Disneyland Paris – Cafe Mickey Dinner Sitting Review

Today I’m reviewing Cafe Mickey in the Disney Village at the Disneyland Paris resort. I did a poll and it turns out this is what people were most interested in reading so here we are. Little Miss and I have eaten here twice, and since the menu upgrade this is now my favourite place to eat on property. We ate way back in May 2014 when we visited with my mum and again in October 2015. Although I have used photos from both visits, I will be reviewing the restaurant based on our trip last October as it includes the menu that is now in operation.

As I mentioned above, Cafe Mickey is actually in the Disney Village rather than in either of the parks. It’s at the far back of the village near Lake Disney meaning if you get a window view you can look out across the lake. It’s a very contemporary building with plenty of hidden Mickey’s to keep you busy while you wait for your table both inside and outside. Quite often you do have to queue outside both if you have a reservation or you’re stand by as I have to say there never seems to be a quiet time to dine here, it’s certainly one of the most popular restaurants on property. Not to worry though, the area is enclosed protecting you from the harsh Parisian elements (well, at least 70% of the year anyway haha). Unlike the whimsical fairytale setting of Auberge de Cendrillon, the colour scheme is very modern using primary colours very fitting for a restaurant themed around the fab five.

On arriving we joined a queue outside that was marked for people with reservations. It moved quickly and soon we were indoors where there is the a check in desk where the host or hostess can take your name, number in the party and time of reservation. Once this is all confirmed a server will step forward and take you to your table. On our first visit we were seated upstairs which I found to be so much more spacious than the downstairs area we sat in last October. Our table was for four and we were sat underneath a tv screen that to Little Miss’ delight showed cartoons throughout our meal. There are hidden Mickey’s everywhere so if you’re not sat near a screen you can keep your little ones busy by hunting for all the hidden Mickey heads. As I mentioned above, I found the restaurant incredibly cramped but this seems to be a trend with character dining restaurants to accommodate as many people as possible. It was also very loud, the new building seemed to make the noise echo! If you go into a character dining restaurant expecting chaos, you’ll be fine but for anyone expecting a very chilled environment they’ll be sorely disappointed. Anyone who is a regular to character dining will recognise this as the norm though and because of that it didn’t take much away from the experience for us.

The service was on point, for a busy restaurant everything was up to speed without being too rushed. The menu is now set price, giving you the option of two tiers – starter and main course for 33.99e (with drinks extra) or starter, main course and dessert for 41.99e (with a cold non-alcoholic drink included). All of us opted for the starter and main option. Ordinarily the child’s menu is a starter, a main, a dessert and drink for 21.99e however since Little Miss wouldn’t eat anything from the children’s menu she just shared with me. I opted for the Mozzarella Burrata with Tomato and Pesto which came with crusty bread (which Little Miss promptly claimed) and a Mozzarella and Rocket Pizza. If you’re a regular reader of the blog you’ll know I’m all about the cheese, however I have to confess I had no idea what burrata was until it arrived! In case, like me, you’re not all that knowledgeable about cheese, burrata is fresh Italian cheese made from mozzarella and cream. It’s firm mozzarella on the outside with a centre made of both mozzarella and cream. I swear I’ve been having burrata related dreams ever since, it was amazing! I’m fairly sure I went for a coke zero as my drink which came in at a hefty 4.49e!

Once our orders had been taken we were served some bread and butter, which is pretty standard at a lot of European restaurants and is included as part of the bill. This is what I filled Little Miss up on while we ate our starter. As I mentioned above, the burrata was incredibly. Possibly one of the best things I’ve ever eaten at a Disney restaurant, but I’m a big cheese person. The bread and tomato and pesto accompanied it perfectly and everything tasted very fresh. It was a great choice for a starter as it wasn’t heavy in the slightest meaning I was more than ready for my main. There was hardly a moment between the starters and mains which was impressive for a restaurant of that size and how busy it was during our 6:30 sitting. The main was what appeared to be a freshly made pizza with more mozzarella and rocket. I have to admit I felt the base had missed out on some seasoning but as everything else tasted so good you only really noticed when you got to the crust. Although it was a personal size there was enough for both Little Miss and I, and by the time I finished it there was no way I would have had room for dessert.

During the time we were eating we were of course greeted by various characters, which of course was the whole point of choosing this restaurant!

Way to go me forgetting to use my flashAs far as I can gather, if you choose to eat at Cafe Mickey 90% of the time you will meet Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Pluto, along with one character from Winnie the Pooh. The first time we went we had Tigger, last time we had Eeyore, I’ve also seen Pooh and Rabbit as I’ve walked passed. I feel 5 characters for the price you’re paying and in comparison to many other character dining restaurants I’ve eaten in it’s reasonable. All the character’s are fur meaning you won’t have them speaking to you but a lot of younger children do prefer this as it’s hugs all around. Little Miss is no stranger to interacting with furs so she had a whale of a time. As everyone in our party were wearing Minnie ears we spent a fair amount of time with Minnie and Mickey, both of which wanted photos with more than just Little Miss. I didn’t feel like anyone rushed us and for my two friends who don’t have children it was great to see the characters not over looking them for my daughter. Pluto stole the show and he actually chose to come back and see Little Miss as she was putting her coat on for some extra hugs and kisses which really made her night.

For me although at the back of my mind I realise what we paid was a lot for dinner (although not that much extra if you compare it to Planet Hollywood and The Rainforest Cafe which are also in the Disney Village) for me it’s always worth it to see Little Miss face. There are no queues, it’s warm, there is food and you get the same amount of interaction time as you would meeting them in the park. Cafe Mickey will always be special to us as it was the first character dining I ever did with Little Miss. I cannot fault it for your little ones, and to me with the new upgraded menu, it’s worth every penny.

Have you eaten at Cafe Mickey in Disneyland Paris?