Dining with Donald and Goofy at Disney's Vero Beach Resort, plus champagne brunch

Note: This is a companion piece to my Examiner article, which can be read by clicking here.

What would a Disney resort be without a character breakfast? Disney's Vero Beach resort is no exception. It has a breakfast with Donald and Goofy on Saturday mornings, so of course my husband and I had to check it out. It's held in Shutters and runs till 11 a.m. We decided to make a late reservation so it could act as both breakfast and lunch. That also turned out to be perfect timing for the character appearances, since both Donald and Goofy showed up shortly after we were seated:






We got photos and autographs with the duo:



There were plenty of kids in the restaurant, but I noticed we weren't the only childless adults either. We watched the character interactions, and they spent a lot of time with the little ones. It was more relaxed than many of the crowded character meals at Disney World (I highly recommend the Garden Grill at Epcot if you want a relaxed experience; it's probably our favorite character meal on property, and Mickey and friends usually make it around to every twice there). We watched the wee ones having a blast playing with Donald and Goofy.

Mickey wasn't there in person, but he was represented by the tableware:



After our photo and autograph session, it was time for food. The breakfast is plated, but it's all you can eat. It starts off with a fruit plate and a nice variety of danishes (I saved a couple for a snack later):






Mickey was on the butter too:



And of course there were Mickey waffles! In addition, you get breakfast potatoes, sausage, bacon and scrambled eggs. There was more than enough for the two of us, although hubby did request another Mickey waffle:



I definitely recommend this meal because I never feel like a trip to a Disney property is complete without eating with the characters.

There is a champagne brunch at Shutters on Sundays that doesn't feature characters, but it does have bloody Marys and mimosas:



It is a buffet and is more upscale, with a large variety of seafood, plus sushi, cheeses and fruits. You can get a made to order omlette or choose from various hot items like fish, eggs benedict, carved to order meats, crepes, crab soup and plenty of other goodies. Some of the cold selections and the omlette station are shown below:
























The buffet was a great send-off before we headed home on Sunday. We booked 11 a.m., which gave us time to pack the car and dine right before hitting the road. It is a special treat for seaood lovers like my husband, although I was quit content with the eggs benedict and omlettes.

I can't really compare the champagne brunch to anything at Disney World, but it did remind me of the Palo brunch on the Disney Magic and Wonder cruise ships. It wasn't quite as upscale as Palo, but it was a hearty meal with many tempting items.