We continue with our In Depth series with a look at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa! Find out what you can find for dining, amenities, entertainment and room types at Walt Disney World’s flagship resort.
Happy listening!
Character dining is very popular and very much a part of most families trips to Disney. One of the most confusing things and hard to follow is which characters are where and if they serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner or just breakfast, etc. Also, people are always asking me – which is the best and when they mean the best typically they are asking about who has the best character interaction and not the best bacon (though food is important) because these meals are not cheap but most are buffets and you can eat a lot of yummy food to get your value plus the pictures and smiles on your kids faces (or your adult faces) will be something priceless.
I am going to start also by saying that this information is correct as of today March 21, 2106 (I hope it is!) but the characters are always changing and this is who is typically there. Though no character is ever guaranteed so know that going in and do not be disappointed but enjoy the event! If you HAVE to meet one specific character you might need to fastpass that for a meet and greet. One more tip when you see a description like Luau Mickey or Safari Donald this describes the character theme at this meal. So, Safari Donald is dressed up like he is going on a safari for example!
Starting with character meals that require 1 Table Service Credit when using the Disney Dining Plan:
‘Ohana at Polynesian Resort –
Best Friends Breakfast – Breakfast Only
Lilo, Stitch, Luau Mickey, Luau Pluto
Garden Grill Epcot
Chip ‘n Dale’s Harvest Feast (all meals)
Chip & Dale, Farmer Mickey & Farmer Pluto
Chef Mickey’s at Contemporary Resort
Chef Mickey’s Fun Time Buffet (all meals)
Chef Mickey, Chef Donald, Chef Goofy, Chef Minnie & Chef Pluto
Tusker House at Animal Kingdom
Donald’s Safari Meal (all meals)
Safari Mickey, Safari Donald, Safari Goofy, & Safari Daisy
1900 Park Fare at Grand Floridian Resort
Supercalifragilistic Breakfast (breakfast only)
Alice, the Mad Hatter, Mary Poppins and Bert, Tigger & Pooh
1900 Park Fare at Grand Floridian Resort
Cinderella’s Happily Ever After Dinner (dinner only)
Cinderella, Prince Charming, Cinderella’s Stepsisters (Anastasia and Drisella) and Wicked Stepmother (Lady Tremaine)
Hollywood & Vine at Hollywood Studios
Disney Junior Play n’ Dine (breakfast and lunch only)
Disney Junior Characters: Jake, Sofia, Doc McStuffins & Handy Manny
Hollywood & Vine at Hollywood Studios
Minnie’s Seasonal Dine (dinner only)
Minnie, Mickey, Donald, Daisy and Goofy
- January 4, 2016 – March 20, 2016
Minnie’s Silver Screen Dine
Celebrate Hollywood blockbusters at a banquet honoring the glitz and glamor of Tinseltown!- March 21, 2016 – June 5, 2016
Minnie’s Springtime Dine
Shake off winter’s chill with a fabulous fête marking the bright and beautiful delights of spring!- June 6, 2016 – September 11, 2016
Minnie’s Summertime Dine
Heat things up at a beach-inspired bash welcoming the excitement of the season!- September 12, 2016 – November 6, 2016
Minnie’s Halloween Dine
Head to Minnie’s favorite haunt as all her pals gather for a frightfully festive Halloween feast!- November 7, 2016 – January 6, 2017
Minnie’s Holiday Dine
Deck the halls at a dazzling dinner party filled with holiday cheer and the joy of the season!Cape May’s at Beach Club Resort
Minnie’s Beach Bash Breakfast (Breakfast only)
Beach Minnie, Beach Donald and Beach Goofy
Akershus in Norway at Epcot
Princess Storybook Dining (all meals)
Belle, Cinderella, Jasmine, Ariel, Aurora, Snow White
The following are character meals that require 2 Table Service Credits when using the Disney Dining Plan:
Mickey’s Backyard Bar-B-Que at Fort Wilderness Resort
“Dinner Show” (dinner Only )
Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale
Cinderella’s Royal Table in Castle at Magic Kingdom
Fairytale Dining (all meals)
Cinderella, Jasmine, Ariel, Aurora, Snow White and sometimes Belle (cast of princesses will consistently vary)
Disney parks aren’t the only place to find a great breakfast when you’re on vacation. In fact, some of the best character meal options are located in Walt Disney World resort hotels! If you’re looking for a character breakfast give one of these restaurants a try.
Cape May Cafe Located at Disney’s Beach Club resort, Cape May cafe features Minnie Mouse, Goofy and Donald Duck in their beach wear outfits. There are plenty of hot and cold breakfast options at this buffet including chorizo scrambled eggs and a yogurt bar with toppings. With only 3 characters meeting at this meal we’ve heard a lot about it not being worth the price of admission. Cape May Cafe does often has reservations open past the 180 day booking window though so if you’re looking for something a little bit more last minute give it a shot!
1900 Park Fare Mary Poppins, Alice and the Mad Hatter, Tigger and Winnie the Pooh meet you at this restaurant for breakfast, located inside Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. Character interaction and food are both highly rated at this breakfast. Options include Lobster Eggs Benedict and their famous Strawberry Soup. As a bonus (and this is the case with our next two restaurants as well) you can hop on the monorail after breakfast for a short ride to the Magic Kingdom!
‘Ohana If you’ve read the blog or listened to our podcasts before you might remember that ‘Ohana is one of our very favorite character meals hands down, not just at a resort but in all of Disney World! ‘Ohana has a great breakfast of fresh fruit (with a delicious dipping sauce), scrambled eggs, potatoes, sausage, bacon and of course Mickey waffles all served family style (on large platters at your table). During breakfast you’ll meet Lilo and Stitch, Mickey and Pluto. ‘Ohana is a not-to-miss meal for us at Dole Whipped so make sure to check it out.
Chef Mickey’s Far and away the most popular character meal featuring the “Fab 5” (Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy and Donald) at Disney, the jury is still out on if this meal is worth it. Personally I find it a little loud and chaotic but it is a great way to meet all those very important characters if you don’t want to wait in line in several different locations to do so. Breakfast at Chef Mickey’s is a buffet consisting of typical hot and cold offerings.
Which is your favorite resort character breakfast?
This was one of the few character meals on Disney property that I’ve not yet had the chance to do, so I was very excited to snag a last minute reservation for breakfast the night before. I enjoyed this meal with just my 2-year-old daughter in tow, and we both absolutely loved this experience. The food was very good, and the character experience was invaluable. Characters that typically appear include Alice in Wonderland, The Mad Hatter, and Mary Poppins. We were delighted to find Tigger & Winnie the Pooh in attendance on the morning we dined as well.
Breakfast selections for the older set were extensive and included a made-to-order omelet station, hand-carved meats (hickory smoked ham on this day), croissants, bagels and delicious spreads (salmon & dill, Boursin, and plain cream cheese), highly acclaimed strawberry soup (YUM!), fresh fruit, biscuits with gravy, sausage, and bacon. Mickey waffles were there for the kiddos as well as after-breakfast treats.
Immediately upon being seated, a waitress came by offering pineapple/orange/guava juice, which I was thrilled to recognize as “POG” juice from ‘Ohana. If you’ve never had this treat, be sure to put it on your must try list for your next trip! We were quickly greeted by Tigger and Pooh in quick succession. Tigger clowned around with my daughter for a few pictures and kissed her little head…very sweet. Pooh was slightly less interactive, but we still managed a couple of good shots.
After we got our food, Mary Poppins came by and spent a good bit of time gushing over my daughter. They were both wearing red & white and MP commented on my daughter’s great taste more than once. Alice was next, followed by the ever funny Mad Hatter. He took lots of time being silly and taking pictures with us.
All in all, this stands out as a new favorite character dining experience for us. We will definitely return to 1900 Park Fare on our next trip to Disney!
Dole Whipped 