Review: Story Book Dining at Artist Point with Snow White

Let's take a stroll through the Enchanted Forest and savor a delicious dinner at Story Book Dining at Artist Point with Snow White. Located at Disney's Wilderness Lodge, Story Book Dining is a prix fixe character dining experience with character appearances from Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Here, I will detail my personal experience dining at Artist Point and my review of the meal.

Storybook Dining is a prix fix menu, character dining experience primarily consisting of American cuisine. The dinner offers a choice of individually plated entrees along with an array of shared starters and desserts. While enjoying your meal, you will be visited by Snow White, Dopey, and Grumpy as well as receive an invitation to meet and pose for a photo with the Evil Queen.

Dining at Artist Point has been sitting on the top of my Disney World bucket list for a while, so I was ecstatic when I snagged a dining reservation for Sunday night after finishing the Dopey Challenge during the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend. It seemed fitting as Dopey is one of the race hosts for the weekend and on the medals for the Dopey Challenge. On that note, this is an extremely popular dining reservation and fills up quickly. I have tried to book before but had no luck. Dining reservations can be made either through the My Disney Experience app or online 60 days in advance. Reservations open as early as 6 AM EST so I highly suggest hopping on to reserve a spot right when it drops. As a special bonus, Guests of Disney Resort Hotels (including Disney Vacation Club Guests) can enjoy an extended window for making dining reservations. For example, we were staying at Disney World for a total of 9 nights so once the 60-day mark hit for the first night booked, I could place reservations for dining throughout my entire stay.

Pro Tip: Continue to check the My Disney Experience app leading up to your trip, and 24 hours before the date you want to dine as many Guests modify or cancel their dining reservations. You may be able to snag a last-minute reservation.

Artist Point Dinner Pricing

First, let's talk about pricing. This character dining experience is considered a prix fixe meal which means there is a set menu at a fixed price. This will include a set of shared appetizers, one choice from a selection of entrees, and a set of shared desserts along with your choice of a non-alcoholic drink such as soda. They also have a selection of specialty drinks, nonalcoholic and alcoholic, for an additional cost. The pricing is as follows: $65 per adult, plus tax and gratuity, and $39 per child, plus tax and gratuity.

A Storybook Fantasy Come to Life

Disney has done what they do best and transformed the restaurant Artist Point into an Enchanted Forest. The check-in for the restaurant is located in the back corner of Disney's Wilderness Lodge as you enter the lobby. The only complaint of the night was we waited about an extra 30 minutes past our reservation time to be seated. The restaurant seemed to be bustling so it is best not to expect to be seated right away. Once our table was ready, we were directed up a ramp to enter the restaurant and it was heigh-ho! heigh-ho! off to dinner, we go! We were then greeted by a hostess who led us to the table and handed us a card with the autographs of the characters we would be meeting. I was dazzled by the lush overgrowth of branches and leaves above us with hanging lanterns that threw a low light over the dining room. The foliage teemed with LED lights that synced up with the entertainment and further added to the ambiance. The giant ceiling with towering wooden beams and support posts gave the illusion of actual trees towering above us. In the middle of the dining room was a storybook of epic portions, turned to a page fit for a villain. This is the location where the Evil Queen greets Guests. Our table location was ideal. It was in the right corner, with the windows to our backs and a clear view of the Evil Queen at her photo op. There was also ample walkway space so getting up and down to take pictures with the characters was a breeze. On our table was a tiered, rotating masterpiece. With three place settings meant to look like leaves, this is where our server would place our shared plates, but more on that later.

A Meal Fit for a Fairytale

Once Upon a Time...

To start our story, my sister and I decided to order some alcoholic drinks to try. As mentioned before, specialty drinks including alcohol are an additional charge, but stuff like soda is included in the prix fixe price. I am normally not a drinker but felt the accomplishment of completing my first marathon warranted a celebratory drink. For my drink of choice, I went with the Enchanted Apple consisting of SKYY Infusions Citrus Vodka, DeKuyper Pucker Sour Apple Liqueur, White Cranberry Juice, and a slice of green apple. On the other hand, my sister chose the Alchemy consisting of Ford Gin, St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, and Watermelon. Both drinks were refreshing and not overly sweet. I would order either drink again, but if you love apple then I recommend the Enchanted Apple.

This meal is split into three chapters: shared starters, an entree, and shared desserts. Not long after we sat down, we were promptly greeted by our server, and he took our orders for drinks as well as our choice of entree. After the formalities concluded, he brought over a tray of three plates with the shared starters. This is where the tree centerpiece comes into play. Each plate fits perfectly on a leaf, and the ability for the structure to rotate allows each Guest at the table to grab their portion without climbing over one another. Pretty genius, no? Our server also took the time to explain what each dish was as well as inform us that if we liked any one dish in particular, he could bring us more. Placed on the revolving serving station, were given these three options to try:

• Wild Mushroom Bisque

• Hunter's Pie

• Wicked Shrimp Cocktail

All the portions are fairly small, but I preferred this set-up as we were able to sample different flavors throughout the meal and not feel stuffed. These dishes might have been small, but they were mighty. As I also mentioned, our server noted he could bring us more if we wanted. I am not a fan of mushrooms at all, so I was hesitant to try the Wild Mushroom Bisque, but boy was I pleasantly surprised! The consistency was creamy and felt like a warm hug. The mushroom flavor was subtle, and I can only describe the taste as hearty. Next, we sampled the Wicked Shrimp Cocktail tossed in a Bloody Mary vinaigrette, seaweed salad, and spiced house-made seasoning. There were only two shrimps, but both were what I considered jumbo and very juicy. Lastly, there was the Hunter's Pie, a turkey and chicken meatball dressed in a Cranberry Preserve and Crispy Sauerkraut. Any meat eater will love this option, the bite was well-dressed in a creamy sauce. Overall, the shared appetizers set the tone and I realized I was in for a well-crafted dinner.

Now with character meal, you have the opportunity to meet Snow White, Dopey, Grumpy, and the Evil Queen. As explained by our server, Snow White, Dopey, and Grumpy are free-roaming and will make their way through the dining room and interact with each table. This is standard with most character meals on Disney property. There is no set schedule, and occasionally the characters leave the dining room for a short moment. They will do an official introduction of the various characters throughout the meal where the characters come out to a specific song and coordinate lighting.

Rest assured; your server checks in near the end of your meal to make sure all the characters have made their way over to you. While finishing our shared starters, Grumpy came by to visit. We both lamented over the early wake-up times that Dopey set for the runDisney races! The characters definitely take their time and stick around for more than a photo.

The Core

Now for the main event: the entrees. Well, technically the main character first. Right before our entrees came Snow White was introduced to the dining room, as she glided across the room in her iconic colors, twirling her yellow skirt, and eventually making her way to our table. She absolutely adored my bejeweled bucket hat and offered to get me some more gems from the dwarves, how sweet of her! Okay, back to the food. The entrees are full-sized plates, and you have the choice between 7 wide-ranging options:

• "Cottage" Beef Stroganoff

• A Stroll through Nature

• Brother's Grimm Herb Chicken

• Sorceress Spell of "Tricken" Chicken (Plant-Based)

• Royal Prime Rib Roast

• Magic Mirror's Slow-braised Pork Shank

• Bashful's Sustainable Fish

My sister went with Bashful's Sustainable Fish topped with gremolata on a bed of risotto. Since it is sustainable, the fish option changes daily based on the season and selection. For that particular night, they were offering salmon. Per her report, the salmon was cooked beautifully, and the risotto was creamy perfection.

Now for my entree: I chose the Magic Mirror's Slow-braised Pork Shank on a bed of polenta and spinach. WOW! WOW! WOW! Words cannot begin to describe how well-executed this dish was. I will be dreaming of that shank for years to come. A mark of a good shank is whether you need a knife to eat it, and boy was my knife lonely! The pork fell right off the giant shank bone and melted in your mouth. The glaze was just savory enough to add a little flavor but allowed the tenderness of the meat itself to shine. As the shank fell apart in the bowl, my fork would pick up the pieces mixed with creamy polenta and cooked spinach for a multi-dimensional bite of epic proportions. Hands down this is the best shank I have ever had, and if you are looking for the best dish on the menu, the Magic Mirror's Slow-braised Pork Shank is it.

While absolutely basking in the genius of this dish, all of a sudden, the tree lights began changing colors and A Silly Song also known as The Dwarf's Yodel Song from the movie came over the dining room. Snow White, Dopey, and Grumpy began to dance around and clap to the music, I thought it was the absolute cutest and a nice nod to the film. Luckily the Evil Queen had retired to her chambers for a few minutes otherwise I am not sure how well that would have gone over with her Majesty.

After the Silly Song, the characters made their way through the dining room again. We were then visited by Dopey! He loved my medal since it had his face on it as well as my bejeweled bucket. I was impressed with the pacing of the entire meal. The timing between eating and entertainment was spot on. Once our server cleared our plates, we were presented with a royal decree from Her Majesty requesting our presence. This is essentially your table's ticket to get in line and meet the Evil Queen

Her Majesty

Unlike the other characters, the Evil Queen is stationed in the middle of the dining room with her own separate photo opportunity and backdrop. To coordinate, the servers present you with a ticket near the end of your meal which you will give to the character attendant when you get in line. Once you receive this ticket, your table is free to get up and meet Her Majesty. I suggest not waiting until the very end of the meal to do this just in case she gets pulled for her break. My sister and I ended up getting up right before dessert as we felt it was a good break point. We waited no more than 5 minutes. There is also a PhotoPass Photographer with Her Majesty so you will be able to purchase or download the photos through the My Disney Experience app or website once the photographer taps your MagicBand or ticket.

Let me just say that the Evil Queen was killing it. Her demeanor was on point and even struck a little fear into me as she pointed out the gems on my hat were technically stolen because she owned the mines, not the dwarves. Geez, ice cold!

A Sweet Ending

For the final chapter of the meal, our server brought over a set of shared desserts in a similar fashion as the shared starters. Placed on the revolving serving station, we were given three different options to try:

• Miner's Treasures

• Fairy Tale Gooseberry Tart

• "Poison" Apple

To start, the desserts aesthetically looked beautiful and reminiscent of elements from Snow White's fairytale. The "Poison" Apple was a dark chocolate apple mousse with a sour center in the form of a miniature apple. Far from poison, these delectable balls of mousse were creamy, light, and sweet. I love a good mousse and this one was a winner in my books. Next, we moved on to the Fairy Tale Gooseberry Tart, a tart filled with gooseberry puree and topped with a meringue. The Evil Queen must have had her hand in making these, as they were super tart and mushy. Out of the entire feast, the Gooseberry Tart was the only miss of the night. Last, but certainly not least, was the Miner's Treasures. A dessert taken straight from the mines, this was a Cookies 'n Cream panna cotta topped with a white chocolate fondant Dopey hat, chocolate gems, and pistachio crumble. A panna cotta is an Italian dessert of sweetened cream thickened with gelatin and molded and has a firmer consistency compared to the mousse. The Dopey garnish was more for display than taste, but the remaining elements were pulled together to create a showstopper of a dessert. The chosen Cookies 'n Cream flavor was palatable for anyone, and the chocolate gems and pistachio crumble gave a nice crunch that complemented the smoothness of the panna cotta.

As the last page was turned in the form of a check, our server presented us with one last parting gift from the Evil Queen. Dubbed "The Hunter's Gift to the Queen", our server approached our table with a heart-sized chest spilling with fog (i.e. liquid nitrogen). What lay in the chest, were heart-shaped dark chocolate pieces for each member of the party. The chocolate was decadent and a sweet ending to the night. A well-paced experience from beginning to end, we felt no rush to sign the check and exit the forest. I will also note here that this dining experience does offer an Annual Passholder discount, just make sure to notify your server. It was a 10% discount, excluding the alcoholic drinks we ordered.

Is Story Book Dining Worth It?

Is the Evil Queen evil? YES! Both my sister and I agreed that this was one of, if not, the best meals we have had on Walt Disney World property. I loved the concept of shared appetizers and desserts as we were able to sample a variety of dishes while also saving room for the sizable entrees. The entree itself blew me away, I still could not get over how tender and flavorful the shank was. Not only was the food amazing, but it was paired with high-quality entertainment. I loved the subtle touches of the Enchanted Forest throughout the dining room and the pace of the entire meal was perfect. Aside from Snow White, the rest of the characters are considered rare and normally are only out for special events. The interactions were memorable, especially with the Evil Queen, and as a plus, both Dopey and Grumpy ended up coming by our table twice. The entire dining experience was captivating and something that should be on everyone's bucket list for Disney World. I firmly believe Story Book Dining at Artist Point is worth the price tag.