Originally Posted By danyoung >I know this is really far fetched but you can always also call the day before you go and see if their were any cancellations.< Yeah, I'm counting on this. As I noted earlier, Disney does make a distinction when you call in - if you're a local, or dining within the next 7 days, press 2. So there's a chance that they keep some of their inventory held out for the last minute folks. I'll be trying maybe once a month or so, and then I'll definitely hit that 7 days window. It's not a dealbreaker if I can't get exactly what I want, but it is more of a pain than I'd anticipated.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip If all else fails you can show up half an hour before your reservation and see if you can get seated more quickly. That happened to us once at 'Ohana when the bus got us to the Poly a half hour sooner than we expected. We checked in and 5 minutes later they said they could seat us if we would like.
Originally Posted By danyoung ^^^^ That's exactly my plan, should all else fail. I've had great luck over the years showing up early. As long as you're in the computer, they don't seem to mind too much. Great minds, and all, Trippy . . .
Originally Posted By SuperDry <<< If you are going to just eat hot dogs or hamburgers, etc. definitely save your money on the dining plan and just buy the counter service meals. >>> The problem is, this advice doesn't work during the promotional periods when they offer the DDP to all resort guests at no additional cost. People that would have never gone to some of the locations either because of price or type of food suddenly flood them. There are many side effects, and they've been discussed here in detail: guests that would not normally spend their money in a higher-end restaurant read the menu from right to left and choose the most expensive item, even if they otherwise wouldn't, and might complain if there is no "normal" food on the menu at, say, France.
Originally Posted By WeirdJohn I still say they should offer a step below on the dining plan that is just counter meals. Say $20 to $25 a day. This would appeal to a lot of families and would trim down the overflow in the higher end restaurants. They could even have a higher end DDP with two table services a day or so. Though I guess the Premium package kind of does this already. Anyway, just a thought. I think if Disney offered a cheaper DDP though, it would attract a lot of people.
Originally Posted By MPierce I think if WDW just ended the DDP all the problems of the free world would be eliminated.
Originally Posted By brerroadrunner When we visited a few weeks ago, we had tickets to the premier of PoC at DD. I asked Concierge staff for ressies to House of Blues. I was told that they were not taking anymore AR. We booked someplace else(this was same day). We went early and walked up to HofB and got seated in 5 minutes. I don't know if all Disney rest. hold out so many tables for walk ups. Also, 18 months ago, we wanted Le Cellier while on our trip. Of course I was told it was all booked as it was the most popular place on Disney property. I was disappointed. We went by there and walked up and was told we were in luck, they had just extended seating another 30 minutes, so we got a table with a relatively short wait. BTW, I love DDE as it is good in alot of the lounges for drinks and appetizers, where DDP is not.
Originally Posted By danyoung brerroadrunner, I think there will always be special situations where you can luck into a table at the last minute. But in general, it just doesn't happen that often. Most World Showcase restaurants will tell you when you walk up that they are totally booked right up till closing. They'll offer to call around and see what might be open. You'll usually wind up in Morocco or China. Good restaurants there, just not the most popular.
Originally Posted By Mr X >>So I settled for the San Angel Inn, which isn't bad. I'll try again tomorrow, at 6am central, and see if I can get a good time at the Coral Reef. This is really a pain!!!!!!<< Strangely enough I've never even set foot inside the Coral Reef Restaurant (strange because I used to live in Kissimmee and have been to Epcot upwards of a hundred times! never been inside the Chinese restaurant either, for some reason)... I never sought out a reservation there anyway, not being much of a seafood person (hate it...live in Japan...how miserable huh? ). But anyway, if it's this much trouble, is it REALLY worth it? I enjoyed San Angel...love the vibe there (kinda reminds me of Blue Bayou, with the boats going by and the night scene and all that). What's wrong with sticking with that reservation and calling it a day? (I guess I'm looking for some rave reviews of the Coral Reef to justify all this hassle!) >>And I am not even sure I'm bringing a cell phone. It's my honeymoon so I sort of want to cut myself off from the outside for a while.<< John, seriously...you're HONEYMOON!!!??? And you're even THINKING about bringing the cell? Come on. There's only one thing you should be focused on that week (or however long) and that is HER ENJOYMENT and spending quality time and all that. If your job is so intense that you NEED to be in touch, tell them what hotel you're staying in and instruct them to leave a message "only in an emergency". Other than that...dude. What are you thinking? Anyway, all this stressful sounding stuff is starting to make me re-think my vague plans to re-visit WDW at all! I was giving it a little consideration, since it's been a long time, BUT I'm really not sure I want to deal with not being able to find a restaurant, and other similar sounding hassles I've heard so much about. Maybe I'll just go back to Anaheim again instead (I'll check out Everest and Mission:Space someday way down the road I guess. other than that, I've totally seen the resort anyway).
Originally Posted By danyoung >Danno oh danno... this obssesion over food is not healthy, and it shows.< Yeah, I don't know if I have serious internal problems or something. But I have this insane need to eat oh maybe as often as three times a day! Odd, isn't it? And then there's my insane desire to have much nicer dining experiences while on vacation than when I'm at home eating microwavable meals while watching tv. I guess I must be some kind of freak or something . . . >...if it's this much trouble, is it REALLY worth it?< In a word, yes. I've had many really excellent meals at the Coral Reef. It's a combination of the food, the service, and the spectacular ambiance of a great restaurant. And then you follow that with a leisurely stroll out to the World Showcase, a martini or 3 at the Rose & Crown, and IllumiNations. Sure, I can enjoy the same general plan with a meal elsewhere. But it's been a couple of years since I've been able to eat dinner at the Coral Reef, and this time I'm pushing extra hard to make it happen. >...all this stressful sounding stuff is starting to make me re-think my vague plans to re-visit WDW at all!< I hope this isn't the case. In the long run, I'll certainly get used to the new system, and make my reservations 180 days our like a good little park stormer. I'm just a little miffed cuz it used to be so much easier.
Originally Posted By WeirdJohn Hey Mr. X. No, seriously, I agree with that. We will have her cell phone, which my work doesn't know the number to anyway for emergencies. In truth, if I told my boss that I did not want to be contacted during my honeymoon I wouldn't be. He's pretty cool. We are going to have a great time and just have fun. I think the highlight will be dinner at CG during the fireworks. Thanks to helpful info from the people here we have it all set up. Anyway, Mr. X, don't worry, I've got my priorities straight. My future wife always comes first.
Originally Posted By Mr X >>Anyway, Mr. X, don't worry, I've got my priorities straight. My future wife always comes first.<< Already ahead of the curve, huh? That's good.
Originally Posted By Mr X >>make my reservations 180 days our like a good little park stormer<< Yeah...never gonna happen (for me). I'd just as soon go out to hotel plaza blvd. and eat at the olive garden. The Disney restaurants are "kinda" special (none hold a candle to any of the amazing TDR restaurants though, never mind Ikspiari), but not even CLOSE to being worth all that kinda hassle! Sucks that this seems to be the trend du jour. I will definitely be eating elsewhere if I do show up at all! >>In a word, yes. I've had many really excellent meals at the Coral Reef. It's a combination of the food, the service, and the spectacular ambiance of a great restaurant.<< I've heard that the ambiance is awsome (fish tanks all around, right?9, and that would be a big draw for me as well...hard to pass up "dining in the countries" though. I should try it someday though. Do they have any non-seafood options?
Originally Posted By danyoung The largest wall of the restaurant is made up of glass panels that look out into the aquarium. And I do believe they have a beef and a chicken option on the menu, although I've always gone for the yummy seafood.
Originally Posted By MPierce >> In a word, yes. I've had many really excellent meals at the Coral Reef. It's a combination of the food, the service, and the spectacular ambiance of a great restaurant. And then you follow that with a leisurely stroll out to the World Showcase, a martini or 3 at the Rose & Crown, and IllumiNations. Sure, I can enjoy the same general plan with a meal elsewhere. But it's been a couple of years since I've been able to eat dinner at the Coral Reef, and this time I'm pushing extra hard to make it happen. << When you only go once or twice a year it's reasonable to assume you can dine where you want at what time you want when you make reservations a half of a year in advanced. DDP has hurt much more than just the quality of food, and service.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<The largest wall of the restaurant is made up of glass panels that look out into the aquarium. And I do believe they have a beef and a chicken option on the menu, although I've always gone for the yummy seafood.>> They recently got a new chef, but the food is still excellent. They did have a chicken entree, a steak and prime rib (added as a cheap dumbed down option for the DDPers, no doubt) as well as pasta and veggie entrees. Plenty of choices. I actually had a steak and it was very good. <<When you only go once or twice a year it's reasonable to assume you can dine where you want at what time you want when you make reservations a half of a year in advanced. DDP has hurt much more than just the quality of food, and service.>> Disney doesn't care. They have poured over the numbers of the consultants and MBAs and the results say there's a much larger profit in alienating the locals/Floridians (forget they truly kept the place open in the dark days from 2001-03) and people who simply can't say on June 15th where they'd like to have lunch on Nov. 21st and at what time. The DDP is a terrible addition, but it did get a certain incompetent VP a promotion to Paris.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>I guess I must be some kind of freak or something..<< YOU said it. NOT me.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<Ahhh, TDLFAN. You want me badly, don't you?>> Are you cute? If so, he wants you. I keep trying to interest him in a short, blonde, average looking straight guy from the Northern Tundra but he just isn't biting!! ;-)
