Why no boy themed character meals?!?!

cstraub said:
I'm not sure how to phrase this exactly but it seems as though things that are for girls are only for girls. Take for instance pink stollers or the princess breakfast. On the other hand, things that are for boys can usually be for boys or girls. Take for instance navy strollers and Chef Mickeys. It's always been that way.

I bet if you were to go through and name all the boy/everyone things to do at WDW and the girl only things there would be way more boy/everyone.

If Disney did do a boy dining experience I bet there would be lots of girls there too. My DD6 loves Power Rangers.

I'm glad they have some things geared towards girls. We're coming to a point finnaly in society that it's ok to wear pink and enjoy all things that are girl. I have started to notice that now there are car seats and stollers that are pink!! :cheer2: Not one to be found 6 years ago when DD was born.

The girl stuff at WDW is payback for all the years of the girls having to ride around in blue cars seats, navy stollers and for having to wear yellow and green because boys can't wear pink (think baby shower gifts). ;)

this is very true. It is acceptable for a girl to wear any color clothing. But in general, boys usually do not wear "girl colors" such as pink. I do see men wearing pink shirts, but I can't think of a time when I have seen a boy wearing pink.

A so called "boy" themed breakfast would attract both genders.
 
wifey said:
They could do a meal with power rangers at MGM or Buzz and Woody, it would be great to include the boys in special meals too !! :grouphug:


right there you have boys and girls if they did a power ranger one. and had different power rangers. they always have a great turnout when they come out at mgm.
 
limabeanmom2003 said:
this is very true. It is acceptable for a girl to wear any color clothing. But in general, boys usually do not wear "girl colors" such as pink. I do see men wearing pink shirts, but I can't think of a time when I have seen a boy wearing pink.

A so called "boy" themed breakfast would attract both genders.

There are lots of "boy" themed character dining experiences.

Here are some:

LTT- boys (Goofy, Pluto, Chip and Dale) girls (Minnie)
CP- boys (Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, Piglet) girls (none)
GG- boys (MIckey, Pluto, Chip and Dale) girls (none)
Restrauntosauraus- boys (Donald, Pluto and Goofy) girls (none)
CM- boys (Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Chip and Dale) girl(Minnie)
Ohana- boys (Mickey, Pluto, Chip, Dale Stitch) girls (Lilo)
CMC boys (goofy, Chip and Dale) girls (Minnie)


Here are the "girl" themed character dining experiences:

CRT- boys (none) girls (Cinerella, Snow White, Belle, Sleeping Beauty, Fairy Godmother)
Akershus- boys (none) girls (Belle, Jasmine, Snow WHite, Mary Poppins, Sleeping Beauty)
1900 Park Fare- boys (none) girls (Mary Poppins, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine)

So there are 7 offering's that are mostly made up of male Characters and 3 that are made up of female characters.

Seems pretty fair to me.
 
juliehry said:
chef mickey and donald restaurantaous!
:thumbsup2

limabeanmom2003 said:
why not make the Polynesian breakfast character meal toy story themed. It's never crowded there anyway - I think most people do chef mickey's instead.

We had ADR's at O'hanas for b'fast in February ... it was VERY crowded!!! Not an empty table to be had! Plenty of boys and girls dining that day!!
 


cstraub said:
There are lots of "boy" themed character dining experiences.

Here are some:

LTT- boys (Goofy, Pluto, Chip and Dale) girls (Minnie)
CP- boys (Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, Piglet) girls (none)
GG- boys (MIckey, Pluto, Chip and Dale) girls (none)
Restrauntosauraus- boys (Donald, Pluto and Goofy) girls (none)
CM- boys (Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Chip and Dale) girl(Minnie)
Ohana- boys (Mickey, Pluto, Chip, Dale Stitch) girls (Lilo)
CMC boys (goofy, Chip and Dale) girls (Minnie)


Here are the "girl" themed character dining experiences:

CRT- boys (none) girls (Cinerella, Snow White, Belle, Sleeping Beauty, Fairy Godmother)
Akershus- boys (none) girls (Belle, Jasmine, Snow WHite, Mary Poppins, Sleeping Beauty)
1900 Park Fare- boys (none) girls (Mary Poppins, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine)

So there are 7 offering's that are mostly made up of male Characters and 3 that are made up of female characters.

Seems pretty fair to me.

Just because these are male characters it does not mean that they are are boy themed or for boys only. They all seem pretty unisex to me. However, CRT, 1900 Park Fare and the Princess character meal are only for girls. This does not seem fair to me at all!!!
 
jjatwdw said:
Just because these are male characters it does not mean that they are are boy themed or for boys only. They all seem pretty unisex to me. However, CRT, 1900 Park Fare and the Princess character meal are only for girls. This does not seem fair to me at all!!!


How do you figure? I could say the exact same thing. Just because these are female characters it does not mean that they are girl themed or for girls only. How is Mickey Mouse unisex? What Characters are there that are for boys only? What characters would be no unisex? Girls like Toy Story, Power Rangers and Star Wars. It's just the way it is. Girls things are only for girls and boy things are usually for everyone.
 
My DS6 would put up quite a fuss if I tried to take him to CRT. And I'm not saying he is a "girls have cooties" kind of kid. He loves Pooh and friends and is not thrilled that we are going to GG instead of the usual CP. I'm just saying that I think that most boys would not care to go to one of the Princess meals unless they were dragged there with sisters. Maybe it's because they are human characters as opposed to animals. I agree with a prior post who suggested Peter Pan, Hook, Hercules, Aladdin, etc. would be good choices for a boys character meal.
I'm not suggesting that you have to have an equal number of boys and girls meals. Nor do I favor one sex over the other. I myself have both sons and daughters. I'm just saying it seems kind of unfair to have three exclusively princess meals and no meals that appeal directly to boys. And there is no way I can buy into an assertion that Winnie-the-Pooh is for boys simply because he is a male character.
 


jjatwdw said:
My DS6 would put up quite a fuss if I tried to take him to CRT. And I'm not saying he is a "girls have cooties" kind of kid. He loves Pooh and friends and is not thrilled that we are going to GG instead of the usual CP. I'm just saying that I think that most boys would not care to go to one of the Princess meals unless they were dragged there with sisters. Maybe it's because they are human characters as opposed to animals. I agree with a prior post who suggested Peter Pan, Hook, Hercules, Aladdin, etc. would be good choices for a boys character meal.
I'm not suggesting that you have to have an equal number of boys and girls meals. Nor do I favor one sex over the other. I myself have both sons and daughters. I'm just saying it seems kind of unfair to have three exclusively princess meals and no meals that appeal directly to boys. And there is no way I can buy into an assertion that Winnie-the-Pooh is for boys simply because he is a male character.


What I'm trying to say is that there are plenty of boy character meals. The ones that have female characters are not only for girls it just turns out that boys don't usually like the female characters. That's not Disney's fault. How is Peter Pan, Hook, Hercules, Aladdin or any other male character more for boys than Mickey, Donald and Pluto? I just don't see it. :confused3

How would having a "boys" character meal be different than what is available now? Even if you did a villian theme girls would enjoy that as much as the boys. I know a lot of girls who love Star Wars, Power Rangers etc.
 
We did the princess meal this year - traveling with 5 little girls ages 5 and under and one 8 year old boy. Although he was feeling under the weather, he was a trooper. He didn't mind all the princesses coming over and calling him Prince Charming ;) . But we also did the 'Ohana breakfast and he loved it! It was very gender neutral - Stitch, Lilo, Mickey and Pluto. We all had a blast there.

Also, my dd5 would totally go for a hero breakfast! Especially if it included Robin Hood - he is her favorite! I have to jump on the band wagon that it is more acceptable for girls to do ''boy'' stuff that boys to do ''girl'' stuff.
 
cstraub said:
There are lots of "boy" themed character dining experiences.

Here are some:

LTT- boys (Goofy, Pluto, Chip and Dale) girls (Minnie)
CP- boys (Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, Piglet) girls (none)
GG- boys (MIckey, Pluto, Chip and Dale) girls (none)
Restrauntosauraus- boys (Donald, Pluto and Goofy) girls (none)
CM- boys (Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Chip and Dale) girl(Minnie)
Ohana- boys (Mickey, Pluto, Chip, Dale Stitch) girls (Lilo)
CMC boys (goofy, Chip and Dale) girls (Minnie)


Here are the "girl" themed character dining experiences:

CRT- boys (none) girls (Cinerella, Snow White, Belle, Sleeping Beauty, Fairy Godmother)
Akershus- boys (none) girls (Belle, Jasmine, Snow WHite, Mary Poppins, Sleeping Beauty)
1900 Park Fare- boys (none) girls (Mary Poppins, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine)

So there are 7 offering's that are mostly made up of male Characters and 3 that are made up of female characters.

Seems pretty fair to me.

I don't think of your first list as boy themed. Those character meals appeal to everyone. Just because there is a male character there doesn' mean it is boy themed. However, the princess character meals are clearly targeted for girls. Not that boys don't attend and have a blast - but you will see mostly girls at princess meals.

I would just like to see a character meal that has disney characters (other than mickey and friends) that appeal to boys.
 
It's not the gender of the character itself that matters. It's whether it's a boy themed meal or a girl themed meal. And I agree that boys can do princess meals and that girls can do a boy themed meal. However, like others have noted it's more common for girls to want to do boy themed things than the reverse.

I believe we are talking about three separate groups - gender neural, girl themed, and boy themed. The majority of the character meals are indeed gender neutral. However there are three girl themed meals and not a single boy themed meal. I'm just saying that it might be nice to have a meal that is directed mainly to boys.
 
jjatwdw said:
It's not the gender of the character itself that matters. It's whether it's a boy themed meal or a girl themed meal. And I agree that boys can do princess meals and that girls can do a boy themed meal. However, like others have noted it's more common for girls to want to do boy themed things than the reverse.

I believe we are talking about three separate groups - gender neural, girl themed, and boy themed. The majority of the character meals are indeed gender neutral. However there are three girl themed meals and not a single boy themed meal. I'm just saying that it might be nice to have a meal that is directed mainly to boys.

:thumbsup2
 
jjatwdw I completely agree with you. Yes, my son likes Cinderella and would do the princess dining whatever, but I also think it would be nice to do something more themed to the boys. And by the way, I clicked on the link about the pirate fun boy thing, but I couldn't find it. Once I got to the website I didn't know where to go from here. Hopefully taking 4 boys next year, dads could do that with the boys while moms and girls do the girl thing.
 
jjatwdw said:
Just because these are male characters it does not mean that they are are boy themed or for boys only. They all seem pretty unisex to me. However, CRT, 1900 Park Fare and the Princess character meal are only for girls. This does not seem fair to me at all!!!

Uh, yeah. My son disagrees that 1900 Park Fare is ONLY for girls. So would half the room while we were there, who were boys. DS met prince charming, and then told Cinderella he was in love with her. He was quite smitten and enjoyed the experience very much! And yes, he is a typical, shoot 'em up, rough little boy. But he enjoys a bit of everything.

I don't understand why people want to be exclusionary here. You can't make things "boy only". Our society has stressed that boys can't wear pink, can't like princesses, etc. but it is more socially acceptable that girls like Power Rangers and heros/villians. So it is impossible to have a boy meal that is socialy exclusionary like a princess meal is apparently to most boys.

Again, yes, let's diversify the meals, come up with a hero, villian, etc. meal so there is another one that boys will feel more comfortable at. But geez, let's drop the campaign to make it a boy only thing!
 
Kitka said:
Uh, yeah. My son disagrees that 1900 Park Fare is ONLY for girls. So would half the room while we were there, who were boys. DS met prince charming, and then told Cinderella he was in love with her. He was quite smitten and enjoyed the experience very much! And yes, he is a typical, shoot 'em up, rough little boy. But he enjoys a bit of everything.

I don't understand why people want to be exclusionary here. You can't make things "boy only". Our society has stressed that boys can't wear pink, can't like princesses, etc. but it is more socially acceptable that girls like Power Rangers and heros/villians. So it is impossible to have a boy meal that is socialy exclusionary like a princess meal is apparently to most boys.

Again, yes, let's diversify the meals, come up with a hero, villian, etc. meal so there is another one that boys will feel more comfortable at. But geez, let's drop the campaign to make it a boy only thing!


It's great that your son enjoys the princess character meals. No one is saying that he can't enjoy them. What we are saying is that OUR sons don't enjoy it. My son HATES the idea of having to eat with the princesses. He is at the age where he doesn't like that kind of attention from girls. You are looking at this from your family's perspective only. In our family, my son would like a meal that is directly more towards boys. Does that mean that girls won't like it? No, many girls would have just as much fun. We aren't looking for exclusionary, many of us would just like more options for our sons. If that isn't something that your son is interested in that is perfectly fine. I really fail to understand why it seems to upset you so that many of us have sons who would enjoy something else. Disney does, however, have no problem making things for girls only. They just opened the Bibbiddi Bobbiddi Boutique which caters to only girls. Then they also have the My Disney Girl's Perfectly Princess Tea Party which is for girls only. If they have no problem with those girls only activies, what is wrong with something just for boys?
 
traviesojmt said:
Disney does, however, have no problem making things for girls only. They just opened the Bibbiddi Bobbiddi Boutique which caters to only girls. Then they also have the My Disney Girl's Perfectly Princess Tea Party which is for girls only. If they have no problem with those girls only activies, what is wrong with something just for boys?

They also just opened the pirate adventure room at the World of Disney store and have the pirate and albotros cruises (both "boy" themed). Its not like Disney has nothing the boys enjoy. The princesses have become a marketing explosion. Its not like Disney set out to make "something" for girls. They started with one character breakfast in the Castle and some merchandise. It grew so big so fast that they kept adding to meet the demand.

I don't see anything "boy" related that has taken off that same way. I think they attemped to have the Stitch character take off like that but it didn't really work.

I'm sure Disney is aware that their are families who would like a Pixar breakfast. Since the Pixar movies are the highest grossing lately at Disney I'm sure that the Pixar characters would have the best chance at "making a big splash". However, due to reasons we may never know Disney hasn't been able to make the Pixar meal happen. Whatever the reason I'm sure it isn't because they don't want to or because they want to slight the boys. Disney would be crazy not to want to make a meal it appears would be very popular with all families.

I'm not sure that some of the other suggestions I've seen would go as big as the Pixar characters. The Villians meal was already tried and didn't go well enough for Disney to continue it. Star Wars or Power Rangers are really "fringe" Disney characters and I'm not sure Disney would want to put them so "front and center". Heros might work, but I'd venture to say it wouldn't be an overly popular meal. Just my opinion.
 
Well put traviesojmt! We're not trying to ruin the princess meals. And if you have sons that enjoy the princess meals, great. We just think some boys might enjoy something geared more toward boys. And we are not saying girls can't attend or enjoy it too. Like I said before, I have both DDs and DSs so I'm not favoring one over the other. These are simply opinions.
 
traviesojmt said:
It's great that your son enjoys the princess character meals. No one is saying that he can't enjoy them. What we are saying is that OUR sons don't enjoy it. My son HATES the idea of having to eat with the princesses. He is at the age where he doesn't like that kind of attention from girls. You are looking at this from your family's perspective only. In our family, my son would like a meal that is directly more towards boys. Does that mean that girls won't like it? No, many girls would have just as much fun. We aren't looking for exclusionary, many of us would just like more options for our sons. If that isn't something that your son is interested in that is perfectly fine. I really fail to understand why it seems to upset you so that many of us have sons who would enjoy something else. Disney does, however, have no problem making things for girls only. They just opened the Bibbiddi Bobbiddi Boutique which caters to only girls. Then they also have the My Disney Girl's Perfectly Princess Tea Party which is for girls only. If they have no problem with those girls only activies, what is wrong with something just for boys?


I believe BBB is for boys too. They can get dressed up like a pirate I think. The GF offers the Disney Princess Tea Party but they also offer the Pirate Cruise (can't get anymore boy themed than that).
 
Hi! I think I understand what most of you are saying here. My son is 13.5 now so I can not get him to go to any character meals with me anymore, of course. However, when he was 1-3 years, he loved CRT and 1900 Park Fare and all the attention the princesses gave him. However, when he was 6, we took him back to CRT (with Grandma and Aunt who had never been) and it was just ok for him. He did enjoy seeing Peter Pan there, though. However, when we returned to Disney when he was 10, he was not interested in any of the character meals. :sad2:

cstraub: I feel Mickey, Pluto, and Donald are fine for girls and boys that are young (generally speaking around 6 and under) but I believe characters like Hook, Peter Pan, Aladdin, and Hercules, Woody, and Buzz might be more appealing to boys because of the adventures and stories that they are associated with. I think Mickey, Pluto, and Donald are cute for smaller children, as long as they are not afraid of a huge mouse, dog, or duck. LOL! Personally, as an adult, I would not mind having breakfast with Mickey, Pluto, etc., but like someone mentioned here before, I was always the kind of kid that preferred soft stuffed animals over dolls. However, like I said before my ds at 13.5 will not let us book any character meals.

I do feel badly for those of you with boys who are still interested in character meals, but just do not get excited over seeing all the pretty princesses and even handsome princes. I do not think there is enough of a choice for boys. I think Mickey, Chip, Dale, Pluto, Goofy, etc. are great, but understand many boys want to see other more adventurous characters,like many mentioned here. Good Luck.
 

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