Dining from Young Adult Standpoint

[jessd_ct]

We are two young adults (mid 20s) without children and don't necessarily want to eat where there will be mostly families with children. Any suggestions for any type of restaurant, quick service or table service on the best and worst places to eat? We are looking for every type of place to eat. Any and all suggestions welcome! Thanks!

 

[RitaE]

There is the obvious - Victoria and Albert's.

The Signature restaurants later in the evening are sometimes less kid populated. If you head over to the Swan and Dolphin .. Shula's Steakhouse you might have a chance of avoiding children.

But I have to tell you, it is Walt Disney World. Other than Victoria and Albert's there is an high probability you will be sharing a restaurant with small children and if you go into one thinking that it won't happen you will likely be disappointed.

 

[gigi1313]

when advising young couples (or singles) re: disney dining, i suggest the later the better... i always recommend signature restaurants, but for one credit or reasonably priced, i also suggest places like raglan road, kouzzina, coral reef and some of the resort restaurants rather than theme park restaurants...

 

[gigi1313]

oh, another thought, places where you are "isolated" like sci-fi dine in and believe it or not, garden grill...

 

[marciemi]

Columbia Harbour House in the MK is a nice CS place with a very quiet upstairs. We met up with another DIS'er on a previous trip and stayed upstairs and socialized for a couple hours - and had a hard time finding anyone to take our pic when we ready to leave, and this was mid-summer! You'll still hit the gaggles downstairs in line, but it can be a nice respite. Also at MK depending on when you're going, there are outdoor tables in Pinocchio's which offer a nice view of Fantasyland. We were there in August on our last trip and it was simply too hot but other times might be nice.

We thought Chefs de France seemed nicely elegant and quiet/calm. Of course anywhere you can get that one "bad apple" but overall there's a huge difference in atmosphere between say there and Chef Mickeys, and at least some of the kids will respond accordingly (or their parents wouldn't head there in the first place).

My last trip was a mom/son one with my 16 year old, who also would prefer to stay away from screaming kids. (Shoot, wouldn't we all?) Other than obviously horrible places like the food court at Pop Century, I don't remember having any issues. Garden Grill was nice and fairly quiet, Le Cellier was very quiet, even 1900 Park Fare (character dinner) seemed quiet and it was fun to see all the little "princesses"! Whispering Canyon was not quiet, but you probably already know that! But you could have fun there if you're into that type of meal. We still enjoyed that and 50's Prime Time, but they were both a lot louder. But still, I can't remember having any issues with any kids. I'd probably avoid 'Ohana - we enjoyed it and the food, but the "activities" were more than a bit annoying, especially if you were on an aisle. If you really want it, I'd do one of the late times where you'd avoid some of the families and loud activities.

Good luck!

 

[FlightlessDuck]

We were at Raglan Road in July after 8PM and didn't see many kids.

 

[SweetSerenity]

I, too, am in my mid-twenties without any children so I understand where you are coming from. On my recent trip, I noticed that being a party of two often meant we were given a smaller table in a more isolated part of the restaurant, which seemed to cut down on the noise. I agree with the others that the later dinner hours seem to be quieter than earlier ones. Some of the places I've encountered that seem more peaceful are Tutto Italia, Columbia Harbour House, Yak & Yeti, and Ohana (we were there very late in the evening and more isolated so we weren't near the activities.)

 

[rlovew]

Bistro de Paris in France in Epcot does not offer a children's menu and is not on the dining plan. I would guess it probably doesn't have too many children.

 

[jessd_ct]

I totally understand that we won't be avoiding children totally. It is Disney afterall. But we've been looking at guidebooks and online and stuff and we can't find anything that is geared toward us really so I guess we were just looking for the advice from an angle that we couldn't find in a book.

 

[gerows]

Try Jiko. Great food, and not a lot of kids due to the type of food and the prices. As everyone had indicated, the later the better.

 

[katiebelle21]

Jiko's would be a good choice--the food is excellent. The Wave was also very nice.

 

[TinkerbellinLouisian]

My vaca in May... included myself (45) and DS18...

Yak & Yeti - agree with PP's...we didn't see many little ones there...possibly because of the menu.... GREAT decor....

Le Cellier - didn't see kids there....

Teppan Edo - we had One young child at our table...but that's iffy...I know...

Hollywood's Brown Derby - no little kids around us there...

I'm thinking.... "Higher Price" and "unusual menu" would equate fewer kids....

Hugs,
Mary

 

[TillyMarigold]

I would say a better bet is to eat fairly late and, as people have said, at places that are expensive or have "strange" menus, plus eating at the resorts (other than the values) will help. In general, restaurants that have characters or entertainment are more likely to have kids. So is any place in the Magic Kingdom.

But honestly, having eaten a total of 18 TS meals at WDW in the last 6 months, only once did I have any problems with a child, and that was at Grand Floridian Cafe, which I normally think of as geared more towards adults. I mean, we didn't eat at Chef Mickey, to be sure; but we just picked the types of food we liked and made reservations for whatever worked with our schedule.

 

[moose.]

im 21 and cant really stand kids so i totally know how you feel. dear lord, crystal palace for me, was the worst! there was a little girl there with her grandparents and she was climbing all over the booth and several times almost actually kicked me and i really just wanted to scream. i would try to avoid character meals as much as possible for obvious reasons.

 

[TheAceOfAces]

My last trip was just me and my sister (ages 19 and 23, respectively), and we did a decent job of avoiding any kid issues. Like others have said, eating later is typically better, and it can also be helpful to eat at more "off" times. (For instance, my sister and I usually ate lunch between 1-2pm, which meant the restaurants were less crowded in general than if we had eaten at, say, 11-12. Not only were there fewer wild kids, but we also noticed that we didn't have to wait quite as long for our food.) One thing to keep in mind, however, is the "later is better" idea is a guideline, but not an etched-in-stone rule. Perfect example: we had an 8:50pm reservation at Coral Reef, so we didn't expect to have to deal with kids. Wrong! The table right next to us had two kids (both under the age of 8) who would not stop whining, refused to eat, and kept trying to get up and run around. Of course, I understand that it's Disney and there will be kids, but that was ridiculous! Basically where I'm going with this is do what you can to avoid kids as much as possible (eat late and at off times, don't do character dining, etc.), but unless you eat at Victoria and Albert's, don't be surprised if kids do make an appearance.

 

[Melodious]

I totally understand that we won't be avoiding children totally. It is Disney afterall. But we've been looking at guidebooks and online and stuff and we can't find anything that is geared toward us really so I guess we were just looking for the advice from an angle that we couldn't find in a book.

Hmm well I'm in my twenties, and for me it's not really about avoiding kids as having a meal that I'd like to have in an atmosphere I'd like to have it. You can always have a bad kid having a meltdown with oblivious parents next to you. If you're looking for fun experiences for adults though, I think there are lots of choices. As has been said, restaurants in the deluxe resorts seem to be less crowded and perhaps more geared towards adults. But also places in the parks like the Brown Derby where you can have a martini and pretend you're in old Hollywood, or Biergarten where you can get a big stein of beer. There may be kids next to you, but it should still be lots of fun. Is that the kinda suggestion you're looking for?

 

[JoShan1719]

I totally understand that we won't be avoiding children totally. It is Disney afterall. But we've been looking at guidebooks and online and stuff and we can't find anything that is geared toward us really so I guess we were just looking for the advice from an angle that we couldn't find in a book.

You shouldn't have too much trouble in September. DH and I have gone the last two Septembers and I don't remember one meltdown. I don't really remember too many kids at all, actually.

 

[HollyH]

We frequent Flying Fish every visit and see very few children. 2nd a previous poster on Bistro De Paris. Saw NO children on our visit there. Best bets are as everyone has stated, signature restaurants, late seating.

 

[Leota]

There is one major exception to the Signature Restaurants, Later Seatings rule.... Don't do CA. Grill later & hope to escape kids having meltdowns. That is melt-down city. Lots of folks plan a later meal there so they can see Wishes from there. Lots of those folks have tired kids who have had a very full day. The last thing those kids want to do is sit thru a 2 hour meal so they can see fireworks. The last thing the parents want to do is leave their special dinner & viewing of the fireworks because the kids are melting down. This makes for lots of loud kids with oblivious parents.

Don't get me wrong, I love kids... I'm a Mom (although mine is grown now) I don't love when parents disengage from their kids in restaurants tho. And it seems to happen frequently at CA Grill, which is why we stopped going there.

Places we love for a nice adult meal are BlueZoo, Flying Fish & The Wave. We eat at off times & we often eat at the bar or in the lounge area.

 

[winterman]

I don't necessarily agree with those PPs that suggested dining late to avoid kids. There are many parents who drag their kids into restaurants at what I consider to be very late hours. And unfortunately, because the kids are tired they are more apt to behave badly. (Not only is it late, but the kids have been running around a theme park all day.)

Avoiding character meals may be the best you can do. On our most recent visit, in April, only once did we have any issue with wild kids and that was at Narcoossee's. There were 2 or 3 families together and the parents were much too busy talking with each other to surpervise the kids.

DH and I enjoy watching kids having fun but running around tables and in the walkways is just not safe behavior. It puts servers and other diners and the kids themselves at risk. On the other hand, I have seen parents take the kids out of the restaurant when they start to act up. Sometimes the kids just need a break.