What Happens When You Are Evacuated From A Disney World Restaurant?

Sometimes life happens, even at Disney World. Thankfully, Disney is the gold standard for guest service, and they work hard to make it right. On Friday, July 24th at Ale & Compass, a restaurant at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, we saw their guest service in action.

 How an Emergency is Handled

Halfway through our meal, the fire alarm started going off.

My first observation, everything remained quiet. The alarm was a brighter light that slowly flashed with a soft pulsing tone. All of the guests were looking around, wondering what was happening. Then a cast member came to our table and quietly said they needed to evacuate the building, pointing to the closest exit. At the building exit, another cast member instructed guests to continue out towards the lighthouse.

Guests gathered around and chatted quietly. We never smelled smoke or saw anything that indicated what had happened. It’s quite possible that something tied to the construction was to blame. We also noticed Stormalong Bay was not evacuated.  Whatever the reason, 40 minutes later, we were back at our table. Thankfully, it was after sunset, so we were comfortable outside, and we had already had appetizers, so we weren’t starving.

What Happens After the Disruption?

Once everyone had filed back into the restaurant, the cast members were refilling everyone’s water and checking in. Leadership stopped by the tables and thanked us for our patience.

My husband had truffle fries on the table, and new ones came out to replace them, and then our entrees came, there was definitely a difference in the fries. The service was impeccable, and everyone was working hard to get back to normal. But of course it wasn’t quite the same. The kitchen was busy, and everything was thrown off for them. Before the evacuation, our appetizers were amazing. When we came back, we could tell the entrees would have been great, but they weren’t quite there. The puree on the short ribs was cold, and my crabcake would typically be cooked a bit longer. We will be back soon to do a complete and fair review.

But here’s the great news, they didn’t give us a bill. They could have charged us for the drinks and appetizers, but everything was completely covered. Including the gratuity. I tried to leave a tip, but I didn’t have cash. Our server said he was covered, but I wanted to be sure, so I confirmed with his leaders and a source who works in resorts. When something happens beyond anyone’s control, Disney pays the cast the automatic gratuity rate.

So, we were out a little later than we planned, but we still had a lovely night out, and we’ll be back at Ale and Compass soon to do a complete review.

Have you had a disruption or situation that Disney took care of for you?