An Unpleasant Experience at Yak and Yeti CS

Epcot: the wall outside Mouse Gears, facing the fountain. Back half of Innoventions West*, facing The Land. Lobby of American Adventure. Wall outside The Land. Garden behind England.

*Could be East, I'm bad with directions

And that is really not a whole lot given the scope of the park.

I was at WDW with my 70+ year old dad this past October. He is still very mobile, does his own shopping and cooks and cleans around the house. But it was hard for him to walk around Epcot. We would stop every so often so he could rest a bit, but it was hard finding seating. Even though we were staying at the Swan I ended up getting a taxi from the front of Epcot, just to spare him all of the walking.
 
Wait I thought limiting desirability was the name of the game here?
Depends on your outlook on things and personal preference.

If QS becomes so undesirable because of lack of tables many in this thread have said they choose TS instead. Typically one will have spent (though not always of course) more $ at TS meals than QS meals. It could also mean one who chooses to do the Dining Plan now 'upgrades' if you will to one that allows for TS meals.

If QS becomes so undesirable because of booting out customers immediately after they are done eating (with no thought to digesting food, no thought to any additional purchases they may make and with a feeling of rushing) and you are not interested in spending any more $ on food at Disney (so TS is out of the equation) then you may choose to bring more food from outside the park in or you may choose to go offsite for dining which would eat into Disney's profits.

Some people already do either one of the two above but taking a more extreme measure would tip the balance that is already here--some people choose to swear away QS, some people bring in outside food or go offsite for food but those numbers could tip unfavorably in Disney's way if you boot customers out the moment they are done with food.
 
This is just plain ridiculous. Just ask if a seat is available. No need to go around feeling like any empty seat is yours because none of us own the tables or chairs. We live in
And so,if you have one or more seats actually available, and no medical reason for not sharing (eg "I just don't like to"), please share.
I think Disney needs to have CMs that police these area and usher you out the moment you're done with your food.
Hilarious. No, they need - at times - monitor (not police) the seating to make it fair to everyone. See the post above where a CM found a seat for someone who finished eating before the first party's food showed up.
I've got no idea where you are taking this whole topic with your shakes comment
Never saw Soylent Green, huh?
 


Hilarious. No, they need - at times - monitor (not police) the seating to make it fair to everyone. See the post above where a CM found a seat for someone who finished eating before the first party's food showed up.

I guess some of us care about guest service and eating experience a bit more than others.
 
I put a lot of blame on Disney itself! A few years ago, there were benches around that you could rest your weary feet/body for a few minutes, then suddenly (seems like) there's not a bench to be found.

I've sent that very comment to Disney a few years back, said that there are plenty of places to add benches where it doesn't get in the way of anything, and if someone thinks that a lack of benches is gonna send me into the gift shop it's actually more likely to send me home and then I'm not spending any more money in their park. But that rang on deaf ears I guess, and so you're right some of those taking up the tablespace may actually be weary walkers resting their feet and legs, who knows.
 


Walls encompassing both the food ordering counters and the tables = pretty clear "barrier of some form."

The party holding the table DIDN'T arrive at the venue before the person with the tray of food.

If they had, they'd already have their food.

Guests with mobility or stamina issues don't supersede the needs of guests making a location-specific purchase and reasonably expecting to avail themselves of the seating logically provided for diners.

Okay, you don't complain on a forum. Good to know. In the meantime, the OP is such a person.

Personally, I wish they'd posted the day it happened, so we could have sent her to a CM for assistance.
I like your style!!!!
 
Clearly you want to keep the less able people from taking a seat to relax in the park just because they haven’t bought food. The only way to convey limited access is with a barrier of some form. Common sense dictates that it’s public seating with no requirement of having food in hand. What if I pull out a mickey bar from some other establishment? I’m eating Disney food. I expect that to be inadequate as well though as it still inconveniences you.
For less able people there are plenty of benches, etc to sit on. They don't need to sit at a QS table to rest/relax. Common sense is seeing tables outside of a QS is for sitting and eating a meal from that QS!
 
For less able people there are plenty of benches, etc to sit on. They don't need to sit at a QS table to rest/relax. Common sense is seeing tables outside of a QS is for sitting and eating a meal from that QS!

Please tell me where, in MK, all these benches are that you are talking about?? Was there in December, plus this past April, and sure didn't see them - they 'were' there a few years ago though!
 
Please tell me where, in MK, all these benches are that you are talking about?? Was there in December, plus this past April, and sure didn't see them - they 'were' there a few years ago though!

We were at MK in December as well....there are seating areas:
  • On Main Street, the alcove to the right about halfway down as you face the castle. There are outdoor seating areas at the left and right (Red and Yellow umbrellas) at the end of Main Street nearest the Castle. There are benches in abundance around Town Square and the Train Station. There are benches in the hub as well.
  • Towards Adventureland there is seating before the bridge to enter the land, there is also seating built into the walls by the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse. There is also seating near Aloha Isle.
  • There are benches and planters and various other seats throughout Liberty Square and Frontierland. There is seating at Sleepy Hollow snack kiosk. There is seating at Liberty Square Market snack kiosk. There is also seating near the Golden Oak Outpost snack kiosk.
  • There is an abundance of seating at the Tangled themed restrooms between Liberty Square and Fantasyland.
  • The castle walls in Fantasyland/New Fantasyland are built to be benches. There is seating Storybook Treats/The Friar's Nook Snack Kiosk. There is also seating near the Cheshire Cat Cafe snack kiosk.
  • There are planters and benches throughout Tomorrowland - there is also the seating area surrounding The Lunching Pad snack kiosk.
 
We were at MK in December as well....there are seating areas:
  • On Main Street, the alcove to the right about halfway down as you face the castle. There are outdoor seating areas at the left and right (Red and Yellow umbrellas) at the end of Main Street nearest the Castle. There are benches in abundance around Town Square and the Train Station. There are benches in the hub as well.
  • Towards Adventureland there is seating before the bridge to enter the land, there is also seating built into the walls by the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse. There is also seating near Aloha Isle.
  • There are benches and planters and various other seats throughout Liberty Square and Frontierland. There is seating at Sleepy Hollow snack kiosk. There is seating at Liberty Square Market snack kiosk. There is also seating near the Golden Oak Outpost snack kiosk.
  • There is an abundance of seating at the Tangled themed restrooms between Liberty Square and Fantasyland.
  • The castle walls in Fantasyland/New Fantasyland are built to be benches. There is seating Storybook Treats/The Friar's Nook Snack Kiosk. There is also seating near the Cheshire Cat Cafe snack kiosk.
  • There are planters and benches throughout Tomorrowland - there is also the seating area surrounding The Lunching Pad snack kiosk.

Much of the seating that you describe are around food kiosks. Is that seating intended only for those purchasing from those kiosks, just as the tables close to the qs locations are?

While Disney provides seating for guests, it clearly isn't enough and it most definitely isn't evenly distributed throughout the parks.
As of now, there aren't seating rules and regulations for Disney Parks. It is up to the guests to use their best judgement and to remember their manners. Everyone's situation is different and it isn't up to us to decide who is "right" and who is "wrong" in these situations. Guests just have to do what works best for their current situation whether that is...
-taking a moment to rest
-having your family find a table while you wait in line for food
-taking your family through the food line
-asking to join an already occupied table
and so on...
 
Much of the seating that you describe are around food kiosks. Is that seating intended only for those purchasing from those kiosks, just as the tables close to the qs locations are?

While Disney provides seating for guests, it clearly isn't enough and it most definitely isn't evenly distributed throughout the parks.
As of now, there aren't seating rules and regulations for Disney Parks. It is up to the guests to use their best judgement and to remember their manners. Everyone's situation is different and it isn't up to us to decide who is "right" and who is "wrong" in these situations. Guests just have to do what works best for their current situation whether that is...
-taking a moment to rest
-having your family find a table while you wait in line for food
-taking your family through the food line
-asking to join an already occupied table
and so on...

Snack kiosks are, in my opinion, entirely different than quick service restaurants. However, I am among those that are of the opinion that it is perfectly acceptable to use quick service seating as a place to cool off and take a quick rest. As you mention, Disney doesn’t have formal seating rules. Even if they did, there would continue to be guests that completely disregard the rules. I agree that guests need to do what is best for their party and that everyone should generally attempt to exercise common sense and courtesy when determining what is best for their situation.

I will add: We were in the Magic Kingdom on Christmas Day and we had no trouble finding seating at any point in our day. Early in the morning (7:30-8:00) we enjoyed our Starbucks coffees and breakfast at the red umbrella tables at the end of Main Street. Mid-morning (10:00) we found benches near Liberty Tree Tavern to take a short break. At peak crowds (mere moments before the park was put into a phased closure) we found a bench in Town Square to sit and watch the 12pm Once Upon A Christmas Time parade (admittedly our view was quite obstructed) but there was no difficulty finding seating.
 
I agree! We were there the week before Christmas and while I found Disney to be much more crowded than we are used to, people were generally kind and offered a seat when needed. We also ate at Yak and Yeti qs during that trip and it was very busy at that time. There just simply isn't enough seating in that area. We were dreaded "table holders" while some of our party went to get food. In our defense, our oldest recently had a heart transplant and while he looks perfectly fine and able-bodied, he was in desperate need of a break. We only sat for about 5-10 minutes before my husband and daughter returned with food. We ate quickly and offered our table to a family in need just before we cleaned up. What I observed though was (in that area and at that time) there seemed to be many single people that were carrying large trays of food and looking for tables. Many times they would sit and wait with their food at the table until their party got there. It seemed as though that some of the family were riding rides (Everest, Kali River Rapids). IMO, this is no different than someone holding a table while 1 person goes to get food. Every touring style is different. Another observation was that December brings very large family gatherings. Many people will split up during the day and rejoin at meal-times, needing many tables for large parties. Y&Y and really many other establishments are not set up for this- giving large parties the need to search out seating in advance of getting food.
 
We were at MK in December as well....there are seating areas:
  • On Main Street, the alcove to the right about halfway down as you face the castle. There are outdoor seating areas at the left and right (Red and Yellow umbrellas) at the end of Main Street nearest the Castle. There are benches in abundance around Town Square and the Train Station. There are benches in the hub as well.
  • Towards Adventureland there is seating before the bridge to enter the land, there is also seating built into the walls by the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse. There is also seating near Aloha Isle.
  • There are benches and planters and various other seats throughout Liberty Square and Frontierland. There is seating at Sleepy Hollow snack kiosk. There is seating at Liberty Square Market snack kiosk. There is also seating near the Golden Oak Outpost snack kiosk.
  • There is an abundance of seating at the Tangled themed restrooms between Liberty Square and Fantasyland.
  • The castle walls in Fantasyland/New Fantasyland are built to be benches. There is seating Storybook Treats/The Friar's Nook Snack Kiosk. There is also seating near the Cheshire Cat Cafe snack kiosk.
  • There are planters and benches throughout Tomorrowland - there is also the seating area surrounding The Lunching Pad snack kiosk.

Yes, I forgot about those half way down MS in the alcove at MK. But, most of those you mentioned are tables/chairs supposedly for the restaurants (CS) that are nearby (which prompted this thread by the way). I assume you mean Casey's and the Ice Cream Plaza. Also, stone walls/planters which are a last resort, or not at all, as they are so uncomfortable.

They've definitely removed most of the benches which are 'made' for sitting.

We will not be intimidated into rushing through our meals to make a table available. That is our down time to enjoy a break while we eat, and while we don't intentionally lollygag, we will relax.
 
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I agree! We were there the week before Christmas and while I found Disney to be much more crowded than we are used to, people were generally kind and offered a seat when needed. We also ate at Yak and Yeti qs during that trip and it was very busy at that time. There just simply isn't enough seating in that area. We were dreaded "table holders" while some of our party went to get food. In our defense, our oldest recently had a heart transplant and while he looks perfectly fine and able-bodied, he was in desperate need of a break. We only sat for about 5-10 minutes before my husband and daughter returned with food. We ate quickly and offered our table to a family in need just before we cleaned up. What I observed though was (in that area and at that time) there seemed to be many single people that were carrying large trays of food and looking for tables. Many times they would sit and wait with their food at the table until their party got there. It seemed as though that some of the family were riding rides (Everest, Kali River Rapids). IMO, this is no different than someone holding a table while 1 person goes to get food. Every touring style is different. Another observation was that December brings very large family gatherings. Many people will split up during the day and rejoin at meal-times, needing many tables for large parties. Y&Y and really many other establishments are not set up for this- giving large parties the need to search out seating in advance of getting food.

You've made some really interesting observations. And you're right, every touring style is different, just as every eating style is. Some families always get there own meal, while other families share meals and maybe eat more frequently. I wonder if it bothers people who see a family of four purchasing one entree to share, but taking up four chairs.
 
You've made some really interesting observations. And you're right, every touring style is different, just as every eating style is. Some families always get there own meal, while other families share meals and maybe eat more frequently. I wonder if it bothers people who see a family of four purchasing one entree to share, but taking up four chairs.

Haha- I would guess YES! I never realized some of the things that really bother others until I started reading the Dis Boards!:scared:
 
If people are looking for actual benches for seating that is part of the problem. Many of the newer planters Disney has added doubles as seating.
 
Disney likely removed the benches so that people sit in QS seating areas and realize they are hungry/thirsty/sitting there anyway so may as well take the opportunity to get a snack. They likely DO want people sitting in the QS areas, they just also want them spending money while there, and not just taking up valuable space.

I am envious of any introverted people who can simply say "I don't want to be around people." I definitely get to a point sometimes where I find crowds and people overwhelming (usually when I'm not in the mindset to expect them, or have had a long or trying day) and need some alone time so I understand those who look forward to a meal as a time to unwind and have a few moments of calm in a more controlled environment. On the other hand, most of us introverts in urban areas have to be considerate, patient and some even try to be kind despite what our ideal situation would be, so watching someone struggle just to avoid a few moments of possible light interaction is pretty foreign to me.
 

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