Quick Question On 50's Prime Time

[>Ash<]

i went to WDW when i was 11 and we went to the 50's prime time diner, ive had fun telling my partner about how funny the staff were and how much fun it was eating their as a kid, im 23 and were wanting to go their on our october trip for lunch however ive read on another disney site that its been toned down alot,

i remember they wouldnt give me a desert menue until i ate my green beans haha and they had a cast member come over and make aeroplane noises with the fork like i was a baby haha it was fun.

has this restraunt been toned down alot now or is it still as fun as ever? let me know ur thoughts

thanks guys

 

[Robo]

has this restraunt been toned down alot now or is it still as fun as ever? let me know ur thoughts

thanks guys

Current large and busy THREAD about 50's Prime Time Cafe's "atmosphere."

 

[>Ash<]

Hi Robo,

thanks for the response, ive kinda read that post but everyone is really just talking about how it used to be, like i remember, as i said ive read somthing recently think it was on allears and they said that it hs been toned down alot and these things dont happen anymore was hoping some of the just back people might be able to let me know the current state of the place

thanks for the link tho rob was a funny read

 

[Nomad70]

We haven't been in a couple of years, but what I can say is the two trips we did go there to eat were different. We ate there 4 times over two trips. Each time we had a different server and some are better at getting into it then others. I am hoping with just my husband and I this coming trip it's still as fun as with the family. There was only one of the 4 visits I can say we didn't have a very fun experience. Only because our server was not playing the role. Maybe you can mention when checking in you want a server who enjoys playing the roll? lol

 

[kamik86]

Hi Robo,

thanks for the response, ive kinda read that post but everyone is really just talking about how it used to be, like i remember, as i said ive read somthing recently think it was on allears and they said that it hs been toned down alot and these things dont happen anymore was hoping some of the just back people might be able to let me know the current state of the place

thanks for the link tho rob was a funny read

When I went as a large group (9 of us) we got alot of interaction. People kept putting their elbows on the table and my dad forgot to take off his ball cap when he first sat down. Oh and my 8 year old niece got the whole eat all your food or you can't have dessert thing (which she had no problem eating she just eats slow, and then he said if he didn't eat it all he would have to get out the kazoo... at which point she purposely waited because she wanted to know what he would do with the kazoo!!" That was about a year and 1/2 ago.

Then I went again with just DH. This one was VERY toned down. Nothing really with the two of us. There was still some interaction with the groups with kids though.

 

[disneychic2]

We went last September and while our server didn't really do much, the one serving the table nearest us was a hoot! We laughed the whole time, but the one thing the server did that I remember the best is that the lady at the table didn't eat all her food and when they brought dessert out for all of them, they brought her uneaten food all squished into a sundae glass with whipped cream and a cherry. The server made a huge deal about letting everyone around know why she was getting no dessert. So I think it just depends who you get as a server. If you act playful and interested I think they tend to be that way too.

 

[>Ash<]

many thanks for info guys. great stories. really looking forward to it.

would you recommend getting a reservation for lunch times or is walk ups possible were going in october probably mid week to HS. any info around that would be great.

thanks again

 

[bellanotte10]

when I went in Oct. our server was very nice, don't get me wrong, but didn't act like she did towards the other tables. Aside from a few "no elbows on table!" she didn't do anything. She did joke around... and seemed to weirdly fixate on my father, but she was much more into the schtick at the table next to me where there were small children.

I'm planning on going back w my friends in feb. We're a bunch of sarcastic wise guys so i'm hoping the servers will pick up and know we can be teased. My dad thinks he looked too serious and thats why they toned it down for us.

as for the reservations. Thats exactly when I went last year. I really suggest getting ADRs. I think the wait was either really long or they were turning people away for our lunch

 

[mesaboy2]

Hi Robo,

thanks for the response, ive kinda read that post but everyone is really just talking about how it used to be, like i remember, as i said ive read somthing recently think it was on allears and they said that it hs been toned down alot and these things dont happen anymore was hoping some of the just back people might be able to let me know the current state of the place

thanks for the link tho rob was a funny read

My experience in that thread was in March, if you want to count that as "used to be". I've heard some people say it's not as amped up as it used to be, and I see others say it hasn't changed. I don't think any of us go often enough to conclude there's a long-term trend. And reading other people's opinions doesn't do it because they have different perspectives than you.

I can tell you I've gone to 50PT at least five times over the last four years or so and I've not noticed any "toning down". Our server in March was belting out "On Top of Spaghetti" while kicking a meatball along the floor. If that's an indication of toning down, I don't want to go when it's toned up.

YMMV.

 

[Aggiegrl]

We've eaten at 50PT twice in the past two years and had the same experience. The servers seemed forced and tired of the shtick even though we were there right at opening for lunch. Bad luck I guess.

For us, it's not really worth the gamble. The food is just okay, nothing special. When you get a bad (lackluster? unexciting?) server, it's kinda of a meh experience. Underwhemling, probably because it gets talked up so much.

If you HAVE to have a sit down in DHS, it works. We'd rather eat quick service (not great either...but Backlot works) and save our money for something else.

 

[jenfromjersey]

My boyfriend and I were there in early May, and we definitely noticed that the more playful servers were assigned the tables with families. It was just the two of us and we got a few jabs about my elbows being on the table and that we had to set the table ourselves, but that was about it.

 

[KSBelle77]

My in-laws and I went there in February! Cousin cooper was our server and was the best!!!! My Gil was getting drinks from us at the bar! And as he came around the corner cousin cooper said geeze Dan what took so long? Betty ford is thirsty here? (my mil is named Paula)! We had a blast! The table next to us didn't have fun. They had copper and didn't follow the rules. They didn't set their table so cousin cooper flipped the plates a silverware to help them. I think they gauge your reception to the atmosphere to judge how crazy to be. Though I loves when other servers were yelling at cousin cooper cause he was too loud!

 

[Pixie Princess]

many thanks for info guys. great stories. really looking forward to it.

would you recommend getting a reservation for lunch times or is walk ups possible were going in october probably mid week to HS. any info around that would be great.

thanks again

Make reservations as it sounds like you're going during a Free Dining period. I imagine walk up will be quite difficult.

 

[PoohsFan1]

We went last September and while our server didn't really do much, the one serving the table nearest us was a hoot! We laughed the whole time, but the one thing the server did that I remember the best is that the lady at the table didn't eat all her food and when they brought dessert out for all of them, they brought her uneaten food all squished into a sundae glass with whipped cream and a cherry. The server made a huge deal about letting everyone around know why she was getting no dessert. So I think it just depends who you get as a server. If you act playful and interested I think they tend to be that way too.

I agree, if you look like you don't want to be bothered by the waitstaff, then they won't do their antics, but if you do things that you "aren't suppose to" be doing, then you may be stuck standing in the corner or getting the train noises. Then again, there are some servers that are just into their characters and there are ones that aren't. A couple of trips ago when we dined there, we had a server that was not into character but the server next to us was (he was hilarious). I happened to be watching a dad get scolded for something and then I laughed about it. The server noticed this and told me (and the dad) to stand up and we both had to sing "I'm A Little Tea Pot" complete with the movements really loud to everyone in the room. It was embarrassing, but the dad and I both had a really fun time doing it too .

 

[softballmom3]

Hi! We have went the last 2 years there and it kind of depends on your wait staff what kind of time you will have. The previous year we had a very good server but she was really only half-heartedly into the "eat all your beans, etc" but still a good experience.

Last year we had an absolutely hilarious waiter. He played the part to a tee...even going so far as to climbing through a "window" to another table and rolling a meatball across the floor off of a child's plate and singing. He was great.

Long story short, good time both times, great time last time . Enjoy and have fun!!!

 

[softballmom3]

Make reservations as it sounds like you're going during a Free Dining period. I imagine walk up will be quite difficult.

Agree with this. We saw many turned away from trying to walk up.

 

[shruley]

I think it may depend more on your server how much fun you have, versus a "then and now" thing. We love 50's and try to go every visit. Our last was the worst. Absolutely NO special interaction what so ever. We were stuck in a little, seperate room with 3 other families and none of them were having fun, either. And not only was our server not interactive, she wasn't even a good server, took forever for any kind of service. However, from what we could see and hear, the people in the room next to us were laughing and having lots of fun. DH could see they were being interacted with. We had high hopes for this visit, because our girls were at an age where they would have LOVED to see mom and dad get "in trouble" and DH had planned to be as naughty as possible. After the dinner, I wished I had at least requested an "interactive server" at check-in to at least try and see if that would have helped. We were seated immeadiately when we checked in and we would have waited a little longer if needed for a better server.

We went to WCC later in our visit, and DID request an interactive server. DH was told they were all interactive. DH said "Well, we thought that at 50 PTC and had a bad experience." The lady told him "Honey, you're at Whispering Canyon NOW" and we did have a great experience there! Hope you get someone great on your trip!

 

[stimmons]

Hi Robo,

thanks for the response, ive kinda read that post but everyone is really just talking about how it used to be, like i remember, as i said ive read somthing recently think it was on allears and they said that it hs been toned down alot and these things dont happen anymore was hoping some of the just back people might be able to let me know the current state of the place

thanks for the link tho rob was a funny read

My experience was March of 2010, not to terribly long ago.

 

[k5thbeatle]

Well if you can tolerate the mediocre (at best mediocre) food there then it kind of depends on the server. We stopped eating there after several bad dinners so now we stop in and have a drink there and can watch some of the servers but I agree with a previous comment that the servers seem forced and tired of the shtick nowadays.

 

[twojay]

I wasn't allowed to have dessert because I didn't finish my veggies. Well, I was full, so I couldn't eat dessert anyway. Our waitress, err Cousin, was good, but it wasn't like some of the descriptions I've read. DH and I liked how much it reminded of us of our grandmas' houses. We played "my grandma has that same knock-knack".