Signature Dining Restaurants--OK for children?

[Mommytobree]

Hi

I have upgraded to the deluxe dining plan for our upcoming trip. I am thinking about trying to fit in several signature/2TS credit restauants. CRT is a given, and we are doing Mickey's BY BBQ. Those places I know will be noisy and no problem with kids.

I am wondering about some of the others though. I'd hate to bring my kids somewhere that is not really appropriate for children, and be able to hear a pin drop. My kids are pretty well behaved (I will have 5 children with me when we go. Oldest is not coming), but the little man is under 2 and I can't guarantee he'll be good the entire time or quiet I'd really like to eat at some nicer restaurants this time and stay away from the buffets, so if anyone has any input on which 2 TS restaurants are OK for children, I would appreciate it. I am also thinking of doing in room dining a couple times, which will be nice & I am really looking forward to that. We are staying at BCV.

I am considering:

Cali. Grill
Yachtsman Steak House
LeCellier (though I may do lunch here b/c I like the look of the lunch menu better)
Fultons Crab House--is this a 2 CR one?

Nacrosses


Thanks!

 

[LilyWDW]

My normal response for these types of questions...

You are at Disney. Kids are welcome at all restaurants (except V&A). That said, the signature restaurants do have a different atmosphere. Kids will be expected to behave (staying in their seats, no screaming, no throwing food, no running around tables, ect). If you are willing to remove a disruptive child from the area if needed, then you will have no problems.

In other words, if your child starts acting in a way that disrupts the dining experience for others, please do what is needed to reduce the disruption.

 

[figment_jii]

I'll also add in my two cents. It is Disney and children are generally welcome everywhere, but Signatures are meant to be more of a "fine dining" experience. As LilyWDW said, as long as your children can be quiet and not disruptive to other diners, then you can probably bring them with you to any of the meals.

Le Cellier is probably the most casual of the Signatures on your list. It's in a theme park, so folks are in "park attire". The only thing to note is that Le Cellier is a pretty small restaurant and the tables are close together. Meaning, you can hear the conversation at the next table without trying.

When I've eaten at Narcoossee's and Cali Grill, the atmosphere seemed more "adult". There were children there, but there were more couples and group of adults. Being at a resort, most folks were more dressed up (i.e., slacks and polos, dresses, etc.). If you plan to eat there, you might want to take some non-park attire for those dinners.

The average Signature meal takes about two hours (for all three courses). They say allot about 90-minutes, but almost all of the ones I've had have taken about two-hours.

Yes, Fulton's crab house is a two credit venue.

 

[catheren]

I agree with the PP, LilyWDW!

As long as the children are well behaved and can sit at the table during the whole meal you will be fine. (V&A is not even an option for you that's an adult and older children restaurant). These TS restaurants are not so quiet, that you can hear a "pin" drop. The little ones can laugh, have fun, and chat, just not run around and disturbing other diners and remain at their table. This behavior shouldn't be limited to just TS, it should be at any restaurant and even when having dinner at home.

Now we have taken our little darilings to TS, since they were 2. Never an issue!! But given this, they also experienced dining out at home, so TS at WDW was nothing new -except the themes.

 

[Mommytobree]

Thanks for the input We eat out often at home so my kids are well versed on how to behave at restaurants and I've never had any issues with them when out to eat (except at buffets, they seem to think that a bowl of gummi bears is a perfectly suitable dinner ) I guess I'm more thinking of the baby. He's a happy guy, he'll be 19 mos. when we go, of course if he was crying or something I'd leave, but I know he'll be baby babbling and talking though. I guess my best bet would be to make our dinner reservations early so he isn't tired and fussy.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

An early dinner is a good idea. Personally, a laughing baby would never bother me in a restaurant. The things that bother me are when a child roars, constantly yells to get attention, cries, throws a tantrum, etc. Yes, we were at HBD one night & a little boy (around 5) was allowed to roar like a dinosaur non-stop for the entire time that our meal overlapped theirs. I know we weren't the only people who could have cheered when the clueless parents finally left. I've also had a child be allowed to climb all over me & my chair while her parents enjoyed their meal. This was at a character meal though not at a signature restaurant. I agree with the others & think that children who can't stay in their own seat should be taken out of the restaurant. Any child who can sit in their seat & use an inside voice to communicate will be fine at the signature restaurants. The ones you have chosen do seem to be some of the loudest, with the possible exception of YSH. Flying Fish is also a relatively loud restaurant.

 

[PrincessAurora]

The Fish also has great things for kids to look at, crayons to color games on their placemats, etc. The Boardwalk atmosphere is also very cool to be around. Early dining so the kids can crash at a decent time is always a good plan.

 

[EdgeofSomething]

We ate at LeCellier for lunch and California Grill for dinner with our kids during our trip last year. We had a good experience at both restaurants, and there were plenty of other young kids at both restaurants while we were there.

Our kids were 3 years old and 5 years old at the time. My daughter (the then-5 year old) still raves about her meal at California Grill. She loved the pizza (it wasn't standard child-menu pizza), particularly the cheese on it, and the dessert, which was "sushi" made from things like Swedish Fish and Rice Krispies Treats. She had a blast there, and asks us to go back whenever we mention planning another trip.

 

[Masonmj84]

We're in the same boat.

Upgraded to the DxDP from free DDP because we wanted eat dinner at nicer places than buffets or CS. For us, eating well is an essential part of a vacattion, Disney or elsewhere.

We've scheduled an opening night at 'Ohana then 5 straight evenings of signature dinners.

It will be interesting to see how this works out because the response I've seemed to get here and elsewhere is that this is an essentially crazy idea with kids (especially with one of them being a 2 year old).

My biggest concern isn't so much the 5 consecutive night aspect of it as much as it is the duration of the meals and the time they finish. We frequently take our kids to restuarants but we always go early (usually between 5 and 5:30 pm) and the meal usually lasts from 60 to 90 minutes. They are usually pretty well behaved under those circumstances, provided they aren't overly tired (on that score, at least we're going during the cooler half of the year and aren't park commando types).

For each of the signature dinners, we've scheduled the earliest ADR possible (5:30 pm). I understand that at the signature restaurants, a good server will try to pace families with kids faster (especially those with an early ADR) and I'm hoping this is the case (ideally, we're hoping to have the meals wrapped up to as close to 7 pm as possible).

 

[MSSANDRA]

I think WDW is the perfect place to introduce children to a little more upscale type of dinning. I found with my boys that they tend to behave so much better in a more adult formal setting than in a crazy wild place like a character meal.

We eat out a lot and here are a few things that always worked for us. (one is now 19, the other just turned 5)

1.Go early and be sure the kids are not too tired or too hungry.

2.If they are really hungry, ask the waiter for something right away. We had a waiter bring us a lovely bowl a fruit right away earlier this month.

3. Set restaurant rules and enforce them 100% of the time....even at Mcdonalds. Things like staying in your chair, using inside voices, using your napkins...whatever works for your family.

4.Take something to keep them happy. I very much believe in engaging kids in your conversation but if you are asking a 2 year old to set still for 2 hours, be realistic. Quite, non distracting books, toys etc, perhaps some saved just for this purpose are great.
Lots of opinions on electronic devices at table. We will occasionally let our 5 year old play on my iphone, no volume, if the meals runs a little long.

5.Let your waiter know how you want your meal paced. When my older was little, we let him know we needed it to be paced a little quicker. With the little one....he eats VERY slowly and MOST of the time great for even a slow meal so we have less of an issue.

6. Ask for what you need. You wait staff wants to keep your child as happy as you do. Ask for that ranch dressing he loves or his sauces on the side.

7.Use this as an opportunity to introduce kids to new food. Go ahead and order that hot dog he wants if its on the menu, but encourage him to try a bite of your salad and entree or what ever.

8.Take a break if needed. Walk outside or to the lobby or where ever for just a few minutes between courses!

9.If all fails, cut your losses, box it up, put the kids to bed and enjoy your dinner on your balcony.

 

[Mommytobree]

Thank you! There are some great tips here!

I appreciate everyone's input!

 

[starousse]

You will be fine with the kids in all the places you mentioned. My family ate Signature dinners almost every night with a five and two year old. There were tons of kids in all of them. We in no way felt uncomfortable having them with us at all nor did the people without kids seem upset that there were kids. The one restaurant with the least amount of kids was probably Artist Point at the WL, and even in there, there were several tables with kids. So take them with you and enjoy.

 

[Hopefully]

I think you have received good advice from PP.
You did say, however, that your 19 Month Old was "pretty good" "most of the time". That is a red flag to me. Will his/her "pretty good" behaviour be acceptable to the honeymooning couple sitting next to you who are seeking a more upscale, adult experience? Only you can judge that.
Good Luck

 

[goofyintoronto]

I didnt read all the posts, just wanted to suggest that you make ADRs earlier in the evening rather than later. Thats when most parents with kids tend to dine at signatures. For example, I went to cali grill with my DS11 at approx 530pm (they open at 5). Later on in the night you will notice less children and more adults.

 

[TDC Nala]

Servers at 'Ohana acutally went over to a table where a kid was constantly blowing a whistle and asked the parents to get him to cut it out. Which they did. Other tables were complaining. I'm really not sure why the parents thought it was a good idea to let their kid constantly blow a whistle at the table.

'Ohana's not a signature...probably would have been even more jarring at a signature.

Well-behaved kids are welcome at any WDW restaurant except Victoria & Alberts (the only restaurant with an age restriction).

 

[pixarmom]

Hi Mommytobree! I just wanted to offer some additional encouragement. We have three boys, ages 5, 11 and 12. We've been to all the restaurants on your list and we've been taking our kids to Disney since our oldest was a year old. (Although I haven't been to Fultons or Narcoosees since before kids.)

One of the reasons we've been annual passholders (and will be again!) is that WDW offers tons of fun for everyone and my husband and I don't have to eat burgers and fries for a week straight. We really enjoy signatures with our kids and typically have dinner ADRs at signatures most evenings. I agree with all the advice about taking kids out if necessary (we haven't needed to do that at WDW, but we've always been prepared for it.)

A few things that have worked for us:

1) We actually don't book early ADRs. We usually eat around 7pm at home, so that's when we eat at Disney. We are entirely comfortable with the kids at a 7pm ADR and because it's true to our regular schedule, it's a good dining time for our children. We booked an early ADR at California Grill once, and it was much more quiet at 5:30pm than at 7pm. So we're actually more comfortable with our youngest talking in his regular voice at 7pm - he blends right in. At 5:30pm, we asked him to whisper because it was so empty.

2) We never arrive hungry. For recent trips, we've stayed CL and the kids have healthy snacks in the club lounge around 5pm. So nobody is hungry or overly tired. If we're not staying CL, we usually have a healthy snack in the late afternoon anyway - just like at home.

3) We don't order multiple courses. We're in and out of most signatures in about an hour with the kids. We review the menus in advance and everyone has a general sense of what they might like. We never feel rushed, but we feel the meal always moves at a comfortable pace.

So please go ahead and make those ADRs and have a great time!

 

[3pletprincesses]

We do signatures almost every evenings during our trips. Our 5 yo prefer the food there. Keep in mind that it can take easy 2 hours per signature meal. That being said, we always have our reservation first thing at dinner time which is around 5-5:30 pm. The girls are in a better mood and there's more kids at that time and less adults trying to enjoy an adult meal. Bring a few books or something to keep the kids happy especially the smallest one.

 

[Colleen27]

MsSandra said it best - Disney is a great place to introduce kids to finer dining. Assuming they are familiar with restaurant behaviour at home there's no better place to expose them to slightly more upscale experiences, different foods, and leisurely dining. We adore the DxDDP and have used it for both of the trips we've taken with DD3. Even at 16mo she was fine with signature dining. Be aware and proactive if you start seeing signs of boredom/overtiredness or other meltdown provoking issues and have a quiet toy or two stashed in the diaper bag just in case, but don't worry - yours won't be the only kids there, and at Disney kids are welcome everywhere except V&A.

I'll second something else MsSandra said - my kids behave better in the more subdued signature restaurants than in the noisier, more chaotic character and theme meals. Our absolute worst Disney kid-restaurant experience was at Yak & Yeti, which was SO loud that my 16mo didn't seem to think we could hear her if she used her inside voice and was out-of-sorts, anxious/distractable, and far more fussy than usual through the entire meal. I was worried about Jiko but that one she loved. She happily watched the sunset wall between courses and really enjoyed her brother's ostrich. But both Yak & Yeti and Kona were hard for her, just on sheer volume and overstimulation.

 

[Mommytobree]

I think you have received good advice from PP.
You did say, however, that your 19 Month Old was "pretty good" "most of the time". That is a red flag to me. Will his/her "pretty good" behaviour be acceptable to the honeymooning couple sitting next to you who are seeking a more upscale, adult experience? Only you can judge that.
Good Luck

I didn't mean he misbehaves, he's just a baby and as all babies can be prone to giggling, laughing and/or crying. But I would never let my child just sit there and cry, signature or not

Hi Mommytobree! I just wanted to offer some additional encouragement. We have three boys, ages 5, 11 and 12. We've been to all the restaurants on your list and we've been taking our kids to Disney since our oldest was a year old. (Although I haven't been to Fultons or Narcoosees since before kids.)

One of the reasons we've been annual passholders (and will be again!) is that WDW offers tons of fun for everyone and my husband and I don't have to eat burgers and fries for a week straight. We really enjoy signatures with our kids and typically have dinner ADRs at signatures most evenings. I agree with all the advice about taking kids out if necessary (we haven't needed to do that at WDW, but we've always been prepared for it.)

A few things that have worked for us:

1) We actually don't book early ADRs. We usually eat around 7pm at home, so that's when we eat at Disney. We are entirely comfortable with the kids at a 7pm ADR and because it's true to our regular schedule, it's a good dining time for our children. We booked an early ADR at California Grill once, and it was much more quiet at 5:30pm than at 7pm. So we're actually more comfortable with our youngest talking in his regular voice at 7pm - he blends right in. At 5:30pm, we asked him to whisper because it was so empty.

2) We never arrive hungry. For recent trips, we've stayed CL and the kids have healthy snacks in the club lounge around 5pm. So nobody is hungry or overly tired. If we're not staying CL, we usually have a healthy snack in the late afternoon anyway - just like at home.

3) We don't order multiple courses. We're in and out of most signatures in about an hour with the kids. We review the menus in advance and everyone has a general sense of what they might like. We never feel rushed, but we feel the meal always moves at a comfortable pace.

So please go ahead and make those ADRs and have a great time!

Thank you for this and all those tips!

MsSandra said it best - Disney is a great place to introduce kids to finer dining. Assuming they are familiar with restaurant behaviour at home there's no better place to expose them to slightly more upscale experiences, different foods, and leisurely dining. We adore the DxDDP and have used it for both of the trips we've taken with DD3. Even at 16mo she was fine with signature dining. Be aware and proactive if you start seeing signs of boredom/overtiredness or other meltdown provoking issues and have a quiet toy or two stashed in the diaper bag just in case, but don't worry - yours won't be the only kids there, and at Disney kids are welcome everywhere except V&A.

I'll second something else MsSandra said - my kids behave better in the more subdued signature restaurants than in the noisier, more chaotic character and theme meals. Our absolute worst Disney kid-restaurant experience was at Yak & Yeti, which was SO loud that my 16mo didn't seem to think we could hear her if she used her inside voice and was out-of-sorts, anxious/distractable, and far more fussy than usual through the entire meal. I was worried about Jiko but that one she loved. She happily watched the sunset wall between courses and really enjoyed her brother's ostrich. But both Yak & Yeti and Kona were hard for her, just on sheer volume and overstimulation.

Thanks! It is nice to hear from someone else with a young child I find also, even here at home, that it is the loud over stimulating restaurants that cause him to get cranky.

I am planning on having hubby take the older kids to the pool every afternoon while I stay in the room so the baby can take a nap, and Ill plan our dinner after he has had a nap.

 

[Disneyhayes]

We ate at Yachtsman on our last trip and my DD2.5 and DD3.5 got many compliments while we were there. We had a few moments but nothing continous. Like DD3.5 wanted the purple crayon that DD2.5 had and whined "thats abbys favorite color...i neeeeeed it". I am sure adults using curse words is no worse than a whiny sentence here or there. I think DD2.5 got more compliments because she was REALLY quiet. I took a picture of her while eating there