Recommend a character meal

[NLD]

Hi all,

Taking my dd for a suprise birthday trip to WDW in January. She will be turning eight years old.

Since it's a surpise, I can't get her input!

What character meal would you recommend for an eight-year-old girl? She is not really into Princesses anymore, she tells me they are too babyish. (Although she also told me Tiana is not babyish, she's okay. So I think secretly she still likes the princesses sometimes but is "too cool" for them.)


So... I'm not sure what to book? Was thinking maybe 1900 Park Faire dinner--even though that's Cinderella, maybe the presence of the stepsisters makes it's a little more "cool"?

Or do we do a Mickey meal, just b/c it's Mickey after all? (Is Minnie at any of the character meals, preferably in or very close to a park?)

Or should we just skip a character meal this time?

 

[merlee76]

Minnie is at Chef Mickeys. THey have the fab 5. We didn't do this because of all the negative reviews.

Even though she says she is past princesses, consider 1900 pf for supper. We loved it and I see loads of videos of tween and teen girls enjoying it too. Cinderella, prince charming, plus the evil stepsisters and stepmother. They are hilarious and the interaction was great. Even my husband loved this meal.

Does she like Lilo and Stitch? They are at Ohana for breakfast. The food is great and the polynesian is a beautiful hotel to visit.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

Chef Mickey's might be fun since the fab 5 is pretty timeless/ageless, but I'd do breakfast as the food is pretty bad IMO at dinner.

1900 PF dinner was the first thing that popped into my mind when reading your story, although food also gets mixed reviews at that one.

Crystal Palace is another one to think about if she likes Pooh. I am helping a friend plan a trip for her daughter's sweet 16 and Crystal Palace is her surprise bday character meal since Pooh is still her fave. The food at Crystal Palace is also pretty good- as far as character meals and buffets go.

Edit: Don't know if it's in the budget, but I think people of all ages and genders are in awe of the castle. So, while it's pricey and the epitome of princess meals...it's also the castle.

 

[LynneyPooh]

My DD9 informed she was too big for princesses back in the spring. However I booked CRT anyway, and told her it was for ME. BTW it was! I also booked chef mickey's, and the crystal palace. She loved them all! I truly believe that CP was her favorite because pooh's friends were so playful with her as well as me and her dad. She had asked for Garden Grill prior to the trip but I skipped that this past time because my goal was all new resturants/experiences. We did that her first trip and she's never forgotten it.
She'll never tell any of her friends but she loved CRT because Ariel was there and she's still DD's all time favorite, but I could tell she just thought the others were so-so.
She liked Chef Mickey's, but as other have posted through out the boards, this experience felt rushed in June. In january I thought it was a slower pace, and better. However, it was only DH and myself. Maybe that was the difference.
If your DD has ever liked pooh and his friends I may would opt for that, as we had sooo much fun with them.
Garden Grill. GG has MMouse, Chip and dale, and pluto. We've got that one booked for our halloween trip, as DD took a renewed interest in C & D this summer. She has even gotten a pair of C & D pj's since we got home

(Another thought is Mama Melrose and hit Phineas and Ferb afterwards as they are right beside the resturant, I know that's not a character meal).

Honestly though, whatever you pick she'll probally enjoy. IMHO I'd book a character meal. It'll add to your trip, but DD will feel free to enjoy her @ WDW because there's not any peer pressure there. When you're @ WDW everybody's a kid!!!

 

[disneynut11]

Chef Mickeys is classic because of Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto and Donald. The food is mediocre at best.

The meal at Garden Grill was good.....and it was neat that it revolved. Characters were Mickey, Pluto, Chip, Dale. The characters were less rushed than at Chef Mickeys.

We really enjoyed Akerhaus at Epcot...the princess interaction was great!

My new favorite is Crystal Palace...the food was great...right in the heart of Magic Kingdom, and the kids ages 12, 10, 7, 6, and 5 loved interacting with the characters.

 

[Bonniec]

Bah, they stopped doing them at my favorite place (Liberty Tree Tavern). We're gonna try Garden Grill next time since it's quieter and my kiddo doesnt like places too noisy. But I just had a comment....

My 17 year old kept acting too cool for everything when I knew she secretly loved everything. I finally told her a. she wasn't fooling anyone, b. she was allowed to be a dork since no friends were there to see her, and c. she'd be a lot happier if she just caved and turned into a kid with me.

So she did.

 

[lemondog]

My twin girls will be 8 in February and they still say their favorite character meal at WDW is Chef Mickey's.

 

[danceintherain]

The character interaction at dinner at 1900 Park Fare is fantastic.

I haven't been impressed with the food at any of the character meals I've gone to though.

 

[nilseks]

She's a little too young for tween angst lol but she might enjoy the sarcasm of the stepsisters at 1900 PF. If your child isn't into all the cutesy stuff, it's like they pick up on it and give your kid a little bit of lip, lol. My son was 9 and had a "too cool for this attitude" and Drizella gave him a hard time and made him laugh.

 

[NLD]

Thanks for all your comments everyone, they are really helpful!

Several of you mentioned 1900 PF which is what my gut is saying, too... I'm thinking dinner there, even with Cinderella, would work b/c of the stepsisters.

This is only dd's second trip. Her first trip we did both Norway and the castle (she was INTO princesses big time then). She did LOVE eating in the castle itself and still talks about that, so even though it's very princess-y, that's still a contender.

Also my MIL will be with us and it's her first trip to WDW since 1976! So it might be nice for her to eat in the castle, too.

Hmmmm, decisions....

 

[disneyfreak2127]

gets my vote. I think the antics of the step sisters will keep her entertained all while still getting a little princess in there, too.

My problem is the exact opposite. My DD just turned 18 yesterday and she is still all about the princesses! Actually, any character for that matter. She is such a girly girl. On the other hand, my DS11 is "too cool" for all that, so 1900 is where we will dine with the characters for dinner. I do think he will enjoy it more than he will admit. Especially, once he remembers how pretty Cinderella really is.

 

[oeshpdog2]

Don't overlook Donald's Safari Breakfast. The buffet is set up well for a large crowd and most of the "biggie's" show up (i.e Minnie, Mickey, Goofy, Donald). Probably our favorite so far. Plus, you can get an early ADR and be at the back of the park by Kilimanjaro when the rope drops.

 

[stitchaholic]

I have done most of the character meals , and my fav and a must do because the breakfast food is that good , is the cape may breakfast with minnie , donald and goofy , the character interaction there is great , they take so much time with each table and usually get back a second time , and the food is my favorite on property for a buffet

 

[EeyoreEma]

I'd say either Crystal Palace or Donald's Safari Breakfast. Both are awesome, and among our favorites! We enjoy Garden Grill, but feel the service is almost always very slow, along with wait times past ADR time when almost everywhere else we get in on time or just shortly past.

 

[dizneygirl123]

I would highly recommend 1900 Park Fare!! It is a beautiful location too. The interaction with characters is wonderful. If breakfast is an option I did not see anyone mention Ohana's it is a Lilo and Stitch. The food is good and the characters are really interactive. It includes Mickey, Minnie, Lilo, Stitch, Pluto, Goofy. I am sure whatever you pick will be great.

 

[Patience]

I would also recommend 1900 Park Fare for dinner. We ate there on Monday night and the food was really good and so were the characters. The step sisters are very funny and not at all babyish in my opinion. We also ate at Akershus and my daughter enjoyed meeting the princesses but I would definitely say that meal is more for princess lovers. We had breakfast at Crystal Palace yesterday and it was very good and the characters were cute. Winnie the Pooh kissed my oldest daughter's boo boo (her wrist is broken and in a cast). She is 17 but thought it was very cute.

 

[HadesTX]

Crystal Palace. We were just as excited as the little kids almost to see Pooh & friends. The food was really good, too.

 

[ernierich]

As soon as I read your dilemma I though of 1900 Park Fare, it's CRT with an edge! The interaction between the ugly sisters is fabulous.

If you've got someone in your party who can offer a proposal of marriage to one of them, get them to do it - the results are hilarious!!