The Elusive Garden Grill (and Akershus)

[Texas Hannah]

Hi Folks,

Just wanted to let everyone know it seems that as of early this morning (like 2am CST early) they are releasing more breakfasts for GG and Akershus for the first 2 weeks of December. I got a TP alert and was able to grab an 8:40 breakfast at Garden Grill for Dec 5th. There were still some GG reservations left for breakfast on this date, and I even saw some Akershus around 9am. Akershus also had 9:30 availability on Dec. 9. Just a heads up for everyone looking!

 

[Allison]

Thanks. I grabbed dinner for GG on the 2ND which I couldn't get last night.

 

[aristocatz]

There were tons of Akershus ADR's this morning! I grabbed a 5:25 with lots of times to choose from. So excited for our very first Akershus experience & my kids' first time meeting the princesses! Now off to find some princess dresses for my girls to wear....

 

[Texas Hannah]

There were tons of Akershus ADR's this morning! I grabbed a 5:25 with lots of times to choose from. So excited for our very first Akershus experience & my kids' first time meeting the princesses! Now off to find some princess dresses for my girls to wear....

Awesome! Enjoy! Will be our first time doing Akershus too. We got a pre-park opening breakfast towards the end of our trip!

 

[Kdp2]

We got a PPO Akershus too! Finally!

 

[John Marecek]

There's apparently a bunch available on the 1st at 8:15 PM. I snagged one yesterday morning, and there still showing availability. is this a case of people dumping their 180 day bookings for CP dinning packages?

 

[Texas Hannah]

Good point John - I bet it is! Didn't consider that.

 

[shanew21]

Was able to grab one for 8:15 on 12/20. Pretty surprised that they were available.

 

[Texas Hannah]

I originally had an 8:40 PPO for Dec 5, but today it looks like either they released more or someone had a cancellation, because I was able to swap it for an 8:15 PPO for the same day! Pretty happy about that, as the point of PPO breakfasts is to get in the park as early as possible!

 

[shanew21]

Was now able to switch to 8:00 for 12/20 (Akershus)!

 

[ChrissyWoj]

That's awesome. Do they usually open up new dining reservations after the 180 day mark?

 

[Texas Hannah]

That's awesome. Do they usually open up new dining reservations after the 180 day mark?

It really seems to just depend. This year, free dining took a lot of the reservations and Disney also held back a bunch for the Candlelight Processional dining packages. I'm not sure if Disney is just releasing more reservations out after the 180 day mark as the Candlelight Processional packages are taken for other restaurants (putting the shows for that day at capacity) or if people are just cancelling. Either way, it pays to keep checking and use the Touring Plans reservation finder, as it has helped me get these preferred times!

 

[DisneyFansInNYC]

That is great. Thanks.

 

[GoofyK]

Sorry if this comes off rude, but what is so special about GG? I've read the menu and saw the character list I was just curious why this so such a big hot spot?
Also does the restaurant move or does the scenery?

 

[Texas Hannah]

Sorry if this comes off rude, but what is so special about GG? I've read the menu and saw the character list I was just curious why this so such a big hot spot?
Also does the restaurant move or does the scenery?

The restaurant does the moving as far as I'm aware!

I think there are a few different draws to this restaurant. First, it is one of only two restaurants in Epcot that have a sit-down (table service) meal for breakfast. Secondly, the food there is very good and very fresh - the meals are made mostly from the ingredients actually grown at Epcot (some from the Living with the Land attraction) so that is neat! Plus, it rotates, another cool thing. There are 4 characters (Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale), and this is the only character dining where you can meet Chip and Dale. And I think the major factor is that if you can get a pre-park opening breakfast here, you can hop in line for Soarin' and ride it right away without needing a fast pass.

 

[GoofyK]

The restaurant does the moving as far as I'm aware!

I think there are a few different draws to this restaurant. First, it is one of only two restaurants in Epcot that have a sit-down (table service) meal for breakfast. Secondly, the food there is very good and very fresh - the meals are made mostly from the ingredients actually grown at Epcot (some from the Living with the Land attraction) so that is neat! Plus, it rotates, another cool thing. There are 4 characters (Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale), and this is the only character dining where you can meet Chip and Dale. And I think the major factor is that if you can get a pre-park opening breakfast here, you can hop in line for Soarin' and ride it right away without needing a fast pass.

Thank you for the details very thorough! I almost grabbed an 835 am adr since it's popular but I don't think I want to give up Boma, Obama or CP

 

[Kayla Layla]

Hi Folks,

Just wanted to let everyone know it seems that as of early this morning (like 2am CST early) they are releasing more breakfasts for GG and Akershus for the first 2 weeks of December. I got a TP alert and was able to grab an 8:40 breakfast at Garden Grill for Dec 5th. There were still some GG reservations left for breakfast on this date, and I even saw some Akershus around 9am. Akershus also had 9:30 availability on Dec. 9. Just a heads up for everyone looking!

Hello! Did you get an alert from TP because you signed up for the dining alerts? I've signed up but haven't received any alerts, but when I did a manual search earlier I was able to find reservations for Crystal Palace so I'm confused about how the TP alerts work. Thanks!

 

[John Marecek]

Hello! Did you get an alert from TP because you signed up for the dining alerts? I've signed up but haven't received any alerts, but when I did a manual search earlier I was able to find reservations for Crystal Palace so I'm confused about how the TP alerts work. Thanks!

I've had it work a couple of times. It checks throughout the day, then sends you a text or email when it returns something you've requested. Now, you need to be ready to book it immediately, and that doesn't always work either. Had that happen with a Bon Voyage breakfast I'm stalking. 2 minutes after my alert it was gone.

 

[Gophers]

Just had TP alert for Akershus for our late Sept trip. Did see a few other times in the same week so I guess some are being dropped due to FPs setups at 60 days.