Noise & Chaos in some Restaurants

[Genie+]

Now, I’m going to throw a crazy suggestion out there about T Rex. I will preface this by saying our DD is definitely a kid who gets overwhelmed by large crowds and lots of noise, and the three of us are introverts and like quiet, but T Rex has been her favorite restaurant since we started going to Disney and she is now 12. The animatronics are amazing and the fish tanks are gorgeous. She loves to walk around and look at the dinosaurs while we wait for food. The only time you *might* not hear each other is when the animatronics turn on, which is not that often. For a 6 year old it would be sooo cool! We are going to Florida next February and the one thing on daughter’s list? T Rex! The gift store is also fun and the food and drinks are pretty tasty!

For the first time I have a desire to try T-Rex Thanks!

 

[mickeymom22]

I am going to suggest Garden Grill too! One of my family’s favorites. It is so nice to be an all-you-can-eat, but they bring the food right to your table. If you are seated on the first level it really seems like you have the characters all to yourself when they visit your table.

I don’t know if they still do it or not, but when we had breakfast at the Tucker House, they had a little parade with the characters and children. They gave the children instruments to shake and they were definitely noise makers…Like I said I am not sure if they do that now or not, but it was loud during the parade.

 

[princess4life]

Mom to a kiddo with pretty involved ADHD and hearing sensitivity (when he was younger), and I just wanted to encourage you to prep your daughter that sometimes you will be in situations that are loud and may be overstimulating. We also gave some information about rides when we thought it was warranted. We were able to do this, and it was very helpful as our kiddo could just say this is too much right now, and we could then find a quieter area for a bit. Often times this involved us playing Heads Up on our phones, I Spy, or this game called sticks with our hands that my kids all like (also great for in line distractions) and/or getting a drink/snack. We also always carried those small flexible ear plugs which we pulled out before fireworks, noisy rides (Big Thunder Mtn), etc. for him. Years ago there was a Disney guide that had a scare factor for kids, we used that to prepare our kids for several things, and we made choices not to go on certain things which also helped make the experience the best for our family as a whole.

My best bet on the dining would be to dine at the earlier or later times. Buffets are going to be more chaotic because of all the up and down.

Best wishes for a successful trip!

 

[Figment Mom]

My vote for AK is Tiffins. It was hard to even imagine I was still in a theme park.
Tusker house is chaotic, IMO.

Brown Derby was calm when I was there. That would be my pick for HS.
SciFi is dark (I have a hard time seeing my food well), but doesn't feel particularly calm to me. They really cram you in there. How big is your party? In the cars, there are 3 rows of 2. So if you're just a party of 2, one of you will be eating in a row alone and another one or two unrelated people will be in the front or back row of your car, uncomfortably close.

Space 220 at EPCOT is quiet. We love the Lounge.

I think you'll be happy with Topolino's.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

Ditto on Tiffins. I think it was one of the most relaxing meals I've ever had a Disney restaurant. Low lighting, very calm atmosphere. Also Narcoossees

ETA: We very much enjoyed T Rex. I am noise sensitive as well.
Keep adding: we also like to maximize character experiences. We liked the princesses at Akershaus, Cinderellas Royal Table, Garden Grill, Cape May Cafe. Did not care for the Crystal Palace. Too much. Also like the characters at Hollywood and Vine, but don't care for the food. Enjoyed Storybook a lot, though the menu isn't for picky little ones. A must do (no characters) is Coral Reef.

 

[neverlandsky]

We're noise sensitive so scheduled early lunches of 10am & early dinners of 4pm.

 

[DodgerGirl]

I cannot figure out when kids and infants and toddlers started being noisy and chaotic was becoming a fad at restaurants and I don't know why parents started bringing noisy and disruptive children to restaurants and to me when I would eat at restaurants this would annoy my family because in my eyes the parents want to eat a quiet family meal with the kids without them being noisy and just let them eat their food in peace. When I was a baby my parents tried to eat a nice quiet meal but they couldn't even enjoy their meal because I was crying a lot and nothing stopped my crying and so my parents ended taking their meal home and finishing it at home and the real reason I was a crier as a baby and cried so much was because I had colic as a baby. Now try to eat at a restaurant with an infant today and wouldn't the waitress/waiter tell you and your husband to very politely stop their infant's crying so the other people can eat their meals in peace without listening to crying? My cousins also were noisy and disruptive at restaurants when they were little and what they would do was tell my aunt and uncle to remove them from the restaurant if they continued being noisy but my other cousin would run around the restaurant making noise and climb over booths like a jungle gym and my aunt would tell him to stop which he never did. But when it comes to Disney restaurants Disney should have a rule list like this at every restaurant
"FOR SAFETY REASONS CHILDREN WILL BE REMOVED FROM RESTAURANT IF THEY DO THE FOLLOWING"
1. CHILDREN MUST NOT MAKE NOISE FROM ELECTRONIC DEVICES SUCH AS TABLETS DVD PLAYERS AND MP3 PLAYERS IF FOUND WITH THESE DEVICES WILL BE NOT ALLOWED IN RESTAURANT
2. ANY CHILD WHO MAKES NOISE AT ANYTIME DURING MEAL WILL RECIEVE A STRIKE WARNING AND A THIRD STRIKE WARNING WILL REMOVE FAMILY FROM RESTAURANT
3. INFANTS WHO ARE CRYING AND HAVE COLIC WILL NOT BE ALLOWED IN RESTAURANT AT ALL TIMES
With a list of rules like this Disney restaurants could be less noisy and chaotic for families to enjoy a good meal in peace

 

[Mambo Junkie]

I cannot figure out when kids and infants and toddlers started being noisy and chaotic was becoming a fad at restaurants and I don't know why parents started bringing noisy and disruptive children to restaurants and to me when I would eat at restaurants this would annoy my family because in my eyes the parents want to eat a quiet family meal with the kids without them being noisy and just let them eat their food in peace. When I was a baby my parents tried to eat a nice quiet meal but they couldn't even enjoy their meal because I was crying a lot and nothing stopped my crying and so my parents ended taking their meal home and finishing it at home and the real reason I was a crier as a baby and cried so much was because I had colic as a baby. Now try to eat at a restaurant with an infant today and wouldn't the waitress/waiter tell you and your husband to very politely stop their infant's crying so the other people can eat their meals in peace without listening to crying? My cousins also were noisy and disruptive at restaurants when they were little and what they would do was tell my aunt and uncle to remove them from the restaurant if they continued being noisy but my other cousin would run around the restaurant making noise and climb over booths like a jungle gym and my aunt would tell him to stop which he never did. But when it comes to Disney restaurants Disney should have a rule list like this at every restaurant
"FOR SAFETY REASONS CHILDREN WILL BE REMOVED FROM RESTAURANT IF THEY DO THE FOLLOWING"
1. CHILDREN MUST NOT MAKE NOISE FROM ELECTRONIC DEVICES SUCH AS TABLETS DVD PLAYERS AND MP3 PLAYERS IF FOUND WITH THESE DEVICES WILL BE NOT ALLOWED IN RESTAURANT
2. ANY CHILD WHO MAKES NOISE AT ANYTIME DURING MEAL WILL RECIEVE A STRIKE WARNING AND A THIRD STRIKE WARNING WILL REMOVE FAMILY FROM RESTAURANT
3. INFANTS WHO ARE CRYING AND HAVE COLIC WILL NOT BE ALLOWED IN RESTAURANT AT ALL TIMES
With a list of rules like this Disney restaurants could be less noisy and chaotic for families to enjoy a good meal in peace

That of course would be the ideal, but it’s not going to happen. Common courtesy seems to be missing these days and it’s not just about children. Adults are just as loud and disruptive as children can be. Last night we tried to eat out and the table beside us had children, but the man was talking at full volume and at times I could not hear what people at the other end of our table we’re saying, and there were only six of us. To the left of us was a group of young people who had obviously a little alcohol and were very loudly talking and laughing making conversation at times impossible. We ate at some of the nicest restaurants at Disney a few years back with my 2 1/2 year-old granddaughter watching a movie on her tablet with the sound turned off. She was quiet and did not disturb any of the other guests. However, there are a lot of parents who allow their children to turn these devices up full volume, and it can get very loud; it would just be nice if in today’s society, people could just be courteous and considerate of others, but that’s the exception rather than the norm these days. I often wonder what happened to “inside voices”.

 

[CaroM8]

That of course would be the ideal, but it’s not going to happen. Common courtesy seems to be missing these days and it’s not just about children. Adults are just as loud and disruptive as children can be. Last night we tried to eat out and the table beside us had children, but the man was talking at full volume and at times I could not hear what people at the other end of our table we’re saying, and there were only six of us. To the left of us was a group of young people who had obviously a little alcohol and were very loudly talking and laughing making conversation at times impossible. We ate at some of the nicest restaurants at Disney a few years back with my 2 1/2 year-old granddaughter watching a movie on her tablet with the sound turned off. She was quiet and did not disturb any of the other guests. However, there are a lot of parents who allow their children to turn these devices up full volume, and it can get very loud; it would just be nice if in today’s society, people could just be courteous and considerate of others, but that’s the exception rather than the norm these days. I often wonder what happened to “inside voices”.

To me, rowdy adults are way more annoying than excited children. I don’t know about Disney specifically but in all inclusive resorts for example, I don’t mind hearing children playing in the pool, running around on the beach etc. But the drunk rowdy adults shouting at each other and just being obnoxious is much more irritating.

 

[jimim]

I had to Google this answer because nothing came to mind when thinking of Disney + Quiet.

Here are five restaurants at Walt Disney World with a calm atmosphere.
Coral Reef Restaurant – EPCOT. ...
California Grill – Contemporary Resort. ...
Kona Café – Polynesian Resort. ...
Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano – Hollywood Studios. ...
Liberty Tree Tavern – Magic Kingdom.

My two cents...
Storybook Dinner can get a bit noisy when they do a special song. Everyone claps but it's not crazy or anything.
For a Character Breakfast I echo the Garden Grill breakfast idea.
Topolino's is not really that quiet but it is a beautiful environment. Characters sing & dance to a song every so often and it can be loud.
Grand Floridian Cafe always seemed calm to me but maybe it was the Victorian environment?
Narcoosees
Victoria + Alberts comes to mind the same as Monsieur Paul - but the prices are steep

Kona? When we were there Easter is was the loudest restaurant I have ever been in. Even my 2 kids were like “what the”. And we don’t really notice loud places in general. It was off the charts.

 

[DodgerGirl]

It used to be that some restaurants didn't allow noisy and disruptive children but I think when family restaurants became a fad the people would take their children there so everybody could eat a good meal together but look at it today parents do not tell kids to be quiet and do not use manners on the kids. I also cannot figure when parents started telling kids to use "library voices" when indoors? The kids are not in a library and this type of voices replaced the indoor voices. But as I mentioned in my earlier post my cousins were the worst at restaurants and one time when my aunt and uncle and cousins were eating at Olive Garden when my cousins were making noise and the waiter told them to leave and they ended up having to finish their meal at home and the second time it happened was when my parents and I ate at Denny's with my cousins and my oldest cousin was being so noisy and making a mess that the waitress told my aunt if my cousin didn't behave we would leave and my cousin was jumping around the booth being crazy and still wouldn't be quiet until my aunt scolded him and he stopped. But at Disney you can expect noisy children especially during character dining when the kids shout !!! MICKEY !!! !!! MINNIE !!! over and over till you get so annoyed and as I mentioned if Disney added a restaurant policy like the one I mentioned regarding infants and children it would help a lot

 

[Sprinkles&Sprints]

Some of our winners:

Topolino's for breakfast has always been good at controlling the chaos - relative to other character breakfasts we've never felt overwhelmed.

Sanaa for breakfast (QS) - we may have gone at an off time of the day b/c this was during Spring break and it was virtually empty. I know it can be a trek but the views + price point for young kiddos is a winning combo IMO. My DD had so much fun and is still talking about the giraffes.

We've also had luck at Flying Fish - on the pricier side but pretty calm atmosphere and we didn't feel like they we're rushing us out the door (like at California Grill).

And some losers:

Pains me to say it but Grand Floridian Cafe is pretty consistently a cluster...I would avoid if you're looking for calm.

Seconding 50's Prime Time - I understand the allure but it's undeniably loud.

 

[saraheliz]

Another vote for sci-fi, it is a must do for my 4/5 introverted need the downtime family. My husband calls it "the oasis in the concrete desert."
We also liked Skipper Canteen but only because we were in the secret room or whatever it's called, the main room was much busier.
Garden Grill was also decent depending on where you sit. We had one of the booths on the outside of the circle, facing Living with the Land, and it was very secluded and chill.

 

[prncssjas]

I didn't see any mentions for Ale & Compass at the Yacht Club. We love it there! The food is very good (I have never had anything I didn't think wasn't delish) and the ambiance is very chill. We always try to make an ADR there (and I think they have lunch and dinner!).

 

[LuvMyEAR]

Most Disney restaurants are noisy. Noisier than they need to be, even. Some sound-deadening materials could really help the noise level drop down to a dull roar. The biggest trick was mentioned earlier. Ask at the podium if you could possibly be seated in a quieter area of the restaurant. That said keep in mind that a single table of “boisterous” diners can drive up the decibels, no matter where you are sitting. Their noise forces everyone to raise their voices.

I did notice that seating on the perimeter of a room tends to be quieter, if only because you are not surrounded by sources of sound.

Timing also matters. Early breakfasts and later dinners are generally less hectic. We lucked into a cancellation last Nov for Storybook Dining and were probably one of the last tables seated for the night. We wound up tucked into a table for 2 against the windows and it was lovely! The atmosphere was calm, no babies in the room, food was delicious, and the characters, which we really didn’t even care if we saw, were totally amazing.