Opinions on Restaurant Selection

[ejsmomma]

We have 2 young boys (almost 3 and 4.5 at the time) This will be their first trip to the World. Our goal is lots of characters and good food for mom and dad.

Areas we still need help with are in BLUE.

Our selection:

Day 1- Epcot
Garden Grill - dinner first night there - friends have gone and loved it. Start with character meal. Both boys really want to see Pluto.

Day 2 Epcot/ MK
Boulangerie Patisserie - breakfast
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall - LUNCH ??? or Suggest another place
Dinner - at MK counter service or TS?

Day 3 DS/ ?
Breakfast - quick
Lunch - HOllywood and Vine - both boys want to meet the Little Einsteins
Dinner - ? (another resort)

Day 4 MK
breakfast - quick
Lunch - The Plaza (early lunch)
dinner - ?????

Day 5 AK/ MK for MNSSHP
breakfast - Tusker House
Lunch - quick
dinner - Artist Point then MNSSHP (or do AP Thurs night and counter service tonight)

Day 6 Downtown Disney
breakfast - Kona
shop
Fly home

 

[OKW Lover]

A few comments:

Day 2 - your breakfast choice doesn't open until 11:00 along with the rest of World Showcase. Lunch in Norway is heavily Princess - the boys may feel left out.

Day 5 - Artist Point is one of our favorite restaurants. But its a long dining experience that may try the patience of young children. You may want to consider Whispering Canyon instead.

 

[kathiewe]

See my comments in green...

Day 1- Epcot
Garden Grill - dinner first night there - friends have gone and loved it. Start with character meal. Both boys really want to see Pluto.

Day 2 Epcot/ MK
Boulangerie Patisserie - breakfast
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall - LUNCH OKW Lover is right Akershus is really better for girls. If you want a TS restaurant try Coral Reef (full size aquarium), Biergarten (oompa band and dancing which the kids love), or Tepan Edo (Japanese steakhouse with masters who entertain and cook). Other options: Eat at a counter service in EPCOT for lunch. Then try Cape May chracter breakfast (Y&BC)-- great food, character interaction, and cute beach character outfits. You could also save the character meal dinner at MK. Crystal Palace is one our favorite chracter meals. Other character meals close by: Chef Mickey's (Contemporary), or 1900 Park Fair (Grand Floridian).
Dinner - at MK counter service or TS? If you do TS at MK there are some very good options. Walk around and find one that suits your family best.

Day 3 DS/ ?
Breakfast - quick
Lunch - HOllywood and Vine - both boys want to meet the Little Einsteins
Dinner - 'Ohana (Polynesian) -- the kids love the games, Trail's End BBQ (Fort Wilderness) Have a pony ride before dinner and walk around the petting zoo. Whispering Canyon (Wilderness Lodge) -- the ultimate kid dining experience.

Day 4 MK
breakfast - quick
Lunch - The Plaza (early lunch)
dinner - See comments above for some idea. Or go DD and try out one their great options.

Day 5 AK/ MK for MNSSHP
breakfast - Tusker House
Lunch - quick
dinner - Artist Point then MNSSHP (or do AP Thurs night and counter service tonight) Again, I agree with OKW -- Whispering Canyon might be a better option.

Day 6 Downtown Disney
breakfast - Kona
shop
Fly home
____________


Have fun!!

 

[Hootch]

brief comments.

1) Biergarten in Epcot is a lot of fun for kids. A band plays briefly at different points in the day. There is a small dance floor that usually has kids on it while the band is playing. This would work for either the lunch day in place of Askerhus or the evening for the DHS day.

2) Artist Point - I agree with the PP that this is a drawn out meal. I love it and think it's one of the overlooked places for couples, but I'm a fan of the western national park lodges which it's based on. It's been a couple of years since I have been to Crystal Palace for dinner. The last couple of times I have enjoyed the variety of food and the Pooh characters will give a slightly different interaction from Garden Grill.

3) Crystal Palace - see above. This would work in place of Artisit Point or dinner on day 4.

4) Ohana dinner could work for days 3, 4 or 5. Hollywood Studios doesn't take my family a full day unless it's Star Wars Weekend. It should be fairly easy to finish your touring and get to Ohana for an early dinner. You should be able to get a shared resort bus that goes directly to the Poly. There are no characters at the Ohana dinner but there are games to entertain them.

 

[rlovew]

I will agree with those above that say Artist Point is a long dining experience. I wouldn't do it before MNSSHP- we were the first ones in the restraunt one day (opens at 5:30pm) and didn't leave until about 8:30pm. Granted we weren't looking for a rushed experience but if I was going to a party afterwards I wouldn't be happy. At the same time it was the most amazing food we had. If it is cool enough you could ask to be seated outside and then the boys could look out at the pool and such during dinner. Or if you get 5:30 reservations- check in 15 minutes early and then ask to be seated at a window- we didn't ask but were seated beside a window overlooking a waterfall- that might entertain them a bit.