What should you know?

Disney characterizes Animator’s Palate’s cuisine as “Pacific Rim/American,” but the vast majority of the menu is standard fare you’d find at any American chain restaurant. There are probably as many Italian selections – pasta, risotto, focaccia – as Asian. A handful of menu items, such as the vegetable stir-fry, have origins in the east; others are standard dishes garnished with a culinary kimono of sesame, ginger or teriyaki sauce to make them “Pacific Rim.” The food isn’t bad – again, it’s more like any American chain restaurant – but neither is it Asian.

Panorama of breakfast at Animator's Palate.

Masthead courtesy of Curtis Lannom.

What’s it like inside?

Each Disney ship has a restaurant called Animator’s Palate, and all four pay tribute to Disney’s (and Pixar’s) animation processes. And although all Disney ships have a restaurant named Animator’s Palate, there are three different implementations. Unlike the black-and-white décor on the Magic and Wonder, Animator’s Palate on the Fantasy (and the Dream) version features vivid colors: the floor has red carpet with stars of silver, gold and blue, and the walls are the color of caramel. The backs of the dining room chairs are patterned after Mickey Mouse’s pants, with red backs, yellow buttons and a black “belt” at the top.

Shelves along the walls hold small toy versions of Disney and Pixar icons, in between video screens which display animation sketches from popular Disney movies. The more interesting ones will show on one screen how one complete animated “cel” is drawn, starting from sketches of the main characters, to how key background elements are drawn, to color samples for walls and floors, to the finished art.

At certain points during your dinner, some of the screens will switch from sketches to an interactive video featuring the turtle Crush from Finding Nemo. When we say “interactive” we meant it – Crush will ask you questions and react to your responses, allowing you to have an actual conversation with the animated turtle. Based on the same real-time computer graphics found in Epcot’s Turtle Talk with Crush attraction, the technology behind this mini show allows Crush’s mouth to move in the appropriate way as his words are spoken. Parents may be more amazed than children.

What are the specialties?

Vegetable stir-fry; Roasted garlic or red pepper dip with bread.