Disneyland Dining Q from a WDW Vet..

[tfc3rid]

Heading to DL in August, first time... As a long time WDW Veteran, do we need to make priority seating for every meal the way we do in Florida?

 

[AndyLL]

Heading to DL in August, first time... As a long time WDW Veteran, do we need to make priority seating for every meal the way we do in Florida?

No... it's quite different then WDW.

Blue Bayou, Carnation and perhaps the 2 high end resturants in the Disney Hotels are the only ones you need seating for.

And remember... at Disneyland, once you leave the park you are in the city so it is easier to have dining choices outside the parks.

Andy

 

[tfc3rid]

No... it's quite different then WDW.

Blue Bayou, Carnation and perhaps the 2 high end resturants in the Disney Hotels are the only ones you need seating for.

And remember... at Disneyland, once you leave the park you are in the city so it is easier to have dining choices outside the parks.

Andy

I'm in for only 3 days and staying at the DL Hotel so I'll be essentially doing meals on property the whole stay...

Carnation for breakfast and lunch need priority or will they be ok?

 

[AndyLL]

I'm in for only 3 days and staying at the DL Hotel so I'll be essentially doing meals on property the whole stay...

Carnation for breakfast and lunch need priority or will they be ok?

There is always a line during normal lunch/dinner times. ( never noticed at breakfast ) We always reserve so we don't have to wait as long.

If you do Character meals you should get priority seating. I recommend the first seating at Minnie's.

Andy

 

[tfc3rid]

There is always a line during normal lunch/dinner times. ( never noticed at breakfast ) We always reserve so we don't have to wait as long.

If you do Character meals you should get priority seating. I recommend the first seating at Minnie's.

Andy

Thanks... I'm going with 2 other adults so I'm trying to figure out a game plan... 3 park days...

 

[sonnyjane]

As others mentioned, it is not like WDW. I would make a reservation for Blue Bayou, character meals, and also if you'd like to do one of the World of Color dinner packages. The rest you can get away with getting a walk-up unless you're going during a very busy time of year and/or busy time of day. If you do, however, know that you really want to eat somewhere, it doesn't hurt to make a reservation. You can always cancel if you change your mind. I'd much prefer to make a reservation and cancel it than wait 40 minutes as a walk-up, which is the wait I had at Cafe Orleans during spring break season last year for lunch.

 

[tfc3rid]

As others mentioned, it is not like WDW. I would make a reservation for Blue Bayou, character meals, and also if you'd like to do one of the World of Color dinner packages. The rest you can get away with getting a walk-up unless you're going during a very busy time of year and/or busy time of day. If you do, however, know that you really want to eat somewhere, it doesn't hurt to make a reservation. You can always cancel if you change your mind. I'd much prefer to make a reservation and cancel it than wait 40 minutes as a walk-up, which is the wait I had at Cafe Orleans during spring break season last year for lunch.

Was debating Cafe Orleans versus Blue Bayou...

 

[sonnyjane]

Was debating Cafe Orleans versus Blue Bayou...

If money and time permit, there's no harm in doing both This debate comes up frequently on the boards. I have eaten at both and had a very crappy, very expensive dinner at BB that I hope was the exception, not the rule. I had a very good meal at CO and although the service was slow, the waiter was much more friendly, and since CO is cheaper than BB, I wasn't as disappointed. I'd encourage you to give them a try for yourself. I'm not turned off of BB forever, just not in a hurry to go back soon.

 

[skiingfast]

There is not priority seating in DLR. That's a misnomer. You can make reservations at all the Table Service offerings at the resort.

Why make a reservation?
You are there on a very busy time.
You don't want to wait for a table.

If it's a busy time push the 60 day limit for reservations.
If it's not make the reservations 2 weeks, 1 week even 1 day ahead of or the same day. This will let you have some more flexibility as your schedule becomes even more clear.


For Minnie and Friends breakfast in DL. You can eat at first seating and leaving you table on a Magic Morning day and get to rides before the park is open to the general guests.

For Blue Bayou a reservation at the open of lunch or dinner make it much easier to sit water side.

For the WoC dinner packages, make sure you eat in the early part of the seating for the 1st or 2nd show. This will let you eat slowly and have plenty of time to get a great spot to watch WoC.

For all reservation at DLR you can call (714) 781-3463, except for rain forest cafe.

 

[tfc3rid]

We're not planning any character meals... Probably just going to wing it for the most part but wanted at least one sit down meal...

 

[AndyLL]

Was debating Cafe Orleans versus Blue Bayou...

We rarely do Blue Bayou because we feel Carnation has much more value for the money.

However.... the atmosphere of Blue Bayou can not be beat and I would put it on the 'must do' list for anyone that's never done it.

Andy

 

[HydroGuy]

Be careful tying yourself down to too many dinining reservations at DLR. Besides being easier to do dining at DLR, the whole resort lends itself to a much less planned experience than WDW. The worst thing you can do IMO is say "well, its 6PM we need to go to our dining reservation" and get kind of enslaved to your reservations. I do make reservations but end up canceling as many as I keep so I do not force the whole crew to drop whatever they are doing to go to a restaurant.

I wrote this up a year or so ago and it may help:

"From DLR to WDW and Back Again: My Challenge With WDW Dining Philosophy at DLR" - www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2449979

I need to write up a better thread on this topic sometime when I get some free time.

 

[tfc3rid]

Be careful tying yourself down to too many dinining reservations at DLR. Besides being easier to do dining at DLR, the whole resort lends itself to a much less planned experience than WDW. The worst thing you can do IMO is say "well, its 6PM we need to go to our dining reservation" and get kind of enslaved to your reservations. I do make reservations but end up canceling as many as I keep so I do not force the whole crew to drop whatever they are doing to go to a restaurant.

I wrote this up a year or so ago and it may help:

"From DLR to WDW and Back Again: My Challenge With WDW Dining Philosophy at DLR" - www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2449979

I need to write up a better thread on this topic sometime when I get some free time.

Thanks.... I'm actually a DVC person who ends up staying in and not dining at WDW unless it's a last minute reservation... Having online reservations for WDW makes it so easy to do sometihng last minute or just see what's out there...

Your input is greatly appreciated...

 

[cyberjoek]

One of my favorite tricks that works most of the time is to have Disney Dining Reservation line (714-781-3463) programed into my phone and when we want to eat in an hour I call and make a reservation (you can reserve as little as an hour ahead). I've only had my reservations turned down once or twice at Cafe Orleans when I do it that way and we get a table quickly when we get there. All the benefits of reservations and none of the planning

-Joe Kavanagh

 

[StarTink]

If you want to get a little break from the park, Downtown Disney has some good restaurants. Unlike WDW, it's walking distance.