PDA

View Full Version : Dinner ADRs-Total time it takes from check-in until finish?



Artsake
08-05-2008, 10:57 AM
The girlfriend and I have been to Disney World many times within the past few years but we have not bothered with the dining plan as we do not like the idea of being tied to an ADR time. Since the dining plan was a "free" add-on for our upcoming Sept trip I decided to give it a shot. I have made all of our ADRs but I am a little weary of the dinner ADRs in the parks as I fear they may take up too much time. How long does it usually take from check-in until you walk out of the restaurant? I am specifically worried about Sci-Fi and Les Chef de France as I have made dinner ADRs for those places.

Also, if we decide the table service places take up too much of our time, can we use our table service credit at a counter service place?

MuchLovedMama
08-05-2008, 11:25 AM
I'm glad you asked this question because I've been curious myself. We are a party of 8 though so I'm sure it will take a bit longer than yours. Hopefully somebody will come along & give us a good guestimate.

MississippiDisneyFreak
08-05-2008, 11:26 AM
It took us from 1 to 1 1/2 hours, I remember we had some early lunches like around 11 and we were in and out in an hour....dinner and later lunches seemed to take and extra 30 minutes...

DDuck66
08-05-2008, 11:40 AM
We are usually a party of two and it takes us about an hour for breakfast and lunches and about an hour and 15 minutes for dinner. It depends on what you order and where you are eating. We are usually quick to order and know exactly what we want before we get there so when they come for our drinks we go ahead and place our order.

Strmchsr
08-05-2008, 11:44 AM
Given that you're going during "free" dining and the restaurants will be packed to overflowing I would count on around 2 hours.

Artsake
08-05-2008, 11:53 AM
Thanks for the replies everyone.

Strmchsr,

That is what I am afraid of. With everyone staying at Disney resorts on free dining, I think the table service places are going to be ridiculously busy and food is not important to me so I can't envision spending two hours in a restaurant when I could be taking in rides/shows.

Thanks again for the replies.

Strmchsr
08-05-2008, 12:18 PM
Is there a room-only discount available during your vacation? If you don't care about the food you might be much better off switching to that (if there is one) and just paying for your food OOP. If you use TS credits for CS (which I'm not even sure is possible) you're giving up a large part of the discount.

Oh, and I didn't say earlier :welcome: to Intercot!! We're glad you're here. :mickey:

Artsake
08-05-2008, 12:38 PM
There isn't a room only discout that I am aware of (at least not that applies to AKL which is where we are staying). I think they used to release a room only discount for Sept but they replaced that with free dining the past few years. Oh well, free counter service meals are better than nothing.

Thanks for the welcome.

WishingStar2006
08-05-2008, 12:51 PM
FYI...Chefs De France is notorious for running 30-45 minutes late on ADR times....everyone else seems pretty prompt, especially if you check in at the podium early, as suggested.

And yes, you can use TS credits for CS.

Enjoy.

Artsake
08-05-2008, 01:08 PM
Thanks for the info WishingStar2006, I think I am going to cancel my reservations for Sci-Fi and Chefs de France in lieu of counter service meals. We have ADRs for other nights when we won't be in the parks and we can enjoy table service at those (Boma, Cali Grill, & Spoodles) without having to feel it is taking too long and feel like we are missing out on shows/rides.

Thanks for all the info everyone.

Tygger7
08-05-2008, 01:11 PM
Total time can vary greatly from restaurant to restaurant. For example, on our last trip (May 2008), for a seating of 4, here's some samples of how much times can vary:

Whispering Canyon: We checked in 15 minutes prior to our ADR. They had major system issues and lost our reservation twice. It took 60 minutes to be seated, and almost 90 minutes from the time we were seated until we walked out. This was the worst experience on our whole 10-day trip.

Le Celier: We checked in 15 minutes prior to our ADR and were immediately seated. We were out in exactly an hour.

Teppan Edo: Again, checked in 15 minutes prior to our ADR and were seated at our exact reservation time. Even with the hibachi style dining, we were out in an hour & 15 minutes.

Rose & Crown: Again, checked in 15 minutes prior to our ADR and were seated about 5 minutes after our reservation time. But, that suited us fine because we wanted to watch Illuminations after dinner. We were there about 2 hours, but it was the best experience of our whole trip.

I would interject this....you mentioned that the food/dining wasn't really important to you. Maybe I'm in the minority, but for us the whole dining thing has become one of our favorite parts of the whole Disney experience. We don't go out to eat very much at home, let alone to any places as nice as the ones at Disney. It's a great time to rest & relax and make plans for what we want to do next. And so many of the restuarants are, well.....not just a place to eat, but a place to experience. For example, Sci Fi Drive In. The theming is awesome, and it's like sitting in a drive in movie theater lot. The movie trailers are something we look forward to....yes, we even video taped them so we could relive it when we get the Disney blues. I guess bottom line, my suggestion is try not to focus on what you're missing while dining, but the unique experiences you're gaining. Some of our funniest and best times have come while we were at the restaurants and/or resorts, away from the parks. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the parks, but the restaurants have a lot to offer too. Okay, off my soapbox now. :mickey:

Have a wonderful trip, and sit back, take a minute....and smell the cinnamon rolls. :D

jszczur5
08-05-2008, 02:37 PM
Given that you're going during "free" dining and the restaurants will be packed to overflowing I would count on around 2 hours.

I agree. We have done "free dining' each of the last 2 years, and it took nearly two hours for each dinner. You might be able to shave 15 minutes off of that time now that the appetizer is no longer included. Buffets, are of course, a little faster.

wdwnomad
08-05-2008, 10:50 PM
It really depends. What time are you eating, where are you eating, do you have a good server who is attentive? Some places you can be in and out in an hour and half. Some places it has taken well over two hours from checking in to getting the bill. For a best estimate I would say 2 hours is average.

If you really want to get in out of then eat at buffets or try and get the first dinner seatings of the evening.

TINKERBELL_82
08-07-2008, 12:53 PM
As a few others have suggested, why not use your TS service on Buffets and Family Style Meals? There are quite a few:

MK:

Crystal Palace
Liberty Tree Tavern

Epcot:

Garden Grill
Biergarten

MGM:

Hollywood & Vine

Plus there are plenty at the resorts!

That way you can govern the amount of time you spend in the restaurant. Just a thought!

the other micki
08-07-2008, 01:04 PM
They have begun a new dining plan option in which you eat 2 CSs a day instead of 1 TS and 1 CS a day. Perhaps this may save you some time. However, this may only be available for 2009 packages. Not sure... Anybody know?

bigbabyblues
08-07-2008, 06:55 PM
They have begun a new dining plan option in which you eat 2 CSs a day instead of 1 TS and 1 CS a day. Perhaps this may save you some time. However, this may only be available for 2009 packages. Not sure... Anybody know?

That is only available for 2009.

KathyMO
08-07-2008, 07:31 PM
Thanks for the info WishingStar2006, I think I am going to cancel my reservations for Sci-Fi and Chefs de France in lieu of counter service meals. We have ADRs for other nights when we won't be in the parks and we can enjoy table service at those (Boma, Cali Grill, & Spoodles) without having to feel it is taking too long and feel like we are missing out on shows/rides.

Thanks for all the info everyone.

If you cancel those reservations you might want to look into changing a couple of your ADR to a Signature Dining Experience which takes 2 TS credits. You can just pay out of pocket for the CS the other two days.

:welcome:

Kathy