Table Service Near Magic Kingdom

[constantstar]

I'm looking for table service suggestions for our day in Magic Kingdom. The only place we've tried is Crystal Palace and it didn't knock my socks off. We're hoping to try something a little different this time. I've read reviews about other MK restaurants and the pickings seem slim.

It will be me, DH, DD (4), and DS (2). My husband and son are adventurous eaters while my daughter and I can be a bit picky. So far we have Tusker House lunch (first time), Akershus dinner (first time), and Cape May breakfast (our last day tradition). As you can see, they are character heavy. I'm not against another character meal if the shoe fits

I'm willing to travel as long as it's a simple trip. I'm not familiar enough with Disney transportation to know which resorts are easy to get to from MK. That's why I came to you guys for help! I've considered Whispering Canyon and 1900 Park Fare so far. Any other suggestions?

 

[tomatecerise]

By boat only via MK

Whispering canyon Cafe
Trails end

By boat and monorail

Grand Floridian:
Grand Floridian Cafe
1900 Park Fare
Citricos
Narcoosees
Victoria and Albert

Polynesian:
Ohana
Kona Cafe

By monorail (or a 10 minutes walk)

Contempory:
Chef Mickey
California Grill
The Wave

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Ohana is very good and kid friendly. The boat pass at 20 minutes and it's fun. It's a short ride but beautiful.

 

[minnie mum]

Citricos, Narcoossees, and Cali Grill are signature restaurants with rather long meals. Children are allowed, but this may or may not suit your children. V&As does not admit children that young.

The rest are definitely more casual. Chef Mickeys has the only other character dinner, but I really don't recommend the food there.

 

[constantstar]

Thanks tomatecerise & minnie mum for all the information!

I've heard great things about Ohana and tried getting an ADR but no luck. :/

We're definitely a casual family and it seems like from the list there are quite a few options. Boat sounds like a lovely way to travel. I'm leaning towards 1900 Park Fare. It may be princess overload for my husband though after Akershus the night before!

I love the characters at Chef Mickey but I've read it can be loud and the food is just okay. After our experience at Hollywood & Vine, I'm not ready for another noisy meal.

 

[tomatecerise]

Trails end can Be a better option If you want to take a break and the reservation is more easy to have.

Look this review
http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2014/...ffet-at-disney-worlds-fort-wilderness-resort/

 

[gdrj]

I'm willing to travel as long as it's a simple trip. I'm not familiar enough with Disney transportation to know which resorts are easy to get to from MK. That's why I came to you guys for help! I've considered Whispering Canyon and 1900 Park Fare so far. Any other suggestions?

Trails end can Be a better option If you want to take a break and the reservation is more easy to have.

Look this review
http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2014/...ffet-at-disney-worlds-fort-wilderness-resort/

Whispering cafe and 1900 Park Fare are Fine choices with kids. The Trails End suggestion is another great choice with kids. It is a boat ride to Ft Wilderness, very casual, rustic. If you are looking to slow it down a bit its a nice option. You can look at the horses nearby as well.

Any place outside of MK is going to take a bit of time, not sure if are are intending to head back to park afterwards. If so I might recommend Tony's Town Square or The Plaza right in MK.

 

[constantstar]

I was hoping to get back to MK after the meal. With Disney transportation, do you think that's possible? So far I have an ADR for 1900 Park Fare at 4pm.

 

[tomatecerise]

Yes it's possible, We do it in may for the parade and wishes

 

[rlovew]

I was hoping to get back to MK after the meal. With Disney transportation, do you think that's possible? So far I have an ADR for 1900 Park Fare at 4pm.

Yes- your meal will take about 1 hour (at least if you want to see all the characters. It is then a 5 min monorail ride (although you may have a 10 min wait) back to the MK so if you are seated and eat quickly you can be back at the MK between 5:30 and 6pm.

 

[constantstar]

if you are seated and eat quickly you can be back at the MK between 5:30 and 6pm.

Perfect, thank you! This sounds like it will work as planned.

 

[gdrj]

I was hoping to get back to MK after the meal. With Disney transportation, do you think that's possible? So far I have an ADR for 1900 Park Fare at 4pm.

From when you decide to leave the park till you arrive at any of the hotels I would plan on 30 minutes. You can take the small boat launch to GF which is right before the monorail entrance. If the boat is there or almost there it is a 10 minute boat ride to GF (stroller does need to be folded up). I personally enjoy visiting the hotels, and taking a break, its just a matter of what you are comfortable with, and your kids in regards to coming and going from parks.

 

[kastoney]

If you're looking for casual and a boat ride, I think Whispering Canyon would be a great option for you all. As others have said, the food is great, the atmosphere fun, and for your hubby no princesses ; )

 

[constantstar]

I originally had an ADR for Whispering Canyon and the antics sounded fun. But, I've read mixed reviews on the food and service so I canceled it. I guess every restaurant is going to have mixed reviews and many weren't current. Maybe I'll send DH the menu for each and let him decide. If he chooses WC, I won't tell him about the antics, I want that to be a surprise

 

[J_RabbitTN]

The GF Cafe is a nice family friend resturant. We have always enjoyed our meals here and find it a nice break from the noise levels in the park. We enjoy Kona Cafe as well at the Poly but if you have two pickey eaters, I do not know if this would work for you. Check out menus on allears.net.

If your heart is set on Ohana, keep checking the week before and during your trip. We managed to snag two Ohana's ADR's for our last June trip a few days beforehand. I had all of our ADR's booked at the 180 mark and then had to push our trip back two weeks. Ohana was a pain to rebook but we finally did it.

 

[jacknsally19]

It sounds like your meals are a bit character & buffet heavy. Given that, I like the suggestion of GF cafe or the Wave at the Contemporary. While they aren't 'experiences' per se, they are quiet and calm which can be quite nice. Personally, I like a quiet meal or two during my trips. Kona is good too but not as quiet as the Cafe or the Wave. The Wave will be the easiest to travel back and forth from MK. Personally, I really like the Wave.

 

[constantstar]

I haven't looked at The Wave, I'll go check that out now. We are definitely character heavy with our ADRs. And I'm not going to lie and say that will save us time in the parks. I will still be stopping for most character meets. I just can't help myself! If I want to keep with our every-other-year Disney trips, I should probably schedule some quiet and down time so DH thinks we're on vacation

If I DO get an Ohana ADR, does anyone know if they offer foods that aren't on the Disney site menu? There's nothing there that I would eat. :/

 

[holden]

The food at The Wave is delicious! I recommend it for families.

 

[kboo]

These are all great suggestions! BTW, We took our 3 year old to an early ADR (5pm) at Cali Grill and loved it. She had a great time and the view was amazing. I felt like the kids menu options were a bit better too. She is a little foodie and will try most anything as long as it's not spicy. But I wouldn't be deterred if you really want to try it, just because you have kids.

 

[Nancyg56]

Thanks tomatecerise & minnie mum for all the information!

I've heard great things about Ohana and tried getting an ADR but no luck. :/

We're definitely a casual family and it seems like from the list there are quite a few options. Boat sounds like a lovely way to travel. I'm leaning towards 1900 Park Fare. It may be princess overload for my husband though after Akershus the night before!

I love the characters at Chef Mickey but I've read it can be loud and the food is just okay. After our experience at Hollywood & Vine, I'm not ready for another noisy meal.

Most character meals are loud, and if you want to avoid LOUD< I would rethink trying to gain an 'Ohana ADR. Last week our dinner there was a nightmare, and we have never been unhappy before. It was incredibly loud.

1900 PF is a character meal, but it is not Princess heavy. While it has Cindy and Prince Charming, the Tremaine family is the highlight of this meal, and they are hysterical.

If you are looking for a relaxed meal close by the MK and want a meal that is served to you, I would consider the Grand Floridian Cafe. We missed that one last week, and I was sorry. The entire resort is relaxed, with a large lobby that features a Grand Pianist and the Grand Orchestra, playing lovely music in the background. Soothing and cool.

WCC was one we had looked forward to several years ago, and we hated it. It was really chaotic, which is part of the charm so people are looking for, but for my family, it was not a happy experience.

If you like, you could head over to Fort Wilderness for a break. I know you have a lot of Buffet meals, but if you find that you like them, Trails End is a good place to eat dinner. The kids can run off steam in this campground, and the boatride is really a lovely relaxing ride.

I have to say that I was afraid I had booked too many character meals for our trip last week. It was two little girls first trip and they had a list of characters a mile long! Anyway, I was planning on droppin a few once we got there is they seemed to be charactered out, but the weather was lousy...rainy and hot! Thank goodness we had all those meals booked because my Nola could not stand in the hot sunny lines, and we would have had to find a way had we not had those meals booked.

 

[pumba]

Ohana has the bread, and salad for starters, then pot stickers and wings, then poly noodles and vegetables, and then chicken, meat, and shrimp...the kids may like the running around with a coconut racing..and our grandkids had a blast...they also were offered a kids meal if they didnt care for the foods offered...but they ate everything