Do not get Quick service Dining

[gregpso]

With the free dining at the moment .. some advice. Stay at a Moderate resort or above so you get the normal quick service dining with one sit down meal per day.

We stayed at Pops resort and got free quick service Dining as is budget resort. Very good hotel but skip the quick service deal.

I am not a fussy eater but got tired within one day of the quick service fare of small hamburgers hot dogs and fries and small deserts. In fact sorry to say the quick service meals were slop. Very very mass produced with little taste AND SMALL.


We did have one sit down meal at Disney studios (that we payed for) and that was fine. (our budget only allowed for one)

Not whinging you only get what you pay for,, pay the extra for a moderate resort and get better meals. Quick service for lunch is OK but not Dinner.

Next time we will do Moderate when free dining is on. which we be on going in slower seasons I was told. Do not be put off WDW is a fantastic fun place just give quick service deal a miss. Greg

 

[Travel Mum]

Thanks so much Gregpso - that's really good to know. We have had to book a moderate, POR, as that's the least expensive way for our family-of-five to stay onsite. When I first booked, I booked the QS Dining Plan although I had 3 TS ADR's I knew I would make as well. I didn't want to be tied down to ADR's as I'm sure we will exhaused and just want quick meal. However, then free dining came in and we changed our booking to that so now, not only do we not have to pay for the QS dining plan , we get the regular dining plan free. This is great for those 3 TS ADR's I already knew I want to make but now I know I have to go and make ADR's for all the other TS credits we have, as apparently during free dining, the TS restaurants get all booked up. This is a lovely dilemma to have and its great that we are getting more value but it sure is more complicated than just turning up for QS!
So, that's good to read your opinion as it appears the effort is worth it

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

DLR29 posted a fabulous quick-service trip report: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2499155 I think with some information, the quick-service plan would work out well for many.

We have enjoyed some great quick-service meals. I think like all things Disney, you must research.

 

[bdoyledimou]

Where were you eating ?

I spent 15 days at Pop in August, with the QSDP, and didn't eat a single burger, hotdog or chicken nugget the entire trip.

I had quarter chicken and rib meals that i couldn't finish at MK.
I had huge Shwarma plates at Epcot.
I had curry at DHS.
And some excellent ribs at the Flame Tree at Animal kingdom..

The food was great!!!

 

[PrincessInOz]

I did 5 days of QSDP in May 10. There are a lot of places that serve burgers, hot dogs, nuggets and chips.

My husband is vegetarian so I ended up doing a bit of research and planning so that we could provide his with viable alternatives for breakfast, lunch and dinner. In the 10 QS meals that we had, I think I ended up with one burger meal - at DHS - and the rest were pretty good (but not necessarily great) meals. The foodcourt at POR is great - so we had dinner there late on 2 occassions and I ended up with roast pork for one meal with 2 vegie sides and the other being a pasta meal.

The outstanding meals I remember were at Epcot - Sunshine Seasons and Tangerine Cafe; and at MK - Cosmic Rays (Roast Chicken and Ribs!!) and Columbia Harbour House. We ate at Yak and Yeti at AK and also had a pizza meal there (I forget...now.. but the second meal was also okay). The sub-par park for me was DHS.

I do have pictures posted in my May TR of most meals....(shameless self-promo) and there are enough other threads around for what good QS places are to eat at the different parks/resorts.

I have to say that whilst QS is NOT the same quality as TS; you do get what you pay for. But the QS style of eating suited my family much better.....and I also knew that I was going to be doing 5 days OOP so we did get a bit more variety at TS places.

It will come down to what style of eating best fits your family.

 

[Oz-kateer]

I agree - the QS meals can be great if you put a bit of forethought into it. They're not all small and certainly not all "fast food" types. I had a few lovely meals, especially at Epcot.

We stayed at the Pop and admittedly didn't eat there much but there was pasta, chinese and the "TV dinners" that included mashed potatoes and vegies.

But during free dining you don't need to stay at a Moderate to get the regular DP that has the one QS and one TS meal a day option - if you stay at a value, but want TS meals, then then you can upgrade your meal plan for a few dollars a day. I just did that on the trip we just came home from.

 

[Kalice]

I agree with the opinions about quick service, a little research put us in a good position to make informed choices. We also liked Sunshine
Seasons, Columbia Harbour House, the pizza was okay at pizza planetHS, not sure where we ate in AK but it was good. We went to most of the parks for 2 CS meals, and thought they were okay, there was always a healthier option. Wolfgang Express was fantastic, we ended up eating here three times, and the food was great. A couple of the staff there were so good, we left tips (not sure whether it was the done thing at CS) but it was sort of half table service. The snack credits were put to good use at Starring Rolls, a place in AK (name ?) and somewhere in Epcot (name also??).


While I thought the CS meals were good (especially for a theme park), we loved the table services meals. The novelty of Sci-fi and CRT, the fun of the character meals, the steak and pretzel bread at le Cellier, the three course fantasmic package at mama melrose, and the show at Hoop-de Doo.

So while I would opt for the regular dining plan again to try some more of the fantastic table service options and a different character meal (or three), we also enjoyed our quick service meals.

NB. we didn't think any of the adult meals were small! and we often ended up taking a piece of fruit or fruit salad for 'sweets' as we were not able to finish most meals. The fruit made a great addition to our in room breakfast cereal mornings!

 

[Chelley00]

We just use counter service for lunches, but I can say in 9 CS credits, not once did I eat hamburgers, hot dogs or chicken nuggets, because I never eat those things at home. I had tuna sandwich from Columbia Harbor House, turkey wrap from Cosmic Rays, huge sandwiches from Starring Rolls and Sunshine Seasons, BBQ chicken salad from Flame Tree etc etc etc.


Even the places that serve hamburgers offer something else. You just have to do your research. My mom was with us and made the comment about how impressed she was that it wasn't typical theme park cheeseburgers and fries for lunch every day. I'm sorry you didn't find other things where you ate.

 

[gregpso]

We just use counter service for lunches, but I can say in 9 CS credits, not once did I eat hamburgers, hot dogs or chicken nuggets, because I never eat those things at home. I had tuna sandwich from Columbia Harbor House, turkey wrap from Cosmic Rays, huge sandwiches from Starring Rolls and Sunshine Seasons, BBQ chicken salad from Flame Tree etc etc etc.


Even the places that serve hamburgers offer something else. You just have to do your research. My mom was with us and made the comment about how impressed she was that it wasn't typical theme park cheeseburgers and fries for lunch every day. I'm sorry you didn't find other things where you ate.

We have bitten the bullet and now going to WDW again whilst in NYC Staying 6 nights at POPS again and yes Quick service May 18th to 25th 2013

Would appreciater a list of the better quick service places. AS I said last time I was not impressed but reading all of you there are good QS meals to be has. (I thought the breakfast was OK at POPS)

Could a few list your top 3 Q service meals (name and park) It would be greatly appreciated.

Ones I did not like Americia land in Epcot (pretty bad hotdog) The chinese food in China world was also awful. I am all ears (not fussy eaters as long as OK) Thanks Muchly

 

[battymum]

You can always pay and "upgrade" your free QS dining to regular - When we went last year - it was about $11 per person per day.

 

[Chelley00]

Could a few list your top 3 Q service meals (name and park) It would be greatly appreciated.

Ones I did not like Americia land in Epcot (pretty bad hotdog) The chinese food in China world was also awful. I am all ears (not fussy eaters as long as OK) Thanks Muchly

Check allears.net They have all the menus listed there for every WDW restaurant. Then you can plan ahead.

Sunshine Seasons at Epcot (in The Land near Soarin)
Columbia Harbor House in MK
Flame Tree BBQ in AK
Starring Rolls in DHS
Cosmic Rays in MK (skip the cheeseburger section)
Pecos Bills in MK

You can find something non-greasy at any counter service.

 

[Tara2004]

I LOVED pop quick service. I have a food allergy to gluten ( wheat ) and they made what ever I wanted from scratch. I cried with happiness. It was a great moment to be told that, and it was all free. I just couldn't complain. I just can't wait to go back.

If you don't like something at Disney COMPLAIN. They can't help you if you don't let them know.

With the free dining at the moment .. some advice. Stay at a Moderate resort or above so you get the normal quick service dining with one sit down meal per day.

We stayed at Pops resort and got free quick service Dining as is budget resort. Very good hotel but skip the quick service deal.

I am not a fussy eater but got tired within one day of the quick service fare of small hamburgers hot dogs and fries and small deserts. In fact sorry to say the quick service meals were slop. Very very mass produced with little taste AND SMALL.


We did have one sit down meal at Disney studios (that we payed for) and that was fine. (our budget only allowed for one)

Not whinging you only get what you pay for,, pay the extra for a moderate resort and get better meals. Quick service for lunch is OK but not Dinner.

Next time we will do Moderate when free dining is on. which we be on going in slower seasons I was told. Do not be put off WDW is a fantastic fun place just give quick service deal a miss. Greg

 

[alicia1506]

we are hoping to visit wdw next year in september and have fingers crossed for free dining. we are planning on getting QSDP hopefully as part of FD and have heard wonderful places for QSDP.

one of the best resources i have found is here on the dis, in the wdw dining section. there are hundreds of dining reviews

http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=127

including one i really enjoyed by a british (UK) mother & daughter who not only review the food, but the price they would have paid OOP if they had have ordered the same as they got for free on the QSDP. most of their meals seem quite lovely eg sandwiches and wraps, smoked salmon & sides of vegetables, earl of sandwich at DTD, flame tree BBQ etc.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2967963

i think if you review some of the dining threads, you will get a comprehensive list of places/meals to go.

also allears.com and the disboards do have menus for all/most of the dining locations on the QSDP so that you can review in advance. http://www.wdwinfo.com/disneyland/dining/menus.cfm

we are so not a burgers/hotdogs/fries kind of family, and we fully anticipate being able to eat healthy, filling, good food while on the QSDP.