Reviews of Chef Mickey’s Dinner
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Menus at Chef Mickey's
Reviewed by bellebookworm9 Review Date: 09/01/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
I dined here with a friend on 8/18. This was the one reservation my friend requested, but when I had to switch the dates of my trip, the only time available was 9pm. Since we were staying at the Grand Floridian, we hopped on the monorail around 8:30, just in case there were breakdowns or resets. Thankfully there were no problems at all and we were checking in to the restaurant by 8:45. There was only one other family ahead of us in line for photos, and ours turned out very cute. They were linked automatically, but somehow we also ended up with the photos of the five families ahead of us!
It was just a few more minutes before we were seated. Jessica was our server, one of the three that I actually remember from this trip, because she was excellent. Goofy came around almost immediately and was happy to pose for photos and sign autographs.
I started out with caesar salad, fruit salad, focaccia bread, and corn bread. All good but nothing special. My friend was brave and tried the halibut, which we think was served on a bed of red quinoa. He said it was very good.
Pluto and Minnie came around next, within 20 minutes of us being seated.
The next plate I had consisted of grilled kielbasa and pierogies, corn dog nuggets, Mickeyroni and cheese, and two types of dinner rolls. The Mickeyroni looked good, but lacked any flavor. I understand that they're trying to make it a healthy kid's option, but it definitely could have used some salt. I also prefer my kielbasa boiled, not grilled, but that's personal preference. Everything else was good.
Donald skipped us somehow, we had some fun waving our napkins, and then Mickey took photos with us, about 40 minutes after arrival.
My last plate was mashed potatoes, roast beef, and another roll. It was all great, though the beef was a bit more fatty than I'm used to.
We were on to desserts before Donald came by. Normally I love sweet treats, but these left a lot to be desired. The mini cheesecake was fine, the mini blue "Frozen" themed cupcake had no taste at all, the key lime tart was too tart for me, the Mickey Mousse dome was okay but the Oreo on the bottom was soggy, and the best of the lot was the Banana Cream Tart. They also offer soft serve ice cream at two dispensers, but they were both running out. One had the entire vanilla handle broken off, so it was only giving out chocolate. The other was just out of the chocolate, so you could only get vanilla. There were caramel and chocolate sauces, as well as candy toppings like gummy bears, Reese's pieces, and M&Ms. The problem was that there's no way to fit the bowl under the dispensers, so our solution was to put the candies on a plate and then pour them onto the ice cream.
Donald didn't make his way back to us until 9:50pm. And then, he took a picture with just my friend and hurried off to the next table. We had to call him back to take a photo with me and sign my book!
As we were waiting for the checks to be processed, about 15 minutes later, Donald came back again and took a selfie with my friend.
A bit of a lengthy meal, and definitely not a gourmet one, but if you come in with reasonable expectations, you'll have fun and won't leave hungry. I was also pleased that they had no problem giving us separate checks, since I was on the DDP and my friend was not.
Pros:
Good food overall, great service, seated earlyCons:
Some characters seemed rushed, ice cream machines not working correctlyReviewed by clyde0523 Review Date: 05/31/2014
Rating: (7) Recommended
we ate here because we were told it was a must do activity for our first Disney trip. the food was decent and the characters were fun, but i'm not sure we'll be going back. it just wasn't as good as some of the other places we ate.
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—Reviewed by mbuckwdw2014 Review Date: 05/15/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
after checking into our resort my family and i hopped onto a bus then the monorail for your first dinner at disney. check in was fast and efficient and after about 5 mins we were called to have our pictures taken with the mickey statue and get our table.
the waitress took our drink order and very quickly mentioned how the food was layed out. the real stand item of the meal was the sliced turkey. it was incredibly moist and had great flavor. also there was this chocolate mousse on a mini oreo type dessert that was out of this world!! everything else (mashed potato, mac and cheese, chicken nuggets, veggies etc) were good but typical quality for a buffet.
now the characters. they were fun. they interacted with all of us, not just the kids, and seemed to take time at each table for pictures and autographs. we saw pluto 3 times at different restaurants and he is by far the best. try calling him goofy!!
all in all in left satisfied and excited for the rest of the trip!
Pros:
food was better then expected, good character interactionCons:
waitress felt rushed, the food layout seemed scatteredReviewed by jeconk Review Date: 03/12/2014
Rating: (5) Not Recommended
Everyone who goes to Disney World should try to eat at Chef Mickely's once for the experience.
The food is standard buffet food although there is a large selection. Dessert selection seemed more limited than before (6 years ago). Characters are great at interacting with you. Service can be hit or miss.
You must have reservations for this restaurant and you may still wait for a table past the reservation time.
If you really don't care about Character Experiences and just want a good meal, then there are MANY other better choices in WDW.
Pros:
It is one of the signature restaurants - Fun AtmosphereCons:
Food is standard fare, not alot of variety - can be noisy. Overpriced if not on Dining PlanReviewed by whitsons Review Date: 01/28/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
Chef Mickey's has been our family's favorite place to eat dinner for over 20 years. Our last visit, however, was a little disappointing. Besides the fact that we paid over $200 for a family of 4 to eat dinner, some of the food we have grown to love has been replaced. We always enjoyed the prime rib. However, the prime rib has been replaced by roast beef. When we asked the server why, he stated Disney did a survey and they wanted to offer more variety, so that got rid of the delicious prime rib and added roast beef, mussels, and sushi. Well, I'm not sure who they surveyed, but this is a FAMILY restaurant, and I'm not so sure who would eat that stuff. Very disappointing since the prime rib was always a favorite. With all this being said, we still love Chef Mickey's, just not a much. One thing is for sure - the parmesan potatoes are out of this world and the best thing on the buffet! Please bring back the PRIME RIB!!!
Pros:
Fun atmosphere; Parmesan potatoes!Cons:
Prime rib replaced with Roast beef and sushi!Reviewed by BacksideOfWater1971 Review Date: 01/26/2014
Rating: (3) Not Recommended
I booked a reservation at Chef mickeys at the Contemporary.
I showed up 15 minutes prior to be reservation and ended up waiting for 30 an hour after the reservation time.
I had done character meals before at Cinderella's Royal Table and Akershus at Epcot. Both of those had a picture with Cinderella or Belle included. The actual Princesses, not statues. here I was ushered to a statue of Chef Mickey for a picture I was charged $35 for on top of the cost of the meal.
When I made the reservation and when I checked in I made one simple request. i love the monorail. I really love the fact that it travels INSIDE the Contemporary so i requested a table with a view of the Monorail. Instead I was put in the corner near the bathrooms.
I'll touch on the food first. It was standard buffet fare. Chicken nuggets, mashed potatoes, spaghetti and meatballs, salad, etc. My server said there was Prime Rib at the carving station. I get there and it is Roast Beef. The fact that they both come from a cow is the only similarity between the two.
The dessert station consisted of the cheap ice cream that melts quickly, a variety of toppings including Recees Pieces, nuts, and chocolate and strawberry syrup. Also there were brownies there were very rich and delicious, tiny cheesecakes which had no taste, and small cupcakes that were barely one bite. I've seen a better selection at my local Golden Coral.
5 characters in total visit you while you eat. Well, 5 characters in theory. Chef Mickey was the first to visit put only stayed long enough for a picture before leaving. Waitress Minnie was the same way. Only stayed long enough for a picture. Chef Goofy was the only good interaction as he took time to motion he liked my trademark fantasia style hat and lanyard full of Princess pins and staying for 2 pictures. Chef Donald passed my up. I had to ask my server to get him to come back for a picture. Chef Pluto merely high fived me on his way past. i asked my server to ask him to come back for a picture. I waited...and waited...and waited but he never returned. I ended up leaving without a picture with Pluto.
Every 20 minutes or so was "dance party" consisting of the characters swinging napkins over there heads. A slap in the face from the tear inducing Wishing Ceremony at CRT or the super cute princess Parade at Akershus.
Also the music in the background were pop versions of classic Disney songs which i did not like. Why mess like classics? But that's just me.
I had better food at home. I had better character interactions at the parks which added to everything in the parks is the better value. I won't be returning to Chef Mickey's. I don't think you should go there either.
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CharactersCons:
Boring Food, denied simple request, didn't get to see all the charactersReviewed by kmdebree Review Date: 01/19/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
We ate here on 1/2/2014 and also on 1/9/2014. The experience was wonderful each time. The first time we were concentrated on getting all of our autographs and pictures and the second time we could relax and actually watch the fireworks from the MK since we were right by the window. Will definiately go back when we return, never a bad experience at Chef Mickey.
Pros:
characters, foodCons:
—Reviewed by bosslady79 Review Date: 01/17/2014
Rating: (5) Recommended
The characters are great, the food was not so good. The food was not hot, sometimes barely warm. Same food offered at cheaper places. Would much rather have breakfast here. My DD 10 wasn't feeling well and had to walk down a flight of stairs to get to the bathroom everytime.
Pros:
Characters, mickey shaped mac n cheese, dessertsCons:
Food restroom in lower level.Reviewed by Mirner77 Review Date: 01/09/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
We had supper here on December 5th, 2014. I was afraid after I read reviews on this meal! Boys was I happy after I had my first plate of food! Everything here was fantastic!!! Salads were delicious, salmon was delicious, carving station was awesome! Lobster cheese ravioli amazing! Desserts were very good also. Character interaction was very good also. My 7 year old was wearing a Goofy hat and this got her lots of attention! We saw most characters twice except for Minnie who we only saw once. We were ready to leave and had not seen Mickey, so we mentioned this to a table clearer who went above and beyond with his help! He went to clear this up right away and we just had to go to the handler when we were ready to leave and he went to get Mickey for us. So this wasn't a big issue. We had a wonderful meal here and were very pleased with it! I'd go back for dinner. The napkin dance is lots of fun also.
Pros:
Food & charactersCons:
Picture isn't with the real "Chef Mickey"Reviewed by Imjustababyduck Review Date: 11/25/2013
Rating: (6) Not Recommended
We ate dinner here on 11/8/13. We were staying at the Contemporary, this was our arrival day and it was convenient. They were quick to seat us and the service was good as well. It was my nephew's birthday and they went WAY out of their way to make it special for him, for which I will be eternally grateful (and is the only reason I give them a 6).
The food was another story. We have been eating here for years. For the last few years, it has been for the characters (and not the food since the food has been in steady decline). It has the Fab 5, nattily dressed, making for great pics. After this trip, I think we may call it a day on this one. The choices on the buffet and the quality of the food have reached a level that has become unacceptable for what you pay (more so for dinner than breakfast, but I'm giving that one up as well). I found very little that was appetizing on the buffet and ate very little as a result. Our kids are getting older and pics with the characters are not as important to them anymore. We will probably look for better food and less characters in future trips to Disney.
