As a family with 3 kids, you would think character meals would be at the top of our list of things to do while at Walt Disney World. Though we do make a point to hit at least a couple of character meals each trip, we also enjoy the opportunity to have a leisurely meal without the additional hassle of having the camera, video camera, and autograph books at the ready. That said, all of us young and not-so-young wouldn’t think of our Disney trips as being complete without dining with some of our favorite Disney “celebrities”.
Until recently our family had made it to all the current character breakfasts except Ohana. We hand’t been avoiding it. It just happened to never make it into our plans before, but it was time to change that. This trip was different in that we had 3 generations attending. Uninitiated in character meals, my parents were accompanying us this trip which provided a fresh perspective.
Since we were going during a slow time of year, we had no difficulty securing an Advanced Dining Reservation (ADR for short) for our desired time – even as a party of 7 and only about 3 weeks out. We arrived by car at the Polynesian with time to spare and checked in about 15 minutes prior to our ADR time as recommended. Before being called to be taken to our table, our party was taken off to the side, given leis, and had a group picture taken. You are given the opportunity to review and purchase the photo while you are dining.
We were seated at a long table with booth seating on one side and chairs on the other. Three sides of the restaurant have windows overlooking the beautiful resort grounds, Seven Seas Lagoon, and Magic Kingdom beyond. Our server was prompt and friendly and described the food to be served as well as taking our drink orders. A delicious blended juice is brought out along with an assortment of fresh fruit. Other drinks such as orange juice, milk, and a carafe of coffee are included. The coffee at Ohana was particularly rich and delicious brewed coffee unlike much of the Nescafe’ instant coffee you find across Walt Disney World. In no time at all, this is followed by the hot foods consisting of scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, sausage links, bacon, biscuits, and Mickey waffles with butter and syrup. The menu is pretty typical – no big surprises for breakfast – however, our entire party found it all to be better than average. The biscuits were light and flaky; the sausage was very tasty; and the potatoes although simply prepared, were worth a second or third helping as well. This is not a problem since Ohana serves breakfast family style, meaning large platters of food are brought out for all to share and replenished until everyone has had his fill. There is simply no excuse for leaving hungry.
And now for the characters. It is called Best Friends Polynesian Character Breakfast for a reason. Best buddies Lilo and Stitch as well as Mickey and his best pal Pluto dressed in their best Hawaiian style come by to greet you, sign autographs, and ham it up for pictures and video with everyone at the table, young and old. As Lilo says, “Ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind”. Our group consisted of family members 3-74 years of age, and each left with a smile on his face and a satisfied appetite.
Every 30 minutes or so all the children are invited to take up traditional island instruments provided and join in a parade with the characters leading the way around the restaurant. This is a fun photo opportunity and helps blow off a little steam if you have a young one whose patience is short awaiting the next visit from the characters. It is lively enough but not as boisterous and chaotic as at Chef Mickey’s, for example. It was a delightful introduction into character meals for the grandparents, and we are all looking forward to our next opportunity to return to Ohana. Our entire family had a wonderful dining experience and left with nothing but positive endorsements for the atmosphere, food, and character interaction.