Strange question about restaurants

[BrianL]

Yeah I understand. Just my (weird) dh loves cars lol and dd (12) would probably think it's cool. I don't even care about the food just wanted to have the experience, but can't get a reservation.
I've been checking twice a day for weeks.

Well, keep checking if you do want it. Are you using any of the reservation finder tools? They can be helpful.

 

[focusondisney]

We ate at Sci Fi yesterday. Currently they aren’t even allowing people with ADRs to wait in the lobby. You have to wait outside until you get called to be seated. So I doubt they will let you wander in to look around.

 

[HopperFan]

Sci-Fi...

This is likely the hardest no, you can't just look, in DHS. They do have a Walk Up List on the app but you'll need to do as soon as it opens. While your odds of getting a car are not good that way, at least it gets you in the door.

I feel your pain, it is my DS favorite and we haven't been in 3 years, has become quite difficult to get.

 

[_19disnA]

We ate lunch at Sci-Fi a few years ago as a walk-up since the place next door (can't recall the name) was closed for renovation and there were few other sit-down type places to eat in that area of the park (most others were more fast food types). The inside is fairly small and I think they would want to avoid the awkward situation where someone without a reservation says they just want to 'look around' and then tries to sit down at an empty table, so I would assume they don't permit that.

Honestly, the brief movie clips that keep repeating won't mean much to anyone younger then about 50 yrs old since they won't know what show/movie it is from and the area seemed like it was well past its time for a makeover. We found the food very average for lunch. We were able to be seated around the perimeter where they have regular tables. Not a place we would choose to eat at again.

 

[sadiwest]

Well, keep checking if you do want it. Are you using any of the reservation finder tools? They can be helpful.

Heard of them but don't have them.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

you don't go through the restaurant itself to get into the restroom, so that would not work.

Sci-Fi is really big on not letting people in just to look.

 

[Haygar2]

Heard of them but don't have them.

There are some free ones that you can sign up for and, through them, I have been able to find every restaurant that I've wanted. It's been a couple of years, but I did have luck. Sign up for one (or two or three) and keep your fingers crossed.

 

[gregskellington]

Any restaurant you would want to have a look in they won't let you (Sci Fi, Be Our Guest, Space 220). They might at a less crowded resort restaurant but none of those are that interesting to look at so nobody probably asks.

 

[_19disnA]

Part of the draw for various Disney restaurants is the theming. If people could just 'walk around' looking, there would be less reason to spend money eating/drinking there. Space 220 is probably one of the most recent examples of that. You either need an ADR or plan to sit in the lounge area to take the 'elevator' to outer space.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

Our first trip to WDW was in 2005. We were clueless and went without ADRs. My aunt had helped me plan the trip, but they must have just eaten at QS because nothing was ever mentioned about ADRs. Anyway, once there our first day was at DHS and it was there I discovered TS restaurants. I don't remember if I looked up info online or if there was a picture of Sc-Fi in the times guide, but I do remember wanting to eat there so bad. We tried to do a walk-up but nothing. We ended up being able to walk up to 50s PT and had a good meal there, but I kept thinking about Sci-Fi. So when we went back in 2008, I was so happy to get an ADR. I was so excited about it! Well, it was one of the biggest let-downs of any TS at Disney. It felt claustrophobic in there. It seemed like we were crammed into the cars. It was so dark we could barely see our food. We couldn't talk since we were all facing the same direction. The movie clips got very old after seeing them over and over and over. The food was nothing special. Needless to say, we haven't been back. Moral of the story: maybe you really aren't missing much!

 

[HerRoyalHighness]

Weren't the non-car tables in the back kind of first come first served? Or used to be?

 

[_19disnA]

Weren't the non-car tables in the back kind of first come first served? Or used to be?

Yes. Back in 2019 when we had lunch at Sci-Fi, we requested one of those regular tables. The idea of looking at the back of the heads of people you were with didn't appeal to us.

 

[piccolopat]

If you can get an ADR for SciFi, just order a shake or dessert.

 

[JCornell]

For Sci-Fi, it'd actually be easy to check it out. You can walk in through Baseline Tap house and walk around to the bathroom. From the bathroom area is a doorway into the restaurant area where it'd be easy to poke your head in and look around. Just stay toward the back where you're not disrupting diners and nobody would probably pay you attention. They'd just think your a diner looking the place over.