Cali Grill OOP for children?

[Calgary DISHeads]

Before you read on, if you are going to get all huffy on me about paying OOP or asking about buying a kids meal for a 10 and 12 yr old, protect your blood pressure and skip this... I'm sick of reading the lectures. Take this in the honest spirit it was intended. Okay - I'm done - hopefully I haven't offended anyone, if so please accept my apologies but I had to consider even posing this question - it's not fun planning your trip when you have to worry about people's reaction when asking an honest question.

Has anyone done this/called ahead to find out if it was doable? If not I will and let everyone know. They are DD10 and DS12 and a) there is no way they will eat what is on the current menu and b) I don't want to waste 4TS credits on mac and cheese. Worst case scenario I will put them in a kids club for the evening. It is a celebration for DH birthday and I just don't want to get there and get into a hassle about it. I'd rather have it sorted out beforehand. If it won't work, we'll celebrate his birthday on another day. Also, has anyone tried to order off the kids menu when the kids are over 9, if so we'll do a pretty plain entree off the adult menu? Please don't look at this as cheating the system, just take it in the spirit it was intended.

 

[FigmentsBiggestFan]

I've never done the dining plan, so I can't comment on that, but as far as them ordering off the kid's menu, I wouldn't think it would be any different than anywhere else. The server would probably have no trouble with it at all. And, since they are a little more "fine dining" than most TS places, they would understand that kid's won't like much of what they serve.

So, I think you'll be just fine letting them order what they want. Now if all 4 of you were trying to order off the kid's menu you might have trouble.

 

[bicker]

I've heard two versions of this, and both at the same restaurants in pretty-much the same timeframe, so I suppose the answer is "it depends." They will almost always let you order from the child's menu for a child over the age, but sometimes they'll charge an adult price for an adult portion (even if you just want the child portion). I suspect it'll have a lot to do with the ages of the children. The 10 y/o probably wouldn't get a second look. The 12 y/o -- who knows? It's probably a good idea to call the restaurant in advance and secure their agreement (get a name, or better yet, write a letter and ask for a written reply). With that, you know you won't have any problems.

 

[frayedend]

I would think if you have 2 kids paying for the adult DDP and they are gonna order off the kids menu you have 2 choices. If they won't let you pay OOP for just the kids, then just pay OOP for everything. I value a TS Credit at about $25. So Cali would be $50/meal but with everything you get you can spend (and this is on the high end) $60. My math below (valueing a TS credit at 25)

Assumes 4 adult DDP

8 TS Credits X $25 = $200 value.

2 adult TS @$60 = $120 plus...
2 kids TS @ $20 = $40... I am not sure if the kids get a $10 appetizer.
Total cash OOP $160 + 18% = $189.

All in all I don't think stressing about it either way is worth it. I was getting stressed because my wife booked Character Breakfasts instead of Dinners on the DDP. I figured she was wasting money. Then I said, "I'm stressing out about a few dollars more that I would have spent" Not worth it.

If you will use the TS credits elsewhere then it's cheaper to just pay OOP for the entire thing. But then if the kids are eating kids meals everywhere I think you need to consider if it was worth it to purchase the DDP.

 

[ReallyFunMom]

Worst case scenario I will put them in a kids club for the evening. .

Kids club is a great option, I'd do it in a heartbeat if there were one in the Contemporary. I just don't want to be a monorail ride away from my kids. I booked CG when thought I could pay OOP for them. They might split a small pizza or something but no way is it worth 2TS credits that could be used on dinner buffets for them another time. Will likely just cancel reservation but holding out some hope they will be able to distinguish credits by our dates and then maybe sharing and OOP won't seem to be cheating. We've used Simba's club, Neverland and Sandcastle and its all been good. Next trip plan an OOP dinner at AP while kids go to the club at Wilderness Lodge. The fancier the restaurant, the more they would prefer being in kids club anyway. Wish they would open up one again at the Contemporary.

 

[pirateofthecarolinas]

We paid out of pocket in Dec. for our children. It wasn't a problem.

Lori

 

[Laurajean1014]

I think you can POOP for the kids. However, calling ahead of time may not be helpful. If you get a different manager or server, they may not authorize your phone agreement.

Also, CA Grill does NOT have large entrees. So, if your children order a filet (steak) it would be about 5 ounces which an average child could consume. Other items, especially the meats are not largely portioned. Have your child order a flatbread (which are terrific) and will be filling for a child with maybe a small salad.

Do your kids eat sushi? If so, have them try that. CA Grill is a great place to experiment lots of different foods and flavors.

 

[MemoryMakers2669]

I would think that since you are paying for all adult credits, it wouldn't be an issue at all. Even if they crack down on people saving child credits to use later as adult credits, you wouldn't be part of that anyway.

IF we do end up going (haven't decided yet), I plan to use just 6 credits, having our two girls (2 and 6) share a meal. That would save 2 credits, not to mention food they won't eat!

 

[Dizneydaz]

We did it last Sept. with no problem. I knew my DD (just turned 6) wouldn't eat an appie, entree, and dessert. She had the pizza for $8, a soda $2, and I let the waiter talk us into the sushi dessert $3. The sushi looked so cute but she didn't like it. Something about the rice krispies with the sour fruit rollups didn't appeal to her. We save the rice krispies and ate them later. Paying OOP wasn't an issue and we also shared many meals (we've done the plan twice-Jan. and Sept. 05) without any problems. We plan on doing the same thing this year and we do have an ADR at CG.

 

[kath1210]

Our kids are 15 and 12. We're going to CG mainly for the experience and to see the MK fireworks from that viewpoint. We are on the DDP, but also have the DDE. We're just going to pay OOP for the whole thing. Our reservation is at 8:15 p.m. and we don't want to eat a 3-course heavy meal that late.

 

[Calgary DISHeads]

Thanks so much to everyone for the feedback - I am going to call and find out and avoid the potential embarassment at the table. I am REALLY hoping that we can we get a window table due to the special occasion, but of course I do realize that many people are there for special occasion - pixie dust please I will post back when I get a response.

 

[Mackey Mouse]

As the OP is planning on calling Disney on this, we are locking this thread and referring you to our post on the Dining plan that can be found here:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1189367