Mickey Backyard Bbq and FW resort

[Ruth B]

hi all
Travelling with our 3 and 8 year old and wondered about doing this dining show( as appears to be the shortest as may keep 3 year old attention!!)
We would do the early sitting ( think it 530)
We would also like to see a bit of FW, maybe do a pony ride or carriage ride.
Has anyone done either? Any suggestion or feedback on it?
We would probably grab a cab over as at AKL
Thanks all
Ruth

 

[TheRustyScupper]

Our Ratings of Mickey's BBQ: (*rev 7/20/15*)
. . . food price value: D
. . . food quality: C
. . . food quantity per serving: A
. . . food prep speed: B
. . . food selection: C
. . . seating quantity: C
. . . seating comfort: D
. . . eatery atmosphere: C
. . . eatery convenience: D
. . . staff friendliness: B
. . . staff attentiveness: B
. . . character interaction: B
.
NOTE1: Tables are long picnic tables of about 40 people per table, so you sit with
others. No reserved seating, so the "mad dash" for seats can be interesting. There is
no "front row", just the end of the picnic tables. Folks start lining up about 1-hr prior
to the 5:30pm seating. Also, the characters are there for dancing and front interaction,
and usually do not go thru tables, so sometimes there is a long line trying to get to the
characters. Also noted the sides are open to the weather. They put up plastic diverters
for winter and simple fans for summer, but it does get VERY hot/humid or cold. This is
not a well heated or air conditioned pavilion. "Dancing" characters interact well with
kids in front of the stage, and younger kids love it.
.
NOTE2: Mickey BBQ was always about one-half the price of the Hoop Dee Do Review. With
the popularity of DDP, they jumped the price double, including 2-TS coupons. WITH NO
CHANGE IN MENUS; NO CHANGE IN CHARACTERS; NO CHANGES AT ALL. Cost was barely
justified at lower prices, and not worth the current price for ribs-chicken-burgers.
NOTE3: The characters "dance" in front of the stage, and children come up to dance with
them. This creates a lot of pushing by the kids as they try to get next to their favorite
character. There are no lines like in the park for Meet & Greet, and no handlers to keep
the kids in a line or heaving.

*************************************************************************************
1) The pony ride is like those at a local fair - pretty dull, I would think.
2) The carriage ride can be enjoyable, but doesn't cover much of The Fort.
3) It might be better to just stroll and look at all the campsites and decorations.
4) The Hoop-Dee-Musical-Revue (HDDR) would be a fun choice for you AND the kids.
5) An alternative is to rent a pontoon boat for ½-to-1 hour and go around the lake.

 

[nherbert]

The pony ride would be fun for the 3 year old but I suspect the 8 year old might be too tall - there is a height limit. The pony ride is not long but long enough for 3 year old and only costs $5 (maybe more now). One year we did the Xmas carriage ride to see the Christmas lights, we really enjoyed it but we spent most of the time talking to the driver as we found it really interesting to find out about working at Disney. If your goal was to see the lights then walking around might be better, but we loved the fun of the ride and glad we did it once, but we will walk next time as free. The displays are lots of fun and worth seeing.

We did the BBQ and did not like it at all (I know that is not going to be a popular response). The food was ok, but Trails End is so so so much better. The character interaction is ok, but there are a lot of kids and if your kid is shy then getting them up to dance is difficult. Your 3 year old might have a hard time. There is a rope demonstration that goes on way too long but maybe we were just tired. Our then 5 year old wanted to leave to play in the playground so we snuck out and put it down to experience, we won't return.

HDDR might be a bit much for a 3 year old, but the 8 year old would enjoy - we are doing this again. There is campfire where you can see chip n dale which is ok too, we are going to give this another try.