Child's price at buffet lowered to 9?!

[Gentry2004]

At the Prix Fixe places, how does food selection work if you have a picky kid paying adult prices? I understand that over 9 they need to pay adult prices, but can they still choose the kids food anyhow (while still paying for the adult food)? I understand my 11 year old needs to pay adult prices, but can she get really expensive mac and cheese from the children's menu at Be Our Guest instead of the adult steak or fish, for example? (I can't have the only picky 11 year old!)

My 11 yo DD is the same. Her older sister is a much better eater.

 

[Dug720]

but my 11 year old eats like a bird

Birds actually eat anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 of their body weight every day. So an 11 year old eating like a bird would MORE than make up for the cost of an adult buffet.

 

[Disneylover99]

Birds actually eat anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 of their body weight every day. So an 11 year old eating like a bird would MORE than make up for the cost of an adult buffet.

I’m sure you understand the expression.

 

[Dug720]

I’m sure you understand the expression.

But the expression is totally false and ergo makes no sense.

 

[80sTerraceCafeFan]

Paying 60 bucks for a 10 yo to eat a mickey waffle and half a muffin may be the worst deal on property. They do let many slide by who may not be fully honest, but up to you if you want to play that game.

 

[Disneylover99]

But the expression is totally false and ergo makes no sense.

The point being, we all know what the saying means, true or not. So your response to that poster comes across as rude. Just my opinion.

 

[Maria_Ohana]

I just returned from a weekend trip but in the course of my stay, I talked with a guest who had lunch at Tusker House with her two children aged 10 and 11. When they received the check at the end, she was shocked to find instead of being charged for 2 adults, 2 children, they were charged 4 adults. When it was questioned, their server informed them the age cut-off for children was lowered from 11 down to 9.

Have any of you experienced this?
I'm not sure if this is an isolated incident just at Tusker House or if this is property-wide.

It sucks the way Disney price kids meals at buffets. Even a 3 y/o can't eat all that food for the price. $35 for them to eat mac and cheese, chicken tenders with maybe ice cream.

 

[DisneyFive]

But the expression is totally false and ergo makes no sense.

Well, I think the expression is referencing the quantity of food a human eats versus a bird, not by body weight.

I can see where you could take it literally, but that's no fun. LOL

 

[Anthony1971]

Places use inexpensive and higher age kids meals and some places Junior meals as an in between to get people to bring the family to eat.... If you are at Disney you have to eat so no reason for an incentive but as others have said there are choices. When mine turned 9 we avoided Buffets for a few years. Now it is us who should avoid Buffets as we just cant eat that much without feeling sick and we are by far not considered old. My son would never eat Disney burgers, chicken fingers he would go hungry at MK in particular until we started going to Columbia Harbor house spnt a lot of money on uneaten Kids meals before we wised up. Ordered him shrimp or any type of Fish he would eat the Shrimp or Fish leave the fries and ask for more.... We just started ordering an Adult sized... without the fries if they could sub a vegetable it was fine. He would order kids meals at non Disney places like spaghetti and ask for Broccoli as the side. But if there was salmon on the menu you can bet that was what he ordered. I know these days it is harder with Mobile order but in the past we had no issue at CS and TS. And yes he got his monies worth as a child at Buffets like Boma. Cruises always paid off big time for us as he eat Fish every night he will also order steak, Frogs legs, escargot...................... and he better get himself a good job.

 

[wishicouldgomoreofte]

9 year old cutoff goes back to 1995 when we started going. It is not new.
27 years at least.

And again, as Hopperfan said, you don't have to eat there. It is in your control. Eat elsewhere.

 

[80sTerraceCafeFan]

A plus of the buffet would be if those character experiences/pictures eliminate the need to stand in line to meet them in the parks. As we all know, park time is money. I don't think it makes paying an adult price for a pre-teen worthwhile, but it's something.

 

[HopperFan]

It sucks the way Disney price kids meals at buffets. Even a 3 y/o can't eat all that food for the price. $35 for them to eat mac and cheese, chicken tenders with maybe ice cream.

At most the food is secondary.

A plus of the buffet would be if those character experiences/pictures eliminate the need to stand in line to meet them in the parks. As we all know, park time is money. I don't think it makes paying an adult price for a pre-teen worthwhile, but it's something.

YUP! And that is the whole point of the pricing at many of these meals. You are paying for the atmosphere, the theme, the characters, the show. That is why many of these even folks who can't eat are still charged the full amount. The cost has to include the overhead of cost of characters or entertainment.

Also if the DDP comes back, there is high value in it if you do these kind of meals.

For many it is totally worth it.

And for those it's not worth it, there are lots of other great options.

 

[DodgerGirl]

The main reason why Disney restaurants have always have lowered the prices of buffets for children is so the restaurants can keep surviving and still attract families to keep going there. But I cannot figure out why Disney restaurants consider kids over 10 adults when they should be able to still eat from the kids menus at buffets and restaurants? It seems like a way to raise the prices for buffets in my mind. Take for instance children eat very little when they are small but when a child turns 10 or 11 that's when parents try to make the kids eat more and expand their menu. I bet when you were little when it was dinnertime you probably ate more than two bites of food and then you said the common phrase "i'm full" but they would still force you to eat all your food. And it's the same thing with older kids as well and so Disney restaurants learned if you had kids they usually don't finish an entree from the kids menu and so they raised the prices at buffets for children. But one thing that would work miracles for Disney restaurants with buffets is a teen menu where teens can order food at a special price and this would be a great invention. If they have senior menus for 55 and older why don't they have a teen menu? But the prices for children at character breakfast buffets have always been expensive because in my opinion kids have limited menus of foods and some kids eat less items like spaghetti and cereal and waffles and macaroni and cheese and parents don't really feel the need for paying big bucks for food that kids will take one bite and then say they're finished and Disney restaurants should lower the kids menu prices as well as the buffets for all kids and teens

 

[Gentry2004]

There is a simple reason they do this. Because they can. And the restaurants are still full. Like everything else.

 

[wishicouldgomoreofte]

The main reason why Disney restaurants have always have lowered the prices of buffets for children is so the restaurants can keep surviving and still attract families to keep going there. But I cannot figure out why Disney restaurants consider kids over 10 adults when they should be able to still eat from the kids menus at buffets and restaurants? It seems like a way to raise the prices for buffets in my mind. Take for instance children eat very little when they are small but when a child turns 10 or 11 that's when parents try to make the kids eat more and expand their menu. I bet when you were little when it was dinnertime you probably ate more than two bites of food and then you said the common phrase "i'm full" but they would still force you to eat all your food. And it's the same thing with older kids as well and so Disney restaurants learned if you had kids they usually don't finish an entree from the kids menu and so they raised the prices at buffets for children. But one thing that would work miracles for Disney restaurants with buffets is a teen menu where teens can order food at a special price and this would be a great invention. If they have senior menus for 55 and older why don't they have a teen menu? But the prices for children at character breakfast buffets have always been expensive because in my opinion kids have limited menus of foods and some kids eat less items like spaghetti and cereal and waffles and macaroni and cheese and parents don't really feel the need for paying big bucks for food that kids will take one bite and then say they're finished and Disney restaurants should lower the kids menu prices as well as the buffets for all kids and teens

Disney doesn't have senior menus for over 55. The only place I know of that do that is Denny's type places. Actually Denny's is the only one I know of, but of course it would be reasonable there are more.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Disney doesn't have senior menus for over 55. The only place I know of that do that is Denny's type places. Actually Denny's is the only one I know of, but of course it would be reasonable there are more.

IHOP and Cracker Barrel (I think) are two more.

 

[Mle8308]

I think it's for consistency sake. 3 - 9 is a child for a theme park ticket, so the same for dining. If it were different, people would complain that they were being overcharged at a park (where again, there is a child ticket due to height restrictions for certain attractions, by age 10 statistically most kids meet the requirements). For example - "I was charged a child price for my 11 year old at XXX for dinner but I have to pay for an adult theme park ticket for the same child." Just easier to be the same age for both.

 

[MissDisney21]

My son is 10 and I’m not looking forward to the adult meal prices. Will do 1 character meal buffet and are debating a prix fixe meal. If he could order off the children’s menu it would be a no brainer. Likely depends on if we get the reservation and timing we really want that fits with our schedule. If I could vote adult pricing would begin at 12. That is when my niece / nephew began to eat larger portions and I’m expecting my children to follow suit.

 

[nolatravelgirl]

Disney is not charging for the food you eat, they are charging you for the character interaction. Chef Mickey's is absurdly expensive for the quality of food they deliver but they can charge $60PP for breakfast because everyone wants to meet the Fab5. It is also supply and demand. They keep upping the price because people will pay for it. Even at $60PP getting a reservation at Chef Mickey's is incredibly hard. People are literally waiting online waiting for the ADR window to open.

 

[Misha72683]

This has always been the case. It was why I wanted to go ago before 2021, but life had other plans. However my soon-to-be 11 year old also seems to be hitting a growth streak and eating me out of house and home, so I am sure I will get my Buffet's worth out of him.