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When I was a little girl, I used to enjoy an Easter lunch at the Officers’ Club my grandmother was a member of. I have such positive memories from this.
And these are the same kind of memories and warm feelings you can get when you attend Minnie’s Springtime Dine. Minnie’s Springtime Dine is a seasonal character dining experience at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. It takes place at the Hollywood and Vine restaurant at Hollywood Studios theme park during lunch and dinner. Hollywood and Vine have some great seasonal events going on throughout the year. We went to Minnie’s Holiday Dine last Christmas season, you can see our Minnie’s Holiday Dine review here.
But this was the first time we’ve been to the Spring event. You can see highlights of our experience here.
Minnie’s Springtime Dine is a great event to go to in the lead-up to Easter but it’s also fun to visit after Easter, too (it runs through June 19, 2024).
When we visited in 2023, we were taking a last-minute trip to Disney World. We were staying at Art of Animation (one of my family’s favorite hotels; you can read tips for staying at this hotel here, including how to save money on a stay there). After we checked in our room, we noticed a lunch reservation for 2:50 PM that was available through the My Disney Experience app. We thought we could make it in time since Art of Animation has the Skyliner transportation to Hollywood Studios. So we headed over to Hollywood Studios with plenty of time left. We checked in through the app and then waited for a text telling us our table was ready.
Now in 2024, we were able to visit before Easter which is fun. We ended up making the reservation for 1:40 PM since we liked having the meal at a later time the year before. Less people means more attention from the characters and shorter lines for the food. That is why picking a later time is one of our Disney character dining tips.
So after we watched the Beauty and the Beast stage show at 1:00 PM, we headed over to Hollywood and Vine and checked in on the app. Almost instantly after checking in, our table was ready. We were seated at 1:34 PM.
Atmosphere
When we walked into the restaurant, we immediately saw a beautiful photo opportunity set up at the beginning of the restaurant. This makes a wonderful backdrop for a perfect spring family photo.
This helped set up a wonderful atmosphere in the restaurant. It was happy, upbeat, and fitting for spring. I really liked the music they played, too. I couldn’t help but be reminded of my experience at the Officers’ Club all those years ago.
One thing that was markedly different from my experience in my childhood, however, was the Disney characters. And that, of course, is a wonderful part of this dining experience!
Character Interactions
There are four Disney characters that are in attendance at Minnie’s Springtime Dine. Minnie Mouse is (obviously) there. But so are Mickey Mouse, Goofy, and Pluto. They are all wearing springtime outfits which helps make the experience even more special. You can get your picture or your child’s picture with the characters. Or you can just get the character’s picture if you are camera-shy. Either way, these are fun photos to have.
So as I alluded to earlier, by going early, we got so many more interactions with the characters! They kept coming by our table…and coming…and coming. The characters would shake it up each time with different interactions. It made a really fun experience. So if you love the character interactions, consider booking a later lunch.
Oh, and if you and/or your kids like getting autographs from the characters, consider purchasing an autograph book ahead of time. This can save you money, like this cheap Disney autograph book.
Buffet Dining
But the characters and the atmosphere aren’t the only reasons for going. One of the main reasons my family loves this experience is the delicious food. It is a buffet experience and has so many delicious foods, sides, and desserts.
How it works is like a traditional buffet where you can get up at any time and go to the buffet line and get your food.
And since the characters come by so much, you don’t have to worry about missing them. You’ll eventually meet with each of them at least once.
Here are some of the foods you can enjoy here:
- Strip Loin
- Roasted Turkey
- Salmon with Miso Glaze, Wasabi Cream & Wasabi Peas
- Poulet Marine au Four
- Meatball with Barbecue Sauce & Pineapple
- Spice-Rubbed Pork Loin with Sauerkraut Slaw & Apple Gastrique
- Beef Stew with Root Vegetables
- Peel-n-Eat Shrimp
- Roasted Mushroom Farro Risotto
- Cilantro Lemon Rice
- Potato Salad
- Sour Cream & Chive Whipped Potato
- Olive Oil Crushed Potatoes
- Yuca & Mojo
- Crispy Tofu with Asian Glaze
- Cheesy Cauliflower
- Cucumber Salad
- Panzanella Salad
- Fresh Beet Salad
- Caramelized Brussel Sprouts
- Jicama Slaw
- Mexican Street Corn
- Variety of Fresh Fruit
- Spitzweck Rolls
- Herbed Focaccia
They also have a salad bar with multiple dressing options (like Balsamic Dressing and Green Goddess Dressing) and a lot of things to put in your salad (like mixed greens, cherry tomatoes, diced cucumbers, mixed olives, shaved red onions, Feta cheese, etc.).
They also have great desserts, too.
Some of these include:
- Red Velvet Cupcake
- Seasonal Bread Pudding
- Black Forest Cake
- Blueberry Lemon Tart
- Peanut Butter and Jelly Tart
- Ice Cream
- Chocolate Chip Cookie
- Coconut Cake
And, yes. You read that first option correctly. You can go to the carving station and get a Strip Loin. It’s not every buffet that has that as an option! Really helps justify the cost of the experience. Especially if you love steak.
So what foods did we love (or didn’t love)? Well, keep reading!
Favorite (and Least Favorite) Food
The Strip Loin was (unsurprisingly) a big hit with my family. The turkey (which you can also get from a carving station) was also good.
I loved the Sour Cream and Chive Whipped Potato, and I am not surprised at all. They’ve had this at other character dining experiences at Hollywood and Vine, and I have loved it every time.
One thing I was surprised I liked was the Cheesy Cauliflower. I cannot say I am a huge fan of cauliflower, but the way they prepared it, I really liked it.
Another surprise was the Potato Salad. This was not the Potato Salad we were used to it. It had much bigger chunks of potato in it. But it was really good and we liked it a lot. The seasoning was just right.
We also really loved the Cilantro Lemon Rice. It was really good.
Unfortunately, we were disappointed in the Salmon. That was something we had had and enjoyed at other Hollywood and Vine character dining experiences, so that was a bit of a disappointment.
We’d been mixed on the desserts in the past but this time, we loved all the desserts. They were really good. The favorite of the whole table though was the Red Velvet Cupcake. That was good even for those who don’t love sweets. The Black Forest Cake was also really good.
Final Thoughts
Minnie’s Springtime Dine is not exactly cheap (in fact, it’s downright expensive at $59 per adult and $38 per child). But you get a lot of delicious food that are expensive no matter where you go, like the Strip Loin and Salmon. And on top of that, you get an amazing experience with Disney characters that can create memories that last a lifetime – not to mention some amazing photo opportunities. So to me, it is worth it if you are visiting Disney this spring.
Oh, and by the way, if you are visiting Disney World this spring, I know you’d love to enjoy the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival.
If you want to know more about the food at this festival, check out our review of some of the Outdoor Kitchens at the festival:
- Brunchcot
- Farmer’s Feast: Springtime
- Fleur de Lys
- Bauernmarkt
- Northern Bloom
- La Isla Fresca
- Florida Fresh
- Primavera Kitchen
But back to the character breakfast, there’s one last thing I should mention. Unlike Disney character dining experiences at hotels like the Chef Mickey Character Breakfast at the Contemporary Resort, you will need a ticket to Disney World in order to attend the experience. But luckily, you can learn about a lot of ways to save money on Disney World tickets here.
And if you are looking for a hotel for your upcoming Disney World trip and you’d love to stay at a top Disney hotel (like Disney’s Boardwalk Resort which is within walking distance of Hollywood Studios) – check out our hacks to saving a lot of money on top Disney resorts.