What's the deal with Chef Mickeys?

[ChrisMouse]

Hi everyone...

Can someone tell me what it is about Chef Mickey's dinner that is SO BAD?

We wanted to try CM for our last trip, but couldn't get an ADR. We're not big breakfast eaters (and we stay at OKW, so we usually eat cereal, bagels, etc. in the room every day) so we wanted to try dinner.

I also *love* the idea of greeting the whole fab 5 in one swoop, especially Minnie in her dot dress (we've caught her in other garb but never the infamous dot dress). My daughter is a character hound, so it's nice to catch these 5 all at once so that my DD doesn't ask to stand in lines. (We'd like to reserve line standing for characters she's never met before).

Since Chef Mickey's is such a popular spot, I can't figure out why people put it on their "bottom 5" list in the other thread, and why SO MANY people say it's terrible??

Please chime in and tell me why you DO and DON'T like CM. It's NOT a cheap dinner, so I want to make sure it's worth it.

Thanks so much!

Chris

 

[sockies31]

I was wondering the same thing! I have and ADR for dinner with my family and I was really excited about it--now i am wondering if i should change it!

 

[Tbelle1976]

Truthfully, I've heard bad and good things for just about every restaurant in WDW. When making my ADR's for our trip next month, I finally just had to go on the fact that we might like a certain restaurant, and not so much on the reviews like I was trying to.

We have a dinner at Chef Mickey's next month for 10 of us for my DD birthday dinner. I do have high hopes for it, and at this point have no doubt that we will enjoy it and that DD will remember it for years to come.

 

[perriwinkleblue]

We've been to Chef Mickey's twice. The first time was for dinner and it was great. I mean, a buffet is a buffet but the choices were fresh and tasty (and we all enjoyed the desserts and sundae bar.) We also had a great time with the characters and took some nice pictures.

The second time was during free dining when they added lunch as an option. This time was just "okay". The lunch food wasn't fresh/refilled on the buffet and our seats were up in an "overflow" type area away from the action. The characters still made the rounds but, I don't know why, sitting upstairs just wasn't as fun.

Based only on our first experience, I'd go back. I think it's a fun place and a great way to meet The Big Cheese. Also, the kids got a big thrill riding the monorail into the Contemporary and then getting to eat there.

 

[Castillo Mom]

We had breakfast there on a first trip to WDW which was pretty good. Last trip we decided to try dinner. Although we had a great time with the character interaction, I felt the food was barely average.

It's a great experience for the kids though - just don't set your expectations too high as far as the food is concerned.

 

[SorcererDonald16]

I've only been there for breakfast, but I must say the character interaction is usually excellent. Particularly if you get a later ADR time, they will keep coming back to your table. I am assuming the same applies to dinner.

All but one of my best character-related memories are from CM's.

 

[Luis Rodriguez]

Well, as I see it, the main idea of a character meal is enjoying a moment with the characters, food being a secondary item . That said, while we were there last September, during DDP, the food (IIRC) was OK, although not as good as that of Crystal Palace. They had a good dessert bar, though. My only issue is that it was a little bit crowded.

The character interaction was very good and my DD (6) still speaks very fondly about it, particularly regarding Donald.

HTH,

Luis

 

[JerseyMouse]

We went to Chef Mickey's for dinner last week. Here is my overall assessment:

Timing
We arrived at 4:50 for our 5:10 reservation and were seated at 5:00. We left the restaurant by 6:10. In that time, we saw all the characters and did the napkin waving dance.

Characters
The character interaction was fantastic. Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Pluto spent a lot of time at the table.

Food
The food is mediocre at best. In general, I think the food looked much better than it tasted. The kids got away with eating pizza, (which looked like it had just been defrosted) chicken nuggets and mickey shaped raviolis. I had the sliced turkey, mashed potatoes, and salad. As for the dessert, they had quite a spread, including the make your own sundae bar. The only problem with the ice cream bar was the ice cream itself. It tasted like ice milk. Again, the other desserts looked much better than they tasted.

The View
Nothing special. We looked out on the lagoon and the side of the building.

To Sum It Up
Being that they now have designated areas in each park to see the characters, I personally would not try this restaurant again. I would instead opt to dine at a restaurant that had better food options. (We were not on a dining plan)

 

[hulagirl87]

In all my visits to Disney I've done this breakfast probably 8 or 9 times. We didn't go on our most recent trip and I missed it! Therefore we are going in May. I love it there. The Mickey waffles, the character interaction, the feel of the restaurant. Maybe it's different for dinner? I've only ever done breakfast there. yay Chef Mickeys!!

 

[PattnFmly]

We've eaten at CM three times, once for breakfast and twice for dinner. All three times the character interaction was great. They made their rounds and spent plenty of time with us. The napkin waving song was fun. We didn't have to wait long to be seated, one time the photo line was longer than the time for us to be seated! (There were two big families in front of us that took time to be grouped for the photo) We've never had bad food, any of the three times we've been the food was hot and refreshed regularly and everyone enjoyed what they ate. One DS stuck to the kids food and my other DS ate a little of everything. I very much enjoyed the soup. The best thing for my family was that, whether breakfast or dinner, the food was "regular". Salad, potatoes, veggies, ham, meat, nuggets, mac & cheese etc. I have a very un-adventurous family who will not try things that have "funky" sauces on them. We loved CM and it as well as CP are the two restaurants that are consistently requested by my family on any WDW trip!

 

[freepixie]

We eat here for dinner twice every trip - not for the characters but for the food!! IMHO the food here is FABULOUS!!!!! We have never had a bad meal! Yes the characters are great and I get my pic with each one, but I love to stuff myself silly with all the great foods offered!

Last time they had honey-dijon potatoes - let me tell you I was in heaven!!! I think I filled my plate 3 times just of those! Not to mention the prime rib, turkey, Mickey raviolis (to die for!) and that ice cream sundae bar is awesome!!

I don't understand when people say the food is mediocre cause we have always had a FANTASTIC meal!!!

 

[tinkandonaldfans]

i think the only way is to give it a go! make any requests when booking and just enjoy it! if you like meeting characters then this is going to go down well. everyone has a different opinion and so you will never get a definitive answer! i think a lot of people go with really high expectations and when it doesn't meet them the are disappointed.

i am hoping to go in september for dinner for the first time and will just go hoping it will be a nice experience. if the food sucks then it sucks but at least it sounds like a good time and you will know for next time!

 

[chemysterygal]

We went a couple weeks ago, and the kids LOVED it. Yeah, the food was just okay, but the kids adored the character interaction, and I've had worse meals. Is the food worth the big bucks? Absolutely not. But do you really go for the food?!

So, bottom line, we'd do it again, even if it was OOP, just for the kids.

Pam

 

[disnut8]

We went to Chef Mickey's once for breakfast because a friend had a two year old and thought the characters would be a fantastic experience. That was the only reason for the trip and since that will never happen again (the two year old and the characters), my husband and I don't see the need to go again. For us, it was loud and the food was just as good or just as bad (depending on if you are pessimist or an optimist) as any other breakfast buffet at Disney World. I would never say Chef Mickey's is "bad". It's just not a place that my husband and I would go again.

 

[SonicGuy]

We just ate there on our trip earlier this month - and we LOVED it. The food was very good with a great selection. We were a party of 12 and everyone found something they could eat -including my sister that, due to a severe allergy, had not eaten out in over 3 years! The chef came personally to the table and brought a book listing all of the ingredients in all of the food. Service was awesome, character interaction cannot be beat, and food was great!

It is a MUST DO for us!

 

[jblrn2b]

We go there for breakfast EVERY trip - not for the food but for getting us in the Disney mood. It is a family tradition. We tend to like to eat at the nicer restaurants for dinner. Some people really like the dinner buffet. I think you will have a lot of fun with the characters - yes it is loud - it is supposed to be. I say try it - you may like it but you will see the characters at least and that will be worth it. I like the picture they take - I have them lined up at home in my office in order. Its fun to see the different ages.

 

[cousinbb]

I like Chef Mickey's alot. Good variety of food and dessert and like some posters have said, you get the 5 characters all in one swoop.

 

[4MCMICKEY]

Chef Mickey's has always been a stop for us for the past 5 years. The last two times we thought service and quality of food had diminished each time. This past June we were there for almost an hour and did not get to see every character. They seemed to lose track of where they were when they came out from their breaks. The kids as well as us decided for over $100 we will no longer be going back and will try some other place new this year. I think we are going to try the hoop dee do revue in place of Chef Mickey's this year.

Kelley

 

[candance2]

The food is just average for a buffet. nothing special and borderline school cafeteria food. The only redeeming part is the character experience. It is good to get all of the major characters in one place. but that's about it.

 

[gobo2]

We used to love Chef Mickey's but the quality of the food has gone down considerably in the past 2 years. I agree with the posters who compare it to school cafeteria food. My DD is over the characters and we will not go back.