'Ohana at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort reopening date set but will not feature characters

Jun 08, 2021 in "'Ohana"

Posted: Tuesday June 8, 2021 4:35pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Disney has today announced that 'Ohana will reopen on July 9 2021 at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort.


Ohana will again offer the all-you-care-to-enjoy breakfast and dinner offerings when they reopen, but will not feature any Disney characters. A strolling musician will entertain guests for dinner.

For breakfast, start with pineapple-coconut breakfast bread, move on to Stitch and Mickey Mouse waffles, then dig into “eggs”cellent breakfast skillets with ham, sausage, and breakfast potatoes.

The ‘Ohana dinner features all-you-care-to-enjoy platters of grilled beef steak, roasted chicken, sausage, and island shrimp casserole served with fried rice and roasted broccolini. ‘Ohana pot stickers, crispy soy chicken wings, and the signature ‘Ohana bread pudding served warm with caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream are back.

Bookings open June 10 for dining from July 9 2021. ‘Ohana will be open daily for breakfast from 7:30am - 12:00pm and for dinner from 3:30pm -10:00pm.

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peter11435Aug 18, 2021

Correct. So now the food is still cooked the old way… but removed from the skewers at the grill/kitchen.

bpiperAug 18, 2021

Ok, now I get it. The stop at each table allows Covid particles from infected people at that table to contaminate the food on the skewer for the next table.....

scoobygirl39541Aug 18, 2021

Very happy for the changes back, just wished they'd waited until we snagged a ADR lol We found it impossible to get one for our October trip (the whole family was trying at 5:30am onward on the 60 day mark) as it is... Now it will be even more difficult to get one :/

peter11435Aug 18, 2021

Ohana uses very large skewers that hold food for multiple tables. Pre Covid the server would come to your table with a skewer of meat. Remove a portion from the skewer in front of you, then move onto another table and repeat the process. So skewers with food on them would visit multiple tables.

bpiperAug 18, 2021

Can you elaborate on what the issue is with skewers coming to the table? I am drawing a blank.

peter11435Aug 18, 2021

No. The Brazilian restaurant probably shouldn’t be.

TikibirdLandAug 18, 2021

Do you at least get to see them removed from the skewers? The Brazilian restaurant is doing skewers at multiple tables now.

peter11435Aug 18, 2021

The skewers are portioned for multiple tables. Which can’t be done at this time.

TikibirdLandAug 18, 2021

Leave it on the skewer. that's half the experience!

Waters Back SideAug 18, 2021

This was bound to happen sometime, reverting back to the original menu. Ohana has a huge fan base. Eventually Trails End and Cape May Cafe will do so also.

TrojanUSCAug 18, 2021

The shrimp and steak are skewered, they just remove them from the skewers prior to being delivered to your table now. The chicken is weirdly still bone-in, but on the grill.

TikibirdLandAug 17, 2021

Well, they're getting closer to being back to normal. How 'bout bringing back the Skewers? Our local Brazilian restaurants have been doing that for a while now.

DCBakerAug 17, 2021

Menu has been updated - The 'Ohana Coconut-Papaya Scones and Cheddar-Bacon Biscuits has been replaced with Signature 'Ohana Bread. Shrimp Casserole has been replaced with Spicy Peel-n-Eat Shrimp. A few drinks also removed. https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/en_CA/dining/polynesian-resort/ohana/menus/dinner/

TrojanUSCAug 16, 2021

100%. The steak is still being cooked on the skewers. They just plate it on little skillets before bringing it to the table. They could easily just bring you a second skillet of shrimp, steak and chicken. There is no need for the actual skewers to make an appearance. This was about homogenization to save money and use less staff.