We just did dinner out-of-pocket on July 17. I really liked it, although some people say the food isn't that great. My steak was cooked perfectly. We usually choose table service dinners because we don't want to waste prime park time eating. Also, I feel like most of the time breakfast food isn't that special, but the castle seems to have some less common choices. Honestly, we just grab a couple of quick things in the morning on the way to the park. We don't really make breakfast a "meal" at Disney. We usually take a nap break at the resort, so we are looking for dinner after that break. It's all in how you do the parks, I guess.
I thought the whole experience was awesome! We had a really attentive server, and he helped my husband make his steak plain with just mashed potatoes and corn. He's a really plain food kind of guy. I really liked the flavor of my steak with the wine reduction. My six-year-old had chicken nuggets and ate all of them, so they must have been fine. She did say she liked her smores dessert. My husband and I got the cheesecake and clock cake so we could nibble on both. The princesses were great, and my daughter liked the wishing ceremony and her wand. My daughter wore her Elsa dress, so the princesses often made comments about her, like not using her ice powers in the castle. I can't think of any way our experience could have been better!