Terrible Experience at Topolino’s

[DisneyJade]

It pains me to write this, as we heard such lovely things about the character breakfast at Topolino’s and deliberately scheduled it as our farewell meal at the end of a week-long trip, but we had an extremely disappointing experience.

Here is the email I wrote to Disney about the experience:

Good Morning,

I have just returned home from a week-long stay and, while we had a wonderful trip and had a few excellent cast member interactions, I would like to express my deep disappointment with the character breakfast at Topolino's on our final morning. Several things went wrong, so I will try to be brief:

SEATING:
We were seated in the "private" side room along the terrace, with my two small children, where characters do not enter the room but merely poke their head in to wave - not even long enough to get a picture. Most of the characters are only visible through a screen. Another family nearly seated in this room took one look and said no way, then got a table in the main room!

I understand the need to distance, but the very worst part of this seating was that a table directly in my view, one open for seating and exactly the same size as our table, sat EMPTY for 45 minutes, for the duration of our meal. Only as we were preparing to leave did the table get seated. I noted there was no change to the makeup of the tables around it, as all of the available tables consistently had families seated, even when the empty table was finally seated.

SERVICE:
At one point, my daughter spilled her entire drink all over herself, the table and the floor. We proceeded to use every one of our table napkins to mop up the mess, which was large enough that our entire party was either on their feet or crawling under the table mopping it up. The cleanup took at least 5 minutes, during which time NO ONE, not our server, not ANY server, paused to help us or offer to bring us extra napkins.

When we finally flagged down our server to say we had cleaned up a big mess and needed new napkins, there wasn't even an "oh no, sorry to hear that." She grabbed some extra napkins and did not offer to refill the drink (the Riviera juice that comes with free refills.) I later asked for a refill and received it, but at a restaurant of this quality, I should not have had to ask.

This was our final experience in Disney, on our last day: my husband literally cleaning your carpet on his hands and knees while cast members walked right by, and people on the other side of the wall enjoyed their character experience. No one cared about us and our mess in the side room for unimportant guests, apparently. I could cry just thinking about it now, and in fact, I did shed a couple of tears at the end of our meal.

The food was great, but I will never return to this restaurant, based on this experience - the worst I've ever had in more than 10 Disney trips. I decided not to speak to a manager, as I wanted to sleep on it, but now I am home and no less upset by the experience. I also did not want to seem as though I was trying to "get" something by complaining. Now, I simply want someone to know what happened and to receive some sort of acknowledgment that this was not up to Disney standards.

I do want to say that we had a very friendly greeter upon arrival and a very engaging busser. I believe his name was Cliff.

Sincerely,
**********

 

[Marthasor]

I don't understand why you didn't speak to a manager or ask the host to seat you elsewhere. You mention another family did just that and was then seated in the main dining room. They won't know you are unhappy with your seating unless you tell them. In 50+ trips to WDW, we've had two, sub-par character meal experiences where characters never made it to our table by the time we got the bill. We simply told a CM what had happened and they quickly made arrangements for the character to visit with us prior to leaving. By not speaking up, how could the CMs know you weren't happy with your seating? By not getting up and asking for help, how would a CM know you needed assistance cleaning up a spilled drink? I don't understand why your husband felt the need to get on the floor and clean the carpet.

 

[Olaf Myfrenzargay]

The seating at topolinos can be awkward. We had one of those semi circular booths and we were basically staring directly at the tables in front of us. Awkward, This was. Pre Rona. When the food and characters came out I stopped caring tho, especially once I got a Minnie & Daisy sandwich shot. ; P

 

[StageTek]

I hope Disney offers the acknowledgment you are looking for.

I hope you don't avoid this restaurant forever based on this one experience.

As you point out, another family spoke up and were rewarded with a great experience. Marthasor offers some great advice for the future. Speak up. All over Disney cast members really go out of their way to make us - their guests - happy. But we gotta speak up.

 

[DisneyJade]

I don't understand why you didn't speak to a manager or ask the host to seat you elsewhere. You mention another family did just that and was then seated in the main dining room. They won't know you are unhappy with your seating unless you tell them. In 50+ trips to WDW, we've had two, sub-par character meal experiences where characters never made it to our table by the time we got the bill. We simply told a CM what had happened and they quickly made arrangements for the character to visit with us prior to leaving. By not speaking up, how could the CMs know you weren't happy with your seating? By not getting up and asking for help, how would a CM know you needed assistance cleaning up a spilled drink? I don't understand why your husband felt the need to get on the floor and clean the carpet.

Once I saw the other family turn down the table, I wished we had done the same. It didn't even occur to me that it would be an option, especially with COVID and seating restrictions. At that point, we were halfway through our meal.

I did call out to the first cast member I saw after the spill, but they did not hear me, I guess? Another server looked directly at us and kept walking. I think I was too shocked at that to call him back, but to be fair, his hands were full. Other families were watching us, as it was so obvious that we'd had an incident. I guess when our child was soaked and the drink running off the table and making a mess on the floor, our first instinct was to start mopping it up, not to go get someone to clean it for us. Like I said, as soon as we saw our own server, we did stop her to ask for napkins.

Maybe it's just me, but I'm not used to paying that much for a meal without service to match. And part of service is noticing a table in distress, in my opinion. Or, if it's not spotted, once the distress is pointed out, good service is a simple offer to refill the spilled drink. Expectations may vary, but that is my personal expectation for service level on meals in the $150-$200 range.

I do wish I had spoken to a manager about the whole situation at some point, but as I said, I did not want to seem like I was trying to "get" something and also wanted to sleep on it, in case I was just emotional and tired at the end of the week. In the future, though, I'll definitely speak up if I don't like my table!

 

[VandVsmama]

That's really a horrible experience. And for what you paid per person for that meal, you should have received better service!

 

[winterwhite]

I guess having never been to Topolinos I’m not clear on how the worst part of your meal was having another empty table in sight.

maybe those planned to be seated there did not show up for their reservation?

given how much people complain about not getting enough character time at these things I think you’d be happy to see fewer people in the restaurant.

I’m also not clear what character interaction is available in COVID times butI would think the characters would not be coming to your table whether you were in that room or not.

 

[DLgal]

Okay, the table location sounds bad, but since you didn't speak up before being seated, that one is kind of on you. Never sit down at a table that you don't find satisfactory if it will end up ruining your meal. There is ALWAYS another table available, even though you may have to wait longer.

On the topic of the spill? Been there, done that NUMEROUS times. When it happens, you get up and FIND a server and tell them what happened and ask for a clean up. It's not on you to clean it up. You use your napkins the best you can, but you cannot just sit around and wait for someone to come rescue you. And for the love of pete, there is NO obligation to get on your hands and knees and clean the floor. That is just... I don't even have words for that. I get wanting to clean up your kid. When this happened to us, I would take the kid off to the bathroom and on the way, flag down our server (or ANY SERVER), point to the table and say "can you please send over someone to clean up a spill and get us more napkins, please?" That's it. Problem solved and no sweat off my back. This didn't need to be such a dramatic situation.

 

[MomOTwins]

I know that good servers sometimes feel like they are mind readers, but they shouldn't have to be.

There are good and bad tables at any restaurant, and what is good and bad is subjective. One guest may dislikes imperfect sight lines to the characters, while another guest might appreciate the fact that a private room is safer from a virus transmission standpoint and think they lucked into the best table in the house. It is incumbent on the guest to ask if they don't like the location, just like you wouldn't rate a hotel poorly if you don't like your room location..

As you say, you were in a private room that was not very visible to rest of the dining room. It doesn't surprise me that for a period of five (just five) minutes, your server did not notice you had a spill. In addition, as a parent, I would never ask a server to clean up my child's spill. We have had servers offer, but always decline and take care of it ourselves, usually just asking for extra napkins, as it is our mess. I think it's quite reasonable for a server to see you cleaning up and assuming that you took the same view. Again, if you felt differently all you had to do was walk up to a nearby server and ask.

Also as a parent, my idea of a good server who understands the challenges of parenting is one who never refills a child's sugary drink if the parent does not ask, and if they ask if you want a refill, they do so discreetly to ensure the child does not overhear and feel disappointed when a parent says no. Especially after said child spilled the first drink. We might have different opinions about whether a server should have filled the drink without asking, but I wouldn't say across the board that is "bad service."

 

[DisneyJade]

I guess having never been to Topolinos I’m not clear on how the worst part of your meal was having another empty table in sight.

maybe those planned to be seated there did not show up for their reservation?

given how much people complain about not getting enough character time at these things I think you’d be happy to see fewer people in the restaurant.

I’m also not clear what character interaction is available in COVID times butI would think the characters would not be coming to your table whether you were in that room or not.

They don’t come to your table. They typically stand at least six feet away and interact from a distance, posing for photos. The table we were seated at is behind a wall so they only poke their head in and wave, while other tables have a full view with interaction and photo opps.

 

[DisneyJade]

Okay, the table location sounds bad, but since you didn't speak up before being seated, that one is kind of on you. Never sit down at a table that you don't find satisfactory if it will end up ruining your meal. There is ALWAYS another table available, even though you may have to wait longer.

On the topic of the spill? Been there, done that NUMEROUS times. When it happens, you get up and FIND a server and tell them what happened and ask for a clean up. It's not on you to clean it up. You use your napkins the best you can, but you cannot just sit around and wait for someone to come rescue you. And for the love of pete, there is NO obligation to get on your hands and knees and clean the floor. That is just... I don't even have words for that. I get wanting to clean up your kid. When this happened to us, I would take the kid off to the bathroom and on the way, flag down our server (or ANY SERVER), point to the table and say "can you please send over someone to clean up a spill and get us more napkins, please?" That's it. Problem solved and no sweat off my back. This didn't need to be such a dramatic situation.

I would never point to a mess I made and ask someone else to clean it up. Ever. I guess I wasn’t clear that I just was shocked that we weren’t checked on or napkins offered. I also don’t think it’s weird to mop the floor, so his shoes were not splashing in a puddle. Not sure why that sounds so beyond the pale, but since two people have said they wouldn’t do it, maybe I’m not painting the picture very well.

 

[Jennasis]

The characters don't do more than a "drive by" at any of the character meals now. Poking their head in your area and waving as they walk through. That's the new normal.

The spill is a shame. You should have asked for someone to help cleaning it and they should have cleaned it for you.

The better table? Could have been in a different servers section. Could have been waiting for a party that was eventually a no-show. Who knows. It didn't help your mood I'm sure to see it, but eh, whatever.

In the future, please let them know if you are offered an undesirable table. Heck I do it at Soarin' if they try to give me anything but section B LOL!

 

[DLgal]

I would never point to a mess I made and ask someone else to clean it up. Ever. I guess I wasn’t clear that I just was shocked that we weren’t checked on or napkins offered. I also don’t think it’s weird to mop the floor, so his shoes were not splashing in a puddle. Not sure why that sounds so beyond the pale, but since two people have said they wouldn’t do it, maybe I’m not painting the picture very well.

I have worked in a restaurant and my mom was a restaurant manager for a time. Restaurant staff is ALWAYS happy to clean up a drink spill. That is a pure accident, especially when it was a kid that did it. You should never feel badly about asking for someone to clean it up. That is what busboys are for. They have the cleaning supplies and will run right over and take care of it.

It's not like your child threw food all over the place and smeared it all over the seats. THAT would be something you should feel responsible for helping clean up.

 

[DisneyJade]

I know that good servers sometimes feel like they are mind readers, but they shouldn't have to be.

There are good and bad tables at any restaurant, and what is good and bad is subjective. One guest may dislikes imperfect sight lines to the characters, while another guest might appreciate the fact that a private room is safer from a virus transmission standpoint and think they lucked into the best table in the house. It is incumbent on the guest to ask if they don't like the location, just like you wouldn't rate a hotel poorly if you don't like your room location..

As you say, you were in a private room that was not very visible to rest of the dining room. It doesn't surprise me that for a period of five (just five) minutes, your server did not notice you had a spill. In addition, as a parent, I would never ask a server to clean up my child's spill. We have had servers offer, but always decline and take care of it ourselves, usually just asking for extra napkins, as it is our mess. I think it's quite reasonable for a server to see you cleaning up and assuming that you took the same view. Again, if you felt differently all you had to do was walk up to a nearby server and ask.

Also as a parent, my idea of a good server who understands the challenges of parenting is one who never refills a child's sugary drink if the parent does not ask, and if they ask if you want a refill, they do so discreetly to ensure the child does not overhear and feel disappointed when a parent says no. Especially after said child spilled the first drink. We might have different opinions about whether a server should have filled the drink without asking, but I wouldn't say across the board that is "bad service."

Noted, on the table thing. I don’t know why I thought this was pretty rigid at Disney, especially during COVID. If I could rewind, as I said, I 100% would have declined the table!

You make a good point about some people appreciating a private table during COVID.

Disagree about the drink though. It wasn’t a refill on a drink that had been drunk. It was a refill on a drink that had been spilled.

I don’t know. Seems the consensus here is that it’s my fault and that nothing is wrong with what we experienced. I work in public relations, and as part of my work, I design and provide training on customer service. Normally that makes me much more forgiving about service, since I understand the other side. So maybe I’m just not explaining this well. Which is kind of bemusing because my job also requires expertise in communications.

 

[DLgal]

Noted, on the table thing. I don’t know why I thought this was pretty rigid at Disney, especially during COVID. If I could rewind, as I said, I 100% would have declined the table!

You make a good point about some people appreciating a private table during COVID.

Disagree about the drink though. It wasn’t a refill on a drink that had been drunk. It was a refill on a drink that had been spilled.

I don’t know. Seems the consensus here is that it’s my fault and that nothing is wrong with what we experienced. I work in public relations, and as part of my work, I design and provide training on customer service. Normally that makes me much more forgiving about service, since I understand the other side. So maybe I’m just not explaining this well. Which is kind of bemusing because my job also requires expertise in communications.

The bolded part of your post seems to pretty clearly communicate what happened.

I do not mean to "blame" you for the bad experience, but by your own admission, your husband was literally on his hands and knees "cleaning the carpet." This was unnecessary. It's not like the server came over, pointed to the floor and told your husband "clean it up." THAT would have warranted a strongly worded letter to management, at the very least.

 

[Marthasor]

Once I saw the other family turn down the table, I wished we had done the same. It didn't even occur to me that it would be an option, especially with COVID and seating restrictions. At that point, we were halfway through our meal.

I did call out to the first cast member I saw after the spill, but they did not hear me, I guess? Another server looked directly at us and kept walking. I think I was too shocked at that to call him back, but to be fair, his hands were full. Other families were watching us, as it was so obvious that we'd had an incident. I guess when our child was soaked and the drink running off the table and making a mess on the floor, our first instinct was to start mopping it up, not to go get someone to clean it for us. Like I said, as soon as we saw our own server, we did stop her to ask for napkins.

Maybe it's just me, but I'm not used to paying that much for a meal without service to match. And part of service is noticing a table in distress, in my opinion. Or, if it's not spotted, once the distress is pointed out, good service is a simple offer to refill the spilled drink. Expectations may vary, but that is my personal expectation for service level on meals in the $150-$200 range.

I do wish I had spoken to a manager about the whole situation at some point, but as I said, I did not want to seem like I was trying to "get" something and also wanted to sleep on it, in case I was just emotional and tired at the end of the week. In the future, though, I'll definitely speak up if I don't like my table!

I TOTALLY get it! One of our not-so-great experiences was at H&V when they were doing Star Wars weekends and we paid a small fortune to dine with the Star Wars Disney characters. They put us at a table that seemed to have been shoved behind a column of some sort and the characters would just walk by. We, maybe, saw one character before the $150 check was dropped on our table. I was super disappointed, so I let the hostess know what had happened and, as soon as the characters came back from their break, they bee-lined to our table first so we could get our pictures. If I hadn't said something, I would have felt exactly as you do.

Hopefully you will get a response to your e-mail and it will make you feel a little better. It stinks to pay that much money and walk away disappointed.

 

[buzzrelly]

I totally understand your frustration. In October, my husband and I made a lunch reservation at Hollywood and Vine, literally because I saw a video on YouTube of them walking behind the tables and people taking selfies with the characters dressed all cute for Halloween. Well, we were seated in an alley, where the characters would poke their heads at the entrance but not walk by. Otherwise, we could see them through plexiglass walking around the restaurant. I was super disappointed, and to my DH’s utter embarrassment, I asked to be moved. I was uncomfortable even asking but considering what we were paying, I decided to ask anyway.
A manager did come over and moved us but then the rest of the meal felt a little awkward and I felt like we had done something wrong as our “new” server kind of ignored us. All in all, not a great experience, especially considering the price.

In the end, I am glad we were moved as we got better character pictures, but the whole experience left us feeling a litter bitter.

 

[buzzrelly]

I TOTALLY get it! One of our not-so-great experiences was at H&V when they were doing Star Wars weekends and we paid a small fortune to dine with the Star Wars Disney characters. They put us at a table that seemed to have been shoved behind a column of some sort and the characters would just walk by. We, maybe, saw one character before the $150 check was dropped on our table. I was super disappointed, so I let the hostess know what had happened and, as soon as the characters came back from their break, they bee-lined to our table first so we could get out pictures. If I hadn't said something, I would have felt exactly as you do.

Hopefully you will get a response to your e-mail and it will make you feel a little better. It stinks to pay that much money and walk away disappointed.

You literally posted about your H&V terrible experience at the same time as me!

 

[DisneyJade]

The bolded part of your post seems to pretty clearly communicate what happened.

I do not mean to "blame" you for the bad experience, but by your own admission, your husband was literally on his hands and knees "cleaning the carpet." This was unnecessary. It's not like the server came over, pointed to the floor and told your husband "clean it up." THAT would have warranted a strongly worded letter to management, at the very least.

Like I already said above, I don’t see why mopping the drink off the floor is beyond the pale. The mess did not stop at the table or chair or child. There was a puddle on the floor. We didn’t want it to sit there under our shoes and are not the kind of people to find a server to direct them to clean up our mess. The point is that if you do see a customer cleaning their spill off the floor, it’s good service to not breeze on by without offering a napkin or a check on us to see if anything is needed.

As I’ve said repeatedly in this thread, perhaps I am not explaining it well, so I think I’ll stop trying.

I’ll leave the thread up in case it is helpful for someone else like me who doesn’t know it’s okay to demand a different table at Disney. I disagree with the other criticism in this thread but that information, at least, is helpful.

 

[DisneyJade]

I totally understand your frustration. In October, my husband and I made a lunch reservation at Hollywood and Vine, literally because I saw a video on YouTube of them walking behind the tables and people taking selfies with the characters dressed all cute for Halloween. Well, we were seated in an alley, where the characters would poke their heads at the entrance but not walk by. Otherwise, we could see them through plexiglass walking around the restaurant. I was super disappointed, and to my DH’s utter embarrassment, I asked to be moved. I was uncomfortable even asking but considering what we were paying, I decided to ask anyway.
A manager did come over and moved us but then the rest of the meal felt a little awkward and I felt like we had done something wrong as our “new” server kind of ignored us. All in all, not a great experience, especially considering the price.

In the end, I am glad we were moved as we got better character pictures, but the whole experience left us feeling a litter bitter.

Thank you for sharing this. I was feeling a little alone in this. Sorry that you had a similar experience!