Chef Mickeys or 1900 Park Fare For Dinner ?

[maryj11]

It will be 2 adults and a 9 year old girl who said she would like the characters at either one. So we just want a character meal and are not picky on which characters. Which one would you choose as the best place, best food, best atmosphere ?

 

[shawnh199]

I have only had breakfast at Chef Mickey's, but I don't think we will ever go back unless one of my girls specifically request it and I cannot talk them out of it. I love the characters they have there, but they were very rushed compared to the many other character meals we have done. The food was the worst of the character breakfasts we have tried (6 different ones). I would eat here if you really want to have a meal with these particular characters. Otherwise, I would go elsewhere. You can find many of them at other meals.

We did 1900 Park Fare for the first time a couple of weeks ago. I am a very picky eater and so are my girls, but we all found more than enough food to satisfy ourselves - and then some. The characters (Cinderella, Prince Charming, the Stepmother and Step Sisters) here are wonderful! We were seated in an area where we were the 3rd table to see each character after they were announced, so we went though the characters very quickly and very early on in our meal. We were finished with characters, and basically finished with our food in about 50 minutes or so, but we didn't leave for at least another 30 minutes because we had so much fun watching the characters interact with everyone.

My girls (4/8) are very shy, but they absolutely loved the characters here. My DD4 even got up (upon her request) to dance with Cinderella. They also do a little fun "parade" thing around the restaurant and DD4 loved the step sisters so much she got up and did that on her own. She usually asks her big sis to go with her but she didn't care here. This place is a definite must do on our future trips!

 

[disneybliss2]

We've eaten at both for dinner. We much prefer 1900 PF. The food tasted fresher, was delicious, and there was a large variety. Chef Mickey's food left a lot to be desired--and we're not that picky. The characters are fun at both. The stepsisters are a complete riot and it's hard to find the prince in the parks, so for those reasons, I think 1900 PF also gets the edge. We enjoy CM for breakfast, but dinner is another story.

 

[ekraxa]

It's interesting to see the different experiences people have!

We were at WDW last week. We had dinner at both 1900 Park Fare and Chef Mickey. By far the worst food we had all week was at 1900. We also were in a back room where we missed out on the "show" type things. It was also the only ADR we had all week that seated us a full hour after the ADR time.

BUT - we enjoyed the character interaction MUCH more than any other character meal. The stepsisters are a real delight and Prince Charming was very charming. My 12 yo DS got engaged to Druzilla and Prince Charming really treated him like they were soon to be related. It was a blast!

I have read many negative things about the food at Chef Mickey's but we thought it was the best of the buffets we did. It was very fresh and clean. We enjoyed the characters and they did spend plenty of time with us.

One big difference is that at 1900 the characters can talk to you and at Chef Mickey's they can't. There was one point when Goofy just kept hanging out at our table (maybe the next table was at the buffet?) and it actually got awkward because you can't interact with him the way you can talking characters.

One thing to look for if you do 1900 - the evening we were there the woman playing Anastasia had the most amazingly ripped arms of anyone I've ever seen! I wanted to ask her if she did P90X or something! She was seriously buff!

 

[goofyintoronto]

Yikes, difficult choice! I was less than impressed with chef mickeys. I vowed not to go back unless my son begged me. I do love 1900 PF because of the very funny characters and lovely decore, but I was disappointed with the food big time (yes, dinner). Not very good at all. But I will tell you that the step sisters are A RIOT! They are hysterical. It was such a wonderful experience for us (even thou we didnt like the food too much). I would pick 1900 PF. I think everyone should try it at least once. You can see mickey anywhere, but its not that easy to catch the stepsisters!

 

[3pletprincesses]

We too had a bad experience at Chef Mickey last year and I promissed to never go back unless my DDs begged me but even they didn't like the food. The food was cold and the place was dirty and soo much noise. We did however really liked 1900 PF for dinner. It's a must if we don't do CRT.

 

[2manydaves]

My family likes Chef Mickey's too. Meeting Mickey and his gang is what Disney is all about. We thought the food was fine, and the desserts were excellent.

 

[maryj11]

Wow so many different opinions . Anyway thank you everyone for your input. I have made reservations for 1900 Park Fare, maybe we will try Chef Mickey next time we go. If anyone else would like to share their experiences I would love to hear them

 

[sydneysmom]

1900 Park Fare. The food was great, the character interaction was priceless and the dessert... yummy !! It was clean and the food was replenished.....the food stations were kept clean. Lady Tremaine and the Step Sisters steal the show. They are beyond awesome and the way they interact w/ the kids, it's like a comedy show. And the kids LOVE it !! Our DD, who's rather shy, was having the time of her life w/ the step sisters!! Worth the money just for that alone.

Chef Mickeys....ewww. We will never go back here. It was loud even for Disney standards. (headache loud) It was SO filthy the day we were there. Kids were up at the food stations grabbing food w/ their hands. With their parents right there..... there was food on the floor. The character interaction was VERY slow....we were there 2 1/2 hours so our DD could see all the characters. It was beyond terrible.

Just my 2 cents.... I'd go w/ Park fare.

 

[mmullena70]

We've never tried Chef Mickey's but we love 1900 Park Fare. The character interaction was exceptional. Prince Charming charmed the socks off my 8yo DD. Cinderella was very sweet, too. The two of them danced together, then took turns with the kids.

The stepsisters were hysterical. Someone dropped some dishes and they called out for Cinderella to hurry and clean that mess up! But Lady Tremaine was the best. She told a little boy at a nearby table to stop crawling around on the floor and sit up in his seat. I know we couldn't have been the only ones silently applauding her! And she's the only one who could've gotten away with it! Funny thing, the kid had ignored his parents' previous pleas but sat right up when Lady Tremaine said it! He was quiet the rest of the time we were there! LOL

We thought the buffet was good. Not outstanding, but something for everyone.

 

[TGaines107]

I love Chef Mickeys. I've always enjoyed The Contemporary and the monorails that fly by overhead. The classic cast of characters and its fun atmosphere. The food is typical and reminds me of a cafeteria. One thing I've seen most trips there are kids touching the food or getting food and putting it back. That can be kinda nasty if you think on it too long. Enjoy it overall though, characters are pretty much a photo op with little interaction.

At 1900, seems to me it costs more, was a little better than the above said cafeteria food, was kinda bland in its decoration of the dining room but because of the face characters, they give you a lot more attention. It's the best palce to meet Cinderella if you want to spend some time with her in making memories.

 

[MickeyNicki]

Honestly..the food at both is just so gross.

We had better character interaction at 1900 PF

 

[Snurk71]

The characters are great at PF, but the food quality has been in decline over several years now to the point that it's off our list. Desserts were still fine the last time we went (Aug10), but the dinner food left a lot to be desired. Seems like PF has an asian or something non-vanilla theme vs. CM's that has a plainer food theme.

 

[Pirate at Heart]

We had done both. Did not like Chef Mickey's at all the food was really yuck- never went back in all of our many trips. 1900 was a little better as far as the food. The kids really enjoyed the step-sisters. And the GF is just beautiful.

 

[photo_chick]

The food was only alright at both places to me. 1900 PF has better entertainment. We were in the back room and they pulled my DD out to go dance with Prince Charming. And Lady Tremaine and the step sisters were hilarious. Both sisters were put into the corner for fighting when we were there. They made it worth every cent.

 

[mrsannb]

1900 PF without hesitation. Great buffet, great & funny character interaction (the best on property IMO), and strawberry soup.

 

[kari B.]

Chef Mickey's is worst restaurant on property. It's like eating frozen banquet tv dinners... No wait... It's not even that good. Glad you went with 1900 Park! Chef Mickey and Hollywood and Vine dinners are two that I would never go to again without hearing that something had officially changed. I've been time and time again... I even cancelled ressies on Christmas Eve and decided to go counterservice because it was so bad.

 

[marlaine8]

Not saying that Chef Mickey's is horrible--but--my DH and I honestly ate dinner before we went to dinner there! My DS loves it there, but he won't eat much (except the Mickey Mouse Domes--wish they were somewhere besides that dreadful Chef Mickeys). We've gone the last 2 years, and finally convinced my DS to skip it this year.
(We did have wonderful servers both years.)