Character dining with boys

[xrygrl0500]

Our family is making our first trip WDW this June. I have two nephews 5 and 10 years old. Which character breakfast is the best for them? Thank you

 

[dawgawesome5]

Crystal Palace if you want to get an early start in the park and then there is Chef Mickey's. My boys , 17,12,9 those are their two top character breakfasts.

 

[lovedworld]

We were at Disney last September with our 9 Grandchildren ages 1 to 11, four of them boys. We did alot of character dining because we had the free dining plan. They all seemed to enjoy Chef Mickey's alot with Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy. Your boys might also enjoy the Crystal Palace at the Mk with Winnie the Pooh and friends, it was really fun too. We also did the Hollywood and Vine with the characters from the disney playhouse like Little Einstens which they liked. One more suggestion, try not to get the reservations too late when they are tired, they will enjoy it more. Hope this helps. You will have so much fun.

 

[TJDisneymama]

I think Tusker hOuse at AK would be cool for boys. They're all in their safari gear. Donald is the character out front for photos and then inside is Mickey, Daisy, and we had Goofy last year, not sure if he's always there.

 

[anjalee6]

This information is coming directly from a boy (almost 6). He said Garden Grill is his favorite followed by Tusker House and Chef Mickey's.

 

[CapnJacksGirl]

Don't forget about 'Ohana breakfast too. Stitch is a lot of fun and really plays it up with everyone. And the food is great too!

 

[xrygrl0500]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I am so excited.

 

[one2admire]

DS favorites were Tusker House and 'Ohana. He liked Chef Mickey's too but DH and I decided we won't be returning there.

 

[iamadisneynut]

Likely not the older one, but is the 5 year old into Jake? My little guy is, and he's at Hollywood and Vine now at Hollywood Studios for their character meal. I would suggest Tusker House too, it's a great one. We did the Ohana breakfast this past trip and I loved it!! Stitch is too funny, he stuck my son's straw up his nose, was great fun!

 

[gabzee]

I would suggest either Chef Mickey or Tusker House to see some of the Fab 5 and if they like Pooh and Friends I would suggest Crystal Palace as well.

 

[KimberlyE]

We always do a character breakfast so we can get into the parks early. I think everyone has already mentioned the ones that I would recommend. My son enjoys The Crystal Palace and O'Hana's the most.

But if you are looking to get into Epcot early, you would have to eat at Akershus with the Princesses. My son obviously isn't interested in Princesses but he does enjoy this meal because he corners Snow White and asks her loads of questions about the Seven Dwarves and he quizzes Ariel to find out if she knows Nemo. Snow White was so sweet answering his questions last trip that she drew some pictures of the mine cars in his book and even imitated Sneezy for him! So even if you do wind up seeing some Princesses at your meal, boys can still have a memorable time.

 

[footballmouse]

I have 3 boys and we usually go to Chef Mickey's. Ohana was cute but we didn't like that style of food service. This Sept. we are going to Cape May, we liked that the last time we were there.

 

[Mkrop]

We like Tusker House, Cape May Cafe and Chef Mickey in that order for breakfast.

For dinner we also enjoyed Garden Grill

 

[iloveeeyore]

We always do a character breakfast so we can get into the parks early. I think everyone has already mentioned the ones that I would recommend. My son enjoys The Crystal Palace and O'Hana's the most.

But if you are looking to get into Epcot early, you would have to eat at Akershus with the Princesses. My son obviously isn't interested in Princesses but he does enjoy this meal because he corners Snow White and asks her loads of questions about the Seven Dwarves and he quizzes Ariel to find out if she knows Nemo. Snow White was so sweet answering his questions last trip that she drew some pictures of the mine cars in his book and even imitated Sneezy for him! So even if you do wind up seeing some Princesses at your meal, boys can still have a memorable time.

This post raises an excellent point. No matter which meal(s) you choose, it is important to engage the characters! Don't wait for them to do too much more than take photos with you unless you actively participate in questioning, teasing, challenging, etc. We have had excellent interactions with all of the characters we have started conversations with. We say stuff like "Hey, Goofy, why isn't this place called Chef Goofy's?" My son (now 15) tells the princesses if they ever get tired of "Prince Charming," he's available and so on. It sends the signal to the characters that you want more than a picture and you're willing to play...they tend to spend more time that way.

My son loves Chef Mickey's dinner (for the monorail view, the comfort food, i.e. kids buffet food) and he insists on going our first night every trip. We are doing Crystal Palace breakfast this trip because we can't find Eeyore in the park anymore, and we all love him. I know he would also love 'Ohana breakfast, though we haven't tried it yet.

 

[xrygrl0500]

I want to thank everyone for their suggestions. Last night the boys decided that we will do Tuker House on our first full day of vacation.

 

[stormer]

My boys love O'Hana for breakfast and Garden Grill for dinner.

 

[minniejoy]

Just got back last night! Favorite was the Ohana Breakfast( breakfast is AMAZING!!!). Then the Garden Grill. Unfortunately when we went to Tusker House at night they weren't there....

 

[Familyof4lovesDW]

According to DS8, garden grill dinner, ohana breakfast, chef mickeys dinner.

At 5 & 10 are they into the pooh characters? If not and you cannot get an ADR before park opening, I would skip it.