Ridiculous wait at Mama Melrose...

[Aurora0427]

We had our first (and probably last) meal at MM in early December. Arrived 20 minutes early as it started raining and were basically told that we were too early to check in but we could (Huh?) . Given a pager and found a corner to huddle in as the lobby was packed. We waited a total of 1 hour for our table, the 20 minutes that we were "early" plus an additional 40 minutes. We were seated by a manager, who I asked about recommendations. I said that one sounded good (saltimbocca) so he's like "Okay I'll put your order in" (uh I wasn't sure that was really what I wanted but okay). Daughter ordered spaghetti with meat balls. Our real server came by and was puzzled that he had taken our order as well. She was pretty inattentive, had to repeatedly ask for our drinks (water) and we were less than wowed by our food. Mine was dried out and had obviously sat under a heat lamp for a while before making it to the table. The mashed potatoes were okay as was the broccolini. We had booked F! package for March already but after that experience we cancelled and will just try to get a FP+ instead.

I am SO glad I cancelled our October reservation at MM last trip. So glad.

 

[nkereina]

Nope sorry, I disagree. Disney gave up this up when they decided to charge a 24 hour cancellation fee. They reserve the right to call a party a no show after 15-30 minutes and charge the cancellation fee even if the party shows up later and can't be seated due to restaurant capacity.

When I gave them my cc for a RESERVATION guarantee, we have a deal. That deal goes both ways.

(Note: I edited post quoted by removing first paragraph)

I'm not saying it's right, I'm just saying that's Disney's perspective on how it works. I don't necessarily agree with it either, but the first moment you complain about the wait long past your ADR time, that's the explanation you will be given. Semantics, I know. But I think you'd be hard pressed to find a CM who would not be willing to waive the cancellation fee if you decide to go elsewhere after an exorbitant wait.

But the OP said he did not go Christmas week this was BEFORE the holiday

So, when? The week before Christmas or when? It's common knowledge that the closer you get to the holidays, the busier you can expect it to be. And with it being the last year of Osborne Lights, DHS has been a full house since the first week the lights were on. If OP were there the first week of December and it wasn't the last year of the lights, a 70 minute wait would be ludicrous. But there's other qualifiers here that come into play. Doesn't mean one should tolerate it, but the circumstances are what they are.

No. Lol. I have been calling ahead at certain restaurants for 10 years now weekly and the ones I'm talking about do it the way I stated.

I call carrabbas at 3pm. They currently have no wait. I say, "I'd like to put my name in for call ahead seating." They say, "what time are you coming." I then say, "6:00". They then say, "ok we have you down for 6:00, and we will try to seat you within 15 minutes of your call ahead time." That's how call ahead works at Carrabbas, Maccaroni Grill, Outback, and Texas Roadhouse. Other restaurants actaually call this a reservation like Disney, such as Maggianos. But it's all the same thing Disney does. And they Usually manage to somehow seat us usually within 15 minutes. Never longer than 30. Call any carrabbas and give it a whirl. They will ask you what time you are coming and they take the "call ahead" any time of the day or Even the day before, and you just get put near the top of the list when you arrive.

I'm not doubting that there are restaurants that exist somewhere that do it the way you're saying... But that's not what I'm referring to. I'm referring to restaurants that do it just like Disney and are much more successful at seating people promptly. Call it whatever you want, call ahead, reservation, priority seating, etc. makes no difference.

I see what you're saying. Where I live, what I explained is call ahead seating. Your scenario I guess I would consider priority seating, which is where the disconnect was for me. None of our chain restaurants here operate the way you described, so I wasn't familiar with that process. Seems like an odd process, you'd think it would just be easier for them to take reservations!

 

[over50visits]

An ADR is s Reservation. That is what the "R" stands for.

Was a time, Disney called it a PS. Stood for Priority Seating, meant you checked in and you were now at your place in line for the next available table your size. But a few years ago they changed the system from Priority Seating to the current one, Reservation.

Asking you to arrive early? Are they kidding? Making you wait one hour? Are they kidding? But, there are LOTS of people who accept this level of non-service, so Disney has no incentive to keep their side of the bargain and seat you on time.

You can't blame it on diners who are staying too long. That's easy to manage, and one way is to not overbook, which is what Disney is doing. Similar to the airlines overbooking, when everyone shows up they will deny the seats they promised to some. When too many people dine for too long, Disney will not seat you when they promised. So trivial to avoid, just don't over book.

But, Disney's goal is, of course, maximizing revenue, and overbooking is a great way to do that. Then they manage the guests who reasonably are unhappy when Disney didn't keep their word, and as you see here there are plenty of apologists who want the OP to quit complaining. I agree absolutely that expecting a FP to make everything okay is a bit insulting.

We show up on time. Always. We are not late. But, we don't plan to show up early, although it's not unusual to arrive a big early. We expect Disney to seat us promptly (personally, I believe a 5-10 minute wait is reasonable, but not more). We have quit going to Ohana because the last 3 times we were seated 45 minutes or more late, and now every single time we walk through the Poly lobby it is filled with people waiting a long time for their seating. That, and the price has become ridiculous. But, Disney is maximizing their revenue, as witnessed by the lobby filled with people happily waiting an hour to pay these high prices. Never again, though, will we wait 45 minutes for a meal. Luckily, in the hundreds of meals we've had and continue to have at Disney, we are often seated promptly, have great service, and really enjoy ourselves.

 

[maxiesmom]

An ADR is s Reservation. That is what the "R" stands for.

Was a time, Disney called it a PS. Stood for Priority Seating, meant you checked in and you were now at your place in line for the next available table your size. But a few years ago they changed the system from Priority Seating to the current one, Reservation.

Asking you to arrive early? Are they kidding? Making you wait one hour? Are they kidding? But, there are LOTS of people who accept this level of non-service, so Disney has no incentive to keep their side of the bargain and seat you on time.

You can't blame it on diners who are staying too long. That's easy to manage, and one way is to not overbook, which is what Disney is doing. Similar to the airlines overbooking, when everyone shows up they will deny the seats they promised to some. When too many people dine for too long, Disney will not seat you when they promised. So trivial to avoid, just don't over book.

But, Disney's goal is, of course, maximizing revenue, and overbooking is a great way to do that. Then they manage the guests who reasonably are unhappy when Disney didn't keep their word, and as you see here there are plenty of apologists who want the OP to quit complaining. I agree absolutely that expecting a FP to make everything okay is a bit insulting.

We show up on time. Always. We are not late. But, we don't plan to show up early, although it's not unusual to arrive a big early. We expect Disney to seat us promptly (personally, I believe a 5-10 minute wait is reasonable, but not more). We have quit going to Ohana because the last 3 times we were seated 45 minutes or more late, and now every single time we walk through the Poly lobby it is filled with people waiting a long time for their seating. That, and the price has become ridiculous. But, Disney is maximizing their revenue, as witnessed by the lobby filled with people happily waiting an hour to pay these high prices. Never again, though, will we wait 45 minutes for a meal. Luckily, in the hundreds of meals we've had and continue to have at Disney, we are often seated promptly, have great service, and really enjoy ourselves.

The only thing that has changed is the name. And the fact that they charge you a no show fee. But the process is still the same as when they called it Priority Seating. I remember when it switched it was claimed that the name Priority Seating was confusing to guests. Maybe they thought it was more like Call Ahead Seating? Who knows. But though the name has changed the product has remained the same.

 

[Nancyg56]

The only thing that has changed is the name. And the fact that they charge you a no show fee. But the process is still the same as when they called it Priority Seating. I remember when it switched it was claimed that the name Priority Seating was confusing to guests. Maybe they thought it was more like Call Ahead Seating? Who knows. But though the name has changed the product has remained the same.

It has remained the same and for the most part, for my family, it works well. I know that there are some restaurants that are notorious for getting backed up, but they are not the norm for me. I woudl not have waited over an hour for any restaurant at Disney, and I plan for hte 1/2 hour wait at ''Ohana although that only happened twice in ten years.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

An ADR is s Reservation. That is what the "R" stands for.

Was a time, Disney called it a PS. Stood for Priority Seating, meant you checked in and you were now at your place in line for the next available table your size. But a few years ago they changed the system from Priority Seating to the current one, Reservation.

Asking you to arrive early? Are they kidding? Making you wait one hour? Are they kidding? But, there are LOTS of people who accept this level of non-service, so Disney has no incentive to keep their side of the bargain and seat you on time.

You can't blame it on diners who are staying too long. That's easy to manage, and one way is to not overbook, which is what Disney is doing. Similar to the airlines overbooking, when everyone shows up they will deny the seats they promised to some. When too many people dine for too long, Disney will not seat you when they promised. So trivial to avoid, just don't over book.

But, Disney's goal is, of course, maximizing revenue, and overbooking is a great way to do that. Then they manage the guests who reasonably are unhappy when Disney didn't keep their word, and as you see here there are plenty of apologists who want the OP to quit complaining. I agree absolutely that expecting a FP to make everything okay is a bit insulting.

We show up on time. Always. We are not late. But, we don't plan to show up early, although it's not unusual to arrive a big early. We expect Disney to seat us promptly (personally, I believe a 5-10 minute wait is reasonable, but not more). We have quit going to Ohana because the last 3 times we were seated 45 minutes or more late, and now every single time we walk through the Poly lobby it is filled with people waiting a long time for their seating. That, and the price has become ridiculous. But, Disney is maximizing their revenue, as witnessed by the lobby filled with people happily waiting an hour to pay these high prices. Never again, though, will we wait 45 minutes for a meal. Luckily, in the hundreds of meals we've had and continue to have at Disney, we are often seated promptly, have great service, and really enjoy ourselves.

Same with us but we only gave it a chance 1 time. We had to get up early with a little one and rush to get there, only to have to wait. And wait. Hordes of people, all waiting to get in; we might have tried to go a second time IF the food had been good. I've had better meals at Dennys.

 

[Mkrop]

I'm not saying it's right, I'm just saying that's Disney's perspective on how it works. I don't necessarily agree with it either, but the first moment you complain about the wait long past your ADR time, that's the explanation you will be given. Semantics, I know. But I think you'd be hard pressed to find a CM who would not be willing to waive the cancellation fee if you decide to go elsewhere after an exorbitant wait.



So, when? The week before Christmas or when? It's common knowledge that the closer you get to the holidays, the busier you can expect it to be. And with it being the last year of Osborne Lights, DHS has been a full house since the first week the lights were on. If OP were there the first week of December and it wasn't the last year of the lights, a 70 minute wait would be ludicrous. But there's other qualifiers here that come into play. Doesn't mean one should tolerate it, but the circumstances are what they are.



I see what you're saying. Where I live, what I explained is call ahead seating. Your scenario I guess I would consider priority seating, which is where the disconnect was for me. None of our chain restaurants here operate the way you described, so I wasn't familiar with that process. Seems like an odd process, you'd think it would just be easier for them to take reservations!

You must have missed when I said that MM is notorious for this, this year wasnt anything new with it being backed up despite it being the last year of the Lights. We were there at the beg of Dec and walked by MM on our way from the Lights and there was a huge crowd outside. And we had an ADR during the lights and H&V and waited about 15 minutes, if they can seat people on time so should MM. This should not be an ongoing issue.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

I have eaten at MM many, many times with minimal wait. It's only been since free dining that we've had trouble getting ADRs.

 

[Baklava]

I think allowing the poster to cancel without a fee and fast passes for each person in the party is adequate. What else is the restaurant going to do? Obviously seating people on time isn't an option.

That being said, some of the experiences shared on here are unbelievable. Disney should do better.

For the most part Disney does do better. There are anomalies and bad days anywhere and it's natural for us to be hearing about the small percentage of bad experiences but not the good ones.

 

[piccolopat]

Free dining started the problems with getting ADRs and being seated on time. If people really compared the costs of the dining plan to what they would really eat if everything was out of pocket, most would probably see the value isn't in the plan. You would would need to go to a lot of buffets with kids in order to make the plan worth giving up a room discount. It has only gotten worse with the dining packages for Fantasmic, Candlelight Procession, etc. People are overpaying at Disney restaurants just to get a seat at one of these performances. I compared every restaurant's dining package for the Candlelight Procession and I couldn't come up with one where the package cost could be covered by the food so we knew there was a built in surcharge for the performance. We usually like to eat at off times so things are a bit less hectic, and so we haven't had a problem but we have seen it walking by restaurants during peak hours.

 

[GaryDis]

But, Disney's goal is, of course, maximizing revenue, and overbooking is a great way to do that.

I remain unconvinced that overbooking gets them anything. There are plenty of people with no ADRs who would be delighted to walk up and fill an available table.

 

[steves100]

An ADR is s Reservation. That is what the "R" stands for.

Was a time, Disney called it a PS. Stood for Priority Seating, meant you checked in and you were now at your place in line for the next available table your size. But a few years ago they changed the system from Priority Seating to the current one, Reservation.

Asking you to arrive early? Are they kidding? Making you wait one hour? Are they kidding? But, there are LOTS of people who accept this level of non-service, so Disney has no incentive to keep their side of the bargain and seat you on time.

You can't blame it on diners who are staying too long. That's easy to manage, and one way is to not overbook, which is what Disney is doing. Similar to the airlines overbooking, when everyone shows up they will deny the seats they promised to some. When too many people dine for too long, Disney will not seat you when they promised. So trivial to avoid, just don't over book.

But, Disney's goal is, of course, maximizing revenue, and overbooking is a great way to do that. Then they manage the guests who reasonably are unhappy when Disney didn't keep their word, and as you see here there are plenty of apologists who want the OP to quit complaining. I agree absolutely that expecting a FP to make everything okay is a bit insulting.

We show up on time. Always. We are not late. But, we don't plan to show up early, although it's not unusual to arrive a big early. We expect Disney to seat us promptly (personally, I believe a 5-10 minute wait is reasonable, but not more). We have quit going to Ohana because the last 3 times we were seated 45 minutes or more late, and now every single time we walk through the Poly lobby it is filled with people waiting a long time for their seating. That, and the price has become ridiculous. But, Disney is maximizing their revenue, as witnessed by the lobby filled with people happily waiting an hour to pay these high prices. Never again, though, will we wait 45 minutes for a meal. Luckily, in the hundreds of meals we've had and continue to have at Disney, we are often seated promptly, have great service, and really enjoy ourselves.

TY!!!!

 

[maxiesmom]

TY!!!!

You can agree with them all you like. But if guest's expectations don't mesh with what Disney expects, guess who has the final say? Not the guest in this matter. You can either continue to press your expectations on a system that doesn't run that way, and keep getting upset, or you can accept the system for how it works and go with it. Or I guess there is a third option of not using the system.

 

[TheRealDrDisney]

It would appear Disney restaurants have learned from those paragons of customer service - the airlines!

 

[eastendlights]

I had posted about this last year after our trip but this thread could use another example of a really ridiculous ADR experience.

We checked in at Prime Time 15 minutes early, it took 10 minutes to determine that our ADR was not there, were told it would be 15 minutes, waited almost an hour, went back to check, and were told that our original ADR was cancelled!!!! We were then told it would be another 15 minutes and I told them to forget it. Sure enough, we were charged the $20 penalty (which was then credited by the CM at our hotel). So, in total, we spent an hour and a half sitting in the restaurant and walked out without a meal which we were then charged a penalty for missing after the restaurant cancelled our ADR.

 

[freshmanjs]

You can agree with them all you like. But if guest's expectations don't mesh with what Disney expects, guess who has the final say? Not the guest in this matter. You can either continue to press your expectations on a system that doesn't run that way, and keep getting upset, or you can accept the system for how it works and go with it. Or I guess there is a third option of not using the system.

no clue what you mean. the way ADRs work is how reservations work at many places. very few restaurants actually assign a specific table to you in advance and set that table aside. most places wait til you check in and then assign you a table. it is, indeed, a reservation as typically done in restaurants.

 

[Mkrop]

You can agree with them all you like. But if guest's expectations don't mesh with what Disney expects, guess who has the final say? Not the guest in this matter. You can either continue to press your expectations on a system that doesn't run that way, and keep getting upset, or you can accept the system for how it works and go with it. Or I guess there is a third option of not using the system.

He can also vent here and complain to WDW so they know that once again MM is not seating patrons in a timely manner. They cant know that this place seems to have issues or even if they only had issues that ONE night without saying something

 

[trainingupmy4princes]

We had this at literally every single ADR over 14 days last trip (this Nov) 30minute + wait past our ADR time. I was furious. We were on the dining plan so couldn't really walk away from the booking. I don't understand they have our phone number why would they not contact to advise they are running late, if we showed up that late we would have lost our reservation and been charged.

Bingo. Vacation time is worth money especially at a place like Disney yet some can't walk away from their ADR as they will have an unused expensive TS credit go to waste. They can't assume they can use it later as a lot of TS don't take walk ups. Therefore, the solution is simple simply send out a text to let your customers know you are running behind and that they may want to check in 30 min after their ADR (or 45 minutes as the OP's case would have been). This way they can pop in a store, go on a ride, and not feel like they wasted an hour of their paid vacation time sitting around.

 

[Mkrop]

Bingo. Vacation time is worth money especially at a place like Disney yet some can't walk away from their ADR as they will have an unused expensive TS credit go to waste. They can't assume they can use it later as a lot of TS don't take walk ups. Therefore, the solution is simple simply send out a text to let your customers know you are running behind and that they may want to check in 30 min after their ADR (or 45 minutes as the OP's case would have been). This way they can pop in a store, go on a ride, and not feel like they wasted an hour of their paid vacation time sitting around.

Yes just sitting there waiting I am getting frustrated if you sent me the text I am not thrilled but I am a much happier guest so I can plan accordingly

 

[over50visits]

Bingo. Vacation time is worth money especially at a place like Disney yet some can't walk away from their ADR as they will have an unused expensive TS credit go to waste. They can't assume they can use it later as a lot of TS don't take walk ups. Therefore, the solution is simple simply send out a text to let your customers know you are running behind and that they may want to check in 30 min after their ADR (or 45 minutes as the OP's case would have been). This way they can pop in a store, go on a ride, and not feel like they wasted an hour of their paid vacation time sitting around.

Disney has no incentive to provide this service. They make many people waste valuable time waiting 45 minutes (or more, such as well over an hour at Ohana), they have many people convinced the DDP is worth purchasing, and they have prices well in excess of value. But the guests keep coming. We all miss the good old days of reasonable waits for rides, reasonable prices for meals, reasonable prices for hotels. Those days are long gone, and the Disney culture we have all invested in emotionally keeps us coming back. Universal today reflects the pleasure of Disney past, and perhaps they will become wildly successful and then be a victim of their success and descend to the level of Disney prices and service today.

Grant me the serenity to accept those things I cannot change. We adjust our visit experience (accept long lines at historically walk on rides, know which TS restaurants to avoid because they will make us wait, not pay hundreds of dollar a night for deluxe resorts), and we continue to love visiting WDW.