Does Sci Fi seat on time?

[JJ2017]

So since we have never been there before I decided to watch some youtube videos. Looks like each car has three rows. We are a family of 4. Will we be seated in a car with another party of 2? I'm hoping my kids get the front row seat. Thanks!

 

[WishICouldSpeakWhale]

There are cars with two rows too. That is what our family of four got in August. And yes, we put the kids in the front.

That said, I wouldn't play it up that they'll get to sit in the front...I would think it is possible to have two parties in the same car. Maybe someone else knows if that happens. Also the cars are really close together. I don't think the front seat of one car is too far behind the back seat of the next car.

 

[hes122]

I've eaten twice at Sci Fi. The first time we waited about 10-15 minutes and we arrived maybe 5 minutes or so before our reservation. The 2nd time we were seated in less than 2 minutes because it was likely the last reservation of the evening.

 

[focusondisney]

So since we have never been there before I decided to watch some youtube videos. Looks like each car has three rows. We are a family of 4. Will we be seated in a car with another party of 2? I'm hoping my kids get the front row seat. Thanks!

We eat at Sci Fi every trip, for over 20 years, many years we go 2 or 3 times. So a lot of trips to Sci Fi, lol. When we have been a party of 4, we have always been seated in the first 2 rows, with “hitchhikers” in the last row. When we have been a party of 2, we have been the hitchhikers, sitting behind a family of 4. As the PP said, there are a few cars with only 2 rows, so it is possible you might get one of those. But there aren’t many of them, so I wouldn’t get my hopes up for that. But I would say you have an excellent chance of being in the first 2 rows wherever you end up.

 

[RealBlast3]

I have always waited around 15 minutes to be seated, probably.

And Coral Reef is another one of those eateries that will make you return to the podium if you show up more than 10 minutes before your reservation. They have done that to me several times when I was around 15 or so minutes early.

 

[gharter]

Around noon, we are usually seated within 5-10 minutes. If we go for the evening meal, waiting 20 minutes or more is not uncommon.

 

[sebovol]

ADR at 5:20. Trying to get it earlier at 5. Should we bother checking in early? Or do they run late?

Nope. they run late usually. If you want to spend the time waiting to get in by 5, get there by 4:30.

 

[JJ2017]

So just to report back. My original ADR was at 5:20 and I had been trying to push it to 5:00 and the day of grabbed 4:45 figuring we'd be seated y 5:00. We checked in right at 4:45 and we got seated immediately. All worked out great! We really enjoyed our time there.

 

[Ellie Webbs]

We waited between 20 - 30 minutes both times we went. Were given a beeper and the cm seemed very stressed. Well worth it once we were in but I suspect that the cm job isn't easy, maybe overbooking?

 

[rchampagne]

I'm agreeing with most of the others. We've eaten there 2x, checked in right around our ADR time, and both times was a 20-30 minute wait. Next trip, I've booked the ADR for 20 minutes before when I really want to eat... expecting a wait.

 

[AngiTN]

You will likely receive varying opinions based on varying experiences.

In my opinion, Disney does not knowingly make people wait for tables at any restaurant....unless there is cocktail bar where you can spend money before dining.....

I am known for being 'notoriously early' for just about any appointment, and Disney ADR's are no exception.

More often than not, I check-in early (which typically means no more than 15-minutes early, as per Disney policy). Sometimes I get seated before my scheduled ADR; sometimes I wait.

In other words, I don't believe there is only one answer, just varying experiences.

But if you want advice about the virtue of an early check-in, I'm here to encourage that notion at Sci-Fi or anywhere else.

Yep. Exactly. The thing with dining, as anyone knows, the best laid schedule can go to pot when 1 party decides to hang at the table and chat. I mean, sure the restaurant knows the avg time to get food and eat. But they don't kick folks out of their table so a few lingering parties and your entire schedule for the day is thrown off. At Disney this is compounded by many who want to linger to stay off their feet and/or in the air conditioning.
So no, they never knowingly cause late seatings but they do happen quite often. More often than not. Think the only places immune are those that aren't full to start with. Those that always have open ADR slots.

 

[Anchored]

We have never been seated on time there.

 

[MissionMouse]

You have asked a very open question. Remember Disney is filled with seasons, events, patterns by the day of the week and hour, so expect all sorts of responses. As Disney provides the guidance for your dining tome...arrive and checkin 15 min. prior. So throughout all the years we have dined around 11am to 1pm, in June, July, Oct, Nov and Dec and arrived 10-15 prior. I recall being seated 5 minutes early to no longer than 10 minutes after. Overall, on time or early. During our time waiting we frequently overheard CMs telling guest without teservation they werent taking walkups while a few other times they were informed ot would be a 30-60 min wait which sounded like it would be a picnic table in the rear.