DO you cook in your villa??? WDW

[Kelblum]

We like to eat breatfast in our room, but the rest of the time we eat out. For us that is part of the fun of going to Disney!

 

[ogguls22]

We always cook breakfast in the BC or BW villa - Eng. muffins, cereal, eggs. Then we pack a lunch for the park days in a soft pack cooler - just sandwiches mostly. We have also cooked some simple suppers like pasta, frajitas, grilled chicken. Saves a bundle $$ - especially now my girls are older teens and going out to eat isn't as cheap as it used to be. Plus cooking in is more relaxing then rushing around after a busy day just to go back out for dinner.

 

[Snow Shoe]

I've always cooked breakfast for everybody when we're there except for the character breakfst days. We enjoy being able to do this.

 

[dzorn]

Yes I tend to cook quite a bit since DD has food allergies. We also to the point where eating out gets old after awhile and simple food and time at the resort have great appeal.

Often I will get large pack of chicken breast and marinade it in italian dressing. Bake the next day. Leftovers used for salads, chicken /broccoli alfredo and chicken salad sandwiches. Once the inital chicken is cleaned, marinated and cooked we can use it for 2-3 days with little prep after that.

Denise in MI

 

[PEANUT1]

Negatory We will have breakfast in our room..cereal, eggs, granola bars, pop tarts..but never a "real" meal. I really don't want to cook, let alone clean up dishes while on vacation But that's me. I have brought pb &j sandwiches into the parks on occasion but that is not really cooking per say.

 

[Caren]

We not only cook, we make major meals. Usually we dine at "home" for breakfast and dinner and eat lunch out. Sometimes we have all our meals in. We do some pre-prepared frozen food (lasagna) and some things from scratch (chili). We do a lot of fresh fruits and salads and we always make use of the charcoal grills. I pre-plan menus and order from Wegoshop.

One of my complaints about the DVC villas is that they're really not equipped for serious cooking--the vent fans are totally inadequate, so smells like bacon tend to linger and making potato pancakes with that teeny grater was an adventure, to say the least.

Overall we find cooking to be actually easier and more convenient that eating out. We aren't park commando types, so we tend to enjoy the time spent hanging around the villa.

 

[La2kw]

We always have breakfast in our room and usually a couple of dinners. Occasionally a lunch, but we do take picnics to the water parks also. WDW food has way too much sodium, not enough fresh fruits and veggies, and not enough lean protein. We try to eat healthier, even on vacation and our DVC kitchen helps us do that. It's also way too expensive, and we are also usually there for at least two weeks, plus time at the beach, Universal, etc. so we do not like eating every meal out.

We aren't that big on theme park food, and no matter how much WDW tries to convince you otherwise, their food lacks in many ways, including flavor. Some of the overpriced garbage they try to pass of as food is disgusting, though we do split a funnel cake once a year.

We always have yogurt, fruits and veggies (although we are used to California produce and Florida is lacking in that area), whole grain breads, cheese, and cereal for breakfasts. We make sandwiches or salads for lunches or dinners. When we used to stay in 1bedrooms (when the kids came with us), we used to cook spaghetti, baked chicken, tacos or burritos (though it was really hard to find tortillas in Florida back in the day), or mac & cheese. We don't use convenience foods, but we never spent more than 20-30 minutes making dinner. We have found Publix to be the grocery store that is most like what we have here in California as far as fresh produce.

 

[DVCconvert]

We not only cook, we make major meals.....One of my complaints about the DVC villas is that they're really not equipped for serious cooking--the vent fans are totally inadequate, so smells like bacon tend to linger and making potato pancakes with that teeny grater was an adventure, to say the least.

I agree with all you said. I also do some more serious cooking on vaca and the vent thing is real. Sometimes I'll make an indian dish and the smell will hang in the villa for a couple days!

 

[heathers4um]

this is most what I am concerned about - I dont necessarily want to either tempt or bother others with the smells of what I am cooking and especially do not want it hanging around to meld with the next days cooking smells. And what if there was something you wanted to fry? I cant think that smell would be able to be vented adequately. For this, I imagine villas like OKW and SSR would be best rather than AKV, no? Has anyone had specific experiences in the best places to stay and cook? Does it really matter?

Loving this thread, BTW.

I agree with all you said. I also do some more serious cooking on vaca and the vent thing is real. Sometimes I'll make an indian dish and the smell will hang in the villa for a couple days!

 

[mellormousee]

The only time we cooked in the kitchen was when we were in lock down during hurricane Francis. We usually get the DDP but we keep snacks and quick breakfast stuff in the kitchen

 

[hellerjw]

Get some Febreze, that stuff works wonders for food odors. We cook several big meals each trip and like others have said the hood vent apparently is there just for looks for the most part. We spray the Febreze around after we have cleaned everything up and it does a remarkably good job of tackling the bulk of the cooking odors.

 

[DVCconvert]

To be "fair" over the range microwaves with fans can be set up one of 2 ways. One, merely circulates the air/smoke thru a carbon/charcoal filter...this is not particularly effective. I'm quite sure this is how it is in DVC units. Otherwise, like a shower fan, they can be set up with a direct venting line than runs outside the living space.

 

[8timesblessed]

Our group is just our immediate family! We have 8 kids and the oldest will be 13 and the youngest will be 5 when we travel. I don't mind cooking but I did find when we went to the GCV that I was happy I brought some of my supplies from home. This time we will be flying so I'm hoping the kitchens have adequate supplies of stuff. I guess we will just make it work. Glad to hear you guys like cooking and how to order food. I'm hoping I can rent a car for the day or week and will make a trip to Costco and Publix.

 

[Papa2dee]

We often travel to Disney with our family - children and grandchildren - and cooking in our villa becomes an economic necessity!!