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View Full Version : Is a character breakfast worth it for teenagers?



richas
09-15-2003, 04:41 PM
Can anyone tell me if the character meals are worth the expense for a family with a 15 and 13 year old? The 13 year old doesn't eat much. Which character meal is the best?

mrscoach
09-15-2003, 06:02 PM
Are you talking about the character breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel, or the character breakfast in the park at the Plaza Inn?
I've only been to the Plaza Inn breakfast, and I think it costs about $18.00 per person, and I think it's about $10-12 for kids, probably under 10 or 12. We LOVE it. They have every food you can imagine at the buffet, including mickey shaped belgian waffles. Omlettes, hash browns, little bagels with cream cheese, tons of fruit - you name it, they've got it or they'll make it. My husband eats ALOT at this breakfast, but I basically pay the $18 to drink some coffee and see the characters.
We even do it when we don't bring the kids to the park with us.
The characters at that one are almost always Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, and Tigger.
So long story short, I guess it depends on the teenager! But we look forward to it every time we go.:)

sleepyjeff
09-15-2003, 06:26 PM
The character breakfasts are great. Especially the one at Story Tellers Cafe. That being said I think most Teenagers would have a much better time (and better food) at the Rain Forest Cafe.

Either way I am sure there will be no lack of fun memories:)

millionairegirl
09-15-2003, 06:36 PM
I was not impressed by the character breakfasts at WDW. Great character interaction, but the food and service were lousy! Runny eggs, greasy bacon, etc. The character dinners were even worse! I do not plan to go to any more until I have children, and even then only one per trip!

The only character meal I ate at DL is at Storytellers Cafe. Little to no character interaction, Chip & Dale hang out in the foyer, and you can meet and greet at your leisure. The food was fabulous though!

To summarize, I do not recommend the traditional character meals for teenagers, but Storytellers Cafe would be lovely. I've heard wonderful things about Hooks Pointe and Catal for breakfast.

tinksmom
09-15-2003, 07:35 PM
My 13 year old loved the character breakfast at the Storytellers Cafe. It was nice and relaxed and the food was fabulous. Because the characters don't come to the tables, you don't need to interact with them if you don't want to, but my daughter had a great time talking to Chip and Dale anyway.

ftroop6
09-15-2003, 07:56 PM
I have 2 teenagers left at home (both boys, age 13 and 15) We always make sure we go to Goofy's Kitchen during our trips to the Park. They love the food choices and really do enjoy interacting with the characters. It is always a fun time for all of us.

Elly
09-15-2003, 09:18 PM
I think a character meal is great with teens. Once the kids reach the teen years, they no longer feel comfortable or are willing to stand in line to see characters. However, they are more than willing to pose with them and have a great time at a character meal! Now the early morning hours are prime ride time (also a priority with teens), so I recommend Ariel's Grotto for lunch instead. The food is good and the character interaction is very good. Ariel greets visitors in the lobby. Minnie, Chip, Dale, Pluto and Goofy all visit each table. It is very relaxing and about the only way to get some character visits in. On our last trip we had a 17, 18, and 19 year old with us and our lunch there was one of the highlights of the trip. When the kids are older, some of the characters really know how to ham it up with them. During our lunch, Pluto in particular was hilarious. He "helped" my son eat his fish and chips and proposed to my daughter on bended knee. Too cute.

dsnylndmom
09-16-2003, 07:05 AM
My cousin's are 17 & 15 and they love the character meals with us. Especially Goofy's (for my 17 year old male cousin)because he can eat to his hearts content!!! LOL And my 15 year old female cousin likes Ariel's due to the food(yum)and location.

And I agree with Elly I can get them to pose with a character at a character meal vs just standing in line! It works out great!~

MammaSilva
09-16-2003, 07:24 AM
Add another vote for the character meals with teenagers here....the nephews are at the "I'm tooo cool" stage...but when we go to Goofys Kitchen they can pretend that they are just doing it for their cousins sake or their little sisters... but if we tried to get them to stand in line for a photo in the park.. can we just say hades would be having a cold spell?

We need to try Ariels if only because the boys think she's a 'hottie' LOL

hbquikcomjamesl
09-16-2003, 03:13 PM
It depends.

If they're really into character interaction, and they're really into breakfast, then perhaps.

My own experience with character meals is limited to the character dinner at WDW-MK's Liberty Tree Tavern, because I tend to take a no-nonsense approach to breakfast in general. I don't eat heavy breakfasts, because my digestive system isn't prepared to handle a heavy meal in the morning. At home, about the heaviest breakfast I'd normally eat would be two pieces of toast with warmed-over bacon and a bowl of Cheerios, bran flakes, Chex, or farina. Stopping at McDonald's, I typically have a bacon-egg biscuit, hold the cheese. On vacation, the smallest possible order of bacon and eggs, and/or perhaps French toast, would be about as heavy as I'd get, but I'd ordinarily opt for a bowl of oatmeal (NICE AND SMOOTH, NOT A BOWL OF UNDERCOOKED GROATS, WITH SOME BROWN SUGAR, AND DON'T DUMP IN FRUIT THAT I DIDN'T ASK FOR) and some toast. When I'm at WDW, I invariably have breakfast in the hotel food court for exactly that reason.

And usually, when I'm having breakfast, I'm in somewhat of a hurry.

So a character breakfast is a total loss for me. If your teens are into heavy breakfasts, then go for it. But if their attitude towards breakfast is "quit wasting time and get it over with," then you should probably try to find a non-breakfast character meal.

cryan71
09-16-2003, 04:35 PM
If your teenagers love to be embarrassed by their parents, then by all means take your teenagers to a character breakfast. Be sure to take plenty of pictures and show them to their teenage friends. Phrases like "Doesn't Mike look cute with Mickey? Look at Mike doing a dance with Goofy!" You might want to call their school newpaper to publish these pictures.

Of course, add to the cost of the character breakfast the years of therapy. You also have no right to wonder when they move out why they don't call you anymore.

merlinjones
09-16-2003, 05:12 PM
I think they should offer a custom character breakfast where you could vote on a roster of characters when you make a reservation a day earlier. That way, there might be some more unusual atendees.

My Character breakfast: Alice, Mad Hatter, Maleficent, Cheshire Cat, Aurora, Phillip, Peter Pan and Tarzan.

Cadaverous Pallor
09-16-2003, 05:38 PM
Originally posted by cryan71
If your teenagers love to be embarrassed by their parents, then by all means take your teenagers to a character breakfast. Be sure to take plenty of pictures and show them to their teenage friends. Phrases like "Doesn't Mike look cute with Mickey? Look at Mike doing a dance with Goofy!" You might want to call their school newpaper to publish these pictures.

Of course, add to the cost of the character breakfast the years of therapy. You also have no right to wonder when they move out why they don't call you anymore. Ok, now THIS sarcasm is FUNNY. :D

mlnreplyer
09-17-2003, 07:35 PM
I can tell you this from the point of view of the thirteen-year-old with a fifteen-year-old brother. We've only been to Goofy's Kitchen, and the Plaza Inn breakfast. I personally enjoyed Plaza Inn for the food value more than the character interaction, which may be because it's not as relaxed and improvisational as Goofy's, or maybe because I don't especially like the assorted Winnie-the-Pooh characters as much as others. Goofy's Kitchen is a lot more fun, with several characters (some well-known, others not so much) roaming around, and the characters not in full costume (i.e., the ones who talk) can strike up interesting conversations. Like Mary Poppins offering to nanny for us one weekend, or trying to explain the intracies of a digital camera to Jasmine. I would recommend Goofy's Kitchen for lunch or dinner, but the Plaza Inn has a really good breakfast selection. Even though I'm at the first end of the teenage spectrum, I don't especially mind the possible humilation capabilities, seeing as I'm more than fifty miles away from anybody who would care one way or the other.