WDW Restaurants not for kids?

[J-Dog]

We are planning a WDW trip in May 2020, consisting of 4 adults, a 16-year old, and about an 18-month old. We plan to do all the theme park stuff, but also want to squeeze in a couple of fine dining restaurants during the trip.

Mostly, I am trying to plan to make sure that we don't book ADR's at any restaurants that the wait staff and/or other patrons will frown on a toddler being there.

I just saw a thread asking about Tiffin's, which is what prompted this thread, but other possibilities include Narcoosee's, Boma, Sanaa, Shula's, Bluezoo, etc. We are far away from our ADR window, so if those are no-go's, then we can always plan other places to eat.

To some extent, I don't care what other people think, but, at the same time, I don't want to be "that guy" that everybody blames for ruining their fancy meal.

Thanks!

 

[Disneylover99]

We are planning a WDW trip in May 2020, consisting of 4 adults, a 16-year old, and about an 18-month old. We plan to do all the theme park stuff, but also want to squeeze in a couple of fine dining restaurants during the trip.

Mostly, I am trying to plan to make sure that we don't book ADR's at any restaurants that the wait staff and/or other patrons will frown on a toddler being there.

I just saw a thread asking about Tiffin's, which is what prompted this thread, but other possibilities include Narcoosee's, Boma, Sanaa, Shula's, Bluezoo, etc. We are far away from our ADR window, so if those are no-go's, then we can always plan other places to eat.

To some extent, I don't care what other people think, but, at the same time, I don't want to be "that guy" that everybody blames for ruining their fancy meal.

Thanks!

I think as long as these places offer a kids menu, they’re fair game.

Nobody will blame you for ruining their fancy meal as long as you’re sensitive to other diners. As examples, don’t let your 18 month old wander from table to table or run around the restaurant and if your baby is crying, promptly take them out of the restaurant til they calm down. These are just things I’ve noticed on occasion that annoy me.

Some kids just aren’t quiet, but I think when parents make an effort to control, contain unruly behaviour, neighbouring tables recognize and appreciate it, over parents who ignore when their kids yell, scream, run, etc...

 

[gwynne]

There are usually little ones at Sanaa and Boma. Both places have room just outside the restaurant to walk with a restless toddler while others in the party finish their meal.

Personally, I wouldn't bring an 18 month old to Shula's or Bluezoo, but that's just my 2 cents.

 

[Helvetica]

It's Disney World... So long as you're considerate to other guests I think you're fine. Taking a baby to a place like Monsieur Paul or Victoria and Albert's is probably a bad idea though.

Tiffin's is in Animal Kingdom, so I think they'll be cool with it. Boma and Sannaa are both great, but it's still a 1 credit table service inside a hotel. I'm sure they get lots of younger guests. If there's a meltdown, there's plenty of pretty animals to go look at. Sannaa has animals that come up to the windows.

I personally wouldn't go to a lot of signature restaurants with a little one, maybe one or two if it's a long trip. Tiffin's is probably your best bet since it's inside Animal Kingdom.

 

[MikeOhio]

Boma and Sanaa are definitely kid friendly. The others not so much but as long as the kid is well behaved or you promptly remove him if being bad you should be fine.

 

[kaytieeldr]

It's Disney World... So long as you're considerate to other guests I think you're fine. Taking a baby to a place like Monsieur Paul or Victoria and Albert's is probably a bad idea though.

Victoria & Albert's has a minimum age of ten (aka Disney adult ). I think anywhere else, including Monsieur Robert, would be fine. It's a theme park. They expect and (should) welcome toddlers.

 

[lovin'fl]

The Boathouse is a good one for kiddos. There were a lot in there when we went and the place is kinda noisy so nobody will notice a noisy toddler.

Boma and Sanaa are fine for kiddos. Tiffins is pretty quiet and calm but I wouldn't be bothered by a behaved kid. We once were at Cali Grill and some big table with a ton of kids let them walk all around the restaurant and that was bothersome. At Boathouse another big table with tween aged kids let them bang on their drinking glasses with knives, like banging out a song, for a LONG time (like 15 minutes while they were paying their tab...I was never so glad to see a table clear out than that night).

 

[stephk1981]

You can bring babies into any restaurant that doesn't have an age requirement ( V&A) , but we have had our favorites and not so favorites with DD1. We just finished our sixth trip with her. Teppan Edo, Yachtsman, Coral Reef( although I don't love the food here), and San Angel Inn have all gone above and beyond with DD. We have especially always had amazing service at Yachtsman. Two put of six trips DD has been teething......we lucked out with the same waiter four of these trips....he always brings a glass full of ice and a spoon for her...so she could fun the cold spoon in hopes it would help!
The restaurants that have been not so great with DD1......Le Cellier....we are here many times before DD and 3 since having her....every time the wait staff acts as if she's an inconvenience.( She drops silver ware sometimes....so I asked for a couple of extra spoons.....not so friendly waitress was pretty impatient.) The front of the restaurant staff at le Cellier have always been great though! We also haven't had great luck with Narcoosee, nothing major.....DD at 16 months spilled water on the table with ice......I asked for some extra napkins twice....never received them.( This as at 5 pm when they just opened...so not busy in the dining area, but could have been very busy in the back....I don't know.)
I hope you have a great dining experience everywhere you book and have a magical trip!

 

[SamFaniam]

The only ones you might want to reconsider are Shula's and Blue Zoo, as the Dolphin is a major convention hotel and sometimes those restaurants can be very crowded with conventioneers. Unfortunately, you won’t have a way of knowing that much ahead of time and may walk into a situation where you don’t feel as comfortable.

 

[Helvetica]

One other restaurant to consider is Cinderella's Royal Table. It's a signature restaurant with kiddos in mind. The Princesses are also unlikely to scare babies, which sometimes happens with the costumed characters. The food might not be as interesting as the other signatures, but it's still a really neat experience.

 

[ncc1701]

I think as long as these places offer a kids menu, they’re fair game.

Nobody will blame you for ruining their fancy meal as long as you’re sensitive to other diners. As examples, don’t let your 18 month old wander from table to table or run around the restaurant and if your baby is crying, promptly take them out of the restaurant til they calm down. These are just things I’ve noticed on occasion that annoy me.

Some kids just aren’t quiet, but I think when parents make an effort to control, contain unruly behaviour, neighbouring tables recognize and appreciate it, over parents who ignore when their kids yell, scream, run, etc...

Agreed speaking as half of a couple with no children. We expect to see young children at WDW restaurants. My one suggestion is to time your ADRs for what works for the toddler. A meal at some of the higher end restaurants , especially at the resorts , can take 90 minutes or more depending on what you order.

 

[Dean Marino]

Deleted

 

[B-Ride]

There IS one superior Restaurant with a "no young children" rule...
Victoria & Albert's, at the GF.

Beyond this? All others WELCOME your little ones . This is Disney - they don't do "no little ones" .

I agree 100%. Just be considerate of other guests if your little one starts screaming uncontrollably. We had a meal a few years back at Chefs de France where screamed for the entire meal.

 

[TeresaWen]

As long as a child in not kicking the back of my chair over & over we enjoy seeing young families enjoying a fine dining experience together. What a fabulous place to introduce young children to this!!

To me the sounds of children having fun is music. Your children are not nearly as loud as you think they are. Just make sure they do not kick the back of a chair over & over (this happened to me & the parents did not care one bit)

Enjoy!!!!

 

[Farro]

Agreed speaking as half of a couple with no children. We expect to see young children at WDW restaurants. My one suggestion is to time your ADRs for what works for the toddler. A meal at some of the higher end restaurants , especially at the resorts , can take 90 minutes or more depending on what you order.

I agree. We are also a couple with no kids and would never expect to not see children at (any) restaurants.

Now I'm not one who finds the sounds of children to be music , and I have wishful thinking that places like Dahlia Lounge at Gran Destino (more adult atmosphere) would not have children in the lounge, I understand children are welcome and wouldn't think anything of seeing them in the lounge.

 

[gharter]

Disney restaurants are very kid friendly.
The only one that has a restriction is Victoria and Alberts.
The key is to have enough things to keep your child entertained.
We took our kids to every restaurant at Disney and never had an issue. we often asked the server to bring some bread or crackers for our kids to snack on if they were very hungry while we waited for the food to come. We had lots of games and books for them.

 

[J-Dog]

Thanks very much for all the replies and experience.

I had a suspicion that V&A was not a place for kids, and hadn't really considered it anyway.

The one on the list that seems to be a little bit debatable, that we are considering is Shula's. Our kid is usually fairly quiet, so I'm hoping it'll be fine.

Thanks again.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Thanks very much for all the replies and experience.

I had a suspicion that V&A was not a place for kids, and hadn't really considered it anyway.

The one on the list that seems to be a little bit debatable, that we are considering is Shula's. Our kid is usually fairly quiet, so I'm hoping it'll be fine.

Thanks again.

You'll be fine at Shula's. As others have said, only V&A has age limits. Shula's has a children's menu, so they are set up to serve families with kids of all ages.

 

[DISNEY1975]

My kids were always very well behaved and I never had an issue with them at restaurants. My problem was with meal times. If I booked a dinner after 5pm, by the time the food came, they were fast asleep. Disney can be overwhelming for a toddler and with the weather, they will tire easily. My kids fell asleep well before their normal bedtime on every trip. Most of my Disney pics from 1995 - 2010 are of me with a sleeping child in my arms!

Maybe because I am a mother, but I have never noticed any kid at any restaurant at Disney. Its all just background noise to me! Personally, I would expect children everywhere I went at Disney, except maybe V&A.

 

[gharter]

Maybe because I am a mother, but I have never noticed any kid at any restaurant at Disney. Its all just background noise to me! Personally, I would expect children everywhere I went at Disney, except maybe V&A.

I would agree that most of the time, it is background noise.
However, I have been in several restaurants, most recently California Grill (we always brought our kids there when they were young), and watched several tables let their kids run around the restaurant, bother other tables, nearly trip the servers, while the parents totally ignored what was going on. Thats not the kids fault.

But, I think this kind of behavior leads to the OP original question. If the kids are behaving, you have things for them to do, and pay attention to them, there is no problem. Kids will make noise in a restaurant, and we all expect that, especially at Disney.