Splitting Meals on DDP?

[davids68girl]

If you are on the DDP can you split a meal with another person and charge that meal to the DDP? I have friends who are going and a meal each tends to be too much food for them so they were wondering about sharing-except on buffets of course. Does anyone know if they could split one meal and only use 1 dining plan credit?

[DisneyRookie2007]

Counter Serivce meals - no problem.

I'm unsure about Table Service meals - probably depends on your server

[TDC Nala]

No, at any buffet, all you can eat family style restaurant (like Ohana) or fixed price, fixed menu restaurant (like Akershus or CRT).

At almost all a la carte restaurants, the answer appears to be yes, but it's up to the individual restaurant. It's been posted that the answer might be no at Beaches & Cream (multiple reports) or California Grill (1 report I've seen).

The rules are that you may not split meals on DDP with someone who is not on your resort reservation or using DDP.

[Alesia]

Your friends may want to look into not getting the dining plan. When we went, we split quite a few meals and ended up spending $300 less than we would have on the dining plan.

[Get me to Disney!]

We were at Disney for more days than we had dining so we shared a couple of different times. It was more a matter of my one DD not wanting to each than anything else. But, this can bite you if you aren't careful - like at the end of our trip, we had one TS credit and 5 CS credits that we just could not use. We couldn't fit any more food in us!! LOL

[2Tiggies]

I'm not actually clear as to whether your friends are on the dining plan. I read between the lines that they are not so I might be wrong.

TDC Nala is right - you cannot share on a buffet. Although you can physically take your food out of the CS restaurants and share as you please, Disney has a strict policy on who you may not share with and they really have to rely on guests to be honest about it.

I do know that anyone not on the Dining Plan can not share and this is spelled out very specifically on the DP brochure. I often share with my DD (7) on the Dining plan when we get CS meals, but then she is always on my reservation and therefore on the same Dining Plan as me. I have never been too clear on whether you may not share with people who are on the Dining Plan on the same reservation as you or whether it just means you can't share with those who are not on the plan at all - I have never had others there so haven't had this problem. I agree, it may be a better for your friends to take the Dining Plan - even if you just break even, it really is worth the convenience. However, if your friends don't have and don't want to take the plan, they can share between themselves no problem. It's just the "crossing the Dining Plan group boundaries" that is an issue.

[Sugardimples]

You can absolutely split 1 table service meal on DDP. People get confused because what you cannot do is invite an extra person to dinner and then use credit to pay. for example, if 2 adults are on the dining plan, you card will state 2A. You cannot order 3 meals at one time with this card.

But go ahead and order one meal. Once it's on the table it's your food. Share with whomever you want!

[TDC Nala]

You cannot use your dining credits to feed another person who is not on your reservation or your DDP. This is very specifically spelled out by WDW.

If you allow your dining companion a few bites of your TS meal, that shouldn't be a problem. But if your intent is for a guest to order nothing, or just a drink, and eat entirely off your dining plan plate, then the DIS considers that to be against the rules of the dining plan and discussion of doing so will be deleted.