If you’re looking for that special experience at the Walt Disney World resort then this episode is for you! We give you ideas of some special things you can do that are great for Disney veterans or folks just looking to do something that’s a bit more special than a standard park visit.
Happy listening!
Sometimes when planning dining reservations for a Walt Disney World vacation people focus on restaurants in the parks. Fortunately, there are many, many choices outside of the parks and if you plan correctly going to a dining reservation outside of the parks doesn’t have to take a lot of time out of your day. Of if you aren’t planning to visit a park you can still have plenty of fun and even meet some Disney friends!
Magic Kingdom Resort Area:
Grand Floridian Resort has two very unique character meal options both at the same restaurant, 1900 Park Fare. For breakfast you can meet Mary Poppins, Alice, the Mad Hatter, Tigger and Winnie the Pooh. For dinner you can meet up with Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine and her daughters Anastasia and Drizella.
Also at the Grand Floridian there is Victoria & Albert’s a very upscale restaurant, having an AAA Five Diamond rating since 2000. There is also the highly coveted Chef’s Table at Victoria & Albert’s which features 13 courses and the chef personally conversing between courses. This is definitely a bucket list item!
Photo via Disney.com
Citricos Dining with an Imagineer is a very unique option outside of the park. Who wouldn’t love to pick the brain of a Disney Imagineer? This is your chance to ask questions and learn about the behind the scenes of Walt Disney World.
Within the Wilderness Lodge you will find the Whispering Canyon Café, a buffet with some shenanigans. If you love great food, a neat atmosphere and sassy and fun cast members you will want to make the trip to Wilderness Lodge for this family style bottomless platters! Just be careful when you ask for ketchup or straws!
In the Polynesian Village Resort there is a unique character meal featuring Lilo and Stitch as well at Mickey and Pluto in Hawaiian gear. Lilo is not featured anywhere else so if you have a person who loves Lilo and Stitch this is THE place to go!
Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue is located at the Campsites at Fort Wilderness and boasts an amazing dinner show with great food, fun, vaudeville comedy, singing and dancing. And of course Strawberry Shortcake! There are multiple shows each day in different price categories based on your seat. You can read Tara’s review here.
Epcot Resort Area:
Another great character meal option is at the Beach Club, Cape May Café! This is a character meal for breakfast only and features Minnie and friends in their beach attire! So if you are in Epcot or Hollywood Studios or staying at an Epcot are resort this is a fantastic option that isn’t as well-known as other character meals. You can read a review right here!
Photo via Disney.com
Beaches and Cream in the Beach Club boasts more than just ice cream. This old-fashioned soda fountain has a full menu of burgers, salads, sandwiches, and soup. But most people are coming for The Kitchen Sink. This creation has scoops of 5 different types of ice creams, every topping imaginable plus a whole can of whipped cream. You will need the whole family to finish this monster! But beware when you order it you will cause some heads to turn since the whole restaurant will light up as this treat makes its way to your table.
Todd English’s bluezoo located in the Dolphin Hotel is a sleeper choice. It is a pricey dinner, so maybe for a special occasion this is a great choice. It has won numerous awards and does awesome seafood as well as plenty of beef, chicken and pork dishes to keep everyone happy. They even feature a pretty great kid’s menu if you are bringing the whole family. The restaurant itself is beautiful and you will want to get dressed up for this dinner.
Photo via Disney.com
Check back soon for more dining suggestions on the Animal Kingdom Resort area and Disney Springs!
Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater was another new restaurant for me on my last vacation. I chose it for its ambience, which may have ended being downside for my family. This restaurant is themed like a drive in theater where the table and chairs are cars facing a large drive in movie screen. This plays campy movie clips from the 50’s and 60’s.
A couple of the downsides were that is rather dark in the restaurant so if you are one who prefers a bright place this isn’t going to be a great choice. Also if you have an odd number of people and are not at the picnic tables one person will be sitting alone. And lastly as for this location is if you have a kid who is a bit of a chicken this might be hard. My daughter was a little scared by some of the clips, so keep that in mind for those kids who are the nervous sort.
My choice for dinner was the Salmon BLT Sandwich, it was very tasty, and very filling. It was not something I might have ordered regularly, but I am glad I tried it because I would order it again.
My daughter had the chicken nuggets with fries. I tried them and they were good, better than your average but still chicken nuggets.
My husband had the build your own burger which I have to assume was good as he finished it!
My mother-in-law had the vegetarian shepherd’s pie, which I neglected to take a picture of or try, but she assured me it was tasty!
Bottom line; I would probably go back again but not any time soon. There are few choices to dine at Hollywood Studios so while it is on the short list I would check out 50’s Prime Time first.
Dole Whipped 