Wait at Chef Mickey's or PS elsewhere?

[Rpsemont]

BIL has generously agreed to spend the eveing with DD while DH and I go to party for the sense next sat. He told me his plan was to take her to Chef Mickey's then hang out at MK a bit, then join us back at Epcot for Illuminations. Well, I called Chef Mickey's and there's no PS available that night. I told him to wing it anyways, and go over around 5PM and it might not be that much of a wait, and if there is, he could go so CG or somewhere else on the monorail. What do you think? Does he have a chance (without waiting for hours!!) or whereelse would you suggest. BTW DD is 9. Maybe I should send them to Whispering Canyon Cafe? (although somewhere on the monorail would probably be better. We are staying at BWV.

 

[disney queen]

since they will be going to MK afterwards, why not eat at MK? the plaza restaurant is very good and be sure to save room for an ice cream delight! PS here are usually easy to get. good luck!

 

[Cameo]

I would not wait at CM in hopes of getting in. We have always had PS when we go and we still end up waiting 20-30 minutes to get seated. I often wonder if it's worth it.

 

[chipnwendy]

If you're looking for character interaction, maybe one of the 2 character meals in the MK might work as well.

 

[kyirish25]

I would try calling the morning of when you are wanting to eat at Chef Mickey's. If I still couldn't land a PS then I would just choose another place to eat.

How about 1900 Park Fare? I'm sure your daughter would love having dinner with Cinderella and Prince Charming.

 

[CarnotaurDad]

You can take the boat from MK to WL and it is a great ride - it makes it easy to do WC.

WC is great for kids. Make sure if they go to pick up a hidden Mickey worksheet at the front desk - it gives you clues to search around the lobby while you wait.

Also, WC provides lots of entertainment for kids if you BIL needs a little break.

Karen

 

[imfortune8]

We didn't have a PS due to a major change in plans, but tried to see if we could just be there right at 5:00pm and "luck out" with a table. Lets just say it was a total failure. The woman at the desk informed me PS's fill every table and they are booked solid. She did say that if I wanted to wait until sometime after 7:00 they may be able to get me in. Uh, no thank you. So, we had to get back on the monorail and "find" somewhere else. It wasn't easy, I wouldn't suggest it, since if you get turned away at 5:00 at chef mickey's the chances of you wasting a bunch of time figuring out something else is very likely - and kids don't really want to wait to eat!

Good luck!

 

[paigevz]

It's quite popular, and we've seen many turned away.

Our last trip, Spring Break, a woman was there with a 4 year old, pleading with the CM, and saying it was the little girl's bday, and they'd just called the front desk and were told they could get in. CM said no. We offered our table, but were told since we'd already had our picture, we were already "seated" and if we left another PS would take our place. I felt sorry for the little girl, the CM finally told her they could bring the little girl over for Donald Duck, who was hanging out in the little round area at the front of the restaurant, but she couldn't go see the others.

 

[MichelleB]

We had a completely different experience. We went last June and couldn't get PS for Chef Mickey. We were told to arrive at 5:00 and see if there were any openings. We got there right at 5:00 and our family of 5 was seated right away. I guess it just depends on the day.

 

[lark]

We're 50/50 with it. We just showed up once at opening (5:00, I guess) and were given a table no problem. About 5 minutes. We tried again later, because it had been so easy, and were told no dice for probably the whole night.

California Grill is a good back up. If you show up right at opening, or ideally, a few minutes before, they can often get you a table. But even if they can't, at that time of the day, there are a bunch of people sitting in the lounge waiting to be showed to their tables for the first PS of the night. That means there's a ton of turnover in the lounge, and so you can usually get a lounge table in like 5-10 minutes. You can order from the full menu there, and even do so overlooking the MK. Tell the people at the check in place on the 2d floor what you're doing and they'll help you figure out if you can get in. If that doesn't work, you can just wander over to CM.

 

[vicb]

Personally I don't think CM is worth the wait, we weren't impressed with it at all.

Here are a couple of suggestions:

If they are going to MK eat at Plaza Rest. , make a PS there. Or just do counter service (pecos bills or cosmic rays) and have more time for rides!

On the monorail, how about 'Ohana's?

How about going over to the BW and eating at ESPN Club? Then they'd be near the back enterence to Epcot. They could do BW activities (buskers, games, surrey bike etc...)

How about them eating dinner at Garden Grill in Epcot (do they serve dinner? Not sure as I ate lunch there).