When it comes to prized dining reservations at The Magic Kingdom, none are more valuable than Be Our Guest. The dinner slots go quickly due to the striking décor and food that differs from normal theme park fare. Plus, you can drink alcohol! We didn’t finalize plans for our latest Walt Disney World trip until October, so grabbing a dinner ADR at Be Our Guest wasn’t possible. Luckily, there were still lunch times open for a Friday in January about 90 days in advance. It did require a 1:55 p.m. spot, but not eating at the peak time was fine. Even without the chance to have a beer in the Magic Kingdom, I was thrilled to eat inside such an acclaimed restaurant.
We arrived about 10 minutes before our ADR and were immediately escorted inside to the front kiosk. There is a chaotic feeling at Be Our Guest once you cross the bridge. We had ordered our meal online in advance, so it just took a minute for us to grab our receipt and scout out a table. This freedom of movement was nice, but it also sent many visitors scurrying to grab a prized spot. We decided to sit in the West Wing and spotted a table but were quickly rebuffed by patrons who’d stepped away. One thing that’s noticeable is the tight pathways. There is room to sit, but it becomes something else when cast members are trying to transport large quantities of food.
Thankfully, we were able to snag another table in the West Wing after a brief wait. Despite the intricate décor, you can’t escape the “theme park restaurant” feeling. I can’t blame Disney too much for this atmosphere. There is no real escape in a place like The Magic Kingdom. It just slightly lessens the magic of the fun touches. It’s a cool destination, and I definitely understand the hype. The dark lighting and smaller space bring a more intimate feel to the West Wing. When you add in the Enchanted Rose and the Prince’s portrait to the mix, it’s a convincing atmosphere.
The Ordering Process
Your interest in the ability to order your lunch in advance online probably depends on how you approach a theme park visit. I traveled with my wife and our two girls (6 and 2), so the organized meal benefited us. On the other hand, some guests might prefer to avoid planning another part of their trip. It is fairly easy to order your meal upon arrival, though I liked skipping that part of the process. The nice aspect about choosing in advance was having the chance to think through options without pressure. Honestly, the lunch choices were fairly limited anyway.
The lunch menu at Be Our Guest includes seven entrees, along with two soups (French onion and potato leak). Given the lower prices for the soups of just over $5, those are more likely as sides. The entrée choices include two salads, three sandwiches plus a vegetable quiche and braised pork. There are also six meals for kids, and it’s a pretty good selection on that front even for picky eaters.
Making our choices online was easy, and there were no issues locating our order at the restaurant. I am not ready for Disney to go too far in this direction, but it wouldn’t shock me to see more examples of this online preparation down the road. Beyond the benefits to the guest, it also allows Disney to better plan what they’ll need in the kitchen for the day.
The Meal
I like the way the menu at Be Our Guest differs from the typical fare, though not everything seemed like the right choice for the middle of a park day. I ordered the Braised Pork (Coq Au Vin Style), served with mashed potatoes and green beans. If you’re looking to ensure you have enough green veggies in your daily intake, this entrée is perfect. I could barely make out the other food beneath the mountain of green beans. Did Disney make a great deal with a distributor? Green beans were everywhere on this trip!
The quality was solid, and it was a lot of food for $15. It tasted fresh and was a different meal than usual. I enjoyed a good entrée improved by excellent sides, particularly the mashed potatoes. My wife ordered the Vegetable Quiche, which included a side salad. Her choice was okay, though probably not a signature dish. It also was brought down by the presence of too many green beans.
My daughters ordered the Grilled Cheese with Tomato Soup and the Whole-Grain Macaroni. There was the option to substitute fries for the vegetables, which is sometimes necessary for pickier eaters like ours. I sampled the soup and found it to be acceptable. Both improved on the standard macaroni and cheese, and I appreciated having some different options.
The Whole-Grain Macaroni was served with marinara sauce and a step above normal Disney fare. The girls both enjoyed their meals, but the real draw for them was the décor in the West Wing. They also were definitely on board with the desserts.
One of the draws of Be Our Guest is the chance to try the grey stuff; it’s delicious! This dessert isn’t included as a separate option for lunch but is the topping for The Master’s Cupcake. We chose that chocolate sponge cupcake along with a Strawberry Cheese Cream Cupcake. Both were $4.59 and on par with the better cupcake places here. It’s hard to say what I expected the grey stuff to be, but it was quite tasty. The Master’s Cupcake was definitely the standout if you’re looking for the best choice. There are seven dessert options on the lunch menu, all for the same price.
The Reason to Visit
Be Our Guest offers a good meal and decent variety, which isn’t a strong suit of The Magic Kingdom. Our lunch was just shy of $60 including drinks and tip, which wasn’t outlandish. Even so, the food isn’t the draw with Be Our Guest. I’m glad that Disney isn’t just offering hot dogs and hamburgers, so they deserve credit for raising the bar. This is true because of the restaurant’s attractive theming. It has small touches across three rooms that offer very different experiences. In the West Wing, trying to catch the moment when the Prince’s face morphs into the Beast is a fun game.
Arguably the most impressive design comes before you get inside. The intricate work on the bridge and landscaping nearby sets the right mood. Forced perspective used on the tower creates a cool backdrop that makes the meal feel like an event. The entrance bridge also provides excellent views of nearby attractions, particularly Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. The details throughout the space make Be Our Guest worth a visit. I’ll conclude this post with more photos that should give you a better idea of its charms.
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Never been buty sound like a good idea to be able to order your meal in advance. But if you do that how do they know where you are sitting at to serve you?
It was a pretty easy process. They scanned my MagicBand at the desk and printed out a receipt with our order info. When we reached our table, I gave that receipt to the server. So our location didn’t really matter since they just were able to work from the info on the receipt. I was impressed by how smooth they were in bringing the right meals in a short time.
Also, they handed us a yellow pager when we checked in that allowed them to find us at our table. They checked the receipt, but the pager was a key part of it.
Cool was wondering how it works. Sounds like a great system
Your review is spot on, we had dinner at Be Our Guest during our last WDW trip and found the food good but not great. It’s certainly not on par with the offerings found at EPCOT or many of the resort restaurants. However, the atmosphere and interior details are fantastic.
We found the check in process to be very chaotic. After spending 10 minutes at the kiosk while the cast member tried to find our reservation we were given a pager and told to cross the bridge and wait outside the door (in the rain). Our pager buzzed and we were allowed inside only to stand around for another 10-15 minutes while they found us a table. I know that BOG is a popular restaurant but I was unsettled by the lack of organization.
It sounds like we might have been lucky with our check-in experience at Be Our Guest. I figured that dinner might be easier since it’s a sit-down meal and not quick-service. I think that Be Our Guest is a great addition to The Magic Kingdom because of the theming. It is good to have some different food options given most of the other options at that park; very little could live up to that level of hype, though.
I agree that it’s practically impossible to live up tp the hype surrounding this restaurant. At least not at the price point most theme guests are willing to pay.
I think Be Our Guest falls into the same catagory as the Blue Bayou at Disneyland where the ambiance and overall experience are more memorable than the food.
I haven’t eaten at Blue Bayou, so my closest comparison is the San Angel Inn at EPCOT. While that one doesn’t have the same theming as Be Our Guest, there is a draw in eating by the ride. We didn’t have a great experience there in terms of the food but still enjoyed the ambience of it.