Boma Reservations - How Difficult?

[Ashitaka]

I'll be staying at AKL for the first time this Dec 4th-8th. I already have dining reservations for CA Grill on the 5th (Wed) and Jiko on the 6th (Thursday). I do want to try Boma while we're there. My girlfriend has been a little negative about it though as its a buffet. She says she never gets her money's worth at buffets as she's a vegetarian (I'm not) and doesn't eat large portions. I think I have convinced her otherwise based on all the great things that have been reported about it and the menus online for the place.

The thing is - I'm not sure where we will want to fit it in. Maybe Friday's dinner or maybe a breakfast Thurs, Fri or Sat (we leave Sat afternoon). I've promised my girlfriend I won't overplan and overschedule this trip (as I tend to do with WDW) and that the last day and a half will be whatever we feel like at the time.

So - How difficult will it be to obtain a table at Boma through last-minute reservations or no reservations at all?

The Unofficial Guide lists reservations as mandatory for Boma. Is it like CA Grill or Le Cellier where if you haven't booked reservations before leaving you can forget about eating there? Or will I be able to make a reservation the day before or the day of?

I'm thinking that as AKL is an out of the way resort and that as there are no free dining plans going on while I'm there, I may be able to get us in last minute. Am I wrong?

 

[k.hunter30]

First off, you may try to find the different dinner menus that the restaurant cycles through. Boma's menus vary slightly during the week. For example, the last time we were there their menu was the same on Saturday and Wednesday but the other days of the week it had different offerings. Your girlfriend might find something she likes a bit more on a certain day.

Making a reservation at Boma is not as hard as Le Cellier or Cindy's Royal Table. Though it is definitely recommended you make one. In May (not too crowded of a time to visit WDW) we ate there on a Sunday and were able to make a reservation (granted, it was an 8:30 reservation) for Wednesday. Though most other days they were fully booked.

I hope that gives you a little insight. Have a wonderful trip!

 

[tigsmom]

Boma rotates 3 main menus and all have vegetarian offerings. Anybody who leaves hungry, well its their own fault. :lol:

There are some wonderful veggie salads, a seafood one (if she eats fish at all), pasta salad and fruit salad and thats just to start. There was a great veggie soup, mac and cheese, lentils, sweet potato pancakes and the list goes one and on. There is a chef at each station who will explain everything to you and can tell you if chicken, beef or veggie stock was used to make a dish. They are very accommodating and can prepare something quickly if need be. While its pretty popular, you can probably get a spot since you are staying there. Ask at the front desk or call from your room. Better yet, stop by and talk to the hostess.

Don't forget to try the Zebra Domes! :slurp:

 

[mary219]

boma was good.it had something for everybody,the deserts were really good.It was somewhere we would go again.The kids really liked it.

 

[Master Yoda]

It should not be all that hard to get reservations at Boma during your trip. 12/4-12/8 is a relatively quiet time and there is no free dinning during that period. I just did day before breakfast reservations at Boma over the weekend and had no problem. To be absolutely safe I would go ahead and book a date that you think will work and change it if necessary.

 

[dhcalva]

I've never had a problem getting a table at Boma's, even during the free dining. This includes one night that we were going to DTD to eat, but never made it past Boma's cause it smelled so good that night. Still had a table in under 20 minutes with no ADR.

In general, buffets are much easier to get into even without ADRs since people cycle through faster (no waiting for orders!)

Also, with the way Boma and the lounge upstairs is layed out, you can sign in at Boma and go up the stairs to the Victoria Falls lounge overlooking it and have a few drinks while you wait for a table.

 

[Jimmy Thick]

Personally I would get an ADR, but Boma is a pretty fast place to get a seat.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Having mastered the use of a phone and calender, piece of wee wee.

 

[Ashitaka]

Thanks for the replies.

Guess I'll call ahead of time to make a dinner reservation for Friday, just to be safe. Then once we're there if it looks like we want to do breakfast, I'll book it the day before.