Call in show this Tuesday - All About Dining

[WebmasterPete]

Hi everyone,

Mark your calendars We'll be doing a call-in show this week - the topic is dining at WDW. You can ask dining related questions of the team, suggestions for restaurants or dining venues you'd like to see us review, or make recommendations on your favorites. We'll start taking calls around 3pm eastern time Tuesday at 877-845-0054 If you've called in and gotten on the air in a recent show, we ask that you please give others a chance

Talk to you Tuesday!

Pete

 

[OKW Lover]

I won't call in on Tuesday because I've been on a recent show but I did want to make a couple of comments for consideration.

High on our list of places to eat at WDW are some pretty diverse places.

• We love the Dolphin Fountain for burgers, etc. As compared to Beaches & Cream (which used to be a favorite of ours but has gone downhill over many years) the burgers are much better and its easier to get a seat.
• We are big fans of Yachtsman Steak House but we haven't yet tried the competition, Shula's or the Bull & Bear. We will be doing the B&B this coming weekend though.
• While wandering around World Showcase in the afternoon or evening we love to stop for a beverage and a snack at La Cava del Tequila and a new favorite, Tutto Gusto.
• Artist Point is our favorite romantic dining spot and we really enjoy the different offerings they have on the menu. Where else do you find buffalo on the menu?

 

[BriarRosie]

I can't call in due to work, but I second Jeff's comments.

I could talk about WDW food all day, I probably couldn't focus my comments to just one thing. Well, maybe one thing. Solo dining at WDW. I do take solo trips (last one being in May), and there's really nothing wrong with dining solo. You can make an ADR or go as a walk-up to places that aren't the biggest draws. Or you can often eat in the bars of many restaurants. I did this at the bar at the Wave and at the Tune In Lounge. But I also have been seated at tables as walk-up at Hollywood Brown Derby and Citrico's.

 

[*NikkiBell*]

I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on the increasing price of quick service meals vs. table service....

-insert shameless plug a la Tom Bell here-

http://www.disunplugged.com/2012/08...ney-world-quick-service-is-it-really-a-steal/

 

[ImTooExcitedToSleep]

I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on the increasing price of quick service meals vs. table service....

-insert shameless plug a la Tom Bell here-

http://www.disunplugged.com/2012/08...ney-world-quick-service-is-it-really-a-steal/

Shameless plug AND name dropping....I'm impressed.

 

[GAN]

I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on the increasing price of quick service meals vs. table service....

-insert shameless plug a la Tom Bell here-

http://www.disunplugged.com/2012/08/18/a-brief-analysis-of-walt-disney-world-quick-service-is-it-really-a-steal/

Good point and a great analysis -to take that one step further, add in the TIW discount ($100 w/DVC, $75 w/AP) of 20% and you're looking at TS offerings at similar prices to QS. We just returned from a 7-day trip and we saved $110 beyond the price of the TIW card without really trying. One thing that might be discussed is the new "My Disney Experience" App, which includes the ability to make Dining Reservations from within the App. What we liked about it was you could do a random search based on where you were(or where you planned to be) at a given time, then it would show the restaurants with availability and at which times.

 

[disneyholic family]

I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on the increasing price of quick service meals vs. table service....

-insert shameless plug a la Tom Bell here-

http://www.disunplugged.com/2012/08...ney-world-quick-service-is-it-really-a-steal/

DD just got back from 15 days at WDW...
she told me how shocked she was at the CS prices....she didn't care because she was on the full dining plan (not free dining- paid for dining)...

we were discussing how even though buying the dining plan might not be cheaper than paying out of pocket, it's less painful as you don't think about the price..
she said that had she had to pay those high CS prices out of pocket it would have really bothered her...

i mentioned your article to her and she said she definitely found it to be true that CS is almost as expensive as TS...and with CS you don't get a bottomless drink like you do with TS, which she finds to be really important in the middle of the hot florida day...

 

[BriarRosie]

DD just got back from 15 days at WDW...
she told me how shocked she was at the CS prices....she didn't care because she was on the full dining plan (not free dining- paid for dining)...

we were discussing how even though buying the dining plan might not be cheaper than paying out of pocket, it's less painful as you don't think about the price..
she said that had she had to pay those high CS prices out of pocket it would have really bothered her...

i mentioned your article to her and she said she definitely found it to be true that CS is almost as expensive as TS...and with CS you don't get a bottomless drink like you do with TS, which she finds to be really important in the middle of the hot florida day...

Don't kid yourself. Paying for the Disney Dining Plan is EXACTLY like paying out of pocket for meals. Unless you want to spend money on the highest priced foods at every meal, I don't think people realize they are barely breaking even.

The only time I think DDP makes sense is if you have a couple kids 3-9 years old and do mainly one credit character meals. As soon as a kid turns 10, the value of the DDP goes downhill.

 

[DisneyDaddy-O]

Don't kid yourself. Paying for the Disney Dining Plan is EXACTLY like paying out of pocket for meals. Unless you want to spend money on the highest priced foods at every meal, I don't think people realize they are barely breaking even.

The only time I think DDP makes sense is if you have a couple kids 3-9 years old and do mainly one credit character meals. As soon as a kid turns 10, the value of the DDP goes downhill.

Completely agree, we have two boys 10 & 12, we are here now and took the room only discount over the "free" dining. We just don't eat as much food that is on the plan. We have found that if we have breakfast in our room and then a late lunch, then we have some snack type stuff later on. We paid out of pocket at Tusker house because we enjoy the food there, but since they made it a character lunch as well, the price has gone up and the "value" for us is just not there anymore.

 

[simmons_m]

I will not be able to call in, but i do have a couple of thoughts for consideration.
- Maybe Disney is raising the prices of counter service and snacks to create a higher perceived value associated with the Dinning Planning?

- I'd like to see them provide the TIW discount at the counter service restaurants.

- What would the team suggest as an alternative to Bistro de Paris during food and wine? Our reservations were moved to le chefs and we are thinking Artist Point may be a better option.

Thanks,
Mike

 

[disneyholic family]

Don't kid yourself. Paying for the Disney Dining Plan is EXACTLY like paying out of pocket for meals. Unless you want to spend money on the highest priced foods at every meal, I don't think people realize they are barely breaking even.

The only time I think DDP makes sense is if you have a couple kids 3-9 years old and do mainly one credit character meals. As soon as a kid turns 10, the value of the DDP goes downhill.

actually the dining plan is more expensive than paying out of pocket - but the point is, you don't feel it.....
at least i'm that way...every time i have to pull out $4 for a frozen coke or $12 for a burger it drives me insane...
if on the other hand, it's just a 'credit', i don't are what the price is up on the menu...

last year i paid for the dining plan for all 6 of us and rest assured that was EXPENSIVE, but i know it was worth it because otherwise my vacation would have been ruined every time i paid out of pocket for something that i thought was way overpriced..

i'm not sure i'm explaining what i mean...

 

[OKW Lover]

I'm curious about the general take on LeCellier being raised from 1TS to 2TS. I know they did this for dinner a year ago and are now (2013) going to do this for lunch as well. The question is; did they improve the meal or just raise the price?

 

[WorldWacky]

I'm curious about the general take on LeCellier being raised from 1TS to 2TS. I know they did this for dinner a year ago and are now (2013) going to do this for lunch as well. The question is; did they improve the meal or just raise the price?

That's a good question considering the general advice in the community when the table service credits were changed was to go to lunch instead to get a good value.

 

[Tinkershelly]

actually the dining plan is more expensive than paying out of pocket - but the point is, you don't feel it.....
at least i'm that way...every time i have to pull out $4 for a frozen coke or $12 for a burger it drives me insane...
if on the other hand, it's just a 'credit', i don't are what the price is up on the menu...

last year i paid for the dining plan for all 6 of us and rest assured that was EXPENSIVE, but i know it was worth it because otherwise my vacation would have been ruined every time i paid out of pocket for something that i thought was way overpriced..

i'm not sure i'm explaining what i mean...

I completely agree with you! There is something to be said for paying for the dining plan way in advance, long before you arrive at WDW. Then you are free to order what you want without looking at the prices and associating that with actual money. It's a mind trick but it does allow some kind of freedom while on vacation. And that is worth something!

We are on the free dining promotion for our trip next month. Even though we are paying rack rates for our room we still feel like we are making out like bandits. If we got a discounted room and paid out of pocket for meals we MIGHT save money but I wouldn't feel free to order whatever I wanted on the menu, I'd still order by price not by preference.

 

[disneyholic family]

I completely agree with you! There is something to be said for paying for the dining plan way in advance, long before you arrive at WDW. Then you are free to order what you want without looking at the prices and associating that with actual money. It's a mind trick but it does allow some kind of freedom while on vacation. And that is worth something!

We are on the free dining promotion for our trip next month. Even though we are paying rack rates for our room we still feel like we are making out like bandits. If we got a discounted room and paid out of pocket for meals we MIGHT save money but I wouldn't feel free to order whatever I wanted on the menu, I'd still order by price not by preference.

You ARE making out like bandits
Paying for the dining plan is a fortune!!!!!
But it's worth it to me
I wish I could get free dining but the dates never work out for me

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[daneenm]

actually the dining plan is more expensive than paying out of pocket - but the point is, you don't feel it.....
at least i'm that way...every time i have to pull out $4 for a frozen coke or $12 for a burger it drives me insane...
if on the other hand, it's just a 'credit', i don't are what the price is up on the menu...

last year i paid for the dining plan for all 6 of us and rest assured that was EXPENSIVE, but i know it was worth it because otherwise my vacation would have been ruined every time i paid out of pocket for something that i thought was way overpriced..

i'm not sure i'm explaining what i mean...

Totally agree with you, Beth! We would much rather pay for all up front and not have to worry about 'do we have cash' or 'what will our big bill be at the end.' For us, this is similar to the 'value of concierge,' yes it is more expensive but for us it has value in its convenience. Same goes for the dining plan, for our family.

 

[luke]

In the UK we can get discounted room rates (for selected resorts) AND free Dining for most of the year.

Maybe Disney took pity on us after seeing how much most airlines charge us to cross the Atlantic

 

[kuzco-like]

I'm curious. Another podcast recommends getting a room discount and buying a gift card for a certain amount, and using that instead of getting "free" dining. As I wrote, I'm curious. Has anyone done this? Was it an effective way of simulating the free feeling of free dining? Did it help to save money?

 

[disneyholic family]

In the UK we can get discounted room rates (for selected resorts) AND free Dining for most of the year.

Maybe Disney took pity on us after seeing how much most airlines charge us to cross the Atlantic

Unfortunately, while most if not all of Europe can buy the discounted disney UK packages, people in Israel can't
So that's not available to me!

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[wgeo]

Hi all! I'm a new listener to the podcast and have been really enjoying it. I can't call in, but I had a thought about a food discussion.

The only way we are able to make another trip to Disney is because we are making this a budget trip (as was last years.) This means all quick service for us. Everybody gets very excited about different ts places and we keep wondering if we are really missing out. It would be possible to shift some money around in the budget and do ONE table service, of course there would be no pressure for it to be perfect or anything . At this point it would be tricky to get ADR's made, but my question is if you've never eaten table service and could just do one, which one would it be? And would it be worth bringing in pb&j lunches all week to go there? Or would we be better off just being selective about which qs places we pick?

As for the qs places getting more expensive, we do think they are expensive, but often I get a childs meal and my DH usually gets his hamburger (or salad etc.) without the sides, which is less $. So the difference between the 4 of us eating qs and ts would be significant.

Thanks for reading and for doing the podcasts it helps pass the time at work, even if I can't afford any of the cool trips you guys get to take! It's fun to hear about them.

Gina