What's so special about Chef Mickey's?

[centurythree]

I see a lot of people here talking about how much they love the restaurant, but not why. Is it significantly different than something like the character dining at Crystal Palace or Cinderella's Royal Table? (I haven't been to either restaurant.)

 

[davinakb]

Have the same question. Been to a number of park character meals (including the Crystal Palace and Cinderella's Royal Table), but none in the resorts. Just curious about which meal is better, for food, character interaction, etc.

 

[pigletforever]

We have done Chef Mickey and I wasn't that impressed. The food was alright and there was decent character interaction but I felt it was rushed and the service was nothing to write home about. I lived Crystal Palace. This time we are doing Crystal Palace, LTT, Ohana Breakfast (I have heard great things about it) and maybe CRT if I can convince the men in my family to indulge me.

 

[wdwlvr629]

Favorite character meal for our entire family. We love all of the characters there, it is a great atmosphere and the food is good! We always go to CM (breakfast only), find the food to be far better than any other buffet. I tried the O'hana character breakfast, it was ok, tried dinner at Crystal Palace, HATED IT, and dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern, it was ok. Everyone has their own opinion on food, I just find this own to be a must (as do most people I know).

 

[bcinohio]

We love CM for breakfast. We do it every trip. Didn't have a good time for lunch at CP. We did like the LTT.

Have fun.

 

[tink2]

We've done Chef Mickey's twice- once for breakfast and once for dinner on our arrival night. Food wise- breakfast was much better. But, we wanted to kick off our vacation with Mickey and the gang and it was fun! The food was kind of disappointing- nothing terrible, but nothing great either. But, the characters were great- great interaction both trips and you can't beat the line-up- Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald, and Pluto (plus Chip and Dale a few years ago for breakfast). We've done CP and LTT, while the food is better imo at CP, we loved the characters and organization of the characters at Chef Mickeys (we had problems seeing all the characters at CP the last 2 times we've been)

 

[mickeybrat]

It is our first PS of every trip. We think it just represents how we want to spend our trip. It's fun, food is good and we get to kick off our vacation with our favorite charaters. There is a lot of energy in this resturarant.
Chef Mickey's has an enviroment like no other. My DS9 still loves it. (he's outgrown chasing charaters and autographs), but really enjoys still going there. (so do I!!)

 

[septbaby]

Chef Mickey's just exudes amazing energy its fun, lively.

- Glass roof so it's bright and sunny, colorful decor
- Monorail rolls by overhead, cool and fun
- Music is played and everyone is told to wave their napkins
- 5 Characters provide terrific interaction even before you are seated all of the characters acknowledged the kids while we were waiting to be seated
- Breakfast buffet was vast and tasty
- They take a group photo that is an option to purchase

My 6yo nephew still talks about Chef Mickey's, we were there in Sept!
Characters, Chef Mickey's and Goofy's Barnstormer are his top 3 things at Disney.

We were on the DP, but paid OP for this one and would do so again in the heartbeat.

 

[MousekaMaddi]

we love chef mickeys been there dizens of times and cant wait to return

 

[Kae]

Chef Mickey is a great way to kick off your trip, we do CM on our first night, we don't do the parks on our first night. And ride the Monorail. Both loops.

Kae

 

[SoonipiLady]

Chef Mickey's rocks!

Great Character interaction. Fun atmosphere-if a little loud. Always try and get one meal in there!

 

[MisMikiNikiLynne]

We ALL Love Chef Mickey's!!! We visit every trip! Can we all say "Napkin Dance"???

 

[tinkerbell34]

We have been three times for eldest DS(6, 8, and 9) birthdays and this year will be the first birthday we celebrate for little DS turning 4. The character interaction is great! I have skiped through the resturant with Goofy. They always spend a decent amount of time w/ DS making it very special. Usually they comment on his birthday button. He gets a signed place mat. The kids love waving their napkins in the air during the celebration song. I personally think the food is good also and quite a few selections at the buffet. It is also one of the few places you can see mickey, minnie, goofy, donald duck, chip and dale in one place.

 

[annie1995]

My kids like Chef Mickeys for the atmosphere, but thats it. No one is really crazy about the food. CP IMO is way better food wise, but you don't get the fab 5 there.

 

[3mickeys&me]

We always do the charactor breakfast at Chef Mickey. Our kids love the all you can eat buffet, love the charactors and the excitement of the restaurant. Its always a fun time there for us. Can't imagine not making it part of our trip.

 

[Legend]

Breakfast is good, Dinner is just OK. This year, we're passing the BF up in favor of trying something new at Cape May Cafe for BF, and also Hollywood and Vine. Dinner at CP and LTT is always awesome.

 

[mslclark]

Been to CM 3 times. First time the food was great. It was our first character meal ever, so the whole atmosphere was magical to use. Second time (2001) the food was so-so, and we got very little character interaction. We tried it again in 2007 and were very pleased. The food was very good. The kids loved the dessert bar. But the character interaction this time was the best we've ever had at any character meal.

I'd say that it's the quintessential Disney character meal - the fab 5! It's not the best food on Disney property, but combining the great variety on the buffet with the fun character experience is what makes it so popular.

 

[CinderellyCinderelly]

the atmosphere is fun there and i think it is a great way to start a trip. i honestly did not think the food was that bad, but i wasn't expecting a gourmet meal going into it. if you know its more about the fun than the food then you will have a good time!

 

[JoePa4Ever]

We ate at Chef Mickey's for the 1st time this past Sept for breakfast & it was absolutely wonderful.

1. The characters: Mickey, Minnie, Donald Duck, Pluto, Goofy

2. Breakfast Buffet: food was very good & IMO good variety of food

3. Awesome character interaction: all characters spent plenty of time with
us & we saw most characters twice

4. Service: very good, no complaints, always there if needed something

5. Atmosphere: Very fun, energetic, lots of smiles (both guests & workers),
restaurant has a good open atmosphere, didn't feel crowded or rushed in
any way

This has become my favorite meal & we definitely booked it for our upcoming trip. I will say Crystal Palace for breakfast is a very closed 2nd to Chef Mickey's - alot of the same qualities.

 

[Tricia1972]

We've done breakfast twice and dinner once.

For us both the food and character interaction was better at breakfast. I think it's beloved because of the rowdy fun Disney atmosphere. Where else can you go and twirl your napkin with the "Fab 5"?