We are AP holders and book room only. If
free dining is announced for the general public we only need to purchase a 1 day ticket to be eligible for free dining for the length of our stay. That 1 day ticket does NOT need to be used, we can save it for a trip a few years down the road, OR we can use it towards the purchase of an AP renewal and get the 1 day price deducted from our renewal rate (ie $79 off current renewal price).
The real question is will the free dining be worth more than the AP discounted rate on a room. In our case we need to book 2 rooms or a villa, so more often than not the room discount turns out to be a better value. We also have the TiW card which helps offset the cost for dining a smidge.