Uh oh! We don't support IE due to its failure to integrate new web standards.
For the best browsing experience, please use

More Info →

  • Podcast
  • Become a WDW Prep Patron
  • About
  • Get a Quote
  • Things We Recommend
  • Contact
  • Search
MENUMENU
  • Crowd Calendars
        • January Crowd Calendar
        • February Crowd Calendar
        • March Crowd Calendar
        • April Crowd Calendar
        • May Crowd Calendar
        • June Crowd Calendar
        • July Crowd Calendar
        • August Crowd Calendar
        • September Crowd Calendar
        • October Crowd Calendar
        • November Crowd Calendar
        • December Crowd Calendar
  • Parks
        • Magic Kingdom
        • Epcot
        • Disney World Tickets
        • Hollywood Studios
        • Slinky Dog Dash
        • Animal Kingdom
        • Typhoon Lagoon
        • Blizzard Beach
        • Disney Springs
        • Featured: Planning Tips for Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge
  • Resorts
        • On-Site
        • Off-Site
        • Disney World Value Resorts
        • Disney World Moderate Resorts
        • Disney World Deluxe Resorts
        • Disney World Villa Resorts
  • Dining
        • Dining Basics
        • Disney World Dining Plan Satuli Canteen
        • Disney Dining Plan
        • Animal Kingdom Disney World Dining Plan
        • Our top Table Service restaurants
        • Our top Quick Service restaurants
        • Guide to all Disney World character meals
        • Best restaurants for fireworks views
  • Planning and Tips
        • 6 Step Planning Process
        • Disney binder planning workskeet
        • Planning Basics
        • Big Thunder Mountain exterior
        • What is coming to Walt Disney World in 2021 (and beyond!)
        • Disney Movie Magic
        • Trip Planning for Families
        • Special Needs
        • Money and Shopping
        • Downloadables
  • 2021 Planner
        • Mask tips for Disney World trips
        • Cast Member with a mask
        • Step-by-step guide to the Disney Park Pass System
        • Disney Park Pass choose day
        • Where to find characters right now
        • Joy
        • 13 ways Disney World planning has changed
        • How to tour Disney World right now
        • Budgeting for food (without using the Disney Dining Plan)
        • Mask-Free Relaxation Stations (w/maps & comparisons)
        • Choosing when to visit in 2021
        • Where to dine outdoors at Walt Disney World
        • How transportation works now
  • Mobile
      • Podcast
      • Become a WDW Prep Patron
      • About
      • Get a Quote
      • Things We Recommend
      • Contact
      • Search

Dining with the Character Queen: 1900 Park Fare Dinner

Share on pinterest
PIN
Share on facebook
FB
WDW Prep School → By Interest → Characters → Featured → Dining with the Character Queen: 1900 Park Fare Dinner
  • Dustin Hayes
  • December 2, 2015
  • June 12, 2019
Grand Floridian

This is a post from Dustin “The Character Queen” Hayes. Follow him on his Facebook Page and Instagram. Now, here’s Dustin…

Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa is known for its old school opulence, with Victorian decor inspired by seaside hotels of the late 19th century. Everywhere you turn in the hotel lobby, you are surrounded by marble floors, domed windows covered in stained glass, and elevators designed to look like oversized bird cages.

Just off the way from the concierge desk holds one of the resort’s most whimsical dining experiences in a restaurant designed to capture the essence of an 18th century amusement park: 1900 Park Fare.

Open daily for breakfast and dinner, 1900 Park Fare features a wide buffet of delicious items, with a few fun characters thrown into the mix! Breakfast time features characters from British favorites Winnie the Pooh, Mary Poppins and Alice in Wonderland.

However, this past month (thanks to WDW Prep School!) I got to experience dinner at this establishment for the first time ever(!) with Cinderella and members of her royal and not-so-royal family.

My dining companion and I arrived at check in roughly an hour before our reservation, and with a bit of luck, we were able to be seated early. We were informed at that time that Cinderella’s stepsisters were busy at the castle that evening and wouldn’t be joining us for dinner, but the Fairy Godmother was gracious enough to make an appearance in their place. (Please note that at all character dining experiences entertainment is subject to change.)

A photographer is in the restaurant’s foyer to take your picture in front of the beautiful mural (photo is included with Memory Maker if you purchase it) before the seater shows you to your table.

The dining room at 1900 Park Fare is filled with so many beautiful details that hark back to the late 19th/early 20th century including this gorgeous carousel seahorse!

We were greeted by our server within seconds of being seated and he took our drink order, then explained to us that each character would make one and only one stop at our table during our visit. Not wanting to miss any of the action we headed straight for the buffet!

Just about everything you can imagine to eat is featured on this buffet at dinner time. Sushi rolls, carved to order sirloin and turkey, hot rolls, vegetables, Asian-inspired beef and rice dishes, and seafood are just a few of the items you can munch on during your visit.

My personal favorites on the buffet line included the Key Lime grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese (yes, off the kids’ buffet, don’t judge me) and the Ahi tuna noodle salad. My absolute favorite thing had to be the restaurant’s signature strawberry soup.

Yes, I said that right. Strawberry soup.

It may be served in a giant modern water cooler, and it might remind you of Pepto Bismol upon first glance, but take my word for it, if you are a strawberry fan, this is a must have. (I ended up eating three bowls of it by myself.)

By the time we were finished with our first plates, the royal procession was announced in the dining room, and Cinderella and Prince Charming danced their way to the middle of the room. They then proceeded to greet tables in the restaurant individually, posing for pictures.

It is then that I kind of realized that character dining might make for some excellent interactions, but the background for photos leaves a lot to be desired at times (be prepared to have a lot of random guests behind you in your photos should you choose to take them.)

Cinderella was as gorgeous as always. She made note of how many bowls of strawberry soup I had eaten and said that must’ve been the reason why I’m so sweet. (Heehee!)

https://instagram.com/p/9L30HQhhrU/

The Fairy Godmother was a delight as well, as we were not expecting to see her that evening.

https://instagram.com/p/9FJxF4hhqM/

Prince Charming lived up to his name and more. He acted very surprised that I wanted to take a photo with him, as he said not a lot of other gentlemen want their picture with him. Very gracious.

https://instagram.com/p/9Ho8EHhho5/

It was Lady Tremaine that stole the night for us, though. She walked up to our table and immediately asked my friend to repeat the pirate joke her mother told her while they were playing bridge. She was hilarious!

I asked her if she was enjoying a night away from her daughters, and she pulled a chair away from another table, plopped herself down and went on for several minutes about how she was in Heaven. (I love her.)

After several plates of food, we debated on whether or not we were up for dessert. There were lots of choices on hand, from brownies and cookies and Gummi Bears to key lime tarts and cupcakes. What did I end up choosing? Another bowl of strawberry soup, of course.

1900 Park Fare dinner is overall a wonderful dining experience and I had a lot of fun (and a lot of food!) This restaurant is one of the more difficult to book an ADR for so be sure to make your reservations as soon as possible before your trip.

With the amount of food and entertainment offered this is also in my opinion one of the best uses of a Table Service credit if you are on the dining plan (cash price of breakfast and dinner varies throughout the peak/non-peak seasons.)

I can’t wait to make a return visit soon! Maybe I’ll try breakfast next time. Luckily for me, that strawberry soup is on the breakfast buffet too 🙂

**********************

Hey, this is Shannon again! Loved this review from Dustin. Just wanted to give you a couple of thoughts about 1900 Park Fare (actually, most of this applies to all character meals).

  • As Dustin mentioned, the characters can vary so go in with an open mind (the mix of characters here is part of the fun – very unique and kind of random compared to other character dining locations).
  • If the characters don’t make it to your table, be assertive and ask the attendants to make sure you see them.
  • Think about the background of the pics before you take them. You might not want the buffet or lots of other people in the back. See if you can position yourself in a spot that looks a bit nicer in pics.

Read this next

Popular Related Articles

Related Posts:

  • Dining with the Character Queen: Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
  • Guide to all character meals at Disney World
  • Disney World dining tips – PREP045
  • Dining with the Character Queen: Garden Grill at Epcot
  • Dining with kids at Disney World – PREP112
  • The ideal Disney World planning timeline (and what to do if you are short on time)
  • Disney World breakfast reservations and a ride – before the park opens!
  • Disney World for princess-lovers – PREP030

In this category

More Tips and Tricks

  • By Interest
    • Babies and Toddlers
    • Characters
    • General Reference
    • Group Travel
    • Luxury
    • Saving Money
    • Technology
    • Transportation

Ready to book a trip for 2021?

The team at Small World Vacations is ready to help get you started.

Get a quote now

10 Comments

  1. Leslie Willie August 28, 2016 Reply

    Thanks for this review! We are going to be eating here in November with my two year old daughter who loves Cinderella!

  2. KATHY CAVALIER April 17, 2016 Reply

    The Cinderella dinner is on our reservation list for our fall trip. Grand Floridian is such a gorgeous resort. Thanks for the tips.

  3. lauren February 2, 2016 Reply

    We are planning to book this meal on our arrival day. I was planning to give us 3.5 hours from time our plane lands to get to the restaurant. We will be using Magical Express to our hotel and then take cab. is that enough time? Also, how long should I estimate for the meal itself? I don’t want to rush it, but am planning to book some fast passes for afterwards at MK. So excited for our trip! Thanks.

    • Shannon Albert February 2, 2016

      What hotel and which restaurant?

    • Lauren February 2, 2016

      We are staying at port Orleans french quarter and eating at 1900 park fare for dinner. Thanks!

    • Shannon Albert February 2, 2016

      With a taxi or Uber to the restaurant, you should be able to do that.

  4. Kris January 15, 2016 Reply

    Excited to book this restaurant as my first port of call on my arrival day. I’m staying off site so will park at the resort and if I’m not too tried after dinner and traveling all day I’ll head over to MK. Or that’s the plan anyways! Excited to meet my first characters too!!

  5. KellySparkles January 8, 2016 Reply

    1900 Park Fare was one of our favorite character meals- so much delicious food and the character interactions were the best! The Tremaines were hilarious! They liked the autograph sketch book we had made so much that Lady T tried to steal it, announced to the whole restaurant that we were the only people she’s ever met with any taste (we had drawn them on their own separate page), and they came back to our table 2-3 times! It was a blast. I asked Cinderella if she gets along with her step family now since they were at ‘her’ dinner and she said “oh yes, they are much better now because I taught them some manners!” LOL When I mentioned this to Anastasia, she knelt down next to my daughter (5) to demonstrate her ‘manners’- she got a lot wrong and my kiddo corrected her- and then even showed us that she is learning to speak French. I asked her ‘but aren’t you from France?” and she said “oh yeah, then it’s time I learned to speak the language!” It was a blast!

  6. Jess December 2, 2015 Reply

    My husband graciously gave up his only non Disney character meal (sci-fi diner), so that his wife (me!) and 5 year old daughter could go to 1900 park fare! He was game for reserving is every princess character meal, as well as character meals at Tusker House and Crystal Palace. She and I are even doing the Perfectly Princess Tea Party (he is exploring Epcot on his own that morning much to his excitement). Add in the fact that we are staying in the POR Royal rooms and will be hitting a few Frozen options, we will be princess character queens by the end of our trip. Disney is not my DH’s jam, so we feel pretty blessed that he is doing all this for us. He even did all the fast pass and dining selection at midnight so that we could get everything.

  7. kay December 2, 2015 Reply

    oh dustin is so adorable! i’m thrilled he was able to eat here! he probably made their day! 🙂

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Start here

  • Crowd Calendars
    • January Crowd Calendar
    • February Crowd Calendar
    • March Crowd Calendar
    • April Crowd Calendar
    • May Crowd Calendar
    • June Crowd Calendar
    • July Crowd Calendar
    • August Crowd Calendar
    • September Crowd Calendar
    • October Crowd Calendar
    • November Crowd Calendar
    • December Crowd Calendar
  • Parks
    • Magic Kingdom
    • Epcot
    • Hollywood Studios
    • Animal Kingdom
    • Typhoon Lagoon
    • Blizzard Beach
    • Disney Springs
    • Featured: Planning Tips for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge
  • Resorts
    • On-Site
    • Off-Site
    • Disney World Value Resorts
    • Disney World Moderate Resorts
    • Disney World Deluxe Resorts
    • Disney World Villa Resorts
  • Dining
    • Dining Basics
    • Disney Dining Plan
    • Our top Table Service restaurants
    • Our top Quick Service restaurants
    • Guide to all Disney World character meals
    • Best restaurants for fireworks views
  • Planning and Tips
    • 6 Step Planning Process
    • Planning Basics
    • What is coming to Walt Disney World in 2021 (and beyond!)
    • Trip Planning for Families
    • Special Needs
    • Money and Shopping
    • Downloadables
  • 2021 Planner
    • 13 ways Disney World planning has changed
    • Mask tips for Disney World trips
    • Budgeting for food (without using the Disney Dining Plan)
    • Step-by-step guide to the Disney Park Pass System
    • Choosing when to visit in 2021
    • How to tour Disney World right now
    • Mask-Free Relaxation Stations (w/maps & comparisons)
    • Where to dine outdoors at Walt Disney World
    • Where to find characters right now
    • How transportation works now
  • Mobile

More Goodies

  • Podcast
  • Become a WDW Prep Patron
  • About
  • Get a Quote
  • Things We Recommend
  • Contact
  • Search

I just got back from a five night stay at Coronado Springs and had the best time! Even though I went during the busy season I barely waited in any lines and was able to do everything I wanted!

Jonathan C.

Meet us there


IG

FB

PI

TW

YT

EM

WDWprepschool.com is not affiliated with, authorized or endorsed by, or in any way officially connected with, the Walt Disney Company.

PRIVACY POLICY

© 2021 PREP SCHOOL PRODUCTIONS, INC.

WDW PREP SCHOOL ON INSTAGRAM​

It. Is. Time. 🦁 Festival of the Lion King retur It. Is. Time. 🦁 Festival of the Lion King returns this summer!

It’ll be in a modified form for safety purposes. No specific reopening date given, but so happy the list of things to look forward to keeps growing. 🙌
Officially closed for refurbishment (no reopening Officially closed for refurbishment (no reopening date available yet).

Now can we work on getting women included in the sequel?
Anybody else fall in love with the Hollywood Studi Anybody else fall in love with the Hollywood Studios decor and want to have these vintage Christmas ceramics at home? 🙋🏻‍♀️ Here’s how.

For original vintage pieces, search “Lefton Christmas ceramics” or “Napco Christmas ceramics.” These often run you $100+ and can usually be found on Etsy, eBay, and other resale stores.

For less expensive replicas, check out VermontCountryStore.com which has a small - but more affordable - collection, including the trio of candy cane girls.
It appears the Frozen promenade (cavalcade) is out It appears the Frozen promenade (cavalcade) is out at Epcot, and random popups of Anna and Elsa in Norway are in.

They haven’t been appearing as reliably as Alice, Mary Poppins, Joy, and Winnie the Pooh, but be sure to be on the lookout when passing the Royal Sommerhus in Norway where they might just show up.
Load More... Follow on Instagram