Which Character Dinning Experiece

[TravelToo]

2 adults and a 3 year old have the option of several dining experiences for dinner and breakfast after Christmas at disney and I have a few questions for the board. This is a first time experience for all 3 of us for dinning.

1) Would you do Chef Mickeys or Crystal palace given the choice between the two for dinner.

2) what time is dinner most popular after getting to a park early, resting in the mid afternoon and coming back for fireworks at night

3) How is the character Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare as I have seen very little posted about it.

4) Is there dining experience that should not be missed and what quick and easy lunch in the AK and MK should we try. Thanks....

 

[Kae]

You will get all kinds of replys on this one. First which does your child like better Mickey & friends or Pooh & friends. Will you be going on a park day? We love CM's for dinner on our first night-when we have not used a day on our hopper-itis also nice to do this first to test the water with charaters. To see how your little reacts. We have enjoyed CP for lunch twice. You can't go wrong with either.

We love Flame tree at AK get the lunch vouchers. MK we like Pesco Bills. Out of the two the 2 parks they have the best quick meals.

Not to be missed Ohanas for Dinner. And snacking around the world showcase.

Kae

 

[pooh2001]

Dinner hour - always busy from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. But if you make a PS ressie and depending on the sit down restauant, you will not feel the crowds.
Adults and a 3 year old- I think Chef Mickeys would not be good for a young child, if he/she is not well rested. Chef Mickeys is very loud, characters rush around and the buffet area is not close to all tables.

Crystal Palace - very nice place, much quieter than Chef Mickeys, good food (we like breakfast), nice selection on the buffet, you will not feel crowded, Pooh holds center court for pictures, all characters spend time at all tables.

Liberty Tree Traven - excellent dinner, Chip & Dale, Goofy and others will spend time at your table, not a loud restaurant, large tables and comfortable chairs.

How about Grand Floridian - 1900 Park Fare - nicely decorated, the mice will spend time at your table, Cinderella & Price Charming float from table to table, Fairy God Mother will greet you at the door, bright pastel colors - a bit on the formal side.

Try for Cinderella's Royal Table - very nice view of MK, many princess - great if your 3 year old is a girl (or in my case -if you have a teen boy who jumps up for any pretty lady). Pre-plated food for breakfast. PS ressies very hard to get. But always try for a cancellation. Hint: call around 5 pm the day before you want to go. Guests must cancell the day before or lose their deposit for their PS.

Just my 2 cents

 

[lillygator]

We have been to both and CP on several different occasions and times in order to give them the benefit of the doubt...but everytime we have eaten at CP it has been louder than CM....the service is horrid and the food is not that great.

Both CM and 1900 are excellent, IMO....the interaction is great, food offerings good and the service much better than CP.

 

[DisneyJen0504]

We love Chef Mickeys!!!

 

[Kellydelly]

I don't think I've even heard of anyone eating dinner at Crystal Palace? Only lunch or dinner? But maybe I've missed something . I have eaten dinner at Chef Mickeys and enjoyed it, and have eaten lunch and breakfast at Crystal Palace and enjoyed both those meals too. I think I liked the lunch at CP better than the breakfast. It really boils down to what characters your child would most enjoy seeing, I think!

 

[PooohBear]

We just had dinner at Crystal Palace and breakfast at Chef Mickey's this morning ...hands down the better choice is Chef Mickey's !!! Much more fun, characters are plentiful and just a great great atmosphere !!!!!!!!

 

[cranbiz]

We ate at CM's for breakfast and CP for supper. I much prefer CP. It has always seemed quieter and the character interaction was much better than CM's. The characters at the CM breakfast were more hurried.

 

[F1Julie]

1900 Park Fare is my favorite character breakfast (and we've tried nearly all of them). The food is good - a buffet with lots of choices and the atmosphere is nice. It's not as crazy as some of the others. Also, the characters there are great. We had Mary Poppins and Bert, Alice in Wonderland, Pooh, and Eeyore. They all spent lots of time with my DD. The characters also came around multiple times. The dinner there is wonderful as well. We consistently get the most character interaction at 1900 Park Fare, much more than any other character meal.

As for Chef Mickey's vs. Crystal Palace, I'd choose based on which characters your DD likes best.

While at MK, our favorite place for a quick lunch is Columbia Harbour House. I'm not a fan of any of the restaurants at AK, so we usually just eat whatever is closest when we are hungry (turned out to be McDonalds this past trip). Good luck deciding and have a wonderful trip.

 

[eeyore0062]

2 adults and a 3 year old have the option of several dining experiences for dinner and breakfast after Christmas at disney and I have a few questions for the board. This is a first time experience for all 3 of us for dinning.

1) Would you do Chef Mickeys or Crystal palace given the choice between the two for dinner.Given a choice between the 2, I would probably choose Crystal Palace, so I could visit my dear ol' Donkey Eeyore. Both are buffets and the food is pretty much the same at either. I like the atmosphere at Crystal Palace better, and if you can, ask to sit near a window so you can people watch while you eat!

2) what time is dinner most popular after getting to a park early, resting in the mid afternoon and coming back for fireworks at nightIt is hard to get PS for dinner between the hours of 5:30 and 7 pm... pretty much everyone likes to eat at those times. If you do decide to go, please remember to make your PS as soon as possible... booking starts 90 days in advance, and many who come to WDW without PS are very disappointed when they cannot get the restaurant, date or time that they prefer.

3) How is the character Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare as I have seen very little posted about it. 1900 Park Fare is probably the best breakfast buffet on property. It is located on the 1st floor of the Grand Floridian. The characters usually include 3-5 of the following: Mary Poppins, Bert, Alice in Wonderland, the White Rabbit, Pooh, Tigger or Eeyore. The service is great, and it usually is not hard to get a PS here... most likely because most people either want to have a character meal in the parks, or want to eat with Mickey. Mary Poppins and Alice don't seem to draw the same crowds.

4) Is there dining experience that should not be missed and what quick and easy lunch in the AK and MK should we try. Thanks....

For lunch we like Garden Grille at Epcot, but it will be closed starting mid January while they ready The Land Pavillion for the opening of Soaring Over California. That being said, I would recommend Le Cellier in the Canadian Pavillion at Epcot, 50's Prime Time Cafe at Disney MGM Studios, Liberty Tree Tavern or Plaza Restaurant which has delicious sandwiches and usually doesn't fill up as fast as some of the other places, and is actually faster than some of the counter services restaurants... service is really good, too.... at the Magic Kingdom or Tusker House at Animal Kingdom. Animal Kingdom doesn't have any full service restaurants inside, the only full service restaurant servicing that park is Rainforest Cafe (not run or owned by Disney). Tusker House is a quick service meal that tastes like full service. We LOVE it!