cooking meals

[CKDKMK]

We plan on cooking in our villa with a few ressies some nights during our 16 night stay later this year. We are driving and have our favorite recipes wrote down in a notebook to bring along. However my concern is since I am from a small rural town, I am use to purchasing meat from our local meat market where I know who raised the cattle and etc. Does any one know if they have a local meat market nearby WDW? I like being able to custom order your packages.

 

[nono]

We plan on cooking in our villa with a few ressies some nights during our 16 night stay later this year. We are driving and have our favorite recipes wrote down in a notebook to bring along. However my concern is since I am from a small rural town, I am use to purchasing meat from our local meat market where I know who raised the cattle and etc. Does any one know if they have a local meat market nearby WDW? I like being able to custom order your packages.

Whole Foods would probably do it for you. They're up on Sand Lake Rd.

 

[eliza61]

Generally when we stay more than 7 nights we end up cooking. Usually very simple but full means, maybe steak, rolls and a veggie.
I usually go with the full intention of NOT cooking but after a few days we usually start to slow down and some times simply don't feel like trying to make an adr.
Also by the 3rd day we especially don't feel like getting up to go out for breakfast.

 

[mickey&minniealways]

We have breakfast in the villa. Lunch either in the villa or we make it in the morning and pack it for in the parks. Some dinners are out and some we make. I like to bring a crock pot. I can cook almost anything in that. If you have been out most of the day it is nice to go back to the rooms and have the meal ready when you walk in the door. It always smells so good we you get that first whiff as you walk in.

 

[dianeschlicht]

For 22 days, I'd be cooking at least half the meals. I doubt I could do dining out more than that for that long.

When it's just the 2 of us, we'll usually make breakfast in the villa (real breakfast, not just a bagle or doughnut) and maybe have a light snack later in the evening after having a sit down meal somewhere on Disney property midday.

When we have guests along who might be on a budget, we tend to buy groceries much the same as we do at home and cook much the same as we do at home as well.

My preference is to make one big meal with something like a ham etc. Then we can use the leftovers from the ham for sandwiches throughout the rest of the trip. We find making pasta dishes quite easy in the villas, and we like to utilize the grills in the pool areas as well.

 

[Chuck S]

I don't cook a lot of full meals, but on a 22 day trip, I'm sure I would cook some.

We almost always have breakfast in our room, whether in a studio or in a larger unit. In a studio, we stick to cold cereals, fresh fruits, juices and coffee. If we have a full kitchen, we'll add some eggs or French toast and occasionally hot cereal.

We also keep cheese and lunch meats on hand for sandwiches.

We usually eat our large meal of the day for lunch in one of the parks, but we are also usually only 2 people.

If we bring friends and have larger groups, the kitchen is used for some full meals, as the more people traveling, the more $ you save by eating in your room.

 

[extremesoccermom]

I have also been thinking about this alot. We usually fly making it more difficult to get fresh food. In the past we have packed frozen water bottles, milk, cream cheese in a cooler which we check. Then in the luggage cereal, poptarts, granola bars, nuts, fruit snacks, microwave popcorn and pretty much any junk food. But after our last one week trip we decided one week is not long enough we really liked the two week trip we took last year.
In October we will have a 2 bedroom for 6 nights followed by a 3 night cruise. We will probably bring some breakfast, snacks and maybe one or two things for dinner but I really didn't plan on major cooking.
Next June we are going once again for 2 weeks the first week will be DD16 and I in a studio then DH will join us for a week in a 1br. I am considering driving so that we will have the car available to pick up supplies when he arrives. I love to cook but we have always been the commando family. Our AP will run out while we are on our trip and currently I did not plan to renew since our next trip to WDW will not be for a couple of years. (We have other plans to visit Hawaii and Romania -DD birth place). It will be fun to spend some time at the resort relaxing at the end of our trip instead of early up and late magical hours.

 

[rentayenta]

We stayed 5 nights at the GCV and BBQd twice. I think the food starts to all taste the same after a while, especially at Disneyland. When at WDW we cook breakfast but haven't cooked a full dinner before. Our next trip will be 11 days so we'll do some cooking I am sure.

With a 22 day trip I'd cook for no other reason than I wouldn't want to gain weight. Disney's portions are huge and I don't need all that food.

 

[Caren]

I'm just curious, How many of you actually cook full meals?
We are staying for 22 days in Dec. The first part of our trip we have the DDP the second part we decided to go for the basic since we will be in a 2bdrm .
We have about a month before our ADR's and I just don't know what to do.
We are planning on getting groceries, but i'm just afraid that once we get there I may not want to actually cook..lol But on the other hand 22 days of Disney food could end up being a little much.
I know that this is a "vacation home" but we have only stayed in a studio before and all our other vacations have always been in a normal hotel room, so I just don't know what to expect.

Has anyone had full intentions of cooking then changed their mind once they got there or has it been the opposite where you were surprised by the amount of cooking you did?
Any input would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks

We do a great deal more cooking than eating out. It's more relaxing in our book to stay in and cook a meal than it is to try to get reservations or face the zoo-like atmosphere and processed food at counter service locations. We're at BLT next week and have menus planned and groceries ordered. We're having chili, lasagna, steaks, salads, and Mickey pancakes among other things.

 

[ddoconnell]

We tend to cook at least 2 meals a day at the villa The kids (and parents) love the more relaxed atmosphere at home. It saves us a boatload of money and time in the parks....we get to use all of the time doing what we want and not waiting on a sandwich. We also eat much healthier which is important for me since I am diabetic. We do still eat out, but we pick special times and places....otherwise it is comfort food at home!

Good luck and enjoy your trip!

 

[jodifla]

No way could I do 22 days of eating out at WDW. The menu has declined too much across the board since the horrible DDP.

We normally eat all breakfasts in the room, and some lunches, and a couple of dinners. We keep it simple.

For dinners, I buy:
bagged salads
big veggie tray (use as snacks, add to salads, or cook as veggies for dinner)
meat to grill
garlic bread
Pasta
Sauce
Often, frozen fish, like tortilla crusted tilapia
Boxed rices, or couscous, or pasta mixes

I bring a bag of spices, so I'm not buying that down there.

For breakfast, we get eggs, bacon, bread for toast, individual cereals, milk.

For lunch, I buy chips and potato salad, hot dogs and buns. Some deli meats and cheeses to make sandwiches or to add to the salads.

WAY, WAY cheaper than eating 22 nights at WDW.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I have also been thinking about this alot. We usually fly making it more difficult to get fresh food. In the past we have packed frozen water bottles, milk, cream cheese in a cooler which we check. Then in the luggage cereal, poptarts, granola bars, nuts, fruit snacks, microwave popcorn and pretty much any junk food. But after our last one week trip we decided one week is not long enough we really liked the two week trip we took last year.
In October we will have a 2 bedroom for 6 nights followed by a 3 night cruise. We will probably bring some breakfast, snacks and maybe one or two things for dinner but I really didn't plan on major cooking.
Next June we are going once again for 2 weeks the first week will be DD16 and I in a studio then DH will join us for a week in a 1br. I am considering driving so that we will have the car available to pick up supplies when he arrives. I love to cook but we have always been the commando family. Our AP will run out while we are on our trip and currently I did not plan to renew since our next trip to WDW will not be for a couple of years. (We have other plans to visit Hawaii and Romania -DD birth place). It will be fun to spend some time at the resort relaxing at the end of our trip instead of early up and late magical hours.

No way I'm paying to check a bag with food. We just stop at the grocery store on our way in from the airport. We usually rent a car, so sometimes we wait until after we are in our villa to do the grocery shopping. It's less of a hassle that way when the room isn't ready until later.

 

[GBBTomorrow]

We cook. If we're flying, we'll get a delivery from Garden Grocer, and if we're driving we'll stop at Publix on the way in to town.

DH makes breakfast pretty much every day: eggs, pancakes, or just cereal and fruit some days.

We will also have a few days (depending on length of trip) when we will come back for an afternoon break and have a full meal in the afternoon. It will be something simple, like spaghetti, macaroni and cheese, or a Bertolli-type meal (not that this counts as actually cooking, I guess). Then in the evening we'll just have some snacks in the parks.

 

[BeesKnees]

Eating out every meal at disney is not an option for us. The food for breakfast and lunch is only meh at most places and we have to be surrounded by children who are either screaming because they are happy or, most often, screaming because they are mad. Thanks to the popularity of the meal plans many long-time dinner places that were once too pricey for most families are now over-run and the quiet and romantic ambience that you paid for is gone.

We can prepare and eat breakfast in half the time it takes to get somewhere to have someone else do it for us. Most importantly we eat when we are ready. I am not going to be rushed around in the morning time to make some reservation. Alternatively if I get up early I don't want to wait around because my reservation is 2 hours away. I am on vacation. That is not relaxing. Besides that the same handful of ingredients can make many different breakfast meals.

Lunch is the same way. The only time it is faster to eat out is you are already out.

We generally do eat dinner out because it is the meal that takes the longest to prepare and requires the most diverse ingredients. We make most things from scratch at home with quality ingredients which is really hard to do in a kitchen that doesn't have all the equipment we need.

 

[Tiger926]

When we first joined, we only had enough points for Studios, so we ate out. We've done it all: Deluxe DP, Regular DP, DDE and TIW. We've eaten pretty much everywhere, multiple times, with only a few Signatures/Dinner shows to go. Dining has really gone downhill, so we pick and choose carefully where we are going to eat.

Now that we stay in 1 bedrooms, as we've added on, we enjoy cooking in our villas! Our trip that we just returned from, saw us cook the most in our room ever! Now, that being said, we still ate at 1TS per day, and sometimes 2x, but we have gone from 2-3 TS meals, to a lot less. And for our next trip, it will be even less!

We really enjoyed eating breakfast in our room each day (except for 2 days - Cape May & Kona Cafe), and some lunches and dinners. We still enjoy character meals, and find they are worth it for us, as we need the break from the stifling summer heat, plus, we get great autographs. So, we'll continue to do our character meals, but we have eliminated many restaurants that we used to enjoy eating at. We don't care for CS either, so we figure, it's just as easy to prepare food in our villa as we always go back for midday breaks.

As long as we continue to drive, we will go grocery shopping and cook in our villa for some meals! We go for approx. 2 weeks, so we love a balance of eating out with cooking in our villa!

Tiger

 

[cvjw]

We just stayed at Disney this past May/June for 14 nights. We had the dining plan for those nights. That was too much eating out for us. If we do a trip that is just a week, we will consider the dining plan. If the trip is longer, we will get TIW, and prepare some meals in our villa.

 

[Sammie]

We have breakfast and snacks, we do not cook any full meals such as lunch or dinner. For an 8 night stay we would book 3 Disney dinner meals, the rest we eat off Disney property.

However when we are on vacation or even at home we never eat but 2 meals a day.

 

[katybug34]

You will find that DVC newbies are still in the commando mode and rarely cook.

Us old timers, are there for the family experience and to enjoy each others company. That includes limited visits to the parks and family meals in our villa on most days. The quality of Disney food and the dining experience has really gone down hill and we don't like being treated like cattle.

Bill

This. One of the true benefits of DVC membership is the ability to unwind and eat a real meal at the villa. We have found that breakfast is a meal we cook lots. Things are so hectic at home, we rarely get to cook bacon, eggs, pancakes and sit around the table and enjoy the meal. Welcome on vacations...

 

[kerickson]

I cooked in our villa for the first time last trip and loved it. Trying to keep my two little ones entertained throughout an overpriced meal is not my idea of a vacation! Cooking in your villa gives you more flexibility as to the time of your meals, menu and quality.
My advice is to keep it simple your first time. The term I like to use for this is semi homemade. Using a combination of prepackaged and non prepackaged items helps make a quick, complete meal. One night we BBQ'd and had a pre-packaged salad. Another night we made soup and quesadillas with fixings left over from our taco night.

Like the Ham example, making extra that you can use throughout the week helps too. I made tacos one night and added corn, beans, tomatoes into the meat mix and made extra. My family snacked on this the next day or two in quesadillas, tacos, chips and dip, etc.

 

[bjkjoy]

When we go with a bigger group of family members we will frequently eat all breakfasts and one other meal a day in our hotel and always buy one meal a day in the parks. We go to the store on day one and make all the meals at once and put them in the freezer. Then each morning all we have to do is take them out and either put them in a croc-pot or get them ready to heat. If you fry up a big pot of hamburg you can make spagetti, BBQ, tacos and/or taco salad, (see the pattern) and it can be finished in no time. Meat loaf also works well. One or two other meals that are not hamburg completes the week. Works well for us and can really save lots of money. In middle August we are coming again but we will have the meal plan so only breakfast (to save time) at the hotel for that trip.