California Grill question

[barbie1231]

Thank you.

I made a reservation for 9: pm. Wishes is at 8 pm that day. The lady on the phone told me that I could arrive early and tell them i have a reservation and wanted to watch the fireworks. Do you thin they will let us in as early as 7:30?

If that's true it will be awesome that way we could order a drink ( if possible ), watch the fireworks and wait for our dinner.

I want to spend the day with the kids going around the hotels to see the Christmas decorations that's why I didn't do an early reservation.

We don't mind the craziness since we can do intimate another time.... at least we'll be alone for a few hours. Which sounds delightful....

 

[cbg1027]

I was thinking about booking this for an arrival night when we may not go into the parks.

Am I correct in understanding that you can eat there for dinner at any time and come back to see the fireworks (on the same night)?

Are there any stairs to the restaurant or just an elevator? is it open? I have an autistic dd that doesn't like elevators, but she CAN do them if we prepare her for them and hold on to her during. Don't worry, she won't make a scene in the restaurant.

Thanks.

They don't have stairs that people can use because the elevator to the restaurant can't be opened by the public, a CM has to operate it. They don't want people without ADR's going up to the restaurant to watch the fireworks and crowding the paying customers.

But I bet part of the building codes require that there be stairs to use in case of an emergency, so I bet if you explain the situation at the check in desk, they would escort you to where ever the stairs are. But be aware....we're talking an 11 story walk-up!

So, you might be better off preparing your child for the elevator unless you're looking for a workout.

 

[cbg1027]

Thank you.

I made a reservation for 9: pm. Wishes is at 8 pm that day. The lady on the phone told me that I could arrive early and tell them i have a reservation and wanted to watch the fireworks. Do you thin they will let us in as early as 7:30?

If that's true it will be awesome that way we could order a drink ( if possible ), watch the fireworks and wait for our dinner.

I want to spend the day with the kids going around the hotels to see the Christmas decorations that's why I didn't do an early reservation.

We don't mind the craziness since we can do intimate another time.... at least we'll be alone for a few hours. Which sounds delightful....

Yes, they will certainly let you in at 7:30. As long as you have an ADR for that day, I think they'll let you in whenever you want. I'm pretty sure you could order a drink from the bar too.

 

[shoes99]

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/me...iforniaGrill/california-grill-menu-dinner.pdf

Here is the menu from the wdw website..

 

[Uncleromulus]

They may let you in at 7:30, but there may not be anyplace to sit. You may have to stand for a time, then rush to beat others to a bar seat if someone leaves. Which dosen't usually happen, as people park at the bar and tiny lounge for HOURS just waiting on the fireworks.

 

[Stinky_Pete]

They may let you in at 7:30, but there may not be anyplace to sit. You may have to stand for a time, then rush to beat others to a bar seat if someone leaves. Which dosen't usually happen, as people park at the bar and tiny lounge for HOURS just waiting on the fireworks.

I have to agree with this.

It's been years, but one time two of us went to the lounge to have drinks and appetizers then watch the fireworks. I think we got there about an hour before the fireworks started. It was earlier in this decade -- a simpler time -- before the DDP and Free Dining. We were in the "sweet spot" where you could just take the elevator up to see if you could sit in the lounge. Before the total zoo it became shortly thereafter.

We had no trouble getting seats in the small lounge area, but a little while later a group of ladies asked if they could join us. We were totally fine with it - I even offered to share our California Roll appetizer with them - it was big!

Thank goodness they now restrict who can go up there! One time, during dinner, before the restrictions, I had a parent shove her child between my chair and the window so her DD could watch the fireworks. Classless...

If you go early and want to sit in the (I'll emphasize again) small lounge area, just be prepared to share the table. It can be a fun experience meeting new people!

 

[Pakey]

They may let you in at 7:30, but there may not be anyplace to sit. You may have to stand for a time, then rush to beat others to a bar seat if someone leaves. Which dosen't usually happen, as people park at the bar and tiny lounge for HOURS just waiting on the fireworks.

We've experienced on 3 occasions now where we went up and stood against the wall for anywhere between 15 to 60 minutes waiting on any kind of seat. The place gets more and more crowded the closer to fireworks. We fine it much easier now to just book a late dinner and skip the fireworks crowd completely.

 

[Sleeping Becca]

Thank you so much for the heads up and posting the pictures. Heights don't bother her, it's the movement of the elevators that she has a problem with.

It was very sweet of you to think about that, though. Made my day!

BTW, awesome pictures! I'm sold.

No problem! Most autistic children (mine included) have trouble with enclosed spaces. She does fine on the catwalk, doesn't bother her a bit. I just wanted to make sure your child would be OK with it!

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1) Let's not "Drink The Koolaid", yet.
2) Cali Grill has its good points.
3) But, for a romantic meal, it doesn't come even close.
. . . VERY noisy
. . . VERY crowded
. . . VERY close proximiity of table-to-table
. . . VERY populated with noisy kids and adults who don't know how to act at fine dining
4) I would recommend
. . . Bistro de Paris, Epcot, France, upstairs
. . . Shula's at Dolphin
. . . Il Mulino at Swan
. . . Citricos at GF (usually quiet due to being out-of-the-way)
5) These
. . . have few kids (eg. Bistro doesn't even have a kid's menu!)
. . . are almost always quiet
. . . have great food
. . . give super service
. . . build a nice atmosphere

 

[B-Ride]

1) Let's not "Drink The Koolaid", yet.

Okay, we all know by now that you love this Jonestown reference. Heck, you use it on almost every post. However, it is hardly appropriate to use such a tragic event to try and dampen people's spirits on their Disney vacation. At least IMHO it isn't.

 

[jomommy]

They don't have stairs that people can use because the elevator to the restaurant can't be opened by the public, a CM has to operate it. They don't want people without ADR's going up to the restaurant to watch the fireworks and crowding the paying customers.

But I bet part of the building codes require that there be stairs to use in case of an emergency, so I bet if you explain the situation at the check in desk, they would escort you to where ever the stairs are. But be aware....we're talking an 11 story walk-up!

So, you might be better off preparing your child for the elevator unless you're looking for a workout.

Thanks. Although I could probably handle it. I've walked more stairs in the last several years than most people do in a lifetime. The elevator won't be a problem, though. (Not one we can't work with, anyway.)