Best Character LUNCH??

[npealer]

I would love to get opinions on Character Lunches. I know that Goofy's kitchen and Ariel's Grotto are the only 2 character dining areas that offer lunch. I would love to know if the food is the same? Is it decent? I know that Ariel's is more Princess and Goofy's are the traditional characters. Any insight would be great!

 

[Mom2micayla]

Goofy's Kitchen is a buffet. I've never been there so I can't say how I feel about it. I've looked at the menu and it really didn't appeal to me so we skipped it. You can find a menu here..

http://www.dlresortinfo.com/disneylandhotelrestaurants/goofys/goofybreakfast.html

Ariel's Grotto is a sit down meal. We've eaten there twice. We really liked it. We chose it for several reasons.. first my girls are big into Princesses and they are so hard to find in the park. Second I liked the menu and the fact that it was sit down. It always feels nice being waited on after doing counter service for a few days. The food there was excellent (I get the pot pie.. it's HUGE!). You get 3 courses and the prices are pretty reasonable. Here's a menu for Ariel's..

http://www.dlresortinfo.com/DCAMenus/ariels/arieldinneradult.html

 

[npealer]

Did you eat off their lunch menu or breakfast?

 

[lilpixie]

We loved Ariel's Grotto! We just went there last month and had a blast. We made a reservation well in advance for lunch there. It was $20.99 for adults and $15 for kids. You get a beverage, starter, entree and dessert (both adults and kids get to choose from a selection for each course). When we first got there, the hostess handed the girls paper type crowns and an Ariel's Grotto button. We made sure we had the autograph books open and pens ready to go for the princess's autographs. We saw Mulan, Fairy Godmother, Snow White, Belle, and Ariel. They chatted with the girls, signed autographs, and took pictures. They were all darling. The kids meals come in sand buckets with shovels, which was fun. At the end of the meal, the kids get a big plate of cotton candy to share (compliments of Ariel). We got to see Sleeping Beauty at the princess storytime, we saw Jasmine at Aladdin's Oasis, and we saw Cinderella outside the castle -- so we were able to see them all. The character lunch is a great way to see lots of princesses with no lines.
Have fun

 

[Rapunsel]

We went to Ariels grotto to celebrate 3 birthdats and It was awesome. The price is right and they are quite efficient on their 11 am lunch time seating..

Watch the bill though. I was charged for my 1 year olds lunch when it was supposed to be free. They did fix it, but I could have missed the charge if I din't look correctly..


Rapunsel

 

[CalGal]

I've been to Goofy's Kitchen many times and Ariel's once. I much prefer Goofy's, but obviously, not everyone shares my opinion. I prefer the food and charater variety at Goofy's. It's become a tradition for us to go to Goofy's every trip because we've had many magical times there over the years. My DS is now 15, and still loves it.

Goofy's benefits (IMO):
Goofy's has enough food choices to meet most tastes. Currently, the brunch menu is heavy on breakfast items, but has many luncheon items as well. I find the food at Goofy's Kitchen good for a buffet -- not fabulous, but good. On the other had, we found the food at Ariel's bland, and the choices limited. My DS had the meatloaf; he usually loves meatloaf but thought Ariel's was boring. I had pasta, and also found it boring. I chose pasta because I try to eat fairly healthy foods and watch my fat and calories intake, and it appeared to be the least fattening choice. Other menu choices may be more tasty, but didn't fit my diet needs.
Goofy's always has a fun variety of characters. Naturally, Goofy is always there, and always fun. The characters change fairly frequently, but there is generally one princess, and perhaps one other face character among the characters. I've had some really great character interactions over the years at Goofy's

Ariel's benefits:
Ariel's is cheaper.
Ariel's is usually less of a wait. Goofy's is just too popular, and so the wait at lunchtime is still usually 15 minutes to 1/2 hour with a PS, perhaps longer. Ariel's can sometimes be done without a PS.
Some people like the food better (I'm just not one of them). The deserts are good.
The atmosphere sitting outside is a little better.

In summary, if you like being waited on, your kids like princesses, and you don't mind the limited menu, go for Ariel's. But if you want more variety, you can't go wrong at Goofy's.

 

[cfrith]

We loved Ariel's Grotto! We just went there last month and had a blast. We made a reservation well in advance for lunch there. It was $20.99 for adults and $15 for kids. You get a beverage, starter, entree and dessert (both adults and kids get to choose from a selection for each course). When we first got there, the hostess handed the girls paper type crowns and an Ariel's Grotto button. We made sure we had the autograph books open and pens ready to go for the princess's autographs. We saw Mulan, Fairy Godmother, Snow White, Belle, and Ariel. They chatted with the girls, signed autographs, and took pictures. They were all darling. The kids meals come in sand buckets with shovels, which was fun. At the end of the meal, the kids get a big plate of cotton candy to share (compliments of Ariel). We got to see Sleeping Beauty at the princess storytime, we saw Jasmine at Aladdin's Oasis, and we saw Cinderella outside the castle -- so we were able to see them all. The character lunch is a great way to see lots of princesses with no lines.
Have fun

Does anyone know if it is usually the same princesses at Ariels? We're doing the princess storytime before we go to Ariel's Grotto and would like to know which princesses to make sure and get autographs from at the storytime if they're not going to be at Ariel's. Thank you!!!

 

[lilpixie]

I'm pretty sure Ariel's rotates the princesses. Maybe you could call the personall assistance number (714) 781-7290 and ask for the phone number to call Ariel's Grotto (or maybe Diney Dining would have it 714 781-3463) and ask which princesses will be at Ariel's at the particular day and time you will be there. That way you can plan for which princesses you want to meet at storytime/ouside the castle, etc.
I was so glad we made reservations in advance. When we were there EVERYONE without a reservation was being sent away (some not too happy) because they were fully booked 3 days out.
If you buy your girls a little trinket like a princess necklace, crown, any type of jewelry -- and they wear it to the lunch -- the princesses will comment on it usually. It made my girls feel so special!
I have some pictures I can post -- if I can figure out how to do it!

 

[brenda1966]

I haven't done the Goofy meal but did do the Princess one and enjoyed it. I had the salmon BLT and it was very good. We got to see 4 princesses: Ariel, Snow White, Jasmine, and Belle. My daughter wore her Snow White dress and that was a big hit.

I'm wondering when is the best day to go? My choices next time are Sunday July 23 or Monday July 24. I'm wondering if you're more likely to see an extra princess on a weekend? I'd like to schedule the lunch for the day when the parks will be the craziest -- then we'd have something to do beside stand in long lines. ANy opinions? We'll book an early lunch, like 11:30.

 

[lilpixie]

[I'm wondering when is the best day to go? My choices next time are Sunday July 23 or Monday July 24. I'm wondering if you're more likely to see an extra princess on a weekend? I'd like to schedule the lunch for the day when the parks will be the craziest -- then we'd have something to do beside stand in long lines. ANy opinions? We'll book an early lunch, like 11:30.[/QUOTE]


We booked a lunch on a Saturday -- it ended up being great because the park was absolutely PACKED (there were tons of conventions going on). II think Sundays usually aren't as crowded as Saturdays. It was something fun to do when the lines for the rides were over an hour long. I'm not sure if you see extra princesses on a weekend -- you could call and check. I'm sure they have a schedule of the princesses.
Have fun