Crystal Palace

[OhThePain]

My wife and I (no kids) enjoy CP. We have done breakfast a few times (most recently a week ago today) and dinner once. We were not overly crazy about the dinner buffet, but you can't really go wrong with the breakfast.

When we have done parties (we spend the day at MK), we usually opt to have a big breakfast that morning and a late lunch or early dinner (usually between 2:30-4) and then snack a bit during the party. This keeps our tummies satisfied without losing much park or party time. If you have a must do that draws a big crowd (i.e. the 7 Dwarves or Jack and Sally) that you need to be on line for long before the party (we would rather have down time waiting on line before the party than miss out on valuable party time waiting on line), the earlier you have dinner (or the later you have lunch) the better.

 

[WDisneyWLove]

I was able to get a 350 ADR for our party day. Would this be lunch or dinner? Maybe a little of each?

 

[disneyseniors]

My husband and I have eaten there many times on the dining plan. It was always "okay", and the characters are great! Your children will love them.

But this last November, we ate lunch there and paid out of pocket. We found the food to be generic cafeteria type at best with cold, hard chicken nuggets, some salads, and other dishes that we felt were not very good. I don't know what happened that day? Maybe it was just one of those days.

However, we will not go back unless we have the fdp. It cost the 2 of us $80.00 plus for lunch, and that is without the New price increases.

If it is fdp, the kids will love it. If you have to pay OOP, then consider the very high cost for cafeteria food.(I know, it's all about the characters)

 

[cosmicmommy]

My husband and I have eaten there many times on the dining plan. It was always "okay", and the characters are great! Your children will love them.

But this last November, we ate lunch there and paid out of pocket. We found the food to be generic cafeteria type at best with cold, hard chicken nuggets, some salads, and other dishes that we felt were not very good. I don't know what happened that day? Maybe it was just one of those days.

However, we will not go back unless we have the fdp. It cost the 2 of us $80.00 plus for lunch, and that is without the New price increases.

If it is fdp, the kids will love it. If you have to pay OOP, then consider the very high cost for cafeteria food.(I know, it's all about the characters)

Does this hold true for the breakfast too? Or is the breakfast good, but the lunch/dinner just meh?

 

[disneyseniors]

Does this hold true for the breakfast too? Or is the breakfast good, but the lunch/dinner just meh?

We've never had breakfast there, so no help! We eat at our resort and head out to the parks. As I said, we have eaten there many times and it was okay, but we didn't pay out of pocket for it. What a shocker it was to pay over 80 dollars for the quality of food we got. It was the most expensive meal we ate while at WDW last year. We also did a few sit down meals. I know your kids will love the characters, though. I guess it's a matter of choice, but just be warned.

 

[cosmicmommy]

We've never had breakfast there, so no help! We eat at our resort and head out to the parks. As I said, we have eaten there many times and it was okay, but we didn't pay out of pocket for it. What a shocker it was to pay over 80 dollars for the quality of food we got. It was the most expensive meal we ate while at WDW last year. We also did a few sit down meals. I know your kids will love the characters, though. I guess it's a matter of choice, but just be warned.

My kids are breakfast fanatics - if there's waffles or panacakes (as my little one calls them) and sausage, they are set. My youngest won't eat eggs regardless, so no worries on mass-cooked there. If we weren't getting the dining plan, my cheap behind would be packing PB&J for every meal. That's why I am getting the DDP, so that my kids aren't subjected to me being a total cheapskate at Disney World. If I had to pay those prices OOP, I would freak out. I don't even like to pay for drinks at restaurants, LOL. If I work the DDP into the overall budget of the trip though, it's kinda like I'm not paying for the food, even though I am.

 

[kevgraub]

First time we went to WDW we ate at Crystal Palace shortly before it closed for the night and it was great. The food was kept fresh the entire time we were there, so no issues with the food. The best part though was as people left, the characters kept circulating the room like normal. We had each character come by out table 2-3 times before we were done eating just because there were fewer tables of people to visit. Toward the end of the meal, all 4 characters were up at the front of the restaurant and we were able to get pictures with our entire family and all 4 characters together. Not sure if it still works that way (that was about 10 years ago), but if so definitely something to consider.

Obviously eating that late isn't for everyone, I think they typically close at 9:30. But if you are from the Mountain or Pacific time zones, getting a 9:00 ADR (which would be 6 or 7 back home) isn't so bad.

 

[frannn]

We go every year for dinner...until this year. Last year the food was blah and not really tasty. There was nothing that really stood out or made us want to come back. DD13 is over Pooh, so we're (gasp!) going to skip it for the first time in several years. We're going to try LTT for dinner before MNSSHP for the first time ever. I'm still 2nd guessing this decision, but LTT gets tons of good reviews and we've never been there.

 

[mco65]

When the kids were younger, it was a must do... now they prefer other characters plus the one doesn't do buffets at all, unless its a pizza buffet!
The food was always good (IMO) and the classic characters were fantastic!!!

 

[pumba]

we were there a week ago ..and it was very enjoyable.had a great wait person and the characters were great with everyone around us...even us as retired peeps..we didnt take the kids or grandkids this trip..just us...the food was very good ..I love the salmon and whatever topping they put on it...delicious..

 

[MouseMama11]

We're a party of 2 adults - no kids and we go for breakfast every trip. We love the food & breakfast with my fave Tigger!

That's so awesome!! It's so cool how everyone has a different take on every experience

 

[JerseyJanice]

We've had lunch and dinner there many times over the years. It was excellent every time--food, characters, the beauty of the place, service--everything awesome, every time.

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

We went in 2015 for dinner and hated it. The food was bad, the service was poor, the handlers were rude and it was just a bad time. But the Pooh characters were the only ones my son didn't give the stink eye. He shocked us by running up to them and giving them all hugs and they are the only character pics from 2015 where he's actually smiling (beaming in fact).

So. We went back this year for dinner (we don't do restaurant breakfast). My expectations were zero but I was actually pleasantly surprised. The service was good, the handlers were nice. The food was at least fresh. It's not gourmet but it was decent. Definitely redeemed itself a good measure. I would definitely not go if my kids didn't want to see the Pooh characters but if your kids like them, our experience this year was good.

 

[cornflkgrl]

Went there in 2015 for breakfast. We had, probably, the last breakfast slot before it was changing to lunch? (not sure about this) It was like 10:30 or 10:45 or something. Anyway, as far as food, it was one of MY favorite places we ate the whole trip. I got sick after eating breakfast at Ohana so I was kind of worried about eating at another character breakfast. I'm also not big on buffet. It freaks me out. But everything looked good and clean. Everything was hot too, despite it being later in the morning. I ended up having an omelet that they make right there. Really nice for a germaphobe because I could see my food being prepared. I did have some of the french toast too and maybe one other item off the buffet. It was all very tasty and hot. If you are big breakfast eaters, this is a good place to go in my opinion.

The character interactions were very good and they took their time signing autographs. I liked that the table was not too close to another table and we weren't right on top of anyone.

What I didn't care for was the speed at which the characters circled the restaurant. It took a very very long time for every character to visit our table. We were done eating and sitting waiting on more characters for at least 10-20 minutes (don't know if this is normal or just because of where we were sitting/when we got there). And with antsy kids that don't like to sit in one place for very long, I had a hard time getting them to wait it out. We came close to meltdown mode in there.

I'd definitely go back though. We have reservations for 8:05 this time around. I'm hoping going right at opening will expedite the character meeting so we can eat quickly and get the heck out of dodge. We are not the type to linger in restaurants.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

We have done CP breakfast every trip since my oldest was 2 - she is now almost 17. It is always a favorite, and we make ADRs for 8:05 or 8:10.

We're planning for a CP pre-open ADR - where is the best place to sit in the restaurant for a single mom with 3 kids? View isn't so important - being closer to the food is. Can a CM watch our table while we go get food? Would one help me juggle plates? Just trying to get a feel for how hectic this meal is gonna be.

You don't choose your table at CP - the CMs will seat you wherever it makes sense for the servers. You can probably ask to be seated near the food, but CP is set up as two seating areas with the food in a center room. They usually seem to either seat the perimeter then the inside or one room then another. I'm not sure why you would need a CM to watch your table? As far as juggling plates, I don't think they have the staff for that - you might just have to get food for two of your kids, then for your third and yourself? Just be aware where the characters are so they don't skip your table - you will probably want to time the buffet trips so you don't miss any.

'Ohana is a family style character breakfast, so they bring the food to you. So is the princess breakfast in Norway and at CRT. Those might work better for you. Or if the pre-opening ADR is the draw instead of the characters, you might consider BOG - you can preorder, and they bring the food to you.

 

[maxiesmom]

We're planning for a CP pre-open ADR - where is the best place to sit in the restaurant for a single mom with 3 kids? View isn't so important - being closer to the food is. Can a CM watch our table while we go get food? Would one help me juggle plates? Just trying to get a feel for how hectic this meal is gonna be.

Can your older kids not carry their own plates? Even if you help them fill them, so they don't spill, can they not hold them? That way you can focus on plates for you and your youngest. There really isn't room for CMs to help, and they are still running around doing their normal duties. Or how about leaving the youngest 2 at the table, and having your oldest help serve them?

 

[mocame]

We were there about 2 weeks ago for dinner. The food was good, not great, but good. The desserts were limited and one of the machines was down. An ice cream machine, maybe? We couldn't tell because they literally had the machine open and men were working on it at the time. The servers were great, the handlers were great, the characters were awesome! We had some of our best interactions with characters during this trip at CP.

The other great character meal that we had wonderful interactions with (with better food and family style) was at Garden Grill. We were there for dinner and got to talk and interact with each of the characters three times. Both of these meals are pricey but the characters did spend a lot of time with us.

 

[megster1123]

Ugggh I'm so on the fence about CP! We have a 4:30 ADR the night of MNSSHP, but will we be out of CP with enough time to hop into the Jack & Sally line before it gets obscene?

 

[cosmicmommy]

We were there about 2 weeks ago for dinner. The food was good, not great, but good. The desserts were limited and one of the machines was down. An ice cream machine, maybe? We couldn't tell because they literally had the machine open and men were working on it at the time. The servers were great, the handlers were great, the characters were awesome! We had some of our best interactions with characters during this trip at CP.

The other great character meal that we had wonderful interactions with (with better food and family style) was at Garden Grill. We were there for dinner and got to talk and interact with each of the characters three times. Both of these meals are pricey but the characters did spend a lot of time with us.

Who is at Garden Grill?

 

[mocame]

Who is at Garden Grill?

Pluto, Mickey (Farmer), Chip, and Dale.