Sept. Could you give me a little more info on what was available for breakfast please. Thanks.