'Ohana Breakfast.

Many of the "table service" (sit-down) restaurants on Disney property offer different experiences depending on which time of day you visit.  While 'Ohana, which is located at Disney's Polynesian Resort, is one of our very favorite dinner meals EVER, we decided to branch out on our trip last June (2016) and try breakfast instead!

I am SO glad we did! :)

The "island/luau" theme of The Polynesian, which is one of Walt Disney World's original resorts, is the perfect setting for Lilo & Stitch, and all four of our kiddos couldn't wait to meet the cute lil' alien and his loving owner!  The presence of these two characters, in particular, is what drove our decision to try breakfast at 'Ohana (there are no characters at the dinner experience).  While Stitch also greets guests inside the Magic Kingdom, the lines to hug his neck are often longer than we'd like to wait, and outside of 'Ohana's breakfast hours (which are 7:30 am-11:00 am), Lilo can only be found at Typhoon Lagoon, one of Disney's two water parks (Stitch is there as well!).  Having the opportunity to enjoy a delicious breakfast, at a comfortable table, while waiting for characters to make their way to us is something we enjoy much more than standing in long, hot lines! :)

The breakfast at 'Ohana is all-you-can-eat and is served family-style, which is always a perk for us! While we're definitely fans of a good buffet, we also appreciate dining experiences where nobody has to leave the table!  It's much easier for us to keep an eye on our kiddos (and their plates!), as well as enjoy our own food, when constant trips to the buffet aren't involved.

Gigantic skillets of scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, sausage links, bacon, biscuits & Mickey waffles are delivered to the table (and keep on coming until you stop eating!), along with 'Ohana's signature breakfast drink (a combination of passion fruit, orange, and guava juices).  Sweet pastries are brought as well.

And, in addition to Lilo & Stitch, Pluto and Mickey are on hand for hugs and autographs, too!

We chose to dine at 'Ohana on our check-out day (we simply wanted one more Disney experience before making the long drive home), but in addition to being an excellent choice for a "non-park" day, it is also extremely convenient to Magic Kingdom.  In fact, it's only a monorail ride away!

As part of a Magic Kingdom day, families could either grab breakfast before entering the park (and simply ride the monorail over to Main Street, USA after filling up) or visit Magic Kingdom first (especially if the park opens at 8:00 am), take advantage of the shorter lines at the beginning of the day, and then ride the monorail over for a later breakfast reservation (10:30 or 10:45).

Breakfast at 'Ohana is an extremely popular experience, so I do recommend making reservations as soon as possible (180 days in advance) as well as expecting the restaurant to be at capacity almost all of the time.

'Ohana is delicious, welcoming, and fun...and, in my opinion, embodies the feel of island life and the theme of the movie, "Lilo & Stitch."   And just in case you haven't seen it yet, let me sum it up for you with this quote:

"Ohana means family.  Family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten."