An evening with Queen Victoria at Victoria and Albert’s

Amy BaranekFebruary 4, 2016We’ve been to Walt Disney World Resort many times now, and as a planner, I’ve researched many aspects of it. One thing that kept coming up was the outstandingly reviewed Victoria and Albert’s restaurant at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort. “I just can’t pay that much for food” was my mantra. Then I read a review saying you need to think about an evening at Victoria and Albert’s as an experience, much as you would put down good money for a night out at the theater. I know….it’s still a far stretch to justify the high price but when else am I going to eat at a 5 diamond restaurant rated 4th best in America?A few things to know about Victoria and Albert’s: You have three dining options. The main seating includes a seven-course meal; Queen Victoria’s room is a semi-private dining area with four tables total and 10-course meal; and Chef’s table is in the kitchen, where the Chef comes out and talks with you and prepares a personalized 10-course meal for you. All of these options will set you back at least a few hundred dollars. With that in mind, my husband and I decided to reserve the Queen Victoria room. Our thoughts were if you’re spending that much anyway, might as well go all out. We didn’t do the Chef Table since it was just the two of us, it seemed like it should be saved for a larger party. (Plus, honestly, I was a little concerned if I didn’t like something and the Chef noticed me making a face, it’d be hard to cover up.)A note about my husband and I - we are not fancy eaters. Chili’s, Applebee’s and Outback tend to be our staples. We like going to nicer restaurants, but with two younger boys we just don’t often take the time to do it. So after a lot of thought we decided to make the reservation, but in the back of my mind I figured, we can cancel it anytime - I was still having a lot of difficulty with the price. We packed our “fancy” clothes but I still figured I can cancel. Then, a few days before our reservation they called to confirm, they verified the spelling of our names and if we had any allergies. Um, I guess I can’t cancel now….we are going.We arrived for our reservation and were escorted into the restaurant through the main dining room, through another set of doors into the Queen Victoria dining room. The room itself is private; there are four tables total in the room and you are pretty spaced apart. We were the last seating for the room which meant everyone else was at different stages in their dining. I have to say, we felt pretty awkward at first, it was very quiet and fancy! We had two waiters -who wore tuxedos with long tails - who were assigned to the room. One came over and introduced himself and placed a card holder with an envelope with my name on it with only the comment “a little something to start off the evening.” Turns out the “little something” was a very nice gift card from my dad covering most of our meal.

Before we left, we had to get a picture of ourselves in the room. I somehow pulled it together to stand in an upright position, and our waiter gave me a rose along with a Victoria and Albert bag with our personalized menus in them. I walked out tall and proper, and promptly ran to the bathroom to remove my spanx. I had no shame at this point. We took a taxi back to our hotel as it was easier than monorail and bus hopping.So, would I go back to Victoria and Albert? Absolutely! It was THE BEST meal I have ever eaten. I am drooling as I type this thinking about the delicious food. Now, could I get myself to spend that much money again? Probably not. It was definitely an experience as we were there for 3½ hours, it was a magical evening of adult company and enjoying each other as we wondered about what new food would be presented to us. I would like at least one more trip in my lifetime - maybe our 25th wedding anniversary. I don’t know what I would do differently in terms of how full I was … maybe start food training beforehand … and find a dress that doesn’t require the spanx.For questions or to contact for more Disney information email Amy Baranek at amyb@wishesfamilytravel.com or follow her on Facebook.