Is It Really Worth It?

[Mackey Mouse]

It definitely is personal preference.. some people totally love it, do it each time they are there. Some only do it once and some not at all. We did it years ago when the children were little and have never felt the need to go back.

We are just not huge into character meals as older adults, we do love to eat nice meals in good restaurants but do not care if there is character participation at them..

 

[eclectics]

It's one of those places I just wanted to say I'd been there. We had dinner there as we are not into the "character dining" thing. Nice atmosphere and food was okay, not terrific. Glad I did it the one time but wouldn't do it again (especially if they raise prices and make it character dining for all meals). Glad we went when we did!

 

[fabumouse]

No, they don't slow down to compensate at the Castle - they just keep bringing you food. My one experience, of course.

 

[michvin]

OK, I'm going to say no.

We did lunch in the castle last month and it was fine. It wasn't amazing or mind boggling. It was me, DH, and DS9. DS has no use for princesses, but we were doing it just because we had never been there before.

The food wasn't bad, but it wasn't the best I've ever tasted. The atmosphere is nice - the castle is lovely - but it isn't THAT big of a deal. Our server was very, very nice but the meal goes in fast forward.

Considering that they are upping the castle to two credits per person after Feb. 1 (or just raising prices if you are paying cash) I think your money is better spent going somewhere else. Ask your kids where they would really like to eat, or ask them if there is another activity they really want to add on instead of eating in the castle.

For us, we can say "been there, done that" and see no reason to have to do it again.

On the other hand, if you really want to go to the castle, do it once just to say you've done it.

While our DDalmost 5 would disagree,it was nice but I didn't think it was awesome or anything. I honestly enjoyed the Crystal Palace setting much better. We went for our first time in October with DS, DDalmost 5 and DS 6. We did have fun...my husband loved seeing Mary Poppins...won't go into that here but for the price increase I don't think we will make it a must do. Maybe in a few years we will do it again for dinner or breakfast (we did lunch) for something different.

 

[Sammie]

Its good but I think it s over rated. The food is ok, you pay for the location. If you have never done it.....go for it but it is not one of those things that you just cant wait to do again....well at least thats my feelings.

Have to agree, there are much better places at Disney to eat in the same price range and when I get to the Magic Kingdom having an overpriced mediocre meal is not what I want to do.

 

[DisneyDotty]

We had lunch at King Stefan's (before it was a character meal) back in 2001 when DD was 7 and DS was 3. We LOVED it--getting out of the heat/crowds, relaxing and watching the activity of MK from a cool, a/c place. Loved the food, too.
We had lunch again there this past June, and I gotta say--Eh, nothing special. Five princesses. They rush you through the experience. The food was nothing to rave about.
I think we're done with that particular restaurant, unless they go back to a non-character meal with an improved menu.

 

[jimmiej]

kimisabella: just wondering....did you get that wonderful picture on Main Street with no one else around by going to an early character meal? That alone could be worth the price of a CRT breakfast!

We did the same thing with an early seating at Crystal Palace.

 

[unixadm]

Here is my review of Cinderella's Royal Table for Dinner:

Cinderella's Royal Table - Dinner - MK *** 1/2 (3 1/2 Stars)

I gave this 3 1/2 stars but still recommend it to those who have kids that find the Castle Magical. Might not be the best food in all of Disney, but the magic of the castle beats that out.

Well, we had to eat in the castle...it was just a given since my boys identify that castle as BEING Disney World, not to mention it is shown on the beginning of every Pixar movie, etc. We got REALLY lucky. As we walked in, Cinderalla had stopped in before her show and we were able to get autographs and photos. My kids were in HEAVEN!

Myself: Shrimp Cocktail/Green Lipped Mussels, The 14oz Prime Rib, Medium Rare - Good prime rib, but not the best I've ever had. It wasn't too fatty which was good, but just didn't have that "melt in my mouth" experience. GREAT for the Dining Plan, or just because you want to eat in the castle, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it.

Wife: Caesar Salad, Fillet of Beef - 8 oz - My wife chose this because it was a smaller portion (although more expensive than the 14 oz Prime Rib ). I figured it was going to be much better than the PR, but turns out it wasn't. She wasn't too thrilled with it. Nothing really bad, but if we were paying the
$28 for it, we may have had a conversation with the manager about it.hota

Kids: Pretzel Dogs - I asked about these, and the server said they were regular size hot dogs in the pretzel bread. We figured they would be small, so ordered 2 to pay OOP. They came with 2 hot dogs each along with accompanyments, so we ended up with lots of kids leftovers for the fridge.

Here are the shrimp and Mussels (After I ate one of the shrimp...I was hungry and forgot to pull out my camera!)

And my Prime Rib:

Here is my wife's Fillet of Beef:

Kid's Pretzel Hot Dogs:

DESSERTS: Cinderella's Slipper Dessert and Key Lime Creme Brulee

TOTAL BILL (2 Adults) - $104.86

2 TS Credits - 22 TS Credits remaining