[LURK]

We ate Thanksgiving lunch at 50’s PT. Great food, and a small amount of interaction like you’d expect – though our server wasn’t as “into it” as others we saw. We all really enjoyed it, including DD #2 (6 at the time). She is normally not shy, but may surprise you several times a year with oversensitivity. Call us bad parents if you wish, but it’s never frequent enough that we plan for it, anticipate it, or try to shelter her from situations that might trigger it. Usually, we can joke and have a good time with her just like we do older sister. We knew in advance what to expect (thanks to all of you ex-DCer’s), and never hesitated to book.

Through most of the meal, she, like the rest of us, was being entertained by the antics, the majority of which were occurring at other tables. But when our server drew her into it toward the end of the meal, she got embarrassed and welled up with tears. Can’t blame the server – DD had given no hint of being shy or sensitive. All he did was smile and say to her “Hey sis, this isn’t a ‘see-food’ restaurant; close your mouth when you chew. The rest of us don’t want to ‘see’ what you’re eating.”

After server left, she whimpered in protest to the rest of us “I wasn’t chewing with my mouth open!” We tried to explain that it was a joke (one, incidentally that she did understand, having heard it at home on more than one occasion) and all in good fun, but that did nothing to ease her sense of embarrassment. In her mind, she was wrongly accused and chastised before the ENTIRE WORLD!

Two years later, is she still scarred and traumatized by this incident? Hardly.
Did this ruin the rest of the vacation for her or any of the rest of us? Not in the least.
Has she gone on to live a healthy, normal life? Absolutely.
Is she ready to go back and eat at 50’s PT Diner again? NOT ON YOUR LIFE!
She still regards it as the only bad thing that happened on our WDW vacation.

So, just be advised if you do go, that there will most likely be opportunities for a sensitive child to be embarrassed. Even if you spoke with your server about it beforehand, I don’t know that you could guarantee that some other server might not walk by and say something. Know what I mean? It’s just that kind of fun, light-hearted atmosphere. I hate to discourage anyone from going; as I stated, we all knew going in what to expect, and were looking forward to it. And we did have good food and a good time. Unfortunately…. for one of us, all the good memories were immediately blotted out forever by “The Incident.”

Good luck to you on your decision. I hope wherever you choose still has ADR’s available, and is a fun and memorable experience for all.