First of all, I apologize for not writing a blog post in almost two months. The past few months have been busy with wedding planning, the holidays, traveling, and more wedding planning. On my most recent trip to Disney World, I FINALLY had the opportunity to dine in Cinderella's Castle. Here are my thoughts on the entire experience that I got to share with one of my friends, who actually told me on our trip in May, "I can't wait until we're rich women and can afford to eat in Cinderella's Castle!" Fast-forward seven months, and look where we were.
Customer Service
The Cast Members working at Cinderella's Royal Table were super accommodating and helpful, from getting us last-minute reservations to allowing us to enter the castle after being almost an hour late to our reservation. Side note: I know lots about Disney World, but can still manage to get on the entirely wrong monorail that takes us to Epcot instead of Magic Kingdom. This, in addition to our monorail basically breaking on our way back to Magic Kingdom, is why we sprinted to Cinderella's Castle and were sweating by the time we got to our reservation an hour late!
Price Point
I have eaten at many Signature Dining locations in Disney World, and while most of them have good food, none compare to the food that I ate at Cinderella's Royal Table. For $81 per person, we not only ate a delicious three-course meal, but we got to meet and greet five princesses and dine inside of Cinderella's Castle! I am a pretty frugal person, and I thought this was worth every dollar. If you have a little Prince or Princess, or if you are a child at heart, you must experience this restaurant at least once!
Recommended For
Adults, Families with Older Children, Families with Younger Children
Atmosphere
The dining area is actually not that large, but I liked this because it made it feel more intimate. The dining room is very beautiful and royal-looking, with large flags hanging above your heads, shields on the walls, lots of stone columns, and rich, red wallpaper. If you're lucky, you can get a table by the windows with a breathtaking view of Fantasyland. I hope to sit there one day, but my friend and I were thrilled to be sitting anywhere in the room! Every seat is a great seat, and all of the princesses will visit you no matter where you're sitting. Also, every girl gets a magic wand and every boy gets a sword, including all adults, when you sit down at your table. How magical is that? My inner Disney-nerd was all about the plastic wand!
Characters
Right after we got checked into our reservation, we were brought into a room to meet and take a picture with Cinderella before she "had to have tea with her prince." Unfortunately, this was the only time we got to see Cinderella during the entire meal, but at least we had a royal welcome from the Princess of the Castle! The four princesses who we met in the dining room were: Snow White, Aurora, Ariel, and Jasmine. They were available to take pictures and talked with each table for a few minutes. I didn't feel like the princesses were rushed during their visit with each table, which made it a relaxing character dining experience. The only thing I wish they offered was a Disney Photo Pass person to take pictures of you with the princesses, because the lighting inside of the castle is not the best for pictures. The princesses that you meet depend on the meal that you go for, but you always get to meet Cinderella no matter which meal you have reservations for.
Food
As I mentioned earlier, this is a three-course meal that has a set price but not a set menu. My meal was completely different from my friend's, but we both paid the same price. Everyone gets a drink, appetizer, entree, and dessert. I ordered: Castle Salad, Pan-Seared All-Natural Chicken, and Jaq & Gus for dessert. I didn't realize how morbid that dessert sounds until now, but I assure you I didn't eat any mice for dessert! Me entire meal was delicious, and I have no complaints about any of it. The portions were perfect (not too large, but not too small), everything was flavorful, and the presentation of each dish was beautiful! My friend ordered: Charcuterie Plate, Chef's Fish of the Day (which was Salmon that day), and The Clock Strikes Twelve. She said that the appetizer was alright (but she didn't really know what she was ordering when she ordered it), the fish was delicious, and the dessert was also so good! We both agreed that that was the best food we've had in Disney World, and we both would go back in a heartbeat.
In Summary
As you can see, I loved Cinderella's Royal Table and give it two thumbs up. I would highly suggest this dining experience to anyone with little children or anyone who is young at heart. It's a magical, delicious, memory-making, and truly one-of-a-kind dining experience. Before I actually experienced it, I had always said that I would only do Cinderella's Royal Table once. Now I can definitely say that I will be back again. If you can afford it and can manage to snag some reservations (I got reservations two days in advance, so it's possible), go and enjoy this wonderful gem right in the center of Magic Kingdom!
Do you know if the princesses change depending on the time of year as well (in addition to having different princesses depending on the meal)? Are you able to look up a "princess schedule" when you are planning a vacation ahead of time to make sure that you meet your fav?