The Grand Floridian’s 1900 Park Fare’s Wishmakers Enchanted Dining is a great place to refresh and fuel up at the start of your Disney day, or refill before an evening in the parks. It is conveniently located on the monorail loop and offers an all-you-care-to-eat buffet with carving stations, favorite comfort foods, and a delicious collection of desserts.
During a recent Disney Eats event, I was among the media invited to experience the recently refurbished location. It features a cheerful palette reminiscent of a springtime afternoon in the park and the walls are lined with impressionistic-style paintings of some of Disney’s best-known wishmakers.
- Aurora
- Snow White
- Gepetto
- Tiana
- Rapunzel
- Aladdin
- Cinderella
- Ariel
- Arthur
- Asha
As you enter, you'll pass the multi-station buffet as you go from the check-in lobby to your table. If you’ve been here before, you may notice the large carousel horses have been removed. However, you can still find carousel horses hidden among the wallpaper.
Among the buffet highlights are a carving station with prime rib and spice-roasted turkey, baked salmon, large peel-and-eat shrimp, and a variety of comfort foods including macaroni and cheese, pizza, and turkey meatballs. Our host suggested we break tradition and start with dessert to ensure room for the hotel’s signature chilled strawberry soup.
At our table, we received an ornate postcard and were invited to write down a wish for a moment later in the meal. I couldn’t think of anything to write and was initially nervous about this. However, our blank card proved quite the conversation starter for the quartet of Disney wishmakers that visited our table – Mirabel, Aladdin, Cinderella and Tiana.
While I was enjoying a Strawberry Rosé Spritz made up of La Fête du Rosé, Rockey’s Botanical Liqueur, Tito’s Handmade Vodka & Strawberry and my friend Morgan was delighting in a Passion Fruit Daiquiri, Encanto’s Mirabel stopped by. After seeing the blank card, she reminded us that we can hold a wish for others and Aladdin offered up his experiences having to narrow down all he wanted into three wishes and encouraged us to write down our wishes so we wouldn’t forget them and remember to hold them in our heart. When Cinderella (our favorite princess) stopped by our table, we discussed dancing at the Royal Ball, her favorite dance partner Prince Charming, and received the advice to be home before midnight. Princess Tiana dressed in her Bayou Adventure outfit chatted with us about her gumbo which is among the buffet items.
In addition to Tiana’s gumbo, other buffet dishes have been inspired by the regional cuisines of the Disney wishmakers including the Mediterranean blend of spices found on the roasted turkey. The spice-roasted turkey, curry-baked chicken and salmon with lemon saffron sauce was full of flavor — a nice surprise as a buffet offering.
If you are looking for meatless options, the buffet offers an impossible sausage dish with zucchini noodles, a macaroni and cheese dish, a few vegetable side dishes including glazed carrots, substantial salad bar as well as assorted cheeses with breads.
Based on previous dining experiences at the Grand Floridian Resort, I knew I’d be enjoying a tasty meal but wasn’t prepared for the impact of the special Wishmakers moment: At some point during your Wishmakers Enchanted Dining meal Jiminy Cricket’s voice fills the room and he invites everyone to gather up those cards on the table and hold them high up in the air. It's a little thing, but I love how he suggests wish granters (AKA parents) can help if you need it. With the cards up in the air, their gold foil accents lend them a delightfully magical twinkle. And as the melody from “When You Wish upon a Star” plays he leads everyone including Aladdin, Cinderella, Mirabel and Tiana in the affirmation: “I wish my wish, as wishmakers do, and believe in myself to make it come true.” And he concludes the special moment by reminding all that perhaps what you need to make your wish come true is simply believe in yourself.
I’d recommend the revisioned 1900 Park Fare not only for its filling and tasty meal for the rejuvenating atmosphere, deep, cleansing breath in the midst of a Walt Disney World vacation.
- 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian
- Breakfast: $54/adult. $34/child
- Dinner: $66/adult, $41/child