should I do blue bayou

[jzmom]

I grew up going to Disneyland as I grew up in Orange County. I always thought the Blue Bayou was really cool. I am going to Disneyland at the end of the month. I now live in CO so I don't get there often.
I am just wondering if Blue Bayou is worth the money. I have always wanted to eat there but the cost is a bit scary. There are five of us in the family.
What do you all of you dis experts think?
Thanks for any help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[avalon451]

Do it!

Go for lunch. Make PS's for 11:30 a.m, the first lunch seating, and request a waterside table. Then show up and check in at the podium no later than 11:15 a.m. and politely repeat your request for a waterside table. They will seat you in the very first wave, and you'll get to enjoy the ambiance of the bayou, with riders from Pirates of the Caribbean floating past your table. Food can be wonderful or not so wonderful, and the same with the service... but the ambiance alone is worth it. Be sure and share a cookie boat for dessert! For some pictures and a review of our experience last October, take a look at my trip report, linked in my siggy below, and look at page 6 for our last day. Enjoy!

 

[blackssrider00]

Go for it.. Yes its a little pricey but what isn’t at Disney Parks. Its just an indescribable place. I find it pretty relaxing, great atmosphere, we always eat there at least twice every time we go. The food is very good. I love the surf and turf which is prime rib and lobster tail and its a very good size portion. There Desserts are incredible. Make sure you make priority seating because walk-inns have a much harder time getting a seat. One last thing try to ask for a seat next to the water you might have to wait an extra 30 mins or so but in the experiences that I have it was only like 10-15 It really get the full experience of the BB ... Have fun!!

 

[YellowMickeyPonchos]

It is VERY rare for them to take walk-ins, so PSs are mandatory. Even if a party no-shows, they won't necessarily fill the spot with a walk-in. For some, this gives of a bit of pretentiousness.

You don't have to eat dinner and spend all of that money. Just make the reservation and when the server comes, tell them you are only interested in dessert. Then get a couple cookie boats and enjoy! Do not let them know this is your plan when you make reservations or check-in, as they will most likely not fullfill your request for the waterside table.

 

[pixiewings71]

Go go go!!!! You'll be glad you did! Make a PS and enjoy a nice lunch and a cookie boat for dessert, share it, it's huge!

 

[lntsmom]

Howdy, neighbor!

After much thought, I'm making reservations, but just for dessert.

I figure if they do a split plate charge...of what I've read is now $12 instead of the $5 it was previously...they wouldn't take kindly to my older son bringing in chicken strips. He wouldn't eat anything on their menu outside of the bread.

When I started thinking about the cost and the hassle, I decided to go with desserts. I'm going to do as suggested and book the earliest seating. I figure we can eat a late lunch/early dinner that day- from what I've seen of the desserts they are enough to count as a meal themselves!

Even the desserts are spendy, but to me it's a better use of my money than actual meals would be!

 

[jzmom]

Thanks Everybody!
We have PS on April 1 at 11:30!
I am looking forward to it. Thanks for the push that I needed.

 

[TheFirstMriethebee]

I grew up going to Disneyland as I grew up in Orange County. I always thought the Blue Bayou was really cool. I am going to Disneyland at the end of the month. I now live in CO so I don't get there often.
I am just wondering if Blue Bayou is worth the money. I have always wanted to eat there but the cost is a bit scary. There are five of us in the family.
What do you all of you dis experts think?
Thanks for any help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i loved it you get to watch the pirate riders i love the crabcakes i would go if i where u my family ended up sciping it because our fast pass was going to expire then we found out you could use it after the time and we where bumed out that we didnt get to go i think u should go its totally worthh it! mriethebee

 

[zeitzeuge]

I might be a minority here regarding Blue Bayou. I LOVED the atmosphere and the food was good. The price? Not so much. We actually enjoyed eating at the Cafe across the way and sit on the patio eating Gumbo and pomefrits. But I'm glad we did it once to experience it.

 

[WannabeAriel]

OK... I'd like to do lunch at Blue Bayou on our first day. I'd love it to be the first thing we do when we get to the parks! POTC is my husbands #1 all time FAVORITE ride and I think it would be a nice way to start off our trip. The questions are:

What time do they stop serving lunch?

How long will it take from Long Beach airport to HoJo on a Sunday morning?

Can I get a waterside table even if I don't make an 11:30am PS?

I know everyone says that the best chance for waterside seating is to make an 11:30am PS and show up at 11:15am. But with our flight not getting in until 9:40am I'm just thinking that may be pushing it a bit!

I was thinking about doing a late lunch seating just to give us plenty of time to get there, maybe drop off bags at the hotel and get situated before going to the parks. Do you think they will honor my waterside request if we tell them that we don't mind waiting? Or should I just rush and try and make it there by 11:15am???

Also... for what it's worth - I really think they should give you a POTC fast pass for eating there!!!! Wouldn't that be a nice little bonus??? Anyone know if they do anything like that? (Probably not or I would have heard about it by now huh???)

 

[JadeDarkstar]

theres no way split plate is 12dollers that has to be a wrong roumor going around i saw it yesterday it has to be wrong.

We may go again but have to find something my son would eat. They wont alow you to take food in. so be careful with the chicken strips.

Capt-Bane says he might want to go so he can actuely try to eat since last time he was sick

 

[avalon451]

OK... I'd like to do lunch at Blue Bayou on our first day. I'd love it to be the first thing we do when we get to the parks! POTC is my husbands #1 all time FAVORITE ride and I think it would be a nice way to start off our trip. The questions are:

What time do they stop serving lunch?

How long will it take from Long Beach airport to HoJo on a Sunday morning?

Can I get a waterside table even if I don't make an 11:30am PS?

I know everyone says that the best chance for waterside seating is to make an 11:30am PS and show up at 11:15am. But with our flight not getting in until 9:40am I'm just thinking that may be pushing it a bit!

I was thinking about doing a late lunch seating just to give us plenty of time to get there, maybe drop off bags at the hotel and get situated before going to the parks. Do you think they will honor my waterside request if we tell them that we don't mind waiting? Or should I just rush and try and make it there by 11:15am???

Also... for what it's worth - I really think they should give you a POTC fast pass for eating there!!!! Wouldn't that be a nice little bonus??? Anyone know if they do anything like that? (Probably not or I would have heard about it by now huh???)

Sure, you can make PSs for later on. You can always request waterside, it's just that you might have to wait for it. People have reported waiting an extra 20-40 minutes for waterside. PS's aren't like reservations, in that you are for sure going to be seated right at your time; sometimes you have to wait anyway. The only reason that early lunch trick has been suggested so much, is that it's a way to get waterside without waiting.

I agree with you, I think it would be rushing it quite a bit to make that early lunch seating. You might like taking it more leisurely on your first day.

 

[pixiewings71]

Howdy, neighbor!

After much thought, I'm making reservations, but just for dessert.

I figure if they do a split plate charge...of what I've read is now $12 instead of the $5 it was previously...they wouldn't take kindly to my older son bringing in chicken strips. He wouldn't eat anything on their menu outside of the bread.

When I started thinking about the cost and the hassle, I decided to go with desserts. I'm going to do as suggested and book the earliest seating. I figure we can eat a late lunch/early dinner that day- from what I've seen of the desserts they are enough to count as a meal themselves!

Even the desserts are spendy, but to me it's a better use of my money than actual meals would be!

I VERY much doubt that they have raised the split plate fee to $12. Seriously, that's just ridiculous.

OK... I'd like to do lunch at Blue Bayou on our first day. I'd love it to be the first thing we do when we get to the parks! POTC is my husbands #1 all time FAVORITE ride and I think it would be a nice way to start off our trip. The questions are:

What time do they stop serving lunch?

How long will it take from Long Beach airport to HoJo on a Sunday morning?

Can I get a waterside table even if I don't make an 11:30am PS?

I know everyone says that the best chance for waterside seating is to make an 11:30am PS and show up at 11:15am. But with our flight not getting in until 9:40am I'm just thinking that may be pushing it a bit!

I was thinking about doing a late lunch seating just to give us plenty of time to get there, maybe drop off bags at the hotel and get situated before going to the parks. Do you think they will honor my waterside request if we tell them that we don't mind waiting? Or should I just rush and try and make it there by 11:15am???

Also... for what it's worth - I really think they should give you a POTC fast pass for eating there!!!! Wouldn't that be a nice little bonus??? Anyone know if they do anything like that? (Probably not or I would have heard about it by now huh???)

Of course you can request waterside any time but you will wait longer and sometimes the host/hostess can get snippy about it. We had a 12:30 PS for DBFs bday in Jan, parks were dead and people were just walking in, we checked in for our PS about 20 min. early and we did let them know we wanted waterside. The hostess did try to convince it would be a much longer wait, we smiled and said "Not a problem, we are fine waiting" and so we did. Our pager went off 10 min. after we sat down, 10 min before our PS time. LOL

And no, they don't give any kind of FP for eating at BB. Pirates had FP for a very short time but they took it away because really, it doesn't need it......

 

[bumbershoot]

The $12 rumor is what someone on mouseplanet said their waiter said was going to be happening in the future. Period.

Since the servers there are kind of hit and miss...some giving extra sides, full salads/soups, and crowding the "split plate" while others say you don't get your own salad and being really skimpy with the split plate...I am personally putting absolutely no weight on this thought that the server decided to share, not until I see it on a menu.


Now if they'd just sell half portions of their food for half the price, THAT I would like! Even splitting the portobello mushroom dish (and they've given each of us a salad for the split plate charge...in Sept '07 and May '08, and in May our server gave us another side at no charge just b/c she wanted to) and only water, no dessert, hubby and I are stuffed when we leave!

 

[Gisele]

I too, love to dine there. So therefore my vote is yes for dining at the Blue Bayou. There are people that work there, that really do care what you think and how you feel about the food and or service. And will do whatever it takes, to put a smile on your face.
The only thing that I am not too keen on,regarding waterside dining, is seeing people taking flash pictures, that are visiting the pirates. DL really needs to crack down on such activity. After all, it is their own policy, which does not allow flash pictures, and I agree.

 

[Disney Hot Mama]

We have been there a few times.. The last being last Friday 3-13-09. Actually didn't plan to do but we just walked up about 1:30 PM without a reservation and they said they could take us immediately BUT the next groups of people who came as walk ups they didn't take... No idea why we got in AND we were seated at a table by the water..

The menu is nice but I don't think it is worth the price. I was dining with my DS 13 and DD 10 plus DH. The kids ordered a monte cristo (only one) and we split it ourselves without paying any special fees. I used to enjoy the salad that came with the meals but now instead of the wedge salad they serve a house salad... Just boring and nothing special....

I doubt we will even try again there. Lunch including an AP discount was almost 100.00 for three of us...

 

[WannabeAriel]

Does anyone know when they stop charging lunch prices and switch to dinner? Do you think lunch hours are as late as 3:00 or 4:00???

Also - do they close between lunch and dinner... or do they just switch up the menus and prices at a certain time?

I'd love to do a late lunch and have that be my one big meal of the day. Then snack on a corn dog or popcorn for dinner.

 

[YellowMickeyPonchos]

There hasn't been a different price structure for lunch since they remodeled the restaurant a couple years ago - just a modified menu. A lot of people were up in arms about that. Now it's just considered the "price you pay for atmosphere"....

 

[Gisele]

That is what I had thought too, YMP's.