Disney World has some of my very favorite restaurants ever. Table service (TS) restaurants are Disney's sit down restaurants where a waitperson will take your order and bring your meal. All of the restaurants in this category accept Advance Dining Reservations (ADRs). It's strongly recommended that you make ADR's especially for popular restaurants and all character dining. If staying on property, ADRs can be made 60 days out for your entire trip (up to 10 days). For a general overview of all dining, check out this post.
The biggest problem is that there are so many restaurant choices and so little vacation time (and so little belly room). I'm going to give you some of my personal favorite locations in Magic Kingdom, and also ones to avoid. As always, Disney adds new restaurants, updates menus, and changes suppliers and vendors. Unfortunately, one of our very favorite restaurants recently underwent a supplier change and the food there is just awful now (we actually had a manager at our table because it was so bad). These recommendations are from winter 2023. I'll try to update as restaurants make changes.
***Important notice***
When I talk about pricing, please note that "adults" means anyone age 10 and over. "Kid" pricing is anyone age 3-9. Anyone under 3 is free and not included in the pricing. All prices listed are current pricing as of January 2024.
Disney's Magic Kingdom Recommendations
Magic Kingdom is a wonderful park filled with magic and joy at Disney World. Unfortunately, that magic does not spill over into their table service (TS) restaurants. It will probably surprise most of you to know that Magic Kingdom has some of the lowest ranked table service restaurants in all of Disney. We much prefer to simply snack all day at MK because some of our favorite snack foods in all of Disney are at this park. That will be a whole different article since today we are talking about TS foods.
My very favorite TS restaurant in MK is Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen. It's actually one of my top 5 favorite restaurants in all 4 parks. It's a long name and you'll commonly hear it simply called "Skipper Canteen". As someone who prefers veggies over meats, this restaurant takes top slot. If I hear that a restaurant has falafels on the menu, there's a good chance that's what I'm ordering. Having eaten falafels at many, many restaurants, I can say, hands down, that these are some of the best ones I have ever had. These falafels are so good that they get two pictures (pictured above and below this paragraph). The bed of hummus they are served on is amazing. I don't know how they make this hummus, but I would buy it in tubs to take home if Disney were to sell it that way. If falafels and hummus aren't your thing, don't worry. There are amazing carnivore options here as well. My family have all enjoyed the grilled steak, fried chicken, and fish dishes. This is a relatively unknown restaurant in Magic Kingdom. Reservations are almost always available and they often have same day walk-up wait list availability. While this restaurant may not have princesses or Mickey strolling around while you eat, it does boast the best tasting meal in all of MK! The theming is also super fun. Be sure to read all of the signs around the restaurant for some added entertainment while you wait on your food to arrive. Pro Tip: eat here after riding Jungle Cruise to continue the explorer theming.
If you wish you could eat a full Thanksgiving meal everyday, then Liberty Tree Tavern is the restaurant for you. This colonial inspired restaurant serves a family-style all you care to eat meal every single day. Being an all you can eat meal, it is priced accordingly at $42 for adults and $23 for kids. This is a very heavy meal designed for big eaters and includes turkey, pot roast, and pork. Basically, you have to love meat to eat here (which I don't). They did recently add a plant based meal of Impossible meatloaf, mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy, and veggies. I love that Disney is stepping up their plant based offerings, but this one missed the mark. This type of food is one I actually don't like at all. If I'm being honest, we have never eaten here because Thanksgiving type foods grosses me out. However, I'm including it on the "recommended list" becuse it does come highly recommended by everyone I know who does like this type of food. No one I know has ever given it a bad review. So if you like this type of food, then I think you will be pleased with this choice.
The Plaza Restaurant is one that doesn't get a lot if love or respect. It's actually a fantastic little sandwich shop at the very end of Main Street USA right before you get to the Hub. This reasonably priced Disney Table Service restaurant features soups, salads, and sandwiches. While the burgers are priced higher than the burgers you can get at quick service locations, the quality and taste is much better. It's connected to The Plaza Ice Cream Parlor, so make sure you save room for dessert. This was the first time in her life that My Sissy was able to have a root beer float due to her severe life threaten dairy allergy. Disney is amazing with working with food allergy guests and they took extra care to ensure no cross contact with her order. Also, you never know when the Main Street Fire Chief might pop in and make you Jr Mayor for the day and issue you a golden FastPass+. Although... I'm not sure if they still do this since FP+ isn't a thing anymore at Disney.
Disney's Magic Kingdom Skips
Be Our Guest is a Beauty and the Beast themed Table Service restaurant in Disney's New Fantasy Land area. The restaurant itself if absolutely stunning. It had always been one of our very favorite restaurants at Disney for both food taste and theming. However, this is the restaurant that recently had supplier/vendor changes that I mentioned at the beginning of the article. The manager did come to our table to let us know about these changes after I complained that the food quality was not what we were used to. Just FYI, this is the only time I have ever complained about the food to a manager at Disney. It was legit that bad. With a set price of $70 for adults and $41 for kids, the new quality of the food does not match the price for the pre fixe 3-course menu. The picture on the left is how the steak looked prior to June. The one on the right is how it is now served. This was a huge disappointment to our family, because this has been our favorite restaurant ever since it opened. If you do decide to eat here, pay attention to all of the detailing in the restaurant. The lobby boasts a gorgeous stained glass window. In the ballroom (main dining room), the snowfall scene is the actual footage from the classic animated movie. The imagineers spent a considerable about of time and energy into making this the most perfectly themed restaurant on property. I hope the food quality goes back to what it was before so that we can once again enjoy dining here.
Another disappointment about this restaurant is that since Covid, The Beast no longer meets guests. He only walks out and does a lap around the restaurant every 20 minutes or so, but you are not allowed to hug him or properly "meet" him. Cast Members will stop any kiddo who tres to run up to him to hug him. Pre-Covid, he used to meet down a hallway near the entrance. It was a fantastic meet and greet character meal. He spent a solid 1-2 minutes just dancing with my little princess. With no more social distancing guidelines in place and all other character dining back to normal, I'm not sure why Disney hasn't resumed the proper Beast interaction.
The other skippable restaurant at MK is Tony's Town Square. This is a Lady and the Tramp inspired Italian restaurant located at the entrance to the park. We have never actually dined here due consistently horrible reviews. I can't bring myself to try it, even for the sake of research. Disney is notorious for bad Italian Table Service food inside the parks, however they have some great options at resort restaurants. If you have ever dined here and NOT had a bad experience, let me know.
Eh... It Could go Either Way
The Crystal Palace is one where our family is split. The Hubby and I don't care for it. The Kiddo and My Sissy both like it. If you have Winnie the Pooh fans in your group, know that this is the ONLY character meal in all of Disney to feature Pooh and Friends. The restaurant itself it beautiful. It's designed to look like a Victorian greenhouse and filled with topiaries and greenery. This is a buffet style meal so breakfast is $48/adult and $30/child and lunch/dinner is $61/adult and $40/child. Breakfast is nothing special. It's just standard breakfast foods. Lunch/dinner features country fried chicken with gravy, mashed potatoes, and shrimp creole. As we have already established, this is not my preferred type of food. Every time we have eaten here, the food has not felt fresh. I think My Sissy likes it better because she has severe life threatening allergies, so the chef always prepares her food separately in the back and brings it out fresh. Her food does always look much better than ours. People I've talked to who have eaten here also give it a hit or miss review. So, if you have die hard Pooh fans in your group and this type of food is what you like to eat, then give it a try. Just know, that while the experience will be amazing, the food might not be that great.
One restaurant that I think everyone should try at least once (if within your budget) is Cinderella's Royal Table. Is the food here going to knock your socks off? No. Not even close. However, this is the restaurant that is INSIDE of the castle. It is the essence of Disney World. The theming here is top notch. It is also a character meal with Cinderella and several other princesses. Again, the food here is not worth the $84 per adult and $49 per child price tag. You are paying for the experience. This is a pre fixe menu meaning you get 3 courses and a drink included with lunch and dinner. Breakfast is a bit cheaper at $69 for adults and $42 for kids. The difference in price is breakfast only comes with pastries and an entree (two courses instead of three). If using the Disney Dining Plan, it will take 2-credits for this meal. We have done breakfast here several times, and it has always been good and we've always had a fun time. If you have a larger budget, this is a fun restaurant. If you have a smaller budget, then know that the food quality does not match the price and you may want to splurge else wear.
Hopefully you now have a good understanding of all that Disney's Magic Kingdom has to offer for Table Service dining. Disney is constantly changing up their offerings, so make sure you check the website or app for current, up to date offerings during your travel time.
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