1st time at Disney World, wanna eat... help?

[pthomasr]

Hey guys, me and a friend will be going to DW for a week after thanksgiving. We have decided to go with the Magic Your Way Plus Dining and after looking around this board and speaking with some Disney World reps we have gone with the Coronado Resort.

Would love any suggestions.. ie. time of day for each restaurant, best menu item.... really any suggestion would be awesome.

Thanks guys.

 

[0hLovely]

Best place to start would check out www.allears.net and look under the dining section at all the menus!

It helps a lot!

 

[Missytara]

Best place to start would check out www.allears.net and look under the dining section at all the menus!

It helps a lot!

Ditto - my first two times down, I was completely overwhelmed.

The menus on allearsnet would have really come in handy.......

Definately try out some of the other resorts; i.e. Boma at AKL; Artist Point at WL; Ohana at the Poly, etc.

 

[pthomasr]

wow, thanks. Great link.

 

[kltigger]

This helped me out to - thanks!

 

[HunnyJar]

You might also want to check out the menus here.. http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/disneydining.cfm

 

[Rylee]

I'll give you some tips...

The allears site is easy to use but make sure you check the last time the menu was updated so you are getting accurate information.

You can make your Advanced Dining Reservations (ADR) 180 days in advance.

If you are interested in Cinderella's Royal Table in the castle you need to reserve as soon as you can.

If you aren't purchasing "Hopper Tickets" be sure to schedule in the park you plan to visit that day, or at a resort or Downtown Disney restaurant. (Booking at a nearby resort restaurant is a nice escape from the parks and a great way to check out other resorts.)

Some of our favorites...

LeCellier in Canada @ Epcot
Teppan Edo in Japan @ Epcot
Kona @ the Poly
Chef Mickey's breakfast (character meal) @ Contemporary
Coral Reef in Epcot
Boma @ Animal Kingdom Lodge

 

[goofy4prez]

There has been some excellent advice here I wish I knew about for my first visit. One bit of advice I would give is I think you also get the biggest bang for your buck on the DDP when you make your ADR's for dinner as opposed to lunch and breakfast.

 

[tinkgurl]

Here's some of my favorites:

-Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary
-Ohana at the Polynesian
-Kona Cafe (any meal) at the Polynesian
-Tony's at the Magic Kingdom
-CRT at the Magic Kingdom
-1900 PF at the Grand Floridian
-Yak & Yeti at Animal Kingdom
-Mama Melrose at Hollywood Studios
-Wolfgang Puck at Downtown Disney
-WCC at Wilderness Lodge

Some favorite counter service places:
-Cosmic Ray's at the Magic Kingdom
-Pinocchio's at the Magic Kingdom
-Capt.Cook's at the Polynesian
-Sunshine Seasons at Epcot
-The Mara at Animal Kingdom Lodge

 

[AirGoofy]

It does take some planning. 1st consider what parks you want to do on certain days. Then, decide on where to eat based on that.

Many of the resorts have great restaurants; however, that means you have to leave the park and go to that resort. On our honeymoon, we did Park Hopper and just transported where we wanted. It was really fun; however, we did lose park time traveling from park to resort back to park.

Also, decide if you want to do buffets, character dining, dinner, or breakfast. Be sure to make your reservations at the 180 day out or as soon as possible. Also, on the DP, some are signature restaurants and cost two TS credits, so if you want to schedule them, you will not get to eat at as many places or pay OOP.

 

[CdnKayDee]

First trip wow have fun. And since it is your first trip I would recommend some buffets since you can start eating as soon as you sit down ,might help save some time.
Crystal Palace at MK is always good. Boma at AK Lodge is well worth it. Cape May at Beach Club is also good and my fav is Ohannas at the poly but they bring the buffet to you kinda deal.
Have fun!

 

[caroline1851]

This is where we ate and loved:

Maya Grill dinner
Plaza lunch
Sci fi lunch
Crystal Palace lunch
CRT breakfast
Coral Reef dinner (though their dessert choices weren't great-i skipped dessert)

CS we loved: Flame BBQ, Pepper Market (ate there every day), wolfgang Puck exp.

 

[DonaldTDuck]

It does take some planning. 1st consider what parks you want to do on certain days. Then, decide on where to eat based on that.

Many of the resorts have great restaurants; however, that means you have to leave the park and go to that resort. On our honeymoon, we did Park Hopper and just transported where we wanted. It was really fun; however, we did lose park time traveling from park to resort back to park.

Hi neighbor.
Just wanted to tell you there are park to park buses. At MK you have to get to the TTC to catch them, but it's usually quicker than bus-resort-bus.

 

[drmommy]

Tinkgurl, you listed almost all of our favorites...so I second that! Good choices!

 

[Planogirl]

I would suggest having at least one meal in Epcot's World Showcase. That would not only save time but it's great fun to spend an evening there.

 

[Missytara]

In addition to the wonderful places at Epcot, choose a place that is on a transportation loop.

I.E. the monorail route that runs to Poly/GF/CR. You can say, take in a meal at Ohana at the Poly and take the loop around to the other resorts after the meal. Then walk down the ramp from the monorail to the boat over to WL and have a drink in their lounge. I do this since I go the week after Thanksgiving and see all the Christmas decorations.

There is also a boat that runs from Epcot and DHS to YC/BC/BW/Swan/Dolphin. Say take the loop around to each of the resorts, then settle in at either the BW (ESPN club or Kouzzina's or the YC (say, the Yachtsman's Steakhouse)..... go down to the lounge and have a cocktail. From there, you can take the bus to DTD, have dessert at Ghiradelli's, and then transfer to a bus for your resort.

 

[stitchineeyore]

In addition to the wonderful places at Epcot, choose a place that is on a transportation loop.

I.E. the monorail route that runs to Poly/GF/CR. You can say, take in a meal at Ohana at the Poly and take the loop around to the other resorts after the meal. Then walk down the ramp from the monorail to the boat over to WL and have a drink in their lounge. I do this since I go the week after Thanksgiving and see all the Christmas decorations.

There is also a boat that runs from Epcot and DHS to YC/BC/BW/Swan/Dolphin. Say take the loop around to each of the resorts, then settle in at either the BW (ESPN club or Kouzzina's or the YC (say, the Yachtsman's Steakhouse)..... go down to the lounge and have a cocktail. From there, you can take the bus to DTD, have dessert at Ghiradelli's, and then transfer to a bus for your resort.

Addition! Consider taking a boat from the Magic Kingdom to the Wilderness Lodge for dinner at Artist's Point. It's one of the best restaurants at WDW, and the Christmas decorations at the Lodge are awesome. If you do it, ask for a window table and go around sunset if you don't mind dining early. Then take the boat back to the MK. The view of the castle from the water is wonderful.

 

[pthomasr]

Thanks for all the freat info guys, it's good to know people will help so much.

I can't wait...

 

[topmonkeygirl]

If you are leaving a park to go somewhere else to eat keep in mind it does take about an hour to get from place to place. You have to walk to the fromt of the park, figure out where your transportaion to the next destination is, wait on transportation to get there, then there is the transportation it self, then you have to find your way to the rest. you're dinning at. It takes some time.

To save time I usually eat in the resort or the park I'm going to for breakfast. Grab a counter service lunch in the park. Dinner is usually at one of the resorts or dowtown Disney. Back to the room.


Good luck and have fun.
When you have decided where you're going to eat at you can always post what you've got and the vets around here will tell you how you did. If there is too much travel. If the food is good or not.
Character meals are not just for kids. Hubby and I have no kids and went to a couple of them and had a blast. At first he was like "they're just guys in a rat suit." After we got there and the characters started coming by he was making sure all of them came to our table.

 

[stitchineeyore]

OP, what kind of vacationer are you and your friend? This is your first trip to WDW, I believe (for both of you?) are you planning to "go commando" and try to see and do everything in the parks, or had you planned for some downtime outside the parks? Do you like to stop and smell the roses or have a more "intense" experience? all this is relevant to what type of dining you choose. The last few posts to your thread certainly reflect both points of view. It's hard to know when you've never been, but WDW can be a fairly intense place! If you enjoy that, you may not want to leave until the the park you are in closes! If you need a break, on the other hand, a suggestion like mine would work for you. Also, if you enjoy an adult beverage (glass of wine, perhaps?) with dinner, the Magic Kingdom is "dry". That's another reason for my enjoyment of that boat ride to Wilderness Lodge! So if you tell us a little more about the type of vaca you expect, we can be even more helpful.