We need to start off with a moment of silence for all that was Mickey’s Backyard BBQ formerly at Fort Wilderness Resort. I am so glad that we were able to experience it last year to celebrate Isabella and Savanna (my niece) for their birthdays. For the record, I don’t think it mattered that I didn’t think through a Disney World reunion trip with 57 people, 22 of which were children 11 and under, because with advanced Fast Pass planning, it turned out BEAUTIFULLY. What I REALLY underestimated is my ability to make matching shirts for 22 kids the night before we left to Orlando. Yeah, that was dumb, but you’d never guess it because they all looked adorable. Still, not worth it.
What WAS worth it was experiencing one of Disney’s interactive dinner shows. The food was great. I am a sucker for buffets, in my vast experience with Disney buffets, there are always plenty of kid and adult friendly options. More than the food, all of the kids really enjoyed watching Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale dancing but loved dancing with them even more.
One thing you need to understand about a Disney Buffet, is they really are ALL YOU CAN EAT. What you need to understand about my kids is that they will eat all the ice cream they can eat. They were ecstatic when at the very end of the night, the waiter shoved about 20 extra Mickey ice cream bars into their tote-bag. It may have been because they forgot to bring us two birthday cakes that were pre-paid (always confirm the cakes three times and again with your waiter when you arrive because they have to be defrosted.) Luckily my parents were staying at Fort Wilderness and their RV was walking distance so we were able to keep the Mickey ice cream frozen and we ate them for a good month before we ran out.
There’s an unspoken etiquette about Disney buffets, when you take “all you can eat” as a personal challenge, which is totally not, but probably is something I absolutely do, the wait staff won’t look at you and cut you off or judge you for your 8th plate of macaroni and cheese, they’re absolutely happy with your happiness. Even if such happiness is in the form of corn bread.
A question I am often asked is “are character dining experiences worth it?” and the answer is, as the lawyer in me is trained to answer, “it depends.” If your kids want to take pictures and get their autograph books signed, having dinner while they do it is a two-birds-one-stone situation. You skip the lines for the characters and get autographs and photos while you are sitting and eating. Two of my favorite things to do, periodically, at Disney. Sitting. Eating. It’s a win-win-win because you’re either starting out the day with a great full meal for your kids so you know they’ve had something other than cotton candy, Mickey ice cream, popcorn, and pretzels. Or it’s a pleasant break for everyone to get into some air conditioning and rest their legs, which helps prevent a meltdown later on.
Truth be told, you spend more time eating at a restaurant with character dining than one of the quick-serve dining experiences but much less time than waiting in lines for different characters. The one downside, is that you don’t always get the cute backgrounds from the standing character meets throughout the park and you’re limited to four to six characters at the restaurants (which vary depending on the restaurant, but each Disney line is between one and two characters each.) But this downside doesn’t apply to the interactive character experiences like The Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show, Cinderella’s Royal Table, Be Our Guest, and Garden Grill Restaurant. Mickey’s Backyard BBQ was also an exception.
We closed down the BBQ with half of our group and all of the characters were just as energetic and sweet as when the show began, which is typical of Disney dining. Pro-tip: If you book your dining experience outside of peak hours, like late lunch or early/late dinner, the characters spend more time with your kids and are much more playful and interactive (plus there will be less people in the background of your photos carrying Mickey waffles.)
Overall, Disney character dining is worth it and Disney birthdays are even more worth it. Disney reunions are worth it also. Having my girls experience the magic with their family and their friends that we’ve adopted as family, and that love them so much they would drive four hours to experience the magic with us, is so absolutely worth it.
Also, making these tote bags for party favors was way more simple and less time consuming than 22 matching shirts. The shirts were a dumb idea.
Unlike stopping to watch the Magic Kingdom fireworks from the beach in front of the BBQ, totally a good idea.
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