Signature Dining with Children

[Smposchman]

Now first off, I don't want to stir trouble! I'm sure this is probably a sensitive subject but that is why I want to start this thread.

We want to do one signature dining dinner for our anniversary, with our almost 4 year old daughter. Not exactly a hot date, but it works for us.
Our daughter is pretty well behaved, but still even the best kid can be loud and disruptive under the right circumstances.

So what (if any) signature dining restaurants that would be the best choice so that she would not be disruptive.

Thanks!

 

[havoc315]

Except for the 2 restaurants that don't allow children, you will find children in every signature restaurant. We have brought our young children to several signature restaurants.

California Grill is great because it's loud anyway, and you can step out on the balcony. But it's not the most romantic restaurant for an anniversary.
Narcoose's is slightly quieter, and you can step out to the waterfront to watch the fireworks.

The signature restaurants are very child friendly.

 

[goofyintoronto]

I would also recommend cali grill. Great enviornment, and as the OP said, its loud anyway. It has a lot of kids. So she will be fine there. Plus the view is really nice!
The food there is INCREDIBLE! I had the filet steak and OMG it was outstanding!!!!!

 

[hannahdrewmom]

We've done all of them with the exception of citricos with kids that age..

Top 3: Flying Fish, Cali Grill, and Narcossees.... I'd pick the one you like best and not worry!

 

[ciera321]

I have to agree that the CG is a great option. The noise level is fairly high and I always see kids there. I'm sure your daughter would love seeing Wishes from there, too.

 

[skw444]

We just brought our 9 and 6 year olds to Yachtsman Steakhouse and Hollywood Brown Derby and saw plenty of kids. Pick the one you want to eat at the most!

 

[LilyWDW]

Kids are expected everywhere at Disney, excepts V&As.

That said, as long as you parent and don't just allow the child to scream, cry, throw food, or run around, you will be fine. All people really ask for is that if the child is disruptive, then you remove them until they calm down. No matter where you are, it would be impolite to allow the child to negatively impact the diners around you.

 

[OhThePain]

I won't tell you which would be best to bring a 4 year old. However, I'll go the other way and tell you that Jiko, Citricos and AP are probably the three worst to take a child. They tend to be the quietest and visually least appealing. Unfortunately these are also probably the three most romantic dinners on the dining plan.

You could always drop your DD off at one of the babysitting services. Most, if not all, deluxe resorts have one, so if you wanted you could feed her before hand and then drop her off, this way you can have a nice quiet romantic meal (sans kids) and not have to travel far to drop her off or pick her up.

My one other suggestion, request, warning would be to not make the ADR for any later than 6 or 6:30 if you plan on having your DD with you. If my girlfriend and I take an ADR for a signature at 5:30 we expect a different sort of atmosphere than if we took an ADR for 8:00. The later it gets, the less kids you will see, therefor little outbursts that happen to all kids will be much more noticable, which may cause you to get looks from other guests, which may ruin the whole anniversary dinner.

 

[ccgirl]

I won't tell you which would be best to bring a 4 year old. However, I'll go the other way and tell you that Jiko, Citricos and AP are probably the three worst to take a child. They tend to be the quietest and visually least appealing. Unfortunately these are also probably the three most romantic dinners on the dining plan.

You could always drop your DD off at one of the babysitting services. Most, if not all, deluxe resorts have one, so if you wanted you could feed her before hand and then drop her off, this way you can have a nice quiet romantic meal (sans kids) and not have to travel far to drop her off or pick her up.

My one other suggestion, request, warning would be to not make the ADR for any later than 6 or 6:30 if you plan on having your DD with you. If my girlfriend and I take an ADR for a signature at 5:30 we expect a different sort of atmosphere than if we took an ADR for 8:00. The later it gets, the less kids you will see, therefor little outbursts that happen to all kids will be much more noticable, which may cause you to get looks from other guests, which may ruin the whole anniversary dinner.

Great post. I also want to say that because Cali Grill is loud anyway, children should not be allowed to run around and scream. My DH and myself were there alone without our children for a 9pm dining reservation. He was presenting me with a diamond wrap for our 10th anniversary and I couldn't even hear him thanks to the children yelling and literally running around my table. WHen I said something to the mom she said, "this is Disney get over it." Just because it's Disney does not mean it's okay to misbehave. I will say the "problem" with signature dining experiences is they are typically looonnnggg. My DS3 did not have the capacity to sit through an entire meal so my DH and myself had to take turns taking him out of the restaurant LeCellier. I didn't want to ruin romantic moments for anyone else. I agree with another poster that said make it earlier rather than later. A late dining reservation past a little ones bed time is usually a recipe for disaster.

 

[Smposchman]

However, I'll go the other way and tell you that Jiko, Citricos and AP are probably the three worst to take a child. They tend to be the quietest and visually least appealing. Unfortunately these are also probably the three most romantic dinners on the dining plan.

This is just as valuable as telling me where to eat!!!

My one other suggestion, request, warning would be to not make the ADR for any later than 6 or 6:30 if you plan on having your DD with you. If my girlfriend and I take an ADR for a signature at 5:30 we expect a different sort of atmosphere than if we took an ADR for 8:00. The later it gets, the less kids you will see, therefor little outbursts that happen to all kids will be much more noticable, which may cause you to get looks from other guests, which may ruin the whole anniversary dinner.

We are planning this for 6pm, so we can get back to the room for an early night before the princess breakfast the next morning.

He was presenting me with a diamond wrap for our 10th anniversary and I couldn't even hear him thanks to the children yelling and literally running around my table. WHen I said something to the mom she said, "this is Disney get over it."

We have high expectations for our daughter, we don't allow that type of behavior at Wendy's let alone at a nice restaurant.

I will say the "problem" with signature dining experiences is they are typically looonnnggg. My DS3 did not have the capacity to sit through an entire meal so my DH and myself had to take turns taking him out of the restaurant LeCellier.

Good point. Usually she is a pretty self contained kid, but I will be sure to have a few quiet games just in case.

 

[OhThePain]

I would actually suggest either Flying Fish, Cali Grill or Narcoossee's. Incase DD begins to get restless or starts to have a meltdown, with FF being on the Boardwalk you could take her out to get some air, walk a little bit, get it out of her system and maybe see an entertainer. CG and Narcoossee's also both have areas very close to the restaurant where you could take her to get some air and try to cool her down a bit. Signatures can be long meals, so a restaurant with a bit of an exit strategy might suit you best.

Food wise, out of those three I would say Flying Fish is the superior meal, CG has decent sushi and flat breads but can be disappointing with the entrees and we find that Narcoossee's is not what it was, with over priced and dull food.

 

[goofy4tink]

Have you considered letting your dd go to The Neverland Club at the Polynesian??? My dd cried when she got too old to go there...it was one of her favorite things at WDW for many years. Not cheap, but oh so much fun according to her.
That way you can have a truly romantic dinner, and your dd can have a ball for herself. But, be careful. You could create a monster...my dd expected to go there on every single trip, as long as she was able to!!!!

My dd, at the age of 4, was fine at nicer restaurants. We often took her. And like you, good behaviour was expected everywhere, didn't matter what we were paying for dinner. So, your dd will most likely be fine at the vast majority of restaurants, especially since you're eating at an earlier hour. Bring her a coloring book and crayons to help occupy her..otherwise she will be bored.

 

[Colleen27]

I would actually suggest either Flying Fish, Cali Grill or Narcoossee's. Incase DD begins to get restless or starts to have a meltdown, with FF being on the Boardwalk you could take her out to get some air, walk a little bit, get it out of her system and maybe see an entertainer. CG and Narcoossee's also both have areas very close to the restaurant where you could take her to get some air and try to cool her down a bit. Signatures can be long meals, so a restaurant with a bit of an exit strategy might suit you best.

Food wise, out of those three I would say Flying Fish is the superior meal, CG has decent sushi and flat breads but can be disappointing with the entrees and we find that Narcoossee's is not what it was, with over priced and dull food.

I would second all of this. My 3yo has been to all the signatures except Citricos and they all welcome children, but these are the three with the most visually entertaining environment and the easiest layout if you do have to take the little one for a walk.

My DD also very much enjoyed Jiko; we were seated against the sunset wall and she was fascinated by the bird silhouettes and the changing lighting. We keep a couple of quiet toys/books in our stroller bag to help her pass the time waiting between courses and she's done just fine with nicer restaurants.

Personally I think ADR time matters more than restaurant choice. At 5:30 or 6 there will be a lot of kids in any WDW restaurant except V&A, but with the exception of California Grill (because of the fireworks view and all the families who plan late dinners with their kids for that) all of the signatures get quieter and more adult-dominated later in the evening.

 

[gonzalj1]

We just ate at FF with DD8 and DS7. They will tell you it was one of the best meals of the trip. Not because of the food so much but because Bob, our server. took incredibly good care of us. He spent time with the kids making jokes and teasing them. We were laughing so hard we had tears rolling down our cheeks. Highly recommend FF. And even more highly recommend Bob!