Is dinner at Chef Mickey's really that bad?

[ktink]

Our family LOVES CM! We've now made it a tradition to have dinner there on the first night of every visit. We enjoyed the food and the atmosphere. The only complaint we had was our waiter and he was doing almost the best he could. Character interaction and all was great.

 

[zurgswife]

Our family enjoys chef Mickey's and will definately return..

 

[lark]

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe if you're staying off-site, the earliest you can make a reservation is 90 days before your meal. You should be able to park at the CR. I'm not sure if you'll have to pay for parking or not. Have fun!

It is my understanding that the 180 day policy applies to everyone, but resort guests can use the 180+10.

 

[Tam1067]

We liked the characters, the silly atmosphere, and the food when we went for dinner on our last trip, and we've got it booked for our trip in July, too. We're all looking forward to it.

 

[letsgoagainsoon]

We ate there last trip and really enjoyed it!!

 

[fitzperry]

It is my understanding that the 180 day policy applies to everyone, but resort guests can use the 180+10.

What is "the 180+10"? I thought that on-site guests could book adr's for their entire stay 180 days from their arrival date. Is that what you mean?

 

[disneyfreakjackie]

Chef Mickey's for dinner is WONDERFUL!!! It's our first character meal (on arrival day) of each of our trips!!

 

[Suzanne74]

Do Chef Mcikey's - it is my dd's all time favorite place. I swear I think she prefers it to Magic Kingdom It is our first night ritual and it is a great way to get autographs and photo ops out of the way BEFORE the parks. The carved meat was SO tender when we were there and there is SO much food, there is something for everyone. The kids eyes will pop out of their head when they see the ice cream station. It is just fun to see all the kids and characters dancing - it is SO Disney. Is it basic buffet food, yes - is it loud, yes - can the servers be just okay or rushed - yes. Will your kids say it was the best place to eat in Disney - YES!!! And that is all that matters. People tend to be VERY picky on this board so just go and have fun!!!

 

[TexasCourt]

Chef Mickey's is a must for me everytime. I think the food is actually pretty good.....I remember the garlic mashed potatoes being very tasty! The atmoshpere is fun, albeit a bit noisy, but overall, a good experience, IMO!

 

[daisyduck123]

We eat dinner there twice during each of our trips.

Love it!!

 

[lark]

What is "the 180+10"? I thought that on-site guests could book adr's for their entire stay 180 days from their arrival date. Is that what you mean?

Yes, although the policy as stated is that you can only make them for 10 additional days beyond your 180 day window. So, theoretically if you were staying for 15 days, you'd have to call twice.

 

[fitzperry]

Yes, although the policy as stated is that you can only make them for 10 additional days beyond your 180 day window. So, theoretically if you were staying for 15 days, you'd have to call twice.

Thanks! That's what I thought you meant.

And thanks to everyone for the CM advice. Sounds like the culinary offerings are comparable to CP, which I thought wasn't half bad by buffet standards. And the atmosphere sounds wonderful. I think it will get our trip off to a great start!

 

[tline35]

We have been to Chef Mickey's several times. I think the food has gotten worse not better. We went last August only because it was my nephew's birhday and he picked Chef Mickey's. I was very disappointed. The kids loved the characters but to be honest you can see Mickey in many other places in MK. We would go to 1900 Park Fare instead.

I AGREE !!!!!

Its a RESTAURANT! You go for the FOOD and the ATMOSPHERE! If those are bad (and they are) . . . . . save yourself a lot of money and stand in line for 20 minutes to see Mickey in Toon Town. You'll get the same 45 seconds with Mickey at either place.

 

[diznyfanatic]

As much as it pains me to say this, I do think the food at Chef Mickey's is just not very good. We visited this past Christmas and were pretty surprised that we didn't enjoy the food.

Actually though, aside from Boma at AKL which is one of our favorite places, we haven't been terribly impressed lately with any other buffet food that we've experienced, although the food was a better at 1900 Park Fare than at Chef Mickey's.

However, we have so much fun at Chef Mickey's with my granddaughter, who loves it, that we will continue to visit.

 

[fitzperry]

I AGREE !!!!!

Its a RESTAURANT! You go for the FOOD and the ATMOSPHERE! If those are bad (and they are) . . . . . save yourself a lot of money and stand in line for 20 minutes to see Mickey in Toon Town. You'll get the same 45 seconds with Mickey at either place.

The only restaurant I've been to at WDW that I would go to FOR THE FOOD is California Grill, and unless we want to sleep in a cardboard box instead of OKW, dining there every night just ain't gonna happen. I've just not been impressed with the quality of the food at WDW. It's mostly bland and just seems very mass-produced. There have been a few dishes that were pretty tasty--the dessert plate at Marrakesh comes to mind--but for the most part, the food is not that great. The atmosphere, OTOH, can be fabulous, and I'm not sure why, but standing in line to see characters in the parks just isn't as appealing to me as a character meal. To each his own, I guess.

 

[tline35]

I'm not sure why, but standing in line to see characters in the parks just isn't as appealing to me as a character meal. To each his own, I guess.

When we went to CM, we had 6:20 reservations, didn't get seated until after 7:00! I'll take the 20 wait for the character line and a less expensive bland meal.

 

[SnowWitch]

CM's used to be on our "have to go every trip list". Yeah...not any more.

Now in all honesty, we haven't been in several years because it seemed every trip the food quality continued to decline to the point we just quit going. The last meal we had there I had some prime rib and then I beelined it for the desserts. They had just placed an untouched cake out and I got the first slice. When I returned to the table I started to enjoy the cake when I noticed a big ol' hair in it. Literally ran to the bathroom, I just can't handle hair in food. Upon returning to the table the waitress came over to inquire about my abrupt dash to the restroom. I showed her and she returned with the manager, who finally comped me the meal. And rightfully so since none of it stayed down!!! We paid for everyone elses meal and we left. The hair thing can happen at any buffet but the food quality combined with the managers attitude was the final straw.

The only buffet we go to now is Boma.

 

[DISNEYFAMILYOFFOUR]

We're planning a November trip. On our previous trips, we've rushed right to a park after checking in, but last time we had an early flight and the kids were exhausted, cranky and just plain done by about 5 p.m. So I was thinking of skipping the parks on our arrival day and doing a fun dinner at a resort. CM would be perfect, but I've read some pretty scathing reviews of the food and service. I'm not a huge fan of buffets, but at least you can usually find something palatable. How does the food compare to other WDW buffets, like Crystal Palace? Would you avoid CM and do 1900 Park Fare instead?

TIA!

I personally think dinner at CM is a wonderful way to start a WDW vacation.

 

[Lewisc]

I wouldn't say it's that bad but it's not great. I think the quality is now similar to Golden Corral. Edible but not great.

 

[TiggerStac]

On our first trip to chef mickeys (not sure why we had never tried it before) in 2/05. We enjoyed it. The character interaction was wonderful and the food was OK. We decided to go back for DS's 4th birthday in 9/05 and what a disappointment. I had heard so many wonderful things about bdays there. The service was horrible, the character interaction really wasn't that good and the food wasn't even OK. We do not plan on going back anytime soon.