Akershus Royal Banquet Hall Review

As, you may know character dining is a great timesaving option while at Disney. You can meet multiple Characters while eating. This can save you hours of waiting in line. I also find that I get more personal interaction. We have had some awesome character experiences via Character Dining.

When planning a Disney World trip many issues can arise. Like you cannot get a Cinderella’s Royal table reservation. Which is a problem families with children experience. During the trip planning process many find Akershus to be a viable alternative. The prices are lower and it’s easier to snag a reservation but many never ask why. When researching my trip I did a lot of investigating and found that reviews for Akershus were a mixed bag. Much like the pricer Cinderellas Royal Table. But we had a young child in our group who wanted to dine with the princesses.

I spent a lot of time lurking in a planning group and watching YouTube Videos. I decided that Akershus Royal Banquet Hall would be a better value. After reading reviews I thought Cinderellas Royal Table may be a bad choice. I had heard the food was bad. Also, I had no chance of getting a Bon Voyage breakfast at Trattoria al Forno which people rave about. This was the only option for Princess dining for our family.

However, I do not recommend Akershus for several reasons. Here is why I cannot recommend Akershus for lunch or dinner at Epcot:

Meet and Greet With Belle

After being checked in and called you to meet a princess. From what I have seen it is normally Belle. The problem is the meet and greet area is ugly and the lighting is bad. None of the pictures I snapped were useable. If I hadn't had Memory Maker, I would have no picture. And by that I mean the one picture the Photo Pass photographer took. Even that picture wasn't that great.

Princess Interactions

While the princesses themselves were fine, the rest of the meet and greet was not. We met five princesses. Belle as mentioned above greets you. Then Ariel, Snow White, Princess Aurora, and Cinderella came to my table. The restaurant was loud and noisy. The lighting was horrible. Our Cinderella pictures did not turn out. Snow White suggested we move which worked. The pictures were better. But not great.

When you pay for character dining you expect to meet the characters. Sign autographs and take pictures. You cannot help being annoyed when your once in a lifetime vacation pictures are bad. How hard is to have better lighting? 

Akershus was busy, and I felt like I had to rush. The princesses have a royal precession and invite the children to take part. Which is adorable and fun for children. We sat in the back of the restaurant we couldn't watch the procession. I think the crowded restaurant and the precession cut into our princess time. At Crystal Palace we had more time with the characters.

Service

As you know Florida is hot and humid. We come from California where we are used to dry heat. The humidity was difficult on us. Especially my youngest. When seated the table had no water glasses. My daughter was thirsty and wanted water. We waited a long time. No one came. She started to cry. We had to go find someone and ask for water. Then wait even longer. I think it took over fifteen minutes to get a glass of water.

My husband is a server and he could tell that the server was nervous. It was his first day serving on his own. The server was nice and very knowledgeable about the beer selection and the cuisine. He was Norwegian.

Frankly, the service stunk. Not the servers fault. Epcot is busy. There should have been more servers. Or a runner to bring water to tables when they arrive. No one should wait fifteen minutes for a glass of water in Florida. Especially a kid.

The Food

Is forgettable. As my teenager told me the food was “kinda gross TBH”. As my seventeen-year-old stated “best thing was the salad bar which is not a compliment”. Yeah, the food is not good.

There is an all you can eat taste of Norway offered as an appetizer. My teen referred to this as the salad bar. There is Scandinavian Seafood, cheese, cured and sliced meat. Along with salads and fruits.

My husband who eats almost everything did not care much for it. I just felt the offerings I tried were not fresh. I wish there was a better variety of greens at the salad bar.

The entrees were not great either. I had the Tradisjonell Kjøttkake which is Norwegian meatballs with Lingonberry sauce. The best part was the Lingonberry Sauce. They are like cranberries. The meatballs and mashed potatoes were just ok.

My seventeen-year-old had the Svinestek med Frukt - Seared Pork Tenderloin. He thought the food was “kinda gross”. I do not eat pork but my husband tried it. He said it was ok.

My husband had the Laks - Grilled Fillet of Salmon and said it was ok.

My youngest had children's pizza and mashed potatoes. Which was typical Disney fare. Overall, the food was acceptable, but I have had better food at Epcot.

Dessert was one plate of three small desserts to share. They were an assortment of Norwegian-inspired Desserts. Sweet and Savory Chocolate Mousse which was ok. Rather boring to be honest. Traditional Rice Cream topped with Strawberry Sauce which was once again ok. Last was Apple Cake with Cardamom Whipped Cream. Which again was ok. The desserts were forgettable.

I do not understand how even the desserts could be so boring. When we were eating in the France Pavilion, there were wonderful desserts. If you are looking for some wonderful sweets France is the place to go. 

Will I Eat There Again?

Many people choose Akershus because it is more affordable. Plus easier to book than Cinderella’s Royal Table. Like Rumple said on Once Upon a Time “all magic comes with a price Dearie”. That is especially true here. Akershus is a restaurant you dine at for the characters. Do not expect more than that.

If you weed through the reviews on Yelp and Trip Advisor, you will find many people feel the same way. The food for lack of better words sucks. We are at Disney World where more often than not you pay for the experience. Not necessarily quality service or food. If you want quality service and food, you will pay a steep price. Many families who already spent so much on their Disney vacation cannot afford that.

Our trip to Disney World was like something from a National Lampoon movie. Everything that went wrong could. I knew there was a 50/50 chance the food wouldn’t be good. But like many I was happy to find a character dining experience that had Princesses.

I cannot vouch for Cinderella’s Royal Table but have heard mixed reviews about the food. Recent feedback is that the food has improved. If I had a time machine, I would go back and book Cinderella’s Royal Table for breakfast which is harder to screw up.

I would eat at Akershus again under a few conditions. One the food quality must improve. Two the service improves. A self-service soft drink fountain would be a major improvement. Last but not least, I would book reservations earlier in the day. Which means better lighting for pictures. Seriously, this is character dining the lighting should be better. People need good lighting to take pictures.

Lunch and dinner is $62 per adult and $37 for kids for ages 3-9. For that much I expect better. Also, so you know Cinderellas Royal Table charges the same price for their breakfast. Which is slightly less expensive than lunch or dinner. I am guessing from what I have read you will have a better experience there.

My family and I are returning to Disney World next year. We have no desire to dine at Akershus when we visit. Have you dined at Akershus? Did you like the food?