help me pick some restaurants--for the experience-who cares about the food?

[julie1218]

we are going may 16-26 and staying off site and will have a rental car. son is 9 and daughter is 6. like any parent, i am happy to spend extra money or time to make this trip extra special. but, none of this dining stuff really sounds like a good fit for us. but, it's such a big deal to everyone, i hate to blow it off.

here's the deal. taking my kids to a restaurant and expecting them to enjoy it because the food/dessert is so awesome/unique/plentiful is like taking your hubby to jimmy choo's and expecting him to bask in the glory of the shoes. he'd be just as happy at payless shoes, and my kids would be just as happy to eat a hot dog quickly and then get back to the REAL fun. this is a ditto for desserts. they'd rather have an oreo and move on--all the fancy desserts you can eat is not a special treat to them.

so, what restaurant/dining experience are so super duper FUN that you just can't miss them---who cares if the food is yummy or not! hoop de doo? 1900 park lane?

as far as interests go, unfortunately, we aren't really into any particular characters. so, like the gourmet/super yummy food, mickey, princesses, pooh, etc. just aren't a big deal. we do love mary poppins, but unless a young julie andrews is going to be there, i'm not sure park lane would be worth it. we also love phineas and ferb, but that's not an option. we have taken our kids to some "jamboree" type country music shows, and they really enjoyed them. they like farcical or physical comedy and funny song/dance numbers and even just great music/dance--like most kids do.

any suggestions??? thanks so much!

 

[Coconuts]

HDDR! This is a must do for us every trip. The food is good comfort food, but nothing absolutely spectacular. The show is just a lot of fun for all ages. We always laugh ourselves silly when we go and my kids always ask to go back. My DS even asked to go there to celebrate his 10th birthday.

 

[kari B.]

Hoop DDR, Whispering Canyon, Rainforest Cafe, TREX, Biergarten, Teppan Edo ???? Hmmm.....

 

[julie1218]

thank you! that's the kind of info that i need. i will book the hddr forsure and would love any more recommendations!

question: we will be there 10 days. our first six days, may 16-22, is a less busy time. our last 4 days, may 23-26, will be more crowded since that is the week that leads up to memorial day. i am wondering if i should do our adr's on these more busy days since the crowds are "fixed" at the restaurants--not more or less busy on any day. why not spend the less crowded days in the park enjoying short lines and spend the busy times at a dinner show? for example, a busier time for our trip would be the wednesday evening before memorial day weekend. good time for a show? or is that a mistake because we'd have to show up super early or parking will be a nightmare to go to our adr on a busy day? we will have our own car.

any thoughts?

 

[kari B.]

You could "plan" to have a ADR on a busier day sure... You wouldn't really have to worry about parking except at Downtown Disney, and maybe if you were have dinner at a Boardwalk restaurant. And even then, you would just probably have to park farther and walk. I wouldn't even worry about that too much.

Try to make the ADR's and see what is available... If they only have an opening on a "less busy" day, I'd take it. I don't know how much busier it will be... I'd plan for both weeks to be pretty crowded.

And just because everyone makes a big deal over the restaurants and dining thing... doesn't mean you have to!

I do think you'd enjoy the HDDR!

 

[MyTwoPrincesses]

We like fine dining but we like to mix it up and choose places with fun experiences, regardless of the food. I'm not super into character dining either.

We really enjoyed Biergarten at Epcot. The food is good, not amazing. The restaurant has a really fun atmosphere. It feels like you are in a town square in Germany. An oompah band plays and kids can get up and dance. If you are beer drinkers, you can get a stein as big as your head or a beer flight. It is our #1 must return from our last trip - it was our least favorite in terms of the food, but the atmosphere was such a blast, my kids are still talking about it 15 months later (they were 3 and 4 at the time). FYI: They haven't mentioned Akershus (the princess meal) since we came back.

We haven't done it yet, but we are trying 'Ohana in March. If you want to go, you'll need to book early, as it books up fast. It's an all you can eat meat-fest with lots of fun activities for kids and a view of MK.

Sci Fi Dine In in Hollywood Studios is a lot of fun for kids. I personally didn't LOVE it, but my kids and DH enjoyed the novelty. We went for lunch and it's basically diner food but it's good - I had a tasty Rebuen and DH had a turkey sandwich. Dessert was great (we paid out of pocket and shared a chocolate/peanut butter a la mode). But you eat in these cool cars and watch old film clips (and a Tom and Jerry cartoon)! I definitely recommend it for kids.

Another option at Hollywood Studios is 50s Prime Time - I haven't been but it has comfort food and is themed to look like a 1950s house. There is a schtick - you can read more about it if you do a search.

 

[Ctsplaysinrain]

I would suggest Sci-Fi at Hollywood Studios. Also, T-Rex at Downtown Disney.

 

[littlemermaidariel]

Must do Restaurants for a fun filled experience:
50PT at HS. Very nice 50's theme and the food is pretty good.
Scifi Theater, especially if you have kids.
Teppan Edo in Epcot is always a must do for us, very good food and entertaining!
CRT, I know you mentioned your not big on the characters, but eating at the castle is an experience in its own special category.
T-Rex at Downtown Disney, super yummy food and the restaurant is out of this world, literally. lol.
I hope you and your family have a lovely time!

 

[TinkerbellinLouisian]

Fun Meals !

Okay...

MK: Cinderella's Royal Table ....Cosmic Rays
Epcot: Teppan Edo...
DHS: 50's Prime Time... (Plus a Fantasmic Dining option which I would recommend H&V for)
AK: Y&Y has GREAT atmosphere and excellent FOOD... but Rainforest has more exciting atmosphere and less good food

Resorts:
POLY - 'OHana Breakfast we LOVE
Wilderness - WCC... Great FUN - we've done breakfast there..

HDDR - Totally agree - Hoop Dee Doo Music Revue !

Hope that helps !

Mary

 

[EastonCat]

Aside from show venues, I felt that servers and staff at Teppan Edo, Tokyo Dining, Nine Dragons and Chefs de France engage very well with children and respond well to the energy of a table. If they feel that your kids are interested in what's going on, they will do little things that make them feel special. I think this is a cultural thing and is one of the non-packaged sprinkles of pixie dust that was what Walt had in mind at the beginning.

This past December, for example, my daughter asked our server at Chefs de France if they really sing happy birthday using the tune we have in the US. Our server said that they absolutely do, just with French words, just like they sing Jingle Bells using the same tune and French words. She then taught our daughter the song and got a bunch of people around us singing.

My daughter is seven, and this was what stuck about our trip.

Sometimes it's the little things.

By the way -- the Tusker House breakfast is a different kind of character meal -- we're not really fans of character dining but love it there. Worth checking out.

 

[EastonCat]

And one more thing. Park Fare dining at dinner is special. The stepsisters are like nothing else I've ever experienced.

A. Must. Do.

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

Any of the shows would be fun...Hoop Dee Doo, Luau,, or the backyard bbq (I've not been to that one.) HDDR and Luah are both very expensive.

Biergarten also has a show and is much less expensive. However, kids have been known to eat NOTHING there.

Chefs de France has Remy from Ratiltoulle come around to the tables. Its not a really big deal...but its cute.

Whispering Canyon has a fun, loud, rambunctous atmospher that kids love.

Ohana has activities that the kids would enjoy...but oh my...the food is yummy and there is lots of it!!

As for characters, 1900 Park Fare, Cape May, and Crystal Palace is fun.

As an adult I'll say that I was really disappointed with CRT.

 

[Nursekatiebelle]

T Rex in Downtown Disney is great. My four year old son talks about it all year long
(when we are home.... he constantly asks to go... like we can just hop on a plane anytime...) It is like the Rain Forest Cafe but dinosaur themed and much cooler! A must see!

 

[tzolkin]

From our most recent 10 day dining trip...

Everyone's favorite was Ohana for dinner. The whole experience of going to the Poly was very fun (got leis in the lobby, took the boat back to MK, etc). We all enjoyed the food (especially dessert ) and the kids were entertained throughout the meal with the games. DH and the kids mention going back to Ohana every few days. (However, my parents went to Ohana for breakfast during their previous vacation and thought it was the worst experience/meal of that trip. They would not have gone back if I hadn't insisted on making the reservation.)

We also enjoyed Teppan Edo. The kids had never been to this type of restaurant and we had a very entertaining chef. Great-grandpa got a paper hat for his 80th birthday that he wore for the rest of the evening.

Coral Reef was nice. Everyone enjoyed the food and the kids were entertained watching the fish, turtles, and divers throughout the meal.

We did 1900 PF for both breakfast and dinner. Breakfast was our first character meal ever and the kids enjoyed meeting Alice and Mary Poppins. They enjoyed meeting the Stepmother and Anastasia and my younger DD was picked to dance with Cinderella (her favorite princess ) Other than that the food and experiences were not anything exceptional for us.


We were really looking forward to Sci-Fi, but it was freezing in there. It was so cold that we were all miserable and couldn't wait to leave. We asked for our desserts to go and the kids and I sat outside while DH waited for the desserts and the bill. Maybe we got an off day or a bad car/location, but we're really not that sensitive-- heck it was -17 here this morning. I would have still been uncomfortably cold in there with a hoodie and jeans.



As for your other post, I would definitely make the reservations for later in the trip if possible. We have gone twice in May with the weekend of Memorial Day in the middle of our trip. The crowds were much lower the week before, so I would spend as much time enjoying the parks and doing all the attractions when it's slow and then relaxing/eating when the crowds pick up. Also very important during the busy days is to go to a park at rope drop/EMH... the crowds/long lines don't usually start to form until around 11:00. (oops... just read you're staying offsite. You'll still want to get to the parks early, just not the one that has EMH )

 

[Brook1099]

HDDR definately!

Trex is great atmoshere

Grand Fla. character breakfast is good if you like Mary Poppins, Mad Hatter is cool.
The dinner there is fun entertainment even if your not into characters, the stepsister are a real hoot.

Never been to 50's but it seems to be a funny atmosphere as well.

 

[Amy&Dan]

Sci Fi, Prime Time, Ohana, Whispering Canyon Cafe, Hoop Dee Doo Review,
Marrakesh (live entertainment and belly dancer), Coral Reef (aquarium restaurant), TREX, Rainforest Cafe, character meals (pick the one that has the characters you want to see), Tepan Edo, and Biergarten, are all places that have a unique atmosphere. We have enjoyed the food at all of them but the themes and experience make them all more worthwhile and a part of the whole vacation experience.

Of all of those though, Sci Fi is always our must do, we love the atmosphere, the burgers and shakes are good, the corny movie flicks crack us up and its reasonable by Disney standards. We always do lunch, its a bit cheaper and again, we go for the burgers!

 

[MickeyNicki]

When my niece was 9 she could care less where we ate so she was just happy with CS stuff....

My 6 year old niece was thrilled with Coral Reef because of the fish in the tank...we did spend alot of time in Living Seas so I knew this was going to be a hit for her...she didnt not like the food though and made a meal off of the bread, fries and the create your own sundae (in her defense the pizza was sooo gross, just a pita shell with sauce).

She also LOVED the Norway Princess breakfast and had the time of her life there.

Other than that the kids were just happy with CS meals. They did love CP breakfast because of the parading around the room with the characters.