Can 11 year old and 12 year old order from kids menu?

[thinktink99]

Hi! My family and I are going to Disney August 26 through September 3 and have the dining plan which we were able to get for free . We've been to Disney before and have taken advantage of the Disney Dining plan. This year my DD 11 and DS 12 are considered "adults" in terms of the Dining Plan. I'm concerned that some of the adult menus won't interest my children, especially my DS who is a picky eater. I'm assuming that that they would still be able to order from the kids menu but I wanted to check with others to see if this is the case. I'm sure I'm not the first person to encounter this!! Please help!!!!

 

[Fabled]

Hi there -

My daughter was 11 the last time we visited and we never had any issues with her ordering off the child menu while on the dining plan. It just cost the same credit as though she had ordered off the adult meal. Not the most economical, but if you're getting the dining plan for free than it's all good!

 

[jenandjuice]

I was curious about the same thing...my stepson will be 10 by our trip so we had to buy the adult plan for him, but i seriously DOUBT he'll want the adult meals at all the adrs we have!

 

[smiths02]

Hi there -

My daughter was 11 the last time we visited and we never had any issues with her ordering off the child menu while on the dining plan. It just cost the same credit as though she had ordered off the adult meal. Not the most economical, but if you're getting the dining plan for free than it's all good!

This would be avoided at the Buffets. Also, pick some restaurants that have some more kid friendly "adult" choices-Burger and fries, fried chicken, etc.

You can also ask for things "plain" or substitute sides. Some of the things on the menu sound fancier than they are. [For example, I shared an adult credit with my 5 year old at Chefs de France. Soupe a l'oignon gratinee, croque monsieur, Profiteroles au chocolat---just onion soup with cheese, a toasted ham and cheese sandwich, pastry with ice cream and chocolate sauce.]

Also, several have reported that some places will give them an adult portion of the kids meal for the adult credit (not as much of a waste of an adult credit that way).

 

[CampbellScot]

My step daughter is 13, (looks like she is 17!) and she still will order from the kids menu from time to time. Her diet is also not very adventurous. We also had the same experience of being given adult sized portions of kids meals. Not every place does this, but some do. My step son is 10 and finally able to order off the adult menu! He is beyond thrilled. I am always glad that Disney is a place that you can pretty much get things the way that makes you happiest.

 

[csmom]

When my son was 12 he was a fairly picky eater. We found that he had no trouble ordering from the adult menu, because they were so accommodating about changing things for him. He was able to order entrees without the sauce they came with. He was always able to sub the side for fries.

 

[Dizneydaz]

At TS ask about their Junior Meals. Some of the TS offer them-they are larger versions of their Kid's meals. We discovered this the year my DD turned 10 on our trip.

Here's an example of the difference in size of the kid's vs. junior meals. This was at Kona-the kid's Mickey Raviolis.

Kid's version-about 4 ravilois

Jr. one. About 12

I don't know how much the Jr. meals are since we were on the DDP. I'm also assuming adults can order as well. Esp. if using DDP Adult credits.

 

[thinktink99]

Thank you very much for your feedback everyone. Greatly appreciated!

 

[Dizneydaz]

You're welcome and have a great trip!

 

[mom2of2]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but Kona is no longer offering Jr meals. You would have to double order a kids meal. Not sure how its going to work with the DP yet, will keep you posted.

 

[sunshinejk]

One thing I am very concerned with is the fact that they charge a 10 year old adult prices for food. My son normally does not even finish a complete kids meal, and I have to buy the adult prices for him because he is 10. I am very surprised that they don't have they option of choosing an adult plan for bigger eaters, or letting a 10 year old be the kid that they are and order off the kids meal.

Come on...with the deluxe dining plan, a 10 year old paying $85 per day is a bit much..I'm not trying to be a downer here, but for a 7 night stay, that is over $450 difference. It is a lot of wasted food, as there is no way he will ever eat a full adult meal. I'll be lucky if he can even finish 1/3 of an adult meal.

Maybe I should do his ticket without the meal plan and he can share with me...is that even doable?

 

[shoney]

One thing I am very concerned with is the fact that they charge a 10 year old adult prices for food. My son normally does not even finish a complete kids meal, and I have to buy the adult prices for him because he is 10. I am very surprised that they don't have they option of choosing an adult plan for bigger eaters, or letting a 10 year old be the kid that they are and order off the kids meal.

Come on...with the deluxe dining plan, a 10 year old paying $85 per day is a bit much..I'm not trying to be a downer here, but for a 7 night stay, that is over $450 difference. It is a lot of wasted food, as there is no way he will ever eat a full adult meal. I'll be lucky if he can even finish 1/3 of an adult meal.

Maybe I should do his ticket without the meal plan and he can share with me...is that even doable?

No, everyone must be on the plan. Honestly, I totally understand. My ds12 and ds10 do not eat much and ds10 is very picky. We had the free dining plan and for the most part chose to pay OOP for a kids meal for ds10. We used the extra credits for additional meals.

If I had to pay for the dining plan, it would not have been worth it for us.

 

[pilferk]

One thing I am very concerned with is the fact that they charge a 10 year old adult prices for food. My son normally does not even finish a complete kids meal, and I have to buy the adult prices for him because he is 10. I am very surprised that they don't have they option of choosing an adult plan for bigger eaters, or letting a 10 year old be the kid that they are and order off the kids meal.

We've hit the same point, now, with our kids (or, rather, with my oldest daughter, but the others will be there soon enough).

Our decision? Bag the dining plan for awhile..because it doesn't save us money anymore. My 10 year old will likely order off the kids menu 90% of the time....because the portion size on the adult meals is too large for her. So rather than pay the approx $50 per day, we'll just pay OOP for everyone this trip. It'll save us, overall, probably about $10 to $20 per day (depending on whether we're doing a buffet or not).

Having said that, we only do 2 buffets the entire trip (Chef Mickey's and Crystal Palace). If you do more buffets/family style meals (Liberty Tree Tavern for Dinner, Ohana's, Epcot Princess Breakfast, etc), the dining plan might STILL work out for you because, light eater or not, they'll charge any kid over 10 the adult price.

Maybe I should do his ticket without the meal plan and he can share with me...is that even doable?

Unless you book him in his own room (which I don't think you can do if he's under 18)....you can't do it. Everyone in the room has to be on or off the dining plan.