Chef Mickey's Opinions

[BeccaBoo]

I was just wondering if anyone could give me some info on Chef Mickey's. We have never eaten there and would like to visit in a couple weeks on our trip. I was wondering how the food was and what characters are there?

Any info would be great!

 

[bugbugmom]

We dined at Chef Mickey's Sept 2003. The characters were Chip and Dale, Goofy, Donald Duck and of course, Mickey. We had a 5:30 ps and the characters spent a great amount of time with our children. I thought the food was pretty good for a buffet. Our children ate very well there. The desert bar is great IMO. We plan on visiting again this Sept. Check it out. I think you too would enjoy it. Happy Planning.

 

[beattyfamily]

We love the buffet there. Very good.

Our characters this past December were Mickey, Minnie, Chip & Dale and Daisy. Goofy was the greeter.

The photo package is a great deal for Disney! It was $26 and included 2 5x7's and 6 wallet sizes with a magnetic frame and a key chain frame. Good deal!

 

[Terk-1]

I dined there for dinner in 2002 and it was the worst meal I have ever had at WDW. The food was awful , the characters few and far between, and the service was so-so. Complete waste of money in my honest opinion.

Breakfast on the other hand is much better.

 

[Epcotgal8]

You will find very varying opinions about CM's on these boards. Just our experiences but we've had dinner there 4 times and enjoyed it every time. I haven't tried ALL of their food because I easily got filled up on salad, peel and eat shrimp, prime rib, ham was also on the carving board one evening, mashed potatoes, their roll selection, and love their desserts. We have always had great character interaction and will return for sure.

 

[Blaze12]

We went to Chef Mickeys in Feb 2003 and we already have PS to go there in Feb 2004!! We LOVED it!! I dont know about the dinner, however the breakfast buffet was great!! The characters there when we went were Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Chip & Dale, and Donald! They were great and kept coming around our little one (who was only 5 months old at the time) which we thought was nice, since he was so young, usually they ignore the little ones. I have great pictures of Minnie giving our son his bottle too!! I cant wait to go there again next month!!

 

[ducklite]

Yuck, yuck, yuck, yuck!

We don't like that place at all, for breakfast or dinner!

It's loud, manic, and has lousy food.

There are so many much better meal options, I'm not sure why anyone eats there.

Anne

 

[Atotty]

We loved Chef Mickey's. We had dinner there last May. My dd's bday will be during our next trip and the first thing she said when she knew we were going was I want Chef Mickey's for my bday dinner.

It is chaotic and loud...but if you know that going in and like that sort of thing, you'll love it.


We went to several of the character dinner/bfasts and this is our favorite for food variety and character interaction.

 

[BrerMama]

We loved Chef Mickey's for dinner. We did have a PS close to opening time so it wasn't as busy when we were there. Our last meal was a dinner so we're planning to try breakfast this time!

 

[Tina26]

We have breakfast at Chef Mickey's every trip. My family loves the food, they have a pretty nice selection of breakfast meats, casseroles, fruits, pancakes, waffles, and pastries. Characters are always very good too. I asked my four year old if he would like to try another character breakfast instead this year and he said "No!" So, we'll be going back to CM this year too. I think you should definitely try it.

 

[sha_lyn]

We hated it too. The food was horrible. Really there was only 1 or 2 things we would eat. The food was extremely bland and cold. The desserts looked like a group of kids had been playing in them, and they were never replaced. The characters were good once the server for another talbe made them visit us in the little upstairs area we were in. All the kids up there were getting pretty upset to see the characters visit down stairs 2X's. The service was non existent. We saw the server 2 times, when he took our drink order and when he hocered over us to collect the bill. Drinks were left on the table while we were at the buffet, and we ran out of refills (he left small juice carafs full of refills) less than 1/2 through the meal.

There are so many amazing places to dine in WDW that I wouldn't return.

 

[Eeyore1954]

My DW loves CM; I hate it. The worst part of CM for me is the food: it's practically inedible for breakfast and barely tolerable for dinner. I honestly think that new chefs are assigned to CM, becuase no one with any experience could prepare food as poorly as the chefs at CM do. Barf bags should be put at every seat along with utensils and napkins.

CM is also frentic and noisy ... it's Disney on a super-sugar buzz. I also find it hard to carry on a normal conversation -- you often have to practically scream to be heard. I suppose this is great if you love eating in a frantic, crazed atmosphere -- but that doesn't help my digestion any.

Bad food, too loud and frantic, mediocre service and without a PS, you'll wait forever.

Just say no to CM's. There's better buffets for the $$ elsewhere at WDW.

 

[SuBeat]

You'll find a wide range of opinions on CM. We've been for dinner 3X now and I'm sure we will return again. I think there is a benefit to having an early PS time, it's not as hectic and we've always had the characters come by our table 2-3 times and really interact with all of us....not just posing for a quick picture and moving on.

We've always been satisfied with the food as well. The dessert bar is wonderful and there are plenty of offerings to choose from.

 

[undertheradar]

When CMs was in the Village Marketplace, it was GREAT! Service, food, everything was enjoyable. Unfortunately, somebody got greedy and took an intimate dining experience and destroyed it. CMs is too large, too loud, too busy to enjoy the meal. I miss being able to order off of the menu and having the kids wear the paper chef hats. The food at the new CMs is odd and very overpriced. The carving stations are tight with the food and this bothers me(I like to eat!). The characters have a set pattern to follow through the rooms and if the characters take too long in an area, the do not complete the circuit. Last time we were there, Donald was "held-up" at a table of 15 and the cast member escorts removed him from the area before he visited with all of the tables in the room(there were 5 left). The servers promised that Donald would be back, but he did not return in 30 minutes.
This meal is not worth the money.

 

[Laura1994]

We love Chef Mickey's! We have four kids and that is the one place we HAVE to go to while at WDW.

We've only done breakfast there and it has always been good. Plenty to choose from.

If you are looking for a quiet place, this is not it, but that's part of the attraction for us. Every so often (not sure maybe every 1/2 hr?) they put on some music and the characters dance through the room. All the while the characters and guests are waving their napkins around. Little ones especially LOVE this. If you've got a preschooler they will be thrilled with this! I'm sad for the day when mine get too old to be thrilled by this one!

 

[Madi100]

We have PS for Chef Mickey's for this trip. I've heard all of the bad opinions, and I've decided that when it comes to food and there are good and bad reviews, you really just have to try for yourself. Obviously, it is a favorite for some. We love Rainforest Cafe. That is not a favorite for some. It just all depends on what you enjoy. For us, a noisy environment is great. Then you can't hear our two year old.

 

[Rafikifan]

Originally posted by Madi100
We have PS for Chef Mickey's for this trip. I've heard all of the bad opinions, and I've decided that when it comes to food and there are good and bad reviews, you really just have to try for yourself. Obviously, it is a favorite for some. We love Rainforest Cafe. That is not a favorite for some. It just all depends on what you enjoy. For us, a noisy environment is great. Then you can't hear our two year old.

I think you have the right attitude Madi. We have always enjoyed Chef Mickey's dinner but I'm sure they have their "off" nights as well as other places. Also we know going there it is going to be a bit hectic so we wouldn't go if we were tired or cranky. We also know that despite the price it IS going to be buffet food. One time we were waiting to check in for our p.s. and it WAS busy and 3 families who were obviously traveling together were behind us. It's one of those deals when I was NOT trying to eavesdrop but when people are talking right behind you it's hard not to hear. The men were dressed in golf attire and it sounded as if they had spent the day playing golf. It was apparent from their conversation that their wives (or whoever made the p.s. for them) hadn't told them what Chef Mickey's was about. They weren't happy listening to the noise and seeing the hustle bustle and they were still waiting to check in and weren't even in the restaurant yet. One man asked if they served alcohol, wife wasn't sure, (they do btw) and so the men went into the bar near the Concourse and brought back a drink. It was obvious things were tense. One man asked if he could order a steak here and when his wife said it was a buffet he gave her the business and then he asked what this was going to cost. He hit the roof. You could tell the wives were stressed since hubbies were starting to be vocal and it continued even after we checked into the podium and found a place to stay out of the way until we were seated. They weren't seated near us (thank goodness) but they were within eyesight and it looked like they had a miserable time. Their kids seemed in heaven though. Under those circumstances (if my dh had behaved that way in public lud enough for everyone to hear) I know I wouldn't be hungry and nothing would taste good to me. It made me wonder how often this kind of thing happens. People go there and don't know what it's about until they get there? Go, judge for yourself and tell us what you think when you return.

 

[bunnyfoo]

We've been there in May and December ... both for breakfast and enjoyed it each time. The characters all came by except for Goofy who was in the main lobby. Chip even came by a second time, posed for more pictures and played with my Pal Mickey I thought the food was pretty good, there's fresh fruit, lox, cream cheese, pastries, breakfast pizza (I couldn't bring myself to try the peanut butter, jelly and marshmallow pizza ), sausages, bacon, potatoes, waffles and pancakes ... I probably missed some stuff. I haven't tried dinner yet ... maybe I will on one of my future trips

 

[Lorien]

We've been to Chef Mickey's twice, once for breakfast and once for a late dinner. The food is your typical Disney buffet. It's not the best food in the world but it's not the worst either and there's a good variety so even a picky eater will find something. I much preferred the dinner though. We went after we had left the park for the day and the kids really had time to enjoy the characters, get autographs and photos. Since it was after 8pm it wasn't super crowded and the characters spent a lot of time at each table. During the breakfast trip it was very crowded, everybody wanted to get to the park and I thought it was very noisy and rushed. When we go back, and I'm sure we will, it will definately be for dinner.

Enjoy your trip.

 

[wuv tigger]

Loved it!!! Family had a 1st seating for dinner at 5:00pm. Food was hot and fresh, characters were abundant and the atmosphere was great. It is so cool to have the monorail come into the building. We will definitely be back.

David