Walt Disney World is testing a new seating policy for some of its counter service restaurants, including the wildly popular (i.e. crowded) Pecos Bill in the Magic Kingdom. Under the new test, people can't send some of their group to save a table while the others queue to order. Instead, a group must wait until they have their food, then a Disney cast member will find and show them to an available table.
Every Disney visitor has witnessed this scene before: Dozens of families circling a dining area, heavy trays in hand, searching for an empty table. Meanwhile, a near-majority of tables are occupied, not by diners, but by other families waiting for their food.
Indulge me slipping back into geek mode here, because this is precisely the sort of social dilemma I studied in college. It's a theme park variation on the classic Prisoner's Dilemma: everyone acting in his own self interest creates a situation in which everyone is screwed.
One family figures out that if they send some folks ahead to save a table, they'll be guaranteed a place to sit in the busy restaurant when they emerge from the food queue. But taking that table forces another family, with food, to wait. Seeing people waiting for a place to sit, more families entering the restaurant send folks ahead to save tables. So more people with food end up having to wait.
Eventually, you've got a restaurant of people without food sitting at tables and people with food walking around, looking for a place to sit.
The solution is to keep people without food from claiming tables. That doesn't guarantee every family emerging from the food window an immediate place to sit, but it does guarantee "maximum seating efficiency" - that all the tables with be filled with people who are actually eating.
A few months ago, I submitted a tip that people should wait until they have their food before sitting, but readers soon voted it off the page. Which is understandable. Any individual who opts to behave this way is just putting herself at a disadvantage. Her family will be waiting longer with food, because every other family will have sent someone ahead.
No, the only way to make this system work is to have some outside agent enforce it, so no one can claim a table early. (Ultimately, these social dilemmas are why societies need occasional government regulation.) So Disney's now done that.
The trick, of course, is having cast members who can swiftly identify empty tables and move people toward them, while keeping "cheaters" out of the way. If Disney's CMs fail, then complaints will grow, and Disney likely will return to the old "land rush" system. But if they can, this should be a more efficient system in terms of keeping tables filled with actual diners.
Thoughts?
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There's only a small area outside to sit, but it's a choice of last resort because with 95-100 degree temps, people are looking to cool off, not roast to death. Since we go down in the summer months, it's probably different at other times of the year, (sitting outside that is).
In two words: Singularly unimpressed.
Sea World's physical plant, animal and veterinary care, are all pretty much beyond reproach. I've never had an issue with that part of their business. However, they still don't seem to have the slightest clue how to properly balance entertainment and education.
Granted, that could change. I'm going to give it a year or so, see what kinds of significant changes (if any) go into place as a result of the buyout (and no matter what the corporate spin-doctors say, there are going to be changes. It's inevitable with any sort of buyout), before I form any sort of revised opinion.
At the very least, it'll be interesting to see what 'Blue Delusions' and 'Deceive' are replaced with.
Contrast that with Chipotle in the Empire State building... as each order is created in front of you, the line can be slow moving at lunch time. So slow in fact that someone can sit down with their food, eat, and be getting up by the time another person goes through the line. Often I see a single person holding a table for fifteen minutes; meanwhile, multiple people are looking to sit and have no where to go. During those fifteen minutes, a table for four would have turned over and been ready for the table hog when their food would be. It's especially frustrating for single diners who don't have the luxury of a table squatter.
Maybe I am just lucky, but is this really a big problem? The only place I have been that its been an issue was Tusker House at AK, but thats now changed.
I only see it for Pecos Bill.
And yes, I am part of that group that goes and gets a table first.
There seemed to be more of an importance set on benches and rest areas when Disneyland first opened. There still seem to be plenty of places available in most parks to have more benches and shaded areas. This would help to solve (and seemingly inexpensively) the problem of rest areas as well as easing up the dining areas for actual diners.
Just MHO though, I guess.
Glad to see an attempt at trying to help out in one area - hope it works out and grows into a trend.
I also worry that it might lead to a rushed feeling while you're eating if CMs are constantly circling to see who's almost finished eating. Not conducive to a relaxed meal, if you ask me. Plus, I've never eaten at a counter service restaurant at Disney and been unable to find seating, even on busy days.
With the new system what we'll get is 5 people with cold food, 3 people with tepid food and 2 happy bunnies with hot food. Happy that is until their food goes cold too while they wait to :
1. Attract the attention of a member of staff
2. Wait while that member of staff searches for a suitable table
3.Wait until they get seated at the allocated table
If you're going to have counter service then you have to have counter serviceand if it's table service....well you get the idea.
We have a chain here in the UK that satisfies both. You may have it in the US too. It's called Nando's. They serve BBQ chicken.
The system there is this :
1. You get allocated a numbered table
2. You go to the counter and order and pay giving your table number
3. They bring the food to your table.
It's a bit of both. It solves the existing WDW problem. It uses no more staff than the proposed new WDW system. Everyonegets seated together and everyone gets hot food.
By the way Nando's BBQ chicken is pretty damn good too.
So instead of adding a cast member to seat people at tables, add someone behind the counter to make sure the food gets out more quickly.
This was very visible at Disneyland a few years ago when food service was short staffed. Families began saving tables at eateries where it hadn't been an issue before.
As far as this experiment goes, I expect they'll end up having to make exceptions for families with young children. If you've got a kid or two in strollers, you don't want to take them through the food line - you want to sit down and start feeding them snacks and baby food while your spouse goes to get the meals.
Regards,
Luis Rodriguez
Once you have placed your order, you are given a buzzer that only works within the building. The same kind of buzzer used at some restaurants to tell guests that their table is ready, but in this case, their food is ready to pick up.
Only if you have a buzzer at your table are you allowed to sit down.
The customer service at Phil's BBQ is unreal, and is definitely much better than most sit down restaurants that have waiters. This prevents people from getting rowdy or into arguements about seating. Their "crowd control" is excellent, sometimes even better than Disney's.
Disney's been operating the most successful theme parks in the world for a very long time. They may not get everything right every time (nobody's perfect), but I applaud them for taking steps like this to continuously improve their Guests' experience.
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I think the Disney system will work well, as far as efficient seating is goes. My only real issue with it is that it's going to build up crowds around the serving area, with whole families waiting there rather than just a couple of members of the family.