Dining Tips for Solos?

[TexMomma]

DH & I have a trip scheduled for next weekend (Aug 28-30) but I may end up going alone due to family reasons. I'm perfectly okay with that but am wondering how solo diners are are perceived. My questions are: Will they make PS for solos? What places are best for solos? Are there places I should avoid? If I go ahead and make PS for two, but end up on my own, do I need to change them or can I just show up? Any other hints for a happy dining experience on my own? Thanks for any help you can offer.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Hi! I can understand your apprehension. It took me about 4 solo trips before I could be comfortable with sit-down dining by myself. My biggest tip is to bring a small notebook and a pen. Then if you're alone, you can use that time to jot notes on what you've done, your thoughts, where you want to go, what you've eaten, etc., sort of like notes for a trip report. Yes, they will make PS for 1, although as just 1, it's relatively easy to get a table without PS. I absolutely loved lunch at Cindy's (although for that, I'd recommend PS), they treated me so nice. For the best people-watching, I'd recommend Chef's de France with a table by the window. I've eaten there 3 times, although one time my server was more interested in flirting with the 2 young girls at the next table than waiting on this middle-aged woman alone. In Norway I got "forgotten" too, so I only ate there once. Bad service at Boatrights too. Great service, at least for this solo, at Cindy's (my favorite), Rose and Crown, LTT, Beaches and Cream, Boma's, and 2 of 3 times at Chef's de France-I'd go back there. This next trip I plan to make a few PS for 2, DS and myself, then if he chooses not to dine with me I'll just show up myself, not change the PS, since it's the same size table.

 

[katypop]

hi TexMomma,
my 1st solo trip i wasn't sure if dd would be along or not when i made my PS's , so i made them all for 2. there was never any problem when only i showed up, i simply said i had a PS but there would only be "one of me" 2nd trip i made them all for just myself without any problems.
i think we can all have good and bad experiences at places regardless of how large the group dining is. sometimes it is because of a server or maybe how busy a place is. after my 1st solo experience at CG i was raving about how good it was, but after my last visit there in april i will never go back they ignored me and made me feel very uncomfortable to be dining alone.
i would recommend Jiko at AK and ask to eat at the "cooking place". this is where they prepare the flatbreads and other appetizers. it is fun to watch the chefs and they will tell you about what they are making and answer questions. i had only planned on going here once but ended up going twice last trip i enjoyed it do much. 1st time i ordered one appetizer and an entree and was stuffed i was lamenting i had no room for dessert and the waiter said lots of people come in just for an appetizer and dessert, so this is what i did my 2nd visit
i was also treated well at Cindy's, ltt, bomas, San angel, le cellier. teppanyaki was great because you are seated with others and mine was a friendly table at primetime at mgm, my server was not into doing the "antics" but gave me great service and i enjoyed watching the tables around me who had "funny" servers. there are so many great dining places that the hard part is not going solo...but deciding where to go! have fun planning

Simba's Mom- hope i have better luck at norway than you did i was going to try them out last trip but they were closed during my stay, so i'm going to give them a try when i head back in dec

 

[TexMomma]

Thanks for the great input and suggestions. I'm having so much fun planning right now, especially since this is basically a spur-of-the-moment trip and the first to WDW without kids!!! I do hope to try Boma or Jiko, maybe Marrakesh @ Epcot, and I'm still deciding about others. My goal is to eat at places I've never tried before and try food that wouldn't necessarily appeal to kids. Hopefully nothing wrapped in paper the whole trip. Ya'll have reasurred me about my options. Thanks again. Janet

 

[jxgriffi]

It does make it a little easier when you are by yourself. My last couple of trips were by myself. I didn't have to worry about where everyone else wanted to go. I don't think I made a PS the entire time. I would just show up a little before I was ready to eat and ask how long for 1. Most of the time it was pretty quick. If it wasn't, I just headed somewhere else.

My personal favorite was the sushi bar in Japan (not the Teppan). Also...the "food court" over at CSR is very good and pretty inexpensive.

Have fun!

 

[DayOwlVT]

I share your apprehension, TexMomma. I like the idea of bringing a journal and taking notes for your trip report. I do that sometimes when I go to Vegas. If you're lucky enough to have a table with a view that allows you to people-watch, that makes time go by a little faster, too, while you're waiting for your food to arrive. Buffets are good, because there is no awkward wait time for food.

When I dine alone, I tend to frequent sit-down restaurants where I can sit at a counter or bar (NOT to be confused with counter service restaurants) and perhaps engage in conversation with my fellow customers or the people working the bar. This makes me feel less conspicuous than sitting at a table by myself. I've been trying to figure out where in the World I can do that. So far, I have come up with:

House of Blues, Rainforest Cafe, and Fulton's Crab House in Downtown Disney. (But I'm only going there one night, so....)
California Grill
Rose & Crown Pub
ESPN Club
Teppanyaki and Jiko apparently?
Looks like BlueZoo at the Dolphin will have bar seating

Do any of you WDW veterans know of other restaurants like this(particularly in the parks)?

 

[katypop]

DayOwlVT- yes , at Jiko the "cooking place" is a bar, only there is no alcohol served from there, you are watching the chefs prepare food and cook flatbreads in their wood-burning oven. at teppanyaki it is a little different, you are sitting at a "counter" around the cooking grill with others, i think each table seats 6 or 8. at least for part of the meal you are watching the chef cook your meal, if you are lucky, they can be quite funny and entertaining! flying fish also has a counter you can eat at. it is not in a park, but is a short walk or boatride from epcot.

jxgriffi-i had forgotten about the sushi bar in japan, i really liked it there too, especially nice if you can snag a window seat

TexMomma-you may have to plan on a longer trip to fit in all of these suggestions

 

[taswira]

As a local, since I am at WDW so often, I am frequently solo. I've had no problem, but my FAVORITE locations are any of the character dining experiences because I find I get even more attention when alone. Each of the characters has even sat down with me and stayed awhile when I choose a not-too-busy time to dine. It's been GREAT!

 

[tinkerbell81284]

I've done several character meals solo. It's very fun! The only part that stinks is trying to find someone to take a picture of me with the characters. So far I've been very lucky with people willing to take my picture. I too, usually pick sit down restaurants as apposed to counter service for meals. I also do make PS for most restaurants at WDW. I'm hoping in October I'll be able to do the 1900 Park Fare dinner with Cinderella.

Tink

 

[Claudia Kellenberger]

Janet, I have now done 5 solo vacations, and it is great !

Yes - I agree to have some sort of a notebook. You know those little notebooks with the wire coil on it ? That's a perfect size.
Also take your park map with you. You can make your notes, and also look at your park map. I'm now comfortable enough dining solo, even without my notebook, but I bring it anyway,
as a *rescue* in case I do feel uncomfortable.

Also - it helps very much to visit the bathroom just *BEFORE*
being seated for a meal. This way you don't have to leave your food on the table, because someone might clear it away.

 

[TexMomma]

Claudia,
GREAT suggestion about the restroom stop before being seated! Beats having to announce to your server that you're headed to the restroom, not finished dining! Right now it looks about 90% like I'll be solo. To tell you the truth, I'm having a lot of fun thinking about the prospect.

Thanks again to everyone for the great ideas. Definitely could use a longer trip to try them all out.

Blessings, Janet

 

[LoraJ]

I went solo on my last trip to WDW because my friend bailed last minute. Actually with all the nagging and whining about everything before we left (my friends mom who works at Disney got us an awesome rate at ASMu for $5 more a night than where we were staying off property and this girl wouldn't stop complaining about the extra $15 she would have to pay).

Anyway, I had a great time on my solo trip. I have some friends in the area that i would meet up with from time to time.

I did feel a bit weird about dining solo at sit down places. I think because there were a few occassions where I would be in line for rides and the one time I did a sit down meal (Sci-Fi Dine In) people would make comments "How can anyone come to Disney by themselves, how sad." Actually I think those people are sad.

If I were to go alone again, I would definitely do more sit down dining by myself and bring a book.

Despite the comment from those kids at SciFi Dine In, I think that was the best place for solo diners because no one is sitting at tables facing each other, everyone is looking at the screen.

 

[cseca]

yep, just came back for a solo trip and bringing a book is definitely a way to go... (well, I'm a book freak anyways... ).
but I whip up my book everywhere, waiting for busses or boats, while dining, waiting in line when it's just to darn hot to make friends hehehe...

This was the first time I've gone solo and it's definitely not as bad as I thought it would be...
No scheduling conflict...

Have fun!

 

[bavaria]

Generally the solo experience has been good. I carry a book everywhere too, so I never feel out of place. Some of my favourite restaurants for solo dining:

- Chefs de France
- the lounge in Japan
- Yacht Club Galley
- Concourse Steakhouse
- Brown Derby
- tea at the Grand Floridian

These places are regular locations for me, and I have always had great service. Other places are hit and miss, depending on the server - in some cases I have been completely ignored, while other times service was great

- Alfredo's (I loved the Italian server who thought that she might have heard of John Steinbeck and wanted to know more about my book! - then there was a young man who was very popular with other diners and never even brought me water, etc!)
- Akershus - usually good, sometimes completely ignored
- Grand Floridian Cafe - ditto

I haven't really done any buffets other than Akershus since the others are not to my taste.

Some places just never got it that there are singles in the world (I travel a LOT and have no problem eating alone) Prime Time was the WORST, on several occaisions the server either mocked my singleness to other diners or just refused to get into character as if a single didn't deserve the effort. Don't think that I'll be back unless with a group.


But don't let being single make you miss out on a great meal - there should be no penalty for choosing to go solo. I am going with a large group in a week, but will definitely take some time alone as well!

 

[carol devaill]

JUST RETURNED FROM MY SOLO DISNEY TRIP. HAVE BEEN DOING SOLO SINCE 1995. SO FAR THE ONLY PROBLEM I HAD WAS OVER AT THE SCI-FI AT MGM. THE REMARK WAS MADE ALSO TO 'WHO WOULD COME TO DISNEY ALONE'. I JUST TURNED AROUND AND TOLD THEM TO TRY IT,THEY MAY LIKE IT. HAVE EATEN AT THE PLAZA RESTAURANT,LE CELLIER, AND 50'S PRIME TIME AND HAVE NO PROBLEM. THEY PUT ME BY A WINDOW TALBLE AND GET EXTRA ATTENTION. BOY, DOES THAT FEEL GOOD. HAD A GREAT TIME ON MY VACATION. LUCKLY IVAN DID NOT SPOIL IT FOR ME.

 

[Terk-1]

Having gone 4 times already as a solo, I think I can throw my 2 cents into this.

Some of my favorite places to dine are:
Cindy's (lunch or dinner) & the Crystal Palace at the Magic Kingdom.
Le Cellier & the Rose & Crown at EPCOT
50's Primetime Cafe at MGM
Tusker House at Animal Kingdom
California Grill & Chef Mickey's (breakfast only) @ the Contemporary
O'Hana's @ the Polynesian
Beaches & Cream @ the Beach Club
Whispering Canyon Cafe @ the Wilderness Lodge
Yachtsman Steakhouse @ the Yacht Club

Places I've been pretty disappointed with & would avoid:
Chef Mickey's for dinner (worst meal I've ever had on WDW property)
1900 Park Fare for dinner
Tony's
Plaza Restaurant (would go for just ice cream)
Kona Cafe (tried breakfast & dinner and was very disappointed)
Sci-Fi @ MGM

 

[justlikeeyore]

went to hoop dee doo solo. it was gr8 had a great big bowl of salad and loaf of bread waited 4 me on table. had a wonderful time

 

[PieInYourEye]

I solo about once a month and have had pretty good experiences everywhere except Tony's... there I was in a corner and ignored.

My favoriate place to go is CG and just sit at the bar overlooking MK... wine and flatbread and I'm set!

 

[bavaria]

Ok, it may be all in my head, but as I have said before, service at Akershus has been really hit and miss as a solo. This month I went alone and had the bad service - waited over 20 minutes to pay with only about 8 tables occupied in the whole restaurant.

The very next day I went back with a large group, and we were smothered with service. Three servers, constant attention, drinks refilled before previous ones were finished, etc.

hmmm....

 

[spotdog]

I have never had a bad experience dining "solo" at a Disney restaurant. I especially love the Cape May Cafe at the Beach Club. I have been there twice for the seafood buffet and then "walked it off" on the way to Epcot Illuminations.

The Biergarten buffet at Epcot seats everyone at large tables (8-10 people) so if you like families and other friendly company that is a good place to go, especially for lunch.

I would also recommend the Disney Cruise Line. I have always felt very welcome and single adults are usually sat at an assigned dinner seating with other single adults, childless travellers and occasionally a single parent. So you can spend your day adventuring on your own and have people to share those adventures with at dinner.