$40 a Day for Dining at Disney

[Eeyore's Wife]

Deluxe Tour Plan:

Breakfast at Captain Cook's: Mickey Waffle and Orange Juice $6.69
Lunch at Contempo Cafe: Pasta Marinara, Chilled Sesame Bean Salad and Water $8.72
Afternoon Snack: Afternoon Tea at Garden View Lounge! Freshly Baked Scones with Devonshire Cream and Preserves and a pot of your choice of tea. I would get the Osmanthus Oolong. $11.77
Dinner at Roaring Forks: Roast Beef and Blue Cheese Sandwich with vegetable pasta salad and a soda. $12.12

Total cost for the day: $39.30

This could be a delightful day outside of the parks and accessible to anyone. Start the day touring the grounds at Poly. Take many wonderful pictures. Ride the monorail to the Contemporary and explore the building, looking at the large mural, take your picture with the metal Mickey sculpture, and then head to the Grand Floridian to soak up the victorian spelndor of the place. Walk on the beach and then take a boat to Wilderness Lodge. See the geyser, examine the intricate details and cozy up by the fire. Have dinner and then take a boat back while watching the fireworks dance above the Magic Kingdom.

 

[aubriee]

I think my favorite day under $40 would not include a sit down meal.
Lunch at Joy of Tea Stand. Lucky combo with a Pork Bun, Chicken Pocket, Egg Roll, Soda and Ice Cream. $10.63

I thought I had eaten at every restaurant in Epcot (except Bistro de Paris and the new La Hacienda). Since I'm not much of a tea drinker I've never even stopped to look at the Joy of Tea Stand. I just assumed they only served tea. I didn't know they even served food. I've got to try this place in May just to say I have. Thanks!

Wow, you're really good. I've always said I prefer TS meals. Up until now I've liked very few CS restaurants (Tangeriene Cafe, bakery in Norway, Sunshine Seasons, and Wolfgang Pucks Express, but that's about it). Some of these places sound pretty good though. You might want to do a day utilizing Earl Of Sandwich. Their sandwiches and salads are pretty cheap.

Hmm, I'm going for eight nights/nine days (lunch on Saturday-dinner on Sunday) Sept 24th-Oct 2nd. I wonder if you could come up with an itinerary for less than $40.00/day for that length of time that did not include any burgers, fries, or hot dogs--sorry but I don't eat those). Plus like Nala I am not a breakfast eater, although that Tonga toast and that peanut butter cupcake and milk at Starring Rolls sure sounded good, so I might make a few exceptions.lol

 

[Cheshire Figment]

1. I think that her Disney on $40 was about ten years ago. I moved to Orlando eight years ago, and I know it was at least two years before we moved.

2. Her pricing does not include either tax or tip.

3. Judy and I tried to go to a place where she had her "afternoon snack" and found they were only open for dinner; they had specially opened for her for the show and the "other Guests" were friends of the owner.

4. Her show on the parks, based on the locations of the restaurants, would have required about five hours of travel between the parks she claimed to have visited and the restaurants where she had her meals.

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

Chesire Figment, thank you for pointing out that I do this better than Rachel Ray herself, and I don't pull any funny business. Ha ha ha. I am far too honest to ever be on television or run for office.

I really like the Joy of Tea stand and their Lucky Combo really is one of the best deals on property. The sodas there come in a can and they will not give you ice water in a cup, though.

Even if you are not a "tea person" you should try one of their drinks. They have wonderful sweet tea slushes, which really are perfect on those "hotter than the sun" days. In addition, they have one of my favorite alcoholic beverages, the peach snapl! Yowsa.

This is the only place in the world, that I have found, with good sweet tea, but it is not the type of tea to which most americans are accustomed.

They do not have a lot in the way of food, but it is good and different than many other things on property. The lucky combo is great pricing, as individually, the items would run to over $17.

As to breakfast, that chocolate peanutbutter cupcake is divine, as is the butterfinger cupcake, red velvet cupcake, and the white chocolate cupcake. (edited to add: silly author is talking about Starring Rolls here and NOT about the Joy of Tea Stand. The silly author realizes now that to the reader it would appear as if they were one in the same. Silly author is sorry for any confusion.)

I have tried to plan a menu more than a splash of decadence and with a variety of tastes and textures.

I am a huge fan of ginger and of caramel, but the ginger caramel icing is not a favorite, but the red bean strawberry is so much better than the name implies.

Here are the prices from All Ears

Iced Tea Slushes
Strawberry Oolong Tea Bao Bing (non-alcoholic) $4.65
Mango Green Tea Bao Bing (non-alcoholic) $4.65

Iced Tea - Sweetened $4.25
Peach Oolong
Mango Green

Hot Tea $3.19
Ginseng Oolong
Jasmine
Dragon Well
Decaffeinated Green Tea

Soft Drinks
Dasani Bottled Water $2.50
Sodas - Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, Fanta $1.59

Alcoholic Beverages
Mango Gingerita - with Vodka and Rum $7.50
Canto Loopy - with Vodka and Cantelope Juice $7.50
Peach Snapl - with Schnapps $7.50
Green Tea Plum Slush - with Plum Wine $7.50
Tsing Tao Beer $5.75
Tsing Tao Pure Draft Beer $5.75
Plum Wine $4.99

Ice Cream
Strawberry Red Bean $3.25
Caramel Ginger $3.25

Snacks
Chinese BBQ Pork Buns $4.50
Curry Chicken Pockets $3.99
Pork and Vegetable Egg Rolls $3.99

Lucky Combo - combination of Pork Bun, Chicken Pocket, an Egg Roll, with your choice of a soft drink and an ice cream $9.98

I am working on a meal plan for Downtown Disney, which will include a stop at Earl of Sandwich.

You might have noticed that my meal plans are short on hamburgers and hot dogs, even the one foray into chicken nuggety things was a different kind of nugget. I am just not a fan of those types of foods and willingly admit to being a bit of a food snob.

I spent years avoiding the counter service places, but have discovered that there really are some hidden jems at the World.

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

Ah, here is a plan for haning out in that wonderful space between Epcot and DHS, which I lovingly refer to as, "The Boardwalk Metropolitan Area."

Breakfast at Boardwalk Bakery: Bagel with Cream Cheese, whole piece of fruit, orange juice. $5.62
Lunch at the Boardwalk Pizza Window: Cheese pizza and a glass of Sangria $11.12
Snack at Beaches and Cream to go window: Single Sugar Cone with Mint Chocolate Ice Cream. $3.40
Dinner at Kimonos Sushi Bar: Miso Soup, Asparagus Roll, and California Roll. water to drink. $19.61

So, this day manages to have one sit down meal but then heavily utilizes the "windows" along the boardwalk, but then again that is what this day was about, enjoying the boardwalk.

Total for the day: $39.75

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

Downtown Disney! What a place to spend a day. Between the world's largest Disney store, the Lego Sculptures, and enjoying boat rides up and down the river, can a day get any better?

Oh, yes it can, when you add food! Today's plan is decadent. There are desserts and REAL coffee to make sure your taste buds are having a great vacation.

Breakfast Pollo Campero: Cuban Chorizo and Egg Sandwich, Sweet Plantains, and REAL coffee. $8.17

Lunch Earl of Sandwich: Caprese Sandwich, Earl Grey infused Lemonade, and a Three Berry Muffin top. $10.62

Snack at Cooke's of Dublin: Doh-Bar (Deep fried candy bar worthy of Homer Simpson himself!) $3.73

Dinner at Wolfgang Puck Express: Butternut Squash Soup, side of 4 cheese macaroni, and Creme Brulee for dessert. Water to drink. $17.37

This day did not technically have a sit down restaurant, but Wolfgang Puck's Express offers real plates, glasses, and silverware. In addition, a waiter brings your food, clears your table, and refills your drinks. As such, I leave a tip and while Disney may call this Counter Service, I am treating it as a Table Service for the purposes of this little experiment.

Total for the day: $39.89

 

[Tracerr00]

This is the best thread I've read in a long time! It's almost like a scavenger hunt! Personally I always do the DDP but for the sake of this thread it's fun to think of all of the combinations that you could do and try to keep it limited to $40 per day. I'm sure many people could give you ideas as to how to save money but the point is to see what you could do on $40 and you did a great job and the items are actually things that people would like to eat. I might have to look around to see if I can come up with my own menu for a day just for fun. I'm also pretty interested in that Joy of Tea stand now - I'm still a relative newbie to Disney and it helps so much to hear about hidden treasures!

 

[pigletto]

This thread rocks! Good job!!!
I love seeing that it's possible to eat things besides standard CS fare and stick to a decent price point. I also learned that the Joy of Teas stand has food! Good to know! I want to try it now.

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

When we are at the world we spend most of our time in Epcot, and I think that bias really shows in the multiple menus I put together for that wonderful park.

Magic Kingdom is where we spend a lot of time, but this park is more difficult to enjoy from a culinary point of view. If you love hot dogs and hamburgers there are plenty of options, but those are not things I eat very often, especially since Disney got rid of the all beef hot dogs and went to the bun that seems to dry out with astonishing swiftness.

So, here is another go round at the Magic Kingdom that includes a sit down meal at the Plaza. I love the smaller scale of this restaurant. The glass filled and airy environment is so peaceful, and it is one of our favorite places to eat because it just seems so much calmer and easier to manage at a human scale.

Breakfast: Auntie Gravity's for a Fruit Smoothie and a Muffin. $7.23
Lunch: Golden Oak Outpost's Chicken BLT Flatbread and Lemonade $12.12
Snack: Egg Roll Wagon for a Pork and Shrimp Egg Roll $2.63
Dinner: Plaza's Grilled Reuben Sandwich or the Delightful Vegetarian Sandwich with house made crisps and Iced Tea. $17.03

Total for the Day: $39.01

 

[monkeybug]

I love this!!!
We are going with out the dining plan for our last 4 days of our trip (we have QS for the first 3) simply because I feel like I NEED to try Disney with no dining plan at least once, just so I know what I'm missing. The funny thing is that we have a much larger budget this year and I was thinking that going with no dining plan would be a bit of a splurge...but this thread is giving me lot's of wonderful ideas that are also budget friendly! My husband thanks you!

 

[maggiew]

Here is my attempt for an EPCOT day. These are all things I like and are actually a typical EPCOT meal day for me.


Breakfast Sunshine Seasons: Oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar ($2.79) and tea ($2.19)
Lunch Yakitori House: Terriyaki Chicken ($7.69) and coke ($2.19)
Snack Lotus Blossom Cafe: Egg roll ($3.99) and chinese tea ($1.89)
Dinner VIA NAPOLI: Individual margherita pizza ($16) and lemonade ($3)

Total: $39.74


Truthfully, DH and I would share the pizza and get the family style salad ($5 each). But I wasn't sure if that was "allowed" in this scenario. I think the pizzas are large enough to share, but the "rules" said everyone must have their own meal.


Breakfast Sunshine Seasons: Oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar ($2.79) and tea ($2.19)
Lunch Yakitori House: Terriyaki Chicken ($7.69) and coke ($2.19)
Snack Lotus Blossom Cafe: Egg roll ($3.99) and chinese tea ($1.89)
Dinner VIA NAPOLI: Half of an Individual margherita pizza ($8), one portion family style salad ($5) and lemonade ($3)

Total: $36.74

Maggie

 

[ct_chris]

Thank you for doing this and posting your costs.

 

[monkeybug]

Deluxe Tour Plan:

Breakfast at Captain Cook's: Mickey Waffle and Orange Juice $6.69
Lunch at Contempo Cafe: Pasta Marinara, Chilled Sesame Bean Salad and Water $8.72
Afternoon Snack: Afternoon Tea at Garden View Lounge! Freshly Baked Scones with Devonshire Cream and Preserves and a pot of your choice of tea. I would get the Osmanthus Oolong. $11.77
Dinner at Roaring Forks: Roast Beef and Blue Cheese Sandwich with vegetable pasta salad and a soda. $12.12

Total cost for the day: $39.30

This could be a delightful day outside of the parks and accessible to anyone. Start the day touring the grounds at Poly. Take many wonderful pictures. Ride the monorail to the Contemporary and explore the building, looking at the large mural, take your picture with the metal Mickey sculpture, and then head to the Grand Floridian to soak up the victorian spelndor of the place. Walk on the beach and then take a boat to Wilderness Lodge. See the geyser, examine the intricate details and cozy up by the fire. Have dinner and then take a boat back while watching the fireworks dance above the Magic Kingdom.

This one is my favorite! I'm going to sub some Tonga toast for that Mickey waffle, and copy this plan for one of our days. Fun, fun, fun!!!

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

Maggie W, thank you for adding your own menu! I was hoping others would join me in this new little obsession of mine.

Yet, in your plan you did not include tax or tip.

In Olrando the sales tax is 6.5%, so add up all the counter service meals and multiply the total by 1.065 which will give you the total cost including tax.

For the Table Service meal you also need to include tip, which is, according to Disney suggestions, 18% (no deabating this please, I do not want the thread closed). Added to the tax, this takes you to 24.5%, so add up all the costs of your table service meal and then multiply the answer by 1.245 to get the total cost including food, tax, and tip.

Your first plan listed, when including tax and tip, comes to $45.75. This is just under the cost of the regular DDP, but if you had the regular DDP, you would still have to pay a tip on top of the $45.99 you spent for the plan, plus you would have used two snack credits for your snack time as the egg roll and drink would each be a credit.

 

[maggiew]

Maggie W, thank you for adding your own menu! I was hoping others would join me in this new little obsession of mine.

Yet, in your plan you did not include tax or tip.

In Olrando the sales tax is 6.5%, so add up all the counter service meals and multiply the total by 1.065 which will give you the total cost including tax.

For the Table Service meal you also need to include tip, which is, according to Disney suggestions, 18% (no deabating this please, I do not want the thread closed). Added to the tax, this takes you to 24.5%, so add up all the costs of your table service meal and then multiply the answer by 1.245 to get the total cost including food, tax, and tip.

Your first plan listed, when including tax and tip, comes to $45.75. This is just under the cost of the regular DDP, but if you had the regular DDP, you would still have to pay a tip on top of the $45.99 you spent for the plan, plus you would have used two snack credits for your snack time as the egg roll and drink would each be a credit.

Sorry, I didn't think Rachel Ray included tax and tip. I didn't realize you did.
But now that you mention it, I remember in your OP about the 18% tip.


We've never gone with the dining plan, because it doesn't fit how we eat. We are not big dessert people (maybe share 1 on one meal).

Maggie

 

[merbobear]

I love your $40 a day plan! We are doing DDP so that we won't have to worry about budgeting our meals, but it is really cool to see that it's possible to eat well at WDW on a budget!

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

Maggie, I have watched a few of the Rachel Ray shows and it seems as if some episodes include tax and a 10% tip while others did not.

As to not doing the dining plan, for many people they would be better off eating out of pocket.

As a family we usually end up with the dining plan as it ends up being worth it for our specific family for the way we eat. I have run the numbers extensively.

Here is a great example of that at Hollywood Studios:

Breakfast at Writer's Shop: Milk Steamer and Strawberry Muffin $5.15
Lunch at Brown Derby: Cobb Salad with Vanilla Roobios Tea $22.03
Snack: Mickey Ice Cream Bar $3.50
Dinner at Pizza Planet: Veggie Pizza with side salad and water $9.05.

All told, including Tax and Tip, you get to eat a deluxe two credit location and enjoy a signature dish, plus you get breakfast, lunch, and an ice cream for a grand total of $39.72.

Brown Derby lists the salad as an appetizer, but I cannot imagine eating that entire salad and then trying to force another entree down my gullet. This might not be a "doable" plan for a large eater.

 

[TDC Nala]

I get a cobb salad for lunch often. Usually a martini with it though - not tea. One order could definitely be a full meal for one person (unless that person really likes to eat large amounts).

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I get a cobb salad for lunch often. Usually a martini with it though - not tea. One order could definitely be a full meal for one person (unless that person really likes to eat large amounts).

The cobb salad would definetly be enough of a meal for me.

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

Here is a plan for a couple. The total for the day has been raised to $80. This plan also includes tax and tip, but does allow the couple to split a dessert. Since dessert is not an actual "need" it seems allowable, given the couple status, to allow for a split dessert. In addition, we are utelizing Beaches and Cream as our Table Service which is next to DHS either a short walk or boat ride from the front of the park.

DHS

Breakfast Writer's Shop: Milk, Coffee, Banana Nut Muffin and Cinnamon Bun $10.35

Lunch Starring Rolls: Black Forrest Ham Sandwich with chips and the Full Moon Sushi Combo. Split the Butterfinger Cupcake and drink water. $23.61

Snack Anaheim Produce: Two pieces of whole fruit or a piece of fruit and a pickle (daughter LOVES these, I find them odd and a bit menacing). $2.85

Dinner at Beaches and Cream: Roast Beef Sub and the Grilled Chicken sandwich washed down with a Root Beer Float and a Frozen Sunshine. $43.15

Total for the day comes to $79.96