Dining Choices - Seeking feedback

[trebor77]

Hi all!

Although this is my first post, I have been doing quite a lot of reading here. Thanks to the all the very informative posts throughout the forum, my wife and I are comfortable with our choices so far, but we still have to finalize our dining plan, and I am looking for some feedback.

Background Information:
Package: Magic Your Way (6 nights) + Standard Dining
Dates Booked: May 15-21, 2010
Guests: 2 adults DH (me), DW, DS (7 years), DD (12 years) -- I hope I got the acronyms correct
Resort: Coronado Springs
Prior visits: 0 -- this is our first time at WDW

Here are our dining choices:

May 15 (arrival ~1pm):
Lunch: TBD (Out of pocket)
Dinner: Pepper Market (Quick Service at CSR)

May 16 (Magic Kingdom):
Breakfast: Pepper Market (Quick Service at CSR)
Lunch: Casey's Corner (Quick Service)
Dinner: Chef Mickey's (Table Service)

May 17 (Hollywood Studios):
Breakfast: Pepper Market (Quick Service at CSR)
Lunch: Toy Story Pizza Planet (Out of pocket)
Dinner: Hollywood & Vine w/ Fantasmic Dinner Package (Table Service)

May 18 (Rest Day/Waterpark/Dig Site Pool):
Breakfast: 1900 Park Fare (Table Service)
Lunch: Siestas Cantina (Out of pocket)
Dinner: Pepper Market (Quick Service at CSR)

May 19 (Epcot):
Breakfast: Pepper Market (Quick Service at CSR)
Lunch: Electric Umbrella (Out of pocket)
Dinner: Ohana's (Table Service)

May 20 (Animal Kingdom):
Breakfast: Donald's Safari Breakfast (Table Service)
Lunch: Restaurantaurus (Out of pocket)
Dinner: Maya Grill (Table Service)

May 21 (Departure ~2PM ):
Breakfast: Pepper Market (Out of pocket)


I've highlighted all the restaurants for which I am planning to make ADRs in BLUE.

I should also mention that lunch is not usually our biggest meal of the day. In fact, sometimes we skip it altogether if we have a large breakfast (not good... I know). This is why we are thinking of focusing our plan more on Breakfasts and Dinners.

I would appreciate any feedback. This is our first attempt at this, so please don't be to hard on us

Thanks!

 

[gallmcduck]

Have you made your ADRs yet? Last time we done chef mickey was 2005 haven't fitted it in since, two many others to do. Even with an ADR you will be given a buzzer which activates when table ready. Once you are called you join a queue to get your photograph taken with mickey. We felt the booths better than the tables, especially tables in center of restaurant. The only other restaurant of your choices we have done is hollywood n vine. This was a buffet kids choices were really good. Characters interact with you at your table. From memory think it is playhouse disney characters we saw.

 

[trebor77]

Thanks for the info gallmcduck. No, we haven't made our ADRs yet. Hope to do them by tomorrow.

 

[trebor77]

I would really appreciate some additional feedback before making the reservations. Thoughts??

 

[deerhart]

You've got lots of food on your plan. But it will be okay if your breakfast people. We did much better just bringing quick breakfast food (cereal, apples, bagels) that we could eat and run with. BUt, most of my family it takes being up for a couple of hours to get really hungry, so we just need a quick bite when we get up.

One change you might do is more of a brunch at your breakfast TS (make the adrs later in the breakfast hour). If you time it right you will still be there when they switch from breakfast to lunch buffet. Also, with the buffets you may not be hungry until really late in the afternoon for lunch and thus may want to push your dinner back further or skip lunch (and just do a snack) all together.

Also, your kids are old enough that you may have a lot of later nights and thus a later breakfast is better. If your up until midnight or 1 am at MK and have to be at breakfast at 7:30 the next morning, you may run into difficulties. I have 2 breakfasts planned this year (we did Tusker house last year). Princess at Norway on day 3 (its scheduled to be evening EMH at epcot and we are eating at epcot that night, so the plan is to stay at epcot all day) and park fare our last day there.

Finally, with the fantasmic package, be prepared to eat dinner at like 3:30-4pm. Hollywood and Vine does not do character meals for dinner.

 

[ktlm]

I think your ADR choices look fine. I love the Tusker House/Donald breakfast. The food has been good both times we have been there and the characters are fun. We did not like the food at Chef Mickey's dinner, but the characters were great. Lots of people love the place. You have selected some very popular places. If you want any chance at getting the times you want (or possibly even getting in), you need to make your ADRs right away. People have already had 2 months to make reservations for your dates. I would guess that you may already be too late for the Fantasmic packages.

 

[Pooh&OurHunny]

Welcome to the board and have a magical first trip.
We love Tusker House breakfast buffet...good food, good coffee and great character interaction. Getting the food is less hectic for a buffet place.
We did not enjoy the dinner food of Chef Mickey but my son did have a wonderful character experience.
Since you are in MK already, how about trying Cyrstal Palace...they have so much better food selection than Chef Mickey.
Please make your ADR's as soon as possilbe b/c you might not get the place you want for the day you want or the time.
Please let us know you have decided and what you got.

 

[trebor77]

Thanks for the advice everyone! I will make some suggested changes and make the ADRs right away

 

[Lady V]

How did it go? Were you able to get all of your choices?

 

[gallmcduck]

What's your final choices and did you get your ADR's booked?

 

[stepdisney]

You have arrival for 1:00. Is that what time your flight comes in? You may not have time for lunch that day. You may want to have your evening meal early, like 3:30 - 4:00 and have a snack later on. Also, are you more big breakfast people and then early dinner? Reason is that if this is your first trip you may want to get to the park early and just grab a quick bite for breakfast and have an early lunch, like 11:00 and then you would be ready for a nice TS dinner. Just suggestions. We find that there is no need for all 3 meals so some of the out of pockets you have scheduled may not be necessary. Just a few suggestions. Also, you may want to schedule an in-the-park meal for MK day. Crystal Palace is great, especially if you plan to see wishes that night. Enjoy your stay and welcome to DIS.

 

[ncc1701]

If you are planning to go to DTD may I suggest Wolfgang Puck Cafe in the DTD Marketplace for dinner It qualifies as a QS meal on the DDP. It was our first night dinner last trip. The have a good variety of choices and they bring the food over to the table after you order. In fact 4 of our 5 QS meals were eaten there.
If you can't get the Fantasmic dinner package you may want to look to go to the ESPN Club on the Broadwalk and then head over to DHS for the show.It is a TS meal on the DDP.