How much to budget for food...?

[gonesaleing]

My daughter (22) and I are taking a trip to Disney/Universal in September.
We are staying on site at both places (Royal Pacific/Beach Club).
We are not doing meal plan either place.

Therefore: How much should I budget per day per person for food?
I was thinking $150 per day, $75 per person per day.
Is it sufficient, too little or too much?

I couldn't care less about fancy restaurants but are there enough cheaper, wholesome places to eat that would fit into this budget.

Thanks in advance.

 

[pooch]

My daughter & I could do that easily. We typically spend about $75 total with tip for sit down dinners at Wdw and us/IOA and less than $75 for the 2 of us for breakfast/lunch combined. If you are not big drinkers, I think $150 per day would be plenty

 

[sharonabe]

It sort of depends on how/what you like to eat/drink.

Quick service/walk up places, entrees are around $10-13. You will find some less, some more. The more expensive ones are usually shareable. Drinks are $3-3.50, but water is free.

Table service or sit down that is not a buffet or family style, entrees start around $18 and can go as high as $35 or more at the signature restaurants. Drinks are about the same. Desserts are $7-10.

If you want to do a buffet/character/family style meal, breakfast is around $30 and lunch dinner is closer to $45. Those prices can be found here: http://www.disboards.com/threads/buffet-character-shows-aycte-pricing.3108466/

I think $75 pp is more than doable. I can eat fairly well at around $50.

 

[Malibustyle23]

Allears.net has every menu listed with prices under the dining area. I would look through the menus and plan your meals. Then you will know exactly how much you will spend.

 

[loves to dive]

I don't know about Universal but for WDW that should be more than enough even if you like to have a refreshing adult beverage every now and again. I eat smaller meals when I'm there, it's so hot I'm just not real hungry so I tend to eat a kid's meal for two meals a day then usually a couple of appetizers when we eat at TS.

 

[JZCubed]

My daughter (22) and I are taking a trip to Disney/Universal in September.
We are staying on site at both places (Royal Pacific/Beach Club).
We are not doing meal plan either place.

Therefore: How much should I budget per day per person for food?
I was thinking $150 per day, $75 per person per day.
Is it sufficient, too little or too much?

I couldn't care less about fancy restaurants but are there enough cheaper, wholesome places to eat that would fit into this budget.

Thanks in advance.

Are Mickey Ice Cream pops, popcorn, pretzels, and adult beverages in your budget?

Are you purchasing bottles of water at $3 each or bringing your own?
If you prefer soft drinks, maybe a refillable mug works if you have a lengthier stay.
Also depends if you enjoy Signatures or Qwik Serve, or the moderate table service places.

Breakfast - anywhere from $5 - $30
Lunch - anywhere from $10 - $50
Dinner - anywhere from $15 - $80

Add up the lows and highs and you can spend anywhere between $30-$160 per day per person depending on how you eat and drink.

Your $75 is about in the middle.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I think your budget is good. QS meals are $10 - $15, TS meals are anywhere from $20 - $50 on average, (not counting the more pricey signature restaurants.) Figure $15 - $20 a day for snacks and bottled water.

 

[steviethegreat]

Maybe I over planned, but I looked at the menus online for each of the restaurants I plan to go to. I figured out which meal I would choose and which my mom would choose. I added those into one column on a spreadsheet in Excel. I added another column for tax. (Which I think is 12.5%?) Then I added the tip at 18% and 20% into another column (respectively). I used the spreadsheet to produce numbers per each restaurant so that I knew exactly how much I would need for the entire trip. I figured that it was better for me to over plan this time, since the last time I went, I ended up coming back with my credit card full of purchases I hadn't intended to make. :/

Of course, within the next two months, menus could change. But at least I have a fairly good idea of how much I intend to spend. With the dining plan, between Disney and Universal, I'm at near $900 (without the dining plan included meals). I certainly don't intend to go to every breakfast I have planned, but at least I have a bit of reference as to how much I'm planning to pay per person per day instead of being surprised like the last time. :/

 

[Parker Clan]

That is more than enough for just food! We don't do the dining plan and we stay at both places every year as well and we spend less than that.
Even though they're subject to change or we may decide on something different while we are actually there, sometimes beforehand we look at menus at our ADR'S and price things out too.

 

[L&Lfan]

We mostly do signatures and we indulge in adult beverages so we plan to spend around $2500 for a week's worth of Disney dining and drinking.

 

[goofy4prez]

We mostly do signatures and we indulge in adult beverages so we plan to spend around $2500 for a week's worth of Disney dining and drinking.

Great minds think alike. We also budget for and mostly dine at the signatures, but without the adult beverages...

 

[L&Lfan]

Sure, at a signature for two adult guys with a few drinks and a generous tip, our bill usually runs between $300 and 400 per meal.

 

[sharonabe]

Maybe I over planned, but I looked at the menus online for each of the restaurants I plan to go to. I figured out which meal I would choose and which my mom would choose

That's not over planning, that's just being a smart consumer. This is one of the ways we realized the dining plans just don't work for us. I've tried numerous times to make it work, but they don't fit the way we eat.

I added another column for tax. (Which I think is 12.5%?)

Tax rate is only 6.5%, so your total is actually less than you think!

 

[jimmytammy]

What we do...go onto WDW website, or AllEars Menus and take a look at prices of places you are planning on eating. It isnt full proof as you can change your mind on what you want to eat, but you can get a general synopsis of what you like, and how much it will cost you. Now if you cant decide between that $10 burger, or the $25 steak, hit somewhere in $$ between to cover your bases

As for the Darkside, not sure where to find prices and menus for their restaurants, but Im sure with a little research, it could be easily found.

 

[Heidi K]

I think you're good with Universal. My husband and I spent $100 a day on food when we went in March--2 quick service meals and 1 sit-down meal per day.

Disney, I think, tends to be more expensive, but $150 a day sounds reasonable to me.

 

[gonesaleing]

Thanks for all the great feedback. We are not drinkers so the costs I mentioned are without alcohol.
Glad my budget seems to be on track.

Another question from previous posts... when you say 'dine at the signatures', what does that mean?

 

[sharonabe]

when you say 'dine at the signatures', what does that mean?

Places that are upscale like California Grill, Narcoossees, Yachtsman Steakhouse, Jiko, and others.

 

[Lisa F]

the disney dining plan is less than $65/day per adult and many people find it too much food so I think $75 per day you should be fine. better to budget too high than too low. Unless you are eating at signatures as mentioned above, you should eat quite well and order what you want.

 

[alex9179]

Thanks for all the great feedback. We are not drinkers so the costs I mentioned are without alcohol.
Glad my budget seems to be on track.
Another question from previous posts... when you say 'dine at the signatures', what does that mean?

"Signature" is a designation applied by Disney to set apart the more expensive restaurants. They are 2 credits on the dining plan. They are not always worth 2 credits in dining experience. There have been a lot of complaints on the Dining Review sub-forum of small portions (recently) and lower service (for ages) and the finger is pointed at budget over-runs for the new park in Singapore or Iger's mismanagement. I take most of it with a grain of salt, but portion size relative to price isn't something to jack with in the USA. There may be a flame to fuel the Iger fire.

Anyway, you'll see "Signature" when you look at menus on the WDW site. Don't take it as a "must-do".

 

[gonesaleing]

Thanks for the clarification.
I may spring for dining at the Yachtsman but doesn't seem likely.

On our previous trips to disney as a family, we rented villas and with the help of garden grocer, we cooked all of our own meals.
It's not for everyone but works for us and saves a ton of money. Strangely enough, I like cooking on vacation. At home... not so much.