The Plaza Restaurant at MK will offer more Walk Ups

[yulilin3]

The Plaza Restaurant at Magic Kingdom Park will have more availability for walk-in Guests starting July 17. While advance reservations will be offered from 11:00am to 12:00pm, Guests should visit the restaurant to inquire about availability for the remainder of the day.

FAQ

Why can’t I get a reservation for my preferred reservation time?
While advance reservations will be offered from 11:00am to 12:00pm, The Plaza Restaurant will have more availability for walk-ins starting July 17. We encourage you to stop by the restaurant podium on the day of your visit to ask about availability.

I already have reservations for a date on or after July 17. Will this reservation be honored?
Yes.

 

[mom2rtk]

Interesting. It looks like they have had complaints about lack of same day table service opportunities. Looks like they're tinkering at the edges again instead of really fixing the problem though.

 

[sharonabe]

Interesting. It looks like they have had complaints about lack of same day table service opportunities. Looks like they're tinkering at the edges again instead of really fixing the problem though.

How do you propose they fix it? The problem is there are just so many people going to WDW and Disney has done a fairly good job of educating them to make ADRs. As someone who well remembers the days when you could only make day-of reservations, and they could only be made after you got inside the park, I like the ADR system. They are adding more restaurants to try to handle the capacity, and they added the cancellation charge. What else can they do?

 

[AngiTN]

Interesting. It looks like they have had complaints about lack of same day table service opportunities. Looks like they're tinkering at the edges again instead of really fixing the problem though.

Actually, I think this is the perfect fix. Allow those who want to make an ADR to make one and allows those who don't to walk up. How could they make that better?
Taking no ADR can really stretch out a wait list, especially during that magic 11-2 time. That sure doesn't seem like an improvement to me.

 

[grimley1968]

All I know is that it was far easier for us to get seated at the popular restaurants same day before the ADR system was around than at any time since the ADR system's inception. I'm willing to wait a while, rather than be told it's reservation-only.

I've walked up to Boatwright's in the last two or three years when it was nearly empty and was told there was no availability for a group of 4 (my family). We were told it was ADR seating only and that we would have to make an ADR an hour out. While standing in front of the empty restaurant and the hostess I called the ADR number and made a reservation for exactly one hour from the call. While we waited for the ADR time, we rode the boat over to POFQ and back, and looked in the POR gift shop. During this time, Boatwright's became even emptier, as we could plainly see when we showed up for our ADR time. The hostess surely felt ridiculous seeing us come back for our ADR, having just seen us 59 minutes prior, but you couldn't tell by looking at her. The meal was great (I love the restaurant), but the whole ADR thing was ridiculous. In case anyone wishes to say this was a fluke incident, what I just described happened not once, but twice, in separate trips in different years. The only reason I tried again to walk up to Boatwright's is that I thought surely WDW would not be so ridiculous about the ADR policy that we couldn't walk up to an empty restaurant and be seated. But WDW stuck to its ADR guns, unfortunately.

IMHO, it's a terrible system as it is, and adding more walkups won't solve the problem entirely, but it's a start. I personally think 180-day ADR availability is as ridiculous as 60-day ride reservations. While I can understand the need to make reservations for special events or for huge parties, I think shortening the reservation window to no more than a month would greatly improve the situation. I also think no restaurant should be ADR-only. As I've said, we did great without ADR's for years.

 

[capegirl]

Interesting. It looks like they have had complaints about lack of same day table service opportunities. Looks like they're tinkering at the edges again instead of really fixing the problem though.

Here we go again. This explains the problem I had getting a Plaza ADR between 12-1. I tried for July 21, and July 26 and the closest available times were could 11:10, and 11:20.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Even with the CC fee, I think a lot of people are still booking multiple ADRs for a given meal and what is happening is that there ends up being availability after midnight when people drop the ones they aren't going to use the next day. So this is a way for them to try to fill in a few holes perhaps, optimizing to the max. I don't think this is about addressing customer complaints about the lack of same-day seating.

 

[yulilin3]

one of those instances where Disney can't make EVERYONE happy.
For me personally is good when restaurants leave spots open for walk ups, I never know more than a week in advance if I'm going to a specific park and if I want to eat at a specific place so having this option is good, for us.

 

[GillianP1301]

This kinda drives me bonkers. Either go ADR or go no ADR, trying to do half/half is just going to end up annoying more people than not. Personally, I have no issue with every TS restaurants being ADR only. If you want a last minute table, then check the morning of or even 5 minutes before and see what is open.

They just finished changing Skipper's Canteen from same day only to advanced ADR and now they are going the opposite way with The Plaza, which is such a tiny restaurant, of all the TS in MK, choosing the smallest for walk ups doesn't seem to make a lot of sense.

 

[Tomh]

GillianP1301, I agree completely. This is a half rear ended attempt, and will very likely fail as miserably as the no ADR policy at the Skippers Canteen did. Either you have ADR's everywhere all the time, or nowhere, but you can't mix the two, it just isn't going to work.

 

[Princess Mulan]

All I know is that it was far easier for us to get seated at the popular restaurants same day before the ADR system was around than at any time since the ADR system's inception. I'm willing to wait a while, rather than be told it's reservation-only.

I've walked up to Boatwright's in the last two or three years when it was nearly empty and was told there was no availability for a group of 4 (my family). We were told it was ADR seating only and that we would have to make an ADR an hour out. While standing in front of the empty restaurant and the hostess I called the ADR number and made a reservation for exactly one hour from the call. While we waited for the ADR time, we rode the boat over to POFQ and back, and looked in the POR gift shop. During this time, Boatwright's became even emptier, as we could plainly see when we showed up for our ADR time. The hostess surely felt ridiculous seeing us come back for our ADR, having just seen us 59 minutes prior, but you couldn't tell by looking at her. The meal was great (I love the restaurant), but the whole ADR thing was ridiculous. In case anyone wishes to say this was a fluke incident, what I just described happened not once, but twice, in separate trips in different years. The only reason I tried again to walk up to Boatwright's is that I thought surely WDW would not be so ridiculous about the ADR policy that we couldn't walk up to an empty restaurant and be seated. But WDW stuck to its ADR guns, unfortunately.

IMHO, it's a terrible system as it is, and adding more walkups won't solve the problem entirely, but it's a start. I personally think 180-day ADR availability is as ridiculous as 60-day ride reservations. While I can understand the need to make reservations for special events or for huge parties, I think shortening the reservation window to no more than a month would greatly improve the situation. I also think no restaurant should be ADR-only. As I've said, we did great without ADR's for years.

This reminds me of our experience at Rose & Crown a couple of years ago. We walked up and asked for a table (in front of a clearly near-empty restaurant), only to be told that we must have an ADR. So in front of the hostess we whipped out a phone and made an immediate ADR. She didn't change expression as we announced that we were there for our reservation!

 

[capegirl]

This kinda drives me bonkers. Either go ADR or go no ADR, trying to do half/half is just going to end up annoying more people than not. Personally, I have no issue with every TS restaurants being ADR only. If you want a last minute table, then check the morning of or even 5 minutes before and see what is open.

They just finished changing Skipper's Canteen from same day only to advanced ADR and now they are going the opposite way with The Plaza, which is such a tiny restaurant, of all the TS in MK, choosing the smallest for walk ups doesn't seem to make a lot of sense.

Agree. I find it frustrating and annoying considering the constant promotion of advanced planning. Why bother with ADRs at all if you have to deal with this sort of thing.

 

[SouthernBuckeye]

Maybe this explains why The Plaza is the only ADR I couldn't get at 180+ days out for our November trip.

I much prefer it as an ADR because it's already one of the few TS restaurants in MK and it's more affordable as an OOP meal. On a busy MK day, I like to count on this for a calm break. And a guarantee of something I will be able to get into without fighting the crowds.

 

[AngiTN]

I guess I'll remain in the minority in that I love the change and hope to see it spread.
Block out a time period where you need an ADR and otherwise, allow walk ups.
Surely that pleases the greatest number of people, the non-planners and the planners. No?
Planners will hate no ADR at all.
Non Planners will only have a small window of time where they can't be seated.
What other method will please the largest number of guests?
Because as Yulilin said, there is no way to please everyone, all they can do is work to please the biggest number of guests

 

[Delirium]

Well....we have an ADR for the Plaza in October. Always wanted to do it, but tended to stay away from non-character table service until we got free dining this year. Looks as if we may not have needed it. But, we'll keep it nonetheless.

 

[blemon]

I love what I'm hearing so far about the restaurant and it confirms why I chose it.
We are vegetarian and made ADRs ages ago for our trip next month.
Calm, quiet, small.

Hope the food is good!

 

[AngiTN]

Well....we have an ADR for the Plaza in October. Always wanted to do it, but tended to stay away from non-character table service until we got free dining this year. Looks as if we may not have needed it. But, we'll keep it nonetheless.

They'll always help. At least you'll know when you'll be seated, within a reasonable window anyway.
Provided they use common sense and put ADR people above walk ups. That's what off site restaurants that take a mix of walk up and reservations do.

We always hope on our phones and book an ADR, no matter where we plan to go, even those that I know don't require them. It just makes it easier for us. We rarely book ADR well in advance, except for those few usual suspects that are super busy. Otherwise, we look on the app that morning and see what is open that suits our plans that day.

 

[Happy_Haunt999]

I love what I'm hearing so far about the restaurant and it confirms why I chose it.
We are vegetarian and made ADRs ages ago for our trip next month.
Calm, quiet, small.

Hope the food is good!

The food is excellent and this is always of our go to once sometimes twice a trip ADRs. Guess I'm gonna have to try to force myself to eat b/t 11-12 so I can hopefully get an ADR for our next trip. I refuse to walk-up b/c I "have" to eat at this place every trip lol!

 

[Angel Ariel]

How do you propose they fix it? The problem is there are just so many people going to WDW and Disney has done a fairly good job of educating them to make ADRs. As someone who well remembers the days when you could only make day-of reservations, and they could only be made after you got inside the park, I like the ADR system. They are adding more restaurants to try to handle the capacity, and they added the cancellation charge. What else can they do?

Personally, I think the cancellation charge just compounds the problem of lack of ADR availability prior to arrival..or doesn't help it at all, at least. People just hold their reservations until the day before instead of day of.

IMHO, lining up the windows for booking dining and fp would significantly help, as it would get rid of the "I'm going to book BOG 3 different days at 180 days out because I don't know what day of my trip I'll be able to get FPs for SDMT, which would be my MK day" train of thought. Shorten the adr window to more closely line up with the fp windows, and I think a lot of double booking and hoarding reservations would go away (not all, but enough that it would be a noticeable difference, imo)

 

[AngiTN]

Personally, I think the cancellation charge just compounds the problem of lack of ADR availability prior to arrival..or doesn't help it at all, at least. People just hold their reservations until the day before instead of day of.

IMHO, lining up the windows for booking dining and fp would significantly help, as it would get rid of the "I'm going to book BOG 3 different days at 180 days out because I don't know what day of my trip I'll be able to get FPs for SDMT, which would be my MK day" train of thought. Shorten the adr window to more closely line up with the fp windows, and I think a lot of double booking and hoarding reservations would go away (not all, but enough that it would be a noticeable difference, imo)

I'd be all over ADR window of 60 days. The 180 is rather odd.