REVIEW: Story Book Dining Has Returned to Disney World. How Has It CHANGED?

Disney World is still in the process of reopening certain attractions, hotels, and restaurants. Although Disney’s Wilderness Lodge has been open for a while now, one restaurant remained closed — until now, that is!

Disney’s Wilderness Lodge

Story Book Dining at Artist Point is a character meal that’s offered at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. Here you can meet Snow White, some of the Seven Dwarfs, and maybe even the Evil Queen! We headed into this restaurant today to see what has changed with the food, atmosphere, and character meet and greets since its reopening.

Story Book Dining at Artist Point replaced the original Artist Point restaurant back in 2018, adding a new Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs theme to this previously signature restaurant. The new prix-fixe character dining opened on December 16th, 2018, so its reopening is happening almost exactly on the restaurant’s 3rd anniversary!

Entrance to Artist Point

In the past, we thought this experience was a very fun way to meet some popular Disney characters (including the rarely seen Evil Queen and Dwarfs!), take in the storytelling atmosphere, and get some delicious food along the way. Although several changes were made to the menu here, a lot of our favorites are still available.

Gorgeous theming!

You will need advanced dining reservations to eat here, so make sure to get your spot booked ASAP. Remember that you can book your dining reservations 60 days before your visit. So let’s take a look at what’s different about this spot now that it has reopened at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge.

Atmosphere

The dining room at Story Book Dining is set to look like the Enchanted Forest from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. There are craftsman touches all around, with muted colors and craftsman-style furniture that match the Wilderness Lodge resort perfectly.

Dining Area

Attached to the beams around the dining room are big trees, with their branches stretching across the ceiling. There are lights on these branches, and as the restaurant lighting dims (which happens throughout the meal), it really does start to look like you’re in an enchanted forest.

So pretty!

Seating available at this restaurant is just standard tables and chairs, with different size options for smaller or larger parties.

Tables

The tables are set with plates, silverware, and an enchanted tree dish stand to hold shareable plates!

Our table

The tree stand is such a beautiful detail and a fun way to display the appetizers and desserts.

We love this tree stand

And don’t forget, this is also a character dining experience!

Characters

Before its closure, Story Book Dining was home to Snow White, Grumpy, Dopey, and the Evil Queen. Snow White and the dwarfs would move around the dining room, visiting tables to meet guests, take pictures, and sign autographs. The Evil Queen stayed up by her backdrop, which looked like her castle complete with the Magic Mirror.

Hi, Snow White!

Like other character dining experiences in Disney World, the characters are returning to this restaurant in a modified way. During our visit, we still saw Snow White, Grumpy and Dopey, and the Evil Queen, although none of the characters were coming right up to the tables to meet guests.

Snow White

Instead, the characters were all walking around the room (including the Evil Queen, who used to stay in one spot the whole time) and greeting guests from a distance. Occasionally, the Silly Song would play and Snow White and the dwarfs would dance around the dining room. The Evil Queen, however, did not take part in the dancing. Apparently she had no time for that nonsense.

Dopey

Cast members and servers encouraged guests to stay seated, so it looks like you won’t be able to approach the characters to take closer photos just yet (unlike what we’re seeing over at Tusker House in Disney’s Animal Kingdom). A fun detail we noticed is that when the characters are announced, the trees change color based on the characters! When the Evil Queen came out, the trees turned red. (SPOOKY)

Evil Queen

Since you can’t ask for autographs from the characters, guests are given a card with a Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs design on one side…

Autograph Card

…and the characters’ autographs on the other.

Autographs

All right, now it’s time to eat!

Eats

We have really enjoyed the food here in the past, especially the prime rib and vegetarian gnocchi entrées, which have both returned to the menu now. On Disney’s website, the food is described as American, and the menu includes familiar options like chicken, beef stroganoff, and fish. Since it opened in 2018, this restaurant has had a prix fixe menu. It costs $60 for each adult (ages 10+) and $39 for each child (which is a little more expensive than the old prices for this restaurant — before, it was $55 for adults and $33 for children).

You have seven options for entrées, including “Cottage” Beef Stroganoff, A Stroll Through Nature (that vegetarian Gnocchi dish we loved before), Brother’s Grimm Herb Chicken, Sorceress Spell of “Tricken” Chicken (new plant-based option), Royal Prime Rib Roast, Magic Mirror’s Slow-braised Pork Shank, and Bashful’s Butter-poached Sustainable Fish.

©Disney

Dessert includes four different sweet treats. The table will get to try Miner’s Treasures, “Poison” Apple, a Fairy Tale Gooseberry Tart, and The Hunter’s Gift to the Queen.

©Disney

And there are several options for cocktails as well, which you can purchase separately from the meal. We saw a few changes to the prices and ingredients for some of these cocktails, but the menu is essentially the same as before the closure. You can choose from the cocktails menu or take a look at the non-alcoholic specialty drinks (which are also priced in addition to the cost of the meal).

©Disney

The kids’ menu has an appetizer, three options for entrées (including Grilled Chicken, Prime Rib Roast, or Grilled Fish of the Day), and a few options for sides.

©Disney

Kids can choose one entrée and two sides for their meal.

Drinks

For drinks we had the Smoking Mirror Cocktail, made with Johnnie Walker Black, Wildberry, lime, and rosemary smoke for $14. The server poured it for us at the table so we could really see that smoky effect. Sometimes we find character meal drinks overly sweet but this drink was great! Don’t get us wrong, it was sweet, but it also had a strong fruit flavor and you really taste the smoke! The presentation on this was lovely, with the upside-down, smoke-filled glass presented on a cut of a tree trunk.

Smoking Mirror Cocktail

In the Clouds is made with Powerade Mountain Berry Blast, blueberry, and cotton candy for $4. This drink basically tasted like extra sweet Powerade. It was cute and fun and would probably be a hit with kids!

In the Clouds

You get to pour your Powderade over the “cloud” of cotton candy and watch it dissolve! Now let’s move on to the appetizers!

Appetizers

There are three different appetizers, and everyone at the table can have a taste of each. Two of the items — the pie and the shrimp — here are the “same” as they were prior to this dining experience closing, but with very different presentations.

Appetizers

The Wild Mushroom Bisque is a tasty soup with crispy mushrooms inside. On our last visit we were served a winter Squash soup. It was really good buy guys — the mushroom soup is better. We’re obsessed with this soup. It’s super rich and creamy and there’s a little fried mushroom on top and an olive oil drizzle. You have to like mushrooms to enjoy it but if you do, boy oh boy, you’re in for a treat! It’s so luxurious and smoky that we could have eaten JUST the soup and been happy.

Wild Mushroom Soup

It’s served in adorable little cauldrons, with just a couple of bites in each dish. Like, it’s quite small. Our mushroom soup-loving hearts wanted this to be the size of a bucket. It was that good.

Cute!

The Wicked Shrimp Cocktail is made with a bloody Mary vinaigrette, a seaweed salad, and a spiced house-made seasoning. Previously, the shrimp (of the same name) had more of an Asian influence, with Miso, soy, and Thai chili. We enjoyed this updated shrimp! The bloody Mary vinaigrette added a little tang that we enjoyed. If you don’t like tomatoes or a tiny bit of heat you might want to ask for the dressing on the side. Your shrimp will arrive “pre-dipped” on a bed of greens otherwise!

Wild Shrimp Cocktail

In the Hunter’s Pie, you’ll find turkey, chicken, black truffle, cranberry preserve, and crispy sauerkraut. This was also delicious! It had a nice meaty flavor that wasn’t too heavy, along with a flaky crust and a slight hint of truffle. It was kind of like a meat pie. Presentation was slightly different from the pies that were served originally, though the flavors are comparable. Previously, the sweet accent was a cup of stone fruit preserves you could choose to add to your liking. Here, the cranberry is incorporated for you. We really enjoyed this last time and are happy to report it’s just as yummy now.

Hunter’s Pie

It’s time for the main event.

Entrées

For our entrées, first up we chose A Stroll Through Nature, which is a vegetarian dish that we’ve loved here in the past.

A Stroll Through Nature

This dish has gnocchi, asparagus, leeks, arugula, sage, and Parmesan. This is one of those vegetarian entrees that is SO flavorful even the biggest meat-eater would happily enjoy it. WE are big fans of meat and still were happy to pick this for our entree right away! The veggies were fresh and cooked just right — not too mushy or overdone. The cream sauce was cheesy and delicious!

So good!

We also got the “Cottage” Beef Stroganoff, made with tender beef, preserved vegetables, Spatzle, mushrooms, and aged cow’s milk cheese. We liked that the stroganoff came with chewy little Spatzle instead of egg noodles (Snow White is a German story after all!), and the meat was very tender. The cheese had a sharp flavor and the vegetables were cooked perfectly.

“Cottage” Beef Stroganoff

The meat was so tender it was like it was straight from a pot roast! This was a slam dunk. This is definitely a hearty, filling meal with all that meat and carbs! The flavors and textures here were wonderful.

Yum

The Royal Prime Rib Roast is made with horseradish-mashed potato, a Yorkshire pudding, carrot, and jus, and it’s probably the most bang for your buck in terms of entrees. It’s a really good prime rib, but if you’re a vegetarian the Stroll Through Nature dish is a really good alternative. This is a classic Sunday roast done really well. The meat was tender and flavorful, while the zippy mashed potatoes were a fun way to get the traditional horseradish for your prime rib!

Royal Prime Rib Roast

And we also enjoyed Bashful’s Butter-poached Sustainable Fish, which is made with farro, fava beans, English peas, and gremolata. It’s very flavorful and probably one of the best non-meat meal dishes you can get!

Bashful’s Butter-Poached Sustainable Fish

The farro was cooked beautifully — soft but with a bit of a chew — and the fava beans and peas added a brightness. The gremolata on top the fish brought a ton of flavor to the party too. This is a tough menu with all the stellar entree choices, but if you remotely enjoy fish, we suspect you’ll really enjoy this. It was filling, comforting, but still light. Should we get some dessert?

Dessert

The Miner’s Treasures dessert has changed a little bit from what this dessert used to be.

Desserts

In the past, this had sponge cake, chocolate gems, and berry panna cotta layered like a trifle in a small cup. Now, you’ll find cookies ‘n’ cream panna cotta topped with chocolate gems and an edible chocolate Dopey hat! It was our favorite of the desserts. It was nice and creamy but also light and fluffy. The cookies and cream flavor was strong and the crunch from the chocolate was just delicious.

Miner’s Treasures

The “Poison” Apple dessert is a dark chocolate-apple mousse with a sour apple center. You’ll get a few of these desserts to share around the table. Big change here from before the closure is the mousse is dark chocolate — previously it was white chocolate. The result? The apple didn’t have much apple flavor, and it actually tasted more like a really rich chocolate mousse. The white chocolate version let the apple flavor take more of a front seat. Still, this was pretty and enjoyable.

Poison Apple Dessert

The Fairy Tale Gooseberry Tart is meringue and gooseberry inside a tart shell. This one was also on the menu before closing, but this got a bit of an upgrade! Previously, it was more like a little bowl of gooseberry filling with a big blob of meringue on top. Now, you get a flakey tart shell, making it more of a real pie! This was VERY, very tart (fresh gooseberries taste a lot like very sour grapes!) and we liked the flaky crust, but if you’re not a fan of tart flavors steer clear.

Gooseberry Tart

But the coolest dessert is definitely the Hunter’s Gift to the Queen, which has four small treats that are presented to you in a smoke-filled wooden box, just like the one you’ll see in the film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. This was done prior to the closure too, only the box wasn’t quite as authentic looking and inside was a handful of caramel corn and ganache hearts. This presentation paired with the artistic chocolates feels more like a final touch we expect at swanky joints like Victoria and Albert’s! Love this!

Hunter’s Gift to the Queen

These little chocolates include cookies and cream (white), raspberry (pink), chocolate truffle (blue), and caramel (gold). All the chocolates were very good and a really nice touch!

All four treats

Although the Hunter’s Gift dessert had an amazing presentation, our favorite treat here was the cookies and cream panna cotta! OK, so thoroughly stuffed, we can now tell ya if this experience is still worth your $$!

Nosh or Not

Go to visit Snow White and her friends in this Enchanted Forest if:

You’re looking for a character dining experience with a Disney princess in a beautifully themed setting.
You’re staying at Wilderness Lodge already or are willing to take a short boat from the Magic Kingdom for an entertaining and tasty sit-down meal.
You want some incredible and unique food to go with a character dining experience — even before the closures, this was a really unique offering!

Look for a different spot to eat (magical forest or otherwise) if:

You or the kids you’re traveling with are hoping to go up and meet the characters. Head to Tusker House instead, where you can get closer to Mickey and the gang!
You’re looking for some unique eats and adventurous dishes to try. Although the food here is very good, nothing was super out of the ordinary. It’s still steak, fish, etc with familiar and approachable flavors that pair well. Some of our favorite spots for adventurous eaters are Sanaa at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge and Skipper Canteen in the Magic Kingdom.
You’re not staying near Wilderness Lodge and don’t want to take the time to travel there. This resort is pretty far from most theme parks (except Magic Kingdom, where a boat ride will get you there pretty quickly). If it’s too far out of your way or you’re already short on time, it might not be worth the time to travel and have a full sit-down prix fixe meal.

Overall

Story Book Dining is still a hit for us. For the price, even slightly higher than before, we enjoy being presented with a variety of appetizers and desserts PLUS the entrees we tried were — again — all quite delicious and well-prepared. The food fits the setting — there’s a heavy emphasis on the forest and nature. Fresh, seasonal vegetables, mushrooms, gooseberries (!) — all are fitting of the magical woodland setting.

Speaking of the setting, Artist Point is still lovely. The warm, inviting Craftsman aesthetic paired with the trees and lighting do a great job transporting you. You’re in a nice restaurant but also on an adventure! The Cast Members were all very attentive here as well. And as for the characters, we had great interactions (at a distance) with all of them. We especially got a kick from the Evil Queen trolling around menacingly! Knowing she was on the prowl while we ate kept a smile on our faces. And, of course, seeing Snow White, Grumpy, and Dopey was as delightful as ever. These characters are rare to spot in Disney World, so the opportunity to interact with them while you eat is great!

This is a lovely, unique experience. The price is just below what you’d pay for a similar Prix Fixe experience at Be Our Guest Restaurant in Magic Kingdom. It’s actually only a couple bucks MORE expensive than what you’d pay for many all-you-care-to-eat family-style experiences, like Garden Grill in EPCOT. For the price, especially compared to other prix fixe meals, it feels like more of a production, which is a nice thing. It’s not all-you-can-eat, but it is nicely plated foods thoughtfully prepared with a touch of whimsy to them. We especially loved the unique touch with the chocolate box at the end of our meal.

If you’re looking for a character dining experience and have any interest in the Snow White characters, we can’t recommend this meal enough. The food is great, the characters are unique, and it’s an entertaining experience for all ages — kids and adults alike. Go for a fancy date night or for a dinner or vacation with your whole family! It will certainly be a memorable meal.

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The post REVIEW: Story Book Dining Has Returned to Disney World. How Has It CHANGED? first appeared on the disney food blog.

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REVIEW: Story Book Dining Has Returned to Disney World. How Has It CHANGED?

Atmosphere

Characters

Eats