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Disneys site makes cinderellas royal table sound magical. Whats your experience? I thought it would be a great way to kick off our first day at the world to go to mk and then have dinner at crt followed by the parade and fireworks. Im really excited about it.:mickey:
If anyone in your party thinks Disney princesses are among the very best things in Disney World, then Fairytale Dining at Cinderella's Royal Table (the official name of all three meals) is a must.
You will be greeted by Cinderella in the entrance lobby, and you'll take pictures with her. You'll then go upstairs to the dining room, and during your meal four princesses will make their way to your table for a brief meet and a photo op. Girls get a souvenir wand and boys get a souvenir sword.
For guests at the right age and with a magical view of Disney princesses, it's an unforgettable time. It's very expensive. The food is okay. But you're not paying for the food, you're paying for the experience. We did breakfast, the least expensive of the 3 meals. It was a very large expense for breakfast. Although each person is served a plate of food, it's an all-you-care-to-eat meal, meaning your server will keep bringing you more food at your request.
We did it once. I'm not racing back to do it again, but it was a magical experience for our then-6.5 year old daughter ... and our then-9 year old son said it wasn't the "icky" experience he thought it would be.
Something everone should experience once.
I'm one of the few that doesn't think CRT for dinner is all that bad food wise. Although I don't think it's as magical as they lead you to believe.
Cinderella didn't greet us in the lobby... We were ushered into a line waiting to pose for pictures. While we waited, several attendents would scream to have your party together and make sure you have your pen and autograph book ready.
We were directed to the stairs to go up to the dining room where someone then directed us to our table. At the times, it was only the Fairy Godmother with Suzy and Gus I think that performed a little show.
The food is OK. It's not on par with other signature dining experiences though. Our first meal, we got a nice lithograph and the picture. I think our second time we were celebrating an anniversary and got toasting glasses to bring home along with the picture. Last time, all we got was the bill (and the picture). It seems each time the total on the bill went up.
Breakfast was dreadful... Character interaction was rushed, and the food was the same breakfast fare you see all over property. Nothing special to warrant the prices.
I'd go if you want to experience it. If you want a better value, dinner would be my preference. I wouldn't knock yourself out to get a reservation though.
We did it once and I'm really glad we did, but have no desire to do it again. Waiting for our picture with Cinderella and waiting for our table seemed a bit hectic, but we got beautiful pictures and got seated before the girls got too frustrated. Once seated everything calmed down, our server was great, the Princesses were amazing and spent a lot of time with our girls. I didn't like the food I ordered at all, but everyone else seemed to enjoy theirs (we went for lunch). As someone pointed out, you're not really paying for good food, you're paying for the experience. At the end the girls got their wands, the Fairy Godmother put on a little bit of a show and we were done. The girls loved it all. One of the best parts for us was getting pictures of the park from the windows, great view!
This next trip we're looking forward to seeing the Princesses at Akershus.
Our six-year-old (now almost 13) loved it, as did we, when we went. We were next to the windows on one side, and we were treated to Peter Pan showing up directly on the other side of the window from DD!
Got her goofy grin captured when she realized who it was.
Definitely at least once.
I have a son and all nephews so we had never gone before. Last year we took my niece who is the youngest child in the family. She was 5 years old at the time and loved it. She loves the princesses and was so happy and excited to be there. We went for lunch and the food was good.
Because of the price and the fact that my son is not at all interested we probably will not be going back, but if you have girls that are still into that kind of thing I do highly recommend it.
BTW we took my niece to the BBB before lunch and it was well worth the money.
Just curious but are there any couples in there without kids? My wife and I are in our early 50's but we would love to eat here just for the experience.
I just made:cloud9::cloud9: reservations yesterday for our October trip. Our group consists of my sister, sister-in-law and her 2 boys who will be 10 & 6 and me. My sister really wants to dine with the princesses. Although the boys don't want to go, I told them that sometimes we do things for other people just to be nice. Hearing that they would get swords helps but I'm guessing they are both going to melt as soon as they get a little Disney Princess attention!
There are plenty of couples without children in CRT! Don't worry, go for it if you want to! :thumbsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by MarkC
Went in 2009. Girls were decked out in there Boutique makeover. 8, 5 and boy 2. We had a great time.
This year we will be when we are 10, 8, and 5. 10 year old doesn't care if we go back. 8 year old really wants to go back. And the boy (now 4) "I want to take pictures with the boys". And of course, there are no boys in the castle.
And this 40 something mom LOVED it. And would go back in a heartbeat, if it wasn't so expensive. Dining in the castle, thrilled the little girl in me. I am so happy that we all did it once. But again - I don't know if/when we would pay for it again.
This May is our 30th anniversary. We are going to have lunch with the princesses. We did breakfast years ago when our daughters were younger and enjoyed the experience, but as others have said the food wasn't the greatest. I would rather have the Crystal Palace breakfast with Pooh and Eeyore.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mickey'sGirl
Thanks everyone!:thumbsup: I compared the menus and the dinner looked like it had the best options. Im hoping that they will offer free dining this fall because we are going in october and we always do the free dining. I wouldnt pay that much for the meal without it. HS doesnt have any table services that we like so we are willing to use our credit not used for that day to make 2 credits do the royal table....again, if they do the free dining (crossing fingers!).
We have always wanted to try it and my boys will be turning 8 so I think they will still think its cool and love getting the sword but I dont think they will care for it in a year or so, so its now or never.
This year we are going for there birthday (again) and im keeping the whole trip a secret. We are gonna have them a party on saturday, which will be their birthday, and im gonna tell them then that we will be leaving in the morning to go to disney. I think I wont tell them about the castle till its time for our ressies so they will be excited about eating in the castle. ( they still think the castle is cool)
Oh I love the surprise for their birthday! How fun to tell them you are leaving the next day!!!!
IMO, dining in the castle is cool weather you like princesses or not! :mickey:
Have a great time surprising them!!!! :mickey::mickey::mickey:
OP---I see from your location that you live only 20 minutes away from me!
We took DD-age 5, to CRT for breakfast on our first full day at WDW. It was great to get into the park early & get Photopass pictures with only our little family in front of the castle!
We were able to get in early for our ADR & the wait to see Cindy downstairs wasn't bad. We looked around the walls of the room while we waited. The food was okay, but the ambiance was wonderful. DD had wonderful interaction with Ariel & Belle. Aurora & Snow White were good as well. The wishing ceremony brought tears to my eyes. Our picture with Cinderella was good. DD got a birthday cupcake there too. I think you should go at least once.
I wholeheartedly agree; everyone should have this experience once. I think the food could be better -- after all, there are so many other restaurants on property that do great food. But you can't beat the atmosphere, the view, or the company. The wishing ceremony is cool.
In my experience, anything at Disney that sounds like it will be cool, is at least as cool as you think it will be, and often better than you expect. If you want to do it, do it!
Everyone should try it once - it just stinks that the price keeps going up but not the quality of the food! Mom booked us reservations ages ago (before it was a signature meal and when Cinderella walked around but that was about it) and it was during the nighttime fireworks spectacular (don't think it was even Wishes at the time). Anyway - we had just finished dinner when it started - amazing! A true once-in-a-lifetime experience. Which is why I don't feel bad about not going back! lol
For the money and the character interaction, I much prefer Akershus! Plus the food is great there (but we are big on fruits and veggies!) - for us it is a don't miss every trip now! :mickey:
I did the breakfast which walking into the park with hardly anyone around was amazing..my 3 yr old DD was amazed to meet Cinderlla the food was good...the only thing was it was just the 2 of us..and the princesses didn't come to us..we were in the backand up on the ledge. I was watching then all of a sudden they realized they never stopped at our table, a cast meber/server noticed this as well ..which was good because I almost went and got our server...about this
we had all of them at our table at once...which was fun and my DD was thrilled to use her wand . All cast members were polite and kind...The last time iwas there was 1978 for dinner.
the princesses seem to spent more time at our table to make up for being forgotten..which was fine.
My daughter wants to go back again but 2 meal credits hmmm I think we will goto Epcot next time to meet them..but Everyone should do the meal breakfast , lunch or dinner at least once.
Honestly CRT is the BIGGEST letdown of all things Disney to me. For what it is and where it is CRT SHOULD be amazing. It is not. The service is worse than anywhere else. The food is "OK" but it is a mass production type of place. The food is made and then sent to whoever orders it. Like McDonald's with silverware. The character interaction is not as meaningful there in comparison to other places.
We went to CRT for dinner in 2009. No characters showed at all, even though the Fairy Godmother was supposed to be there. We returned this past January for my daughter's third birthday lunch. (Only because we did BBB and it seemed the natural progression) We also did Akershus that trip and a trip in August of 2010. Now I know Norway isn't Cinderella's castle, but the atmosphere is much more relaxed and the characters spend more time at each table. Also you actually have room to move and get a decent picture. CRT has the tables packed in there like airplane seats. SERIOUSLY. All of the pictures are from akward angles.
Also... CRT does a Wishing Ceremony that is just some guy coming over the speaker telling the girls to wave their souvenir wands (See Dollar Store toy aisle for examples) around. Akershus has a Princess Processional where the kids march around the restaurant WITH the princesses, much like the "parades" they do at Chef Mickey's and Crystal Palace.
OH and I dont know about your daughter, but my daughter prefers Belle (who greets you @ Akershus) over Cindy.
I hate to sound so critical of CRT but it is honestly such a disappointment for me and my family. For the price, for the location, for the love of Disney it deserves SO much better. Save yourself the headache.
do it once for the experience but its horrible. prob breakfast is better than lunch, idk. its just not worth the price. for that price we can eat great food at a signature.
I think it depends on who you are taking to CRT on if it is worth it or not. I took my DD when she was 10 to CRT for breakfast before the park opened in MK. So of course, getting into MK when it is empty is wonderful. We got pictures and it is fun being there.
Since it has been 6 years since we have gone..I don't remember everything about it. But I remember it was the only place I could guarantee my DD meeting Cinderella at the time. She has met most of the other princess on our trip the year before but she had not met Cinderella and that was who she wanted to see. She loved being able to go into the castle. I don't remember getting anything with our meal like photos or anything. But we got our own personal photos with Cinderella and the other princesses who were there.
DD is 16 now and I asked her what she remembered about that experience. She said she remembers meeting Cinderella and she liked just being in the castle and she remembers loving being able to look out the window to the park and that she would like to do it again. She didn't mention anything about the meal..so I guess my point is...you are paying for the experience and I was glad to give my daughter that experience and memory. And I agree with her...we will have to do it again on a future trip. For our sept trip we are doing an early breakfast at CP but not because we didn't enjoy CRT...but just because of all of our trips to MK...we have never eaten at CP and it looks so beautiful inside that I want to see it.
If you are planing to go just for the dining...then I agree with other posters...there are better places to eat with better food quality and options. But everyone has different reasons for going and for us...it is just the experience. Have fun no matter what you decide.:mickey:
great food. and the stuffed french toast is to die for.
Well we were gonna eat there if we get free dining in october but since you have to prepay to get a reservation, which would be $200, I guess we wont be doing it this year. :-(
I don't think you have to pre-pay. I think they just take your cc # in case you don't show up. CC will be charged if you are a no show. We didn't have to pre-pay, but gave the cc#. We were on DxDP & used those credits for the breakfast.Quote:
Originally Posted by disneymomma2010
Maybe someone else can confirm/deny?
We went our first full day, 4/17/2011. Yes, we had to pre-pay. Yes, it was expensive. BUT, it was probably the best dinner we had in our week there, and we got great pictures, autographs, and good time for our daughters to visit with the Princesses. We saw Cinderella in the downstairs, and then had Snow White, Jasmine, Ariel and Belle during dinner. The food was actually quite good, the service was outstanding, and the character time was what made it all worth while. I was actually surprised that after vacation was done, everyone rated it as the best meal we had. I knew I liked mine, but was surprised that the other 3 thought so highly of it. Out of 7 ADR's, this was one of 2 they said they would do again. Maybe, judging from other's reports, we got lucky, but it was worth every penny. And it was a lot of pennies :mickey:
We just went for the first time last oct for our 1 year engagement anniversary...
Food was agreed upon by both of us as not good. definitely not worth the $$'s
But what was worth it was having a window seat looking out over the Prince Charmings Carosole, the carriage confetti on our tables and getting to see Cinderella, Belle, Snow White, Ariel and jasmine.... and getting to hug each one of them.
We are going again this next trip becuase A) its our Magical Honeymoon and B) we are on the dining plan... if either of those weren't happening we wouldn't be back to it.
A must experience.... ONCE.... after that, buyer beware.
Payment:
Without Dining plan - Credit card will be charged immediately
With Dining plan - Credit card will be taken but not charged to guarantee your appearance. Once at the front desk you tell them again you are on the dining plan and they will convert ADR to dining plan ressie... credit card is forgotten.
Thanks for clearing that up. Hopefully next time I will already have the dining plan instead of just hoping for it and I will get to try it just once. Ive got a fifty fifty chance on having a good experience!Quote:
Originally Posted by brivers222
Six of us (all adults!) went to CRT in November 2010 and had a great experience! The food was really good, and my DH and I got our pictures with all of the princesses. I held my purple wand in every picture. :mickey:
There was magic that night because we witnessed a man proposing to his girlfriend which was really awesome to see! :thumbsup:
We took our four DD (3,5, 8, 8) on our first trip in 2007. We had a late lunch ressie and it was the first thing we did after checking in at the hotel. The food was okay, but certainly not worth 2 TS credits. That said - it was definitely worth it for the atmosphere. My girls absolutely loved it and it was a wonderful way to start our vacation. They rarely care about the food, regardless of where we are.
Once was enough since my girls are on the tail end the whole princess thing....that is until DD6 is old enough to care and then we'll most likely do it all over again.
We have been to CRT twice. Once for breakfast, which was insanely crowded and felt rushed.
Second time was for lunch. A late lunch, and boy was it wonderful!! The princesses and servers took their time, and the food was one of the best meals we had that week!!!!
I think your plan sounds like the most magical way to start your trip!!
We went to CRT on our first trip to Disney for b'fast. Kourtney was in kindergarten and just loved princesses. It was so much fun and the food was excellent. Two of her three older brothers posed for pictures with all the princesses. My oldest refused (he was in 9th grade). However, when Cinderella came by, she made him pose for pictures because after all, it's her castle. That was very funny.:)
Has anybody experienced the Castle during wishes with the construction tarps up... I know you can't really see anything but are the sounds still there? Do they pipe in the music and can you hear the fireworks exploding?
We did it twice, back when the girls were a bit younger (ok, much younger). They had a great time, but neither liked the food.
As the kids have gotten older, and even at their advanced ages (23 & 14), they still love character dining, but MUCH prefer the Princess Storybook Breakfast in Norway at Epcot.
BUT, it was worth it to go to CRT to at least experience it. You'll have a ball.
Quote:
Originally Posted by garymacd
We did an early dinner - not lunch - with the Princesses. While we loved the atmosphere and meeting the Princesses (Rapunzel was just outside the castle because she hadn't been elevated to a Disney Princess at that time) the food left a lot to be desired. My wife had a chicken dinner that was quite small and I tried a vegetarian meal that was just okay - not great - and I wouldn't order it again unless I found myself as hungry as I was last Saturday (I would have eaten the dead eyes out of an old carp that day!)
My daughter's boss - a Red Seal Chef - was also looking forward to the experience, but left disappointed because of the food.
Hubby wanted to :gangster: me for booking this ressie back in April since we have boys, but I must say DS 5 and 2 absolutely LOVED it! They were also given quite a bit of attention by all the princesses on their rounds.
DS5 actually surprised us all at the reception line with Cinderella when he reached out took her hand and kissed it! :cloud9: The waiting line let out a collective "Awwwww!" when he did that!
We did breakfast, which in hindsight was not my best decision since all my ADRs for character meals were breakfast (i.e. SAME meal everywhere). I did not think the food was bad. We were on DDP so cost was not a factor.
We personally had a magical experience. I had not been to CRT for dining since I was a child (for my sister's birthday) and I vaguely remember it ... I was so overwhelmed I barely retained the memory :blush:
My experience at CRT was certainly magical- my husband proposed to me there. I thought the food was great(we went there for dinner). We both had the beef tenderloin and it was amazing. We had a beautiful table by a window overlooking the carousel.
Wow, that is awesome! :thumbsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by lizzi6692