Disney World restaurants like use characters, over-the-top themes, and family fun activities to provide guests with a memorable dining experience. ‘Ohana, at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, is themed in a tropical, Pacific Island design, with Hawaiian influences throughout the restaurant. This Disney restaurant is a favorite with families and everything about the dining experience is geared toward the idea of family, from the family style dining, to the hula hooping and organized antics for children.
Ohana Dining Facts
The ‘Ohana Dinner experience at Disney’s Polynesian Resort is located on the second floor, next door to Kona Cafe. The tropical theming is complete with an abundance of greenery, Hawaiian statues and tikis, and an open fire pit in the main dining room of ‘Ohana’s Restaurant. The dinner feast is served Family Style, with plenty of refills available for each course. The adult dinner price of $25.99, includes beverages and dessert, in addition to the several courses of dinner items. Children ages 3-9 can dine for $11.99. Tax and tip are not included in the dinner price.
‘Ohana serves dinner from five to ten o’clock each evening. Reservations are strongly recommended, due to the popularity of the restaurant. Guests visiting from other Disney resorts, or the Magic Kingdom, may find it convenient to take the monorail from the Magic Kingdom to Disney’s Polynesian Resort, for early evening reservations. Parking is also available at the Polynesian, and guests may get a parking pass at the main gate.
Fun Times for Children and Children at Heart
For some families, the entertainment at ‘Ohana is the key to a fun dining experience with children. The strolling singer at ‘Ohana’s walks around singing and playing a ukelele. Regularly sceduled rounds of coconut races are held for kids during dinner, and hoola hoop contests are a common occurrence at ‘Ohana. Dining may also include a quick limbo contest between courses, or a chance to learn a Hawaiian dance. The large open windows grant lucky guests sitting nearby, a fantastic view of the evening Magic Kingdom fireworks. If you dine earlier, a walk to the Polynesian beach will also provide a grand view of the Magic Kingdom fireworks after dinner.
Children seem to enjoy the entertainment and the friendly servers, who introduce themselves as, “cousins.” The family theme is a part of the ‘Ohana dining experience, and it is likely that one of the “cousins” will explain that the word, “ohana,” means family.
Save Room for Dessert
The menu for ‘Ohana’s is fixed and each course is brought out one at a time, beginning with appetizers. Fried Wontons with three sauces and Mixed Greens with a honey-lime dressing are served as appetizers. The peanut sauce, chimichurra, and harissa sauces add flavor to the crispy wontons. Unlimited servings of Spicy Sweet and Sour Shrimp and Honey Corriander Chicken Wings complete the appetizer portion of dinner.
The main course is cooked at am eighteen foot open fire pit in the middle of the main dining area at ‘Ohana’s. Fire blazing grills are used to cook the four different main dinner items. Dining guests can sample Marinated Sirloin Steak, Asian Barbeque Pork Loin, Mesquite Grilled Turkey, and Hawaiian Pork Sausage with Terriyaki Glaze, all delivered tableside on eight foot long skewers.
Side dishes include Maui Scalloped Potatoes and Stir-Fried Vegetables. The appetizers and side dishes are served in large bowls at the table, to be shared by each family. Guests may request refills of any dinner item, and the “cousins” stop by tables on a regular basis to see if refills are needed.
The dessert course is presented after all other courses have been completed, and the table is cleared. The dessert dish, ‘Ohana’s Bread Pudding a la mode, with Bananas Foster Sauce, is delicious. Many guests appeared to be regretting that they had filled up on dinner, when the dessert came. Save plenty of room for this unique dessert, and don’t hesitate to ask for seconds.
Recommendations
Ohana is a fun restaurant for families, as well as for couples who are looking for an entertaining evening and a Polynesian flavored dining experience. The appetizers are tasty, and the grilled meats are a meat-lovers dream. Dessert is a welcome ending to this Hawaiian feast, and if you can catch the Magic Kingdom fireworks after dinner, the evening will be even more magical. A dinner at ‘Ohana is worth the visit to Disney’s Polynesian Resort, and the tropical setting will have you relaxed and ready for the next course, before the next coconut race.
