Good ADRs for large groups? Grand Gathering in Oct 2009

[Matt'nMeg'sMom]

We're planning a grand gathering for 7 families in Oct 2009. We're only planning one group event per day (an ADR) and the rest of the time, families can do whatever they like.

Can you recommend the best ADRs for large groups? For example, I know that the DHS SciFi is not group friendly, but EPCOT's Biergarden is.

Thanks in advance!!

-Carolyn

 

[Sherrkel]

Hello -
For our last grand gathering (2007) we had 21 people.
We found 'Ohanas and Chef Mickeys to be very family friendly.
My definition of family friendly is the ability to seat us all together - and also the overall atmosphere was such that we didn't feel we were too loud, and they had times when the kids could get up and let out some energy and dance during some of their skits.
We also enjoyed our dinners at LeCelier - even the kids liked the menu.

For our Feb 2009 trip I've made ADRs at Cali Grill, LeCelier, 'Ohana, CRT, Tutto Italia and Biergarten. One tip when making your ADRs: I found this year when I called group dining, they would refer me directly to the restaurant in some cases (LeCelier, Tutto) to make my reservations because of being a large group. Although it worked out ok for LeCelier - they never called me back after 24 hrs, so I called them the following day and got a very helpful employee to make the ADR for me. I'm explaining this because I found it's a pain to call different numbers and wait for call backs, etc. Finally I just decided to call back group dining on the rest and make split reservations (for example for Tutto I got a table of 8 under my name, a table of 8 under my MIL name, and a table for the remainder under my SIL name).
Sorry I've been kinda wordy on my reply, but just trying to pass on helpful info!
Good luck, it's challenging to manage such a large group, but it can also be fun doing the planning

 

[Mrs. Toaster]

We did a Gathering with 12 people a few years ago. We didn't always sit at the same table, but were always seated close to each other. The kids actually loved being able to sit with different family members!

Here are some we all liked:

- We actually did like Sci-Fi Diner. All ages had fun there!
- Chef Mickey's was a hit for the character interaction, and the buffet had something for everyone.
- O'Hana was liked by all.
- My family all like Mexican, so they liked San Angel in Mexico in EPCOT.
-Rainforest Cafe was another big hit

 

[MichiganMomto4]

I would recommend the Tony's breakfast that is only available to Grand Gatherings. The food was good, the entertainment was really good. Tony is Awesome! You also get a group pic with the characters. and you get a pin for everyone in your party (at least we did in 2007).

 

[beacher]

Our largest ADR was for 12, but I would definitely second the 'Ohana recommendation. That's a great place for a large ADR. Also Captain's Grille at the Yacht Club - our experience is that they will work very hard to seat you together in large groups.

 

[Hollymom1229]

Saw many large groups at Boma this past trip, and everyone was all at one table. Might be a good one to check out.

 

[Matt'nMeg'sMom]

Hello -
For our last grand gathering (2007) we had 21 people.
We found 'Ohanas and Chef Mickeys to be very family friendly.
My definition of family friendly is the ability to seat us all together - and also the overall atmosphere was such that we didn't feel we were too loud, and they had times when the kids could get up and let out some energy and dance during some of their skits.
We also enjoyed our dinners at LeCelier - even the kids liked the menu.

For our Feb 2009 trip I've made ADRs at Cali Grill, LeCelier, 'Ohana, CRT, Tutto Italia and Biergarten. One tip when making your ADRs: I found this year when I called group dining, they would refer me directly to the restaurant in some cases (LeCelier, Tutto) to make my reservations because of being a large group.

Great info!!!

There will be at least 25 of us too, so I really appreciate that you shared your experience!

Looks like the following restaurants will be great for seating a large group as together as possible:

'Ohaha
Chef Mickey's
Biergarden
Boma (sadly, the foods might be too exotic for my crowd.)

Any others?

 

[Matt'nMeg'sMom]

I would recommend the Tony's breakfast that is only available to Grand Gatherings. The food was good, the entertainment was really good. Tony is Awesome! You also get a group pic with the characters. and you get a pin for everyone in your party (at least we did in 2007).

Isn't that a separate price? Can I use DDP for that?

 

[MichiganMomto4]

You can use ddp. It was only 1ts when we did it.