Character Meals Without the Characters?

[TheDisneyOutsider]

This is more of a future reference question considering my October trip is completely booked and I am happy with it. But more out of curiosity I was wondering if it was possible to go to a character meal and ask to not actually meet the characters? My family is on the shy side and may or may not have a person (me) who has a mild fear of masked characters stemming from childhood (the Ottawa 67's hockey puck mascot was terrifying!! Look it up) However I've always wanted to try some of the restaurants that unfortunately are character meals, Cinderella's Royal Table, Chef Mickey's, Garden Grill etc. So it lead me to wonder, is this even a possibility or would we have to suck it up and meet the characters if we ever wanted to dine at such places?

 

[winnieofpooh]

I think there are ways to do this, but you most likely won't get your money's worth. For instance we did Ohana breakfast this past winter, and went at 10am on a Saturday. We were in and out in 30 minutes, and because it was so busy, the characters never got around to us. We didn't care so we just left. So there's a potential if it's really busy and you eat quickly enough you could get out before the characters get there, but that may be a stretch.

You could alternatively try to talk to a CM and request no characters come to the table, but I'm not sure if that would end up working out (characters forgetting, CM not telling all the characters, etc).

 

[sullyfam]

The character interactions at the character meals are what you make of them. If you want to get up, take pictures, give hugs, have them sign autographs etc. then you do that. If you just want to stay seated and wave at them when they come by, then that's what you do.

BUT, you are paying for a character meal which is expensive and the food is only a fraction of the "value". At a place like CRT, you also stand in line to meet Cinderella before you even sit down. They also do this at Hollywood and Vine. I'm sure you could say you didn't want to do that part but it's something to keep in mind. And since you mentioned CRT specifically, you are paying A LOT for that experience and the food is only so-so. Not really worth it in my opinion. The character meals that are buffet style are all pretty standard fare and I don't think the food alone warrants the cost (with the exception of maybe Tusker House) although you'll get varying opinions on this.

Bottom line: if the character interaction is going to bother/upset you or someone in your party and make you worried/anxious on your vacation, I would simply steer clear and dine elsewhere as there are many other choices.

 

[TheDisneyOutsider]

I think there are ways to do this, but you most likely won't get your money's worth. For instance we did Ohana breakfast this past winter, and went at 10am on a Saturday. We were in and out in 30 minutes, and because it was so busy, the characters never got around to us. We didn't care so we just left. So there's a potential if it's really busy and you eat quickly enough you could get out before the characters get there, but that may be a stretch.

You could alternatively try to talk to a CM and request no characters come to the table, but I'm not sure if that would end up working out (characters forgetting, CM not telling all the characters, etc).

The character interactions at the character meals are what you make of them. If you want to get up, take pictures, give hugs, have them sign autographs etc. then you do that. If you just want to stay seated and wave at them when they come by, then that's what you do.

BUT, you are paying for a character meal which is expensive and the food is only a fraction of the "value". At a place like CRT, you also stand in line to meet Cinderella before you even sit down. They also do this at Hollywood and Vine. I'm sure you could say you didn't want to do that part but it's something to keep in mind. And since you mentioned CRT specifically, you are paying A LOT for that experience and the food is only so-so. Not really worth it in my opinion. The character meals that are buffet style are all pretty standard fare and I don't think the food alone warrants the cost (with the exception of maybe Tusker House) although you'll get varying opinions on this.

Bottom line: if the character interaction is going to bother/upset you or someone in your party and make you worried/anxious on your vacation, I would simply steer clear and dine elsewhere as there are many other choices.

Yeah, it's not so much about getting our money's worth since I would mainly be interested in the atmosphere of the restaurants, but it seems like more of a hassle than it's worth. I've always thought it would be smart to have little signs you could put on your table stating you wouldn't like to be visited but I don't expect it's a usual request they get asked often haha. Good to know anyway, I've always been curious!

 

[GillianP1301]

I think you can just wave and not make any motion to get up to hug or interact with them, that they will take your cue and move on. That being said, the food at character meals is average buffet at best and there are so many other better food options, I'm not sure I would bother if I didn't want to see characters at all. Most people are paying for those meet & greets at the table and not the food itself.

 

[rwdavis2]

I really don't think the quality of the food is the reason to go to any of there places if you don't care about characters.

 

[CraigInPA]

Just wave them away. They'll pass you by.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

This is more of a future reference question considering my October trip is completely booked and I am happy with it. But more out of curiosity I was wondering if it was possible to go to a character meal and ask to not actually meet the characters? My family is on the shy side and may or may not have a person (me) who has a mild fear of masked characters stemming from childhood (the Ottawa 67's hockey puck mascot was terrifying!! Look it up) However I've always wanted to try some of the restaurants that unfortunately are character meals, Cinderella's Royal Table, Chef Mickey's, Garden Grill etc. So it lead me to wonder, is this even a possibility or would we have to suck it up and meet the characters if we ever wanted to dine at such places?

There are some restaurants at WDW that kind of replicate the atmosphere you are looking for without characters. If you are looking for a buffet breakfast without characters, you could try Garden Grove on a weekday or The Wave or Trail's End. For an AYCTE meal without characters, you could try Liberty Tree in MK or the skillet at WCC. For a castle experience without characters, you could do BOG. If you wanted a more upscale meal at BOG, you could do the dinner. The Beast does walk around during that meal, but does not visit tables and you don't have to meet him. The only character breakfast I know of where you can completely opt out of seeing characters is the walk-up option at Trattoria al Forno for breakfast, where you are offered the same menu choices, a la carte, and no character visits. IMHO, unless you want to meet the characters, the food at the restaurants you've mentioned is definitely not worth the upcharge for those meals.

 

[rg35]

CRT characters aren't masked, so there should be no fear issues there.

But, as others have said, if all you want to do is wave at the characters they won't bother you beyond that. Garden grill is booth seating, so you could also sit on the inside of the booth to be as far away from the characters as possible to avoid any incidental contact.

 

[Nancyg56]

If you want a character meal you can just ignore them or wave them away when they are walking around, table to table. The characters are very adept at knowing who to pass by.
I will say that if you do nto want to interact or meet woth them, will you be enjoying them as they interact with others? The reason I ask is that these are very expensive meals for fairly average food, and while we like to book the meals, we enjoy meeting and interacting with characters.

 

[Horizons-1]

I would just suggest telling your server that you'd like to opt out of the character interaction. Like many have said, if you wave and tell the character that you're not wanting to interact they will read the room and move along.

 

[DisneyHardin]

We sat near a group at Crystal Palace last year that did not want character interaction. They just waved as the characters approached and then put their attention back to their food and each other. The characters got the clues and didn't stop.

 

[Simba's Mom]

I know it can be done (a character meal without character visits) at least at Cape May, because that’s where Idid it. As a shy solo, I wasn’t up to character visits. Minnie blew me a kiss as she went by, though. As far as people who say it’s not worth it without character visits, for me it definitely was. I loved watching the excitement of children when they saw a character. Great time!

 

[Jennasis]

Assuming the sight of masked characters doesn't bother you, you can certainly wave them off when they get to your table or tell your server that you would prefer no characters. With the exception of Tusker House, none of the food served at character meals is worth it without the added value of the meets, IMO.

 

[goofyintoronto]

I really don't think the quality of the food is the reason to go to any of there places if you don't care about characters.

Exactly this. You don't hear a lot of people raving about the food at character meals. The main draw (and the hefty price tag) is because of the characters.

If you do end up at a character meal, you should try one without masked characters such as CRT or 1900 PF dinner.

 

[crabbygal902]

When I visit 1900 Park Fare, it is with a group of my girlfriends of a 'certain age'. We aren't much interested in meeting the characters but love seeing the interaction and children in their dress-up clothes. The step-sisters and mother are hilarious! We absolutely go to Park Fare for the food! We love both the breakfast and the dinner menus.

As others have said, the characters are very intuitive if you aren't interested in a personal visit. The Mad Hatter freaks us out and we wave and say hi.

 

[sharadoc]

There are some great breakfast buffets without characters - Trail's End, The Wave, Boma, Ale & Compass. At 1900 Park Faire, there is Alice, Mad Hatter, Mary Poppins, Pooh and Tigger. You can ask to be seated in a corner just wave away the suit characters if you're not comfortable.