Be Our Guest Restaurant -- Dinner -- Table Service -- Magic Kingdom

Table Service

Nov 19

Written By

*This dining experience took place November 2012.

Entrance to Be Our Guest Restaurant

With the official opening of the New Fantasyland Expansion on December 6, 2012, many of us have been waiting patiently for a peek into the new restaurants located there, especially Be Our Guest Restaurant. Located next to Enchanted Tales with Belle, Be Our Guest Restaurant (BOG) transports diners into the French Countryside and to the Beast's castle. ADRs for this restaurant have proved to be difficult and highly coveted. In fact, I originally didn't get any reservations until January 2013! However, special previews have been happening for press, cast members, and select guests during the preview period. As a Tables in Wonderland member (a discount card for dining at Walt Disney World restaurants), I received an email a few weeks ago to get a special preview of the restaurant. I was so excited, but didn't have any high expectations that I would get an ADR due to the difficulty Annual Passholder previews had been for the Fantasyland expansion itself (it was crazy!). However, I was lucky enough to score a reservation at 4pm on November 18. I should note that the restaurant is also open for lunch, but that lunch is a quick service meal--similar to how La Cantina de San Angel and La Hacienda de San Angel in Epcot run.With that in mind, I began busily planning out my meal (or at least what I thought might be my meal!!). The menu for BOG is decidedly French, as one might expect from the French inspired decor. Lots of gratins and sauces. In looking at the menu ahead of time, I had suspected that the Rotisserie Cornish Hen was likely the safest option. And so I patiently waited for our ADRs!

Lunch and dinner menus outside of Be Our Guest

On the day of our reservation, we headed to the new Fantasyland area. We got there about 30 minutes early, so it was a good time to check out the sights and sounds. We tried to check in early, but were not able to do so. At this time (due to high capacity and requests), they ask that you check in at exactly 15 minutes prior to your ADR. In fact, we were not taken in to the restaurant until exactly 4pm when the restaurant opened.

Waterfall by Be Our Guest Restaurant

Waterfall and Mountains

The Beast's castle off in the distance...gorgeous!

While we waited, we were given a pager and told to wait in front of the bridge and that once our pager went off we would be seated inside. During this time, we took a look around and took some pictures.

Our pager

Details on the bridge

Beast gargoyle..

Entrance to the restaurant

Finally, the time came for our pager to go off! We were so excited to head into the restaurant. I had been able to check it out during the Annual Passholder preview but was not prepared for the amazing ambiance in the restaurant. It was truly breathtaking. The dining room is a mammoth ballroom with huge chandeliers (like in Beauty & the Beast) and amazing murals. There is a side room that is dedicated to the Beast (more on that later) as well. The one thing that I will note is that the lighting is not particularly great for taking photographs, so some of my photos may seem a little dark, especially in the Beast's room.

Ballroom

Chandeliers and Mural

View of the ballroom from our seats

We were seated at the very back of the ballroom, next to the large windows with scenes of the French countryside. Wow. This was so amazing. The windows made it feel like we were transported to France. The mountains were in the background with beautiful pine trees and snow. Yes, it was snowing. The way Disney Imagineers designed this was brilliant, and really made the ambiance come to life. It was gorgeous, and we were so excited to be seated there. The table settings were also lovely. The napkins were folded into gorgeous red roses. Beautiful!

Napkins

Our server greeted us, and she could not have been more in character. Disney has done some wonderful training and character background for these servers. Ours was very polite and conscientious--we had lots of refills on our drinks and excellent service. She took our drink order and said she would get the chef. This was exciting to be in a new restaurant and to see what French inspired foods might be available.

View of the countryside--you can almost make out the snow

The chef greeted us by asking what I might like. The first thing I asked about was the appetizer. We had been very hungry (having missed lunch due to a very busy day at the Orlando Premium Outlets) and wanted something to nosh on before our entrees. I had been eying the Assorted Cured Meats and Sausages appetizer. The chef told me that this would be gluten free with the change out of bread but that he needed to see if the pates were dairy free. He said he would include the regular baguette for my guests and include gluten free/dairy free bread for me. I forgot to ask him what the bread was (sorry, I was in awe of the restaurant). We then talked about the entrees. He said that we could do the rotisserie Cornish hen without any modifications--so if you're gluten and dairy free, this is the easiest one for you. He also said he could do the thyme scented pork rack chop (which I later wished I had ordered) and sub out the sides with roasted fingerling potatoes and a roasted vegetable. The steak is also a very good option for gluten and dairy diners. The only modification would be the removal of the garlic herb butter. He indicated that the ratatouille would be OK, but since I didn't want that one, he didn't go into major details with this. The salmon and sauteed shrimp and scallops were the two hardest to accommodate for the special diets. I decided to play it safe the first time and go with the rotisserie Cornish hen.I also asked the chef about the dessert options, knowing that there is a gluten free lemon-raspberry cream puff. This is not safe for dairy allergies (as I expected). The only options they had at this time for gluten and dairy was sorbet and fresh fruit. Since neither really appealed to me, I opted for no dessert.First up came our appetizer. Wow, this was actually my favorite part of the meal. I loved it. The chef said when he brought it out that the only thing he couldn't include was some type of pate/mousse which contained dairy. Everything else was safe. So, we definitely dug right in!

Cured meats and sausages board. Gorgeous presentation!

The board contained a variety of meats and accompaniments. If you look at the picture, I'll start from left to right on the items. The first is the cornichons. I love all things related to pickles. These had a lovely flavor, good crisp and weren't overly salty. These went fast! Next up was the salami. This was nothing to special--good but your basic salami. Next up was the prosciutto. Love! One of my favs. Then you see the two sausages. The one on the top had a slight sweet taste to it. I still can't put my finger on the flavor, but it was quite good (some of the folks at my table did not like it as well). The other sausage was more savory. This was excellent. I might have to stake my claim on all those the next time! Next up were the pickled onions. I admit, I skipped this one, but the rest of my table really enjoyed them. In the front, you see the pate. This was not such a winner for me. I tried it, but not a fan (sorry, liver is an acquired taste that I don't seem to have every acquired!). Luckily, we had one guest at the table who loved it. The stone ground mustard was fabulous. I was scarfing this down with the meats and bread. And the last cured meat was a type of ham that was very smoked and divine. Another one of my favorites.

Unidentified brand of gluten free/dairy free rolls. They weren't bad!

The rolls I had with this I could not place. They were not Udi's and not GNI brand. I still can't figure it out! I didn't get a chance to query the chef again because it was so busy in there. However, next time I will ask for sure! I'm wondering if it's the frozen dough that I've heard about from other Disney guests who said they are using it for pizza dough and rolls. It really had an interesting combination. I think it must have had a fair amount of tapioca in it because once they cooled down, they got pretty hard. They had a slightly spongy texture and were a cross between an Ener-G roll and Udi's. If anyone knows what brand these are, I'd love to hear about it!Then it was time for the entrees. I will say that Cornish hens are kind of a pain to eat! Little birds equal difficulty cutting and eating. My poor plate was not holding up well while trying to cut it; it kept sliding on the tablecloth. Taste wise, it was OK. I wouldn't say it was the best rotisserie poultry that I've ever had, but it wasn't the worst. It was pretty basic roast hen. The roasted fingerling potatoes were also nothing to write home about. Just basic, but good. Same with the roasted asparagus. I will say I like the grilled asparagus at Boma much better, but I also love asparagus, so I didn't dislike it. It also came with a pan jus, which was quite good and added some needed moisture to the plate. The portions I think are fairly good. Between the appetizer and entree, I was very full. The other diners at my table had dessert and they were stuffed. I will say that one guest had the thyme scented pork chop and they raved about it. I wish I would have ordered that instead. I've included a picture of it, so you can see what it looks like (but note that the sides are NOT safe).

Rotisserie Cornish hen, asparagus, roasted potatoes and pan jus

Thyme scented pork chop is safe--other items on this entree are not deemed gluten/dairy free (at least the mac & cheese)

Lastly, we came up to the dessert portion. I was slightly bummed they didn't have a more creative dairy free option, but no worries. I was pretty full. I did however take a picture of the gluten free cream puff. Note that it was in the same cart as the rest of the desserts. Not sure how I feel about a gluten free dessert in with the rest of the others. Seems like a higher chance of cross contamination in my opinion. Still, it looked delicious.

Dessert cart. Gluten free cream puff is on the left side.

Close-up of the gluten free cream puff

Overall, I thought BOG had a really good variety of options for gluten and dairy free. I wouldn't say I was overly wowed by my entree, but I thought it was a solid meal. I loved the appetizer. I think this will be a terrific option for anyone wanting table service without eating at a buffet or a very costly 2 credit meal in the Magic Kingdom. I'm looking forward to going back and trying out some of the other items on the menu and seeing how the restaurant evolves in the future.I would give it a solid 8 out of 10 at this time for good service, food allergy accommodation and general ambiance.If you get seated in the main dining room, don't forget to check out the Beast's room, located on the side. It's fairly dark and perhaps slightly scary for children but a real visual treat if you get the chance to see it. Here are some pictures from it: