Character Meal - I want to know your favorite one!

[cuchu2005]

I knew I had to ask.

Diner @ 1900 Park Fare has just entered the competition.

Chef Mickey's is proving itself a strong candidate too.

Keep bringing them on!

And many thanks to all of you who have shared your opinions.

Mx

 

[figment41]

There is just something about being able to go into the castle. That has always been our favorite!!!!

Norway would be nice to beacause there are more Princesses that are different than the castle.

They are all wonderful because you are in Disney World. Have a great trip

 

[Mickey_for_President]

Best Character Interaction: 1900 Park Fare

Best Food: Tusker House breakfast (although made our ressies for 10:30am and decided to make it "brunch" - this was our tactic to avoid the long counter-service lunch lines)

Best Signiature Line-Up: Akershus


We do the character dining just to avoid waiting in any regular character lines for autographs/photos. Although, we did do the Character Spot in Epcot for the first time this last vacation... boy, was THAT snappy and convenient!

 

[TotalSnowWhite]

We do the character dining just to avoid waiting in any regular character lines for autographs/photos. Although, we did do the Character Spot in Epcot for the first time this last vacation... boy, was THAT snappy and convenient!

That's us, too. Especially Crystal Palace. The princesses are usually air-conditioned, as are the Fab Five, but Pooh and friends are often outdoors.

We've done CM, CP, CRT, 'Ohana and CMC. I loved the 'Ohana Best Friends Breakfast. We always hit CP. I think we're going to try 1900PF this time since my niece will be with us again.

 

[stephie1012]

the character interaction at hollywood n vine was awesome..the place was so empty the characters cam to the table like 3times each.
We also liked the princess breakfast at norway.
While the food at crystal palace was decent, the interaction wasnt as good as H+V we didnt even stay to see all the characters bc it was taking forever.

 

[kellypooh]

Crystal Palace for breakfast, Garden Grill for dinner (and it's as much for the fried catfish as it is for the characters!!!)

 

[momandseandodisney]

for me and my DS10 we liked LTT, but it is no more (atleast no more chara's)

Next my "vote" would be chef mickeys

 

[Doc CW]

Crystal Palace hands down, its the best, the great food, characters, not to mention the design of the building is really good.

 

[J3nn78]

My husband and I LOVED breakfast at Ohana. The food was the yummiest breakfast buffet food we have had there. FUn atmosphere too.

If I were to pick my almost 4 year olds favorite, it would be Play&Dine at Hollywood&Vine. It was noisy, but he loved the constant character interaction and dancing. I dont think he ate more than a bite. HE was too busy.

 

[kadesha]

Chef Mickeys and Garden Grill. Garden Grill is our absolute favorite, the character interaction there is the best I've seen! It's a must-do ever trip and never disappoints!

 

[Kaler131]

We like Ohana for breakfast (Lilo & Stitch, Mickey , Pluto) and Crystal Palace for lunch (Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet, & Tigger). I'm not so much into Pooh & the gang but my kids like them and the food is really good!!

On the other hand, my DH's favorite character meal was Playhouse Disney lunch at Hollywood & Vine (at DHS). He liked the food the best....but the singing by the CM's was VERY annoying!!

 

[Tomh]

We did the breakfast at CRT last summer, and the breakfast at Crystal Palace as well. Although CRT was nice, our entire family enjoyed the breakfast at Crystal Palace quite a bit more. This summer, we'll be doing breakfast at CP every day that we're in MK. Nothing beats having that 8:00 ADR, and seeing main street before the park is open for the day, then getting some character time, and a yummy breakfast to start out a great day in the park.

 

[girlrea]

Crystal Palace, Winnie the Pooh and Tigger TO

 

[Harters2WDW]

My DD3 loves the princesses so we did CRT for breakfast, but also did Chef Mickey's for dinner. Chef Mickey's was her favorite of th two by far and we plan to do it again when we return in Oct.

 

[cuchu2005]

Wow! So many insights.

People, you are really making it difficult!!

Thank you very much for your input, just what I was looking for!!!!

Mx

 

[summermac]

We've never done a character meal yet but this trip we are eating at:
Crystal Palace (B)
1900 Park Fare (D)
Tusker House (B)

 

[cuchu2005]

the character interaction at hollywood n vine was awesome..the place was so empty the characters cam to the table like 3times each.
We also liked the princess breakfast at norway.
While the food at crystal palace was decent, the interaction wasnt as good as H+V we didnt even stay to see all the characters bc it was taking forever.

Adding choices by the minute.

Does anyone know if Hollywood n Vine features Characters during Dinner? That would be great for Fantasmic Dinner Package.

Thanks again for all the input,

Mx

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I've compiled a helpful tally for you so far:

CP:13
CM:9
1900PF: 6
Tusker: 5
Akershus: 3
Garden Grill:3
H&V: 3
'Ohana @brkfst: 3
CRT:2
Cape May:1

LTT (discontinued as a character meal): 1
against:
CRT: 3
CP: 2

Here's my take:

CRT is fun to do once, but the food isn't that great, and the character interaction (CI) wasn't the best either - though it does cover many princess at once. It is cool to say you've done it once. Also, this one is difficult to get, so there's the hassle.
CM has pretty plain food in general, great CI, great line-up of characters. I have to say while this was never my favorite food, the last time we went there in September, the food was really bad. Add to that in March we stayed at CR, and we could hear the music every a.m. at 7: from INSIDE our room! It will be a while before I can go back.

1900PF: can be VERY noisy, but the food was excellent, the CI was fun (How much fun would it be to get to play an evil Stepsister and say rude things to guests!)

GGrill: is not open for lunch anymore, and recently the menu may have also changed a bit.

CP: the building an location are great. The CI last year was really minimal. It used to be good, but has gone seriosuly downhill. Maybe it has improved since then, but it felt really rushed. Teh location is very easy, and the dining in MK in general is very limited. If youa re looking for TS in MK, this is one of thebetter option, which is one reason it's so popular. Also, the location is very convenient: MK is often open late, so that's popular area to be in at night. It's also a good reason why this meal will always be rushed - Disney has bodies to feed. Stillthe building is very pretty. It's pretty both inthe a.m. and the p.m.

As another poster said, if you are paying oop, and choose breakfast (so long as you aren't going during a holiday surcharge period), this can be a 'budget' meal. If you pick a late breakfast - you won't need lunch that day - so one meal can replace two QS meals.

The other forgotten Character Meal that can be good is the one at the Swan. There is only a few characters, and it is only offered certain days, but the last timewe went, I think it was Tigger - late breakfast - we had the place to ourselves and it was the ONLY time I've ever seen Tigger get to REALLY be Tigger. Lots of fun - and we didn't even have kids with us that time! The food was good too.

Preference also depends on how adventurous you are with your food tastes. Dining reviews are always HIGHLY subjective. (as I'witnessed onthe DIS.)

One last plug: There are some really great dining opportunities that are not character involved. Character meals are fun, but usually not quiet or relaxed. There are lots of dining places that although the food might not be *****, the atmosphere is really cool. The new T-Rex is one example. WE didn't dine there, but the atmosphere was REALLY unique. The 50's place at HS, though not characters, is unlike dining any place else in the world: the staff are the 'characters,' if you will. Some servers play the part better than others, as do some guests. These are just a few.

 

[MexiFinn]

Our favorite (one we repeat yearly) is breakfast at Ohana's at the Polynesian. We are breakfast food lovers though so it is perfect. And no one seems to be rushing the characters along like we've experienced at other places. I guess it helps that we had close to last seating for breakfast schedule and they don't have a lunch after that. No rushing us along.

ETA: I read the others response and maybe Crystal Palace is better for lunch or breakfast. We only have gone there for dinner and I really dislike spending my dinner there. Rush rush rush! Limited interaction with the characters, sub-par service, bad food (even by my meager low standards). The dessert was the best thing about the meal. I guess I'll have to try this place for a different type of meal.

Chef Mickey's is great for character interaction but the dinner buffet (food quality) had gone downhill so we skipped it the past couple of years and don't miss it. Ohana's took it's place!

 

[guelde96]

For us (dh, me, dd was 5 and ds was 8) it is 1900 Park Fare dinner w/ Cinderella, PC, and especially the stepmother and stepsisters. They were hilarious. WE weren't able to get into it this last trip and we were all sad and missed it. We've also done Chef Mickey, Norway, and CRT and all were nice but 1900 Park fare was the favorite by far!

I completely agree! We loved 1900 Park Fare. The stepmother and stepsisters were a riot.