Disappointing Change in the Menu at Sunshine Seasons

[tony67]

I am all for make a stand but going in and demanding those potatos as part of my meal is NOT going to change it! Ill find other ways to let WDW know of my concerns, writing emails, going to guest servicesto complain but I plan on enjoying my vacation!

Yeah I don't think demanding the potatoes will help.
And I agree unless it is something major I don't want to complain during my vacation, I really want to relax.

As you said write an email, but like TDC Nala said, don't expect much. Unless they get a LOT of e-mail and I do not see that happening.

BTW: I have NO interest in the salmon. I hate cheap farm raised salmon. But I will check out the station when I am there and send an email.
I wonder if some if the other dishs no longer include sides at that station. It is a small thing.
I am far more concerned that this is something we will see happening at all the CS locations.

I have already stopped eating at the TS locations. If I have to stop eating at the CS locations as well then I’m not sure what I will do.
I can’t eat every meal at the Tequila bar.

 

[clutter]

I just feel like we have been through this before with the TS restaurants.
The QS food has been very good (If you do the research) and I hate to see it go the way of the TS dinning IMO.

Too late! We just got back from an 11 day trip. With 33 CS credits, we left 10 behind. The food was THAT bad. Breakfasts were ok, but were very repetitive (stayed at AK, so Mara has little variety). We never made it to Sunshine Seasons, sadly, but the rest of our CS credits were pretty bad. Every single hamburger bun was stale. The burgers themselves - Cosmic Rays was ok, but stay away from the Angus Chuck burger. Both times they tasted more like filler than meat. The fries have been awful for years. I remember when different places had different fries, and they were all decent.

And please tell me, with the emphasis on healthy eating and the multi-grain buns, etc, why in the world does everything have to be so salty? And for me to think it's salty, it's SALTY. I'm the master of eating bad fast food. School cafeteria food, fast food, whatever. It doesn't bother me. The stuff at Disney? Much of it was borderline inedible.

 

[tony67]

Too late! We just got back from an 11 day trip. With 33 CS credits, we left 10 behind. The food was THAT bad. Breakfasts were ok, but were very repetitive (stayed at AK, so Mara has little variety). We never made it to Sunshine Seasons, sadly, but the rest of our CS credits were pretty bad. Every single hamburger bun was stale. The burgers themselves - Cosmic Rays was ok, but stay away from the Angus Chuck burger. Both times they tasted more like filler than meat. The fries have been awful for years. I remember when different places had different fries, and they were all decent.

And please tell me, with the emphasis on healthy eating and the multi-grain buns, etc, why in the world does everything have to be so salty? And for me to think it's salty, it's SALTY. I'm the master of eating bad fast food. School cafeteria food, fast food, whatever. It doesn't bother me. The stuff at Disney? Much of it was borderline inedible.

Yeah you really have to avoid the Burgers and fast food items IMO, if you do that the QSDP is good.

Starring Roles, Main Street Bakery, Norway, France, Germany, Morocco, Sunshine Seasons, Flametree, Cosmic Rays (chicken and ribs), the resort QS locations all have decent food options.
You really have to plan though.
Since I go mainly for the Food and Wine Festival I do plan where I eat my QS meals.

If I was there with the family to do the parks it would not be as easy to avoid the junk food.

 

[BEASLYBOO]

It's not due to the DDP or the FD, it's due to Disney wanting to make more money, the bottom line! Smaller portions, fewer selections and lesser quality, those are your choices!

 

[Polydweller]

This has been my concern about the extensions of free dining over the last few years. Providing that food does have costs and not just the food itself. There are the serving staff, food preparers, cleaning staff, maintenance costs that go into providing food.

It doesn't matter where you formally account for it the cost has to be covered somewhere. You can increase other prices, but that can only do so much, lay off people, but that hurts service too much at some level so you can only do so much, or you can cut back on what services or products you provide. Sounds like they've gotten to the point of having to reduce quality and reduce the number of free items. There is always a cost to 'free' promotion and this is definitely one.

 

[KELLY]

Ugh this is a bummer. I have been really excited to do the QSDP. But now thinking maybe we should upgrade. Not just for SS but some of the other comments.

When you got chicken could you pick your side or was that salad only?

 

[tony67]

Ugh this is a bummer. I have been really excited to do the QSDP. But now thinking maybe we should upgrade. Not just for SS but some of the other comments.

When you got chicken could you pick your side or was that salad only?

I would not change plans until we see more than this one example.
You have until 3 days before you go to change the plan you are on, but you really need to have your ADRs in advance.

The last time I had chicken at Cosmic Rays it did have two sides, but I have no idea if things changed September 1st. No idea about SS.

Hopefully we will start to get more reports if it is an issue.
It may just be the salmon. Maybe the cost of salmon has gone up and they had to make a change.
Do they farm raise salmon in the gulf for example?


Has anyone been to Norway in Epcot recently and did they change the dessert option with the Chef's meal?
The menu I saw did not allow you to pick a pastry it had a choice of rice cream, veiled maiden or no-sugar added chocolate mousse.

 

[Sleeping Becca]

I am pretty anti dining plan, the whole thing drives me bonkers esp at counter service locations. It seems to take forever to order for a person on the DDP, certain locations are worse than others. I think it's prob more of an efficency issue since potatoes are cheaper to make than a salad.

I am not saying the dining plan is bad, it just drives me nuts. This trip I will be on the dining plan for the first time since 2005 and I'm not looking forward to it. Still it will be easier than trying to pay OOP for everyone's meals.

 

[Quin]

I can’t eat every meal at the Tequila bar.

Really? Why not?? It IS a vacation, after all........

 

[TDC Nala]

I can’t eat every meal at the Tequila bar.

Why not? (Of course it'd be easier if they took TIW, which they don't)

 

[tony67]

I just did a liitle research on the price of salmon:
"The oil spill is not the only environmental issue affecting the cost of seafood. The price of salmon has jumped over the past three months, primarily caused by factors as widespread as the Icelandic volcano eruptions and the earthquake in Chile.

Streblow said his cost for salmon has risen from $11.95 to $14.95 a pound in the past three months."
http://www.enquirerjournal.com/view...ushes-up-seafood-price?instance=homeleftmain6


Looks like they may not have had a choice in this case.
I am just so used to Disney taking advantage IMO that I assumed the worst.

 

[tony67]

Really? Why not?? It IS a vacation, after all........

Why not? (Of course it'd be easier if they took TIW, which they don't)

Because I know I can't go and just have one Tequila, especially when they have so many to try.

 

[Kay1]

Why not? (Of course it'd be easier if they took TIW, which they don't)

You guys have me dying to try it. The crab tostada looks interesting.

 

[MEM]

If that were the reason, they would offer salad OR mashed potato OR vegetable for those wanting to eat "less light". IMHO, it's more about cutting cost.

I'm the OP and I agree with you 100%. I did not like being told "the salmon only comes with salad as a side". I like having a choice. When Disney tried to make its other CS places "healthier" they still made fries and chocolate chip cookies available upon request. You didn't HAVE to have the baby carrots, applesauce and sugar-free Jello.

 

[tony67]

You guys have me dying to try it. The crab tostada looks interesting.

Yeah the food there is really good.
Hard to belive it came from the same kitchen as San Angel.

I really liked the Acapulco-style shrimp cocktail as well as the crab tostada.
I wish they had a sampler so you could try each item.

 

[foreUT]

Darn! It was my plan to get the salmon and potatos next week!! Darn! Maybe I will go in and order it and pay OOP for the potatos..

I agree: DARN!

 

[Praying Colonel]

It's not due to the DDP or the FD, it's due to Disney wanting to make more money, the bottom line! Smaller portions, fewer selections and lesser quality, those are your choices!

...and with Magical Express encouraging people to stay onsite without their own transportation, they have more and more of a captive audience where the sharp-pencil folks can continue to slice a little quality here, shave portion size there, and increase price just about everywhere.

 

[catne]

I'm the OP and I agree with you 100%. I did not like being told "the salmon only comes with salad as a side". I like having a choice. When Disney tried to make its other CS places "healthier" they still made fries and chocolate chip cookies available upon request. You didn't HAVE to have the baby carrots, applesauce and sugar-free Jello.

Now I'm confused...are you talking about a kids salmon meal coming with just a salad or is it an adult meal with a salad for the side? Reason I ask is because the change you're mentioning...the "healthier" version -- only pertains to the kids meals...the adult meals never went to baby-carrots, applesauce, etc. as the sides.

As to why -- agree that price of salmon has gone up --we've seen that ourselves at the grocery store. And also suggest it could have been to speed up the lines. There have been changes before at Sunshine Seasons for that reason --used to be at the Asian station you got 2 entrees(one scoop each) and 2 sides...last year it changed to 1 entree(bigger scoop) and 2 sides(bigger scoop). I asked a manager type about it last year and was told it was done in order to speed the lines up because they had a lot of complaints about how long it took to get food there. So you still get a full plate of food, but they cut out one choice in the process. (I even put to pictures of the plates of food together to compare quantity--both were full plates) I must say we've been there 3 times since they changed it and the lines at Asian station go much faster so the efficiency expert was right about speeding up the line by eliminating one choice.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I'm the OP and I agree with you 100%. I did not like being told "the salmon only comes with salad as a side". I like having a choice. When Disney tried to make its other CS places "healthier" they still made fries and chocolate chip cookies available upon request. You didn't HAVE to have the baby carrots, applesauce and sugar-free Jello.

I agree, I'm an adult, I can make my own food choices, and vacation is not the time I worry about eating healthy.

 

[DonaldTDuck]

This has been my concern about the extensions of free dining over the last few years. Providing that food does have costs and not just the food itself. There are the serving staff, food preparers, cleaning staff, maintenance costs that go into providing food.

It doesn't matter where you formally account for it the cost has to be covered somewhere. You can increase other prices, but that can only do so much, lay off people, but that hurts service too much at some level so you can only do so much, or you can cut back on what services or products you provide. Sounds like they've gotten to the point of having to reduce quality and reduce the number of free items. There is always a cost to 'free' promotion and this is definitely one.

Do you ever use a room discount? Where does that money come from? Don't hang anything about dining on free dining. Maybe on the dining plans in general, but the free dining is a ROOM discount. Same as a 40% off code.

Ugh this is a bummer. I have been really excited to do the QSDP. But now thinking maybe we should upgrade. Not just for SS but some of the other comments.

When you got chicken could you pick your side or was that salad only?

Don't let a little belly achin' get to you. I was there in Dec and there was lots of good. I'll be back in 16 days and on free dining and I bet it's all so good.