Children's meals on DDP

[Lewisc]

Obviously you're correct. If Disney was willing to accept the "non-normalized" raw data from internet boards child and adult credits would have been divided a year earlier.

Waiting for correct survey data and better information sometimes benefits the guest and sometimes benefits Disney.

Generally, businesses check out discussion boards for two reasons: (1) To glean good ideas for new product/service offerings; and (2) To ensure that intellectual property isn't being disseminated and/or trademarks aren't being abused. Businesses that have sales data, marketing intelligence, and vast amounts of normalized survey data aren't going to believe non-normalized feedback which contradicts the information they have which is reliably representative.

 

[Katiebell]

Regarding the hamburger, the issue there is that the restaurants price child meals with minimal profitability, or possibly even as loss-leaders, planning on them helping provide young families the incentive to patronize the restaurant since they young children with them wouldn't add much to the price of the dining experience. If you just sell loss-leaders, then you're losing money on the transaction. Adults should pay the profit-loaded adult price, rather than loss-leader price.

Translation: restaurants don't make much money off kids' meals, in fact sometimes they lose money. Disney wants to make money. Preferably, lots and lots. Sorry bicker, couldn't resist...

Think of all those restaurant chains that offer "kids eat free" on their slower nights -- if they aren't charging anything at all, then they are obviously losing money. They are willing to do it because:

*adult meals are very profitable,
*it will encourage families to come in and spend, even if they are on a tight budget -- because after all, the kids are eating free, right?
*kids don't come into the restaurant by themselves and say, "OK, I'm a kid, give me a free meal." They are required to have a paying adult with them.

Adults can't usually go into a sit down restaurant and order a child's meal for themselves. Restaurants have to pay the lease, the power bill, insurance, the employees, for ingredients -- and still make a profit after all of that. That's why they charge $2.99 for .12 worth of coffee. If they refill your cup 3 times, they are still charging $2.99 for .36 worth of coffee. So restaurants sometimes offer "lighter" meal selections for guests on a diet or with smaller appetites -- but if a full-size entree salad is $9.99 and the half-size salad is $7.99, which will you order?

Yes, you can drive through McDonald's and order a kids' meal. I've done it when I just wanted a quick snack or light lunch -- or if I really, really wanted the toy But they don't want you to; they want you to order the $5.99 Super Size Value Trough and Bucket o' Pop. It's just too much of a hassle for them to police it and argue with you, and considering their cheap ingredients and assembly line prep style, they are still making a profit from that $2.99 kids' meal anyway.

 

[DISNEYFAMILYOFFOUR]

Translation: restaurants don't make much money off kids' meals, in fact sometimes they lose money. Disney wants to make money. Preferably, lots and lots. Sorry bicker, couldn't resist...

Think of all those restaurant chains that offer "kids eat free" on their slower nights -- if they aren't charging anything at all, then they are obviously losing money. They are willing to do it because:

*adult meals are very profitable,
*it will encourage families to come in and spend, even if they are on a tight budget -- because after all, the kids are eating free, right?
*kids don't come into the restaurant by themselves and say, "OK, I'm a kid, give me a free meal." They are required to have a paying adult with them.

Adults can't usually go into a sit down restaurant and order a child's meal for themselves. Restaurants have to pay the lease, the power bill, insurance, the employees, for ingredients -- and still make a profit after all of that. That's why they charge $2.99 for .12 worth of coffee. If they refill your cup 3 times, they are still charging $2.99 for .36 worth of coffee. So restaurants sometimes offer "lighter" meal selections for guests on a diet or with smaller appetites -- but if a full-size entree salad is $9.99 and the half-size salad is $7.99, which will you order?

Yes, you can drive through McDonald's and order a kids' meal. I've done it when I just wanted a quick snack or light lunch -- or if I really, really wanted the toy But they don't want you to; they want you to order the $5.99 Super Size Value Trough and Bucket o' Pop. It's just too much of a hassle for them to police it and argue with you, and considering their cheap ingredients and assembly line prep style, they are still making a profit from that $2.99 kids' meal anyway.

I agree this is one of the reasons the children's choices are extremely lacking. Unfortunately, it really rubs me the wrong way. As an adult, if I wanted to pay for a childrens meal instead of a adult meal, I feel I should be allowed to do it. My husband and I have spend alot of money at WDW since our children were born and they are certainly making alot of money from us other ways, i.e. room, dinner shows, fireworks cruises, sovies, magical gatherings, and not to mention the pin collection that both of my children own. All I want is for my two children to have decent choices--and before someone says, they do if you pay out-of-pocket, I paid for the dining plan and expect to use it.

 

[bayoutinksmom]

I agree this is one of the reasons the children's choices are extremely lacking. Unfortunately, it really rubs me the wrong way. As an adult, if I wanted to pay for a childrens meal instead of a adult meal, I feel I should be allowed to do it. My husband and I have spend alot of money at WDW since our children were born and they are certainly making alot of money from us other ways, i.e. room, dinner shows, fireworks cruises, sovies, magical gatherings, and not to mention the pin collection that both of my children own. All I want is for my two children to have decent choices--and before someone says, they do if you pay out-of-pocket, I paid for the dining plan and expect to use it.

Ever heard of that saying you get what you pay for??? I mean come on where else can you get 2 meals (one being at sit down resturant) and a snack for 11.00 dollars a day!!!!!

 

[bicker]

Translation: restaurants don't make much money off kids' meals, in fact sometimes they lose money. Disney wants to make money. Preferably, lots and lots. Sorry bicker, couldn't resist...

No, no; don't apologize. Anytime someone can explain what I said more succinctly than I did, that's all-good. (Of course, sometimes I feel what I wrote is so closely scrutinized that there are some things I just cannot write simply -- perhaps if I wrote what you wrote, it would be more likely to be misinterpreted? Or perhaps it is the fact that I use fewer smilies... )

 

[bicker]

Ever heard of that saying you get what you pay for??? I mean come on where else can you get 2 meals (one being at sit down resturant) and a snack for 11.00 dollars a day!!!!!

It's not just that it's $10.99 per day, but also that its at a place where you're in a captive-market situation (i.e., you have no other choices) and a place where just about everything is 50% to 100% more expensive than it is other places.

 

[bayoutinksmom]

It's not just that it's $10.99 per day, but also that its at a place where you're in a captive-market situation (i.e., you have no other choices) and a place where just about everything is 50% to 100% more expensive than it is other places.

Yes you are right but Disney has a right to charge and serve whatever they choose. As free Americans we have the choice not to go if we feel as though we are being taken advantage of and most people are well informed of what a trip to Disney entails and still they go.

 

[k-team]

We just got back on Thursday, and my kids ate very well on the DDP food! They always were given a French fry option, and my son didn't eat the same thing twice all week (and he's allergic to milk!). In fact, I felt like the CM's were willing to do just about anything to make sure he got a big plate of safe food. Some grapes and jello did get wasted, but it was nice to see a plate with 4 different types of food on it for them to choose from . At some restaurants my daughter substituted a cookie or pudding for the jello, and my son got tofutti ice cream at the sit downs. It's really not that bad....for the price, it is unbeatable.

 

[rentayenta]

After skimming through the kids' choices at most of the places, I am not so bummed that 2 of my 3 will have to get the adult version of the DDP. My weird kids dislike those Uncrustable things and get very burned out on fast food type meals. They will gladly partake in steak and seafood, apps and desserts. They will be 12, 10, and 7 during our trip to WDW.


Having worked in restaurants almost half of my life, it's true that restaurants make little to nothing on the kids' menu. They make it cheap so the parents will bring them in and obviously order something more expensive for themselves. And by golly, it works 99% of the time.


~ Jenny

 

[Katiebell]

No, no; don't apologize. Anytime someone can explain what I said more succinctly than I did, that's all-good. (Of course, sometimes I feel what I wrote is so closely scrutinized that there are some things I just cannot write simply -- perhaps if I wrote what you wrote, it would be more likely to be misinterpreted? Or perhaps it is the fact that I use fewer smilies... )

Dear bicker,

Don't you know --

Smilies

are my punctuation marks!

Peace,