Chef Mickey’s Restaurant Review
Chef Mickey’s is a character dining experience in Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World. This restaurant review includes food photos from the dinner buffet, menu info & pricing, whether it’s worth the money, recent changes, and more.
Let’s start with the latest change to Chef Mickey’s at Walt Disney World–buffets are back for both breakfast and dinner at Chef Mickey’s. Previously, the buffet service had been replaced by a prix fixe all-you-care-to-enjoy family-style meal. That is now gone, and buffets are back, baby!
The character component of the meal at Chef Mickey’s is also now back to normal, although this is not a new development. This means that hugs, autographs, high-fives, and photos with Mickey Mouse and friends have all returned. In other words, Chef Mickey’s is now totally back to normal…
Naturally, normalcy comes at a cost. In this case, that means a price increase for the dinner buffet at Chef Mickey’s. Previously, the family-style dinner feast was $59 for adults and $38 for children, not including tax and gratuity.
That price has increased to $66 per adult and $41 per child, plus tax and gratuity. This was to be expected, as other prices have increased around Walt Disney World as those character dining experiences have returned to normal. This makes Chef Mickey’s one of the most expensive character dinners–it’s also one of the flagship ones, and most in-demand restaurants in all of Walt Disney World.
Next up, here’s a look at the new menu for the Chef Mickey’s Dinner Buffet, which includes the following:
- Tomato and Rosemary Focaccia
- Seasonal-inspired Salads with Ranch Dressing
- Carving Station featuring Chef’s Selection
- Shrimp and Grits
- Roasted Pork
- Plant-based Seasonal-inspired Dishes
- House-made Macaroni & Cheese
- Vegetable Stir Fry Noodles
- Grilled and Roasted Vegetables
- Classic Favorites for Children
- Chef’s selection of Desserts including Warm Apple Crisp
Note that this is just the official menu courtesy of Walt Disney World. It’s almost always the case that the online menus for buffets are only partial listings of what’s actually available, with many dishes varying on a daily or seasonal basis. Below you can take a look at what we last ate when we did the Chef Mickey’s dinner buffet.
Before we even get started with the Chef Mickey’s dinner buffet review, one thing to note is that this is one of the older generation character dining experiences at Walt Disney World. The buffet is not new, it’s newly-returning, and there’s a big difference in that distinction. That’s especially true as Walt Disney World has overhauled other character dining experiences, and raised the bar significantly with newer restaurants.
Speaking of newer character dining experiences, if you want to cut to the chase and read about our #1 picks for breakfast and dinner, read our Breakfast à la Art at Topolino’s Terrace — Flavors of the Riviera Review and Story Book Dining at Artist Point with Snow White Review. Those are our two favorite character meals at Walt Disney World right now.
Of course, if you’re dead set on meeting Mickey Mouse and friends in their culinary costumes, those will not be suitable alternatives. Then again, you probably aren’t in need of a restaurant review if you’re already “dead set” on Chef Mickey’s. For most families, we’d say that Topolino’s Terrace, which also features Mickey Mouse and Friends, is a great alternative to Chef Mickey’s, so be sure to check that out before booking your Advance Dining Reservations.
Turning to basics about this restaurant, the menu at Chef Mickey’s is basically just a variety of American comfort foods, almost all of which is standard fare that will appeal to picky eaters. Chef Mickey’s is popular because of this, its convenient location near Magic Kingdom, and its longstanding status as a rite of passage character meal at Walt Disney World.Â
Plus, who doesn’t want to eat a meal cooked by Mickey Mouse, the original rodent restaurateur?! The story of Remy in Ratatouille is nice, but it’s quite clear he saw the success Mickey was having and decided to rip off the idea. The only difference is that Remy can actually cook.
Mickey spends all of his time out meeting guests, and as a result of his slacking, what the kitchen produces suffers. The Mouse just doesn’t seem to care. His restaurant remains popular and difficult to book despite the cuisine, so why bother? Well, because he’s a cheerful rodent dedicated to happiness, and not a ruthless businessperson, but I digress.
Chef Mickey’s is insanely popular and difficult to book. It’s a restaurant with a ton of fans, and I suspect this review won’t sit well with those fans. So, before we continue any further, I ask the fans out there to give serious though to why they like Chef Mickey’s. I’m guessing there are a few reasons: 1) nostalgia, 2) the setting, 3) the characters, and 4) the food.
I think the first three reasons are all very valid. I’m betting many guests who visit Chef Mickey’s regularly do so because they have fond memories of it being their kids’ first character meal, maybe even the first time meeting Mickey Mouse.
Among serious Disney fans, Chef Mickey’s has almost become a rite of passage character meal. Many guests form great memories during this rite of passage experience and want to return as a result. Nothing wrong with that. We all want to go back to the places where we made great memories.
The setting is also pretty cool. There’s something to be said for dining in the Grand Canyon Concourse of the Contemporary with monorails passing overhead. Same goes for the characters. You have all of the Fab Five at Chef Mickey’s (in cool outfits, no less), making it one of the best experiences for character dining.
These three things can make it easy to overlook the faults in an experience. Namely, the food. It’s just not good, and is not a valid reason for liking Chef Mickey’s. Usually, when I have a bad meal at Walt Disney World, I try to give the restaurant the benefit of the doubt, thinking of the ways my experience might have been an outlier or just unlucky, and find a reason to give it another chance despite the meal. I just can’t give Chef Mickey’s the benefit of the doubt after our dinner.
Our meal wasn’t bad because of any issue that could be described as “variable,” like the food being cold or overcooked. It was just plain bad. Ingredients seemed cheap, most buffet items lacked flavor, and everything was just generally low-quality. The food felt like a total afterthought, as if people were there primarily for the ambiance and character interactions, and food didn’t matter.
Now, I understand that Chef Mickey’s is basically aiming for family-friendly comfort food (this is certainly no Boma or Tusker House), but it seems like there was no effort put into any of the items on the buffet. Maybe the rationale is that it’s all for kids with simple tastes (but what about their parents?), I’m not really sure.
Almost like the attitude of Rizzo the Rat when he proclaims, “they’re tourists, what do they know?” in MuppetVision, except for food.
Before we delve into particular food items, let’s take a quick look at the decor of the restaurant. Aside from the monorail overhead, the restaurant just consists of colorful designs, Mickey Mouse pop-art, and a Mickey head motif. It has a bit of a 1990s vibe to it, but not in a way that feels dated.
I like the design, especially the color and pop art. For the most part, it just feels fun–exactly how a character meal like this should feel. Plus, you absolutely cannot beat that monorail overhead. Just look at it!
This ambiance alone almost makes the restaurant worthwhile. Too bad you can have the same ambiance by just sitting in the Grand Canyon Concourse for free, or by eating at Contempo Cafe for a fraction of the price. Plus, in those places you won’t be subjected to the total chaos that is Chef Mickey’s.
Here’s one of the buffet lines. Notice that the names of the food are scribbled onto the glass. Classy.
As for the food, the silver lining is that it’s not all atrocious. There are some glimmers of mediocrity in the mix that give Chef Mickey’s some redeeming value. Let’s take a look at the various items.
Here’s a plate of various meats and mashed potatoes. Anyone familiar with our blog will instantly recognize this vegetable-free plate of food as mine.
The carved beef sirloin was low quality but above average relative to other stuff here. I liked the mashed potatoes, but they seemed like a cheap kind of instant potatoes.
The ribs aren’t always available at Chef Mickey’s (the nightly menu does change some), but don’t get too upset if they’re not there.
I’ve never met ribs I didn’t love…until Chef Mickey’s. Okay, I still ate a lot of them, but it was because it was a ‘lesser of evils’ situation.
Some carved turkey on this plate. Quality-wise, it seemed like one of the better things available, but it was prepared dry.
Some chicken, scalloped potatoes (I think), and “salmon.” I’m not entirely convinced the salmon was made of fish.
Lots of random stuff on this plate. We tried everything at Chef Mickey’s (just thinking about that gives me mild PTSD) and most of the food was completely forgettable. Actually, that should be “food with an asterisk,” because I’m not sure if some things meet the FDA definition of food. I like processed guilty pleasures just as much as the next guy, but it seemed like everything at Chef Mickey’s was processed and low quality.
When I said everything lacked flavor above, perhaps I was being too harsh. About 50% of the menu tastes like butter and/or cheese. So there’s that…I guess.
At this point, you might be thinking (like I was): “Well, at least dessert should be good. Kids love dessert!”
Well…you’d be wrong. Above is a brownie-like thing. It was not good.
Unfortunately, “taste” is not something they had much of.
On the plus side (possibly), I think preparation might have been the issue here. So you might have better luck with these.
The bread pudding was actually halfway decent.
The other desserts probably made it seem better than it was, but either way, it wasn’t bad.
The character interactions were generally good. In all of our experiences at Chef Mickey’s, the place has been a zoo, but that’s absolutely to be expected of a restaurant like this. Kids get excited, parents let them run around…it happens. Don’t eat here if you’re not keen on the idea of someone else’s rugrat jumping around your table. We loved the outfits that each of the characters had. For how busy Chef Mickey’s is, the character interactions are all surprisingly good. This was a real relief given the food quality.
Characters are good about spending time and having fun with each table; it’s not just a matter of posing for photos and moving along. One downside was that it was difficult to get photos without other guests or Cast Members in the background, but that’s a problem at all character meals. It’s just exacerbated at the popular ones, especially when tables aren’t spaced out (as is the case at Chef Mickey’s).
Another issue for us is that not many character attendants were around. For most guests this probably isn’t an issue because it’s parents wanting photos of their kids. Sarah and I don’t have much use for photos of one or the other of us–but not both of us–in the shot. I wish character attendants trailed each character at every character meal.
Before start thinking I’m just a curmudgeon who hates fun, classic Walt Disney World experiences, wait until you read our upcoming Cinderella’s Royal Table review. To give you a brief synopsis, our expectations were far exceeded and we absolutely loved it. See? Not all negative!
Overall, Chef Mickey’s is one of the worst restaurants at Walt Disney World when it comes to food. The thing is…that probably will not even matter to many of you. Many families understandably want the Chef Mickey’s experience. The ambiance is fun and the character interactions are undeniably good at Chef Mickey’s, and as odd as it might sound, that’s the most important component quality of Chef Mickey’s.
So, maybe the Mouse is right when it comes to the food being an afterthought for many guests. The only other mouse-operated restaurant I’ve visited was Chuck-E-Cheese, and it was pretty much the same way. Yet, I still loved that place as a kid, and I suspect many families will love Chef Mickey’s despite the food.
Personally, Chef Mickey’s would be low on my list of character meals to revisit in the future because of its high price and poor food. If I’m being honest, though, and we had kids, I’d still make sure they experienced Chef Mickey’s once. (We’d probably do breakfast, though, as our last breakfast at Chef Mickey’s was good. Granted, that was about 5 years ago.) This really speaks to the draw of Chef Mickey’s as a place where families make memories, even if it should not even technically be allowed to call itself a restaurant.
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Your Thoughts…
Have you done Chef Mickey’s at Walt Disney World? What did you think? Worthwhile for the characters, for the food, or for both? Is this meal something you’d like to try? Any specific recommendations from the buffet? If you have any questions or thoughts to share, please post them in the comments. We love hearing from readers!
I haven’t been there for dinner, but the breakfast food was fine. Nothing outstanding, just your general waffles, bacon, fruit, etc. But not something that would make me rethink coming again.
Glad I read this Im going to cancel my reservation for August and find something else.
Totally agree – done it once but won’t be rushing back
Thanks for the honest review. I only wish you had written it prior to our last trip. That could possibly have saved us from the agony of experiencing Chef Mickeys for ourselves. 3 adults & 5 kids and Not one of us enjoyed the experience! The food was horrible. The service was slow. The character interactions were just really off. Characters just kept walking past the table without stopping.
That being said…next time you go to Disneyland make sure you visit Goofy’s Kitchen. Now that was an amazing character meal. Don’t skip it thinking it will be like Chef Mickeys. It’s not. Goofy’s kitchen has it all. Great food, attentive servers, and amazing character interactions.
I have never eaten at Chef Mickey’s. My husband and I are adults without kids, so we are free to act like kids and we love character meals. However, Chef Mickey’s just seems so chaotic and crazy. If I am going to have to endure screaming children, I at least want high-quality food and good character interaction. We are going to try Cape May and Garden Grill in October. I have heard good things about both of those character meals.
I agree with your review. I ate there May 29, 2014. My husband and I agreed it would be our last time using ADR at Chef Mickey’s. The food wasn’t good, the character interaction was mediocre, and the service was slow. The restaurant also didn’t come across as being very clean-the floors were dirty, the dessert area (specifically the ice cream bar) was a mess, and the bathroom had no toilet paper in any of the stalls. That was our 4th time eating there since 2009. It’s been on a steady decline, and we’ve reached our limit. On a positive note, 1900 Park Fare has improved over the past 5 years. I highly recommend it for dinner!
I went to Chef Mickey’s for dinner in May and after trying a little of everything, I ended up eating plate after plate of mozzarella salad, and bread and butter. They were the only things I enjoyed. Most of the meats were fatty and/or poorly cooked, and the sides were lackluster.
But somehow, it was still an awesomely fun experience. My son, niece, and nephew are all under 5 years old, and I know I’ll be back at Chef Mickey’s many many times in the future–but I’m sticking to breakfast from now on!
Yikes. I’ve been told constantly that I need to take my daughter to Chef Mickey’s because “it’s the best meal ever”. I’ve not really been that excited about it for some reason and never really looked for an ADR for it. I’m glad I didn’t now. I’m not a huge fan of buffets in the first place and no one could really say the food was out of this world. I much preferred Tusker House for it’s theming, which for me, seems much more thought out, detailed and rich. Perhaps I’ve denied my daughter a rite of passage, however I just enjoy my vacation a bit too much to subject myself to Chef Mickey’s. Tusker House may not have the monorail going through it, but it seems like it would be a tad more calm.
Thanks for the review and “taking one for the team” so to speak. You’ve saved many people from a disastrous meal.
Haven’t eaten at Chef Mickey’s since I was 13, in 1997, with my parents! Perhaps someday if I have children I will go back.
Looking forward to reading your Cinderella’s Royal Table review! My husband and I went for breakfast back in October and our expectations were exceeded as well!
We just had breakfast there on my birthday in June. You are right! Breakfast was ok, but certainly not worth the price! We did feel like character interactions were a little rushed but not too bad. We made friends with the people at the next table and took group shots for each other. I agree there should be more handlers – we saw a few wandering kids almost get run over by the characters who couldn’t see them. Thanks for your spot on reviews and humorous comments!
Thanks for the review. I thought it was just me that didn’t care for it. Everyone raves about it, not sure why.
“..not sure if some things meet the FDA definition of food”……”The Mouse just doesn’t seem to care” I am dying over this post. Seriously, is it wrong of me to say that I think I enjoy your “diss” posts more than your praise posts!!! 😉
I have never cared to go to Chef Mickey’s in all honesty. I have never quite understood the hype of it all. It is SO much easier to get a reservation for Tusker House or O’Hana for breakfast, both of which feature the Mouse in much more interesting costumes in my opinion. And I really enjoy the food and the atmosphere at both!! Thanks for letting me know that I’m not missing anything!!
I could not agree more! Dinner at Chef Mickey was our first stop on our first family vacation to WDW. What better way to start the trip, we thought! And while the kids loved the experience (read: the characters…they didn’t eat the food either!), my husband and I could not have been more disappointed. We even felt rushed through our character interactions. But being able to meet the Fab 5 all at once and save yourself waiting in lines for M&Gs is definitely worth something. I’m just glad we had plenty of other wonderful dining experiences on that trip (like CRT!) to make up for how disappointing this highly-recommended, coveted restaurant was!
Alyssa, I couldn’t agree more. When the kids were little we always made it a point to do dinner at Chef Mickey, so they could see the characters and get their autographs. Definitely saved countless hours of waiting in line at the parks Meet & Greets. But the food has gone downhill, and the last time we went, about 3 years ago, it was just plain horrible! Most of it was cold, and tasteless, and the kids options consisted of overcooked Mickey chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, and maybe pizza. For the amount they charge to eat there, the food should be better than fast food quality. Even the desserts were awful. The ice cream station was a safe choice – but to be honest, how could they mess that up? Now that the kids are older, we have crossed this place off of our list. But as long as kids can get their picture with Mickey and his autograph, the place will continue to be a big hit with families. Just not this one!!
I haven’t eaten dinner at Chef Mickey’s in years – was at the buffet breakfast two years ago and the food was fine but nothing to write home about – standard fare. You are 100% correct in that the draw is the character interactions.
I’ll be eating here again (for breakfast) in December, again due to the characters – my family is traveling to Disney for Christmas week and my grandmother will be with us. She won’t be going to the parks (she’s spending time with other relatives), but her favorite character is Mickey, so we’ve secured a breakfast for our last day so that she can join in some of the Disney fun.
Our family has done character meals at breakfast, lunch, and dinner and have always found that breakfast seems to always result in a much better experience than lunch or dinner. In our very humble opinions, the food at the breakfast buffets is much better than what you receive at lunch or dinner. For example, on our last trip we had breakfast at Chef Mickey’s and 1900 Park Fare but had dinner at Crystal Palace. Both breakfasts were terrific in terms of food, service, and characters while Crystal Palace was easily the worst dining experience of our trip.
Also, it’s always a great start to the day with our young children to see them meet the various characters. I think it helps with the overall flow of the day by having them start out with a smile and a positive attitude from the start. Just my two cents!
We have only eaten there for breakfast and have really enjoyed that. So give it another try as long as you do the breakfast…
We also have enjoyed breakfast at Chef Mickey’s. Granted, that was 5 years ago, but I would definitely do it again at some point!
Not sure if I will get a answer as I have asked 5times on your blog n sent emails but thought I would try one last time. My family n I are going to Disneyland for Christmas n would love to have a Magical Christmas Eve Dinner at the park or one of the park Hotels can you PLEASE recommend somewhere. Thanks!!!
I just received your email this evening, simultaneous with this comment. Your previous comments, as with this one, have not pertained to the topic at hand. For information about Disneyland at Christmas, refer to this post: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disneyland-christmas-guide/ For Disneyland dining tips: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disneyland-restaurant-reviews/ Have a great trip! 🙂
I’d recommend Carthay Circle in California Adventure! Have so much fun on your magical Christmas trip!!
Chef Mickeys was the worst dining experiences I’ve had at WDW. There were two adults eating there for breakfast. The food wasn’t good. The service was atrocious. And the characters barley stopped to take pictures. They rushed past us to get to the kids at the next table. I would never recommend this place to anyone.
Yikes, that sounds like a really bad experience! Hope you spoke with a manager or someone.
Totally agree, the worst meal we had while there. Sure could have put that table service coupon to much better use.
I 100% agree! Yet so many people say it’s so wonderful!
You are completely correct, though. You DON’T go to Chef Mickey’s for the food!
After reading this, I’m glad our Chef Mickey’s ADR didn’t fit into our schedule and I cancelled it. Hoping 1900 Park Fare doesn’t disappoint. Keep up the great work Tom!
We haven’t tried 1900 Park Fare, but hope you enjoy it!