Best time to eat quick service

[Aurora0427]

Mobile order is your BFF. We only do mobile order unless we are eating right at 11am!

 

[Kender]

Sorry, not sure I understand this. Do you mean that once you tap "I'm here, prepare my order" you then have 30 minutes to actually get there? If that's not what you mean, what is the 30 minute window and how are you guaranteed not to have cold food if you arrive at the end of the window?

Another person responded, but I want to give another, simpler explanation. The order in placing a mobile goes as follows:

1) choose time frame for mobile order (these are 30 minute windows)
2) place mobile order
3) walk to restaurant you placed mobile order at and be there within the 30 minute window you chose
4) tap "I'm here, prepare my order"
5) mobile order is prepared
6) mobile order is given to you

This is why your order will not be cold: it's not prepared until you tell them you are there to pick it up. This is different than placing the order. As others mentioned, step 4 some will tap it before they actually reach the mobile pick up area as a few places take additional time. I choose to wait until I'm right at the mobile pick up area. Personal preference.

The 30 minute window you choose is the time to be at the restaurant and tell them "I'm here, prepare my order". The window has nothing to do with picking up your food after you have told them you're there and ready to pick up.

Make more sense?

 

[alvernon90]

Another person responded, but I want to give another, simpler explanation. The order in placing a mobile goes as follows:

1) choose time frame for mobile order (these are 30 minute windows)
2) place mobile order
3) walk to restaurant you placed mobile order at and be there within the 30 minute window you chose
4) tap "I'm here, prepare my order"
5) mobile order is prepared
6) mobile order is given to you

This is why your order will not be cold: it's not prepared until you tell them you are there to pick it up. This is different than placing the order. As others mentioned, step 4 some will tap it before they actually reach the mobile pick up area as a few places take additional time. I choose to wait until I'm right at the mobile pick up area. Personal preference.

The 30 minute window you choose is the time to be at the restaurant and tell them "I'm here, prepare my order". The window has nothing to do with picking up your food after you have told them you're there and ready to pick up.

Make more sense?

Yes, thank you! The fact that the time frame and the 30-minute window were the same thing is what was throwing me off.

 

[sjmac42]

One's food will not get cold even if one is at the tail end of one's window.

Happened to us at Christmas, we selected the current time frame and were about a 5 min walk away so selected “I’m here now” and within a min our food was ready so my wife’s hot chocolate was getting a little cool. So it can happen but anyway, it’s a great system and if you use it at the “off“ times as I suggested, you shouldn’t have to wait very long and select 30 min windows an hour away.

 

[Kender]

Happened to us at Christmas, we selected the current time frame and were about a 5 min walk away so selected “I’m here now” and within a min our food was ready so my wife’s hot chocolate was getting a little cool. So it can happen but anyway, it’s a great system and if you use it at the “off“ times as I suggested, you shouldn’t have to wait very long and select 30 min windows an hour away.

"Five minutes away" means you weren't actually there then. I'm sorry, but you told them to make your order too soon. Some locations you really do need to wait until you're actually there to state you've arrived and cold food is a risk you take if you say you have when you really have not. I'm sorry to hear you experienced this, but they truly do not begin preparing anything until you state you have arrived.

However, in the future if your order has gone cold, I would speak up. A polite indication you are not satisfied with the temperature of your food will more than likely get you taken care of. I've had one location replace a mac n cheese bread bowl that I had mistakingly forgotten to ask for on the side (ordered at register). I just told them my error and requested if it was possible to be corrected. There was zero issue thankfully.

Good luck next time

 

[sjmac42]

Five minutes away" means you weren't actually there then. I'm sorry, but you told them to make your order too soon.

Yes I get that, however, it did happen so it is wrong to say it never can. Most mobile orders we placed took 5-10 mins to prepare once we hit the “I’m here” button. This one was a smaller order though and only took a minute or so. That was unusual which is why the order was getting a bit cool but it wasn’t cold. I was just giving advice based on something that happened to us recently.

Plus been Australians, we tend not to whinge about every little thing, particularly when the issue was our own silly fault. It just happened and that’s it so please do not tell me I’m incorrect or that there was a solution. I know what occurred to us and I know we could have resolved it but it wasn’t that important to us. I was simply relaying our own personal, recent experience.

 

[midnight star]

Happened to us at Christmas, we selected the current time frame and were about a 5 min walk away so selected “I’m here now” and within a min our food was ready so my wife’s hot chocolate was getting a little cool. So it can happen but anyway, it’s a great system and if you use it at the “off“ times as I suggested, you shouldn’t have to wait very long and select 30 min windows an hour away.

I normally will hit that button if I'm a few minutes away too. I've only had quick turn arounds with drinks, which are easy to prepare (I assume it was the same for you). I don't think I've ever had food be ready immediately....fast but not immediately.

 

[Kender]

Yes I get that, however, it did happen so it is wrong to say it never can. Most mobile orders we placed took 5-10 mins to prepare once we hit the “I’m here” button. This one was a smaller order though and only took a minute or so. That was unusual which is why the order was getting a bit cool but it wasn’t cold. I was just giving advice based on something that happened to us recently.

Plus been Australians, we tend not to whinge about every little thing, particularly when the issue was our own silly fault. It just happened and that’s it so please do not tell me I’m incorrect or that there was a solution. I know what occurred to us and I know we could have resolved it but it wasn’t that important to us. I was simply relaying our own personal, recent experience.

I do not believe you would have been whining had you asked for a correction. Pleases and thank yous go a long way to fix even something that is "our own silly fault". I think you would have been not out of line requesting a correction especially when owning a mistake. A CM is not obligated, of course, but they might have been inclined to honor a polite request.

However, whether you believe it or not, the truth is they really do not begin preparation of your order until after you have said you are there. It appears to me (from the times I've arrived to the pick up areas prior to saying I'm there) that your order is not even pushed through to a ticket until you've indicated you have arrived. This is particularly noticable at Smokejumpers. This would be why there is often a small wait if one waits until actual arrival to indicate they've arrived as they do not even see your ticket until that point and there could be several others ahead of you getting orders filled first.

I'm done responding, though, and will ignore further responses to me to avoid temptation to continue. This is too much back and forth of the same information. I will step back before luckyrabbit scolds me for continuing with this repetition of how the mobile order system works. I have stated the truth several times and that will have to be enough. The truth is all I care about and I do not mean to demean your experience. It was your experience your order was cold and I am not denying it was.

I truly am sorry you experienced your order being cold. That is an unpleasant thing to have gone through and I hope it is something you never experience again.

 

[sjmac42]

However, whether you believe it or not, the truth is they really do not begin preparation of your order until after you have said you are there.

Of course that’s the case, hence my advice not to do that when you are a long way away from the restaurant. It’s basically exactly what you yourself are saying but that’s fine. And I do believe I would have been whining. Complaining about or “asking for a correction” is not in our nature for minor stuff like a hot chocolate that had been sitting on the counter for a few minutes that had cooled a little (I never said it was cold).
>> I truly am sorry you experienced your order being cold. That is an unpleasant thing to have gone through and I hope it is something you never experience again. <<
Thanks for those well wishes but we really didn’t think it was that big a deal. It was certainly not an unpleasant one that upset us in any way. It was really just “oh this hot chocolate is a little cool“. “Do you want me to get another one”. “No, it’s fine”. Passing on advice based on something that happened to you is not complaining, it’s simply sharing that experience in the hope it doesn’t happen to others.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Getting this thread back on topic:
OP, when are your trip dates? As you can see from the various posts, your experience with Mobile Ordering and with low crowd times at CS locations might differ a bit depending on whether you visit the parks during a peak or non-peak time. Generally, though, the advice you've been given about busy times to avoid and about thinking ahead if necessary with Mobile Ordering is good.

 

[Amunet]

Wow, thank you so much for asking this!

 

[Evita_W]

It happens regularly at the following restaurants:

Jolly Holiday
Flo's V8 Cafe
Bengal BBQ

I go a lot. Every week. It happens almost every time I try to access any of these 3 right around noon-1pm on weekends. It's much more rare on weekdays.

I go on Saturdays a lot and it has never happened to be between noon-1 PM at Jolly Holiday or Flo's. I tend not to go to Bengal since the prices are way too high for the portion sizes.