Thoughts on Akershus, 1900 Park Fare?

[SorcererDonald16]

Has anyone here eaten at Akershus and/or 1900 Park Fare in the past 12-18 months or so? I'm interested in hearing what any of you have to say about either place, especially about the food and the noise level. Character interaction quality too!

I'm in a bit of a conundrum. I'll be at WDW on my birthday, and I'd like to try a new restaurant for dinner. Fortunately, we've tried a lot of places over the years and had some great experiences; unfortunately, that doesn't leave me many places to try! I narrowed it down to one of these 2 places for dinner (Akershus might end up being a late lunch instead since available ADRs are next to non-existent on my b-day).

I've looked at the menus and a few pics for both places, and I'm not sure which is a better choice for me. I hate (and I mean HATE) seafood, so that presents a problem at both locations. I don't mind well-cooked salmon though, or tuna. Generally speaking, I also won't touch things like duck, rabbit, lamb, venison, etc. with a 10-foot pole. I like chicken. Love ham, love turkey, love pasta. I eat more red meat now than I used to out of necessity (I'm anemic). I LOVEEEE cheese. Cheese is my chocolate.

I really like the sound of the mushroom ravioli entree at Akershus, but I'm not sure if I could find enough to eat on the cold buffet. All in all, I am not a big eater though, so I don't need a ton of food to fill up. I don't know what to think of what little food I know for sure that 1900 Park Fare has, other than I love the sound of strawberry soup. I also have an allergy to pepper, if that matters.

On a less important note-- How do y'all feel going to meals like this without children? I'm in my late 20s, and I love "fur character" meals, but I have never been big on face characters. I think I've met two in 13 trips (Mulan in China; Cinderella at CRT dinner 4 years ago). I just feel kind of awkward and self-conscious around them. Never even met my favorite human (part human?) Disney character, Ariel, because of this. I'm going to buck up and try one of these meals, but just not sure what to expect. My mom thinks it'll be fun at either place; my dad doesn't know about my decision yet, and I think he is going to be in this for the food alone and just have to humor us like he does at Afternoon Tea.

Any thoughts, reviews, or food pics would be so appreciated!

[Amy]

I haven't been to either of those restaurants so I can't help you out there specifically, but it sounds like you might enjoy visiting one of the Italian restaurants a bit more. Pasta and cheese can be found in abundance there Have you tried Via Napoli? That is really good
Akerhaus is Princess dining so I would think you might not be overly fond of that with your thoughts toward face characters ~ although perhaps that would be a good place to meet Ariel for the first time? I think 1900 Park Faire is along the same lines, but there might be more costumed characters there.
With your food concerns and allergies, you might want to investigate the menus more closely and choose based on where you think you can find a good meal. It's your birthday after all, so you'll want to enjoy your food!

[DisneyYorkie]

I have eaten at both restaurants, although not within the time frame you requested. I will offer the following thoughts:

1. Akershus was good and I was surprised that I found as much to eat there as I did. The Unofficial Guide to WDW 2012 offers this: "a wonderful array of cheeses, meats, and salads; for lunch it's mostly sandwiches such as a salmon burger and grilled-venison-sausage sandwich. Picky kids will like the cheese ravioli, pizza, and grilled chicken. You can order more than one entree--just ask. Service can sometimes be slow, but the cuisine is above average." IMO you would enjoy the atmosphere of the restaurant itself more because it is unique "A framed ceilings and massive iron chandeliers."

2. 1900 Park Fare was good as well. We had breakfast here and it was outstanding, however we never ate DINNER here so I cannot speak to the dinner buffet offerings. Here is what the Unofficial Guide has to say: "Buffet includes prime rib, salmon, and Chicken Marsala. Separate buffet for kids includes pasta marinara, mini-corn dogs, chicken nuggets, and mac-and-cheese. An OK choice for character dining, but too bright and loud for adults without children." IMO this is probably NOT the atmosphere you want, although the food might be more to your liking.

Note that you can go to Disney's own dining website area and read Trip Advisor reviews for ALL the restaurants. Just click on the restaurants in which you have interest and click that link to make a reservation. Akershus has 260 reviews, 1900 Park Fare has 284 reviews. You do not have to make a reservation to see the reviews. You can also see the menus for the restaurant in PDF form.

3. One of our favorite places is The Garden Grill restaurant at Epcot. The restaurant slowly revolves and you can see parts of The Land attraction while dining. Buffet table-style service: they bring platters and bowls of food and you can have as many servings as you desire. The beef is outstanding as is the turkey. The mashed potatoes were delish. They also bring a fruit cobbler for dessert. We had children in our party the last time and they were able to get mac n cheese, which was also wonderful. The restaurant now operates only from 4-8 PM.

[SorcererDonald16]

Thanks Amy, and DisneyYorkie! I appreciate the replies and your time!

Amy-- we tried Via Napoli for the first time last May. I am in love with their 4 cheese pizza! I haven't made my ADRs yet (aside from a few on the overlapping days where I know we'll be there regardless of when we arrive and leave), but once I figure the schedule out, I'll be making an ADR for dinner there on another night.

*As of now, we plan to eat at Chefs de France 2x (L, D; our fave restaurant in WDW); Le Cellier (L); Via Napoli (D); Brown Derby (L); Sci-Fi (D); Crystal Palace (B); Chef Mickey's (B); Afternoon Tea; and lunch at Whispering Canyon (which I HATE, but, alas, my dad loves the skillet, so that is my turn to humor him on vacation.) One thing making me question Akershus too is the fact that we will already have 4 ADRs in Epcot. (Last year we had 5-- we also did Coral Reef (L)-- but couldn't make it to Chefs for L). Akershus (L, D) and Park Fare (D) feature all face characters, so I am "stuck" either way on that front, haha.

*I looked at the menus of the other Italian places (Mama Melrose, Tony's and Tutto) and lasagna pics (my fave pasta by miles), and I think Tony's has way too much meat for me to enjoy it, and Tutto's $26 for a serving of lasagna would kill my appetite. Yikes! We liked Alfredo's a lot, and were saddened to see it close. Never tried Tutto due to the prices. I used to love Tony's pizzas, but they went down the tubes a couple years ago, IMO. Mama's doesn't even serve lasagna, oddly enough.

The frustrating thing about both of my options is that there simply aren't real menus for the buffets anywhere, not even on Disney's site. You can find lists of some of the items served, but not a lot.

DisneyYorkie-- I so appreciate you typing all that out for me! I get the UG every other year, and this is my year for a new one. Their info has always been helpful to me.

*re: the noise at 1900 Park Fare, I don't mind a loud restaurant ala Chef Mickey's, but I just can't handle Crystal Palace at dinner. I ate there a few years back, and I felt like my head was going to explode. How was the noise for you at breakfast, if you remember?

*Do you remember what you had to eat at Akershus (entree, what was on the cold buffet)?

*Thanks for the tips on the official site's guest reviews. Never noticed that before! And the tip on Garden Grill as well; we had considered eating there years ago, but didn't see enough things we liked on the menu to make it a good choice for us. I'll have to hunt down some pics and mull it over too.

[DisneyYorkie]

DisneyYorkie-- I so appreciate you typing all that out for me! I get the UG every other year, and this is my year for a new one. Their info has always been helpful to me.

*re: the noise at 1900 Park Fare, I don't mind a loud restaurant ala Chef Mickey's, but I just can't handle Crystal Palace at dinner. I ate there a few years back, and I felt like my head was going to explode. How was the noise for you at breakfast, if you remember?

*Do you remember what you had to eat at Akershus (entree, what was on the cold buffet)?

*Thanks for the tips on the official site's guest reviews. Never noticed that before! And the tip on Garden Grill as well; we had considered eating there years ago, but didn't see enough things we liked on the menu to make it a good choice for us. I'll have to hunt down some pics and mull it over too.

Parke Fare at breakfast was a pretty noisy affair...background music, children running around everywhere excited because of the characters, etc. Crystal Palace was very noisy when we were there for breakfast as well, although the food was outstanding.

At Akershus, all I can remember was platters of meats and cheeses. I also remember sandwiches of some kind. Honestly though it has been so long ago (2006 or earlier), that I hate to rely on my memory too much. I DO remember that we were impressed with the food and were very satisfied when done. I also remember that our children (very young....11 and 5 or so at the time) were quite satisfied with the food as well.

My recommendation was to read as many of the over two hundred reviews as you can stomach . In the end, I've never had a bad meal in a Disney run restaurant, so you will likely enjoy whatever you choose.

Have you every considered California Grill? Definitely more upscale dining experience there and, I'm sure, prices to go with it.

[DisneyYorkie]

The frustrating thing about both of my options is that there simply aren't real menus for the buffets anywhere, not even on Disney's site. You can find lists of some of the items served, but not a lot.

From Disney's dining site:
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/media/ ... -lunch.pdf

and:
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/d ... ID=28#menu

WDWINFO.com does a very good job of posting menus AND keeping them updated. I did notice that they didn't appear to have Akershus.

[Amy]

*I looked at the menus of the other Italian places (Mama Melrose, Tony's and Tutto) and lasagna pics (my fave pasta by miles), and I think Tony's has way too much meat for me to enjoy it, and Tutto's $26 for a serving of lasagna would kill my appetite. Yikes! We liked Alfredo's a lot, and were saddened to see it close. Never tried Tutto due to the prices. I used to love Tony's pizzas, but they went down the tubes a couple years ago, IMO. Mama's doesn't even serve lasagna, oddly enough.

The frustrating thing about both of my options is that there simply aren't real menus for the buffets anywhere, not even on Disney's site. You can find lists of some of the items served, but not a lot.

It might be worth a call down to Disney and see if you could speak with someone at Tony's. You could ask if a cheese only lasagna is an option.
I'm pretty sure the buffets change little things here and there so they really don't have a set menu that you can go by. The only nice thing about buffets is there is usually something that looks tasty ~ even if it is only the desserts at the end

I agree with DisneyYorkie's suggestion on California Grill. Since it is going to be your birthday dinner you might want to splurge a bit and have a memorable evening watching the fireworks from above. I've heard good things about the food there, but I guess the view is simply the best!

Sounds like you have a great line-up of restaurants already. Do you have the dining plan for this trip? Do you find that you have any trouble having to plan your days around your ressies?

[SorcererDonald16]

DisneyYorkie-- Thanks so much for the links! I had seen the one for entrees and drinks; just wish they had one for the cold buffet part! I hadn't even thought to look at the DIS for menus. Ironic, because that was my very first Disney forum! Appreciate it, that helps me a lot with Park Fare, especially since it was just updated last month! The noise info does concern me, though. I'll have to think about that. I'm glad you liked Akershus.

Part of me would like to just go ahead and try both, but considering all the other ADRs we will have, and considering 2 are buffets, that is getting into the way too pricey territory for us budget-wise.

We've eaten at California Grill 2x; really enjoyed our food both times, but the 2nd time we visited, the service was so horrible that we decided not to return for the foreseeable future. This was in 2009, I think. So for right now, that's out.

I am going to read reviews in a bit. Hope to get something settled soon, because I really want to get the ADR stuff all straightened out ASAP.

Amy-- That's not a bad idea! I may do that if I decided against both Akershus and PF. And yup, the desserts at the end of the Cyrstal Palace buffet I ate at a few years back were worth the whole cost (and I am not a dessert person). I actually LOVED CP's dinner buffet; loved the food. I would go back there again if it weren't for the noise. We had late breakfast ressies last year, and it was mercifully quiet. Fingers crossed again for this year's breakfast there.

CG is a great suggestion, but between the lousy service last time and the fact that I have already seen the fireworks from there twice, I have to pass. I really want to see the fireworks "up close" that night, whichever park I end up at (if we go to PF, that will be an MK day; Akershus, Epcot day).

Nope, no dining plan! We pay OOP. At a lot of non-buffet places, we don't order entrees. We order an app and a dessert, or an entree and split it two ways plus dessert, apps plus a split entree, etc. It really keeps costs down, and works for us because my mom and I are not big eaters. Most of the time it comes out to a little less or just a little more than the average full CS meal, believe it or not. Last year, I think our most expensive meals were at Le Cellier, the two breakfast buffets, Whispering Canyon, and maybe Sci-Fi? Plus Planet Hollywood. The relatively cheap ones were Brown Derby, Tea, Chefs de France, Via Napoli, Rainforest Cafe. Coral Reef basically added up to what 3 people would spend at a chain like Olive Garden.

I should do a mini-dining review here from my trip last year! At least with pics and brief reviews. I did a detailed one years ago on the DIS and never finished it thanks to my now-defunct old computer.

ETA: Yes, it is a pain planning around ADRs, and experiencing the parks around them. Epcot is the worst, since we always seem to be at the opposite end of where we need to be when it is time for our ADR. That is why I am axing Coral Reef this year, and still debating chopping something else out. Takes too much park time. But the food is so yummy, so I am torn.

[Amy]

Oh, I didn't know you had eaten at the California Grill a couple times before. That's neat that you were able to eat there. I would love to do it someday but the dress code will be a sticky point for me ~ I'm just not a fancy dresser
I think any of the restaurants would be happy to answer questions if you called them. With more and more people having allergies, I wouldn't think they would have a problem at all with your calling ahead.
You might want to invest in a pair of high quality earplugs before your trip. I got custom made plugs, akin to what musicians wear but without the electronics on the inside. They were quite comfortable and made such a difference in the louder attractions and dining areas. You can get any sorts of colors or patterns and can make them blend in so people don't even notice you have them. I of course went for the bright blue, tye die swirl, glow in the dark option No blending in for this girl! Hence that whole dress code issue for the Cali Grill
A mini-dining review with pictures sounds like a great idea. I would love to see and hear about the different places as we don't venture much in the the table service dining due to costs. Even with sharing, we find you get too much food and it costs too much I mentioned to friends of mine yesterday (they're going to WDW for their sons marching in the band at the MK) about the drinks at EPCOT costing around $8-10 and they sort of chuckled and said that is what the drinks cost around here. So I guess maybe I just don't get out enough But that does add to the sticker shock of the food at Disney if you don't go out much when you are at home!

[SorcererDonald16]

Yup, that's the place I mentioned before where the waiter am-scrayed when he found out we were only ordering apps and dessert. You don't have to dress fancy though; I just wore a normal pair of slacks 1 time and capris the other time, a pullover blouse, and my black sandals. Definitely not dressy clothes, just work/school attire. They don't allow things like hats for men, and I think men have to wear a collared shirt. No swimwear, tank tops, beach shoes, etc. I can't remember if they allow shorts or not. I know I saw some people in (decent) jeans. Looking at the dress code now, and they do allow dress shorts, and they now allow t-shirts. That's surprising. Maybe give it a try next time you go!

I can handle a lot noise-wise, usually; the roar after Wishes, Fantasmic!, etc. I just couldn't tolerate CP at dinner, and World of Disney gives me a headache every single time I go in there. I try to dart through that place as quickly as possible. I'm hoping I won't need earplugs, but I might follow your lead and look into it. I've had some severe headaches occasionally the last few months when I hear loud noises, so I am hoping that problem will be gone by May.

I've uploaded some pics and hope to write a mini-review starting later today, so that might give you an idea of portions and stuff. The three of us don't drink alcohol, so that saves a lot of $ alone. We don't usually order soda with meals either, except CS meals.

I still haven't decided what to do, but we went ahead and made a lunch ADR for Akershus (all they had dinner-wise was after 8pm, so I would've missed Illuminations) and a dinner ADR for 1900 Park Fare. So at least I can take a bit more time to figure this out.

[Soarin08]

I've never done Akershus thanks to the stupid princesses taking over, but I have done 1900 Park Fare's breakfast. I highly recommend it. The characters there were very engaging and spent a lot of time with us (and we had a group of 13), and the food was wonderful. We loved the make-your-own omelet bar (if it's still there, it's been 3 years since I dined there but still, I have been there).

[Mark86]

I have only eaten at 1900 Park Fare for breakfast the last two years in I was in Disney. The food was very good and there were a ton of options to select from at the buffet. The atmosphere is nice and noise level was tolerable. It was definitely quieter than Chef Mickey and on par with Garden Grill. As for the characters, there were much more interactive in 2010 than last year. I thought the Mad Hatter was funnier and all the characters spent more time at the table. Last year, the characters took pictures/signed autographs and not much else. In 2010, my table had a great time with the characters- especially the Mad Hatter. We had multiple characters come over to join the fun and they all spent time. Oh, and nobody at my table was under the age of 20! Although I never ate dinner there, I recommend the restaurant.

[Amy]

....We had multiple characters come over to join the fun and they all spent time. Oh, and nobody at my table was under the age of 20! ....

In physical age anyhow

[Len90]

On a less important note-- How do y'all feel going to meals like this without children? I'm in my late 20s, and I love "fur character" meals, but I have never been big on face characters. I think I've met two in 13 trips (Mulan in China; Cinderella at CRT dinner 4 years ago). I just feel kind of awkward and self-conscious around them. Never even met my favorite human (part human?) Disney character, Ariel, because of this. I'm going to buck up and try one of these meals, but just not sure what to expect. My mom thinks it'll be fun at either place; my dad doesn't know about my decision yet, and I think he is going to be in this for the food alone and just have to humor us like he does at Afternoon Tea.

Any thoughts, reviews, or food pics would be so appreciated!

Food wise, I really can't be of too much assistance yet as we have only eaten at 1900 Park Fare for breakfast and will be eating at Akershus this summer. I personally enjoyed the food at 1900 Park Fare and haven't heard anything bad about either place yet.

As for the face characters, get over it. My brother is in his mid 20s and I am 21. We're both males and are looking forward to the experience that Akershus will offer. I've seen numerous face characters throughout the parks and last year we set a new record in number of characters we met over our stay. Included in this are the princess and fairy meet and greets at MK. One of the great things I personally love about Disney World is that it is a place where you can let loose and do things that you would normally be afraid to do. You have NOTHING to be self-conscioous about and by feeling "awkward" you are preventing yourself from having the time of your life.

[Amy]

...last year we set a new record in number of characters we met over our stay....

Was that helped out just a teeny bit by your unexpected extra days?