Meal Time Monday - Biergarten

If you are looking for more then "just a meal"  look no further then Biergarten in the Germany Pavilion in Epcot's World Showcase.  You get immersed in the sights, sounds, and smells of Germany.  

A live band transports you to a small Germany village located high in the Alps for an Oktoberfest feast.  

Located in the back of the pavilion it is easy to find as you make your way through the town square.  

Inside it is night time as the show is about to start.  The town square theming is continued all around you.

The dining room floor is tiered to allow better views of the show.  The seating is also family style.  Most of the table seat 8 or more.  We dined with a family of 3 from Tampa.  Meeting someone new can sometimes be the highlight of the trip.  Other times you basically have your small talk and the music starts so its hard to talk anyway.  

There is even a tree and water wheel in one corner of the town square.

The band played for about 30 minuets after everyone was seated and we had already made a trip to the buffet before the show started.  The play at both dinner and lunch.   They played a wide variety of traditional music and interments.  This is a short video showing just a small sampling of what you can expect.  

The food is also a great reason to join the party.  The buffet is made up of all the essential German staples.  The family favorite is aways the pretzel bread.  The kids love the traditional mac and cheese.  The deserts also never disappoint.  To see the whole menu look here!

Biergarten is one table service credit on the Disney Dining plan.  Reservations are definitely needed.  This is one location that can accommodate larger groups better then others!  

It is located in the Germany Pavilion in the World Showcase in Epcot.  A park ticket is required to enter Epcot Park.   To get here take a bus from any resort or the Monorail.  

This meal is recommended for anyone that enjoys live music and filling food.  

Meal Time Monday - Chef Mickey's

The time has arrived to talk about one of the most talked about and sought  after meals on Walt Disney World Property, Chef Mickey's!

Located on the 4th floor of Disney's Contemporary Resort.  Chef Mickey serves up a tasty buffet in the large open air atrium of the Contemporary.  Nothing really says "Disney World" like eating a buffet with Mickey and gang while a monorail zooms by.  

No mater the time of your reservation you will be waiting a little bit to get seated.  Whether you are on time or 30 minuets early the wait seems to be about the same.  Alden took full advantage of the wifi in the resort.  

Once your group is called you get a picture with a Mickey statue and a plate in the back ground.  One of the odder pictures you will take on your trip.   The picture will go on to your memory maker.  

The most amazing thing about the photo is that it take two cast members to line you up and take the picture.  

Now it is time to head in.   It really is an impressive environment to dine in.  Almost feel out side but with air-conditioning.  

This is the typical decor and how you will find it before your kids get all their grubby little fingers on it.

Through out your meal you will meet the fab 5.  They rotate around to you so you do not have to go to them.  They will usually go in the same pattern so you can kinda figure out how long before the next one reaches you so you can time your trip to the buffet for that 3rd plate of mash potatoes.  

We were kind of back in a corner for this meal.  We do like out of the way locations no and then.  It was a little quieter but further from the buffet.

The chef him self.  Sam asked why the whole buffet was not just cheese.

Goofy signing some post cards for friends.

The girls favorite.

A few years ago we did Chef Mickey's with mixed reviews.  Notice Clair's face in the lower left hand corner.  This was her first trip and we quickly learned she did not love meeting the characters.  Also it was December so the sun was down for a 6:00 dinner and much darker as you can see by the back ground of the pictures.

Alden at the age of 3 was too cool for Minnie.    You would never guess the sun being out would have that large of an impact on the amount of light in the place.  

On to the food.  It is why some of us go to meals anyway.  Here is the Kids buffet.  Don't worry adults are welcome to dine here as well.  

Salads and such.

Shrimp and other seafood offerings.

Broccoli and cheese sauce and more.

The protein section.

Soups and breads

Carving station.  

Desert time.  Ice cream and toppings to the right.

A small tower of sweets.

And  Mickey Domes.

Chef Mickey's is one of the first Disney restaurant people think of when thinking of eating at Disney World.  It is a fun environment in an unforgettable setting.  It is not every day you have the opportunity to eat in a 14 story atrium.  The characters are all ones you want to meet and can save you precious time in the parks.  The food is good, not great, but good and no one should leave with an empty stomach.  To be honest the deserts are very good.  

There is lots of demand for Chef Mickey so it is an reservation you want to try to lock in 180 days out.  Especially if you are traveling with a larger group.  They do a Breakfast, Brunch, and Dinner.  With the Contemporary just a 10 to 15 minuet walk from the front gate of the Magic Kingdom we like to do a lunch time to get a break from the parks and recharge your batteries.  By doing this we get out of the park during the peak crowds.  We have also done this meal on arrival day or departure day because it does not require a park ticket, but you still get some Disney Magic.  

Chef Mickey's is one table service on the Disney Dining Plan.  It is a very good use of a credit.  

To get to Chef Mickey's you can drive and park at the Contemporary Resort.  Or take a Monorail.  Or a bus to the Magic Kingdom and walk over to the resort.  This is one of the easier resorts to get to from another resort because only one bus is needed.  

This meal is recommended if you love Disney, love to explore the Disney resorts, and you are hungry!

Meal Time Monday - Star Wars Dine-In Galactic Breakfast! at Sci-Fi

It is May 5th so that means Revenge of the 5th!  We ate with Disney characters dressed as heroes of the rebellion.  Now it is time to dine on the Dark Side!   

It starts out with a photo op with Boba Fett and Darth Vader.  These two are hard to meet during Star Wars Weekends so meeting both at once is a huge benefit and we haven't even been shown to our seat!

The Empire takes over the Sci-Fi for breakfast During the months of May and June (Star Wars Weekends).  Sci-Fi is normal not open for breakfast.  If you still want the normal Sci-Fi experience you can get it during lunch and dinner.

The normal 1950's B horror movies are replaced with "B" type Star Wars footage.  Do not expect to sit down and watch Episode V.  It was different and entertaining stuff.  I think we saw the loop twice while we were there.

The seating in Sci-Fi is truly one of a kind.  The kids love this location.  Our complaint is that it is really DARK!  

The meal started with a plate of pastries for each row of the car.

The menu with some Yoda melon in front.  The kids all loved the Bantha Milk(its Blue).  

Here the Characters roam from table to table.  We saw them each several times.  The storm troopers enjoyed harassing the kids.

The Jawa's like to trade for shiny things.

Alden asked Who shot first.   He was hoping for an answer in his autograph book.

Greedo was still happy to pose for a picture.

I tried the Tatooine Sunrise.   It was ok.  

Imperial Delight was Doug's choice.   It was also just ok.

The kids all went for the french toast.  This is the quality of photo you get when you hand the camera to a 6 year old.  It comes with lots of good stuff to dip them in and get nice and sticky.  

Over all we had lots of fun at this meal.  We are not big breakfast people but we are big Star Wars people.  The characters made up for the fact that it was breakfast.  For the money I would have rather had dinner, but that was not an option.  Meeting Darth alone can free up your Star Wars Weekend rope drop for Chewbacca or Jedi Training.  If you don't get to Darth at rope drop you can be looking at an hour wait from mid morning until park close, making this meal a huge time saver.  The other characters are walk around types so  you may never be able to get a good picture with a Storm Trooper.  All in all we were happy we did the meal.   

This meal is 2 credits on the Disney Dining Plan.

A valid park ticket is required to enter Hollywood Studios. This meal is only offered in May and June in conjunction with Star Wars Weekends but is available every day of the week during that time.  

For more about the menu an the experience check Here

For other reviews or a review of the Normal Sci-Fi click here!

"Today will be a day long remembered"  and so will this meal!

Meal Time Monday - Jedi Mickey's Star Wars Dine at Hollywood and Vine

Want a meal from a galaxy far, far, away?  You have come to the right place.  During May and June Hollywood and Vine turns into Jedi Mickey's Star Wars Diner.  This is a great way to meet your favorite Disney Characters dressed as your favorite Star Wars characters. 

Your experience starts with a photo op of Chip and Dale right as you come in the door.  As usual they are up to no good.

Jedi Mickey

Meeting the characters works like any other Character meal.  You wait for them to come to you at your table.   

Minni can pull of any look.

Alden asked Donald why the Empire couldn't afford him pants.  

Darth Goofy is the best of all.  

The food is also themed.   Stromtrooper cake.

Sugar cookies that are fun shapes.

The food is exactly the same they offer during lunch at this location.  However the food has new and exciting names.  They also have blue ice cream.  Alden did try a few new foods based on the names.

Over all this was a great meal to take advantage of meeting 6 characters.  To meet them all in the course of the day it would consume hours.  It was really nice to not have to worry about meeting Jedi Mickey during the day.  There is really too much to do during Star Wars Weekends.  You need to factor that into the decision when you look at the price tag that comes with the meal.  Time is critical during Star Wars Weekends.  You can also do this meal on another day of the week which frees up more of your time for the special events going on.  

You can see we had a good time at this meal in 2014.  

This meal is 2 table credits on the Disney Dining Plan.  You can also do it with a Fantasmic! package.  

This meal is located in Hollywood Studios and a valid park ticket is required.  

Find more HERE from Disney site about the menu.  

More of our dining reviews can be found here.  

May The Force Be With You.