Favorite character meal in Disneyland resort?

[kkgarnett]

We're heading to Disneyland in July and I'm wondering what everyone's favorite character meal was and which characters were there. Thanks in advance!

 

[pixiewings71]

Well it depends, for lunch or dinner we like Ariel's Grotto, you meet Ariel and then you are seated, after you are seated 4 more Princesses come around. We have seen Aurora, Belle, Cinderella, Snow White, Pocahontas, Mulan, others have also reported seeing Princess Minnie and the Fairy Godmother. We love the food choices at AG, but lunch/dinner is much better than breakfast. The breakfast is served family style so they just bring out big platters with various foods on them, we weren't impressed. Lunch/dinner is menu options for each person, they bring the appetizers and desserts on 1 big plate but each guest chooses a specific meal and gets their own plate of food.
For breakfast we like Minnie & Friends, the food is good, the characters are plentiful, let me see if I can remember who we saw........Captain Hook, Pooh, Eeyore, Gepetto, Honest John (the fox from Pinocchio), Chip & Dale, Alice, oh boy...I know I'm forgetting some, there was a lot more than that. Alice spent about 15 minutes at our table, talking to the girls and DBF (he collects Alice pins), Chip & Dale spent forever at our table, they would mess around with the kids and DBF then they would go to another table and do the same thing, then they would come back to us. It was so much fun!! It's been a few years ago so I'm having trouble remembering who was there.
We haven't done Storyteller's or Surfs Up! so I can't report on those, we did do Goofy's Kitchen and while there were plenty of characters there only 3 came to our table, the rest just waved as they left the restaurant for their breaks. That was lame!! Plus our family didn't really like the food (except the bacon, OMG best bacon EVER! I had so much bacon that day LOL) they offered so we probably won't go back to GK anytime soon.

 

[DisneytheKid]

Well, I have only done Goofy's... But I can't wait to hear about the others!

 

[albysgirl]

the only character dining we've done so far is Ariel's Grotto. I don't remember being impressed OR dismayed by the food (we did the breakfast) but I'm not paying $35+ for the food, I'm paying for the character experience. And that was great!! every princess (4 or 5) came to our table, one by one, and did photo ops and autographs. if your little one(s) are into princesses, that's the way to go! I am planning a trip in Aug and we'll be going with breakfast either with Minnie and friends @ Plaza Inn or Mickey and friends @ PCH. Both are buffet style and seem to have roughly the same characters. you can learn about what characters are where at the Disneyland Resort website. my recommendation is to choose your dining experience based on your kids favorite characters, not the food. 5yrs from now you're not gonna remember what was on your plate but you will remember the characters! good luck.

 

[Monica D]

I've done Ariels Grotto, (2x), Goofy's Kitchen (4x) and Storytellers Cafe. My favorite is AG...I think overall the food and atmosphere is the best.

 

[Sherry E]

I'm going to move this thread over to the main DL planning forum. More folks will see it that way!



I haven't done the Minnie & Friends breakfast yet - I look forward to trying it one day. There are many, many characters there. Same with Surf's Up - one day I'll try it. Surf's Up gets rave reviews and it's the only meal with Mickey!

Storytellers (as a character meal) is only so-so for me. I can take it or leave it. I like it better as a regular non-character restaurant. Other folks love this character meal, though.

I am a longtime Goofy's Kitchen fan (20 years and counting! Woo hoo!). It is very expensive, though.

This past December I ate at Goofy's twice - normally, we just do breakfast there and that's it because of the high price tag, but we did breakfast and dinner on this trip. I did the dinner with one group of people (8 of us in total), and I did the breakfast with a totally different group of people (3 ladies from The DIS). While I don't know for sure exactly how everyone felt about their food (I can't speak for them), I didn't hear any overt complaints. I know I was very pleased with the dinner, and I didn't expect to be. I thought I wouldn't like the dinner selections. The chicken, pot roast and pork I had were all delicious. The mashed potatoes were better than I thought they'd be.

At the Goofy's breakfast, the eggs are hit or miss. Sometimes they are really good. Sometimes they should be avoided! I have had both versions! The bacon is delicious. The buffet is very, very large and plentiful - there's something for everyone.

The character interaction at Goofy's for both the breakfast and dinner in December was excellent for us (both groups of people), and everyone was satisfied with the overall number of characters, but I do realize that it can vary and be different when other folks eat there! There are some days that are more 'off' than other days! (In fact, our "Breakfast Pluto" was a little too 'attentive' this past December, and Pluto has not always been that way when we're there!)

 

[htfdwlfpack]

As a cook/manager for restaurants for MANY years before working for the mouse i can say Goofeys kitchen is my favorite.

And theres a MONEY reason behind it. So breakfast is 33 or 40 bucks per adult, eggs costs them about a 1/2 cent each because they buy in bulk. You get more "VALUE" eating dinner if that makes sense, breakfast is a HUGE markup from eggs to coffee to soda and juice, dinner not so much

 

[Minuet888]

I liked the one in Paradise Pier hotel Hawaiian themed.
there wasn't as many people there and lots more characters so there was a lot more interaction time

 

[PinkBudgie]

I'm going to move this thread over to the main DL planning forum. More folks will see it that way!



I haven't done the Minnie & Friends breakfast yet - I look forward to trying it one day. There are many, many characters there. Same with Surf's Up - one day I'll try it. Surf's Up gets rave reviews and it's the only meal with Mickey!

Storytellers (as a character meal) is only so-so for me. I can take it or leave it. I like it better as a regular non-character restaurant. Other folks love this character meal, though.

I am a longtime Goofy's Kitchen fan (20 years and counting! Woo hoo!). It is very expensive, though.

This past December I ate at Goofy's twice - normally, we just do breakfast there and that's it because of the high price tag, but we did breakfast and dinner on this trip. I did the dinner with one group of people (8 of us in total), and I did the breakfast with a totally different group of people (3 ladies from The DIS). While I don't know for sure exactly how everyone felt about their food (I can't speak for them), I didn't hear any overt complaints. I know I was very pleased with the dinner, and I didn't expect to be. I thought I wouldn't like the dinner selections. The chicken, pot roast and pork I had were all delicious. The mashed potatoes were better than I thought they'd be.

At the Goofy's breakfast, the eggs are hit or miss. Sometimes they are really good. Sometimes they should be avoided! I have had both versions! The bacon is delicious. The buffet is very, very large and plentiful - there's something for everyone.

The character interaction at Goofy's for both the breakfast and dinner in December was excellent for us (both groups of people), and everyone was satisfied with the overall number of characters, but I do realize that it can vary and be different when other folks eat there! There are some days that are more 'off' than other days! (In fact, our "Breakfast Pluto" was a little too 'attentive' this past December, and Pluto has not always been that way when we're there!)

Sherry, I thought of you when I made my first reservation for Goofy's Kitchen for breakfast for just DH and I. My snowball is really rolling downhill. You see, we had to go because character dining pics are included on photopass plus which I also got. I think you were standing over my shoulder telling me to call for Goofy's! DH loves breakfast food so that was how I got him to comply.

 

[8lovesmickey]

We've done Goofy's and Storyteller's. I liked both a lot - I would say it depends on what you want. Goofy's was a little hectic... dancing, singing, and tons of crazy food (peanut butter & jelly pizza, "Goofy's cake" that was 80% frosting, etc.). That's where you will find the classic characters. It's tons of fun but very loud.

Storyteller's was kind of the opposite. We had a "park ranger" sit at our table for almost ten minutes and "warn" us of the "wildlife" in the restaurant - it was super cute and interactive. Then we had Chip & Dale visit, along with some characters from Pocahontas and Brother Bear (to go with the Grand California's theme). It was definitely more low key and more character time but there were also fewer choices of food and more not-so-well-known characters.

There wasn't much of a price difference. I thought the food at Storyteller's was better but with fewer choices. If you want classic, loud, colorful and crazy, go for Goofy's. For a less crazy option, choose Storyteller's.

 

[ladeeesquire]

I haven't done Storytellers but I feel like I'm an expert on the rest.

AG: We've done it maybe 6 times but always for lunch. I think the food is really good (except this weird ravioli thing they have there which I find gross) the tri-tip is YUMS and the dessert plate is to die for!!! I enjoy sitting outside where its a bit quieter. Inside tends to be really loud. The character interaction is fine ("hi princess, you look lovely!!!" sign book, pose for quick photo, hug, gone. I think they plan for no more than 2 mins per table. Its brief but if you've got a princess lover in your group it can't be missed.

Minnie's: I think we've been 7-8 times. Personally, I think the food ranges from gross to barely edible and its of very limited selection. The banana bread is good. The lines to get the food are SLOW and LONG even to just have them plop precooked eggs and bacon on your plate. Why do I keep going??? Because there are TONS of characters there and my dd loves it! I do not suggest going there if you don't have a few adults because you really need one person to go get the food while someone else stays at the table to do the characters with the kids otherwise you might miss them all. Usually the interaction is decent and they will come back a few times or return if they miss you the first time. We usually have a good time there except for the last time which was awful but I that's not the norm. Big advantage is its in the park so it doesn't take time out of your day if you want to do it mid morning.

Goofy's: We've been twice. Good enough food, lots of selection. Nice characters. There isn't tons of interaction but its pretty good. They play with the kids some. You're usually gonna get chip and dale, mad hatter, a princess, someone else and goofy is there for a photo at the entrance.

Surf's UP: LOVE this one!! Hands down the most underrated of the character meals and its the cheapest!!! Its actually my fav for character interaction. They really, really PLAY with the kids and I've never been when it was crowded. Every 30 mins they do the dance thing and all the kids get to run up there and dance with mickey, minnie, stitch, and someone else can't remember. Tons of oppportunity for candid and posed photos and multiple characters. Cute!!! Food is pretty decent. Limited selection but what they have is tasty enough. Drawback, its outside the park so if you want to do it mid morning, you need to leave and come back.

Have fun!! We love character meals. We'll be doing 10 on our next trip to WDW in sept!!

 

[ValpoCory]

I haven't done Storytellers but I feel like I'm an expert on the rest.

AG: We've done it maybe 6 times but always for lunch. I think the food is really good (except this weird ravioli thing they have there which I find gross) the tri-tip is YUMS and the dessert plate is to die for!!! I enjoy sitting outside where its a bit quieter. Inside tends to be really loud. The character interaction is fine ("hi princess, you look lovely!!!" sign book, pose for quick photo, hug, gone. I think they plan for no more than 2 mins per table. Its brief but if you've got a princess lover in your group it can't be missed.

Minnie's: I think we've been 7-8 times. Personally, I think the food ranges from gross to barely edible and its of very limited selection. The banana bread is good. The lines to get the food are SLOW and LONG even to just have them plop precooked eggs and bacon on your plate. Why do I keep going??? Because there are TONS of characters there and my dd loves it! I do not suggest going there if you don't have a few adults because you really need one person to go get the food while someone else stays at the table to do the characters with the kids otherwise you might miss them all. Usually the interaction is decent and they will come back a few times or return if they miss you the first time. We usually have a good time there except for the last time which was awful but I that's not the norm. Big advantage is its in the park so it doesn't take time out of your day if you want to do it mid morning.

Goofy's: We've been twice. Good enough food, lots of selection. Nice characters. There isn't tons of interaction but its pretty good. They play with the kids some. You're usually gonna get chip and dale, mad hatter, a princess, someone else and goofy is there for a photo at the entrance.

Surf's UP: LOVE this one!! Hands down the most underrated of the character meals and its the cheapest!!! Its actually my fav for character interaction. They really, really PLAY with the kids and I've never been when it was crowded. Every 30 mins they do the dance thing and all the kids get to run up there and dance with mickey, minnie, stitch, and someone else can't remember. Tons of oppportunity for candid and posed photos and multiple characters. Cute!!! Food is pretty decent. Limited selection but what they have is tasty enough. Drawback, its outside the park so if you want to do it mid morning, you need to leave and come back.

Have fun!! We love character meals. We'll be doing 10 on our next trip to WDW in sept!!

Great report. We are going in January, when the parks open at 9am for EMH, so it's possible to eat at Surf's Up at 8am before EMH. We have been leaning that way (going to Surf's Up), but with your review and others, combined with the PhotoPass+ and 10% Disney Visa discount there, it's a must do.

 

[JadeDarkstar]

ive done all but suffs up.
Storytellers if you go get food off the menu get the stake yummy (ntot enough chr and not a pic in the package)

Minnies The best breakfast for sure-10 chrs in 2 hours where else can you get that much?

Goofy- I love love love the dinner, not to mention the chr have always been good when we were there 8 id say. we saw peter pan, capt hook, Jasmine Aladdin, chip dale, malun, and hum a few others i just cant think of it. Goofy and max too

This time around we are doing dinner at goofy s again sicne haven't done it in years. And in stead of a second meal at minnies were doing F desert for sons bday and mine.

AG- good food 5 princes. nice autmashper - My mom liked Minnies better because it was cheaper and she saw 10 chrs

 

[MissMichigan]

My favorite so far has been Minnie's Breakfast at the Plaza. Food was really good, lots of characters with great interaction, and you just can't beat the location.

 

[Sherry E]

Sherry, I thought of you when I made my first reservation for Goofy's Kitchen for breakfast for just DH and I. My snowball is really rolling downhill. You see, we had to go because character dining pics are included on photopass plus which I also got. I think you were standing over my shoulder telling me to call for Goofy's! DH loves breakfast food so that was how I got him to comply.

PinkBudgie -

Have you already gone, or is the breakfast coming up? I hope you like(d) the meal (that darn snowball is at work again!). I've heard about the PhotoPass Plus deal! It sounds good.

The subject of character meals is always very interesting to me because all that any of us can say is based what our own experiences have been at these meals, and what our opinions are. We don't really know what things are like on the days when we're not there.

Some folks say that certain restaurants have great food. Others will say the same places had really bad food. Some will say they had no character interaction, while others will say that they had wonderful character interaction. This goes for most of the meals, but especially Minnie & Friends and Goofy's Kitchen - those two meals seem to get the most varied reviews (sometimes polar opposites, from excellent to horrible, in the course of a few weeks)!

I've heard a lot of reports of Goofy's being loud. That's come up a lot. For some reason, I never considered it to be over-the-top loud. Or maybe I just expect my character meals to be lively. It is a little wacky and off-kilter because it is Goofy who is the star, and he is off-kilter, clumsy and wacky. For some reason I never perceived it to be a loud place so much as I just thought of it as a busy, active restaurant with little outbursts of 'entertainment' here and there - but there are certainly more than a few people who think it's very loud.

My group of 8 people at the December dinner at Goofy's included a 4-year-old child (boy), an elderly man with Parkinson's Disease and 2 character meal newbies who had never dined with characters at all, anywhere. The rest of us were no strangers to character meals. I fully expected someone to not like it, but everyone seemed to be having a great time. I heard no complaints at all. The character interaction was wonderful at that time, and the little 4-year-old was in heaven. We also got a great group photo of all of us together at the entrance, with Goofy.

Four days later when I had the Goofy's breakfast with the 3 ladies from The DIS (Liza/funatdisney, Laurie/DizNee Luver and Molly/bumbershoot), the character interaction was great. Pluto was literally - and all of the ladies can vouch for me on this, but I have pictures to prove it - up in my face!! (Like trying to gobble my chin or nose or something.) In my face! He was very aggressive. Pluto also bear-hugged Molly (which she did not appreciate at all!). No lack of interaction there! In fact, there was probably a little too much interaction!

Laurie even mentioned that there was much more attention from characters at this breakfast than on her prior visit to Goofy's (which is why Surf's Up with Mickey is now her new favorite meal). And I said that this kind of interaction was what I was used to (not Pluto being so aggressive, but just the overall interaction with everyone), and that it was always like this for me!

I think its safe to say that Molly was probably the one who liked Goofy's the least. I know that she got one of the bad batches of scrambled eggs! The rest of us had a good time, and the photo at the entrance was great!

So, it can really vary with each person's experience, the day, time, month, individual opinions, which chefs are cooking that day, which characters are onsite that day, etc. I just know that I personally prefer the livelier atmosphere at Goofy's and the character assortment there than what's at Storytellers - but, there are certainly plenty of people who love Storytellers for their character meal so I am probably in the minority on that one.

I would like to try Minnie & Friends simply for the number of characters, but I am not holding out hopes that the food will be spectacular. Maybe I'll get there on a good day, when the food is better. I'm used to that large, bountiful buffet at Goofy's, though, so it will be hard to break away from that!

 

[SplashMo]

Minnie and Friends.

 

[PinkBudgie]

PinkBudgie -

Have you already gone, or is the breakfast coming up? I hope you like(d) the meal (that darn snowball is at work again!). I've heard about the PhotoPass Plus deal! It sounds good.

The subject of character meals is always very interesting to me because all that any of us can say is based what our own experiences have been at these meals, and what our opinions are. We don't really know what things are like on the days when we're not there.

Some folks say that certain restaurants have great food. Others will say the same places had really bad food. Some will say they had no character interaction, while others will say that they had wonderful character interaction. This goes for most of the meals, but especially Minnie & Friends and Goofy's Kitchen - those two meals seem to get the most varied reviews (sometimes polar opposites, from excellent to horrible, in the course of a few weeks)!

I've heard a lot of reports of Goofy's being loud. That's come up a lot. For some reason, I never considered it to be over-the-top loud. Or maybe I just expect my character meals to be lively. It is a little wacky and off-kilter because it is Goofy who is the star, and he is off-kilter, clumsy and wacky. For some reason I never perceived it to be a loud place so much as I just thought of it as a busy, active restaurant with little outbursts of 'entertainment' here and there - but there are certainly more than a few people who think it's very loud.

My group of 8 people at the December dinner at Goofy's included a 4-year-old child (boy), an elderly man with Parkinson's Disease and 2 character meal newbies who had never dined with characters at all, anywhere. The rest of us were no strangers to character meals. I fully expected someone to not like it, but everyone seemed to be having a great time. I heard no complaints at all. The character interaction was wonderful at that time, and the little 4-year-old was in heaven. We also got a great group photo of all of us together at the entrance, with Goofy.

Four days later when I had the Goofy's breakfast with the 3 ladies from The DIS (Liza/funatdisney, Laurie/DizNee Luver and Molly/bumbershoot), the character interaction was great. Pluto was literally - and all of the ladies can vouch for me on this, but I have pictures to prove it - up in my face!! (Like trying to gobble my chin or nose or something.) In my face! He was very aggressive. Pluto also bear-hugged Molly (which she did not appreciate at all!). No lack of interaction there! In fact, there was probably a little too much interaction!

Laurie even mentioned that there was much more attention from characters at this breakfast than on her prior visit to Goofy's (which is why Surf's Up with Mickey is now her new favorite meal). And I said that this kind of interaction was what I was used to (not Pluto being so aggressive, but just the overall interaction with everyone), and that it was always like this for me!

I think its safe to say that Molly was probably the one who liked Goofy's the least. I know that she got one of the bad batches of scrambled eggs! The rest of us had a good time, and the photo at the entrance was great!

So, it can really vary with each person's experience, the day, time, month, individual opinions, which chefs are cooking that day, which characters are onsite that day, etc. I just know that I personally prefer the livelier atmosphere at Goofy's and the character assortment there than what's at Storytellers - but, there are certainly plenty of people who love Storytellers for their character meal so I am probably in the minority on that one.

I would like to try Minnie & Friends simply for the number of characters, but I am not holding out hopes that the food will be spectacular. Maybe I'll get there on a good day, when the food is better. I'm used to that large, bountiful buffet at Goofy's, though, so it will be hard to break away from that!

No, we haven't gone yet. It is for our trip in July. We will do it on the Saturday we leave which we are blocked out of the parks anyway. I wouldn't expect somewhere called Goofy's Kitchen to be a quiet romantic meal and loud doesn't bother me- I'm a preschool teacher! The large amount of choices for food is what made me want to try it over the others. And the characters at Storytellers are uninteresting to me. I'll watch out for Pluto though!

 

[Delilah1310]

Everyone has a different experience, I'm sure, but we had VERY LITTLE character interaction at Goofy's Kitchen for dinner last month.

Only 3 characters came into our area in the 2 hours we were there - Minnie, Terk (from tarzan) and Cinderella. (Oh, and plus Goofy prior to the meal.)

We did see Sleeping Beauty and Pluto in an entirely different area as we were walking out, but we weren't going to wait any longer.

So in that respect it was very disppointing.

The food, on the other hand, was amazing! We really enjoyed all of our choices and we had a range of ages in our groups from pre-school to 80s, and everyone found lots that they liked.

hope this helps.

 

[Sherry E]

Delilah1310 -

There's a 90-minute limit at the character meals - you stayed for 2 hours? Wow! I'm always noticing how the CM's start to subtly hover around us and ask us if we need anything when we have been at the table for almost 90 minutes, as though they are waiting for us to get up so they can quickly clean off the table. I've never waited to see what happens if we stayed beyond the 90-minute mark.

Everyone definitely has a different experiences and expectations. Some days are going to be good and some days will be 'off' at any place, character meal or otherwise, and everyone will have their own outlook on things.

Also, to be honest, some people won't mind if 3 characters come to their table - I know a few of my friends who just like going to Goofy's in general, to eat, and they wouldn't care if only one character showed up. A couple of my friends would prefer not to take pictures with characters at all! They just like the buffet!

Keep in mind, too, that I'm speaking of my overall experience at Goofy's Kitchen in 20 years. I've been there so many times that I cannot even count how often I've been there since 1992. I'm sure there have been quite a few 'off' days in food or in character interaction over my two decades of eating at Goofy's, but because I've been there so many times I cannot recall when those specific days were and I mainly look at the overall experience on a whole as being a positive one.

Whereas, someone who has only been to Goofy's one time or maybe 10 times will remember more about their individual 'off' experiences. Know what I mean?

It's kind of like finding a neighborhood restaurant you really like, and it's just a given that you will eat there every Saturday morning, but sometimes the food is better than other times and sometimes the staff is not as perky. You still like the restaurant on a whole, and you still like the staff in general, so you go back through thick and thin, good times and bad. But it may not be a home run every single time!





PinkBudgie -


Maybe some Breakfast Plutos are more well-behaved, but, as you can see, this one was not...

What did I tell you? Up in my face! And he was growling too! I kept leaning back in my chair to avoid him and he kept moving in closer. And then he made his way over to Molly to bear hug her!

Be afraid of Breakfast Pluto. Be very afraid!

 

[Jkpark]

Our girls beg for Surf's Up! The interaction with the characters is amazing. Plus they love to hoola hoop. Stitch kept stealing things from the girls - they would chase him aroun the recipe and Miney would come in and save the day. Minnie kept coming by and coming up with creative poses with them. DH and I are happy with the food, too.