Victoria And Albert's..."No Kids Allowed"

Discussion in 'Trip Reports & Member Reviews' started by prettypixie, Jan 21, 2008.

  1. prettypixie

    prettypixie Member

  2. DisneyGeek92

    DisneyGeek92 Member

    I heard about that. I don't think it will matter much but it is a little protection against hearing that one familie's "well behaved" children screaming at the top of their lungs.
     
  3. Roger

    Roger Member Staff Member

    I agree.

    Diners at V&A's = should have enough $$ for babysitter

    V&A not on the DDP.

    I don't know of any kid that could survive a 2.5+ hr meal!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  4. DisneyGeek92

    DisneyGeek92 Member

    Not to mention they don't even have a kid's menu so they can't get the typical kids food.
     
  5. Roger

    Roger Member Staff Member

    Well some of the courses are kid sized. Wait...most?
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  6. DisneyGeek92

    DisneyGeek92 Member

    I think the word you were looking for Roger was all.
     
  7. Tim

    Tim Administrator Staff Member

    if i was paying $250 for karen and me to eat dinner at v & a's, then i don't think i would want a bunch of screaming kids around either. then again, i don't plan on dropping that kind of coin on a single meal anytime soon to being with ;) . i don't have a problem with this new policy whatsoever. a lot of people are up in arms on other sites about this but the way i look at it, there are 90+ other restaurants propertywide to choose from.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  8. DisneyGeek92

    DisneyGeek92 Member

    While I wouldn't want my sister or other"better" behaved kids to be blocked out of restaurants I wouldn't mind an age restriction on certain restaurants that are still expensive but a little more affordable were there are more kids.
     
  9. Roger

    Roger Member Staff Member

    You should.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  10. Tim

    Tim Administrator Staff Member

    can i send you the bill?
     
  11. zackiedawg

    zackiedawg Member Staff Member

    As a non-PC, non-breeding, drool-averse, brat-allergic curmudgeon - I say...YES!! ;)

    *RANT ON*
    It's about time some restaurants start taking back the class and proper atmosphere that was once respected by parents before we started making children the star attraction. Back in the day, my parents brought me to 'family' restaurants and casual joints, but other nights they would go out to the 'fancy' joints and leave me behind with a sitter or relative...it was just common sense that children shouldn't have free run of the entire world - there were certain places that it was just improper to bring a child - sanctuaries for adults to enjoy without the constant attention, noise, and disruption that even the best of children can be.

    I cannot wrap my head around this new importance and righteousness parents have developed with their children today - no restrictions at all where they bring them, no common courtesy or consideration of others around them who may not find their child as adorable as they do, and no control of the child. I am routinely amazed when I see a child yelling, stomping, acting up loudly and disruptively, with the mother completely ignoring the antics and going about her life. While she may be accustomed to this and learned to tune it out...there once was a day when she might have considered other people's feelings and reeled in her child's behavior or removed herself and her child from the area. Simple respect!

    I applaud a restaurant taking that approach - to say...'this is an adult establishment, intended to be a classy, quiet, and mature place emphasizing luxurious service and atmosphere and fine food'. It is one of many hundreds of selections to dine at in Disney - so if you don't like the description, find another establishment! You'd do the same if the restaurant served sushi and you don't like sushi; you'd find a restaurant that does serve the food you want. So why not find the restaurant that provides the atmosphere or allows the clientele that you want too!? Variety is the spice of life. I would love to see more restaurants around Disney make this move.
    *RANT OFF*

    Ah, that felt good! :)

    And of course I'm being sarcastic about my dislike of kids. While I don't want any of my own, I obviously don't have a problem with the well behaved one. I do after all spend many days at Disney every year, and love eating at the family joints and fast food stops as much as I do at the high-end restaurants. Whispering Canyon cafe is always a favorite...and it's packed with kids, singing out loud and marching around the tables. And just watch what happens when you ask for ketchup! I just like the choice to pick a night every once in a while to eat at a restaurant without the family and kid dynamic going on.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  12. gary

    gary Member

    as a non breeder, mos def non politically correct i think i'll throw my .02 in here
    i think wdw should have one other nonchild offering, not as expensive as v&a, perhaps citrico's, for those of us who want to not quite drop that much on a meal but still want a quiet all adult dining experience
    i would also really applaud the taking back of the clubs at night at pleasure island, i'm sorry but something just doesn't feel right about seeing a 10 year old in a club at 1000 at night, hey if i had to wait all the way to 18 they should too, 3 three things every male of my cohort got for your 18th, a union card, a draft card and the right to get ****faced and hit the fool button in public
    i like and adore and drop many $ on all my numerous neices and nephews, and on the offspring of many close friends, but there are just times when i want to be around adults,(i'm hoping some of that mature behavior rubs off on me, no luck so far)
    that's why on the magic, eastern carribbean, when an adult brought his 2 children right past the clearly marked signs, through the offset railing maze and into the adults only pool area, i was quick to thank the cm who politely but firmly removed said guest and offspring, and it was pretty clear from said offenders facial that he was not happy and felt that since they were well behaved the rules did not apply
     
  13. Roger

    Roger Member Staff Member

    [me=Roger]agrees with the policy change[/me]
    [me=Roger]thinks perhaps a new two story restaurant in the Russia pavilion overlooking World Showcase Lagoon with the second story being adults only could work[/me]
     
  14. DisneyGeek92

    DisneyGeek92 Member

    It is time that adults started to take control of their lives. I would love to have parents in control of their children and not having them scream and yell and act inappropriately. I just get annoyed when kids don't act the way they should in public. While I think age restrictions would be good but I understand why they wouldn't put age restrictions on a lot of restaurants.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  15. jcvalenti

    jcvalenti Member

    Totally agree with Zackiedawg's post above.

    This mindset among certain parents in this generation is amazing. They think their offspring are the pinnacle of human evolution, deserving of praise and adoration by all. They're doing their kids no favours, since when their kids "grow up" (or rather, get older, since they don't mature), they're in for a huge shock when they get out into the world and find out the rest of the world doesn't care about them.

    Anyway, if I was Disney, I'd have a sign outside the restaurant simply reading "We're sorry that some of our guests lack the simple decency and self-awareness to maintain a basic level of decorum, so in the interests of preserving the dining experience for the 99% of the other guests, no children under age 10 will be welcomed. Please ask the host which of the approximately 2,500 other restaurants on property might be more appropriate for our younger guests."
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  16. mSummers

    mSummers Member

    They'd never do it, but that would be funny
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  17. DisneyGeek92

    DisneyGeek92 Member

    That would be hilarious. You should make a sign and stick it outside one of the restaurants just to see what happens.
     
  18. Dan

    Dan Member

    I'm definitely taking a different approach to this than the majority of the rest of you. I've seen what's happened with regards to the responsibility parents take for their children. Not just in knowing whether they can behave in restaurants, but, say, in scary rides that their kids can't handle. Back in the days of Alien Encounter I remember seeing angry forum posts from parents who were mad that their kids were scared by the ride that had a big sign saying that it's scary posted at the entrance. The height of absurdity has to be parents complaining about Snow White (the ride) being too scary, although believe me I can understand kids being scared.. early Disney movies were DARK, kids today aren't used to dealing with stuff like that. And honestly.. I WAS encouraged to ride on a ride that I should never have ridden when I was younger.. but that was the Teacups, and I'd say I'd never forgive whichever parent it was that made me do that, but.. I don't remember, either I blocked the memory out or it's just too long ago.

    The thing that makes me unhappy about the situation is this is the fault is the parents, NOT the kids. But the only individuals being excluded under this new policy are KIDS. I know, a lot of kids aren't into the whole V&A thing.. heck.. *I* am not really into it. I don't do fancy (I like good food, but I find fancy atmospheres stifling and would prefer to do without). But I've seen some pretty darned sophisticated kids. I've seen kids eating sushi the same way others eat macaroni and cheese. I've eaten at a local Indian restaurant when a kid was having his birthday party there, I kid you not. Apparently it was his favorite restaurant. Yeah, the majority of the kids at Disney World are happiest shoveling bland macaroni and cheese into their mouths (instead of that primo stuff they serve at Jiko), but I know that in that crowd there are kids capable of appreciating finer things than chicken nuggets and french fries.

    This is a lowest common denominator policy. I HATE those approaches. In general I find a lot of food at Disney World bland, and I suspect part of the reason is that Americans, in general, don't have an adventurous palate. It's not that it's expensive to add some flavor into the meals, it's that the masses like bland food, and Disney caters to the masses. I had high hopes for Yak and Yeti, it was a restaurant tied to the Everest roller coaster, itself themed after Tibet. I was hoping, at LEAST, for some Indian food in addition to the obvious Chinese stuff, because genuine Tibetan cuisine was perhaps a bit too much to hope for.

    Instead it was basically a standard Chinese restaurant. Because even Indian cuisine would have scared away the timid masses.


    Victoria and Albert's, as the most expensive restaurant on Disney property, should have been the last place to cater to the lowest common denominator. If a child is being disruptive then ask the parents to leave, make an announcement up front about not tolerating crying children. Whatever you have to do. But don't just arbitrarily exclude ALL kids because of the actions of irresponsible parents.

    I want you to understand, crying children are the bane of my existence. This actually hasn't happened to me lately, which is nice.. but for a while it was standard policy that whenever I'd go out to eat I'd end up sitting near loud children. Sometimes the parents just ignore the behavior. Sometimes they encourage it. I have to deal with the same thing at the zoo when I'm trying to silently take pictures of an animal and a kid runs up and starts pounding on the glass or shrieking at the top of his lungs, encouraged by his father who perhaps has lost the ability to hear high frequencies after being around his shrieking child 24 hours a day.

    But this is kind of throwing out the baby with the bathwater. After seeing most of the rest of The World dumbed down for the lowest common denominator (losing Alien Encounter in the process), I'm sorry to see the upper.. what, hundredth of one percent, or so, following suit.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  19. Tim

    Tim Administrator Staff Member

    Speaking of DARK Disney movie moments, the Banshee scene in Darby O'Gill and the little people used to freak me the heck out...
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 11, 2014
  20. DisneyGeek92

    DisneyGeek92 Member

    I agree Dan. What I"m saying is that the parents can't make their children behave or they don't know that they're disruptive. Asking people to leave may be awkward for other people eating there. My family is pretty cultured I know many types of cuisine as does my sister who is still young. I wish they could think of some other way to do it but I think a blanket age restriction is what it will have to be. I think Disney did it this way because it was easier for them not better for people wanting to eat there.
     

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