Advice: Dining Plans for Foodie Frauds (edition 4: 12/29)

[Jing]

I would love some input on our dining choices for those of you who are foodies . . . but who also enjoy a hot dog and mickey bar. We are 2 adults staying first time at AKL CL in early February for 4 nights on the Deluxe Dining Plan (also first time trying this). We have not eaten at any of the restaurants we have reservations for and there are not enough days to eat everywhere we want to! We are old-world and South American wine people and like a good cocktail selection as well. We will probably use our snacks on coffee, Dole Whips, baked goodies, and water. It will probably be a few years before we go back and since we like to hotel jump, probably our one-and-only at AKL. Anyone willing to critique and advise will be showered with appreciation

Saturday (Arrival)
Lunch: Sanna 12:00ish (1/12 credits)
Dinner: Citricos @ 9:15pm (3/12 credits)

Sunday
Breakfast: Sunrise Safari @ 7am (YIKES!!!)
Lunch: Brown Derby @ 1:30pm (5/12)
Dinner: California Grill @ 9:10 (7/12)

Monday
Breakfast: AKL CL Epcot for UnDISCOVERed tour
Lunch: Akershus @ 1:30 (8/12)
Dinner: Flying Fish Cafe @ 8:45 (10/12)

Tuesday
Breakfast: Crystal Palace @ 8:25 (11/12)
Lunch: Snacks (1st ever Dole Whip!)
Dinner: Jiko (as part of the Wayama Safari)

Wednesday
Breakfast: Boma @ 8:45 (12/12)

What would you say is a "must-do" out of this list and what have I missed? All thoughts welcome!

 

[Missyrose]

I would love some input on our dining choices for those of you who are foodies . . . but who also enjoy a hot dog and mickey bar. We are 2 adults staying first time at AKL CL in early February for 4 nights on the Deluxe Dining Plan (also first time trying this). We have not eaten at any of the restaurants we have reservations for and there are not enough days to eat everywhere we want to! We are old-world and South American wine people and like a good cocktail selection as well. We will probably use our snacks on coffee, Dole Whips, baked goodies, and water. It will probably be a few years before we go back and since we like to hotel jump, probably our one-and-only at AKL. Anyone willing to critique and advise will be showered with appreciation

Saturday (Arrival)
Lunch: Sanna 1:00 (enjoying resort all afternoon)
Dinner: Narcoossee's 7:30 with intention to catch Wishes show and maybe taking a trip over to the Poly for a Mai Tai on the beach

Sunday (Food quandary day!)
Breakfast: AKL Club Lounge then hit either Epcot or MK
Lunch: Have a reservation at CRT for early dinner, but thinking of canceling it until we have kids to enjoy it with. If at Epcot, will probably do a quick service at Tangierine or Sunshine Seasons. If at MK, may take off for the Wave at Contemp or Kona at Poly
Dinner: either California Grill @ 9:15 when we could get reservations and another whew of Wishes or
Bistro de Paris @ 8:00 with hopes of getting an Illuminations view (hubs can't do the noise of fireworks)

Monday
Breakfast: AKL CL then hit Epcot for either the Segway or UnDISCOVERed tour
Lunch: Akershus @ 12:10
Dinner: Brown Derby @ 6:40

Tuesday
Breakfast: AKL CL and maybe do the Epcot tour we did not do on Monday
Lunch: Coral Reef @ 11:50
Dinner: Jiko (as part of the Wayama Safari)

Wednesday
Breakfast: Boma @ 9:30

What would you say is a "must-do" out of this list and what have I missed? All thoughts welcome!

A couple of things. First, DBF and I did the DxDP for the first time in October and LOVED it.

Second, I want to make sure you know that you can't use dining plan credits for the Jiko meal that comes with the Wayama safari. You pay the $190 per person and it covers the safari and the meal.

Thirdly, please don't waste your snack credits on water. You're staying on the CL, bring a filtered water bottle from home to fill up each morning in the lounge before you head to the parks. And then you can refill it from the water fountains at the parks or with the free ice water you can get from any CS location (and the filter will filter out any funny Florida water taste).

The only other thing I may suggest is spreading out your meals a bit more. Even though we had CL access, we did a few TS breakfasts and then grazed the rest of the day on our snacks until our signature dinners. Since you get three courses at lunch and dinner, you may not be hungry for another big meal after just 5 or 6 hours. Just something to think about. Your restaurant choices sound great! I'd recommend Crystal Palace breakfast instead of your CRT lunch. Great character interaction and yummy food (especially the puffed french toast!)

 

[Strawberry's mom&dad]

We ate at Bistro de Paris last week. They do not accept the Disney dining plan.

 

[Jing]

MissyRose - Thanks for the great suggestions with breakfast and spreading out the meals. I have not had breakfast at CP since I was a kid, so I guess I am about due for a return! I knew about the Safari which is partially why we are burning up a few 2-credit meals

Strawberry - the 2012 DDP lists Bistro as a new addition so we should be good to go for next year. Did you like the experience there? We prefer the menu at Bistro to Cali.

 

[smile4stamps]

I would love some input on our dining choices for those of you who are foodies . . . but who also enjoy a hot dog and mickey bar. We are 2 adults staying first time at AKL CL in early February for 4 nights on the Deluxe Dining Plan (also first time trying this). We have not eaten at any of the restaurants we have reservations for and there are not enough days to eat everywhere we want to! We are old-world and South American wine people and like a good cocktail selection as well. We will probably use our snacks on coffee, Dole Whips, baked goodies, and water. It will probably be a few years before we go back and since we like to hotel jump, probably our one-and-only at AKL. Anyone willing to critique and advise will be showered with appreciation

Saturday (Arrival)
Lunch: Sanna 1:00 (enjoying resort all afternoon)
Dinner: Narcoossee's 7:30 with intention to catch Wishes show and maybe taking a trip over to the Poly for a Mai Tai on the beach

I've not heard any spectacular review's of Narcoosee's, especially not from foodies so I would actually recommend Cali Grill that night for the Wishes View

Sunday (Food quandary day!)
Breakfast: AKL Club Lounge then hit either Epcot or MK
Lunch: Have a reservation at CRT for early dinner, but thinking of canceling it until we have kids to enjoy it with. If at Epcot, will probably do a quick service at Tangierine or Sunshine Seasons. If at MK, may take off for the Wave at Contemp or Kona at Poly
Dinner: either California Grill @ 9:15 when we could get reservations and another whew of Wishes or
Bistro de Paris @ 8:00 with hopes of getting an Illuminations view (hubs can't do the noise of fireworks)

I wouldn't waste a DDxP credit on a CS unless you are still full from breakfast and are just trying to use your credits. There are TONS of TS at Epcot to enjoy!
If you do Cali Grill the first night than obviously it wouldn't work here so maybe Citrico's? No real view of the fireworks but a wonderful meal! If at Epcot I would stick with Bistro de Paris

Monday
Breakfast: AKL CL then hit Epcot for either the Segway or UnDISCOVERed tour
Lunch: Akershus @ 12:10
Dinner: Brown Derby @ 6:40

Tuesday
Breakfast: AKL CL and maybe do the Epcot tour we did not do on Monday
Lunch: Coral Reef @ 11:50
Dinner: Jiko (as part of the Wayama Safari)

Wednesday
Breakfast: Boma @ 9:30

What would you say is a "must-do" out of this list and what have I missed? All thoughts welcome!

I just made a few recommendations in purple.

 

[OhThePain]

First, I only counted 11 credits being used. That is including 1 credit for lunch on Sunday, beit a CS or one of the other 1 TS restaurants you mentioned.

Second, some of your meals are right on top of eachother, so to speak. You may not be ready for a signature meal 6 hours after you are finished with Sanaa. Sanaa can be real filling, especially if you have the bread service, which is a must for us. Also an 11:30 Coral Reef is not a good idea for prior to the Wanyama. The Wanyama is a HUGE feast that your basically going to be sitting down for at 5:30, your much better off going for a big breakfast on the earlier side. Also your 12:10 Akershus is not a lot of time before your 6:40 HBD. The way your meals are spread out also gives you little to no time to enjoy the CL offerings.

Also, we would skip CG and Narcoossee's. Both Signatures have gone way downhill and neither are really worth going to. The only reason why CG is worth going to is for the view. I can understand keeping CG if you can get an ADR for Wishes viewing, but don't keep it for the food. As for Narcoossee's, I would replace that with Citricos in a heartbeat. Citricos is tied with Flying Fish on our list of top Signatures that accept the dining plan (I would also personally skip HBD and replace it with FF).

We really enjoyed out time at AKL-CL. The service was great. I feel that with the way your ADR's are laid out, you won't have time to enjoy any of the offerings besides breakfasts. We made it a point to get back to the resort for the afternoon tea and then would stop off for some of the evening offerings on our way out for the evening. It seems to me your paying the extra for CL just for breakfasts, which just wouldn't be worth it. If it is just the 2 of you, without kids, go for later dinner ADRs. We don't have kids and really enjoy later ADRs much more than earlier ADRs. It would be cheaper to pay for a savannah view and then pay for breakfasts OOP. And speaking of breakfasts, you are staying CL at AKL and you don't have one of the main benefits planned and that is the chance to take the Sunrise Safari. It runs $65 per person and is a pretty cool experience. My fiance and I did both the Wanyama and Sunrise safaris and really enjoyed them both.

 

[Jing]

Overwhelming consensus seems to be I need to spread the meals out a lot more!

smile4stamps - I really appreciate your suggestions! Don from AKL concierge was not enthusiastic about Bistro for Illuminations, but the menu still looks like our kind of meal. I am thinking we may decide to watch the 8pm fireworks from the Poly beach or CG lounge then go to dinner afterward.

OhThePain - Thanks so much for the input! Great points about the club level. We usually split our days in the middle and had planned to be back for tea a couple of times in the afternoon. We need protein in the morning so most continental breakfasts are not in the equation anyway. I was debating Sunrise Safari but was not sure if it would be over-kill combined with Wanyama. Since I do not see us staying at AK again, I suppose it would be silly not to do both while we have the opportunity. FF has been on the radar and we will probably switch it out for CaliG or HBD. The Nar vs. Cit debate has been playing back and forth, and Cit looks to have the better wine list of the two (which is of highest importance to hubs!).

 

[OhThePain]

I just did a quick once over on your updated list and have a thing or 2 to add.

Are you planning on doing a park at all on your arrival day? On our recent trip we had a night where we went to MK for an 8:00 MSEP and 9:00 Wishes (we watched both the parade and Wishes from upstairs at the train station, which lead to a quicker escape) and then headed over to GF for a 9:50 Citricos dinner (we decided to take the boat over from MK to GF but could have used the monorail as well). The restaurant was really peacful and quiet. It was a fantastic, romantic and simple night. If the MK schedule works some way like that for you, it's something to think about.

We were also hesitant on whether to add the Sunrise Safari since we had the Wanyama booked (it was the only ADR I had IPO book for us at 180 days out) for our arrival day. But we eventually convinced ourselves that we didn't know if we would be staying at AKL again or CL again and figured we might as well take advantage of it. IMO the Wanyama blows the Sunrise Safari out of the water, but it is also more intimate and costs about 3x more, so it's really like compairing apples and oranges. While we are glad we did the Sunrise and it was a great experience, we wouldn't rush to do it again. As for the Wanyama, they could charge even more and we would still do it again in a heart beat.

My third thought is that Monday breakfast at Kouzzina. Will you have your own vehicle or are you planning on taking a taxi or will you be using Disney transportation? Disney transportation at that time is going to be a pain to get to the Boardwalk by 7:30. If you will have your own transportation or plan on taking a taxi, that is a different story. If you are relying on Disney transportation, you might be better off grabbing a bite from The Mara before heading to EPCOT for your tour. Personally, if you want the TS breakfast, I would highly suggest taking a taxi directly to the Boardwalk. Figure it will run you about $20, but it will be worth it.

Also, I just want to remind you that if you do the Sunrise Safari and then head to Akershus for lunch, you will need hoppers. The Sunrise Safari requires admission into AK.

 

[Jing]

Thanks again! I am leaving the parks a bit more up to whim for the first day (may want to hit the spa or pool if warm enough). We are going to go for the Sunday Sunrise Safari since I hear nothing but positive feedback and it will force me to get up early . . . and get in an afternoon nap!

 

[Jing]

Yet another update - any more thoughts?

 

[tinacaplan]

Saturday (Arrival)
Lunch: Sanna 12:00ish (1/12 credits)
Dinner: Narcoossee's or Citricos late reservation (3/12 credits)

Sunday
Breakfast: Sunrise Safari
Lunch: Brown Derby 1:30pm (5/12)
Dinner: California Grill @ 9:10 (7/12)

Monday
Breakfast: AKL CL Epcot for UnDISCOVERed tour
Lunch: Akershus @ 1:30 (8/12)
Dinner: Flying Fish Cafe 8:45 (10/12)

Tuesday
Breakfast: Crystal Palace @ 8:25 (11/12)
Lunch: Snacks
Dinner: Jiko (as part of the Wayama Safari)

Wednesday
Breakfast: Boma @ 9:30 (12/12)

What would you say is a "must-do" out of this list and what have I missed? All thoughts welcome!

While I don't love the term, I do enjoy food at nearly every level and am not a snob. Personally, we've had our best luck with signatures or CS, if you can believe that.

Between Narcoosee's and Citrico's, I'd for Citrico's. Narcooses doesn't sound all that great; chewy lobster tails and just subpar food in general. On the other hand, Citirico's is great. A lot of very fresh, fairly sophisticated flavors. Its also very quiet and the atmosphere is very nice.

We love, love Cali Grill. The flatbread is amazing and we had good sushi there, too. The main courses were also very good. We were sat in front of one of the windows and had a prime spot from which to view Wishes! It was a truly magical night and we had great service here.

Flying Fish is another great choice. I had the snapper and it was fantastic.

Breakfast at CP is ok. Its mainly nice if you have kids and/or want to take advantage of getting into MK super early.

Depending on what Jiko serves as part of the safari, I might consider working that in, as we've had two outstanding meals there with excellent service.

You have picked a variety of really great places and I don't think you'll go wrong with any of them.

 

[OhThePain]

I think your plans have come a long way since you started the thread. The only thing I would do is lock up that Citricos ADR already. Citricos and Narcoossee's are 2 totally different levels, with Citricos being far above and beyond in every way. While you may be too warn out from the traveling to do Citricos after Wishes (you wouldn't be done with dinner until almost 11 and wouldn't get back to AKL until 12 or so if you are using Disney transportation) you should have time to catch Wishes after the Wanyama if you wanted to see Wishes from MSUSA.

Also, what time is Wishes on the night you have CG? If Wishes is at 9, they may not let you up to see from the observation deck. I would consider seeing if you could get an ADR for around 9:30 and watch Wishes from MSUSA and then walk over to CR when they are done (you'll have pleanty of time to walk there). If Wishes is at 10, you won't have a problem.

Don't snack too hard before doing the Wanyama. You'll be sitting down to eat at about 5:15 or so and will be served: bread service, 3 appitizers, your pallet cleanser, 3 different entrees (all of which are served family style) and a sampling of 3 desserts, along with all the wine. It is a lot of fantastic food that you are going to want to have as much room in your tummy for. Having the big buffet breakfast might be enough to hold you over until dinner.

 

[Hopefully]

I think your plans look amazing.
Can I come with you?

 

[umieesa]

I agree with 99% of your choices...the only thing I would probably change is Akershus. Since you'll be in Epcot I would probably choose Le Cellier for lunch (still one credit) or one of the Japanese restaurants.

BTW...Love AKL Was just there this past January and it is a beautiful resort with some of the best restaurants in WDW! Enjoy!!

 

[Jing]

According to the calendar, Wishes will go on at 8pm during our stay. So the big question I have: Would it make more sense to watch it from somewhere like the Poly Beach (other suggestion?) then have a 9pm reservation for dinner? We cannot watch it from the park because hubs cannot do the combo of noise/crowd.

tinacaplan - Also not a fan of of the term "foodie". . . . or fashionista, barista, or made-up words ending in -phile! Thanks for yet another vote for Citricos over Narc. - it is making the decision to change more convincing. It likes like they have a superior wine list as well.

OnThePain - Thanks so much for all of your insight! Great idea about Wishes after Wanyama, though we may look at Illuminations since we will not have another opportunity to catch it during the trip. The big snack plan was a Dole Whip and some coffee, so we should be good and hungry for Jiko! Our CG reservations are for 9:10 - it was either that or 5:40.

Hopefully - Absolutely!

Umieesa - Thanks for the input! Hubs has been itching to try Akershus even if the Norwegian food has been Americanized. For myself, I wanted some princess therapy and this seemed a better option than CRT. Le Cellier will certainly be on the list for next trip though. Glad to hear another good AKL report!

 

[Silver Queen]

I have to add my voice to the other posters who are advocating for Citricos. In our opinion it's a much better signature restaurant that Narcoosees. I also agree with the poster who would prefer Chefs de France in stead of Akershus for lunch. Other than that your tastes sound similar to ours. We love Sanaa, Jiko and Flying Fish. As tempting as it looks we could never do the Deluxe plan, way too much food for us. We usually have a a very light breakfast in our studio villa and then enjoy a table service lunch (usually without dessert) and a relaxed dinner complete with cocktails. Have a wonderful time!

 

[Jing]

Thanks Silver Queen! It is our first time trying any dining plan and in running the conservative numbers (ordering low-end entrees and apps, sharing dessert, not accounting for beverages, only half the snacks, all dinners 2TS, 2 non-ddp meals), we will come out even. If we actually eat higher-dollar entrees/apps, a few extra desserts and snacks, we save up to 20% from oop. This is an experiment since hubs can get nervous/cranky about spending money and we are going to see if pre-payment provides a more relaxing vacation. I am interested to see what the real numbers will look like and if we feel more or less restricted by ADRs!

 

[cmurray234]

Hmm.. Maybe somebody can correct me here, but I thought on the deluxe plan you didn't have to worry about whether something is 1 or 2 credits. Isn't it just counted as a "meal" no matter where you eat?

Also, your selections look fantastic. I'm going to try Citricos one of these days.

 

[EPCOTatNight]

We ate at Bistro de Paris last week. They do not accept the Disney dining plan.

But they will when the OP goes in 2012.

 

[EPCOTatNight]

Hmm.. Maybe somebody can correct me here, but I thought on the deluxe plan you didn't have to worry about whether something is 1 or 2 credits. Isn't it just counted as a "meal" no matter where you eat?

Also, your selections look fantastic. I'm going to try Citricos one of these days.

No, the credits are still counted as 1 or 2. They are not divided as CS or TS, which means that you can use 3 CS credits or 3 TS credits per day. But a 2 credit meal still counts as 2 credits.