restaurant recommendation?

[DualvansMommy]

a friend of mine is flying to WDW for a week with 4 day park tickets, staying in saratoga springs resort. Its a family of 4 with two boys this Thanksgiving, wants to know good and fun places to place her reservations next month.

hit me up and i'll pass it onto her. Be my Guest is on her list.

[123LuckyMom]

Our favorite character meal was Crystal Palace (because we love the Pooh characters, and the food was decent). We also liked the food at Tusker House, but the character experience wasn't great. Our least favorite character meal by far was at Chef Mickey's. The food was AWFUL, and it was very noisy. We won't go there again.

The kids really loved our dinner at Whispering Pines at the Wilderness Lodge. The food was fine, not rave-about-it great, but good., and the meal was fun!

We weren't able to get a reservation at Be Our Guest. I'm still kicking myself that we didn't go the year it opened when the menu was really, really odd, but the restaurant was still under most people's radar. We literally didn't see anything on the menu we would eat, so we gave it a miss! Now the menu is great, but it's impossible to get in!!!





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[DualvansMommy]

Thanks! I'll pass it onto her, also they are planning on spending a day in AK. Any must have restaurants to eat while in that park? in addition, they'll be spending some time in downtown disney for their non park days, so any recs would be appreciated for that?

[acmom]

We liked our breakfast at Tusker House at AK and also enjoyed several of their quick service options.


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[scrooks]

We also love breakfast at the crystal palace. We enjoyed lunch at the Biergarten in Germany, mostly because our boys loved the polka band. We actually did not like Be Our Guest.

[belovedgandp]

We've just winged a counter service meal at AK. It closes early and we can do what we want to there in a rope drop to 3 or 4 day. We've used that late afternoon/evening for Downtown Disney or a character meal at a resort.

Not a character meal but our family has enjoyed Ohana for dinner. My kids love Chef Mickey; done the early dinner there after AK.

[BunnyBee]

My son's favorites are Crystal Palace and Chef Mickey's for character meals. Biergarten is fun, but you do have to sit with other people if your party is under 8 people. I'm not a huge fan of that. I try to relax at meals (as much as possible with 4 kids!) and making chit chat with strangers is NOT relaxing for my introverted self. Boma is a good option for a buffet if she wants to try some new things. It's at Animal Kingdom Lodge, which is beautiful. Their Christmas decor is really unique. The breakfast at 1900 Park Faire at the Grand Floridian is fun. It's Tigger, Alice, Mad Hatter, and Mary Poppins. Tigger and Mad Hatter usually goof around. The GF's holiday decor is gorgeous, and at Thanksgiving, they'll be wrapping up the huge gingerbread house they build in the lobby.

Earl of Sandwich is our favorite quick restaurant at DTD. If she is on the dining plan, definitely Wolfgang Puck's counter service option. Huge bang for your buck there, and the food is usually decent.

[jam224]

We are going to WDW in a couple of weeks and it will be our first time doing character dining, so I don't have any feedback on those restaurants, but I found this website really helpful in our planning: http://wdwprepschool.com/guide-to-al...aracter-meals/. If I have any rave reviews from our trip, I'll be sure to report back!

[SASM]

We LOVE:

SIT- DOWN's...
* Biergarten in Germany (!!!) - so much fun...and yummy! We have to ge here every time we go. We LOVE sitting with other families at the table. So far we've met a couple from the Netherlands, a woman from California, a couple from NJ who winters in FL, and a family from Chicago. It has been wonderful to sit and converse with these families...reminds me of a true biergarten in Germany. My kids exchanged contact info with the boy from this past trip and they game together in Minecraft and Clash of Clans. We, personally LOVE this, but it might turn off others. This is my husband's favorite dining destination and he was sooooo upset at the thought of possibly missing our ADR reservation this last trip.
* Akershuz in Norway (!!!) - food is REALLY yummy and not your standard fare
* Garden Grill in Epcot's The Land - as much as you want, more intimate than most character meals, and my kids love going on the boat ride before the meal to see where the food was grown.
* BOMA (!!!!) Soooo yummy and different AND animals outside while you wait.
* The Luau at the Polynesian - my kids love this meal and ask for it every time.
* Raglan Road in Disney Springs - best macaroni and cheese that I've ever tasted off my kid's plate!
* We actually really liked Chefs de France this year. Meal was yummy, somewhat healthy, and they leisurely served it so we didn't feel rushed out the door. Definitely not slow but a leisurely pace.
*California Grill in Contemporary - it's been a few years but we really liked it as a break from MK.


COUNTER SERVICE...
Tangierine Cafe in Morocco
The turkey leg stands (there is one in every park, I believe)
Fish and Chips stand in UK
ABC Commissary (DHS) for the Asian Chicken salad
Bongos in Disney Springs - I had the grilled grouper (calorie conscious healthy option) and it was really yummy. (computer isn't behaving...this is full service)
Earl of Sandwich
Boulangerie in France has great pastries but the sandwiches, etc are not bad.
Market Cafe in The Land - nice selection of healthy fare (it's been a couple of years...may have changed.
Aloha Isle in Adventureland (MK) for Dole Whip Floats!!


We DID NOT like:
* I am kind of mixed on Be Our Guest in MK. Our breakfast took FOREVER to find us so it was beyond cold. It seemed as though it had the potential to be really yummy if it was warm but it was ice cold. I didn't want to send it back as we were hungry, on a time line, and didn't want to wait. It was also expensive for breakfast IMO. The West Wing was really neat though. Also, people stole a table that my kids were reserving for us while we were ordering...NOT COOL! Although we had an ADR for months, it is not a sit-down and you have to find seating. People were hovering, which I did not like.
* The Waves on Contemporary Flavors in Contemporary - Food was ok (not great) but service was SLOW and we had a nut exposure even after speaking with the chef and asking very specific questions. Soooo thankful that I was the one exposed and not my children. I was really bummed bc I was soon looking forward to the organic-ness of this restaurant. Lack luster.
* Ohana for breakfast - the food was fine but it wasn't really worth the character cost...Chef Mickey is definitely a better character breakfast destination.
* Paradiso 37 in Disney Springs - tasted very HFCS and processed.
* Yak and Yeti - although it has been a couple of years, we didn't like this restaurant. Slow service and food wasn't yummy. Appreciated the slow service for the AC though.
* Same goes for Tusker House. Definitely preferred BOMA!
* Wolfgang Puck Express in Disney Springs. It has been a couple of years since we last ate there but we didn't like it. I cannot remember if it was a taste thing or a portion thing...better QS options in DS IMO.

We didn't eat here but my kids REALLY wanted to go to T-Rex in Disney Springs.
The next time we go I think we will probably eat more ADR sit down lunches as opposed to dinners. Dinners are a better deal but I HATE eating at these huge buffets for dinner and not have the time to adequately walk it off.

[Still-in-Shock]

Since she is taking boys, I figured I would throw in places we are looking at. First, Sharyn mentioned T-Rex, and that is supposed to be a great experience for an dino crazy kid. It's not Disney, but Landry's does a pretty good job with theming. And if you can't get a reservation thru Disney, you can go through the restaurant's own website to get one or call directly.
Another meal that I've heard great things about is the Hoop-De-Doo Review at Fort Wilderness.
If either of the boys is interested in Pirates, there is a Pirates Firework Cruise that leaves from the Contemporary Resort. It's not a meal per se, but it does include snacks, so if you had a light meal or hot dog beforehand, you should be set.
And another thing to look into would be Sanaa. It is Afro/Indian food, but there are large floor to ceiling windows where you can watch the animals on the savannah.