United States Florida Where to Dine at Disney World and Meet Characters By Arthur Levine Arthur Levine Facebook Twitter Arthur is a travel writer with more than 25 years of experience. He has been covering theme parks, amusement parks, water parks, and attractions for TripSavvy since 2002. TripSavvy's editorial guidelines Updated on 09/15/20 TripSavvy / Arthur Levine Pandemic Update One of the casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic at Walt Disney World is character dining. At the time of this writing, none of the character meal experiences listed below is available. You can check Disney World’s official site for the most updated info. In lieu of the pre-COVID experiences, the resort is offering modified character dining experiences, at which the characters are present and march through the restaurant, but do not personally interact at close range with guests. These modified character meals are offered at three locations: the Garden Grill Restaurant at Epcot, Hollywood & Vine at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Topolino’s Terrace – Flavors of the Riviera at Disney’s Riviera Resort. Reservations are highly recommended for these dining experiences. Okay, on to the pre- (and hopefully, post-) pandemic character dining opportunities. Dining with Mickey and the Gang Sure, folks get excited about riding Space Mountain, seeing fireworks, catching a parade or two, and experiencing many of the other high points of a Disney World visit. But there may be no higher point, particularly for children, than meeting Mickey Mouse and his pals. And there may be no better way to get some face time with the gang than at a character meal. So, how do you plan Disney World character dining for your gang? First, you need to know which restaurants offer the option. They can be found at all of the theme parks and a few select hotels. Let's rundown which eateries feature characters and at what meals. Once you determine which restaurant(s) you want to visit, you'll need to make reservations. I can't emphasize this enough. Reservations are recommended for all Disney World restaurants that accept them, but the character meals are especially popular, and availability can be difficult. We have a page that offers info about making advance Disney World dining reservations. What About the Food? None of the eateries with characters made the list of Disney World's best restaurants. That doesn't mean that they aren't good, just that they aren't among the finest of the resort's many places to dine. Really, the food is somewhat beside the point; it's more of an excuse to take a photo with Donald Duck, get a hug from Minnie Mouse, or goof around with Goofy. With the exception of Cinderella's Royal Table, all of the meals are either buffets or served family style (or a combination of both). That's probably by design since things can get complicated when waitstaff taking individual orders and delivering food interrupt the flow of visits from the characters (or vice-versa). Buffets are great for fidgety kids who can hardly wait to meet Mickey, let alone wait for their meals. Also, guests can time their visits to the buffet stations so that they don't miss the main event. There are plenty of culinary options geared to kids at the participating restaurants. For the most part, the food is fairly generic. A few of the more interesting standouts include lunch at Tusker House, which offers some exotic African-inspired dishes, dinner at Garden Grove, which features barbecue and Mediterranean fare on select evenings, and lunch or dinner at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall, which offers some Norwegian cuisine. Tips and Things to Know It probably goes without saying, but for crying out loud, don't forget to bring your camera to capture some keepsake moments. If your kids (or you?) are into it, make sure they bring their autograph books as well. Let the characters come to you. They do a great job of making sure they spend some quality time with every table of guests, but they aren't too keen about unsupervised kids who run after them as they make their rounds. Be patient. They will visit you and your kids. Some of the meals include group activities, such as dancing conga-line style around the dining room with the characters. This can make for a noisy dining experience. Not all restaurants offer characters at every meal. Also, some of the seatings are available certain days of the week and/or times of the year. Make sure to check Disney World's official dining info for the most up-to-date schedules. Consider booking an early or late meal. Since they tend to be less crowded, you could get more attention from the characters. Sometimes, Disney has a limited-time offer that includes free meals with park tickets and hotel packages. The restaurants offered typically include those that offer characters. 01 of 04 Disney World Restaurants that Offer Character Dining for Breakfast Disney. Used with permission. 1900 Park Fare: Supercalifragilistic Breakfast buffetLocation: Disney's Grand Floridian ResortCharacters might include: Mary Poppins, Alice in Wonderland, Winnie the Pooh, and others. Akershus Royal Banquet Hall: Dine with Disney Princesses buffetLocation: EpcotCharacters might include: Cinderella, Belle, Snow White, and others. Cape May Cafe: Beach Club Breakfast BuffetLocation: Disney's Beach Club ResortCharacters might include: Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Donald Duck, and others. Chef Mickey's: Breakfast buffet (Note that a more lavish brunch is sometimes offered instead of breakfast.)Location: Disney's Contemporary ResortCharacters might include: Mickey Mouse, Pluto, Donald Duck, and others. Cinderella's Royal Table: Breakfast mealLocation: Inside the castle at the Magic KingdomCharacters might include: Cinderella, Princess Aurora, Snow White, and others. The Crystal Palace: Breakfast buffetLocation: Magic KingdomCharacters might include: Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, and others. The Garden Grill: Chip 'n' Dale's Harvest FeastLocation: The Land pavilion in EpcotCharacters might include: Chip, Dale, and others Garden Grove: Breakfast buffet (Note that it is generally only offered on Saturdays and Sundays.)Location: Walt Disney World Swan HotelCharacters might include: Varies Hollywood & Vine: Breakfast buffetLocation: Disney's Hollywood StudiosCharacters might include: Disney Junior stars such as Handy Manny 'Ohana: Breakfast served family-styleLocation: Disney's Polynesian ResortCharacters might include: Lilo, Stitch, and others. Ravello: Breakfast buffetLocation: Four Seasons HotelCharacters might include: Goofy and his buddies Trattoria al Forno: Bon Voyage Adventure BreakfastLocation: Disney's BoardWalkCharacters might include: Ariel, Rapunzel Tusker House Restaurant: Donald's Dining Safari breakfast buffetLocation: Disney's Animal KingdomCharacters might include: Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, and others. Continue to 2 of 4 below. 02 of 04 Disney World Restaurants that Offer Character Dining for Lunch Disney. Used with permission. Akershus Royal Banquet Hall: Dine with Disney Princesses lunch buffet with some selections served family-styleLocation: EpcotCharacters might include: Cinderella, Belle, Ariel, and others.Chef Mickey's: Lunch buffetLocation: Disney's Contemporary ResortCharacters might include: Mickey Mouse, Pluto, Minnie Mouse, and others.Cinderella's Royal Table: Lunch mealLocation: Inside the castle at the Magic KingdomCharacters might include: Cinderella, Jasmine, Snow White, and others.The Crystal Palace: Lunch buffetLocation: Magic KingdomCharacters might include: Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, and others.The Garden Grill: Chip 'n' Dale's Harvest FeastLocation: The Land pavilion in EpcotCharacters might include: Chip, Dale, and othersHollywood & Vine: Lunch buffetLocation: Disney's Hollywood StudiosCharacters might include: Disney Junior stars from shows such as Sofia the FirstTusker House Restaurant: Donald's Dining Safari lunch buffetLocation: Disney's Animal KingdomCharacters might include: Donald Duck, Goofy, and others. Continue to 3 of 4 below. 03 of 04 Disney World Restaurants that Offer Character Dining for Dinner Disney. Used with permission. Have dinner with Disney characters at the following restaurants. You should make reservations for these highly popular character dinners. Find info about making advance Disney World dining reservations. Keep in mind that some of the dinner meals may be offered certain times of the year and/or days of the week. Go to Disney World's official dining info for the most current schedules. 1900 Park Fare: Cinderella’s Happily Ever After Dinner buffetLocation: Disney's Grand Floridian ResortCharacters might include: Cinderella, Prince Charming, Anastasia, and others.Akershus Royal Banquet Hall: Dine with Disney Princesses dinner buffet with some selections served family-styleLocation: EpcotCharacters might include: Snow White, Belle, Ariel, and others.Chef Mickey's: Dinner buffetLocation: Disney's Contemporary ResortCharacters might include: Mickey Mouse, Goofy, Minnie Mouse, and others.Cinderella's Royal Table: Dinner mealLocation: Inside the castle at the Magic KingdomCharacters might include: Cinderella, Ariel, Snow White, and others.The Crystal Palace: Dinner buffetLocation: Magic KingdomCharacters might include: Tigger, Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, and others.The Garden Grill: Chip 'n' Dale's Harvest FeastLocation: The Land pavilion in EpcotCharacters might include: Chip, Dale, and othersTusker House Restaurant: Donald's Dining Safari dinner buffetLocation: Disney's Animal KingdomCharacters might include: Donald Duck, Goofy, and others. Continue to 4 of 4 below. 04 of 04 Disney World Restaurants that Offer Character Dining for Special Events Disney. Used with permission. In addition to meals, the Disney characters are incorporated into some special events at the following restaurants. Reservations for these highly popular character events are critical. See my page with info about making advance Disney World dining reservations. Keep in mind that some of the events may be offered at certain times of the year and/or days of the week. Go to Disney World's official dining page for the most up-to-date schedules. 1900 Park Fare: Wonderland Tea PartyLocation: Disney's Grand Floridian ResortCharacters might include: Alice in Wonderland, The Mad Hatter, and others.Campsites: Mickey's Backyard BBQ buffet. Includes a show. Only offered certain times of the year.Location: Disney's Fort Wilderness ResortCharacters might include: Mickey Mouse, Goofy, and others.Garden View Tea Room: Disney's Perfectly Princess Tea. Includes apple juice "tea," sandwiches, fruit, and cake.Location: Disney's Grand Floridian ResortCharacters might include: A Disney princess Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Share Pin Email Tell us why! Submit Share Pin Email