Getting dining reservations in the parks has gotten to be pretty cutthroat with the limited options for character meals! Your reservation window opens up and it is a mad dash to see what you can get your hands on. That’s why we were thrilled when Akershus Royal Banquet Hall reopened at Epcot!

On Novemeber 4th the character dining location reopened for dinner only welcoming back some beautiful princesses and delish dining! Take a look at our experience as one of the first guests back to this royal dining experience.

Akershus Royal Banquet Hall is a Disney Princess character meal located in the Norway Pavilion of Epcot at Walt Disney World near the Frozen Ever After ride. They reopened after an incredibly long closure. The dining experience is family-style with the opportunity to meet and hug 5 different princesses during your meal.

The dining location is in a large, rustic Norwegian banquet hall. There are several seating areas that get filled up in turns so that the princesses make their way around to every single table. The hall has large arched doorways, rustic stonework, and carved dark wood details throughout. There are nods to different fairytales around in the decor and the design of the restaurant makes you feel like you are dining in a real castle. Decorative banners hang from the ceilings accented by dim lighting.

There are traditional craft items from Norway on tables and shelves to tie in the theme and design as well.

Previously, there was a buffet option here at Akershus but it has since reopened as family-style. There is current rumblings that the buffet may return in the future. For now, the cast uses the old buffet as a staging area.

Meet the Princesses!

We had the very first dining time of the day, 4:15 pm. We were seated immediately and brought to our table. All other tables were filled in around us. The princesses come from a side staging area to the left of the restaurant entrance. They each have royal music that plays to alert you they are making their entrance. There are about 5 to 8 minutes between the entrance of each princess.

We met 5 princesses! Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty. Each princess came around to every single table and talked with every guest, took photos, allowed hugs, and made the experience totally magical. Sleeping Beauty even took a little princess at one of the tables in her arms and twirled her around in a little dance. (I would have taken photos but didn’t want to spoil their moment).

The Menu!

The meal itself is family-style platters fit for royalty! Highlights include field greens salad with lingonberry vinaigrette, traditional kjØttkake (Norwegian meatballs) and grilled salmon.

There is a traditional beer, wine, and drink menu and a whole allergy-friendly menu for guests that need it. If you have any food allergies make sure you talk to your server when you are seated.

The first course is the Field Greens Salad with Lingonberry Vinaigrette and Lefse with Cardamom-Cinnamon Butter. The salad was great! Very fresh tasting and the dressing was very tasty. For anyone that isn’t familiar with Lefse, like us, our server said it is usually served as a dessert option in Norway. But, it is part of the starter for this meal. It tasted like a crepe! The butter wasn’t overly sweet but enough to make us want more.

The platter of food they brought out for the main course was literally amazing. Not only was everything they brought out delicious, it was also very pretty to look at. The platter contained: Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Grilled Salmon with Herbed Butter, Green Beans, Red Cabbage, Macaroni & Cheese, Rice Cream with Strawberry Sauce, Chocolate Roulade with Lingonberry Cream, Kylling og Melboller: Norwegian Chicken and Dumplings.

The bowl with the dumplings and the meatballs were my favorite off the plate! The dumplings were very tasty and the meatballs and potatoes melted in your mouth.

Dessert was a rice pudding with strawberry sauce and a very rich mouse log. Both were good endings to a great meal.

Breakdown

The meal is $63 per adult (ages 10 and up) $41 per child (ages 3-9), plus tax and gratuity. You need advance dining reservations to get in as there is no walk-up waitlist at this time. The food was a solid 8.5/10. The service was a 10/10. The characters and their interactions were a 100/10!

Make sure you add this to your next trip to the parks!

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