Fav dining experiences

[sadie]

We're less than two weeks out for making dining reservations for our November trip. We're hoping to do one sit-down meal per day and would like to do one character meal somewhere.

We'll be at Hollywood Studios 1.5 days, Epcot 2 days, Magic Kingdom 3 days, and Animal Kingdom 1 day. We'll be at Caribbean Beach for the first 4 nights, then the Contemporary for the last 3, and won't have park hopper passes.

Any favorite eats/unique experiences? Kids (8 and 11.5) are not very adventurous eaters.

[Patsy Baloney]

I like Sci-fi, 50’s Primetime and Brown Derby (I’d do the “lounge” here. The dining room is just a big box and I don’t feel like service is always great in there) at Hollywood Studios. Oga’s Cantina is fun for a drink stop, too, if your crew enjoys Star Wars.

At Epcot, Garden Grill was great! We usually eat around the world there and just stop for snacks at the different locations, but that dinner was fabulous. Otherwise, just go to the world showcase and let your belly be your guide.

Magic Kingdom - breakfast at Crystal Palace, dinner at Be Our Guest is ok but it’s so loud in there, and the Liberty Tree place is good, normal, American food. I’m basically just eating dole whips at MK, tbh. Avoid the Plaza. We’ve been there several times and it’s always meh. Menu isn’t great. Food isn’t great. They’re always running behind.

We like to take the boat over to Wilderness Lodge on our MK days. Storybook Dining was such a unique experience and Whispering Canyon was DELICIOUS. You can also hop the monorail to the Polynesian. I love Kona for breakfast.

Animal Kingdom - Tiffins was fancy and fun! Tusker House was the bomb! It’s a buffet of foods I had never tried before from different continents, plus an American food area for the non-adventurous.

We also like to ride over to Animal Kingdom Lodge and do Sanaa for their bread service and curry dishes.

[sadie]

Thanks! 50s Primetime was a childhood fav! Tiffins @ak and the Wilderness Lodge places were highly recommended by a close friend, too.

I'm so excited, lol.

[stephm0188]

Both Sci-Fi and 50s Prime Time are good options at HS. Both will fit the bill for unique dining experience. Roundup Rodeo BBQ in Toy Story Land is SO much fun and the food was pretty good. It's all you can eat, and there's a ton of it.

Epcot- Garden Grill is a character experience and it gets cool bonus points for being a rotating restaurant. We also really enjoy Beirgarten. If you'll be there during the Food and Wine festival, I'd strongly recommend enjoying the vendors and snacking your way around World Showcase. Trattoria al Forno is one of my favorite meals. It's located at the Boardwalk right outside Epcot.

Magic Kingdom- I honestly don't love the sit down options here. We've been to them all and they're all just okay. Liberty Tree Tavern is a great Thanksgiving meal. The Plaza is hit or miss. Crystal Palace is fine, but the biggest attraction is that it's a Winnie the Pooh character meal. Tony's Town Square was mediocre. Skipper's Canteen is good, but less adventurous eaters may not enjoy. We personally leave MK to visit other spots within the neighboring hotels- Storybook Dining at Wilderness Lodge is excellent. O'hana is delicious, and Chef Mickey is the only spot where you can see the Fab Five characters in one place.

Animal Kingdom tends to be another quick service spot for us. Tusker House is good, but we've been just as happy with meals from Flame Tree BBQ or Yak and Yeti. Boma and Sanaa at Animal Kingdom Lodge are both very good but again, less adventurous eaters may not enjoy it.

[nicolewi]

We went in 2019, so...not sure this is all current. Kids were 4, 6, 8 and 10.
We really enjoyed most of our dining experiences.

We went to Sanaa and had a great time there but food is maybe a bit more "adventurous" for kids. I still think about the mango margarita after a lot of walking in the sun! We went just as they opened for the day and the kids got to be part of a drumming thing.
We were supposed to do Tusker House but had to cancel due to illness (throwing up--argh) so that was a bummer. that's supposed to be a great character meal.
We did the Cinderella meal at Grand Floridian (took Monorail from MK) on recommendation of our travel agent and it was really fun with the evil stepsisters hamming it up. We also really enjoyed the princess/prince meal at just outside of Epcot at Trattoria al Forno (Bon Voyage Breakfast), but I don't know if they are still doing it.
My kids loved the hibachi meal in Japan at Epcot and had a great time. We had never been to a meal like that at home.
We had a really good time at Coral Reef, which I know some people don't like/find overpriced, but were on the dining plan. We sat right in front by the big tank wall and we got expensive lobster plates and enjoyed it!
Pastries in France were great but I thought ice cream was super messy and melty.
Our meal at Hollywood Studios was awful (the only really bad one) but I don't think they still do it. It was Minnie's Seasonal Dine or something like that with a buffet meal.
We liked most of our quick service, too--I thought better than expected at every place.
--love the orange frozen drinks at Sunshine Tree near Swiss Family Robinson maybe more than Dole Whip. Love the dole Whip with rum in Animal Kingdom.

[sent]

Hollywood Brown Derby had a really interesting food and drink menu when we went. We did a sit down dinner and really enjoyed it.

California Grill is our favorite restaurant on property. That will be easy for your since you're staying at the Contemporary. It is pricey.

I really like the dinner buffet at Boma but I have not been back there since COVID.

You can see all the menus online so hopefully that will help figure out what your kids can eat.

[nsl]

Ditto the Coral Reef recommendation at Epcot. The food is fine--nothing to rave about--but the dark, cool space and the aquarium wall really sold me on this place during our first visit ten years ago. It's a must-do every time we're at Disney, and I plan it right when I know we'll all be tired and overstimulated because the ambiance takes all that stress way back to zero.

I can't say there's a single restaurant in Magic Kingdom I'd recommend without hesitation. Be Our Guest is so over the top it sends my 12 year old with ADHD into a tailspin every time. We usually hit Columbia Harbor House and call it a day by dinnertime.

I haven't been to 50's Prime Time, but we did Sci Fi a couple visits ago and loved it. I think one of the best things about it was that both kids sat in the "front seat" and H and I were able to enjoy some couple time in the back (not that kind!) while we all ate. Again, the food wasn't special, but the experience was great.

Cape May Cafe out on Crescent Lake was a wonderful first meal during our big extended family trip. Everyone could find multiple dishes they wanted to eat, the desserts kept the kids very entertained, and the seating was comfortable.

[lauren170]

Space 220 in Epcot!

[sadie]

Made out great with reservations! Sci Fi, Space 220!, Prime Time, Ohana, Tusker House, Storybook Dining, Whispering Canyon, Cape May Cafe.

Super pumped!

[ksun]

HS: 50's Prime Time

Epcot: I prefer the bar at Space

AK: Tusker House character breakfast

MK: Liberty Tree Tavern (we've done BOG several times and don't need to do it again)

Other character: Storybook Dining at WL - the food is fantastic

Other resort: Sebastian's Bistro at CBR is fantastic

[acr]

* My kids really love the hibachi at Teppan Edo in Epcot.
* Via Napoli in Epcot is also a favorite

[somersault72]

Sept 9, 2023 7:25:05 GMT -5 sadie said:

Made out great with reservations! Sci Fi, Space 220!, Prime Time, Ohana, Tusker House, Storybook Dining, Whispering Canyon, Cape May Cafe.

Super pumped!

Cape May Cafe is our FAVORITE breakfast. When you go, request Elias as your server if he's working. He's PHENOMENAL. 

[Patsy Baloney]

Sept 9, 2023 7:25:05 GMT -5 sadie said:

Made out great with reservations! Sci Fi, Space 220!, Prime Time, Ohana, Tusker House, Storybook Dining, Whispering Canyon, Cape May Cafe.

Super pumped!

Hell yeah! I want to go on this trip!

[sadie]

Trying to do Chef Mickey the day we fly out since we'll be at the Contemporary already, but no luck just yet.

[MrsE]

We went in June and loved our lunch at Cinderella’s Royal Table in MK and breakfast at Cape May Cafe!

[sadie]

I'm coming back to this thread to update.

Story Book Dining at Wilderness Lodge was our favorite dining experience followed by Cape May Cafe and Whispering Canyon.

O'hana was disappointing. I preferred when it was not served family style (the pre-covid days). I would not do this one again.

Kids liked watching the ride while dining at San Angel in Epcot.

We ended up canceling a couple of places because we were kind of sick of eating out towards the end of the trip.

We had a great time at the Christmas party. We did a couple of rides, but we focused on the parade, shows/atmosphere, and character meets.

The Skyliner was amazing. We'd for surw stay on its route in the future.

Other than location, I was disappointed with the dated feel of the Contemporary. If we did a split stay again and stayed in MK, I'd do Wilderness Lodge or Grand Floridian or Polynesian.

The gingerbread houses were awesome, especially the Grand Floridian one and the carousel (!) at Beach Club.

The holiday vibe at Animal Kingdom was my favorite, as was the animation class. I'd do more of them if we'd had more time.

I'd absolutely plan a trip for this time of year again.

I would not recommend the + Covid test I got this morning, but I anticipated we'd bring it home with us.

[dancingirl21]

sadie, sounds like you had a great trip! We are staying at Wilderness in February, so I’m putting together our plans for dining. Did you do Storybook for breakfast or lunch/dinner?

ETA: I think they only do dinner so never mind!

[sent]

sadie , thanks for updating! I forgot about some of those restaurants. DD when she was 6 loved Storybook Dining and San Angel when we went on our Jan 2020 trip. However she did not like the Wilderness Lodge to get to Storybook Dining. She thought the place was actually made of logs and was going to fall down while we were in the lobby. Taking them to Storybook Dining is one of my funniest core memories with both kids. One year we went at Christmas but the kids were too small to appreciate gingerbread house decorations and stuff so we didn't really check out the Disney resort decor. But now I think I want to go back next year to check all of that out!

[sadie]

Dec 17, 2023 8:50:06 GMT -5 sent said:

sadie , thanks for updating! I forgot about some of those restaurants. DD when she was 6 loved Storybook Dining and San Angel when we went on our Jan 2020 trip. However she did not like the Wilderness Lodge to get to Storybook Dining. She thought the place was actually made of logs and was going to fall down while we were in the lobby. Taking them to Storybook Dining is one of my funniest core memories with both kids. One year we went at Christmas but the kids were too small to appreciate gingerbread house decorations and stuff so we didn't really check out the Disney resort decor. But now I think I want to go back next year to check all of that out!

When we went to Story Book, my 8yo son made some comment about the Queen and was overheard by staff, who, in turn came over to him to tell him to watch out because the Queen has eyes and ears everywhere. That freaked him out. In all our photos with her following dinner, he stook like 2 feet away from her. I was cracking up.

[sadie]

Dec 17, 2023 8:50:06 GMT -5 sent said:

sadie , thanks for updating! I forgot about some of those restaurants. DD when she was 6 loved Storybook Dining and San Angel when we went on our Jan 2020 trip. However she did not like the Wilderness Lodge to get to Storybook Dining. She thought the place was actually made of logs and was going to fall down while we were in the lobby. Taking them to Storybook Dining is one of my funniest core memories with both kids. One year we went at Christmas but the kids were too small to appreciate gingerbread house decorations and stuff so we didn't really check out the Disney resort decor. But now I think I want to go back next year to check all of that out!

The gingerbread houses were definitely something to remember!