There are over a dozen Disney World character meals if you add up every option from all four theme parks plus Disney World resorts. This makes it difficult to find the right mix of characters, food, and location for your perfect Disney World character meal. To help you choose the right Disney World character dining experience we’re providing an overview of every Disney World character meal.
Disney World Character Dining At Theme Parks:
Disney World Character Dining At Resorts:
- Beach Club
- Boardwalk
- Contemporary
- Grand Floridian
- Four Seasons Resort Orlando
- Polynesian
- Disney’s Riviera Resort
- Wilderness Lodge
Animal Kingdom Character Dining
Tusker House
Hidden behind Dawa Bar in the Africa area of Disney’s Animal Kingdom is Tusker House. Tusker House hosts fan favorite characters Donald, Daisy, Goofy, and Mickey in a large marketplace themed restaurant.
The breakfast buffet features many traditional breakfast staples like scrambled eggs, bacon, breakfast potatoes and a twist with Simba and Nala waffles instead of the usual Mickey waffles. Lunch and dinner at Tusker House has lots of ethnic inspired foods like curries and samosas plus items like spit roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn dogs for less adventurous eaters.
The characters do a great job of moving through the many Tusker House dining rooms and interacting with guests. Although the tables are closer than I like at a character meal, each of the characters were fun and quite silly with us.
We loved the styling and detail of the safari themed outfits for Donald, Daisy, Goofy, and Mickey plus the large variety of foods at Tusker House. Tusker House is an underrated character meal with several popular classic characters, and we enjoyed our experience.
Find a full review of the Tusker House character meal here.
Epcot Character Dining
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall (reopens November 4, 2022)
Do you have a princess fan in your group? Then Akershus should be on your character meal bucket list.
Belle welcomes you when entering Akershus where she signs autographs and takes pictures with your group before you are seated. There is a PhotoPass photographer with Belle, so this is a great opportunity to get your whole family in the picture.
A three course family style meal is now served at Akershus with a variety of traditional Norwegian options.
Although not yet confirmed, the Disney World website indicate several princesses visit your table throughout an Akershus meal. Previously we saw Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Rapunzel, in addition to Belle who welcomed us to dinner, but exact characters can vary.
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall is a great choice for meeting several princesses during a single character meal. The lighting is a bit dim for photos, but the character interactions are really sweet.
Find a full review of Akershus Royal Banquet Hall here.
Garden Grill
Garden Grill hosts Chip ‘N’ Dale’s Harvest Feast meal. This character meal occurs at breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. The Garden Grill restaurant is located in the Land Pavilion at Epcot and overlooks the Living With The Land attraction.
At Chip ‘N’ Dale’s Harvest Feast you generally see Chip, Dale, Mickey Mouse, and Pluto. Please note that characters are always subject to change. We thought that our interaction with each of the characters was very good. In fact, Mickey was the most animated we have ever seen at a character meal.
Garden Grill meals are served family style with large platters of food. For those with food allergies (other than those on the standard Disney World allergy menu) the ability to accommodate a food allergy is limited compared to our experiences at other character meals. The staff was very helpful, and we were able to find some items that were safe for Elizabeth, but it was more challenging than usual.
Garden Grill’s Chip ‘N’ Dale’s Harvest Feast is a fun character meal option for those who are big Chip and Dale fans or those who want a chance to meet Mickey and Pluto, but aren’t able to get a reservation at Chef Mickey’s.
Find a full review of Chip ‘N’ Dale’s Harvest Feast here.
Hollywood Studios Character Dining
Minnie’s Seasonal Dining
Minnie’s Seasonal Dining is a rotating seasonal themed character meal in Hollywood Studios. Each season brings a whole new adorable wardrobe to classic Disney friends. We visited Minnie’s Holiday Dine as part of a Disney World Christmas season trip.
Minnie, Mickey, Daisy, and Donald rotate through the restaurant stopping to visit each table. Goofy meets guests near a special backdrop with a PhotoPass photographer. We thought each of the character interactions were very good.
The two regular buffet lines offer lots of fruit, salads, breads, meats, pastas, and sides for your meal, but overall the food is unremarkable. The kids buffet line has the usual corn dogs, mac and cheese, and steamed vegetables.
Overall we had a great time at Minnie’s Seasonal Dining because the characters were a lot of fun. If you care about meeting characters in fun themed outfits, like Goofy in a Santa suit, and don’t mind mediocre food then I recommend making reservations for Minnie’s Seasonal Dining.
Find a full review of the Hollywood and Vine Minnie’s Seasonal Dining meal here.
Hollywood and Vine Disney Junior Play ‘n’ Dine
Hollywood and Vine is a buffet/family style restaurant that serves American cuisine. When you walk in, you are transported into a cafe from the early 1900s with a Hollywood feel. While you are enjoying your meal, characters will come to your table to meet with the family, sign autographs, and take pictures. Keep in mind that there are no PhotoPass photographers with the characters so have your cameras nearby.
Hollywood and Vine features two different character dining experiences, Disney Junior Play ‘n’ Dine (breakfast) and Minnie’s Seasonal Dining (lunch and dinner). During the Disney Junior Play ‘n’ Dine, there are some short shows with the characters. In the shows, they invite the children to come up and participate in the dancing.
If you have a child who loves Disney Junior on the Disney Channel, this is the character meal to take them to. Since it is a buffet, it’s all you can eat of a wide variety of foods and is great for picky eaters, both young and old. Hollywood and Vine also participates in the Fantasmic! Dinner Package. Have dinner with Minnie and friends and then get VIP seating for Hollywood Studios’ nighttime show Fantasmic!.
Find a full review of the Hollywood and Vine meal here.
Magic Kingdom Character Dining
Cinderella’s Royal Table (Only Cinderella greets guests at meals)
Cinderella’s Royal Table is likely tied with Chef Mickey’s as the most sought after Disney World character dining experience. The combination of eating inside Cinderella’s castle and usually meeting five Disney princesses makes people clamor for this reservation.
When entering the castle there is a small line to meet Cinderella. She has a lovely backdrop for photos and a PhotoPass photographer available to take your picture. After meeting Cinderella, climb a spiral staircase lined with stained glass windows to reach the restaurant. There is also a small elevator for those with mobility concerns.
Your child receives two small gifts when you are seated: a wishing star and either a wand for girls or a sword for boys. These gifts are used during a wishing ceremony.
Lunch and dinner are three-course meals with a choice of appetizer, main course, and dessert. At different times during your meal, there is a royal announcement introducing each visiting princess before she makes her way around the dining room. We have generally seen Cinderella, Ariel, Snow White, Jasmine, and Sleeping Beauty at Cinderella’s Royal Table although exact characters are subject to change.
Cinderella’s Royal Table has always been a favorite meal of ours, because we love the ambiance of the dining room of Cinderella’s castle. We have also had quality princess interactions at this meal, too. The main drawback of Cinderella’s Royal Table is the price. It uses two table service credits for a meal or requires pre-payment in full at the time of booking.
In August 2019, Disney World added another character dining option: the Signature Celebration Package at Cinderella’s Royal Table. The Signature Celebration Package at Cinderella’s Royal Table includes dinner, a special viewing area for fireworks, and a dessert party for one fee.
The Crystal Palace
Visit with Hundred Acre Woods friends during a meal at The Crystal Palace. This popular, large, and buffet only restaurant is often a time commitment, but for Winnie the Pooh fans provides a fun experience.
Disney’s Beach Club Resort Character Dining
Cape May Cafe
Disney’s Beach Club Resort hosts Minnie’s Beach Bash Breakfast each morning. Meet Minnie Mouse, Goofy, and Donald Duck in cute beach attire while you dine during a Cape May Cafe breakfast.
The breakfast buffet is large and offers a lot of choices from breakfast meats, eggs, various toasts and pastries, to the iconic Mickey waffle. The chef at Cape May Cafe did an excellent job accommodating Elizabeth’s food allergy, and she ate a ridiculous amount of breakfast.
We think Cape May Cafe breakfast with Minnie and friends is a great Disney World character breakfast option. If you are staying at the Beach Club, Yacht Club, or Boardwalk Hotel this breakfast is within walking distance and a fun way to start your day.
If you are staying elsewhere it can still be a good choice for your Epcot park day. Cape May Cafe is only a few minutes walk from Epcot’s International Gateway entrance.
Find a full review of the Cape May Cafe breakfast here.
Disney’s Boardwalk Resort Character Meals
Trattoria al Forno (not currently available)
The Bon Voyage character breakfast at Disney’s Boardwalk Resort is one of the newest character dining experiences offered at Walt Disney World, and they recently extended the hours to 12pm to accommodate even more guests. Trattoria al Forno is a beautiful dining location, and this is a great opportunity to meet some of the harder to find characters, particularly Flynn Ryder and Prince Eric.
My favorite thing about the experience is that it isn’t a buffet, so there’s no chance you’ll get up to go and get food and end up missing a character stopping by. Instead, your meal begins with a pastry and fruit assortment, and then you order an entree off the menu that is then brought to you. There are your usual pancake and waffle options, as well as something for more adventurous eaters on both the adult and kids menus, and kids under three eat for free.
You are able to request more food at any time (so don’t be worried that you might leave hungry!), and extras can be boxed up and taken away for later. This is a nice and relaxing place to have breakfast and meet some rare characters without the usual chaos that comes with a character dining experience.
Find a full review of the Bon Voyage breakfast here.
Disney’s Contemporary Resort Character Dining
Chef Mickey’s
We love the character meal at Chef Mickey’s restaurant. I mean what could be more iconic than eating a meal with the Fab 5 – Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Donald Duck, and Goofy!
Chef Mickey’s is a buffet restaurant. Breakfast is from 7am until 11:15am, then brunch from 11:30-2:30 and finally a dinner buffet from 5pm until 9:30pm. We have dined for brunch and breakfast at Chef Mickey’s. The brunch is served everyday, and is a hybrid of breakfast and lunch offerings.
Once seated, you can help yourself to the extensive buffet, which includes the famous Mickey waffles (breakfast/brunch), macaroni and cheese and chicken nuggets for the little ones (brunch/dinner) and more grown up fare like salads, a carving station and peel and eat shrimp (brunch/dinner).
A Chef Mickey’s meal ends with a trip to the dessert station. Donuts and pastries for breakfast and brunch, and cakes and make your own sundaes for dinner! I also like that at each meal there is fresh fruit available. You can check out more of the menus here.
As you dine, the characters make their way around to each table. By the end of the meal, you will have had a chance to meet all five characters and take pictures! Periodically, the characters will come out to the dining room and do a little dance, getting the crowd up and dancing!
With Chef Mickey’s being so easy to access, it makes a great meal to start or end your day, or one worth popping over to in the middle of the day. Prices range from $33 for a children’s breakfast/brunch to $60 for an adult dinner.
Find a full review of Chef Mickey’s here.
Grand Floridian Character Dining
1900 Park Fare (not currently available)
Grand Floridian’s 1900 Park Fare is a rare restaurant that has different character meals depending on the time of day. There is a character breakfast, character dinner, plus a mid-day character tea party at 1900 Park Fare.
Supercalifragilistic Breakfast
The Supercalifragilistic Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare is a character dining experience that my whole family-even the teenagers-loves! We have dined here twice, and the character interaction is fantastic! It makes a great “non park day” breakfast, or even a fun meal to enjoy on your last day at Walt Disney World.
This experience is located at 1900 Park Fare, on the main level of Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. The menu is full of breakfast favorites-like Mickey Waffles, fruit, and cereals. They also have an omelette station, as well as other favorites like bagels, bacon, sausage, oatmeal, etc. And don’t forget the famous Strawberry Soup.
At the Supercalifragilistic Breakfast, you encounter Mary Poppins and some of her dearest friends. Tigger, Winnie the Pooh, the Mad Hatter, and Alice in Wonderland are the characters we have frequently seen at breakfast.
Find a full review of the Supercalifragilistic Breakfast here.
Cinderella’s Happily Ever After Dinner
We love meeting all kinds of Disney characters, but my favorite ones are villains. Cinderella’s Happily Ever After Dinner gives you the rare opportunity to dine with a villainous group of ladies in addition to Cinderella and Prince Charming.
During this character dinner you generally see Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine (Cinderella’s stepmother), Anastasia and Drizella (the ugly stepsisters), but characters are subject to change. Each character comes to your table individually which makes for some fun interactions. Prince Charming even twirled Elizabeth in a little dance before signing her autograph book.
The meal at Cinderella’s Happily Ever After Dinner is an extensive buffet. There were dozens of choices from fresh carved meats, seafood, salads, pasta, traditional kid fare, and several dessert options. The chef came to our table to discuss Elizabeth’s food allergy. The chef informed us which options would be safe and then walked us through the dessert line to answer any questions we had about ingredients.
I loved Cinderella’s Happily Ever After Dinner. The villains make it fun to be bad and you still get to meet sweet Cinderella and Prince Charming during this Disney World character meal. I think this is a good option for those looking for a chance to meet Cinderella if you can’t get reservations at Cinderella’s Royal Table or Akershus or if you love a good villain experience like I do.
Find a full review of Cinderella’s Happily Ever After Dinner here.
Honorable Mention: Grand Floridian Character Tea Parties
There are two character tea parties available at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort – The Wonderland Tea Party at 1900 Park Fare and Disney’s Perfectly Princess Tea at Garden View Tea Room. The Perfectly Princess Tea party features special gifts and experiences for your princess with Sleeping Beauty as the featured princess. The Wonderland Tea Party welcomes you to have tea with characters from Alice in Wonderland.
Disney’s Polynesian Resort Character Dining
‘Ohana
‘Ohana is a character breakfast located at the Polynesian Resort at Walt Disney World. When you arrive, you are greeted with an Aloha and ‘Ohana. The ‘Ohana character breakfast is inspired by the Disney animated movie Lilo and Stitch. During the movie they always go back to ‘Ohana because ‘Ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind or forgotten. This family message is one of the things I love about the ‘Ohana breakfast.
One of the great things about this breakfast is that it is served family style and is unlimited. This means they bring everything to your table and as you need more they will refill. The breakfast included eggs, sausage, fruit, Mickey and Stitch waffles, fried potatoes, pastries, and Stitch juice. The juice is unique to ‘Ohana and was a favorite by all of us!
During the meal Lilo, Stitch, Mickey, and Pluto visit your table for autographs and photos. Be prepared for mischief when Stitch comes to your table. He is playful and silly, the kids and all the adults with us had a fun time with him. They also have a character parade your family can participate in that goes around the dining area.
Find a full review of the ‘Ohana breakfast here.
Disney’s Riviera Resort Character Dining
Breakfast à la Art with Mickey & Friends
Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and Daisy Duck dressed in special art inspired clothes mingle with guests at Topolino’s Terrace. Unlike most character breakfasts, Breakfast à la Art with Mickey & Friends is not a breakfast buffet. Shared pastries are brought to the table until your tasty plated breakfast arrives.
Find out more about Breakfast à la Art with Mickey & Friends here.
Disney’s Wilderness Lodge Character Dining
Storybook Dining at Artist Point with Snow White
Be whisked away to the Enchanted Forest when you enter Artist Point at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. A fun assortment of characters and an excellent meal await you in this special forest.
Storybook Dining at Artist Point is a 3 course character meal. There are three shared appetizers, an individual main course, and then four shared dessert options. The appetizers and entrees are the best character meal food we have ever eaten. Dessert was fine, but a little disappointing after the amazing cocktails, appetizers, and entrees.
You usually meet four characters at Storybook Dining at Artist Point With Snow White. Dopey, Grumpy, and Snow White come to each table during the meal. The Queen has a separate meeting spot in the center of the restaurant. After dessert, but before leaving the restaurant, you can queue up to meet The Queen and take pictures.
Disney World Character Dining Bucket List
We have gone to many Disney World character meals over the years, but there are still a few on my bucket list. I will include them here to complete the list. This way you can fully evaluate all the available character meal options, even though I cannot speak from personal experience yet.
Four Seasons Resort Character Dining
Good Morning Breakfast with Goofy and His Pals
Many people don’t know that there is a Four Seasons Resort in the Golden Oaks area of Disney World. Golden Oaks is a high-end subdivision with gorgeous homes. The Four Seasons Resort even has rooms with a view of the Magic Kingdom fireworks.
The resort hosts a breakfast on some mornings featuring Goofy and friends. Sometimes you can even see Mickey and Minnie Mouse at this breakfast, although this information is not publicized.
Find out more more about Good Morning Breakfast with Goofy and His Pals.
Final Thoughts On Disney World Character Dining Options
We love Disney World character meals. There is a great diversity of Disney World character dining options with a variety of characters and meals designed to suit almost everyone. For even more Disney character meal fun here are a couple of autograph book alternatives, a DIY Disney autograph ornament and an autograph pillowcase. Both of these Disney autograph options have become treasured souvenirs.
I hope that this comprehensive review of Disney World character meals helps you to find the best character dining for your family vacation. Remember to make advanced dining reservations 60 days before your Disney World vacation for the best chance of scoring these popular dining reservations.
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