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Saturday January 5, 2008

DISNEY World officials have raised eyebrows – after banning CHILDREN from one of their restaurants.

Kids under the age of ten will now no longer be allowed at one of the Florida resort’s swankiest eateries, in a move to cater for the ‘adult experience’.

The Victoria & Albert’s, in the luxury Grand Floridian hotel, is Disney’s only restaurant with a five-diamond rating from US travel service AAA.

It makes the venue one of only a handful in the entire US to ban young children. “We want to be the restaurant that’s available for that adult experience,” said Victoria & Albert’s general manager, Israel Perez.

In Disney World’s ongoing guest surveys, many diners have yearned for a more-adult dining atmosphere, said Rosemary Rose, Disney World’s vice president for food, beverage and merchandise operations.

The decision to impose a minimum age was not made rashly, she said. “Because it is the only five-diamond restaurant in Central Florida, we are very careful with Victoria & Albert’s,” Rose said.  “Combined with the research we’ve done with five-diamond restaurants outside Central Florida and the guest feedback we’ve gotten… we stepped back and said it’s time to take a look at this practice.”

Patrons at the elegant restaurant have to follow a strict dress code, with prices starting at $120 per person.

The hushed atmosphere features live harp music. The menu, which changes daily, offers programmed, seven-course dinners that can last as long as three hours.

According to the resort, no more than two or three families brought young children to the venue each month.

Visitors with young children still have 97 other restaurants to choose from at Disney World.

Previously, the company has on-and-off banned children from their Pleasure Island entertainment district, while it has an adults-only restaurant on its two cruise ships.