Character meal for 3 and 1 year old DD?

[noname70]

Hi - I was looking for advice on my character meal decision for our next trip. We did Play and Dine at Hollywood and Vine with Jo-Jo on our last trip and it was a HUGE hit (although our youngest was only 3 months).

Anyway, we wanted to try a new meal (in the parks). My oldest loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse as much as she loves Princesses so I'm having a hard time deciding between a face character meal and a ''cartoon character and friends" type meal.

 

[mom2aredhead]

We went there for my DS's 2nd and 3rd birthdays and plan on returning during our May trip. Characters are Mickey, Minnie, Chip and Dale (is it me, or are they just everywhere??), Pluto, and Goofy was hanging outside in the lobby area but did not come around to the tables.

We did breakfast both times (usual breakfast food - good but nothing special), but I think we're trying dinner this time.

 

[latexscooter]

Anyway, we wanted to try a new meal (in the parks). My oldest loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse as much as she loves Princesses so I'm having a hard time deciding.

If you're looking for in the parks I'd recommend Crystal Palace for breakfast or Liberty Tree Tavern for dinner. We're doing both next trip and I know DD will enjoy them both just the same.

If you're willing to leave the park I'd say 1900 Park Fare for dinner or Chef Mickey's any old time. Park Fare is the only meal our DD recalls from our last trip. I personally believe it is what made her such a Cindy fan - the character interaction was fabulous.

Enjoy your trip.

 

[noname70]

Has anyone had a problem with very young children getting scared at these meals?

 

[jenseib]

We did Chef Mickey's and Crystal Palce. Chef Mickey's is close enougth to the MK that you can leave and come back, via monorail or walking. We had Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy and Donald while we were there. my 2 YO DD loved it. She didn't eat mcuh because she was too worried as to whee the characters where.
At the Crystal Palce we had Pooh, Eyeore, Tigger, and Piglet. Again , a big hit.
She wasn't afraind of any of the characters, which we wondered about, becuase Santa Scares her. She likes to look at him, but won't go near him. But she hugged all the characters, and didn't want to let go.

 

[Tinkerbell2002]

We love Chef Mickey each time we are there, only have done dinner though. On our first trip with older ds, he was afraid of all characters in the park but not at Chef Mickeys. At Crystal Palace (same trip) he was a little nervous with some of the characters there (didn't know them as well) and they were very good about waving and moving on, so he didn't spend the whole meal nervous.

 

[ededmd]

Inpark-Agree with the Crystal Palace breakfast recommendation. The food is fine, the interaction fine.
Resort-Also agree with the Chef Mickey's recommendation, again for breakfast. Food is varied enough for children 1 and 3.
Have done both of these with my sons when they were 1 and 3 and no problems except the inevitable issue of when the youngest is ready to leave, he is ready NOW.
The aforementioned characters are standard. No problem with character fears.
I think either experience was better than we had at Play and Dine and Hollywood and Vine.

 

[boudreaufamily]

If your children get scared, the characters keep their distance. My DD2 was terrified of the characters, but my DS5 was very excited to see them, and all of our character experiences went very well!!

 

[emmismom05]

Inpark-Agree with the Crystal Palace breakfast recommendation. The food is fine, the interaction fine.
Resort-Also agree with the Chef Mickey's recommendation, again for breakfast. Food is varied enough for children 1 and 3.
Have done both of these with my sons when they were 1 and 3 and no problems except the inevitable issue of when the youngest is ready to leave, he is ready NOW.
The aforementioned characters are standard. No problem with character fears.
I think either experience was better than we had at Play and Dine and Hollywood and Vine.

Would you mind sharing what you didn't like about the Play n' Dine? We have ADRs for breakfast there in May. Thank you!

 

[Tinkerbell2002]

Would you mind sharing what you didn't like about the Play n' Dine? We have ADRs for breakfast there in May. Thank you!

We went to this meal this past July. It was a lot fun. Very loud, but ds (4 at the time ) loved it. He is a big Little Einstein fan. It was his favorite meal. I thought the food was ok, but I am not a big fan of buffets (we did lunch). This is one of the meals he picked for our trip in May. So we are going again this May.

 

[noname70]

Would you mind sharing what you didn't like about the Play n' Dine? We have ADRs for breakfast there in May. Thank you!

We also did P&D last Dec. (DD was 2 1/2). She is an avid Playhouse Disney watcher so dancing w/Jo Jo and seeing June was the highlight of her trip. Lunch food was good but still pricey.

 

[Ariel8676]

If you want to stay in the parks, i'd say the Princess storybook breakfast in Norway, Crystal Palace breakfast (we love breakfast here!!!) or Liberty Tree Tavern for dinner. My girls loved all of these.

 

[noname70]

A few people have mentioned Crystal Palace for breakfast-do they not serve lunch or dinner character meals? Or is the food/atmosphere sub par?

 

[SqueakyMouse]

We try to go to CP for at least one breakfast each trip. The food is excellent, and the character interaction is very good.

While our kids enjoy CM, none of us enjoys the food. Thus, I don't plan on returning there any time soon.

1900 Park Faire is another favorite. DD has enjoyed dining with the Princesses since she was 2 yo. Old DS endures. Teenage DS refuses to step foot inside this restaurant. Too "girly" for him. Food is fantastic. The selection for kids is the best I've seen on a WDW buffet.

All 3 of my kids enjoy the food and characters at LTT; but, alas, the food does nothing for either DH or me.

It's been so long since we've been to any of the other character meals, I no longer feel comfortable commenting on them. Things, especially in relation to dining, change so rapidly at WDW.

 

[nessz79]

A few people have mentioned Crystal Palace for breakfast-do they not serve lunch or dinner character meals? Or is the food/atmosphere sub par?

Bumping this question because I'm wondering the same thing. We're considering CP for lunch instead of breakfast...

 

[beattyfamily]

A few people have mentioned Crystal Palace for breakfast-do they not serve lunch or dinner character meals? Or is the food/atmosphere sub par?

They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner.

They do have a yummy breakfast (breakfast Lasagna!) but I think its a similar situation to CRT; people just prefer eating breakfast to lunch and dinner. We like getting into the park nice and early and its cheaper too!

I've eaten breakfast and dinner there and we totally enjoyed both but my girls have told me breakfast is better because they just love breakfast food and I love it because I enjoy getting into the park early for nice photos and getting to the rides early.

 

[jenseib]

Bumping this question because I'm wondering the same thing. We're considering CP for lunch instead of breakfast...

I had dinner at CP and LOVED it. They had peel and eat shrimp and Prime rib. And alot of variety.