Strategy for dining at Be Our Guest in May

[withrow13]

We have planned a last minute, final trip to Disney with the kids and were hoping to dine anytime of day at the new Be OUr Guest. DW is willing to stand in line for hours if needed. But the cast member on the phone said no stand by- reservations only and you won't be getting them now.

So I am asking the largest Disney forum if there is anything we can do.
Thank you,

 

[abinormal]

It's counter service for lunch. Just gotta wait in line.

 

[mesaboy2]

We have planned a last minute, final trip to Disney with the kids and were hoping to dine anytime of day at the new Be OUr Guest. DW is willing to stand in line for hours if needed. But the cast member on the phone said no stand by- reservations only and you won't be getting them now.

So I am asking the largest Disney forum if there is anything we can do.
Thank you,

Lunch is served as counter-service, just walk up and wait and you'll get in. The CM was talking about dinner which is table-service and reservations for BOG disappear six months prior.

 

[jmcghee2024]

There is nothing you can do for dinner. Lunch is counter service, waits are about 30-45 minutes. All the rooms are open for lunch.

 

[G719]

I read on another post on DIS that they were able to walk up at 4:00 and were able to get seated after a short wait. So there may still be hope.

 

[mattsdragon]

I did our reservations 180 days before out upcoming trip. I am usually opposed to such actions, but I knew I would have no choice this time.

 

[3girls4me05]

Any time of day? No problem! Eat lunch. We went later in the day and it was a pretty short wait (one the bridge but over 1/2 way to the front door) Probably took us 10 minutes to get inside and maybe another ten in there. We went at about 1:30

 

[idofabric]

Feb. 9, a Sat night, we walked up and got in for dinner. There were 2 of us...However, we started checking if they were taking walkups about 4 or 5 pm, and checked every 1/2 hour or till about 8:30 or so. We were doing a few rides and shows close by so it was not a big deal.

 

[brooke789]

We're planning BOG for our first park day which will be Mother's Day. I'm afraid this is going to be the worst decision ever (due to extra crowd for Mother's Day) and we're planning to hit another CS if the line is too long.

 

[AuroraRora]

Walk up to BOG between 11:30-12pm, and you should be seated and waiting for your food within 45mins, max. Don't forget to try the delicious cupcakes!

 

[Disney845]

Just ate lunch at BOG last Saturday the 27th. We got in line about 1pm and at that time the line was over the BOG bridge and curled slightly back up the side of the walkway toward Gaston's Tavern. We waited probably 35 minutes in line. During this time, the CMs came by with menus for people to look over while waiting in line.

All three rooms were open, and you could choose anywhere you wanted to sit. We sat in the Rose Gallery because it had the most available seating. The West Wing, however, is (imo) the most entertaining in decor, while the Ballroom close to the windows is really nice as you can watch the snow. The Rose Gallery has a large spinning Belle/Beast in the center, and some art on the walls, but was pretty bland in terms of the theme compared to the other two rooms.

I had the Croque Monsieur with a Lemon Meringue Cupcake and SO had the Carved Turkey Sandwich and Chocolate Creme Puff. Fountain drinks are self serve (which is nice for refills) and you have sturdy silverware and plates as opposed to plastic. The food is delivered by the wait staff and our food came within 10 minutes of sitting down

I really enjoyed going once, but don't think I need to go back. While the food was a nice change from the standard CS fare, I didn't think that anything was really great. I like Croque Monsieur sandwiches, and was disappointed in this BOG version. The french fries accompanying both of our meals were just standard. My cupcake was tasty, but I have had much better specialty cupcakes before. SO liked the flavor of his turkey, but I thought it was sliced too thick. As I suspected going in, the atmosphere outshined the food.

 

[Djali]

We ate at Be Our Guest for lunch and dinner during Easter week. We got in line for lunch around 11:15 and within 20 minutes we were seated and had our food. When we checked in for dinner there were several families who were able to get walk up seating. We had early dinner reservations, I think at 4:30, and one of the walk up families was a party of 7. I would say if people could get walk up seating for dinner during Easter week then there might be hope for your family. We loved both meals and thought the dinner was our best meal of the trip.

 

[Mandamouse]

If you want the dinner menu and don't mind an early dinner (or late lunch), stand in the line on the left hand side between 3:30 and 4. That's before they reopen for dinner. That's the walk-in line or as they call it "cancellation line" because they make you feel like if you get seated from that line, it's because someone canceled. I think it's not true.. They will most likely have space for you but you may end up in beast's room with zero to little wait time. I did this last Thursday with no reservation and we got in with no problem! It was very empty in that room first hour of service. It was so worth it!

 

[Mandamouse]

Also - I wouldn't necessarily go by the cast member on the phone. Or any cast members in general it's a high demand restaurant so they are fed certain lines to tell the many people who don't have reservations. Reservations have popped up for nearby dates and people do get in as a walk in (the more likely option) so there's lots of hope!

 

[Beka]

OMG, wait in line for lunch. We've done both lunch and dinner. If you like relatively bland food, then stay for dinner. But the cupcakes are worth a wait, for sure. Really, the atmosphere is amazing. I seriously get a little choked up each time I walk in the ball room. So go for the atmosphere, not the food.

 

[withrow13]

Thanks so much! We will go for lunch. We are all about the atmosphere and we will definitely try the cupcakes.
I need to confirm the lunch times so we don't miss it.
THanks again!

 

[SmallWorld71]

We were there on April 19th. At 11:30 AM, it took about 20 min. to get into the castle and then a bit longer to wait to order. The line moved faster than I expected. I do think that them handing out menus now helps a bit. At least most people will know what they want when they get to the kiosks.
A couple things of note:
1) Lots of groups had just a partial party standing in line while either someone went for FP or the rest of the group rode an attraction. There were no problems joining back up with a group and if you get to the front of the line and your whole party isn't there they just have you stand off to the side and wait for them. (Everyone must be there to enter the castle and wait in the 2nd line).
2) If you are not interested in eating there, but want to look around: the CM told me that you can come in and tour the place before 10AM.

ETA: CM's were telling guests what time they had to be in line to guarantee they made it in before they closed the line for lunch. When I was there, it was 2:10, but I would imagine that could change during a busy time. Just ask the CM at the end of the bridge.

 

[BuzzBelleMom]

You are all giving me hope because DD14 and I really want to eat there, but DH does not want to wait in line. If I tell him that it should not be more than a 35-45 min wait, he might agree.

Afterall, he is willing to wait at his favorite local restaurant for that....

 

[jmcghee2024]

Everyone says to get in line as early as possible. I have found that so many people do this that if you actually wait until more like 11:30 to get it line, it's much shorter...15-20 min. instead of 30 to 45.