Hi Vicky, and welcome to planDisney!
'Ohana means family. Family means no one gets left behind or forgotten. And I know that not getting that highly sought-after
'Ohana meal isn't the best feeling. But I have a few suggestions for you ahead!
First, I strongly recommend checking for an advanced dining reservation using the
My Disney Experience app as often as you can. Other Walt Disney World Resort Guests' plans change all of the time, so you never know when your desired date and time will open for your family. Although it could be last minute, the second-best way to grab a spot is to check the day before or the day of. Why? There is a 2-hour cancellation policy at 'Ohana, so many will cancel right before to avoid the cancellation fee.
My next recommendation is that you have flexibility with your dates. Depending on what you have planned for the rest of your vacation, perhaps try 'Ohana's awesome family-style dinner instead (trade in the yummy breakfast bread for the signature one at night--yum!) or try searching for another date that could work for your itinerary.
AN EXTRA GEM: My go-to strategy to get that perfect reservation time is to book a time that is close to your desired reservation time. Then, go into your My Disney Experience account and "Modify" to quickly search for another time or adjusted party size, and refresh in hopes that another time appears. Refreshing using an existing booking is a lot more user-friendly than constantly coming up short with no reservation at all. I used this method to get the most magical time to view fireworks from
California Grill at Disney's Contemporary Resort.
I really hope that this helps, Vicky. I'm sending lots of pixie dust from Florida! Please
revisit us here at planDisney if you have any further questions.
Magic always,
LeAndra