How busy are QS at lunch/dinner?

[TheSpooph]

I'm much more familiar with the huge crowds at WDW at lunch. My DH still reminds me of how long we waited in line for a cheeseburger one day at lunch - close to an hour! We normally do TS with an ADR for that reason.

That said, how long should I expect to wait at a QS restaurant in DL/DCA in late July? I would love to try a few (Flo's, French Market, Hungry Bear) but don't want to wait for forever. My DH thanks you!

 

[gerilyne]

We go in Aug and I don't think we ever waited more than 20 minutes to order and maybe less than 10 for food (thinking of both Flo's and Hungry Bear). We tend to eat a little off schedule though like before noon for lunch and 4-4:30 for dinner. I think the longest wait we ever had was at the CA Starbucks location but it was the only one still at that time.

 

[Elk Grove Chris]

We frequently go in the summer, mainly August and we have never waited more than 20 minutes for any of those places. We do not eat right at noon though, we generally eat at 11:30 or 1, to try and miss some of the crowds. Of the three, I would tend to try and hit Flo's at the bookends of lunch time just from a seating standpoint.

Pretty sure we have never eaten dinner at those three so cannot really comment there. We usually make ressies for dinner onsite/resort restaurants or eat at DTD, or just do dessert if we had a big lunch.

 

[Cheshirecatty]

We go every July(and sometimes in June or August), and like gerilyne, and Elk Grove Chris, have had typical waits(in our experience), of usually no more than 20 minutes(and this is at all three places mentioned).

Having said that, we also choose to eat a little before the typical 12:00 noon time frame---usually around 11:15 to 11:30am for lunch, and 4:30pm for dinner.

 

[ktlm]

Wow, what time of year do you go to WDW? We've never waited that long for CS there-- we went to BOG right at noon not too long after it opened and even that wait was only 20 minutes. I think that is the longest we have ever waited. We do like to do TS at lunch at WDW just for the midday break though as we are usually in the parks open to close.

Haven't been to DL in late July, so I can't help you with that exact time frame in the summer peak, but we usually go in June, and I can't recall ever waiting more than 5 minutes or maybe 10 for CS. The only exception is the corn dog cart at DL which always seems to have a really long line when we are there- we probably did 15 or 20 minutes for that. We probably hit them around 11:30 though, so we do beat the noon crowd. We think DL/CA has much better counter service options than WDW does generally.

 

[TheSpooph]

Thanks for the advice! That makes me feel a little better.

We are doing TS for lunch and then have rest/nap time for the 4yo - and DH! Of course, I'm sure I will be right there too! After naps will be more park and dinner. Do you think 7 is a good or bad time?

As for our WDW experience, it might not have been an hour, but it took over 30 min and it was a complete madhouse. Crazy getting good, crazy finding a table, crazy crowds. I think it was at DHS (MGM) and all I remember is tons of people packed into a huge area waiting for food.

So happy to hear DLR has it figured out.

 

[nunzia]

I'm so glad we don't have the dining plan at DLR! Never a long wait for food in my experience..and the people eater places, like Hungry Bear, can really move folks super quick. (and the Fried Green tomato sandwich can't be beat). Plaza Inn is super good and fast..heck they are tons of great fast places.

 

[whjensen]

That's the beautiful thing about DL. You're not stuck in the park if you don't want to be. You've got the restaurants along Harbor. You've got Gardenwalk. And for those locals with parking passes, there's even more close by.

The quick service (IMO) does get exceedingly busy (specifically Hungry Bear - haven't tried Flo's) and the problem actually becomes one of seating, not ordering. When one has been walking for x amount of hours, one may choose to eat slowly. Unfortunately, this puts a kink in the system like a hose. The people are still flowing but have nowhere to go. That's where I think you run into more problems.

 

[superlarz]

That's the beautiful thing about DL. You're not stuck in the park if you don't want to be. You've got the restaurants along Harbor. You've got Gardenwalk. And for those locals with parking passes, there's even more close by.

The quick service (IMO) does get exceedingly busy (specifically Hungry Bear - haven't tried Flo's) and the problem actually becomes one of seating, not ordering. When one has been walking for x amount of hours, one may choose to eat slowly. Unfortunately, this puts a kink in the system like a hose. The people are still flowing but have nowhere to go. That's where I think you run into more problems.

Anyone who drives or parks on property would not have to pay for parking again in the same day, not just locals with parking passes.