Dining Plan...were you treated different???

[kespo]

Our last trip in March was the first time we purchased the DDP. Not only did we realize that the DDP did not work for us, but we also felt the table service was not the same.
I am curious to know if others feel the same way.
Were you treated differently by the staff once you answered "Yes" that you were on the dining plan?

 

[OtherFigment]

The only thing that was different was that each and every TS server spent 3-5m explaining the dining plan! It did get a little old by the end of our stay, but at the beginning it was great to have someone tell us what was covered! I think wearing our bride and groom hats might have helped us a little getting fantastic service too, though!

 

[luckytobeme88]

Somehow we felt that our servers treated us better when we used DDP(especially DLXDDP) Sure! Why not! The more we eat on the DDP, the more tips they will earn from our meals. That's just my opinion and personal experience.

 

[tjh0817]

In the past, when gratuity was included in DDP I would agree that we were treated a little differently. What did they care, their tip was already included. Now that DDP doesnt included gratuity, we have found it to be a complete 180 now that their tip isnt included. I hated that the app was taken off the plan...but loved the fact that gratuity wasnt included anymore. The server still needs to earn their tips.

 

[Colleen27]

Aside from the occasional over-lengthy explanation of the plan or server that was a little confused about the appetizer (which I can forgive, since we were there in Jan 2008 when the DxDDP was brand-new), I didn't feel we were treated any differently because of it. That might be because we do the deluxe plan, though, which didn't exist in the "tips included" DDP era, so the servers might not be as likely to think we're not aware that tips are OOP. It seems most of the complaints about service while on the dining plan now are about servers who are too agressive in making it clear that tips are no longer included.

Out of 20-some TS experiences on our last trip, I can think of two with slow/unresponsive servers, and even those weren't outright bad, just slow on refills, and minor things like that. There are far more meals that stand out in my mind for the good service than bad.

I did feel the service was a little lackluster on a couple occasions when we went on the standard DDP back when tips/apps included. For all I know those servers are just all-round lousy, but it did occur to me that they'd be working a little harder to please if they didn't know they were assured an 18% gratuity.

 

[catne]

sorry the plan didn't work out for your family...if it's not the way you want to eat or schedule your meals, then it's not a good fit.

But I have to agree with previous posters - think the service is better now. And from a server's view point, at least on the dining plan they're fairly certain of a good ticket total at a dining plan table. Without the plan, there's a better chance of "economy" dining...no desserts, less expensive entrees, etc for a smaller ticket=less tip.

 

[ExtinctDino]

I didn't notice any difference. They don't ask if you're on the dining plan so they can discriminate against you. They want to know so they can make sure you're aware of what's covered on the plan and what's not.

 

[Mrs.Reese]

When the tips were included, I noticed a huge decline in service. Without the included tips, service is much better. We ate at WCC when tips were included. Decent service but pretty much ignored. Since then, not ignored.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

Even when tips were included, I rarely had service issues using the DDP.

My worst service was on the meals I paid oop for. It was like, "Are you on the dining plan? - No. - Okay, well, we'lll get to you whenever."

 

[freesone]

It's been hit or miss with dining plan. Two years ago at Le Cellier, once our server took our orders, we never saw him again until he brought the bill(tips were still included then). Last year at Narcoossee's our waiter had a bit of a cool reception when we said were on the DDP, but his attitude perked right up when we started ordering appetizers and drinks not covered by the plan, which meant he would get a potentially larger tip(we are usually generous tippers anyway, so he did).

 

[kespo]

Glad to hear the feedback! This was our first time using the DDP, so we didn't have any other experiences before when tips were included.

We realized after this trip that we like TS much more than we thought

We ended up with a lot of QS and snacks left at the end. We were in a mad panic to use them. I felt as though we spent too much time worring about it.

I'm glad to hear that most of you didn't feel you were treated differently by the staff. We felt they didn't really care to spend much more than the first few minutes explaining the plan to us. I think the worst service we received was at Tony's in MK. Maybe, that started us off and then we started paying too much attention to it from there.

Maybe, we will try it again. I feel like now we could make smarter decisions on places to eat.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

This past trip was our first trip on the DDP. 2008 trip we only did CP, GG and Tusker House and we weren't on the plan.

We received great service at every restaurant no matter if we were on the DDP or paying OOP. Our best service I would say was LeCellier. The waiter was overly friendly, very helpful, great to the kids and very accomodating. We ordered $50 over the DDP (drinks and soup!!!) and he got a hefty tip.

 

[DsnyQueen]

We went to the 50's Prime Time Cafe last year, and were in fact treated differently. We were required to order our entire meal (drink, entree, and dessert) when the waitress came to the table the first time. I believe that because they did it this way, we didn't get the attention that we deserved. Both DH & I had empty glasses when our entrees were served, but didn't see our waitress again until she brought the check. Other than this particular experience, though, I LOVE the DDP for the convenience and variety of options.

 

[jimmalru80]

No, never.

 

[bigbabyblues]

No, we've use the ddp four times and haven't noticed a difference in service or the way we were treated. Not when tips were included, not when they weren't.

 

[shellcruiser]

I will say that we love the DDP. However, I do feel we were either "lost", "forgotten", or downright ignored one evening while waiting to be seated. I had made reservations for Boma long in advance of our trip. We arrived about 15 minutes early for our ressie. When we checked in the host verified that we were using the DDP. We took our pager and waited to be seated. Over an hour later we were still waiting. We watched numerous people walk to the host, receive a pager and then be seated before us. My DH thinks we were placed at the end of the priority list because we were on the DDP. I don't know what happened. I will say that once we were seated the food was FAB. I love the menu at Boma. Hopefully this was just a fluke!

 

[jcemom]

In the past, when gratuity was included in DDP I would agree that we were treated a little differently. What did they care, their tip was already included. Now that DDP doesnt included gratuity, we have found it to be a complete 180 now that their tip isnt included. I hated that the app was taken off the plan...but loved the fact that gratuity wasnt included anymore. The server still needs to earn their tips.

I agree.

 

[tndisneyfan]

I didn't really notice a difference when we used the dining plan.

Either last year or the year before we ate somewhere without the dining plan. I think it was Wolfgang Puck Cafe, not 100% sure though. The waitress asked us if we were on the DDP, we told her no. She smiled really big and breathed a sigh of relief, like she was thankful we weren't on it. So I don't know if for some reason she would've treated us different if we were.