Hi Lisa,
Seems you have some excellent ADRs lined up for December 23-25. Any suggestions I make are completely arbitrary of course. I won't list them by specific days; I will simply list the restaurants at which I've eaten.
You are travelling with five adults and a three-year-old.
Do you like buffets? For breakfast try: Donald's Breakfastosaurus at Restaurantosaurus in Animal Kingdom; Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom; and Chef Mickey's on the fourth floor Grand Canyon Concourse in the Contemporary. All are character meals and feature typical American breakfast fare such as eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, hash browns, pancakes, waffles and French toast. The breakfast buffets at Boma in the Animal Kingdom Lodge, and at Fresh Mediterranean Market at the Walt Disney World Dolphin, are not character buffets but serve excellent food. Trails End Buffet at Fort Wilderness is a bargain at $11.99 or so. Good comfort food such as ribs, chicken, mashed potatoes and corn on the cob.
The best non-buffet breakfast I've had is at Boatwright's Dining Hall in Port Orleans Riverside (formerly Dixie Landings). I've never had their banana stuffed French toast, but their sweet potato pancakes have an off-the-charts yum factor; you don't need syrup. The Tonga Toast at Kona Cafe, next to 'Ohana at the Polynesian, is supposed to be excellent, as well as their coffees.
There are many good restaurants for lunch and dinner; it really depends on what you want to eat and spend. Two of my favorites are in the World Showcase part of Epcot: LeCellier Steakhouse in the Canada Pavilion and the underrated Restaurant Marrakesh in Morocco. Neither are cheap but both serve excellent food. I've never had a bad meal at LeCellier. Marrakesh, seldom crowded, adds a pretty belly dancer for entertainment, and the food is only lightly spiced. I will try the Mitsukoshi Teppanyaki (Japan) restaurant on December 3. It is supposed to be very good. Coral Reef at the Living Seas surrounds diners with fish. Good food but rather slow service.
In the Magic Kingdom, the character dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern featuring Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale and Pluto, and flank steak, ham, mashed potatoes and turkey with strawberry shortcake for dessert, is a family-style buffet. You can also eat dinner in Crystal Palace (another buffet) and in the castle (no princesses, though), as well as Tony's Town Square on Main Street.
The only full service restaurant at Animal Kingdom other than Restaurantosaurus, is Rainforest Cafe, which is also at Downtown Disney. At Downtown Disney Marketplace is Cap'n Jack's Oyster Bar, right on the water. Though expensive and with a limited menu, it doesn't require an ADR. Neither does House of Blues at Downtown Disney Westside, which is near the Cirque du Soleil La Nouba tent. Spicy southern cooking; watch out for the jambalaya!
I've heard good things about Hollywood Brown Derby at MGM, especially their Cobb Salad. Never ate at Hollywood and Vine or at Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater.
'Ohana at the Polynesian replaced their Tiger Shrimp with a Hawaiian Pork Sausage with Pineapple glaze, and a lot of people are not happy about it. But the turkey and beef, served all-you-care-to-eat on large skewers, is still featured.
Boma and Jiko: The Cooking Place, both at Animal Kingdom Lodge, are also great for dinner. Good steaks can be had at Shula's in the Dolphin; LeCellier; Yachtsman's Steakhouse in the Yacht Club; and Concourse Steakhouse at the Contemporary.
If you want ice cream and good--maybe the best on property--burgers, try Beaches & Cream at the Beach Club. Concourse Steakhouse also has good burgers.
Seafood? If you're from New England (which I'm not), Florida and good seafood are an oxymoron. I was not impressed with the Cape May Cafe Clambake at Beach Club; but you can try Flying Fish at the Boardwalk, Coral Reef at Epcot's Living Seas, or Artist Point at Wilderness Lodge.
You can always check
http://www.allearsnet.com/ for menus.
Thanks for letting me ramble.
Jim
