Ok, so as an adult I know I should be slightly ashamed to admit the following statement (but I’m not, so here it goes): I LOVE CHARACTER MEALS – they are honestly my favorite part of my Walt Disney World trips. For those of you who don’t know, a character meal is pretty self-explanatory – you enjoy a meal while characters from your favorite Disney movies and shows circulate for meet and greets! Not sold on the idea? Well – here’s 5 reasons why character meals are the best – in case you need more convincing:
1. SO MANY to choose from: Disney World offers a BIG variety of character meals to choose from, and they are always looking at what characters are popular and adding/changing the lineup to best suit their guests! You can dine with the “fab five” – Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto at Chef Mickey’s (where they all wear chef’s hats and aprons!), or treat your little Princess to a royal meal at Cinderella’s Royal Table where you dine in the Castle with Snow White, Belle, Ariel, and Cinderella too! Other character choices include Lilo and Stitch, Winnie The Pooh and friends, Chip and Dale (dresses as farmers!) and many more!
2. The Characters Come To YOU: How many times have you waited in line in the hot sun to get a picture with you or your kid’s favorite character? Those lines can be brutal – specifically I am thinking of the 4+ hour wait to see Elsa and Anna right now at WDW – and can eat up entire days if you’re not careful. Character meals are the perfect solution to this – you get to multitask in a major way – you enjoy a meal while multiple characters come right to your table, no waiting in line required
3. Drool-Worthy Food: The characters may be the main attraction at these meals, but we can’t forget about the FOOD – you can get some seriously delicious eats at character meals. Many are served buffet style – where you can sample from a large variety of dishes and enjoy as much as you want, while others are served “family style” – which means platters of food are brought directly to your table and you can have as many refills as you want of all the dishes from the pre-determined menu (family style is especially nice for parents of younger kids – since they bring the food right to you, you might actually be able to enjoy the meal and not have to be running back and forth to the buffet 20 times!). Other locations offer a more traditional sit down meal with a menu full of yummy options. Some of my family’s personal favorites include the prime rib from the dinner at Cinderella’s Royal Table, Pooh’s Breakfast Lasagna from the Crystal Palace, and the dessert selection at Chef Mickey’s (especially the self-serve ice cream bar!)
4. Large Locations: Many of the character meals are served in large restaurants with many tables, which allows them to seat more people at once, and also makes it easier for you to get an ADR for these meals too! Some of them are extremely popular, so I definitely recommend being willing to eat at an “off” time if possible –a 10am breakfast or a 2pm lunch would mean lighter crowds and possibly more time with your favorite characters
5. Perfect For Those Of All Ages: Kids and adults all love characters – getting hugs, photos, and autographs is just as much of a thrill for me now as it was when I was 5 – and it really makes you feel young at heart! It’s a great activity for the whole family, and a great opportunity to get some awesome family photos. Even a 1 year olds face lights up when Mickey comes by to give them a hug, and parents and grandparents love posing for photos just as much as the kids – so don’t let age deter you from enjoying the awesome experiences that character meals can offer
I’m sure some of you are like me and plan your entire trip around which character meals you will be attending, but for those who aren’t sure what to expect or if a character meal would work for you and your family, I hope these reasons help you decide to go for it – you can’t go wrong with Disney character meals!
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Although this article is about WDW, we enjoyed our first trip to DL summer of 2013. I scheduled a character meal for our first evening in CA at Goofy’s Kitchen. What an amazing time and so much fun for us and the girls. In that two hour span, we met 6 characters – Goofy, Minnie, Pluto, Jasmine, Chip, and the Mad Hatter. The only one of those characters we saw again in DL was Minnie. Character meals are so worth it!