Ddp And Kids Meal?

[sjms71]

Question on kids meals. Last year on the DDP when my kids didn't like what came with the kids meals they were allowed to order from the regular menu. Now I'm talking CS meals not TS. I was just wondering if they can still do this or do they have to order strickly kids meals?

 

[Ms.Mouse]

We were told that the kids had to order from the kids menu. We shared food with the two kids when they didn't like their choices BUT we only had to do that for a couple of meals. We made sure that we looked into allearsnet kids menus and chose places that were either buffets or had better kids choices such as steak, grilled chicken, potato and veggie and some had a fair appetizer also.

 

[aristocat]

You'll probably have to pay oop if your children don't want to order off of the kid's menu. The dinning brochure states that "Guests ages 3 to 9 must order from the child’s menu where available."

You should check out the menus for the participating cs locations to determine which kid's menus suit your children's tastes.

 

[bicker]

I just posted this in another thread this morning... seems to be a popular topic today:

Le Cellier offers a 6oz Grilled Steak for children. Coral Reef offers children a grilled chicken breast (not nuggets). Chefs de France offers a fried fish plate for children. Rose and Crown has cottage pie, bangers and mash, fish and chips, and grilled chicken on their child menu. Teppanyaki offers a small stir fry with either chicken or shrimp. Nine Dragons offers sweet and sour chicken. San Angel Inn offers children either a burrito or an enchilada. Marrakesh offers couscous. Spoodles offers Grilled Strip Steak and Grilled Chicken. Flying fish offers fish and chips, grilled steak, chicken breast (again, not nuggets).

I'm pretty thoroughly shocked to see so many choices available for children. Choose your restaurants wisely, and your child will be more than pleased.

 

[Merriwind]

I just posted this in another thread this morning... seems to be a popular topic today:

Le Cellier offers a 6oz Grilled Steak for children. Coral Reef offers children a grilled chicken breast (not nuggets). Chefs de France offers a fried fish plate for children. Rose and Crown has cottage pie, bangers and mash, fish and chips, and grilled chicken on their child menu. Teppanyaki offers a small stir fry with either chicken or shrimp. Nine Dragons offers sweet and sour chicken. San Angel Inn offers children either a burrito or an enchilada. Marrakesh offers couscous. Spoodles offers Grilled Strip Steak and Grilled Chicken. Flying fish offers fish and chips, grilled steak, chicken breast (again, not nuggets).

I'm pretty thoroughly shocked to see so many choices available for children. Choose your restaurants wisely, and your child will be more than pleased.

Hollywood Brown Derby also has a very nice grilled chicken breast with potatoes and veggies. DD8 loves it! Great list, bicker!

 

[pperfectmom]

Question on kids meals. Last year on the DDP when my kids didn't like what came with the kids meals they were allowed to order from the regular menu. Now I'm talking CS meals not TS. I was just wondering if they can still do this or do they have to order strickly kids meals?

Read the post before jumping in please. The OP is specific about CS meals! That's why these things turn into debates every time.

 

[patsal]

I was always confused when people complained that the TS places didn't have food their kids would eat or didn't have healthy or more grown up foods. We always found that the children's menus at the TS we enjoyed always had steak, fish or chicken sometimes more than one and not the fried stuff they would get at fast food places. I can understand the CS kids choices, so checking out menus could be a huge help here, since my kids will not eat some of the things they serve at the CS's. What I did in December, when DD was still a "child" was save her CS credits for her to have breakfast--she loves Mickey waffles--and just pay OOP for a hotdog, pizza, cheeseburger ala carte and then just have her share the fries and desserts. It worked out fine. Most places averaged about $3-4 and everyone was happy.

 

[Lewisc]

A few posters reported being allowed kids portions of adult items at the resort food courts. Asking nicely seems to work. Some of the CS restaurants have better kids meals than others. Look at the menu.

You're really not paying for kids CS meal credits. The kids meal plan costs $11--the snack is worth $2-$3 and a character dinner is worth $15. Worse case scenario use the kids CS meal for the drink and fries and just pay cash for an adult burger, you don't need to order an adult combo with fries.

You were never allowed to order adult CS meals for kids, rather the system didn't differentiate and CMs allowed guests additional flexibility. CMs now will restrict you based on your card, 2A1C means you can't order 3 adult CS meals. It looks like the credit may be separated which should completely end the practice.

 

[sjms71]

Read the post before jumping in please. The OP is specific about CS meals! That's why these things turn into debates every time.

Thank you for paying attention. I'm covered for TS. However, thanks for everyone's input on that. It's just CS. You would think all places have the basics for kids. There are some places that have burgers and pizza for adults and then some crazy kids meal. So, the Cm said you could just order pizza off the regular menu. I had no problem doing this last September. Just wondering if I could still do this. I'm not trying to "get away" with anything I'm just talking pizza, burgers, hotdogs.

 

[janets]

We have had similar issues in the past as well with CS meals. We have no trouble with the TS meals, nice selection at many places. We do not do buffets all that often (my dh is not a fan of them) so we choose TS restaurants that will satisfy everyone.

At the CS places, it always amazes me that when the main item is burgers, there is no kids burger offered. Instead it's franks & beans or cold chicken chunks. Pizza for adults but none for kids. Even Columbia Harbour House doesn't offer a kids version of its fish & chips.

We often will split 2 A meals between the four of us (ds8.5 and ds4) and use the kids credits for a breakfast item or at the occasional CS restaurant where the kids selection appeals to either them or me (probably me more likely). We find that with the amount of food available at dinner and adding in either a quick breakfast or even a pastry, plus a snack, we have enough food to keep everyone happy during the day.

While many suggest checking all the menus and picking a place that has something your child will eat, often that's not always possible based upon where you are in which park at lunchtime. We all know with younger children, hunger strikes suddenly and without warning and we might have to alter our lunch plans based upon the family needs.

While I wish they'd offer a childrens portion of the burger or pizza, I understand that they don't because adults were ordering kids meals, cutting into the bottom line. Interesting, since at most non-Disney restaurants, if an adult doesn't eat much and wanted to order a kids meal, no one would really stop them. Has anyone ever had someone at McD's or BK tell them that they couldn't have a kids meal? But Disney has the right to set its own policies.

When we go for free dining in September, if we have an issue, I will probably use the tactic offered here and use the kids credit for the drink and perhaps the side (if it appeals to my kids) and purchase an adult burger separately. Since I have free dining, the small amount of additional outlay is not of great concern to me.

 

[JimMIA]

You were never allowed to order adult CS meals for kids, rather the system didn't differentiate and CMs allowed guests additional flexibility. CMs now will restrict you based on your card, 2A1C means you can't order 3 adult CS meals. It looks like the credit may be separated which should completely end the practice.

The CS question is apparently going to be an unfortunate casualty of the tightening of the DDP.

I've heard that the Disney Dining execs really don't care about the use of CS credits and were perfectly happy to have CMs look the other way if a family ordered all adult CSs. If you think about it, the cost of either one is negligible. If, in fact, they seperate the As and Cs in the computer, this ability will be lost.

It's too bad, because it was a big benefit to those of us with kids and Disney didn't care, but it's an unavoidable consequence of having to tighten the system.

The best advice is to spend some time with the CS menus and figure out 1 or 2 options in each park. There are decent kids choices for CS, but not every CS is good.

 

[sjms71]

I understand disney has a right to set their own policies. I was just simply asking if they have "cracked down" on this or not. Last year we were able to do it and I believe it was at a CM's suggestion when my DD was in line and didn't like the kids menu.( Which was very nice). I understad the plan isn't that way and they don't have to do it. Last year we didn't plan that much for CS because it was the first time we used the dinning plan. We just planned our TS meals and figured we'd eat CS where ever we were figuring they would have stuff for everyone. If they are not letting this slip by no big deal I'm not complaining or disputing their policies I'll just have to plan CS meal locations better.

 

[Lewisc]

YES They've cracked down. Your card will say something like 3A1C and CMs won't let you order 4 adult meals. Until the credits are seperated in the computer, none of us know when this will happen, you may be able to work around this by getting back on line.

Ask nicely. Some CMs, particularly in the resort food courts, may allow a smaller portion of an adult item.

I understand disney has a right to set their own policies. I was just simply asking if they have "cracked down" on this or not. Last year we were able to do it and I believe it was at a CM's suggestion when my DD was in line and didn't like the kids menu.( Which was very nice). I understad the plan isn't that way and they don't have to do it. Last year we didn't plan that much for CS because it was the first time we used the dinning plan. We just planned our TS meals and figured we'd eat CS where ever we were figuring they would have stuff for everyone. If they are not letting this slip by no big deal I'm not complaining or disputing their policies I'll just have to plan CS meal locations better.

 

[sjms71]

YES They've cracked down. Your card will say something like 3A1C and CMs won't let you order 4 adult meals. Until the credits are seperated in the computer, none of us know when this will happen, you may be able to work around this by getting back on line.

Ask nicely. Some CMs, particularly in the resort food courts, may allow a smaller portion of an adult item.

Thank you, nothing like asking a simple question and getting a simple answer. LOL

 

[bicker]

Great child meal options at CS eateries:

D-MGM
Flatbread Grill
- Grilled Chicken Wrap with seasonal side item and choice of milk, juice or soft drink

ABC Commissary
- Vegetable Noodle Stir Fry served with applesauce, fortune cookie and child's soft drink, milk or juice
- Fish and Chips (with applesauce and child's soft drink, milk or juice)

Epcot
Electric Umbrella
- Turkey and Cheese Pinwheels and munchies with applesauce and a child's size beverage
Sunshine Seasons
- Mini Sub and Beverage
- Sweet and Sour Chicken and Beverage

Magic Kingdom
Cosmic Ray's
- Chicken Noodle Soup served with cheddar crackers, applesauce, and choice of child beverage
- Chicken Garden Salad served with ranch dressing, cheddar crackers, applesauce and choice of child beverage

Columbia Harbor House
- Chilled Chicken with Cheese - served with grapes and cheddar crackers and child's beverage

Animal Kingdom
Pizzafari
- Cheese Quesadilla with marinara sauce and Mickey cheddar crackers

 

[sjms71]

Great child meal options at CS eateries:

D-MGM
Flatbread Grill
- Grilled Chicken Wrap with seasonal side item and choice of milk, juice or soft drink

ABC Commissary
- Vegetable Noodle Stir Fry served with applesauce, fortune cookie and child's soft drink, milk or juice
- Fish and Chips (with applesauce and child's soft drink, milk or juice)

Epcot
Electric Umbrella
- Turkey and Cheese Pinwheels and munchies with applesauce and a child's size beverage
Sunshine Seasons
- Mini Sub and Beverage
- Sweet and Sour Chicken and Beverage

Magic Kingdom
Cosmic Ray's
- Chicken Noodle Soup served with cheddar crackers, applesauce, and choice of child beverage
- Chicken Garden Salad served with ranch dressing, cheddar crackers, applesauce and choice of child beverage

Columbia Harbor House
- Chilled Chicken with Cheese - served with grapes and cheddar crackers and child's beverage

Animal Kingdom
Pizzafari
- Cheese Quesadilla with marinara sauce and Mickey cheddar crackers

This is exactly my point. Although very healthy options my kids won't eat any of that. They would eat the side items(they don't like french fries much). However, none of those main items (they are 6 & 8). Maybe I'll just get the kids meal and they can have my burger. I almost think it's funny chicken garden salad yeah right, while mom and dad are chowing down of cheese burgers. Too funny. LOL

 

[bicker]

Well, they have junk food too. I just listed a few of the healthier options.

 

[Lewisc]

Well, they have junk food too. I just listed a few of the healthier options.

The complaint some parents have is with restaurants that don't offer children items that are featured for adults.

As an example Pizzafari has pizza in its name but doesn't offer pizza on the children's menu.

It is thought that Disney doesn't want adults ordering the kids meals and that Disney really doesn't have an easy way to just say no. Parents not on the plan will just buy the adult pizza and might share it with two or more kids. Parents on the plan may just have to pay out of pocket for a few CS meals.

 

[bicker]

It is thought that Disney doesn't want adults ordering the kids meals and that Disney really doesn't have an easy way to just say no.

That makes a lot of sense. In the past, Disney would not have been often put in the position of having to say no.

 

[shyjade]

What I did in December, when DD was still a "child" was save her CS credits for her to have breakfast--she loves Mickey waffles--and just pay OOP for a hotdog, pizza, cheeseburger ala carte and then just have her share the fries and desserts. It worked out fine. Most places averaged about $3-4 and everyone was happy.

Great idea, thanks for the suggestion! My DD8 is a picky eater and even at that, she can only eat so much of the nuggets, hot dogs, etc. (that's what she'll be selecting at the TS places too since she doesn't like chicken, steak or fish). She does however love breakfast foods!