Is it worth the expense for character meal?

[calena]

I'm just wondering if it is really worth the expense for a character meal? The breafast ones seem so overpriced and even dinner buffet at $23 for adults and $16 for kids seems like a lot. We are a family of five - three kids.
DS, 8, really wants to eat with Chef Mickey. DS is NOT a big eater. Last year we went to the Golden Corral - he had one piece of chicken and about four bowls of ice cream. That was it.
On the other hand, we are at Disney, might as well enjoy it?

 

[Disneefun]

I'd say that, in general, it's something that you should do at least once just for the experience. But I agree that they feel overpriced and you have to eat a lot to really get the value out of most of them. That said, our favorite is the Garden Grill in EPCOT for lunch. The lunch price is less than dinner and the food is served family style, rather than a true buffet. What we do is eat a small breakfast that day and then schedule a late lunch (around 2:00 or so). By the time lunch rolls around, we're starved and so we eat enough to get our money's worth. The characters are the old favorites -- Mickey, Chip n Dale, Pluto, etc.

 

[ptrbryant]

We didn't go to a CM on our first WDW trip (we've now been 3x) because I had the same concerns as you (i.e. very expensive, picky-eater child, availability of seeing characters in the parks, etc.) On our 2nd trip, we did Chef Mickey's for dinner and that was the main thing my DS (then 7) was most excited about when telling people about our trip! So, on our last trip, we actually did 2 CMs...Garden Grill and Liberty Tree Tavern. When we go this fall, my DS (who will be 9 by then) is still insisting on a CM. I think, however, we'll try to do just one this time. So, basically, I do feel the experience was worth it (and my DS probably ate 1/2 a nugget and vanilla ice cream!).

Karla B.

 

[gigi1313]

in a word YES! at least in our family's opinion! try it, you'll like it!

some tips as far as a character breakfast goes... what we do is have a light snack in our room in the morning (cereal cup brought from home or pop tart or nutrigrain type bar) and make our breakfast ps at the latest possible time (11-11:30ish) and enjoy it as brunch/lunch... we have found that this plan actually saves money, our kids eat more because they are hungrier and they prefer breakfast type foods so there is something that appeals to them (and we maybe get our money's worth rather than the one chicken nugget meal!) plus, it seems that the later seatings of the meals get better character interaction... as the meal and crowd winds down, the characters relax and are not as rushed and therefore spend more time w/each family...

whatever you decide, ENJOY!

 

[Deesknee]

IMHO YES!!! I agree it is a huge chunk of cash to put out, but it is an attraction in the eyes of most kids.
We started taking my kids when they were 3 1/2 they loved it then and (even though they hate to admit it) they love it now. We didn't go when they were 11 1/2 and no big deal, but we did go last July (they were 13) and they admitted how much fun it is (they did have the enjoyment of seeing their 11 mnth old sister react to it.

I think if you consider it an dinner/breakfast "show" it is easier to dish (no pun intended) out the money. To the little ones it truly is a show.

Our favorite 2 are Chef Mickeys and Liberty Tree Tavern, there are many however that we hav never done.

 

[foxfire]

I've read a lot of comments from posters that chose to do the ice cream social instead of a full character meal. I think the cost mentioned was $6.99 per person. Less expensive to do, the kids still meet characters, & most kids will eat ice cream but, even if they're too excited to eat, you don't have as much money involved. Just something to think of as a possibility...

 

[CheapMom]

This may be the last time your DS is interested in a character meal- I think you should do it. CMs is really fun.
It is expensive but it is a neat experience.

 

[Okiemom]

It is a easy way to see the characters and eat at the same time. It beats standing in line to see a character and have them sign a page. That takes too much time, so do at least one CM.

 

[dkddis]

We do just one per trip and it is worth it. If you are staying on site you could have one in a park on an early entry day. This worked out in our favor on our first trip with our kids. We had an early seating in AK in the Dino Land area when we finished breakfast we were inside the park and very close to good rides like Dinosaur with no lines. Plus this one has Goofy!

 

[PrincessCandaceMarie]

YES!!!!!

 

[matdamom]

in a word YES! at least in our family's opinion! try it, you'll like it!

some tips as far as a character breakfast goes... what we do is have a light snack in our room in the morning (cereal cup brought from home or pop tart or nutrigrain type bar) and make our breakfast ps at the latest possible time (11-11:30ish) and enjoy it as brunch/lunch... we have found that this plan actually saves money, our kids eat more because they are hungrier and they prefer breakfast type foods so there is something that appeals to them (and we maybe get our money's worth rather than the one chicken nugget meal!) plus, it seems that the later seatings of the meals get better character interaction... as the meal and crowd winds down, the characters relax and are not as rushed and therefore spend more time w/each family...

whatever you decide, ENJOY!

I wholeheartedly agree. We did the Princess Storybook breakfast in Epcot, and got PS for 11:15. Yes, it was expensive for a breakfast. But we treated it like a brunch, the kids ate pretty good (for little kids, anyway) and the experience was great. Even my DH said he would do it again. Since we spent all day in Epcot at an easy pace and got one snack mid-afternoon, it actually cost us less money than eating another counter-service meal in the park. Also, we did Chef Mickey's and it was also a lot of fun. The food is so-so, but it's the experience you are really paying for. And again, my DH enjoyed it, and he is a hard one to please. Until my kids don't want to do them anymore, we'll probably attempt at least one character meal each visit. Next time I'm shooting for the Pooh characters.

 

[speedyf]

We actually did 3 CM's on our last trip in May 2004. We did the Pooh & Friends Breakfast at Crystal Palace in the Magic Kingdom, Chef Mickey at the Contemporary, and the Ice Cream Social at the Garden Grill.

Out of all 3 of those....my son interacted the most during the Ice Cream Social. The times for the ICS are usually from about 2:30 to 3:15. We had the last seating (3:15).

By the time we sat down, the place was practically empty. My son was able to take a picture with all the characters. Mickey came "play" with him for awhile. My son showed Mickey how he can write his own name...etc. Then, Pluto and Chip came to the table at the same time and stayed for a good 5 minutes.

I would suggest an early lunch (like 11am'ish) so that you can work up a good appetite for the Ice Cream. The price was $8.99 for adults and a couple dollars cheaper for kids ($6.99?).

You can then have a late supper that night and eat cheap to make up for the cost of the Ice Cream Social. I've also read that people in your party that do not want the ice cream can pay $5 per person to sit with the party, but not eat....I don't know if that's accurate.

We were also able to order drinks with the Ice Cream which we were not charged for (included in the price).

Finally....I found that the Crystal Palace buffet was good...but, we didn't care much for the actual food at Chef Mickey's.

This year....I've been giving my 5 year old a $2 per week allowance. He's saving to pay for breakfast for all 3 of us and souveniers. He also received $40 worth of Disney Dollars from various relatives for Christmas and he now has over $120 saved for the trip.

If you want to do the Ice Cream Social...make sure to make a Priority Seating arrangement in advance. I called about 2 months before our arrival and everything was booked up until our last day since there are only 3 seating times per day (2:45, 3:00, 3:15).

Hope this helps....
speed

 

[TinkerPixxie]

I agree that its best used for two meals... either lunch/dinner or breakfast/lunch. Then it justifies the cost IMO. Some fruit in between or snack crackers to hold you over. I did the Epcot breakfast and have to say it was terribly rushed and I certainly didnt feel it was worth the money.
However I did do 1900 park fare with Cindy and it was terrific.
Sorry no experience with Chef Mickeys though.

Tink~

 

[poohj80]

I have to add my JUST DO IT here as well!

Similar to what someone else mentioned, we try to have a late lunch so it can serve as lunch/dinner with just a snack in the evening. The buffets are pretty much the same for both meals but the lunch price is cheaper. My favorite is the Crystal Palace for obvious reasons.

 

[lclark0621]

Character meals are SO worth the price!

You get some one on one time with the characters. They are all you can eat. We like doing late morning character breakfasts & then skipping lunch or just doing a snack.

It is just so much fun!

It is such an easy laid back way to meet the characters.

DH & I used to do them all the time before DS. Now with DS they are SO much more fun!

I need to do at least one a trip. This upcoming trip we are doing 3, possibly 4 character meals.

 

[the kabuki]

We usually do one or two per trip. Yes, they're overpriced, but so is everything else at Disney, at least you get to meet the characters. Try the Crystal Palace Buffet with Pooh & friends. We get our moneys worth at that one.

 

[rileyroosmom]

My kids loved the Chef Mickey's breakfast. In May '04 we did the Ice Cream Social at the Garden Grill. That was great and only $6.99 per person. Don't know if it's still around due to the refurbishment of the Land.

 

[2kidsnutsfordisney]

Just one word of caution on the Ice Cream Social. It is not what you expect in terms of a "social". We were under the impression that it was something where you chose your flavor of ice cream, toppings, etc. Instead it is a pre-plated large waffle cone of vanilla ice cream with sprinkles, etc. It was also difficult for our two children to eat. Probably a decent option if you are looking for a character type event but want to avoid the more costly options.

By the way we have done several and our hands down favorite is Chef Mickey's (we always fly in around noon and start off our first Disney night by eating there) or Cinderella's Royal Table. Liberty Tree has good homestyle food and the breakfast at the Crystal Palace is also good. Have fun

 

[sanibelover]

I guess you should do it once, but I must say my kids (boys 9, 6) were underwhelmed. Of course they didn't eat enough to get our money's worth - neither did I (or my husband). Don't think you can worry about that when it comes to a character meal.

Depends on your kids. We don't watch alot of TV or movies (Disney included) so the characters were just people in costumes to my kids. They went through the motions - got the autographs and the pictures, but would have rather been doing something else - (Like Test Track!!!). The people next to us seemed to be really enjoying themselves, but I couldn't wiat to leave..........

To sum it up, once was enough. (We went to Chef Mickey's)

 

[Taja]

I've only done one character meal, and that was at LTT. Food was good (I'm a picky eater) for the most part, character interaction was very good. I was with a group of 30+ people, so we had a section to ourselves!

A number of adults I know adore Chef Mickey's. They agree withe the late breakfast or late lunch, depending on what kind of food your family likes, to help save money over the cost of the dinner.

If they prefer breakfast food, have something very light in your room early to get everyone going. If they prefer lunch/dinner type food, eat breakfast a little later, but keep it fairly light.