Characters aside - GG or CP for breakfast?

[MamaJessie]

We usually like to do breakfast once on our trip and as of now I have two booked. I have a 10:15 CP (it is a morning EMH day so tried to make it for the best time in terms of touring) and an 8am at Garden Grill.

We have never been to either restaurant so I was curious, which food is better?

Also if we do not do breakfast at CP we will go for dinner because I want some photo ops. Is breakfast so much better than dinner that it should make that a no brainer?

 

[yaddakal]

We have done both and enjoyed Crystal Palace more . They are totally different experiences however . Garden Grill it is rotating and even though it only rotates a little it bothered us . It's a little bit tighter . But those characters I like better ..The sticky bun thing they gave us was
Out of this world ..
Crystal palace in my opinion is worth it for getting in to the park early for sure but it is a nice open area restaurant where you can see not only your experiences with the characters but everybody else's and sometimes it's funny , they did a parade when I was there and it was a little more interactive then garden grill ..
Both are good but Garden grill it was just not my particular cup of tea .
Have a fabulous time planning and a fabulous trip !

 

[shannonstar]

We love the CP breakfast options. Personally, the Pooh Ear's are worth it alone.

 

[Sunnywho]

The food at Crystal Palace is better and more plentiful than at GG. Both are great experiences. I would go with the PPO at Epcot rather than the prime-touring morning hours at MK. You can get a lot done at 10:15 am that you can't get done 2 hours later.

 

[MamaJessie]

The food at Crystal Palace is better and more plentiful than at GG. Both are great experiences. I would go with the PPO at Epcot rather than the prime-touring morning hours at MK. You can get a lot done at 10:15 am that you can't get done 2 hours later.

That is a big part of my issue, I really don't like the thought of interrupting prime touring time. But dinner doesn't look particularly interesting there. I think I am just going to go to GG and push CP off until next trip when it fits in as a PPO

 

[Cinderella94]

I've never done either for breakfast, so I can't comment on that, but based on the times alone, I wouldn't give up 10:15 park time in MK. I think you made a good decision

 

[rosiebean]

I was disappointed in our recent GG breakfast. First, the food was just ok...great pull apart sweet rolls and juice, good Mickey waffles, meh bacon and sausage, tator tots were tator tots (and barely warm when our first platter came out), and the eggs were dry and cold and awful and tasted powdered. I could have put up with just ok food if the eggs had been good, but with them being cold and dry, it kind of turned me off of the food aspect of GG.

That said...our experience with wait staff was top notch. Our experience with characters was one of the worst we've had, mostly because it's *hard* to interact with them given the seating arrangements at GG. I know you didn't ask about characters, but the booth seating arrangements at GG (and the narrow aisle outside of the booth) made good interaction with the characters difficult and with no spontaneity.

I haven't been to CP for breakfast, but we LOVED our lunch there during the same trip we had the disappointing outing at GG. There were many options for food, so everyone in our party found something to eat they really enjoyed. The setting is really lovely too (better than GG IMO), and the waitstaff was just as good. The best thing was the character interaction. Again, I KNOW you didn't ask about this, but...I was really looking forward to Chip and Dale at GG and they were just 'meh'. I'm not a huge Pooh fan outside of Tigger...but the characters at CP were amazing! They really had fun with the guests and CP also gave them physical room to have fun (tables vs. long booths, more aisle space, etc.).

Just my 2 cents.

 

[xlsm]

Out of the two, I prefer CP for breakfast. We had fun with the characters at GG, but the food was hit or miss - it was a disappointment after reading/hearing such positive reviews when it first began serving breakfast. I like the pre-park opening time the best, but you could make the MK time work if you rope drop and then make FPs for after your meal, especially if it has morning EMH that day, or opens at 8am.

If early is your preference, go with GG...but keep looking for an early Crystal Palace!

Have a fun trip!!

 

[kastoney]

Neither are stellar food wise, but I would vote for GG. First the atmosphere and spinning above The Land is pretty darn cool, but I also love seeing Mickey in his farmer gear. We're also not big buffet fans and GG serves a much fresher all you care to eat meal. I also felt like a bit of a sardine in the madness of CP (though the pooh's french toast was tasty) as the tables are so stacked on each other, but GG offers a much more private dining experience