We will be celebrating my birthday when we go to WDW in August. I am trying to decide where to go for my birthday meal. We are going to Magic Kingdom that day, so it would be great to find a restaurant there on my b-day. We're staying at the Contemporary, but I don't really want to go to Chef Mickey's because we are doing that earlier in the week, and I don't want to go to California Grill because we need to go somewhere more childfriendly. I would really like to eat in MK, but we've eaten at Cindy's Royal Table many times before, and we had a terrible waiter last time (brushed his hand through the butter and got annoyed when we used our DDP). As for Crystal Palace . . . I like it a lot, but prefer it for lunch. We could do my b-day meal as a lunch meal, and I know that often crowds aren't as bad then and you can get an ADR for lunch more easily. I've never been to The Plaza or Tony's. Let's see . . . the only other MK table service place we've never done or would enjoy is Liberty Tree Tavern (heard good things but don't know much about the menu). I wouldn't particularly mind going to a different park or nearby Disney resort for lunch. Please help me decide the best birthday place!!

We went to Ohana for my sister's birthday dinner. It was fun, very family oriented. The 'cousin' hostess/entertainer we had was a little grating on the ears and some mannerisms, and I didn't like that they brough ALL the food out at once (though I've heard that may not be the norm) - but it just might fit your bill nicely. It was all pretty tasty. But I don't think I'd necessarily recommend it to a vegetarian.

We stayed at the Poly when I was 6, my second trip to WDW, and ate breakfast there. Back then the characters were Mickey and the gang. Now I guess it's Lilo and Stitch. The Poly is very convenient to MK, so I might consider that. I don't really remember the food from breakfast when I was little, but I'm sure it's delish. No one in our party is a vegetarian! Thanks for mentioning that, though. I can imagine it would be pretty tough to go to certain places and get a meal with no meat, although Disney is very accommodating...

Ohana characters are currently Lilo, Stitch, Mickey, and Pluto.

I once had a great birthday meal as a teenager at the Grand Floridian Cafe. We went for breakfast actually, but they brought me a desert that I believe if I remember correctly was a white chocolate minnie mouse and a phone call from Goofy as we were leaving.

of course characters aren't guaranteed. when i ate at ohana, lilo was substituted by goofy. it was a good meal though and served family style so no need to leave the table (at least not for food)

i would note the birthday at CM's anyway incidentally. you get a souvenir placemat signed by the characters.

but it sounds like whispering canyon might be a good option? although it's very subdued at lunch as opposed to breakfast/dinner, still there are some ongoings.

works for a MK day.

back on breakfast/dinner, 1900 park fare also gives a souvenir placemat for birthdays.

And just to clarify, Dinner at Ohana is NOT a character meal.

I think they still do the Cinderella character dinner at 1900 Park Fair at the Grand Floridian. It's a buffet, and it isn't bad. You don't mention the ages/gender of your kids, but if you have little girls, who are into the princess thing, that would be a place for them-yes, most of the girls are in princess costumes. Also, you can get a glass of wine, which you can't do at the Magic Kingdom.

Was staying at Fort W. this past weekend, for my birthday. Went to Ohana's last night for dinner...they don't do much for birthdays, they gave our table some flowers to wear, though.

I've also eaten at Jiko's for birthdays, and they gave us a free dessert, which was like 9 bucks on the menu.

You might have more fun at a character event, or the fun restaurant at Wilderness Lodge, for a birthday, though.