California Grill or Main Street for WISHES?

[ChrisZ]

Hi there,

This December - I'm taking my parents and gf to WDW as a post-cruise Christmas gift (my 'rents haven't been there for 15+ years!).

The only evening we have scheduled to be in MK is for the Christmas party...so we won't see the regular WISHES that night.

I really want my parents to see that show though, since it's such an uplifting fireworks spectacular.

Anyway...I'm trying to decide if I should schedule a special stop back into the MK after dinner some other night just for us to see the fireworks...

OR...

Should we make dinner reservations up at the California Grill and watch them from the roof of the Contemporary? I've never been up there before...so I have no clue about the view/sound/etc in comparison to the MK.

I'd appreciate any and all expert input you guys (and gals) can offer!!!

Thanks,
Chris

 

[SpectroMagic*o*]

I've done both and both experiences are amazing in different ways. First of all, Cali Grill is my absolute fave restaurant! So if you are there in time to go out on the deck and watch Wishes, you'll also be there when the water pageant goes by which we watched from our dinner table. For the fireworks, the sound is crytal clear and the view is stunning, no other view like it! I felt alot of the emotions I would standing in the park. However, I still think I prefer being in the park for the show, it's just a totally different experience sharing that feeling with everyone standing around you, looking straight down Main Street as the fireworks go off right above your head. It's just that feeling of being right in the middle of it all. So depending on your preference, the decision is up to you. Both are spectacular in there own wonderful ways!

 

[ChrisZ]

I've done both and both experiences are amazing in different ways. First of all, Cali Grill is my absolute fave restaurant! So if you are there in time to go out on the deck and watch Wishes, you'll also be there when the water pageant goes by which we watched from our dinner table. For the fireworks, the sound is crytal clear and the view is stunning, no other view like it! I felt alot of the emotions I would standing in the park. However, I still think I prefer being in the park for the show, it's just a totally different experience sharing that feeling with everyone standing around you, looking straight down Main Street as the fireworks go off right above your head. It's just that feeling of being right in the middle of it all. So depending on your preference, the decision is up to you. Both are spectacular in there own wonderful ways!

Thanks for that help!

My parents are in their 50s and 60s, so I'm trying to plan this trip to be less exhausting than the pace my gf and I (20s) usually keep. Sounds like having a place to sit/eat/watch would be a little easier on them (plus a new experience for all of us).

Are there any tips you could offer for the Grill? Seating requests? Time to go?

Thanks again!

Chris

 

[__disneygirl]

For your party, I would say Cali Grill. The food is spectacular, I crave it often! Wishes is usually at 10PM, if it is, make your ressie for around 9, 9:20. It may be hard to get in around the Christmas season though, so you may have to do the Main Street idea afterall!

 

[Rudegrle]

The food at California grill is great and watching wishes from atop is amazing (I think that everyone should view Wishes from Cali grill at some point), but over all I think that the view is better from Main St...only because Wishes is centered above the castle this way and it creates a lovely backdrop. From the top of the CR the fireworks are to the side and it's just not the same. Another favorite is to ride Splash and BTMRR while watching Wishes, something fireworks and classic rides at the same time, just can't explain it.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

California Gill hands down!! It is the absolute BEST place to watch Wishes and the food is awesome. It's a tradition for my husband and I.

 

[CinderellaPug]

I think there is nothing like seeing wishes in MK on Main Street...but if you are looking for a new experience at a slower pace, California Grill could be great. It is one of my favorite places to eat in Disney World, both food and service are great! Try to time it so you are not getting your food then getting up to go see the fireworks as soon as it comes to your table.

 

[tlev]

I have to vote for Main Street. We are not big fans of the CG, (not worth the $$$$$$$ for just decent food). Watching wishes from the deck was fun and the view is spectacular, but it is from a different perspective. When you are on Main Street, the fireworks seem to come from the Castle itself, as the show was designed. From the CG, you are looking at the Castle from kind of the side and the fireworks are off to the right, you can really see how far behind the Castle they are launched from. I know it is nit-picking, but I just think directly up Main Street is how the show was meant to be viewed.

 

[Mickey1122]

Of all the places, Main Street is my favorite. It is the place where you are close to the show and fireworks appear to be actually over the castle. California Grille has a nice view too, but you don't have the fun of Main Street.

 

[mousebit]

You get to have your cake and eat it too! If you're in MK for MVMCP, you'll be able to watch Holiday Wishes from Main Street that night. Enjoy regular Wishes from the CG another night!

 

[MECH8T7]

We were up at the Cali Grill last March. The food was good and the view was awesome. (By the way, if you take an earlier meal time and leave the restaurant before Wishes, they will let you back up the elevators to watch Wishes from the restaurant or the observation deck if you show them the receipt from dinner that day.)

However, one thing about watching Wishes from the restaurant is that, because the Contemporary Resort is not directly in front of the MK, you get a bit of a sideways viewing of Wishes. I think there are at least two different areas that the fireworks are being fired from in the park: one seems to be behind the castle and the other seems further back. The show was still enjoyable but it was a bit distracting because it didn't have the symmetry of the show viewed from Main Street.

One other option to consider is booking a Wishes cruise for your party. We haven't done this yet (though we've done Illuminations twice) but it is definitely pricey (around $250). Most of the boats can pipe in the Wishes music during the show and they take a position directly in front of the MK on the water.

 

[Ted and Holly]

California Gill hands down!! It is the absolute BEST place to watch Wishes and the food is awesome. It's a tradition for my husband and I.

I have to disagree with at least part of this. The absolute best place to watch Wishes from is Main Street in MK. The show is designed to be watched from directly in front of the castle. Both the high shells and the lower level fireworks are directly over and around the castle.

From the CG, you see the higher shells almost over Space Mountain and the lower stuff around the castle. You literally need to look left, then right, then left again to see it all. It is a neat perspective, but not the "best" place to view the show.

That said, we love CG and go there for the food, and leave before the fireworks.

Ted

 

[ChrisZ]

You get to have your cake and eat it too! If you're in MK for MVMCP, you'll be able to watch Holiday Wishes from Main Street that night. Enjoy regular Wishes from the CG another night!

Thanks to all the comments so far.

And Mousebit...good point. They can get the "magic" of seeing fireworks in the park (although I'm not sure how cool the Holiday Wishes are compared to the regular ones) and then the other ones from the CG I think... Don't want to run them ragged (although I'm already pushing it as is with the schedule...heheh)

 

[mking624]

Hmm, I'm not a fan of CG...so my option would be Main Street. But even if I did like CG, I don't think there's anything quite like seeing the fireworks right there. I remember when we ate at CG a few years ago and they talked about being about to see the fireworks from there...but it felt so far removed. Main Street really makes you feel like you're a part of the magic...not just watching it from a distance.

 

[ChrisZ]

We are looking at the CG on 12/13 (looks like an adventurous menu for us!). Supposedly the fireworks are at 8pm that tonight...so what time do you think dinner reservations should be for? 6:45?

 

[SpectroMagic*o*]

That would be playing it safe...that way you can just get up from dinner to watch the show. But what I did was, just say the show was at 9pm that night- I made my ressies for like 8:30 or 8:45, so that I can check in at the restaurant and while i waited for my table (which can take a little bit of time) we went outside and watched Wishes. By time the show was over, our table was ready! I think we were lucky, it happened to be perfect timing!

 

[ChrisZ]

That would be playing it safe...that way you can just get up from dinner to watch the show. But what I did was, just say the show was at 9pm that night- I made my ressies for like 8:30 or 8:45, so that I can check in at the restaurant and while i waited for my table (which can take a little bit of time) we went outside and watched Wishes. By time the show was over, our table was ready! I think we were lucky, it happened to be perfect timing!

That's a great idea! Thanks!

I'm thinking for the 8pm WISHES, we'll just get there at 7:45. That way we can see it before we relax into our dinner.

Sound like a good plan?

 

[oldcrow]

Personally I would vote for both, since that's the solution I came up with when confronted with the same dilemna. In my case, I made ADR for 7:30 PM (Wishes is at 9:00 PM that night.) I plan on having a long, pleasant dinner with appetizers to start off with and dessert and drinks to end. If the fireworks haven't started by the time I get to the after dinner drink, well, I guess I'll just have to order another drink.

 

[SpectroMagic*o*]

That's a great idea! Thanks!

I'm thinking for the 8pm WISHES, we'll just get there at 7:45. That way we can see it before we relax into our dinner.

Sound like a good plan?