Restaurant Review: Storybook Dining at Artist Point
What happens when four middle-aged adults and a 13-year-old girl visit Artist Point? An unforgettable Storybook Dining experience occurs! Yes, we recently met Snow White, her unsettling stepmother, and a couple of her odd co-workers. Here’s my review of Storybook Dining at Artist Point.
About the Meal
Disney’s Wilderness Lodge hosts multiple restaurants, the classiest of which is Artist Point. This Signature Dining experience has maintained a sterling reputation for many years. Sadly, it never proved exceptionally popular with guests.
In an attempt to increase attendance, Disney introduced a character meal at Artist Point in December of 2018. Since then, a dinner Advanced Dining Reservation at this restaurant has become extremely difficult to book. You must be ready to schedule a reservation the moment that your 180-day window opens.
Is the restaurant worth this sort of effort and hype? Absolutely!
The Setting
Disney has themed Wilderness Lodge as a rustic setting. Unexpectedly, this backdrop suits a Snow White character meal. After all, she lives in the woods, where she frolics with animals while her friends work in the mines.
The moment that you enter Artist Point for the character meal, you’ll feel transported inside the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Trees poke out of the walls. They hide a trick, a deft bit of Imagineering that you won’t notice immediately. In truth, someone had to explain it to me, as I hadn’t even realized. But I’m getting ahead of myself…
Other than the trees that reach the ceiling, the only recognizable aspect of a character meeting is greeting spot. It’s a clear photo op that may or may not feature a costumed Disney cast member, depending on when you’re seating.
Due to the demand at Artist Point, the hostess asked our party to wait an additional 30 minutes for a table. The place is that crowded all the time, and I want you to base your expectations on that level of demand. You may discover that Artist Point is more crowded than some Magic Kingdom park restaurants!
The Tabletop Experience
As your party sits down for the meal, you’ll appreciate the unusual nature of the meal. Sitting in front of you is a locked book, a napkin with utensils, and a mini-tree. You may think that the napkin isn’t part of the story, but that’s incorrect.
The napkin holder comes in the shape of a red apple, one with a bite in it. It also features the signatures of the four characters from the meal, a keepsake that you’ll take home from your trip.
Photo: MealTrip.com
Opening the locked book reveals the menu, although it also has more. Page one of the menu begins with those familiar words, “Long long ago, in a forest enchanted, the seeds of the story we tell had been planted.” Yes, your menu recounts the details of the dining experience you’re about to enjoy.
Fittingly, Disney accompanies the words with matching visuals. The mini-tree includes three leaves, each of which includes a flat portion. Disney will place the courses of the meal on these leaves, a marvelous touch of theming.
Photo: Mealtrip.com
The Cuisine
I almost don’t want to discuss the cuisine, as I fear that doing so will spoil some of the surprises. What you should know is that you’ll share the appetizers and the dessert. The entrée is individual, giving everyone a chance to pick their own favorite.
One of the shared appetizers impressed our table. It’s Mushroom Bisque that everyone loved, which is odd since two of our party members don’t like mushrooms.
Every entrée comes with a thematic name like Bashful’s Butter-poached Sustainable Fish or Sorceress Spell of Land and Sea. While everyone liked their dish, the consensus was that the entrees were the least satisfying of the three courses.
The shared desserts more than made up for any disappointments, though. Each one dazzled, and the one that involved the devouring of a heart seemed somehow fitting as an ending surprise. The people’s choice at our table was the Miner’s Treasures, a decadent berry panna cotta.
We also shared a few group drinks, as our party sampled everything together. We agreed that the non-alcoholic beverages were nothing special taste-wise, but they were visually impressive.
Among the adult beverages, we decided that we were Evil to the Core. That concoction resonated with everyone. Nobody even felt conflicted about it, which scares me a little.
The Characters
Three characters will visit your table during the meal. Snow White, Dopey, and Grumpy each work the room, while the Evil Queen holds court at the photo op. She’s certainly not going to interact with the little people at their tables, after all.
You’ll know which character will visit next by paying attention to the trees. The lights on the branches turn colors to indicate whose turn it is. As always, the cast members play a significant role in the quality of your interactions. During our meal, our Snow White was just okay. She certainly looked the part, but she was oddly shy.
As for Dopey, he fit the part too well. The cast member got confused and accidentally skipped our table altogether! A mortified server attempted to rectify the situation. Thankfully, the non-adult in our party had already played with Dopey earlier. So, we didn’t want to stand in the way of Dopey entertaining other guests.
The Stars of the Show
The star of our meal was undeniably Grumpy. We left a cast compliment for this performance. First of all, when the Evil Queen approached, Grumpy shook a chair threateningly/defensively. It was hysterical.
Photo: MealTrip.com
During our interactions, he seemed friendly with all but one member of our party. This person hadn’t noticed that Grumpy wanted to shake hands. Grumpy took umbrage at this and then pulled off a clever trick.
Whenever the person turned away, Grumpy would offer his hand again. Then, he would pull it away and act outraged at the perceived social slight. The cast member did this like four times, and it was hilarious without getting old.
Photo: MealTrip.com
The Evil Queen also embraced her role well. At one moment, Snow White entered the room. The room joined in applause. I asked the stepmother why she didn’t applaud her daughter. She mumbled something about not feeling the need.
I pushed back by asking whether she was familiar with the social contract. For just a moment, she eyed me up and down, and the formation of a smile crossed her lips.
Just when I thought she might crack, she countered with, ‘You’re obviously not familiar with being above the social contract.” Then, she nailed her imperious look and sneered at me, both of us knowing that she’d bested me. It was a fitting end to a perfect meal at the most entertaining character dining experience at Walt Disney World today.
Seriously, Storybook Dining will delight even the most cynical of guests. It’s a meal befitting a queen, but it will also satisfy slow-witted, irritable dwarfs and innocent stepdaughters alike.
