Dining with a 15 month old (X-posted)

[Missus Toad]

We love sit down dining at WDW, but we've not done it with such a little one. Will we be able to do some of our faves (Ohana, Le Cellier and Teppanyaki) with our little girl or should we skip it? She's great in restaurants, but I'm concerned about the convenience, menu, ambience (and in the case of Teppanyaki, safety!) of it. I'm thinking Teppanyaki may be out. Any experienced mommies and daddies of young'uns have some advice? Thanks!

 

[Amirah95]

Welcome to the boards! Tell me, how many children has had their lives threatened by Teppanyaki? I believe not many, maybe even none. Most children love being out and the ambience is nothing worry about! Safety is very high on the priority list at WDW. I say do it!

 

[Missus Toad]

Originally posted by Amirah95
Welcome to the boards! Tell me, how many children has had their lives threatened by Teppanyaki? I

Thanks for the welcome and the response!

No, I can't say I've heard of any kids being menaced by Teppanyaki grills or chefs, but you're dealing with a goofball mom here who's singed her fingers more than once reaching for her plate!

I know my girl would love it though-- so much to see!

 

[Stimpy]

Keep in mind this is from a mother of a child who's 2 worst injuries occured at Disney World in a 2 day period.

Personally, I would skip Teppanyaki. A few years back, at a local Japanese restaurant that is similar to it, there was a case where a young toddler/baby was burned. We love these Japanese restaurants and we do take our DS now that he is a little older, but I wouldn't take my DD who is an infant. I agree that safety at Disney is high, but why take the chance? There is always next time when she's older!

Other than that, Disney does a great job at making the kids welcome at almost all of their restaurants. The only exception I can think of is Victoria & Alberts. They usually have kid's menus that have atleast 2-3 "basic" kids foods.

BTW Welcome!

 

[Amirah95]

Come on mom, give yourself a break and more credit. You can't mess this one up if you wanted to. Enjoy it and take lots of pictures of the sweet little one.

 

[TJA]

We've taken our twin babies to Disney 2 times so far -- once when they were 7 months old and then again when they were 13 months old. We did sit-down meals every day with them. Disney is full of kids and the restaurants are used to this. While we did not order them actual meals, we got side dishes of mac & cheese, etc., that we knew the girls would like. We never had any problems. Give it a try and see how it works for you.

 

[GEM]

We took our 12 month old to all the places you mentioned, and many more, with no problems. He just stayed in his highchair, so he couldn't reach the hot area at Teppanyaki or anything. In fact, that was probably his favorite restaurant. He was fascinated! Ohanas is very relaxed and family oriented, so no worries there at all. We took our little one all over - Spoodles, California Grill, Artist Point, Jiko, etc. - all with no problems. We also carried in food for him at all those places. No way I was paying big bucks for a kids meal he would only eat one or two bites of. We took some fruit, cheese cubes, vienna sausages, etc. in a little cooler in our backpack. No problems. Have fun!

 

[erikalk]

We take our DD (almost 2) to a teppanyaki restaurant at least once a month at home. She is mesmerized by the show. It keeps her entertained and she doesnt antsy. She loves fried rice. Sometimes she tries to get out of her highchair to help the chef make it faster (stapped into seat). Unfortunately, WDW's restaurant doesn't do fried rice, so we are not planning on going this trip. DD would be heartbroken without her rice. Last year we did several sit down restaurants and she was fine at 12 months. Character meals were good too. She liked to watch the characters.

 

[Fox&Hound]

We took our boys (then 18mo and 4yrs) to many restaurants during our last trip, and both did great. (They both enjoyed O'Hana.) In fact, they behaved better at Disney than they do at local restaurants. The food was great, the ambience was always colorful and interesting -- lots for kids to look at. (At all of the restaurants (like O'Hana), we paid for a kids meal for our older boy but the baby wasn't charged anything -- he ate a little off of my plate or a little from his brother's. As a toddler, he didn't eat much.)

DH and I spent one evening at Artist Point without the kids (we had a babysitter for the night) and witnessed one small child having a meltdown during dinner. He looked to be around 15-18 months old. The parents were frantic, and kept apologizing to everyone seated around them -- but truth be told, no one really minded. It's Disney!! And, kids are kids, what can you do? Eventually the little guy calmed down and his parents enjoyed a nice dinner.

HAVE FUN!

 

[bubbasmom99]

We have been to WDW twice with kid(s):

1st time, DS was 20 months.
2nd time, DS was 4 yrs old and DD was almost 1.

1st time, Nick slept through our entire dinner at 'Ohana.

2nd time, the kids had a blast at every restaurant, and we have a few faves: Ohana, Coral Reef, Le Cellier, Alfredo's, Cal Grill, Cape May Cafe...

I say Just Do It! If you are worried about menu, bring some of her favorite snacks along (for us that's goldfish crackers and froot by the foot).

I am so looking forward to our next trip because I think our 2 kids are old enough to really start enjoying the whole experience. I can't wait!

 

[jerrb]

We ate at Artists' Point, which was just fine. They have a kids' menu and we were able to get her something off of it.

Just remember as in going to any restaurant not to go too late or when she is too hungry. Bring distractions, etc.

We also did Mickey's Backyard BBQ and she loved it!

good luck!