Trader Sam's a major disappointment this trip...

[Summer2018]

 

[glocon]

I'll be staying at Poly this Feb for our first time, just hubby and I, and we've never been to Trader Sam's. We want to check it out, but I'm not sure it will feel worth our time? Seems confusing to get on the list and get a chance to visit? Do you just wait in your room or the pool for a text? If I do get on the list and get to visit, what appetizer and drinks do you all like best?

We have only been there once, but for drinks the Uh-Oa and the Nautilus were tasty and fun. For food, we had the flatbread and something else, maybe the dumplings. the flatbread was quite good, and all the food was hot and freshly made so no complaints there. Such a fun vibe. We were seated at the big communal table in the middle of the room and had so much fun with our tablemates!

 

[leebee]

DH and I went to Trader Sam's in January 2025. We were have a "no park" trip so it didn't interrupt our day. As when I went with DD, we got there right around 1pm and were the third party in line. CM came out and started taking names around 1:30... maybe 1:45- but the line had been forming since 1pm. We went to Captain Cook's for lunch and then went back out to the hall to wait for "the call." We were the third group seated and luckily got seats at the bar. We stayed for 2 drinks so were there for probably an hour or so. We invested 4+ hours of our day (left WL at noon by boat and walked over to the Poly from MK) for a couple of adult bevs and a bit of fun. We've been to Disney too many times to keep track of anymore (35?) and as I said, we didn't have park tickets at all, so this was fine. However, if I was on a "once every few years" or a park-centric trip, I wouldn't bother with Trader Sam's. Too much time (and money!) invested for what you get.

 

[vinotinto]

We haven't been to Trader Sam's since it had recently opened (I think we went Oct 2015, because we stayed at the Poly that trip. so, gulp, is it possible that it's been almost 10 years?). It was cool, and I wonder if they still do it this way, we were let in and there wasn't seating available. They would let into the space more people than there were seats (similar to a bar). We just stood around and got drinks at the bar, and eventually some people in the big middle table left and we sat there. We had 2 kids at the time (around ages 7 and 10), and the other people at the table didn't, but we all chatted and had a great time. We haven't been able to be back because it does require such a significant time investment to actually get a seat. It was cool, but tiny (part of the charm is how small it is). My son is turning 21 in December and I think it would be fun to go back, but it sounds like they waits have gotten worse, not better.

 

[kylenne]

We haven't been to Trader Sam's since it had recently opened (I think we went Oct 2015, because we stayed at the Poly that trip. so, gulp, is it possible that it's been almost 10 years?). It was cool, and I wonder if they still do it this way, we were let in and there wasn't seating available. They would let into the space more people than there were seats (similar to a bar). We just stood around and got drinks at the bar, and eventually some people in the big middle table left and we sat there. We had 2 kids at the time (around ages 7 and 10), and the other people at the table didn't, but we all chatted and had a great time. We haven't been able to be back because it does require such a significant time investment to actually get a seat. It was cool, but tiny (part of the charm is how small it is). My son is turning 21 in December and I think it would be fun to go back, but it sounds like they waits have gotten worse, not better.

10 years is an eon in Disney time. No, they are not letting people stand in there anymore. Covid was when the hours long waiting lists to get in started because they stopped doing that due to distancing requirements, and they never went back even after those were dropped. There’s also been years of influencers hyping it to death on socials since then.

I love Trader Sam’s, but I would not bother with it unless I was a Poly guest. I never go there except when I am. Ideally it’s done on a resort day, like we did the other week; we had an Oasis patio and I walked over from the pool at around 3 to get us on the list. But I really don’t understand people coming from other resorts to wait around ages for texts. It’s a cute kitschy little spot to hang out when you’re staying there, but I don’t think the antics are worth it being the “destination” it’s become mostly due to socials driving FOMO, and the hours long waits to get in just contribute to people feeling like it’s not worth it once they do. Nowhere could live up to that hype.

 

[Disnsyncey]

10 years is an eon in Disney time. No, they are not letting people stand in there anymore. Covid was when the hours long waiting lists to get in started because they stopped doing that due to distancing requirements, and they never went back even after those were dropped. There’s also been years of influencers hyping it to death on socials since then.

I love Trader Sam’s, but I would not bother with it unless I was a Poly guest. I never go there except when I am. Ideally it’s done on a resort day, like we did the other week; we had an Oasis patio and I walked over from the pool at around 3 to get us on the list. But I really don’t understand people coming from other resorts to wait around ages for texts. It’s a cute kitschy little spot to hang out when you’re staying there, but I don’t think the antics are worth it being the “destination” it’s become mostly due to socials driving FOMO, and the hours long waits to get in just contribute to people feeling like it’s not worth it once they do. Nowhere could live up to that hype.

I think we went over there after a party closed the MK early, put our name on the list, did a monorail resort tour, went back to the Tambu lounge to eat dinner, got the text, went in and were done before the MNSSHP fireworks it worked out well!

 

[vinotinto]

There’s also been years of influencers hyping it to death on socials since then.

Thank you for the mental picture. That’s enough to confirm a different choice for his 21st!

 

[HopperFan]

I think this is one of those places that it will totally depend on the person. We love it there and we were just there a couple weeks ago. It was a mid day break from MK. We were seated at the bar - a first - and the bartenders were awesome and so entertaining to us, and the whole bar. We go about once a year. We had snacked all day so we only ordered a flatbread this trip. We did our waiting in some comfy chairs in front of the new DVC building.

Is it for everyone, no. It is unique and we are Tiki Bar people and thoroughly enjoy the engagement. But it is usually a long wait so at a place where time can be precious, might not be it. We also visited the Abracadabra Bar on the Boardwalk for the first time and while it was nice and chill, we probably won't go back ~ rather the fun spot.

 

[toesmom]

I don't think so and I've been outside various times. The theming is crazy cool inside.

We have wanted to try Trader Sam’s but the wait is too long. Maybe we should just try our next visit.

 

[_19disnA]

I doubt any restaurant is worth waiting 3 hrs for a table. At the point you were informed of an excessive wait, I would have looked for somewhere else to eat.

 

[Summer2018]

I agree that a 3 hour wait is ridiculous. If WDW's Trader Sams extended their hours to match Disneyland's, it would give more guests the opportunity to experience it. At Disneyland, they open at 11:30am, so we got there at 11am, first in line, and first to choose our table two days in a row. It was such a fun way to take a midday break from the parks.

 

[tzolkin]

I doubt any restaurant is worth waiting 3 hrs for a table. At the point you were informed of an excessive wait, I would have looked for somewhere else to eat.

They do serve food (a few appetizers), but it's not really a restaurant and no one is going there to eat. It's an immersive experience catered to people who enjoy tiki theming and are fans of Disney's Adventureland. Plenty of people will wait 3 hours for a new attraction/ride that lasts less than 5 minutes, so some people think it's worth the wait for the experience/ambiance. If you were just looking for somewhere to eat, the food is definitely not worth the wait.