Bistro de Paris - No Kids?

[Imagineer7]

Victoria and alberts is a multi hour prix fixe menu that starts at $125 & is diamond rated. I wasn't too say 5 star but I'm not sure. I don't think its fair to compare bistro to v&A. It isn't the same.
But let me say I'm not one of those people who is going to gnash my teeth and cancel my plans to go to wdw. Heck i probably wouldn't even leave property to go eat french because there are french places here. My concern is where is the line. I don't want me or my child relegated to substandard food because of age. Chefs is substandard to me. What other restaurants will my child be banned from? No california grille for you, go eat at chef mickeys.
Fwiw no amount of Jesus can make my generally well behaved 4 year old stay that way through a.V&A dinner. I wouldn't even try.

Chefs is substandard? Geez I feel sorry for all those poor peasants who have to shell out 30/person to eat steaks, fish, and chicken.

 

[nytimez]

Chefs is substandard? Geez I feel sorry for all those poor peasants who have to shell out 30/person to eat steaks, fish, and chicken.

I guess it's not as authentic as the French restaurants in S.C.

At least this isn't as bad as the poster who once complained that "San Angel Inn doesn't have authentic Mexican food like we do here." Poster was writing from N. California.

 

[Karlzmom]

I guess it's not as authentic as the French restaurants in S.C.

At least this isn't as bad as the poster who once complained that "San Angel Inn doesn't have authentic Mexican food like we do here." Poster was writing from N. California.

I'm sure you aren't trying to be nasty.....it would be very un-Dislike.

BTW, California has such a large population of Mexicans that we really do have very authentic Mexican restaurants. My community has a whole area where English is not spoken, stores and restaurants operate solely in Spanish....

 

[lpereira]

Its overpriced framerican food. Thats what makes it substandard. It isn't the cost of food that gets to me. Its the cost relative to what it is. Boulangerie is enjoyable. Absent that line that almost screams for a fastpass. I am an absolute fan of french country cooking. It doesn't have to be upscale.

 

[lpereira]

Charleston has a huge huguenot history and population. So yes i do have experience, in addition to living in europe.
As far as the north carolina lady it is very likely she has authentic mexican cuisine and not tex mex (fan of btw). Thesouth has gone through a huge surge in population of hispanic immigrants. We also have one of the largest filipino populations in the country.
All of which lead to a very diverse dining environment.

 

[nytimez]

BTW, California has such a large population of Mexicans that we really do have very authentic Mexican restaurants. My community has a whole area where English is not spoken, stores and restaurants operate solely in Spanish....

Charleston has a huge huguenot history and population. So yes i do have experience, in addition to living in europe.
As far as the north carolina lady it is very likely she has authentic mexican cuisine and not tex mex (fan of btw). Thesouth has gone through a huge surge in population of hispanic immigrants. We also have one of the largest filipino populations in the country.
All of which lead to a very diverse dining environment.

Whether in North Carolina or Northern California, no one in either place can claim to ownership of true and authentic Mexican food, no matter how good it is or how many people there may have come from Mexico.

That claim belongs to Mexico.

For the record, there are large Mexican populations outside of Northern California and North Carolina, too. I'm sure many have opened wonderful restaurants. I'm sure many are authentic.

But an American dining in one is not really in the best position to be a judge of authenticity.

Nor is an American who lives in a Huguenot settlement, on the face of it, the best judge of French food. I lived for years in one of the oldest Huguenot settlements in the country but I don't think that puts me in a position of authority when it comes to French food.

Everyone is free to like what they like and dislike what they don't. But claims of authenticity aren't as easy for an outsider to judge.

 

[lpereira]

I'm not claiming to be the final arbitrator of french food authenticity. But Les Chefs for some reason grinds my last nerve. Compared to Bistro it is a lessor place. Disney overcharges in aa lot of restaurants because they can, its a built in convenience fee youpay to not have to leave the park, ride a bus to your hotel, and drive off property to eat. I am perfectly happy to pay it.
The original part of this thread is the banning of children from bistro over age and relegating them to a lessor restaurant. Enforce a policy of zero tolerance for bad/ disruptive behavior. Don't produce a childrens menu. They can eat what's there or not go.
Or if it keeps going bannng children until all thats left are character buffets.
But i get it, even I don't agree. Heck before i had my child i didn't really like them at all. I used to seriously question being friends with people who had children.
I'll my snowflake under control, just don't make me live in chucky cheese world. And if my child ia disruptive you can boot me there.

 

[lpereira]

seriously i can't type on a cellphone in the dark. I should go to bed. If anyone can't figure it out, ill direct on my computer tomorrow sometime.

 

[si-am]

I'm not claiming to be the final arbitrator of french food authenticity. But Les Chefs for some reason grinds my last nerve. Compared to Bistro it is a lessor place. Disney overcharges in aa lot of restaurants because they can, its a built in convenience fee youpay to not have to leave the park, ride a bus to your hotel, and drive off property to eat. I am perfectly happy to pay it.
The original part of this thread is the banning of children from bistro over age and relegating them to a lessor restaurant. Enforce a policy of zero tolerance for bad/ disruptive behavior. Don't produce a childrens menu. They can eat what's there or not go.
Or if it keeps going bannng children until all thats left are character buffets.
But i get it, even I don't agree. Heck before i had my child i didn't really like them at all. I used to seriously question being friends with people who had children.
I'll my snowflake under control, just don't make me live in chucky cheese world. And if my child ia disruptive you can boot me there.

This is Disney. They're not going to start banning kids from all restaurants, I assure you. V&A and Bistro are but two of many options. The rest of them can't be ALL bad!

The problem with banning "disruptive" behavior is that it is so subjective. Just the other day there was a thread about dvd players for kids in restaurants. Some people thought dvd players with NO headphones are perfectly acceptable in all Disney establishments because Disney is for kids. To me, that is disruptive. To others, obviously not.

 

[Colleen27]

Really because all children magically at age 8 develop the ability to sit through a meal. I would have no problem if the rule was ANY disruptive guests would have to leave but some children can and do sit through dinners. I saw 5 appetizers my 4 year old can and does eat. The menu at les chefs isn't so appealing for us.
Its a silly rule rule to implement. I would think that its not being on the dining plan would keep most families out.

It really irks me that there are so many parents in the world who are unwilling or unable to enforce proper restaurant manners that nicer restaurants feel the need to implement these rules. I don't blame the restaurants or resent the rule, I blame the fact that so many parents seem to think vacation is a vacation from parenting!

But it also irks me that people assume kids don't appreciate good food. Kids who are exposed to a variety of foods frequently find that they like them! My toddler LOVES goat cheese, tuna tartare, scallops and venison, so I'm fairly sure she'd find something to enjoy on the Bistro menu. None of my kids (13, 9, and almost-3) would have a hard time finding something appetizing; the younger two are in the habit of sharing an adult meal when we eat out because neither is fond of common kids' menu choices, and I see several things on Bistro's menu that they'd like.

 

[aubriee]

I think it would be a good move and it makes sense.

I agree! I'd be more apt to dine there if I wanted a quiet meal. I think it'd be a good move.

 

[tinkandpan]

i think it is fine to have some restaurants that cater to adults- that being said, my kids always were quiet and well behaved and would have enjoyed a meal like such. What about a compromise- no kids under 8 after say 8:00?

 

[oybolshoi]

I just want to chime in that before disney implemented an age cutoff at V&A I was there one night when a family showed up with two children under the age of five. The little girl was fine but her younger brother was disruptive in the extreme - luckily the parents realized they were in the wrong environment and they left after about 30 minutes and two courses of food.

So there are people out there, especially at Disney, who will push the envelope and seem to think that their kids belong everywhere. I've lost count of how many times over the years that I've seen parents with children in bars at WDW, including places at Pleasure Island before all the good stuff was closed and even at La Cava in Epcot. I must be showing my age but when I was a wee lass this wasn't generally accepted behavior.

It's unfortunate that Disney has to put an age limit in place that penalizes some because of the lack of consideration (or common sense) of others, but I applaud them for recognizing the need to do so. As someone else stated earlier, DCL has adults only dining on their ships and it works quite well - and they have far fewer options overall for people to choose from. Maintaining two upscale dining establishments with age limitations for children out of hundreds of possible resort choices doesn't strike me as unreasonable.

I expect children at WDW and for the most part enjoy watching them experience all that Disney has to offer. But I also enjoy the opportunity to have a quiet, intimate meal with my husband and / or friends without having it interrupted by screaming tantrums and romper room antics, both of which we have experienced at Bistro in the past two years.

At any rate, this is one of those discussions where we are all going to have to agree to disagree. I promise never to attend the princess meal in Norway and disrupt the antics there with demands for Aquavit ever again if we so-called grown-ups can have dinner at Bistro with the certainty that there won't be any small children running around with badly behaved parents.

 

[TDC Nala]

I don't remember who told this story but apparently one of the last straws at V&A was a family with two really small kids in the main dining room, where the parents demanded and got a child's plate of macaroni and cheese (apparently from the Citricos kitchen) for each kid, stated they would pay no more for it than the going price of a child's meal (accepted by V&A) and then, when the kids finished their one plate of food, let them run around the dining room while the parents finished their multi-course gourmet feast. Another was a couple who showed up at V&A with an infant in a carrier, which cried most of the meal.

I'm noting that the "news" about Bistro is in the "someone who works downstairs told me maybe they were thinking about this" so we can't really say it is something that is in the works. If the company that runs Bistro (it isn't Disney that runs it) is thinking about going this route they will probably have to take it up with Disney which will likely remember the initial reaction they got to the V&A rule in 2008. It appears to have been accepted now, but Disney may not be amenable to having someplace actually inside one of their parks where their core constituency may be told they can't bring their small kids.

 

[JimmyV]

It really isn't a child friendly restaurant in the first place....considering there is not even a kid's menu, I don't know why people would want to take their children there in the first place.

Believe it or not, there are people in this world who do not feed their children from children's menus. My daughter has always despised children's menus and refused them from the time she could opine on what she wanted to eat. One time when she was 4, she was offered a kid's menu at WDW and my wife asked her if she wanted to look at it. My daughter's response?: "Mom! Do you even know me?" She loved Bistro when she was 6. Escargot and all.

I would do a happy dance for sure if this were policy. Bistro is designed to be a classic French restaurant and it's not child friendly - and please don't tell me that the parents we've seen there with their toddlers booked an ADR because little Susie loves frog logs and Jimmy craves snails. I'm not buying it.

Ummmm. What do you think children in France eat when they dine out? Last I checked, hot dogs and chicken nuggets weren't on the menu at Tour D'argent. People in France eat French food. Imagine that! So somehow it is impossible for our children to do likewise? While my daughter is not named Susie or Jimmy, she loves frogs legs and escargot. Although I will admit that she waited until we dined in Paris to try the latter, because she wanted her first experience with them to be "authentic" and "properly prepared". If she sees sweetbreads on a menu, she's ordering them.

your four-year-old eats goat cheese tarts, tomato chutney, smoked salmon, tuna tartar, and serrano ham? I sure wish my parents had fed me like that!

It really is fun to feed your kids these foods, and many others. It opens up so many doors, culturally and otherwise. Though my kid prefers Prosciutto to Serrano ham. It's that whole Italian bias thing!

 

[JimmyV]

i think it is fine to have some restaurants that cater to adults- that being said, my kids always were quiet and well behaved and would have enjoyed a meal like such. What about a compromise- no kids under 8 after say 8:00?

Agree 100%. There is no reason why ANY restaurant needs to be kid-free at 5:30. Especially at WDW.

 

[JimmyV]

My concern is where is the line. I don't want me or my child relegated to substandard food because of age. Chefs is substandard to me. What other restaurants will my child be banned from? No california grille for you, go eat at chef mickeys.

This. This. 100 time this! WDW should not be imposing "kid food" on kids who don't like or eat "kid food". Free market. Let the parents decide which of the many WDW restaurants are best for their kids. There's barely enough palatable food at WDW as it is right now. Don't take the good stuff away from the people who genuinely enjoy it.

 

[snykymom]

And I post this as the mother of a child who was very well behaved at restaurants by the age of 4 - she knew what "white tablecloth" restaurant behavior was. And often was complimented by the same patrons who cringed when we sat down, after they saw how well she behaved.

But how many times have we heard parents say, "We paid a lot for this vacation, and we DESERVE to [whatever the activity is]" even when the kids are hot, tired, cranky, misbehaving, etc? These are generally the parents who end up in the inappropriate settings!

I am not under any circumstances saying that no kid under 8 could enjoy Bistro (see above). But too many parents don't realize what is appropriate or inappropriate for their own children, and it would be nice to have some place, even in Disney, for grown ups.

 

[nytimez]

This. This. 100 time this! WDW should not be imposing "kid food" on kids who don't like or eat "kid food". Free market. Let the parents decide which of the many WDW restaurants are best for their kids. There's barely enough palatable food at WDW as it is right now. Don't take the good stuff away from the people who genuinely enjoy it.

I've always felt that every restaurant should offer half-sized portions of just about every main dish for children. I'm sick of the same three kids' meals (and minor variations on them) in nearly every restaurant.

Actually, I know this would never happen, but I'd also love it if the nicer restaurants ditched the kids' menus altogether and just offered those kid-sized portions of "real" food.

If your kid wants mac-and-cheese, there are CS restaurants. If you're interested in giving your kid a real dining experience, eat in one of the TS restaurants.

 

[cbg1027]

I hope this rumor turns out to be true!

Chefs is substandard? Geez I feel sorry for all those poor peasants who have to shell out 30/person to eat steaks, fish, and chicken.

Chefs IS extremely substandard in terms of food quality. I don't see 'poor peasants' eating there, but I can't believe how many people are willing to shell out that kind of money for such dreck.

Ummmm. What do you think children in France eat when they dine out? Last I checked, hot dogs and chicken nuggets weren't on the menu at Tour D'argent. People in France eat French food. Imagine that! So somehow it is impossible for our children to do likewise? While my daughter is not named Susie or Jimmy, she loves frogs legs and escargot. Although I will admit that she waited until we dined in Paris to try the latter, because she wanted her first experience with them to be "authentic" and "properly prepared". If she sees sweetbreads on a menu, she's ordering them.

Young children in France generally do NOT eat things like frog legs and steak tartare. I was an au pair for a French family and while the kids I encountered were certainly more adventurous than most American children of the same age, they weren't eating escargot and carpaccio quite yet.

Also, young children in France rarely, if ever, dine out. Most French people usually don't take their children to restaurants until they are mature enough to sit through a meal without being disruptive and are using mostly proper manners. In the entire year that I was there, we only took the children out to eat three times at very casual places.