Hi All!

I'm planning our first family trip to DisneyWorld in the fall. I've been there once before, 10 years ago, and during the course of my planning the trip, I've noticed that many of the restaurants are the same. Is there anything new? Do you have any recommendations? Any negative experiences? HELP!

Thanks!

What type of restaurants are you looking for? Are your kids young and you want moderately priced family fare? Or are you looking for really good food, regardless of price? A little of both? There are just so many restaurants in Disney that it would be helpful if we knew what you had in mind.

However, I will tell you that I am not a fan of any of the park restaurants, with the exception of Epcot. We ate at the Brown Derby (MGM) last year as part of a dinner package that gave us reserved seating for Fantasmic. It was very average and quite expensive. And that was one of the better park restaurants I've eaten at. I prefer to grab simple counter food and try to eat as many meals as possible out of the park.

Our two favorite Disney restaurants are California Grill at the Contemporary and Flying Fish at the Boardwalk. Young children are definitely welcome at both, but we were lucky enough to be able to leave ours at the hotel with Grammie while we enjoyed a quiet, leisurely dinner!

I recommend the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World for their restaurant reviews. They not only rate all Disney restaurants (with both editor and reader ratings) but they also review counter service restaurants and even some of the food stands in the parks. They also recommend some off-site restaurants. Good luck!

Hey, thanks!

The kids are 4 and 7. We'd like to cater to them somewhat, but I can't handle a week of chicken nuggets and fries. There's got to be a happy medium. So far we've decided to attend breakfast with Cinderella, the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Review, the Teppanyaki Dining Room (Epcot - it was our best meal the last time we went), the 50's Prime Time Cafe in MGM, the Crystal Palace Character Buffet in the MK and the Toy Story Pizza Planet in MGM, because my son loves Toy Story. We've purchased the meal plan, so we pretty much have to stay within the parks & resorts to eat, plus, we don't want to drag the kids around too much by leaving the park to eat. Is there anything good in the Animal Kingdom?

On a recent trip to Disney we ate at Spoodles on the Boardwalk and it was a huge disappointment. Food was mediocre at best and quite pricey. The restaurant wasn't busy and the service was sporadic. One of the steaks ordered was cooked wrong twice and the outcome was taking 10% of the price of the steak. We could have ventured off property and had a fabulous dinner for the same price. Unfortunately, friends wanted to stay on-property to eat dinner. If you go to allearsnet.com you can review all Disney restaurant menus and prices. We stayed at the Yacht Club and the rooms were fine but the pool hours were strange.

The Animal Kingdom has a couple pretty good counter service places; one is for BBQ ribs and chicken and the other serves chicken, wraps, and salads (sorry, can't remember their names). There is also a Rainforest Cafe. You might want to check mousesavers. They'll have all the latest scoop, including menus.

If you will go to the site: allearsnet.com and then click on Dining you will find all the menus for all the restaurants on Disney property. You have some pretty good places already picked out. Where are you staying?

I usually eat at the Japanese restaurant or sushi bar at Epcot, once you decide on any, and you'll see this online, you can call 407-WDW-DINE and make reservations or ask questions. have fun !

While I haven't been to Disney World for a while now, I'm surprised no one has mentioned the restaurant in the hotel at the Animal Kingdom. It's on my short list for next trip, as I thought it's now considered to be one of the best dining experiences in all of Disney World. Can anyone confirm?

There are actually two full service restaurants at Animal Kingdom Lodge. The buffet is Boma and is really wonderful for those wanting to sample African food. The other is Jiko and is considered by some to be one of the best dining experience at WDW. With young children, I would recommend Boma, though. There are some more "tame" choices on the buffet and then there is the children's section, also.

Tusker House is good counter service at Animal Kingdom...pretty healthy.

We enjoyed Le Cellier at Epcot...great cheese soup!

At MK, we enjoyed our character dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern. It's family style, and all very kid friendly - ham, turkey, stuffing, mac and cheese, green beans, cherry cobler a la mode.

We also enjoyed dinner at Ohana...from the MK it's just a short monorail ride away. The sides were great. Some of the meats were a bit overcooked.

We did the Cape May Clambake at Beach Club. The seafood side of the buffet was not very good; the "other" food was pretty good and the desserts were great. We ate there because it was convenient (we were at Yacht Club), but we would have been better off trying someplace at Epcot.

I thought the Brown Derby was not worth the money. The appetizers and desserts were great - the entrees weren't. If you go there and get a cobb salad and soak up the atmosphere, I think you'll be pleased. We enjoyed Mama Melrose-they have a good kids' menu...calzone, or "pasta your way."

We also liked Backlot Express at MGM (middle eastern food), and wraps for the kids.

Columbia Harbour House in the Magic Kingdom is fine...fast food quality fish. If you eat upstairs, you can escape the crowds for a while.

It's been a few years, but we really liked the upscale restaurants in the Disney hotels. The Floridian, for example, the Polynesian, the Wilderness Lodge (is that the name?), etc. They each catered to adults and families, good food and service, decent value. I think you can get to each of them via the Disney transit system, so no problem parking. We stayed at the Contemporary, and their character breakfasts seemed to be less crowded than others I've heard of. Have fun!

Thanks, ugadog, it was Jiko I was referring to. I don't usually call any buffet "a fine dining experience".

You've made some very good choices. Just one note of caution on Cinderella's breakfast - its a tough reservation to get. Make sure you call 90 days out. If you don't succeed with it, there is now a Cinderella's Lunch and a Princess Breakfast at Norway in Epcot. The Crystal Palace isn't a bad choice for lunch. The food is just average buffet stuff but the Pooh characters and setting make it a hit.

Another option is Chef Mickey at the Contemporary Resort. Its a character breakfast but I believe they serve until 11am. We once booked the last seating. We ate there after a pleasant early morning at the MK. Just as the crowds started to build, we left the park and headed for Chef Mickey. We were a little concerned that the character interaction would be minimal because of the late time but in fact the characters gave it their all. We even got a great picture with all the characters and our kids - usually you can only get one character at a time. After having a very nice late breakfast/early lunch we headed back to our hotel for naps and swimming.

I'm sorry to hear that Spoodles is no longer up to par - I've read similar reports at allearsnet.com. It was one of my favorite places at WDW.

We're headed to the mouse in August - so far we've booked the character meal at the Liberty Tree Tavern in MK, Tony's Town Square at MK, Teppanyaki at Epcot. We will be on the meal plan also. I expect that bookings at the table service restaurants will be tougher to get as more people take advantage of the meal plan.

My favorite place at the Animal Kingdom is a counter service restaurant called Tusker House. It has very good rotissiere chicken, veggie sandwiches. Portions are large enough to share. Its near the safari ride in Africa. There is also the FlameTree Barbeque that is not bad either. Behdind this counter service restaurant is seating along a river that is shaded and a quiet respite from the park.

You mentioned that you purchased the meal plan. Are you aware of the free meal plan offer that Disney announced a few weeks ago? If the offer is available during your visit you might want to make a change to your reservation. check out mousesavers.com for info.

In EPCOT I second the above poster's suggestion of the sit down Japanese dinner. Two different sets of kids both loved this and we did as well. We always made a reservation.

I do think the problem with almost every restaurant in the Disney system is that quality control is IFFY with differing crowds, IMHO. I hope it is better now. We had a good experience with room service at Animal Kingdom Lodge from Jiko and a very bad and cold meal at the restaurant itself, as well.

Hi again! My kids were 4 and 6 last year when we went, and they loved the Teppanyaki Dining Room. Lots of fun for the kids. They also have always enjoyed Pizza Planet, mainly for the atmosphere. It's a must for boys that age. We didn't go the the 50's Prime Time Cafe because I had heard the food wasn't great, but my friend and her kids love it. It sounds like fun.

I second the recommendation for FlameTree BBQ at AK. Decent pork and chicken sandwiches, and the tables along the river are a great place to relax and get out of the sun.

I had heard that Jiko was good, but not great, but that was more than a year ago. Perhaps the food has caught up to expectations by now. It does sound interesting, though. I'd like to try it when we go this December.

I've also heard good things about Artist POint at Wildnerness Lodge, but haven't been there myself.

Although I'm not a big fan of the food at Rainforest Cafe, if your kids have never been to one, the atmosphere is worth it. Kids love the jungle and all the audio-animatronic animals. The AK location takes priority seating reservations. I also believe it's open after the park closes (usually at 5 p.m. in the fall, maybe 6), so you wouldn't have to lose park time to eat there.

I also can't stress enough what Bennie said about calling for the Cinderella breakfast EXACTLY 90 days in advance and at EXACTLY 7 a.m. EST. You may already know this, but just wanted to make sure. I know people who have called at 7:02 and it's already completely booked. It took one of my friends several days of calling before she was able to get a reservation, and this was for in early January, one of the slowest times at Disney! So if this breakfast is important to your family...

Have a great vacation. Don't know what month you're going, but Oct./early Nov. is my favorite time at Disney. Great weather, manageable, sometimes minimal crowds. We went last March and it was way too crowded. I'd pick the fall again this year, but I've always wanted to see the Christmas decorations, so we're going in early December. Have fun. I know your kids will have a blast!

I'm surprised no one mentioned the California Grill on the top floor of the Contemporary. If you reserve during the fireworks, they play the music and lower the lights..it is beautiful. The food is excellent and will be a treat for both adults and kids. Everyone will be happy with this dinner! After dinner, you can walk out on the observation deck and watch the light parade on the lagoon. It's easy to get to, just tke the monorail. The California grill now only allows people with dinner reservations to go up to the restaurant, so it less crowded and much quieter. Before they did this, people used to go up early or just go for a drink, so the restaurant was crowded and very noisy. Now there is a dedicated elevator and if your name is not on the reservation list, you do not have access. One of the best restaurants in WDW...the flatbread appeitzers are the best

I went to the Brown Derbey in October 2001. I thought that the food was very good, and our server was absolutely wonderful. We also went before Fantasmic.

I think that Mama Melrose is better for children though and they will also reserve a seat for you with Fantasmic also. Arrange it when you check in if you want to go.

For us the Tempanyaki Dining room is a must at Mitsukoshi, Japanese Pavillion.
Kids love watching the chef toss, and flip food and utensils while cooking.

We did not get priority seating arrangements for Cinderella's Castle the last time. But we got there before rope drop and got lucky as walk-ins. That is my favorite character breakfast.

We enjoyed the Sci-Fi Drive in as well. I had a tasty pasta dish and my husband a sliced steak or roast beef type sandwich that was good. There were some kids in there, but I am not sure if your 4 and 7 year old would mind the movie trailors that they show. Like, "Giant Ants from Mars" or "Attack of the 50 foot Woman" that sort of thing.

Got some good advice here. Have fun, and give us a trip report when you get back.

I am an annual passholder and go 1-2 times a month. I would recommend the following and also recommend making reservations at these places:
1. MGM: Prime Time is home cooking and lots of laughs--great, funny service at this restaurant

Sci-Fi theater is good, entertaining, great milk shakes and burgers

Mama Melrose is fair.

Brown Derby is very good, more for adults who want a quiet moment.

2. Magic Kindom:
Crystal Palace is a buffet, excellent selections and I think the best food in this park, plus Winnie the Pooh and friends make for a fun time

Liberty Tree Tavern food is good, family style and really all you can eat, they will keep bringing the food to your table, usually turkey, pork shops, beef, potatoes, veggies. Minnie Mouse, Goofey, Chip and Dale, Pluto entertain.

I do not recommend the food in the Castle Restaurant, however, children seem to love this restaurant, most likely due to the medieval dress and the castle appearance and sometimes appearance of the "Princesses".

3. Epcot:
Favorite is Italy--singing has been added to the dining experience at night--and it's a lot of fun, good food, excellent Fettucini Alfredo

We are boycotting France or I would recommend the Bistro which is the top floor at France. A little more pricey then downstairs, but worth it.

Canada is fair, the Cheese Soup is good, but the steaks are fair.

The Land Pavillion has a new food court much nicer than the previous with fresh food you can actually see before you order.

4. Animal Kingdom: would recommend Jiko at the animal kingdom lodge or the buffet, both are excellent. Jiko has a woman chef that is well-known and has received many awards.

Recommend RainForest Cafe which is right next to this park.

5. California Grill, top of the Contemporary Resort is excellent, with an excellent view of Disney

6. For great sweets, candy go to the Market Place
Goofy's candy store. They make made to order candy/carmel apples, marshmallows on a stick,etc., homemade carmel corn, and slush drinks in take home character glasses.

Don't forget Ghiradelli's for an ice cream sundae, also at the Market Place.
The line may be long at night, but it moves fast.

Hope this helps and enjoy the trip!

We took our 3 year old to the Princess character breakfast in Norway- she loved it (5 Disney heroines were present, but not Cinderella on our day). Food was hearty diner fare.

We actually really liked the sit-down restaurant in Morocco (name escapes me!). It gave us a chance to try something not usually found near home, and we enjoyed everything we ordered, plus the entertaining bellydancers.

I don't leave home without my copy of the Unofficial Guide to Disney- have a great time and write a trip report when you return!

The one in Morrocco is called Marrakesh.

It was Zagat rated at one time. It was okay.