Disney World Character Dining, Ranked: Every Meal I've Tried

I'm on a mission to eat at every character dining experience in Disney World and rate it, so you don't have to. I've eaten a lot of Mickey waffles for you. You're welcome.

This page is my running leaderboard. I'll keep adding to it as the series grows, and every review has a full video in my character dining playlist on YouTube.

How I score them

Every meal gets rated on three things, each out of 10:

• Food: is it actually good, or just "fine for a theme park"?
• Character interactions: who shows up, how much time they spend, and whether anyone feels rushed.
• Vibes: the room, the theming, the noise level, and how it feels to sit there.

Those three average out to a final score.

The leaderboard (so far)

1. 1900 Park Fare (Grand Floridian): 8.8
2. Storybook Dining at Artist Point (Wilderness Lodge): 8.5
3. Akershus Royal Banquet Hall (Epcot): 8.4
4. Be Our Guest (Magic Kingdom): 7.3, a bonus pick, since a lot of people don't count it as character dining

#1: 1900 Park Fare

1900 Park Fare is inside the Grand Floridian, hands down my favorite resort on property. It sits right on the monorail loop, so getting there from Magic Kingdom or Epcot is easy.

Food: It's an all-you-care-to-enjoy buffet with something for everyone. My favorite dish was the prime rib, carved to order, with creamy horseradish or au jus. As someone raised in Louisiana, I'm very critical of gumbo, and theirs was a huge hit: a medium-to-dark roux, great andouille, perfect rice. The peel-and-eat shrimp with Cajun spice and Old Bay are a must for seafood-boil lovers. The salmon was just okay.

Dessert: I'm not a sweets person, and this still blew me away. The famous strawberry soup is heavenly, and the molten lava cake might beat the cruise-ship version. Save room.

Characters: Some of the best around. We met Tiana, Cinderella, Mirabel and Snow White, and Aladdin sometimes stops by too.

Vibes: The room has 12 paintings, each showing a different Disney wish coming true, from Cinderella getting ready for the ball to Asha from Wish. It's gorgeous to look at between courses.

Little tradition tip: Before dinner, head to the second floor of the Grand Floridian for the PhotoPass spot with Cinderella's glass slipper. We take that photo every single year.

#3: Akershus Royal Banquet Hall

Akershus is in Epcot's Norway pavilion. It's modeled after Akershus Fortress, a real medieval castle in Oslo. Yes, you're eating a princess dinner inside a Norwegian castle.

How it works: It serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, served family style: an appetizer course, then entrées, sides and dessert brought to the table to share. All you care to enjoy. When we went, lunch and dinner were $69 for adults and $46 for kids 3 to 9, plus tip. Breakfast is a little cheaper.

Food (6.6): Good, just not memorable. The real star is the caramelized goat cheese. If you do one thing here, try that cheese. The chicken thigh with apple-fennel preserve was juicy and flavorful. Desserts fell flat for both of us.

Characters (10): This is why you come. Usually four or five princesses come right to your table: Belle, Ariel, Aurora, Snow White, Tiana, Jasmine and others rotate through. No lines, no heat, nobody rushed. Ariel was my favorite.

Vibes (8.6): Stone archways, vaulted ceilings, heavy wood and warm candle-style lighting. It's a calm escape from busy World Showcase, though it's a bit dark and gets loud when full.

Final score: 8.4, just a tenth behind Storybook Dining.

#2: Storybook Dining at Artist Point

Storybook Dining is at Disney's Wilderness Lodge, with Snow White, the Evil Queen and the dwarfs. It's prix fixe: you pick your entrée, and everything else (appetizers, desserts, all of it) just shows up at your table. You get to try the whole menu.

Food (7.5): The appetizers were just okay, with nothing bad but nothing that wowed me. The entrée is where this meal earns its reputation. We both got the prime rib: cooked perfectly, seasoned well, and the portions were massive. Even the kids portion was huge. Box up the leftovers! Ours turned into four more meals, which made dinner feel a lot more budget friendly. Desserts were fine but forgettable (though the poison apple is fun).

Characters (10): This is what makes it special. Snow White, Dopey, Grumpy and the Evil Queen are some of the rarest characters you can meet. I'd never seen them outside a special ticketed event.

Vibes (8): An enchanted-forest, fairy-tale-in-the-woods feel that fits the Wilderness Lodge perfectly. Cozy, immersive, and different from every other character meal we've done.

Final score: 8.5.

#4: Be Our Guest

Be Our Guest at Magic Kingdom is one of Disney World's most popular meals. It's prix fixe: one appetizer, one entrée and one dessert. When we went it was $72 per adult and $43 per child, before tax and tip.

Pro tip: Book the very first lunch reservation at 11 a.m. The first family in may get to sign the guest book and use the keys to open the Beast's castle for the day.

Vibes (10): Absolutely stunning. You can eat in Belle's library, the grand ballroom (with snow falling outside the windows), or the West Wing, our favorite. Watch the portrait there: when the lightning flashes, the prince turns into the Beast and another petal falls from the enchanted rose.

Food (9): Warm French bread to start, then fresh tuna tartare (the French onion soup is great too). The filet mignon with garlic mashed potatoes and brandy peppercorn sauce was tender and perfectly cooked. I had the crème brûlée tart. The kids dessert with the grey stuff in a chipped teacup is adorable. Dessert was just a little too sweet for us.

Characters (3): This is where it falls short. The Beast makes a grand entrance and walks through, but he doesn't come to your table. You can take photos, but you can't meet him or get a hug. For younger kids that can be disappointing, and honestly, I wouldn't really call it character dining.

Final score: 7.3.

Quick tips for any character meal

• Go for breakfast or lunch. Dinner is often the priciest seating, and the characters are just as fun at 9 a.m.
• Use it as your midday break. Sitting in the AC while characters come to you beats waiting in a meet-and-greet line.
• The lineup isn't guaranteed. Characters rotate, so go in flexible.
• Prices change. Check current pricing before you book.

Watch the whole series

Every review is on my YouTube channel in the character dining playlist. Tell me in the comments which character meal I should review next!