Sci Fi appropriate for young kids?

[christibelle]

I have a PS for the Sci Fi. My kids are almost 4 and 1 1/2. When I made the PS I knew nothing about this restaurant. I just read a thread on it and have become a little concerned. Here are my questions:
-Is this an appropriate restaurant for kids of their ages?
-Could the "cheesy horror flicks" be too scary for them?
-I read that it is dark in the restaurant. Is it dark enough to scare young kids?
-How does it work to strap a toddler ( I am thinking about my very squirmy 1 1/2 year old) into a dark car to eat?

If the Sci Fi is not a good place to take my kids I would love some suggestions on a more appropriate place for lunch at MGM.

Thanks!

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

We took our boys age 11 & 6 to Sci Fi last summer. It is somewhat dark - but the movies (IMHO) are not in the least bit scary. You have a choice of seating - there are cars (which sit 2 in front and 2 in back), larger cars (which sit 6 I think), there are also picnic tables toward the back. The picnic tables may be the best for you - it's lighter in the back and would be easier with your youngsters. I don't remember there being any way to strap in little ones.

My boys loved Pizza Planet. They have lots of video games and of course pizza. It can get very crowded and there are always lots of kids running around. Might be a good spot for your 4 year old to blow off some steam!

Have a great time!

 

[Belle5]

My first two boys were bothered by the movies when they were little. The next three boys have not been frightened at all as they have been exposed to more frightening things because they have big brothers. I think it depends on how sensitive your children are. Some are just born tougher. My ten year old didn't bat an eye at seeing Jurrasic Park when he was 4. My oldest had nightmares for months after seeing it when he was nine. You really have to know your children's tolerance for such things. Just because someone else says my 3 and 5 year old weren't frightened a bit by Sci-Fi doesn't mean your kids won't be. You need to think about how they've handled other movies and situations.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

We went to the Sci- Fi in Oct. with our 4 yo DS. He was a little intimidated by the darkness when we first walked in. But after he seen the big screen and the seats like cars. He loved it!

 

[SamR]

How does it work to strap a toddler ( I am thinking about my very squirmy 1 1/2 year old) into a dark car to eat?

They have high chairs for small children, so unless your 1 1/2 year old is pretty big, he'll probably end up in one of those. To me, the difficult thing about the Sci-Fi dining cars is that it spreads the family out somewhat since two people sit on one row, with two more behind them. (If using a high-chair, it has its own tray and will just sit beside one of the two rows.) Last time my family ate there, my wife sat in the front row with one of my sons, I sat in the back row with the other son, and my daughter (then two) sat in a high-chair beside my row. I'm sure this works fine for most parties, but I did not find it optimal for a family with young children.

I was not aware of the picnic table option that BriarFox mentioned...I think that would have worked better for us.

I read that it is dark in the restaurant. Is it dark enough to scare young kids?

Dark enough to make reading the menus difficult, but not dark enough to be paticularly scary.

Could the "cheesy horror flicks" be too scary for them?

More "campy" than outright scary, although there might be a scream or roar that could spook a young child (but probably would not).

 

[Disney Fool]

At one point, all the waiters and waitresses let out a scream--which is hilarious, but it may cath the little ones off guard. It's all in good fun, so if you're not scared, they won't be. Usually, the kids love the tables and chairs which look like cars. I personally think they'll be fascinated with the place--It really looks like a drive-in theatre complete with a starry sky.

 

[vicb]

I always feel a little silly posting our experience but here goes again.... our DS was 6 and got spooked by the movies! He is a sensitive guy, nervous about dark rides anyway but we thought the eating in cars thing would be so fun for him. He did fine until near the end, then asked me to take him outside. He told me "all the screaming women" in the flicks upset him. I explained it was all make believe, he said he knew that but still didn't like it. Oh well, another lesson learned!

 

[ZachnElli]

We went when my children were 6 (ds) and 2 1/2 (dd) and they weren't scared at all. DS scares easily too. But they both loved the car so much, I don't know if they even noticed the movies!! LOL!