Bridging the Gap Between the Kids Menu and the Adult Menu

[dizneemaineeak]

At our next trip our DS will be 10, almost 11. He is a fussy eater but does like many items on the Kids Menus (chicken nuggets, mac & cheese, etc) as most kids do. At his age he will need to order from the adult menu of which do not contain many of the Kids menu items. Also, a second part of the problem is that there is not enough food for my DS on a typical Kids menu entree. We would like him to be able to order from the adult menu where portions are more his size but have selection of a kids menu. I don't mind paying the adult menu prices but only if he will eat it and unfortunately most of the adult menus are not catered to the the young "adults" as defined by Disney as being 10 & over.

If anyone has also run into this situation and has come up with a viable solution I would greatly appreciate any feedback. Thanks.

 

[scubadiver]

At our next trip our DS will be 10, almost 11. He is a fussy eater but does like many items on the Kids Menus (chicken nuggets, mac & cheese, etc) as most kids do. At his age he will need to order from the adult menu of which do not contain many of the Kids menu items. Also, a second part of the problem is that there is not enough food for my DS on a typical Kids menu entree. We would like him to be able to order from the adult menu where portions are more his size but have selection of a kids menu. I don't mind paying the adult menu prices but only if he will eat it and unfortunately most of the adult menus are not catered to the the young "adults" as defined by Disney as being 10 & over.

If anyone has also run into this situation and has come up with a viable solution I would greatly appreciate any feedback. Thanks.

We have transitioned 2 kids through this. Neither of our kids agree with the Disney people on what should be on a kids meal. Also after a week, the kids are rebelling agains the chicken nuggets, mac & cheese, etc. One was a big eater, so mom and dad gave up some of their meal to feed the child during the counter service lunch meal. We then supplemented with snacks. (We were on the dining plan) We did find 2 exceptions Earl of Sandwich all meals are the same size and satisfied everyone. Peco Bill at MK is great for lunch, load up on the lettuce, mushrooms and onions on the burgers. We did eat at buffets in the evenings, as it provided a selection and more food for the big eaters.

We have now moved to all adults. The 'young adults' get a good selection and there is some movement of food between the light eater to the larger eater.

Good Luck!!! This to shall pass, but enjoy it.

 

[AirGoofy]

At our next trip our DS will be 10, almost 11. He is a fussy eater but does like many items on the Kids Menus (chicken nuggets, mac & cheese, etc) as most kids do. At his age he will need to order from the adult menu of which do not contain many of the Kids menu items. Also, a second part of the problem is that there is not enough food for my DS on a typical Kids menu entree. We would like him to be able to order from the adult menu where portions are more his size but have selection of a kids menu. I don't mind paying the adult menu prices but only if he will eat it and unfortunately most of the adult menus are not catered to the the young "adults" as defined by Disney as being 10 & over.

If anyone has also run into this situation and has come up with a viable solution I would greatly appreciate any feedback. Thanks.

Our oldest dd turned 10 our last trip, so I know what you mean. She was able to mix and match with ordering off kids menus at some restaurants on some nights or getting an add on with the adult menu others. For example, we ate at Fulton's one night and she didn't want the potatoes, but I orderd my meal and ordered an add on of crab legs for her. That filled her up (along with ice cream from Ghiradelli).

 

[dizneemaineeak]

Thanks for the helpful feedback!

 

[nickymaria]

We were just there with my 11yo niece this past October and she had a similar issue. It's certainly worth looking at menus and seeing where things will work. Sometimes she got an adult-sized portion of plain pasta (with sauce on the side or that sort of thing) or we could often find a chicken or steak entree and just kept it simple without the sides/sauces, etc. Sometimes and adult app and a kid entree worked, we were very flexible and Disney was GREAT about working with us. The only problem was often paying the adult price for the entree even thought it was simplified, but that's just how it works for now. Good luck! HTH!

 

[ttintagel]

How far away is your trip? Maybe you've got time for him to get used to the idea of eating outside his comfort zone.

 

[smiths02]

How far away is your trip? Maybe you've got time for him to get used to the idea of eating outside his comfort zone.

Or what do you do when you go out to eat now?

 

[wiigirl]

My experience is that disney will allow you to order anything you want. My 11 year old ate off the kids menu most of our last trip. When at buffets, i simply booked 2 adults and 2 kids, and they never questioned my 11 year olds age. If your kids want an adult entree, theyll be glad to sell you a more expensive meal.

Hope this helps.

This....Disney is very accomodating...

 

[nmmom95]

For us, as long as the restaurant has steak, chicken or pasta, the kids were fine. I would check the menus for things your son will eats. I'm sure many places will leave off sauces.

 

[KrazeeK120]

I'm a very picky eater and I tend to eat like a bird. I'm a pretty small person so maybe I just don't need as much food. I dunno. Anyway, I'd be perfectly happy with a kid's meal most places I go (at home), but I am too embarrassed to ask if I can order one!

Anyway, at Disney, I've found that they are very good at "customizing" things. They'll leave mayonnaise/sauces off of things. For instance, one that comes to mind is at Backlot Express, they have a turkey sandwich that has cheese, peppers, and arugula on it. I just ask for the peppers and arugula left off and there I have a plain turkey and cheese sandwich (which I'm guessing most fussy eaters would eat).

Don't be afraid to ask if they'll prepare your dish a little differently than what's on the menu. I've always been able to find things to eat there using this method.

 

[2girlsmom]

I have an extremely picky 14 year old, so completely know what you mean. She DOES eat kids meals at a lot of places (autistic so trying "new" is not generally something she is willing to handle, and she tends to stick with chicken, pasta (with cheese or butter, no sauce), hot dogs or corn dogs, or cheeseburgers. However, on our December 2010 trip, when we had deluxe dining, I was amazed that she willingly tried foods I would never have thought she would consider, apparently the ability to order whatever struck her fancy and knowing she got an app, entree and dessert at every meal made her MUCH more daring than she is normally ( I imagine she knew if she liked only the app and dessert, she was still going to have WAY more than enough food!). So she tried things like pastitsio, lamb, beef bobotie (really wierd as she doesn't generally like beef!), etc. She adored Chefs de France, Kouzzina's, Boma, etc. She was even excited to eat in Morocco pavilion, and I honestly didn't think there was anything there she would even consider other than the desserts! She is also amazingly adventurous during the food & wine festival. She definitely finds things she hates, but by and large Disney is the one place she actually eats nearly like a (young) adult instead of a little kid.

 

[BEASLYBOO]

Well at 10, almost 11 you son is an adult by Disney standard so he shouldn't have to worry about the kids meals and/or menus! I don't understand what you mean by menus not geared for young adults? All menus have a chicken, a fish, a steak and a pasta dish! Disney is most accommodating and will generate and/all of their adult dishes without sauces, seasonings and or coatings! So your young adult can have it his way, whatever way he prefers.

 

[Kermie]

Two things that help us: appetizers and sharing.

This has worked for us since our kids were very young, and how we still order today. Besides not wasting, it is much more cost-effective.

If you ever do the dining plan, it is fun to let a picky eater pick his food. We continually chuckle how not picky our picky eater now is!

 

[amypetecar]

I have an extremely picky 14 year old, so completely know what you mean. She DOES eat kids meals at a lot of places (autistic so trying "new" is not generally something she is willing to handle, and she tends to stick with chicken, pasta (with cheese or butter, no sauce), hot dogs or corn dogs, or cheeseburgers. However, on our December 2010 trip, when we had deluxe dining, I was amazed that she willingly tried foods I would never have thought she would consider, apparently the ability to order whatever struck her fancy and knowing she got an app, entree and dessert at every meal made her MUCH more daring than she is normally ( I imagine she knew if she liked only the app and dessert, she was still going to have WAY more than enough food!). So she tried things like pastitsio, lamb, beef bobotie (really wierd as she doesn't generally like beef!), etc. She adored Chefs de France, Kouzzina's, Boma, etc. She was even excited to eat in Morocco pavilion, and I honestly didn't think there was anything there she would even consider other than the desserts! She is also amazingly adventurous during the food & wine festival. She definitely finds things she hates, but by and large Disney is the one place she actually eats nearly like a (young) adult instead of a little kid.

What a nice story! Thank you for sharing

 

[lady_hlh]

I was worried about our 10 year old DD on our trip last summer but she did fine with finding something to order on the adult menus. She even announced that she love the chicken breast with spaetzle(?) at CR. I didn't even let her see a kids menus at dinner. For her CS lunches she got to eat plenty of kids junk like chicken fingers, pizzas and fries.

 

[pigletto]

My 8, almost 9 year old is in this phase now. Not quite enough food or variety in the kids meals. He's very tall for his age and growing quickly.
In the summer we booked several buffets which solved that problem, and shared a bit of our meals with him at QS locations. We also snacked more.
If we do free dining in the future I would try to pay to bump him up.

As it stands, we're booked now for February and using Tables in Wonderland and I am really looking forward to eating how and where we want. He's still not completely at the place where he needs or wants an adult meal every time, but there were several meals he ate more than me this summer!