REVIEW: Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner at the Explorer’s Club Restaurant (HKDL): Is It Worth It?

Hong Kong Disneyland (HKDL) offers guests two ways to watch their nighttime spectacular Momentous. You can watch it for free in the hub or on Main Street, which is what most people do, or you can pay a premium to watch it from the reserved viewing area located right in front of the castle. You can do this in one of two ways: by buying the most expensive Premier Access Package or by purchasing the Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner meal at the Explorer’s Club Restaurant in Mystic Point. I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to do the latter, and that’s what this review is all about.

This review will go over everything I experienced as part of this package. From booking the package to my experience in the viewing area, I’m going to take you with me and not only give you an idea of what the experience is like and what to expect, but also answer the question of whether or not the package is worth it. So if you’ve been wondering if this package is for you, look no further and continue reading!

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Table of Contents

Booking the Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner

I was able to buy the Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner from the Hong Kong Disneyland website. It’s a pretty simple process. Just head to the Dining tab and click on Dining Offers, then select the Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner package. It currently costs HK$558 per adult and HK$382 per child. You can book for a group of up to 10 adults and 10 children. Children are those who are aged 3-11.

They don’t normally sell out, although I did encounter one day during our trip that sold out the week before. You can book the dinner a month in advance, so I suggest booking as early as possible even though it won’t sell-out, just so that you can have the peace of mind knowing you have a table. Please note that you need both a valid park admission as well as a park visit reservation to enjoy the Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner.

Know Before You Go

The first thing you have to be aware of is the price. The package currently costs, as mentioned, HK$558 per person. That’s over US$70. It’s a pretty pricey meal, but I think it’s well worth it. The food is good, probably in the upper 1/3rd of theme park food I’ve ever had, and the view you get from the viewing area is as unobstructed as you can get. Plus, if you have to choose between getting this or purchasing the highest Premier Access package to get access to the viewing area, I would pick this as it’s cheaper and on most days you won’t have a use for the other premier access passes as lines are usually short.

The second thing you have to know is that before your meal, they’ll give you wristbands that act as your entry passes to the viewing area. DO NOT LOSE THESE WRISTBANDS! They will not let you into the viewing area without them. I suggest wearing them as soon as you receive them so that you don’t have to worry about losing them.

Next, there are recommended dining times depending on when Momentous is showing that night: Dining time from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM with reserved viewing of the show at 8:00 PM; OR Dining time from 6:15 PM to 7:45 PM with reserved viewing of the show at 8:30 PM / 9:00 PM / 9:30 PM; OR Dining time from 7:45 PM to 9:15 PM with reserved viewing of the show at 9:45 PM. Dining times are just recommended, however, as we saw people entering the restaurant at 7:45pm when Momentous started at 9pm.

Lastly, even though you have a reserved viewing area, you’re still competing with other guests for the front row spots. If you want to be by the railing, I would suggest arriving 45 minutes before Momentous is scheduled to start, and maybe even earlier when it’s peak season. Don’t worry, they’ll allow you to sit on the floor while you wait, and even if you don’t get the closest view possible, you’re still a lot closer than everyone else and will have an amazing view of the show regardless.

Experience

Momentous was supposed to start at 9pm, so the recommended dining time was 6:15pm. We arrived at 6:30pm and were surprised to find that most of the restaurant was still empty. I was also surprised to find out that the restaurant was taking walk-ins. If you’re on the fence about this dining experience, it’s good to know that you can just walk-in if you want to. I assume, however, that walk-ins are limited so if you want to do this then arrive early to secure a spot.

As soon as they checked us in, they gave us our wristbands and showed us to our table. We immediately put them on and ordered our food. One person in our group has a gluten allergy and couldn’t eat anything on the menu. The restaurant was quick to replace her meal with something she could eat. It’s good to know that if necessary, Disney will be as accommodating as possible and still find you something to eat if you have an allergy of some kind.

Then, after ordering our mains, we then proceeded to the buffet to get our appetizers. The reason why it’s called a semi-buffet is because the appetizers, drinks, and desserts are served buffet style, while your main course is delivered to your table like a table service restaurant. So it’s a pretty unique dining experience.

They had a lot of appetizers to choose from, such as salads, flat breads, and waffles, and their dessert selection was very broad and included things like apple chocolate cake, coconut pandan parfait, pumpkin vanilla cake, and banana toffee ice cream. My personal favorite thing I ate was the Albert Waffle which, as a Mystic Manor fan, I was pretty excited about. The drinks included juices like apple juice and orange juice, as well as the option to purchase White Wine, Red Wine, Craft Beer, and Pilsner.

After enjoying our appetizers, our meals arrived about 20-25 minutes later. It’s nice to know that they don’t rush you through the meal, which is how I felt in some Disney restaurants in the United States. I guess it makes sense because they would want you to enjoy the appetizers on their buffet so that the restaurant can live up to the semi-buffet name, but either way I was grateful that we weren’t rushed through the whole thing.

After dining, we simply informed the cast member that we were done and we proceeded to make our way to the Momentous viewing area.

Food Quality

I thought the food quality of the Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner was outstanding. My appetizers were all amazing, as was the salad bar they had. I had the flatbreads and some salads for my appetizers and some of the different cakes and ice cream for dessert. They were all so good and in my opinion were worth the price of the meal. My entire group tried one of every main course meal and we were all satisfied with our meals. I got the burger mainly because they have Albert seared onto the bun which I found really cute. The burger was juicy and, dare I say it, the best theme park burger I’ve ever had.

I know that’s not exactly high praise, but I’ve had my fair share of theme park burgers around the world and the only one I can remember even coming close to this one is the one I had at Lamplight Lounge at Disney California Adventure. This burger was so good and the potato fries it came with were also really delicious.

The Hainanese chicken was very good as well, as was the pasta. I also really enjoyed the dessert. The Banana Toffee ice cream was really tasty, the apple chocolate cake was really good, and as mentioned I enjoyed the Albert waffle. All in all, this was such a good dining experience and I would do it again for the food and experience alone. Add the reserved viewing area into it and you’ve got the makings of an amazing dining package that is 100% worth the money.

Viewing Area and Momentous Experience

There are two entrances to the Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner viewing area: one is by the entrance to Adventureland, and the other is by the parade route corridor in between Tomorrowland and Fantasyland. Once you show your wristband, you can enter and exit as many times as you please from the area. So don’t worry if you need to go to the bathroom before the show, they will let you back in as long as you have the wristband.

I actually thought we were all going to be squeezed up like sardines in the viewing area, but the viewing area was actually pretty big. It was basically the upper part of the hub until the railing that separates the hub from the castle show viewing area. They don’t actually let you into the castle show viewing area. My guess is that they don’t want complaints from guests that they were soaked from the water fountains and screens.

We arrived 30 minutes before showtime and the front area by the railing was already taken. We decided to stay about halfway between the railing and the back of the viewing area. We had an amazing view and still saw just about everything. We laid out a mat on the floor and waited for the show to begin. At around 15 minutes before showtime, they told everyone that they had to stand. We then decided to use the mat as a bag area so we could watch the show without having our bags on our shoulders.

The show itself was spectacular. It wasn’t our first time seeing Momentous so we were already familiar with it, but getting to see the projections up close was such a special experience. It definitely made us more emotional and made us really appreciate the show a lot more too. These were literally the best “seats” in the house, and it quickly became my favorite viewing of Momentous ever. There was one drawback to being that close, though, which I will get into in the Thoughts section of this review.

Thoughts

I thought the dinner itself was great. The food was really high quality. I thoroughly enjoyed the appetizers they had such as the flatbread and the salad, and the desserts were all so tasty too. Standouts were the ice cream, the apple chocolate cake, and the Albert waffle, as mentioned.

The service was also superb. The cast members did an amazing job, especially when one of my group needed a special meal due to their Gluten allergy. They were so kind and accommodating and always wore a smile on their faces. HKDL really has some of the most amazing cast members and their exemplary service should be commended.

The viewing area for Momentous was big, wide, and spacious. I never felt cramped while we were there. It was definitely the best Momentous viewing spot in the park. That being said, we could not see the 20th Anniversary Drone Show clearly from where we were standing. I guess the drones are flown from around the World of Frozen area, because they were really far back. We were a bit to the left and could only see the drones that would appear to the left hand side of the castle. Two people in our group had never seen the drone show before and it was a bit disappointing that this was their first experience. I wish HKDL said that you wouldn’t really be able to see the drones from this angle, but given that the drones are just here for the 20th Anniversary, it shouldn’t be a problem once the show goes back to regular Momentous.

All in all, it was an amazing experience that I would recommend to anyone. If you’re on the fence about it, and have the budget, I would say do it! I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it if you only have one day at the park as it cuts into some pretty valuable park time, especially given that HKDL opens late and closes early. But if you’re in the park for two or more days, then I would definitely recommend it for you!

Score

This was an amazing experience, even though we couldn’t see the drones. The food was good, the service was impeccable, and the view was fantastic. It exceeded my expectations and is now something I would gladly do again on my next trip.

9.5/10

Hong Kong Disneyland Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner at the Explorer’s Club Restaurant Conclusion

Have you tried the Momentous Semi-Buffet Dinner at the Explorer’s Club Restaurant before? I want to know what you think about it! Message me on my socials (linked above) and let me know what you thought about it!

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