Ariels Grotto

[brookies_mommy]

I keep hearing mixed reviews.. inside or outside seating.. what has been your experience?

[Sleepless Knight]

I've only eaten at Ariel's once and was inside, but based on comparing my pictures from inside dining with a friend's pictures from outside dining, inside is the way to go. On a lot of her pictures, I noticed that the people in the pictures, both characters and her family members were cast in shadow. In most cases, the shadow was so dark that it was tough to tell if people were smilling or not. I felt bad that so many of the pictures turned out so dark, including at least one case where one character never appears in a good picture. All of my inside pictures turned out just fine.

Character meals are expensive. At least in the case of Ariel's you may also be paying a lot of money in order to save time and skip the long lines at the PFF. I would hate to spend all that money to see the characters and get pictures taken with them only to discover that the shadows completely ruined the picture, especially if the favorite character ends up in the shadow darkened picture. It's only $2 per person more to eat inside, which is well worth it in my opinion in order to avoid the chance of shadows wrecking pictures.

[GrandBob]

Originally Posted by Sleepless Knight

On a lot of her pictures, I noticed that the people in the pictures, both characters and her family members were cast in shadow. In most cases, the shadow was so dark that it was tough to tell if people were smilling or not. I felt bad that so many of the pictures turned out so dark, including at least one case where one character never appears in a good picture. All of my inside pictures turned out just fine.

A word to the wise. Good (and pro) photographers know to use fill flash for just this reason. Basically, it simply means to set your camera to always flash, even if outdoors. This will eliminate those shadows.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fill_flash

[Sleepless Knight]

Thanks for that tip. It's good to know.

[pixiewings71]

We've done both and enjoy both. If we are celebrating something (as recently as 2 weeks ago we ate here for DD's 13th bday) we sit inside, if we just want to eat we sit outside. The water is nice when it's there but since the cove is currently empty most people suggest inside.

[wrightut]

I just ate there a two weeks ago with my 3 year old daughter. We were seated inside and it looked like there were only a few parties seated outside. The princesses made there way to the outside, so no one got left out.

I enjoyed sitting inside, however, because I could sit my daughter so she could see the princesses as they were coming out. They do a little ceremony for each princess as they are introduced and she loved watching them walk out. I don't know if you would have as good a view of this if you sat outside.

Have fun!

[gcatt]

My 9-year-old DD and I were at Ariel's today for a wonderful lunch. We had great character interaction and wonderful pictures. (Sorry, brought the wrong cardreader to DLR, so we can't download them yet.)

We had 2:10 PS reservations and were seated app. 2:20. Before being seated, you have a meet & greet with Ariel. The photographer takes a picture package that you can buy later (for $30+ if desired) and you can of course take your own pictures too.

We were seated right by the windows, which could have been a problem for pictures. Luckily one of the royal heralds stopped by and warned us not to take pictures facing the windows due to glare and darkened faces. We just posed DD & the princesses away from the windows and the pics were great. Belle, Aurora, Cinderella, and Snow White stopped by the table for great interaction and pictures. They were very engaging and willing to talk with my very animated DD.

Food was good, especially the salad/antipasti and dessert trays and the great bread. My tri-tip was good, just not as rare as I like it, but tender and moist. Good mash potatoes and garlicky squash. DD's spaghetti was perfect kid spaghetti, and the meatball lollipop was cute and tasty.

It's hot and humid down here right now, and outside seating was not at all appealing. The only positive was that it was available for last minute walk-ins, but most whom we saw still turned it down due to the heat.

Here's her report: Hey everybody, I'm Megan (aka DD). I think Ariel's Grotto is the best place in Disneyland to go if you want to see princesses. Ariel and the other princesses are very nice. Ariel even helped us when we made a wrong turn leaving the restaurant, and told me funny stories about Scuttle. The food was awesome and so were the pictures. I especially loved the white chocolate conch shell.

[annacali]

Hmmm..we were there last Tues, and weren't given a choice. We sat inside and it was just fine! Never occurred to me that outside was an option. We sat right by where the Princesses come out and my DDs loved it!

[brookies_mommy]

Originally Posted by gcatt

My 9-year-old DD and I were at Ariel's today for a wonderful lunch. We had great character interaction and wonderful pictures. (Sorry, brought the wrong cardreader to DLR, so we can't download them yet.)

We had 2:10 PS reservations and were seated app. 2:20. Before being seated, you have a meet & greet with Ariel. The photographer takes a picture package that you can buy later (for $30+ if desired) and you can of course take your own pictures too.

We were seated right by the windows, which could have been a problem for pictures. Luckily one of the royal heralds stopped by and warned us not to take pictures facing the windows due to glare and darkened faces. We just posed DD & the princesses away from the windows and the pics were great. Belle, Aurora, Cinderella, and Snow White stopped by the table for great interaction and pictures. They were very engaging and willing to talk with my very animated DD.

Food was good, especially the salad/antipasti and dessert trays and the great bread. My tri-tip was good, just not as rare as I like it, but tender and moist. Good mash potatoes and garlicky squash. DD's spaghetti was perfect kid spaghetti, and the meatball lollipop was cute and tasty.

It's hot and humid down here right now, and outside seating was not at all appealing. The only positive was that it was available for last minute walk-ins, but most whom we saw still turned it down due to the heat.

Here's her report: Hey everybody, I'm Megan (aka DD). I think Ariel's Grotto is the best place in Disneyland to go if you want to see princesses. Ariel and the other princesses are very nice. Ariel even helped us when we made a wrong turn leaving the restaurant, and told me funny stories about Scuttle. The food was awesome and so were the pictures. I especially loved the white chocolate conch shell.

WE changed our reservations for inside today. I would love to see your pictures when you get home

[pixiewings71]

Originally Posted by gcatt

My 9-year-old DD and I were at Ariel's today for a wonderful lunch. We had great character interaction and wonderful pictures. (Sorry, brought the wrong cardreader to DLR, so we can't download them yet.)

We had 2:10 PS reservations and were seated app. 2:20. Before being seated, you have a meet & greet with Ariel. The photographer takes a picture package that you can buy later (for $30+ if desired) and you can of course take your own pictures too.

We were seated right by the windows, which could have been a problem for pictures. Luckily one of the royal heralds stopped by and warned us not to take pictures facing the windows due to glare and darkened faces. We just posed DD & the princesses away from the windows and the pics were great. Belle, Aurora, Cinderella, and Snow White stopped by the table for great interaction and pictures. They were very engaging and willing to talk with my very animated DD.

Food was good, especially the salad/antipasti and dessert trays and the great bread. My tri-tip was good, just not as rare as I like it, but tender and moist. Good mash potatoes and garlicky squash. DD's spaghetti was perfect kid spaghetti, and the meatball lollipop was cute and tasty.

It's hot and humid down here right now, and outside seating was not at all appealing. The only positive was that it was available for last minute walk-ins, but most whom we saw still turned it down due to the heat.

Here's her report: Hey everybody, I'm Megan (aka DD). I think Ariel's Grotto is the best place in Disneyland to go if you want to see princesses. Ariel and the other princesses are very nice. Ariel even helped us when we made a wrong turn leaving the restaurant, and told me funny stories about Scuttle. The food was awesome and so were the pictures. I especially loved the white chocolate conch shell.

LOL That's my DD's favorite thing too, they argue over who gets more. lol Good natured "arguing" of course, nothing major.