Dining with an Imagineer

[Dormouse.]

This isn’t technically a restaurant, but it is a dining experience, so I thought this was the best place to put this.

I’m going to WDW in early December and want to surprise my boyfriend with Dine With an Imagineer. On our last trip, he mentioned that he’d tried to get us a reservation if he’d known about it ahead of time, so I thought it would be neat to make it happen this time.

Has anyone done this (especially recently)? If so, what was your experience like? Would you say it’s worth it for a party of two adults?

 

[MyGoofy26]

I just did this on the 2nd and it was fantastic. Our Imagineer was an Art Director and very friendly--a huge Disney fan herself who spends her days off in the parks with her family. Compared to other special events the cost felt like a bargain--the meal was incredible, our waiter very knowledgeable. I posted a thread myself when the reservation popped up (it was a total fluke that I checked and two seats happened to be open a little more than a month out) and then came back to follow up.

Hopefully you'll get some good feedback here but if you want to dig back a couple weeks and see if you can find the other thread there were quite a few people who chimed in with their experiences there and I posted several pictures of the meal and the souvenir plate.

 

[Duckiedee]

I would LOVE to do this - but it is only lunches... am I right?

 

[OhThePain]

My wife and I did this a couple of years ago. We felt like it was well worth the price. You get a 4-course meal at a Signature restaurant, for less than what the same meal would cost if you just went, plus we got to spend the time talking Disney with our Imagineer and other like-minded guests. Our Imagineer was a curator and also had a hand in the Frozen marketing (this was shortly before it came out) and she warned us to prepare ourselves because it will be everywhere. She was right, obviously. We would have loved to do it again, but since we won't have hoppers and don't plan on spending a lot of time at DHS and haven't seen Fantasmic! in a while, we opted for the F! package at HBD instead. Part of me really regrets it (although we are relaxing at the pool and having lunch at Sanaa, so I can't really complain). Totally worth it for 2 adults. The only bad thing is, and this wasn't our experience at all but it should be cautioned, some have reported getting a less than enthusiastic Imagineer or fellow guests, which I can see being a damper on the experience.

Also, from my experience, if they offer the noodle bowl as an option and you are sitting up near the head of the table with the Imagineer as I was, the noodle bowl is not the smartest thing to order. It is delicious, don't get me wrong, but the slurp-factor when all eyes are basically on you, can be uncomfortable.

 

[Dormouse.]

Hopefully you'll get some good feedback here but if you want to dig back a couple weeks and see if you can find the other thread there were quite a few people who chimed in with their experiences there and I posted several pictures of the meal and the souvenir plate.

Thanks for the info on your experience! I'll definitely look into the other thread.

I would LOVE to do this - but it is only lunches... am I right?

Yes, it is. I think it's only offered at noon on select days now.

My wife and I did this a couple of years ago. We felt like it was well worth the price. You get a 4-course meal at a Signature restaurant, for less than what the same meal would cost if you just went, plus we got to spend the time talking Disney with our Imagineer and other like-minded guests. Our Imagineer was a curator and also had a hand in the Frozen marketing (this was shortly before it came out) and she warned us to prepare ourselves because it will be everywhere. She was right, obviously. We would have loved to do it again, but since we won't have hoppers and don't plan on spending a lot of time at DHS and haven't seen Fantasmic! in a while, we opted for the F! package at HBD instead. Part of me really regrets it (although we are relaxing at the pool and having lunch at Sanaa, so I can't really complain). Totally worth it for 2 adults. The only bad thing is, and this wasn't our experience at all but it should be cautioned, some have reported getting a less than enthusiastic Imagineer or fellow guests, which I can see being a damper on the experience.

Also, from my experience, if they offer the noodle bowl as an option and you are sitting up near the head of the table with the Imagineer as I was, the noodle bowl is not the smartest thing to order. It is delicious, don't get me wrong, but the slurp-factor when all eyes are basically on you, can be uncomfortable.

I'm concerned about getting an unenthusiastic Imagineer. Do you happen to know what kind of fields the Imagineers who were there when you went had?

 

[js]

Would I book this like an ADR and it opens as such? Im going between Christmas and New Years Day and trying to find different ideas for my family of four, all adults, that we havent done before

Thank you.

 

[aggiedog]

We did this last week. Our Imagineer was a project manager something-something. I don't remember her actual job title. She was very enthusiastic, is based primarily in AK, and I enjoyed hearing about what goes into the design, planning, and implementation of projects there. The food was stellar. I was expecting a table full of middle aged Disney nerds. It was actually a college student who wants to work for Disney with his mom, a junior high student who loves Disney with her dad, my DD who is considering animation as a major, and 4 teenagers on their own, two of who were big Disney nerds. Most of the table was pretty quiet, so I agree with table mates making the lunch more or less enjoyable. I also second the advice on the noodle bowl. My dd got it and she was too embarrassed to try to eat the noodles. It is a huge bowl of noodles in a thin broth.

I'm not sure I'd do it again, but I'm glad I did it once.

And yes, you book it like an ADR. While we were there, it was only offered M/W/F.

 

[supersnoop]

I would LOVE to do this - but it is only lunches... am I right?

They have dinner with an imagineers at Citricos. It used to occur at Flying Fish, but moved during the refurbishment.

 

[ambgoph]

Would I book this like an ADR and it opens as such? Im going between Christmas and New Years Day and trying to find different ideas for my family of four, all adults, that we havent done before

Thank you.

I had to call at 180 days out - nothing was showing online. I was able to book it no problem.

 

[OhThePain]

I'm concerned about getting an unenthusiastic Imagineer. Do you happen to know what kind of fields the Imagineers who were there when you went had?

Imagineers can be in any (or several) fields. Like I said, we had a curator who had a hand with the Frozen marketing. You could get someone in landscaping, ride design, engineers, park or restaurant management, etc. etc. etc. Any field in what makes Disney function is a possibility, whether the field is obvious or more behind the scenes. There is no rhyme or reason for knowing what type you'll get. I wouldn't worry about not getting an unenthusiastic Imagineer, though. It is very very rare to hear about one, and for all I know it could be the same person or 2 that mentions it when threads pop up. They do have to volunteer to be a part of DWAI. It is not like they take random Imagineers who really don't want to be there (of course, everyone has bad days, even Imagineers).

 

[RedM94]

We did this last week. Our Imagineer was a project manager something-something. I don't remember her actual job title. She was very enthusiastic, is based primarily in AK, and I enjoyed hearing about what goes into the design, planning, and implementation of projects there. The food was stellar. I was expecting a table full of middle aged Disney nerds. It was actually a college student who wants to work for Disney with his mom, a junior high student who loves Disney with her dad, my DD who is considering animation as a major, and 4 teenagers on their own, two of who were big Disney nerds. Most of the table was pretty quiet, so I agree with table mates making the lunch more or less enjoyable. I also second the advice on the noodle bowl. My dd got it and she was too embarrassed to try to eat the noodles. It is a huge bowl of noodles in a thin broth.

I'm not sure I'd do it again, but I'm glad I did it once.

And yes, you book it like an ADR. While we were there, it was only offered M/W/F.

@aggiedog Do they still give hard plastic name badges in addition to the souvenir plate?

 

[MyGoofy26]

I'm concerned about getting an unenthusiastic Imagineer. Do you happen to know what kind of fields the Imagineers who were there when you went had?

I was worried about the same thing after reading a review on a Google search of someone's Imagineer not being into it and "joking" that he only did it for the free meal. But it seems overwhelmingly you get the opposite. We ended up chatting with our waiter a bit after our Imagineer ducked out and he said there's a pretty long waitlist of volunteer Imagineers they cycle through. So I'd hope if they get a dud in there like the one I read about that they'd just take that person off the list. It's such an exclusive event I can't see them allowing repeat experiences by an Imagineer who just wants a "free lunch" from it when they have so many enthusiastic ones in the queue.

I've heard that the Imagineer can be from any department--everyone down to accounting is considered an Imagineer--but I bet they each bring a unique insight regardless of department. I'm sure those numbers guys know a whoooooole lot.

 

[Meriweather]

I've gone 5 times now and will go again. It is a good deal......although no dining discounts offered.
Small groups.......so do book fast. I think it is 10-12 in the bamboo room at HBD.
We have enjoyed all the imagineers we've had.
Mon-Wed-Fri

Food is great too.

 

[Aliceacc]

I got it as a Christmas gift for my husband before our 2012 trip.

He LOVED it!! The imaginer was a young woman who was working on the changes to Test Track. When we went back in 2014, my husband showed us some of the things she had spoken about.

I would love to do it myself one day.

 

[js]

So I book this at 180 days out and I will call, correct?
Approximately how much is it per person? I want to do this as a lunch or dinner. Preferably a dinner but would take either one.
Thank you all so much!

 

[aggiedog]

Yes, they still give you a hard name tag that is engraved. There were 10 at our table plus the Imagineer. Our Imagineer talked about how you have to volunteer, and that there are more volunteers than lunches, so the ones that get chosen are lucky. I'd be surprised to have an Imagineer not happy to be there, at least more than once. She also told us that there are 140 job titles that are considered Imagineers.

 

[js]

I sure hope my family and kids (18/22) want to do this. They have already vetoed Hoop De Doo!
I'll ask tonight.

 

[hoffman1]

It has been many years ago that we did this but it was great. We only have done it twice. The first one we did we got Alex Wright for our Imagineer! I was so excited because it was a name I actually recognized. He wrote the "Imagineering Field Guide" series.
The next one we did we got Eric Goodman. He was very entertaining. We thought it was funny though because DH and I joked before we went that our luck was so good the first time that the second time we would get an Imagineer in sanitation. We were close. It turned out that Mr. Goodman was working on the Waste Management section at Innoventions!

 

[HopperFan]

 

[Meriweather]

So I book this at 180 days out and I will call, correct?
Approximately how much is it per person? I want to do this as a lunch or dinner. Preferably a dinner but would take either one.
Thank you all so much!

180 days out usually.....sometimes it seems to take a little longer to get it loaded into the system.
I use MDE, but you can call.
It is around $75. I have only done it at lunch at HBD