One of the best things about Walt Disney World is the variety & quality in food options. You have everything from your standard hot dogs and fries up to Four Diamond Restaurants. Many people who are first time visitors to Walt Disney World do not realize that you could simply make a trip to Disney just to indulge in the unique dining options.
Now with all the different types of dining experiences available at Disney, what would I add? I have two daughters under 11, so they are just about out of the Character Meal phase, but for the past several years, they cannot get enough of these dining experiences. If you are unfamiliar with character meals, simply put most are buffet style eating where various Disney characters will come around to your table and interact with you for a minute or two. Most often it is to sign an autograph book, or just a picture. I have seen characters dance and play with guests during slower times. Kids of all ages love these types of meals, as it is a unique way to get up close and personal with characters that you not otherwise be able to see so close.
So what experience would I create? I noticed that there are very few character meals geared toward boys. The girls have Cinderella‟s Royal Table, Princess Breakfast at Akershus, 1900 Park Fare, etc… Sure places like Chef Mickey‟s and Crystal Palace have characters that are both enjoyed by boys and girls, but I thought about something a bit more geared toward boys.
My initial thought was a Pirates of the Caribbean themed character meal, but that could scare some younger children. Then something clicked….why recreate the wheel here. Disney has just unveiled Toy Story Mania in WDW and Disneyland and are planning on Toy Story 3 in a few years, so why not use that theme. I know at WDW they already have Pizza Planet in Hollywood Studios, with a Toy Story theme. So instead of doing something from scratch, why couldn‟t Disney close down Pizza Planet, and open it up as a Pizza, Pasta, and Salad Toy Story Character themed buffet? I know this isn‟t simply geared toward boys, but it is more so than a Princess breakfast. Most cities have pizza, pasta, and salad type buffets, and WDW doesn‟t. To me I think it would be one of the more popular choices in WDW and something that Disney should look into. What do you think about this idea?
Now with all the different types of dining experiences available at Disney, what would I add? I have two daughters under 11, so they are just about out of the Character Meal phase, but for the past several years, they cannot get enough of these dining experiences. If you are unfamiliar with character meals, simply put most are buffet style eating where various Disney characters will come around to your table and interact with you for a minute or two. Most often it is to sign an autograph book, or just a picture. I have seen characters dance and play with guests during slower times. Kids of all ages love these types of meals, as it is a unique way to get up close and personal with characters that you not otherwise be able to see so close.
So what experience would I create? I noticed that there are very few character meals geared toward boys. The girls have Cinderella‟s Royal Table, Princess Breakfast at Akershus, 1900 Park Fare, etc… Sure places like Chef Mickey‟s and Crystal Palace have characters that are both enjoyed by boys and girls, but I thought about something a bit more geared toward boys.
My initial thought was a Pirates of the Caribbean themed character meal, but that could scare some younger children. Then something clicked….why recreate the wheel here. Disney has just unveiled Toy Story Mania in WDW and Disneyland and are planning on Toy Story 3 in a few years, so why not use that theme. I know at WDW they already have Pizza Planet in Hollywood Studios, with a Toy Story theme. So instead of doing something from scratch, why couldn‟t Disney close down Pizza Planet, and open it up as a Pizza, Pasta, and Salad Toy Story Character themed buffet? I know this isn‟t simply geared toward boys, but it is more so than a Princess breakfast. Most cities have pizza, pasta, and salad type buffets, and WDW doesn‟t. To me I think it would be one of the more popular choices in WDW and something that Disney should look into. What do you think about this idea?