# Where do we go for the best Disney character breakfast?



## rickandcindy23 (May 8, 2009)

We are staying at Villas at Wilderness Lodge with our kids in October.  Our granddaughter went nuts over the characters this last trip, when she was 19 months, so we want to do a breakfast somewhere.  Which are the best ones?  

Is there one at VWL?  How is that one?  I want decent food and a good atmosphere, and lots of time with the characters.  

Our granddaughter is now 2 years and 3 months, and every time she meets someone, she says "goin' disneywhirl, October!"  It's so cute, and she remembers all of the characters SO well.  We are having so much fun with Evelyn on these trips!   

Thanks for your advice in advance!


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## logan115 (May 8, 2009)

I'm not sure there's one at VWL, but I'm pretty sure they have a pretty well regarded one nearby at the Contemporary (Chef Mickey's I think it's called).  I've never eaten there so I can't give you any first-hand advice.

When we stayed at the Beach Club Villas 2 years ago our son loved the character breakfast at Cape May's.  May want to check around on the DIS as there will be a lot more info for you there.

Have fun !

Chris


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## tinkerbell2 (May 8, 2009)

We went to Chef Mickey at the Contemporary and it was great. The kids (5-6 ) would go back anytime ( so would we !)


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## steved2psi (May 8, 2009)

*IMHO*

Actually my DW opinion, the expert on all things Disney.

1.Chef Mickeys in the Contemporary
2. Tusker House in AKL
3. Cinderalla"s Castle (most popular and hard to get ressies, that's why its #3)
4. Park Faire in Grand Floridian.


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## tinkerbell2 (May 8, 2009)

There are no character meal at the VWL . That's where we stayed also and it was very pleasant.


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## logan115 (May 8, 2009)

One thing to add - last year we did the character breakfast at Hollywood & Vine in DHS.  The Little Einsteins and I believe JoJo's Circus characters are feature.  HOWEVER - THEIR HEADS ARE HUGE any our son (what was 4.5 at the time) was completely freaked out and basically hid in the booth the entire time.

Other kids seemed to be fine, but for our little guy that was not teh best choice even though he really liked both of the shows at the time.

Chris


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## mecllap (May 8, 2009)

We've enjoyed the character meals in the past -- have heard some mixed reports lately that seem to be related to staffing cutbacks, etc.   (Overcrowding, taking a long time to get a table -- give yourself ample time, show up early). 
Here's a source of info:  http://allears.net/din/cb.htm

One tip is that once you get a table, you don't have to be hurried away from it -- you can stay through two "rounds" of the character visits, if you missed anyone.  Stretch out your eating and coffee drinking.


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## rickandcindy23 (May 8, 2009)

Evelyn loves princesses and the main Disney characters, especially Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy.  She is most especially excited to see all of those again.  

Chef Mickey's sounds great, and that is a possibility.  I also think our daughter would like to do the Cinderella's castle one, even though it's probably more expensive.  It's probably the only meal we will eat on site, unless the kids decide they want to eat fast food at the parks.  I would rather eat at Smokey Bones, Red Lobster, Macaroni Grill, Olive Garden, Fuddruckers, and many other nearby restaurants for dinner/ lunch.  

What about Crystal Palace?  Do they have a character breakfast?  I was so hoping there would be one at Wilderness Lodge.


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## ngmaui (May 8, 2009)

*Ohana' Polynesian Character Breakfast*

We love the Polynesian Character Breakfast since it is one of the cheapest, one of easiest to get rezzie's for and the food is great!  This one has Mickey even though it is called Lilo and Stitch Best Friends Character Breakfast.  The Pineapple bread is to die for along with the sausage and potatoes.  Periodically, all the kids get maraca's and march in a parade around the room...lots of fun.  The service is family style which is nice since you don't have to keep going up to the feeding trough.  Only drawback is it is a set meal (unlimited though).

Nate


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## tlwmkw (May 8, 2009)

We've done the one at Animal Kingdom and it was our favorite- also gets you into the park a little earlier and didn't seem to be so crowded because the rooms are divided up and you don't feel so crammed in.  We stayed at Grand Floridian and the one there was too crowded and mainly focused on the female characters (we have boys) but that might actually suit you better if she likes the princesses.  We did the chef mickeys for dinner and that was good too but also very crowded.  We haven't done the one at the magic kingdom (?crystal palace?) but I believe it is very popular also.


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## littlestar (May 8, 2009)

If she was older, I would say the castle. But I'd save that for when she's older and can appreciate being inside Cinderella's house.  

We like the Crystal Palace. It's in the Magic Kingdom. I think it was Pooh and friends the last time we went. 

Also, I like Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary, too. The Beach Club resort has a nice breakfast, too, at Cape May with Minnie Mouse and Goofy. 

There are no character meals at the Wilderness Lodge.


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## toontoy (May 8, 2009)

The garden grill at the land pavalion has a low key lunch and dinner with mickey minnie and pluto. this wasn't quite as busy as the others when we were there.  Most of the best have been mentioned I would also recomend liberty tree tavern character dinner it had goofy, mickey miney and pluto and was pretty good. I did hear they changed it so I would make sure of the characters before booking it.


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## GadgetRick (May 8, 2009)

Been to almost all of them. My faves are Crystal Palace (Pooh and friends) and the Polynesian (travel Mickey and friends with Stitch).

Crystal Palace (IMO) has the best buffet--not that the others are bad at all this is a little better.

The Polynesian has EXCELLENT family-style food. They bring lots and lots of food and keep bringing it until you say stop! All fresh-cooked. The best (overall) food I've had in the character breakies.

You have  to book these things WELL in advance. Very difficult to get into these.


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## ciscogizmo1 (May 9, 2009)

All Ears has great listing of all the character breakfasts here:

http://allears.net/din/cb.htm

I've been to:

Chef Mickey's
Crystal Palace
Cinderella's Royal Table
Princess StoryBook Dining (in Epcot)
Ohana
Cape May Cafe
1900 Park Fare

I've been to many of these multiple times.  Our favorite is Cinderella's Royal Table but that is because I am not a buffet person.  The breakfast is all you can eat but they serve it on plates but not family style.  Out of the buffets ones I've been to these are in order of my preference:  Crystal Palace, Ohana, Chef Mickey's, 1900 Park Fare & Cape May Cafe.  

On our next trip we are going to try Cinderella Royal Table for Dinner (we've only eaten there for lunch).  Also, I have reservations at Chef Mickey's and Tusker House.  

I find most of the buffets are loud with a lot of high energy.  The Princess ones are a little more low keyed.  At CRT you get a picture with Cinderella prior to being seated.  It is really nice photo.  However, this meal is very expensive.

P.S. I've never had problems book my dining reservations.  Just call out 90 days inadvance and it won't be a problem.  Along time ago CRT use to be very popular and it is now but not as bad.  I think the prices keep everyone from booking.  We travel exclusively during school vacations and never had a problem.

Have you checked into Mickey's BBQ at Fort Wilderness?  I've never been and it looks really cute.  It doesn't appear to be a character meal with autographs but might be something you like:

http://allears.net/menu/menu_bbq.htm

Also, check out the petting zoo at Fort Wilderness too.  It is very cute and fun for younger kids.


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## GadgetRick (May 10, 2009)

I can't comment on the princess stuff, thankfully, we have two little boys who aren't into princesses.


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## refumpcpa (May 11, 2009)

*For what it's worth*



rickandcindy23 said:


> We are staying at Villas at Wilderness Lodge with our kids in October.  Our granddaughter went nuts over the characters this last trip, when she was 19 months, so we want to do a breakfast somewhere.  Which are the best ones?
> 
> Is there one at VWL?  How is that one?  I want decent food and a good atmosphere, and lots of time with the characters.
> 
> ...



I've been to pretty much all of them.  Here's what I think:

1) Cinderella's Royal Table - food is OK, expensive, but they do include photo with Cinderella in your package.  Dress her up as a princess if you go here.  Fairy godmother puts on a cute show.  Characters do not come to the table (I think this is the only one where that applies).

2) Akershus @ Norway in Epcot - She will probably see 4 princesses here (I've seen Mulan, Mary Poppins, Aurora, Belle, Snow White and Pocohantas in two separate trips).  Don't particularly care for the food at this breakfast.

3) Playhouse Disney @ Hollywood & Vine - Probably the worst food at any character Breakfast.  Little Einstein's, Jojo and Goliath do put on a very cute show however.

4) Crystal Palace - One of my favorites - good buffet - The kids get to march around the Crystal Palace with Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore.  Cute to watch.

5) O'hana @ the Polynesian - Food is good.  The Kids get to march around the Restaurant with Minnie, Mickey, Pluto and Goofy.  Equally cute to watch.

6) Chef Mickey's @ the Contemporary - Food is good.  Cute interactive show put on by Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy.

7) 1900 Park Fare @ Grand Floridian - Food is very good.  I've seen Cinderella, Mad Hatter, and Winnie the Pooh at this breakfast.  No show.

8) Beach Club - Good food, although a little out of the way from where you are staying.  Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy come to the tables.

I won't go back to 2) or 3).  If my 7yo would stop asking about the castle, I probably wouldn't go back to 1) either just because it's overpriced.  But when an autistic daughter asks for something, it's hard to say no.

My favorites are 4), 5), & 6)

Hope your granddaughter enjoys the breakfast.


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## rickandcindy23 (May 11, 2009)

Thanks for all the replies.  I am thinking the Polynesian and Chef Mickey's for the characters.  Evelyn really loves to watch The Disney Channel and loves those characters.  We might do the Cinderella one in a year or two, when she is old enough to really enjoy it, but she is into princesses right now, so who knows whether she would get it or not.


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## GadgetRick (May 11, 2009)

refumpcpa said:


> 3) Playhouse Disney @ Hollywood & Vine - Probably the worst food at any character Breakfast.  Little Einstein's, Jojo and Goliath do put on a very cute show however.



LOL! You're actually being kind about the food. It was HORRIBLE...


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## lprstn (May 11, 2009)

My favorite is Ohana's the kids loved it so much that it's the only one they request.


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## AwayWeGo (May 11, 2009)

*Chip & Dale & Some Of The Others Were There, Too.*




refumpcpa said:


> 6) Chef Mickey's @ the Contemporary - Food is good.  Cute interactive show put on by Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy.


Our whole extended family had a nice time doing _Breakfast At Chef Mickey's_ when we were there the Saturday after Thanksgiving about 5 years ago with our grandson & our 2 grandnieces. 

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​


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## JonathanIT (May 15, 2009)

I think we might try Cape May at Beach Club for breakfast on our trip next month.  We're spending the day at Epcot, so the location will be convenient for walking over to the park afterwards (gotta love that free valet parking with TIW!).  At 18.99 it seems pretty reasonable as well.


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## RahRah (May 17, 2009)

rickandcindy23 said:


> Evelyn loves princesses and the main Disney characters, especially Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy.  She is most especially excited to see all of those again.
> 
> Chef Mickey's sounds great, and that is a possibility.  I also think our daughter would like to do the Cinderella's castle one, even though it's probably more expensive.  It's probably the only meal we will eat on site, unless the kids decide they want to eat fast food at the parks.  I would rather eat at Smokey Bones, Red Lobster, Macaroni Grill, Olive Garden, Fuddruckers, and many other nearby restaurants for dinner/ lunch.
> 
> What about Crystal Palace?  Do they have a character breakfast?  I was so hoping there would be one at Wilderness Lodge.




If she likes the princesses, the breakfast at Askershus is really nice - if you'e on the dining plan, it's only 1TS AND includes pictures with Belle.....plus she'd get to meet Snow White, Aurora, Mary Poppins, Belle again and Mulan....Cinderella's Royal Table was also wonderful - we did it for lunch and that included pictures with Cinderella and then Snow White, Jasmine, Aurora are there throughout lunch!


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## malyons (May 18, 2009)

I took my daughter last september when she was 2 yrs and 3 mos.... sound familiar   .... we chose Chef Mickeys at contemporary based on the characters they offered.  They had Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto and Daisy there the day we went and we had trouble getting time to eat we had so many "visitors" at our table, it was a great ratio of characters to guests, and she got all the time (and pictures) she could have wanted.  It was a great experience, and the food wasn't bad by breakfast buffet standards either.  

One tip for you - schedule well in advance and book a time that is the latest breakfast they serve, that way you can have a light snack in the morning to hold you over and hit Magic Kingdom for a couple of hours before your character breakfast.  You can take the disney transport or even walk over to contemporary and get a good big meal at 11ish and it'll be more of a brunch that day, it's also a good way to break up a day at the park, and you'll still have some time after breakfast for the park before naptime if all goes well. We really lucked out that day and DD was so worn out after park-breakfast-more park- that she actually fell asleep in her stroller and we didn't have to go back to the room for naptime!  we just found a cool spot near pirates of the caribbean and let her sleep for a while while we took turns running to the bigger rides

I'm sure as time goes on the cinderella thing will be the meal of choice, but at her age the Chef Mickey's bfast was the perfect choice.  

have fun whatever you choose!


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## SuzanneSLO (May 21, 2009)

malyons said:


> . . .
> One tip for you - schedule well in advance and book a time that is the latest breakfast they serve, that way you can have a light snack in the morning to hold you over and hit Magic Kingdom for a couple of hours before your character breakfast.  . . .
> 
> have fun whatever you choose!



I second the recommendatio to book a late breakfast and will add that an early lunch is another good option.  Park opening is the best time to be on the rides at the Parks; why spend that time at a meal?

We enjoyed the Akershous princess breakfast in Epcot in the late morning on the day we wanted to sleep in and planned to tour World Showcase, which opens at 11.  We have also enjoyed an early lunch at Crystal Palace in MK with the Pooh characters and a late breakfast at Chef Mickeys on a transition day when we were moving from the Contemporary to our offsite timeshare.  Also good was the GF dinner with Cinderella and friends, which we followed by taking the monorail to the MK to enjoy the fireworks and SpectroMagic.

Best of luck to you. -- Suzanne


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## ciscogizmo1 (May 21, 2009)

SuzanneSLO said:


> I second the recommendatio to book a late breakfast and will add that an early lunch is another good option.  Park opening is the best time to be on the rides at the Parks; why spend that time at a meal?
> 
> We enjoyed the Akershous princess breakfast in Epcot in the late morning on the day we wanted to sleep in and planned to tour World Showcase, which opens at 11.  We have also enjoyed an early lunch at Crystal Palace in MK with the Pooh characters and a late breakfast at Chef Mickeys on a transition day when we were moving from the Contemporary to our offsite timeshare.  Also good was the GF dinner with Cinderella and friends, which we followed by taking the monorail to the MK to enjoy the fireworks and SpectroMagic.
> 
> Best of luck to you. -- Suzanne


  This isn't always the best advice especially for CRT.  I've done this once and never again.  The meal took too long.  We booked CRT for 10 am.  The park opened at 8 am so, we toured.  However, when we got to the castle to check in, Cindy was out on the stage performing in front of the castle.  So, we had to wait 45 minutes before we got our picture with her.  So, by time we got out of there it was 12:00 pm.  

We prefer to take the breakfast time slot before the park opens.  We've done CRT at 8 am when the park opened at 9 am.  It was fun walking down Main street with no crowds.  We got some great pictures of the castle with few people in the pictures.  It was great.  We were done with our meal by 8:50 and actually had to wait at the rope drop at the castle.  It was very nice.  We did the same for Crystal Palace breakfast.


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