Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is BACK in Disney World, but if you want a fully decked out party experience, it’ll cost you extra!

You’ll already have to pay over $100 per person to attend the Halloween party itself, but if you want to take things to the next level you can also reserve a Fireworks Dessert Party experience at the Halloween event (exclusive to those at the party). The dessert party will cost you close to if not over $100 EXTRA. So is this $100+ experience worth adding on to your party experience? Let’s find out!

Atmosphere

The dessert party for Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is called “Disney’s Not-So-Spooky Spectacular Dessert Party.” The dessert party (in terms of where the desserts are served) is held in Tomorrowland Terrace.

The first thing to note is that there are actually 2 different dessert parties to pick from. The traditional dessert party will cost you $115 for adults and it includes desserts at Tomorrowland Terrace with the ability to sit down at the restaurant and watch the fireworks from there, with a seat.

BUT if you want to make things a bit cheaper, you can pick the dessert party with Plaza Garden Viewing. This costs $99 for adults and features a dessert party at Tomorrowland Terrace (generally with the same food as the more expensive version). But, in this case, as the showtime nears, Cast Members will escort you to a reserved area at the Plaza Garden from which you’ll watch the fireworks (no seats there, just regular standing room or the floor).

This is similar to how Magic Kingdom’s regular fireworks dessert parties offer a treats-and-seats version, as well as versions where you sit in the Plaza Garden for your fireworks viewing. We’ve shared full reviews of those before and you can click the links above to check those out.

For our experience, we went with the cheaper option. Which experience is best for you will definitely depend. But, in our experience, unless you truly want/need those tables and seats during your fireworks viewing experience, the Plaza Garden viewing can actually provide you with a better, more direct view of the fireworks and Castle, and that little bit of money saved can make a big difference when multiplied against many family members. 💵

Check-in for the Plaza Viewing dessert party experience begins 1.5 hours before the actual fireworks begin. At that time, we went ahead and went over to Tomorrowland Terrace for the check-in.

After that, we got the chance to enter the designated fireworks dessert party space. Our experience was essentially all housed within the upper area of Tomorrowland Terrace, to the upper right-hand side (near the closed registers of that restaurant). The lower level (closer to the castle) appeared to be blocked off. It’s likely this was being used for those who purchased the version of the dessert party that features seated fireworks viewing.

Here you’ll find the buffet and drinks setup, along with some assigned seating.

Menu

The dessert party features a buffet-style serving of desserts that you can visit as many times as you want! That’s right, it’s time for a SUGAR RUSH!

Many of the desserts were the same as the ones we tried during the traditional Magic Kingdom fireworks dessert party, though a few were a bit different. Keep in mind that offerings are always subject to change.

The desserts we got to try included a Caramel Apple Crepe…

…Butterscotch Pudding…

…Devil’s Chocolate Pudding…

…Dark Chocolate Cookies…

…Oreo Cheesecake Mousse…

…Pistachio Crunch Bars…

…Firehouse Doughnuts…

…Pumpkin Toffee Cupcakes…

…birthday cupcakes, cookies…

…fruits…

…cheese and crackers, and more.

There was also an area to get drinks. There are signature lemonades, coffees, teas…

…and alcoholic drinks (beer and wine) for those 21 and up.

You can stop by to speak with the Cast Members and see exactly what alcoholic drinks are available.

Now, let’s get to that food!

Eats

We had to get a little bit of almost everything (of course)!

Let’s start with the Butterscotch Pudding with Caramel Popcorn. Overall, this was good, but not perfect. The pudding was a little on the soupy side and not very thick.

The popcorn was also borderline stale, but it still added a nice crunchy texture to the dessert as a whole. The butterscotch flavor wasn’t very strong at all. Instead, we got more of a light caramel taste. It was good, but nothing to write home about!

Next, we have the Pistachio Crunch Bar. The first thing that hits your mouth here is a STRONG level of sweetness. The nut flavor from the pistachio is something you only really get on the back end, as a sort of aftertaste.

It’s very crunchy too, which might be good depending on how you feel about it. Overall, it was okay, but we really would have loved that pistachio flavor to shine more, with just a hint of sweetness.

Then we had the Devil’s Chocolate Pudding, which has a chocolate filling, crumble brownie, and milk chocolate whipped cream.

This is essentially the same as the dessert served at The Friar’s Nook. This one had a bit richer flavor when it came to the chocolate — it almost gave us a mocha vibe. But otherwise, it was very much the same dessert as the one you can get over at Friar’s Nook. It was simple but pretty tasty. The cake crumbles can be a little dry but they pair well with the pudding.

Next, we had the Dark Chocolate Cookies, which totally channel those evil black and while Cruella vibes! This cookie was deliciously moist and had a great, rich chocolate flavor.

We think this could be an awesome pick for kiddos at the party. Is it basic? Sure! But sometimes a basic, tasty treat is all you need!

Next was the Oreo Cheesecake Mousse. This is topped with crumble and is meant to be reminiscent of the Cookies ‘n Cream cheesecake mousse served at Cinderella’s Royal Table.

Again, the mousse was not firm and was, instead, very runny. It also had an artificial and extremely sweet cheesecake flavoring. It wasn’t bad necessarily but wasn’t great either. If the mousse had been colder and more firm, we think it could have worked much better!

Next, we have the Cake Bites. There were Vanilla Cake Bites and Chocolate Ones. The vanilla version was good. It essentially tasted like a cake pop.

The flavors on the vanilla one weren’t anything out-of-this-world, but they were good, solid, basic flavors that we think could be a hit with kids.

The Chocolate Cake Bite was similar in the sense that it felt like a cake pop.

But this one had a much stronger flavor. With just one bite, you got an EXPLOSION of chocolate flavor that was very pronounced. If you love chocolate, then that might be the one for you. But we enjoyed the vanilla ones a bit more since they were a little more subtle.

Then we had the Firehouse Doughnuts. These are ricotta doughnuts rolled in cinnamon sugar, served with a strawberry dipping sauce. These used to be on the menu at Tony’s Town Square Restaurant, but have since been removed from the online menu at least. Be sure to check and see if they’re available when you visit.

Our reporter told us that they normally LOVE cinnamon and sugar, but despite that deep adoration, this doughnut was a miss. 😞

It was very chewy and way too doughy. It also had a strangely salty taste to it upon your first bite and as an aftertaste. We thought this would be a winner, but unfortunately, it fell totally flat for us and had a strange flavor.

When we last had these, we felt the doughnut was dry but had a nice crunch on the outer shell. Still, it fell into the “average” category for us. Overall, it looks like things haven’t dramatically improved.

Then we dove into the Pumpkin Toffee Cupcake. This was actually REALLY GOOD! The toffee cake was nice, and it was moist with just a hint of cinnamon. The frosting was whipped cream frosting and it was soooooo good, with a really great pumpkin flavor. It wasn’t too sweet but instead felt light and tasty.

This truly delivered those fall flavors we were looking for and checked all the boxes for us! The only “con” we have is that it was pretty difficult to take off the wrapping. We ended up sort of having to destroy it and rip it up into pieces — so just be prepared to tear away at that wrapping to get to the delicious cupcake underneath!

Then it was time to check out the Caramel Apple Crepe with Toasted Pecans and Sweet Cream. First of all, we’ve got to give top marks for presentation here. Any dish with a hidden (or not-so-hidden) Mickey gets a 5/5 for presentation from us!

This was actually really good! There were some big slices of apples cooked really well. Combine that with the crunch from the nuts, and you’ve got a pretty great dish!

We could have used a bit more sweetness though, maybe just with something like a caramel drizzle. But overall it was a great option!

And that’s a full look at our food. Once we were done, and shortly before the fireworks began, we were escorted to our Plaza Garden viewing area and got to watch the Not So Spooky Spectacular fireworks!

Now, let’s talk about whether this is something you should or should not add to your party fun.

Nosh or Not

Book that fireworks dessert party for Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party if:

• You’ve got a sweet tooth (and like to drink too) — If you love desserts, there are a few different ones to pick from here and you can get as many as you’d like, so you can truly eat your weight in sweet treats if that’s what you’re into! The drinks are all you care to enjoy as well, so that’s an added bonus.
• You want reserved fireworks viewing — Things like fireworks and parades can get especially packed at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. If getting a good spot for the fireworks is important to you and you don’t necessarily want to “hold” a place by sitting down in a location extra early, you could book this party and get that reserved Plaza Garden viewing.
• You love taking things to the next level — If you’re dedicated to experiencing it ALL, then maybe this is something you’ve got to check off your bucket list just to say that you did.

Skip the fireworks dessert party if:

• You are looking to save some money — You’ve already got to pay for your ticket to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. The fireworks dessert party will only ADD to that expense. If you feel like you’ve already paid enough just to be at the party, then you may want to skip this experience and save that cash.
• You want really unique or especially ridiculously delicious food — Some of the items at the dessert party were awesome, others were okay, and some just didn’t hit the mark. While some are a bit more unique, most of them are fairly “safe” snacks with flavors like vanilla and chocolate. If you’re looking either for really unique food or for food that’ll totally knock your socks off, this probably won’t do it for you.
• You want something savory — The only real savory things on the menu here were the cheese and crackers. If you or someone you’re traveling with hates sweets, this is NOT the place to go.

Overall

Overall, the fireworks dessert party serves its purpose. It packs in a bunch of sweets and drinks in a private atmosphere (oooo exclusivity!), and partners that with a special, reserved fireworks viewing spot. If desserts, exclusive experiences, and/or a reserved fireworks viewing area is important to you, then this could be something worth considering.

But, if you’re not all that into sweets or you aren’t too worried about where you’ll watch the fireworks from (or you’re willing to sit down and hold your spot well in advance), then this might be a skip.

It’s something we were glad we got to try but admittedly isn’t a great pick for everyone.

What do you think? Would you consider this experience to be worth it? Tell us in the comments.

To see more of our coverage from Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, click here. You can also click here to take a look at the Halloween Party-exclusive merchandise, or click here to see our full reviews of the Halloween snacks at the party (and those available regularly in the parks).

Click  here to see why you need to arrive EARLY for Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party



Do you think the dessert party is worth it? Tell us in the comments!