Disney resort dining - suggestions

[Becx N Gav]

We are doing an adult only, resort only stay before and after a cruise in October. We may do MNSSHP if the dates work but otherwise no plans to visit any parks.
I last went to WDW too long ago and things have changed so much! Currently we're booked at SSR but when the 7 month DVC window opens we may change (not setting my hopes on anywhere in particular, will just see what is available!). We probably won't have a car but as we're not doing the parks we will have plenty of time to get there.

Looking for 3-4 resort options for a sit down lunch or evening meal and a few quick bite options. We will also do Disney Springs a few days / nights and I think I know what we will try there.

Visiting in mid-Oct are walk ups usually available or is it best to book (for evening meals generally) an ADR?

Thanks!

 

[patty57]

What kinds of foods do you like?

 

[buzzgirls&dad]

Oct. is tough especially with Columbus day weekend, Food & Wine festival, MNSSHP, Wine & Dine Marathon and the Gartner Symposium over at the Swophin. Finding DVC openings at Epcot and MK resorts will be tough. That said the Turf Club right at SSR is a solid restaurant also, the Paddock pool has solid burgers and bar food for lunch. At DS you have The Boathouse, Morimoto and Art Smith. Flying Fish at the boardwalk and Bull & Bear at the Waldorf are also good choices. Have fun!

 

[sarah4770]

If you are staying at ssr, it’s such a pain to get to other resorts just for a meal. I think the turf club is only open for dinner. That leaves you with Disney springs for lunches.
What I do, is check to see what is available for that day. Depending on the plans for that day. It’s not really hard to get a same day resort reservation for a meal.
Let me edit that and say , that if you plan on taking a Disney springs bus, I guess it would be worth it to go to one of the magic kingdom resort restaurants before the fireworks or possibly one of the boardwalk signatures before the Epcot fireworks.

 

[erinch]

I’d Uber to AKL , look around the resort, start at Victoria Falls lounge and then dinner at Jiko

 

[CarolynFH]

We’re looking forward to lunch at Wailulu Grill in the Poly Tower, which has been getting good reviews. You could use that as a base for visiting the monorail resorts as well as WL and FW, both reachable by boat from MK.

 

[Stargazer65]

Visiting in mid-Oct are walk ups usually available or is it best to book (for evening meals generally) an ADR?

If you are dead set on going somewhere specific an ADR is best. But, most of the time we just wing it and see what is available, and just pick somewhere new or something we feel like. Oftentimes, you may not know what you will feel like in advance, so the advantage is you are not stuck at a specific place and time.

Tons of places to go. Right now I feel like a burger and fries and Steakhouse 71. Maybe later...dinner at Sanaa or Citrico's.

 

[NickC]

HDDR! I don't know the best way to get there. I might take a bus to MK and then a boat to Fort Wilderness?
Polite Pig in DS is a great place for lunch.

 

[Simba's Mom]

From SSR, you

 

[Simba's Mom]

If you are staying at ssr, it’s such a pain to get to other resorts just for a meal. I think the turf club is only open for dinner. That leaves you with Disney springs for lunches.

From SSR you can go to Disney Springs and take a resort bus directly to any resort for a meal. Reverse to come back. Of course for OKW, POR, or POFQ you can take the boat from DS instead of the bus.
This tip goes to whoever it was on these boards who told me-I THINK it was BrianNoble, but not sure.

 

[Becx N Gav]

Thanks, these are great!
I'm not fussed about travelling to resorts via DS or a park. We were going to explore the resorts during the day so I'd plan to eat lunch at a resort then go to a nearby park or DS and get a bus to the other or whatever. Even the skyliner would be a nice attraction! We will probably do the monorail loop too, because why not!!

As for food likes - I don't eat fish or seafood but otherwise pretty much anything!

Another idea I had was bus roulette, we would go to DS and see which resort bus showed up, head over there, have a look around, get a bus to a park then do the same!

 

[CarolynFH]

Visiting in mid-Oct are walk ups usually available or is it best to book (for evening meals generally) an ADR?

You could also play Lunch Roulette in the sense of checking MDE in the morning to see what reservations are available for lunch before you decide where you’re going for the day. For a party of two, there are frequently a number of options, although if there’s somewhere you absolutely must eat, book an ADR there at the earliest opportunity.

 

[Kerr84]

I’ve watched couples on TikTok that just hop on the first bus to arrive at Disney Springs and they go eat there!

 

[DCLGirlie]

TBH? I have found for the most part Disney Springs has higher quality food than most of the resorts restaurants. That being said if you really want to get a few resort lunch/dinners in my personal suggestions are

• AKL: Jiko, Sanaa, and Boma are all great, depending on if you want sit down or buffet style.
• Caribbean Beach Resort: Sebastian's Bistro. This is tied with Boma for my favorite all you can eat option on property.
• Grand Floridian: Grand Floridian Cafe. I enjoy the fact it has the ambiance of the Grand Floridian, but at a cheaper price than the other sit down options and with no need for an ADR. The options are a bit more basic than Citricos or Narcoossee's, but the brunch in particular is still delightful. I wouldn't go out of my way for it, but if you want to do a monorail loop it is an extremely pleasant pit stop

 

[zackiedawg]

SSR is a great resort for non-park visits. Beautiful grounds to walk around, and of course walking and boat access to Disney Springs so nearly unlimited food, drink, and entertainment options, plus boat access to 3 other resorts.

As mentioned above, access to other resorts is actually excellent at SSR - because of the ability to simply walk over to Disney Springs where a bus goes out to every resort on property, and back to Disney Springs from every resort. When I stay at SSR, I usually stay in the 'preferred' section of Congress Park - not sure if your reservation is preferred vs standard...if you are preferred, Congress Park is a great request as the walkway to Disney Springs is just a few hundred feet away, as are the Disney Springs boat docks to get you to OKW and Port Orleans.

As for restaurant choices at other resorts - on the mid-tier level, my recent visit back to Boatright's was very good and it's definitely back on my list to return. Jiko at AK Lodge is still in my opinion the finest restaurant at Disney. Topolino's at Riviera, Toledo at Gran Destino/Coronado, Cake Bake and Trattoria Al Forno at Boardwalk, Steakhouse 71 at Contemporary, Turf Club at SSR, are all regular spots for me. Also, Rosa Mexicano and Il Mulino at Swan and Dolphin are both spots I enjoy.

 

[denman007]

I have to give a shout out to Tambu Lounge at Poly. Eat there while everyone else is paying $70 pp at Ohana's.