California Grill - ok for kids?

[adamsup]

Hello. Our kids will be 5, 3 and 2 when we go next May. They are very well-behaved in restaurants - we've trained them from an early age.

We're wondering if the California Grill is appropriate for kids. We hear how the California Grill is really nice and a popular venue for anniversaries and other special occasions. So that makes us question whether it's kid-friendly.

Is there anyone out there who has taken their kids? If so, did you get funny looks?

Is there anyone out there that thinks this should be a kid free experience?

Thanks. ADR opens up for us tomorrow so please respond soon!!

 

[Tinker*Shell*Bell]

It is not a kid free restaurant. They have a kids menu. It is however a long meal. And kids are less common here than many other restaurants.

You are allowed to bring them, but I chose not to and did not regret that decision at all. (I hired an in-room sitter. LOVED that!!!)

 

[tartemis]

We, too, hired an in-room sitter for our (then) 18 month old last year when we went. This time, we will be bringing our (now) 2 1/2 year old and 6 month old. I have read numerous posts saying that kids are welcome there. Fingers crossed that my 2 1/2 year old can sit still that long.

 

[KateMW]

I plan on bringing my 5, almost 6 year old, since she eats out a lot with us and knows how to behave. I don't think I would bring three young children {unless you have more adults going then just you and your spouse} though, it's hard to manage 3 kids and keep them happy during a long dinner.

 

[adamsup]

It is not a kid free restaurant. They have a kids menu. It is however a long meal. And kids are less common here than many other restaurants.

You are allowed to bring them, but I chose not to and did not regret that decision at all. (I hired an in-room sitter. LOVED that!!!)

haha I bet you did!

We, too, hired an in-room sitter for our (then) 18 month old last year when we went. This time, we will be bringing our (now) 2 1/2 year old and 6 month old. I have read numerous posts saying that kids are welcome there. Fingers crossed that my 2 1/2 year old can sit still that long.

Let's hope!

I plan on bringing my 5, almost 6 year old, since she eats out a lot with us and knows how to behave. I don't think I would bring three young children {unless you have more adults going then just you and your spouse} though, it's hard to manage 3 kids and keep them happy during a long dinner.

Several people have mentioned that the California Grill dinner is long. How long are we talking about?

 

[Pumbaa_]

CG is a very popular restaurant and you will find lots of children. You won't feel out of place at all and your kids will enjoy the view.

Even if you aren't there during wishes time, you can still take the kids out onthe catwalk and see the view of the MK. (Nice distraction between courses too)

 

[ljcrochet]

We went to California Grill with my almost 4 1/2 year old DD's. They were fine. I think every table except one near us had a child. We had a 7:20 reservation, waited a little passed that to get our table. We were waiting for our desserts when wishes started. One of my girls went out to watch wishes on the observation deck, while the other one was worried it would be too noisy so I stayed inside with her.
They have a really cute kids dessert. Kids sushi made out of rice crispy and gummies. They even give the kids chopsticks with a special clip so they can use the chop sticks.
We had no problem getting it split for my girls so they could share it

They check your stroller and the end of the meal when you settle the bill, you give the stroller check to the waitress and your stroller is waiting for you by the elevators.

I think of all the signature restaurants I have been to, I would say California Grill was the most kid friendly.

 

[shellybaxter]

CG is a great restaurant for restaurent friendly children. It is a long meal and disruptive children do affect the enjoyment of others. If your children can sit for a minimum of 2 hours and not be disruptive you will love CG.

 

[kittylady1972]

Our children eat out a LOT...and we took all three back in May and they did just fine. They were 9, 6 and 4 at the time and the waiter actually went out of his way to help find stuff that they would like as my oldest is VERY picky. We didn't regret it...and it was a long meal (2+ hours for us...with apps, meal and dessert) but we plan to go back again next month with them!

 

[EvilQueenT]

i'm a mother of two (young adults now) and a grandmother of one 5 year old with 25+ lifetime visits to wdw. my oldest (when he was a child) and now his daughter would do well in a place like the california grill, meaning both would have no problem with a leisurely paced meal in an upscale venue... my youngest (now 20 years old) would have made dinner miserable for us and those around us (she was never the type to sit still for very long). basically i don't think you'd get strange looks by merely taking your kids to this venue but you'd likely get looks if those at nearby tables hear fussing kids and frustrated parents throughout the meal. it doesn't sound like your kids are the type to be jumping up from the table all evening long so if they can handle a slow paced meal you'd be fine. all three times we've been to the california grill our meals were about 1 1/5-2 hours from sit down to check with lots of time between courses to chat and relax. if your kids get bored or distracted easily or if they're the type that can't go in super hungry and handle it taking a while to get your food then i would consider other arrangements for them. i think most groups go there to get away from the "kids only" feeling of other places. i've always loved disney with kids and with my granddaughter but disney can also be like honeymooning and a totally different experience without them and that's why we do the cali grill.

 

[Nancyg56]

CG is fine for kids who can sit for about 2 hours. The meal can be long but children are welcomed. My DGD loves it!

 

[tartemis]

I have to disagree that your kids MUST be able to sit for 2 hours straight in order to take them to CG. One of the great things is the observation deck and it would be perfectly acceptable for one adult to take a child to that during courses to stretch their legs.

Of course, as a parent, (no matter where you are) you should not let your child be disruptive to others. But there are ways to mitigate that without forcing a young child to sit still for 2 hours.

One of the reasons that we go to Disney ever year is because it is deemed acceptable to bring children into the "nicer" restaurants -- something that isn't true where I live.

 

[Uncleromulus]

The fireworks almost guarantee there will be MANY children at the California Grill.
I can't recall a time when we've eaten there (and we do so every trip) when there weren't lots of kids.
So the answer to the original question is yes--it's very kid friendly.

 

[MamaQuack]

Its definitely child friendly and mine totally enjoyed it from age 4 until the present 18. That said, depending on how many courses you order it can be a long dinner. Some adults struggle with sitting through a 2+ hour meal, especially after a day spent in the parks. I always took a small, new surprise to occupy and distract my child when he was becoming bored - sometimes just a new Mickey pen and small notepad, sometimes a new Disney book we could read together while awaiting our food. Another thing I learned was to just order nice, substantial appetizers and then maybe a dessert. It helped moved the meal quickly along. We still had the view, the ob deck and no wiggles.

 

[Nancyg56]

I have to disagree that your kids MUST be able to sit for 2 hours straight in order to take them to CG. One of the great things is the observation deck and it would be perfectly acceptable for one adult to take a child to that during courses to stretch their legs.

Of course, as a parent, (no matter where you are) you should not let your child be disruptive to others. But there are ways to mitigate that without forcing a young child to sit still for 2 hours.

One of the reasons that we go to Disney ever year is because it is deemed acceptable to bring children into the "nicer" restaurants -- something that isn't true where I live.

I think what we all mean is that this meal is not a eat and leave kind of meal. Most of the character buffets are a bit frenetic, kids can get up and down and can move around more freely. CG is not that kind of restaurant.

I understand what you mean about child friendly nice restaurants. I was happy that my DGD was welcomed at every TS restaurant we brought her to. She is a well behaved child and loves to go out to eat in nice places but she has joined us since she was a baby. One of us always made sure that if she got antsy she was distracted so that she did not disrupt others. That was not acceptable on our family. Kids cannot learn this overnight and we have all experienced that poor child who has been dragged into a restaurant and is tired or overstimulated or has not been taught table manners.

 

[Trinityloo]

Unless you would PREFER a quiet evening without the kids, you can definitely bring them! I brought my 2 and 5 year old girls in May and they loved it. That's what we love about Disneyworld; children are welcome at every restarurant (except V&A's) no matter how 'upscale' it is. The staff always expect to see children and they are always prepared for anything!

 

[kstatefamily]

Our DD5(at the time) loved CG. CG and Flying Fish are two of the places she wants to go back to. She had the fish and thought it was great. The meal did take a while as a PP has said. But if you think that your kids are up to that then go for it.

 

[DisneyFamily123]

California Grill is a noisy place -- the kitchen is open so there's lots of noise from the cooking and from table conversations.... Sound travels in there, if your children were noisy, no one would notice. California Grill, like many other disney restaurants, especially the signature ones were very good with us and our DS4. I'm sure the waiters and waitresses know if our son is happy, we enjoy our meal, and that means a bigger tip! I found them to be especially accomodating with food and interactive with our son. Even Jiko at Animal Kingdom Lodge - I'd say one of the quieter and finer signature restaurants was wonderful in that respect. I like restaurants where there are things to look at - we took our son outside on the observation deck while waiting for an entree. By the way, I don't understand why watching the fireworks from there is such a big deal... I'd rather ride the monorail to the Polynesian and watch fireworks from there on the beach.

 

[adamsup]

Thanks for all the responses. Seems like the consensus is that CG everyone has had great experiences with their kids at the CG. We will definitely be going there (just got our CG ADR a few days ago ).

And if there would be any funny looks at all it would be because the kids are acting up, but most likely if your kids are being disruptive you'd get looks no matter where you were. Luckily for us, our kids have been brought up eating in restaurants so we should be good.

 

[hbehrman]

Hello. Our kids will be 5, 3 and 2 when we go next May. They are very well-behaved in restaurants - we've trained them from an early age.

We're wondering if the California Grill is appropriate for kids. We hear how the California Grill is really nice and a popular venue for anniversaries and other special occasions. So that makes us question whether it's kid-friendly.

Is there anyone out there who has taken their kids? If so, did you get funny looks?

Is there anyone out there that thinks this should be a kid free experience?

Thanks. ADR opens up for us tomorrow so please respond soon!!

We did this when our children were our twin DD's were 5 adn my DS was 2.5. So a somewhat similar age group. They are experienced restaurant goers, however our strategy was to book early. That is the first or second ressie, that way if it was long or they got restless (especially the 2.5 yr old at the time) it would have little impact on others. We also had no plans on going on the catwalk in dark with them, we did take them on it while we waited in the lounge for our table. The CG was a great dining experience all around from service to ambience for us and teh children. Also the food was awesome and the kids loved the sushi ( and the kids meals).

Have fun and go with the flow,the staff was great.