Sci fi vs prime time

[cynzilla]

Hi I am traveling to Disney in May and I have never been to Hollywood Studios.

My daughter gets scared VERY EASILY and I am debating weather to go to Sci Fi or The Prime Time Cafe.

Are the movies at Sci Fi scary or just plain silly? ANd I am worried that the actors at the Prime Time would yell at her which would devistate her.........can anyone share their experiences with these places?

 

[Forever Fairy]

I like the food better at Prime Time. When at a table, the servers do act like "Mom", "Sis", etc. and you are often reminded to keep your elbows off the table.

I would think you could ask the server the heads up about being scared and then you could still sit back and enjoy the show with everyone else.

It could be fun if she sees an adult put in the corner because they didn't finish all their veggies -

 

[Chelley00]

I reviewed both in my dining report linked below. My daughter is not a huge fan of scary stuff (not scared easily, just not into being scared) , and she HATED Sci Fi. She basically sat with her head down the entire meal, except when they showed the Tom and Jerry clips.

She cried at 50's Prime Time after the waitress went through the rules, but I think that she was just overtired, and I didn't explain it was all an act. She actually thought if she put her elbows on the table, they wouldn't feed her I wish I would have prepared her better. Once she saw another waitress spoon feeding an adult his green beans, she lightened up and enjoyed herself.

I would pick 50's and make sure that your DD knows it's all in fun and an act.

 

[francie57]

We have eaten at both and Prime Time is the place we prefer. The food is really good and the servers are a lot of fun. Everything is done in a fun manner and they don't get mean with you. If you are worried you could always mention to your server that your daughter might get upset and they would probably pick on you more and your daughter would probably enjoy it. They really do everything in a fun way and you shouldn't have any trouble.

 

[skater]

I agree with the PP's. PTC has good food and although I think Sci Fi is fun, young kids can have a hard time with it. My DS had nightmares for 3 months after SciFi one year. He's always had a huge imagination and while the clips are silly to most of us, they were real to him. (Even Colossol Man, as silly as that is ).

 

[Pakey]

We have eaten at both of these places many times. Our last trip, we took our almost 4 year old grandson for his first visit. He was scared of so many things at WDW. He was fine at Sci Fi, not phased at all. The films are not very realistic and the noise level is so much lower than many places at WDW. He was so busy playing with his light up ice cube, I am not even sure he noticed the films at all. At 50's, it was not so good. It's so much noisier than Sci Fi. Nobody yelled at our table but the noise level, the CM's being loud at other tables, bothered him.

The food is better at 50's.

 

[JoePa4Ever]

We like both 50's & Sci Fi - in your particular case I would suggest 50's. There is a much greater chance of your daughter being scared at Sci Fi by the dark & the movie clips which you will have no control over. At 50's it's unlikely you will get an "over-the-top" server who will scare or intimidate your daughter. And if you do get a server who is playing his role more than you would like him to - then all you have to do is politely explain your situation to him.

 

[TDC Nala]

When you meet your server you can try taking them aside and mentioning that you have a shy child and would appreciate it if they didn't speak loudly. The "act" isn't scary but it sounds as though the child reacts to loud noises or voices.

 

[AxlRose330]

I have never eaten at 50s Prime Time(almost did but went with Boma instead). But I have eaten at Sci Fi. I loved the idea of sci fi. Watchin the old science fiction clips were cool(which are kinda cheesy but if your child is easily scared then it may not be cheesy to them). The menu at sci fi was limited. I thought there would be more choices. I think it would be safer if you choose prime time. But I would say that Sci Fi is still "G" rated(maybe "PG".)

 

[mickeyloveex2]

I've been to both and if I had to pick I'd say 50's primetime. The sci fi restaurant is fun but I found it boring at times and less interactive than other places, but this was quite some time ago so it may have changed. We went to 50's last march and the food was good but I didn't think the selection was as good as other places. We loved the smores dessert. The atmosphere is nice and the staff are very friendly and really get into character sometimes, they are very interactive with each table. They refer to people as "mom" "sister" and "aunt", having a good sense of humor helps, overall its a great place to go for family fun.

 

[Disney Crazy Debbie]

While we like both Prime Time is our favorite at DHS. On our first visit there my DS was 10 and he loved PTC because they didn't pick on the kids (it may just have been our "dad"), just the adults. I got in trouble for having my elbows on the table and my sister was reprimanded for not eating her vegetables. He loved it!

 

[goofy4prez]

Personally I don't think either restaurant is "great"; they are both good, they are fun, but great food would not describe either place (JMHO).

With that said, I prefer 50's PT over Sci-Fi. I like the theming better, and I like the "homestyle" food better as well. For me, I also like to sit as a family and enjoy each others company and have a conversation; sitting two by two in a replica car makes this impossible. I know they have tables, but it just loses the feel then

 

[xipetotec]

Hi I am traveling to Disney in May and I have never been to Hollywood Studios.

My daughter gets scared VERY EASILY and I am debating weather to go to Sci Fi or The Prime Time Cafe.

Are the movies at Sci Fi scary or just plain silly? ANd I am worried that the actors at the Prime Time would yell at her which would devistate her.........can anyone share their experiences with these places?

Well the movies are just clips and they are very 1950's monster movie TRAILER kind of stuff. I really wouldn't worry about it being scary.

As for the actors at 50's Prime Time, they are a riot. We had a huge group our last trip, with people ranging from outgoing to outright shy. And our shiest girl was "put in the corner" for not eating her veggies. But it lasted all of 20 seconds and was all for fun. She was fine and all had a good time

 

[jdisnut]

The servers at 50's Prime Time are generally astute and quick to recognize when someone does not want to be ribbed. I suspect your family will be quite happy there.

I easily prefer it to Sci-Fi.

 

[Kay1]

IMO, the movie clips are way more silly than scary. My kids were never afraid at the Sci-Fi.

 

[skater]

IMO, the movie clips are way more silly than scary. My kids were never afraid at the Sci-Fi.

Yes, they are silly to most of us, but if your child scares easily, they are not always so silly. My son was not a "sissy," and is still the toughest kid I know in his real life. But movies and fantasy stuff had a lot of power over him when he was younger and those silly clips definately scared him. It is ultimately up to the individual parent to evaluate his/her own child and decide. My son didn't act too upset during the meal - it was after we got home that he started having nightmares. (He likes this place now though ).

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

We've done both, and while my kids have not found Sci Fi to be scary, they both definitely prefer Prime Time. Like a PP said, the servers tend to pick WAY more on the adults than the kids. DD7 can be sensitive and was a little embarrassed when she was told to keep her elbows off the table, but she laughed hysterically when our server drew a line of ketchup on the table next to us to keep the adult from putting HIS elbows on the table. DD egged him on the whole meal so he would get in trouble again.

Food and choices are better at Prime Time, although Sci Fi has good burgers and shakes.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

I would go with 50's Prime Time Cafe.

 

[Amy&Dan]

Sci Fi is about our favorite place in all of WDW and the one place we have always made ADR's for (had to cancel last summer though due to ds' cousin being sick) and the one full serve place we'll be eating at next week. I love the movie clips, the quiet atmosphere (everyone is riveted to the screen) and think the burgers, shakes, onion rings, fries, reubens and artichoke dip are all very tasty.

My nieces just celebrated their 9th birthday there. They had fun, they didn't get the clips as being scary and were surprised they were from real movies because they were so corny. These girls are never allowed to watch anything above a Disney movie and have been known to freak out when the dumb snowman from Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer is on the tv. But they weren't scared at Sci Fi.

However, knowing my son as I do, back when he was anything under 6, the clips might have frightened him a bit. Now the kid is going on 16 and loves scary movies, but when he was little, things I didn't think twice about would give him nightmares. Rainforest Cafe is another one he could never have handled as a very young child.

He was 9 the first time he ate there and loved it, but I did think "glad we didn't come here a few years ago".

Each kid is different.

Prime Time is also fun, but I have found their food hit or miss but enjoy the atmosphere and servers and like many WDW eateries, Sci Fi amongst them, go for the atmosphere as much or more than the food. I agree, ask the server not to be loud with your child, not all children like that sort of thing and they get that request probably pretty frequently.

 

[Disneygeek714]

Both are good, and should be experienced at least once. I actually like PT for lunch and Sci-Fi for dinner. The Margheritas at Sci-Fi are really good, and I liked the Reuben and the ribs, too. I've seen people complain that the "movie loop" isn't long enough and that you see the same clips 3 times before you finish eating, but the same goes for PT. I have those shows memorized word-for-word! If home-made style food "like your Mom used to make" is more your type, you can't go wrong with the Pot Pie or Pot Roast at PT The S'Mores dessert is also very good. I have 2 daughters, and they were 5 and 8 the last time we went to Sci-Fi. These girls have never seen anything above a "G" rated movie, and even now (3 years later) completely cower at anything with a hint of horror or violence, but neither one was bothered by the clips or had any aftereffects from them. They really are very silly clips.