Trattoria al Forno breakfast - Worth the effort?

[sbd78]

Hi, we have an 11:30 ADR at Trattoria al Forno on our Epcot day. I booked it because we've never done this character meal and it looks like a lot of fun. I just keep debating if it's worth it to leave the park and go out to the Boardwalk vs. just eating someplace in Epcot. Those of you who have done this meal, what do you think, worth it? Not worth it? We are staying at CBR pre-gondola opening so there is really no good way (aside from Uber/Minnie van) to get to the Boardwalk direct from our resort which is why we decided to do it on our Epcot day.

 

[chinarider]

While the walk to the Boardwalk is not that long and very pretty,I think there are other factors/questions that pop into my mind. We did the breakfast a few years back, had some server issues but otherwise it was enjoyable. They were running behind and it did take an extremely long time for all the characters to come around. With that being said... not sure if you have kids with you...if so how big are they on princes and princesses? Based on their age, would they be okay with the extra walking? There are lots of great places to eat in Epcot ( and if you're looking for princesses, might want to consider Akershus). Also, depending on the length of your stay, other times in Epcot etc...it determines if you want to spend the extra time leaving the park.

 

[sbd78]

While the walk to the Boardwalk is not that long and very pretty,I think there are other factors/questions that pop into my mind. We did the breakfast a few years back, had some server issues but otherwise it was enjoyable. They were running behind and it did take an extremely long time for all the characters to come around. With that being said... not sure if you have kids with you...if so how big are they on princes and princesses? Based on their age, would they be okay with the extra walking? There are lots of great places to eat in Epcot ( and if you're looking for princesses, might want to consider Akershus). Also, depending on the length of your stay, other times in Epcot etc...it determines if you want to spend the extra time leaving the park.

We have 3 kids, 13yo boy, 9yo girl, and 6yo boy. The girl is a big princess fan, although we are already doing CRT this trip so Princesses aren't a must. We mostly want to try fun restaurants we've never been to before. We've already done Akershus several times, so not interested in going there again. We are staying 8 nights and only have one Epcot day planned but we do have hoppers so we may hop over on other days. If we do scrap Trattoria al Forno, our top 2 contenders in Epcot are probably Garden Grill or Biergarten, we've never been to either.

 

[KenHutch]

Well we had to go there last June so my 18 year old could get her Rapunzel fix. It was fun we took the boat over and the 10 year old swears by those pancakes. It did not make the cut for the next trip but that is only because several members of our family are older and getting them up for breakfast (even if it is for my girls) is hard.

 

[jenjersnap]

For us, it is worth it. For the past three trips, we have made an 11:30 adr and gone after a morning at DHS (due to lack of good dining options there). Has worked great and Bon Voyage is our new favorite character meal.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

That meal was one of our favorites of the trip. The calzone was delish!

We moved through all of the characters quickly and were on our way to HS maybe 75 minutes after our ADR time.

That said, we were staying at BW, so it wasn't the hassle of going through the main EP gate and working our way back to the IG that you'll have to do.

 

[Micca]

There are so many choices in Epcot, I'd just stay and eat in the park. Whether you walk (real hot) or boat (figure 30 minutes each way) you will have to go through security again when you return to the park, that's a big chunk of time.

 

[fairygagamother]

We enjoyed the fact that you could meet princes as well as princesses there. My boy/ girl twins were 9 at the time & just on the cusp of outgrowing character meals, but they both loved it! That being said, they still love Garden Grill at age 11. I think GG would interrupt your day less & be just as much fun.

 

[Mango7100]

We loved our breakfast there! But it is a big chunk of time to take out of Epcot, especially with all the great dining choices there...

 

[Marissa227]

We did this exact thing in May, except our ADR was closer to noon. It worked out well. We love the food for the Bon Voyage breakfast, and one of my kids is a big Flynn Rider fan. It was a nice break from the heat and a short walk. I would do it!!!

 

[chinarider]

We have 3 kids, 13yo boy, 9yo girl, and 6yo boy. The girl is a big princess fan, although we are already doing CRT this trip so Princesses aren't a must. We mostly want to try fun restaurants we've never been to before. We've already done Akershus several times, so not interested in going there again. We are staying 8 nights and only have one Epcot day planned but we do have hoppers so we may hop over on other days. If we do scrap Trattoria al Forno, our top 2 contenders in Epcot are probably Garden Grill or Biergarten, we've never been to either.

Garden Grill is great too , the food is fresh and you can decide then if you would prefer breakfast or lunch. SInce it's served family style, you can always get more of what the kids like best... It rotates ( slowly ) which is neat and you get the characters too ( which is always fun).

 

[illinidp]

I definitely think it’s worth the time to do it. We’re not fans of the food at Garden Grill or Akershus.

 

[rcj2000]

We did Trattoria Al Forno about 2yrs ago and we really enjoyed it. My youngest daughter loved all the characters and my oldest loved Flynn Rider. He looked just like the animated character he was that good. We were done with our meal in about an hour and a half but didn't feel rushed. The food was excellent too. We had an 8 or 8:30 ADR and we were out by 9:30,10. We didn't visit a park that day and also had a rental car. I would consider going there again for a late breakfast on our Epcot day.

 

[Lacoccinelle]

It’s only a short walk from France, so it is not a huge effort. We did the Breakfast and really liked it as Ariel and Rapunzel are our daughters’ favorites The food was good, but given the choice between somewhere in the Epcot countries or this, I would always pick World Showcase.
Have fun whatever you pick!

 

[galaxygirl76]

We ate there on our last trip on our Hollywood studios day, took the boat over after breakfast which was fun. We really enjoyed our meal, food was good and characters were fantastic.

 

[sbd78]

Thanks for all the replies, I think we are going to keep Trattoria al Forno. You've convinced me!

 

[chinarider]

Thanks for all the replies, I think we are going to keep Trattoria al Forno. You've convinced me!

I'm sure you will enjoy it.

 

[pooh2001]

It has good food - and since it is made fresh can accommodate any special requests
Nice option away from the parks for a great price