Ever wonder how much $$ to feed a large family?

[DeeP]

Your budget is amazing, I am shocked at how very low it is. We pay more than that per day for 3 people, 2 of them are teens/young adults that could never be full with a children's meal nor would they want to eat what is offered on the children's menu. Have you checked out the chidren's menus? They do not offer much besides pb&j, chicken strips and hamburgers.
Just curious, but what are you going to order at Brown Derby to feed 7 people for only $109.00 and how do you split 2 cokes between 7 people?

 

[Belle5]

Deep,
5 kids meals come with soda so only DH and I are left to order drinks.
Here's how my estimate breaks down:
5 kids meals--$30
2 kids salads (for teens)--$4
soup or salad for 2 (adults)--$13
chicken entree--19
salmon--$20
No beverages or desserts for adults on this meal. (If we change our minds on beverages we'll just add $4.) Reason--we have never found a dessert we liked at Brwon Derby. (HATED the grapefruit cake!)
Total: $86
Tip: $17
Tax: $5.60
Grand Total: $108.60

As I've said this will be our 16th trip. I usually come pretty close with my estimates. If I'm low on one then high on another it usually balances out. There is another reason it is low. We spent so much money on food at WDW last year I was determined to be very selective about where we dine this year. Instead of Boma we'll go to Shutter's or Trail's End. I'm finding that with a lot of people in your party it really does make a difference which restaurants you choose. My teens are coming back tonight from an expensive deep sea fishing trip in the Florida Keys. They are so grateful to be going to WDW in addition to that trip that they'll be happy to order kid's meals at some of the restaurants. (I promise, if you'd see these guys you'd know they weren't starved!) We will supplement with less expensive park snacks as they find themselves hungry. Another note, as many folks share adult entrees--with DH and I ordering our own entrees we often spoon 1/3 to 1/2 of what we have onto the big boys' plates. It all works out.
You mentioned that some kids wouldn't want to order off the kid's menu. You will read on these boards that many kids do.

 

[zaxmom]

I have two preschool sons and the thought of having to feed 5 teenage boys makes me want to go have my tubes tied! Just kidding! You have done some great budgeting. It really does make a difference when you have 7 people to feed doesn't it? Our vacations are going to be a lot more expensive when my little ones are older, I guess they may not happen as often.
The prices for food can be outrageous. This is why we are staying at the Holiday Inn Family Suites with the free breakfast buffet for everyone. We stuff ourselves and then end up skipping lunch.

 

[onceuponadream]

We also have a large family (4 kids..3 boys and a girl). As a stay home RN/mom we don't get "out" much anyway so meals aren't all that imortant to us. We are also lucky as the oldest is 11 though so all 4 can eat kids meals. We always eat breakfast in the room...except for one character breakfast (this year the new Princess breakfast). We are obsessive planners and savers as well. If it were just the 2 of us we would probably try more places but with 4 under 11 we usually hit only a few "nice" dinners. Lunch is counter service almost every day. We do go to CP once during the trip for lunch. Dinner we love Chef Mickey's and have to try Boma since we are staying at AKL. Other than that for the 11 days we are going we will be ordering pizza and "enjoying" the different counter service. We really found a pretty decent variety after researching. We will bring lots of fruit from home for breakfast and evening snacks as it's not the healthiest way to go but hey we're walking 2 miles a day a couple burgers aren't going to kill us . Our total budget for food for 11 days includes:

4 character meals or Boma ($400)
4 "nicer" sit down meals ie Mama Melrose, 50's PTC ($300)
10 counter service meals/pizza/baked potatoes ($500)
4 "lunch meat meals in the hotel" out of our cooler or fridge during our swim breaks (free!)
We always have nutri grain bars and fruit snacks for the lines but usually indulge in an ice cream during the afternoon so we add $25/day for that. ($275)

Total is $1475 for 11 days for the 6 of us.

Food is not something we mind scrimping on as we would rather stay at moderate or deluxe hotels (2 rooms per night) and enjoy a longer trip. I know this plan isn't for everyone and everyone can't get away with kids meals for their kids as ours are still pretty young...BUT if you are on a budget it is possible to eat pretty reasonably with a good plan .

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by Belle5
patsal,
I learned from this board that teens can order from the kids menu and that has helped a lot. At about 1/2 the restaurants I'm planning on my older guys wanting burgers or chicken fingers istead of "weird" sounding adult foods. When I saw that the kids meals at the castle came with something besides french fries I was thrilled and knew this would be one of the places I would tell the 14 and 16 year old to order off the kids menu. (They get corn and mashed potatoes.) If they are still hungry (which I doubt they will be) when we leave we'll stop and get a Mickey bar!
2 salads--$8
2 Mariner sandwiches--$26
5 kids meals--$25
2 cokes-$4
total--$63
tax--$4
tip--$12.50
grand total--$79.50

My 14 y/o would not be satisfied with a child's meal let alone even get over the embarrasssment of having to ordering one. I would have to order 3 of them just to get him to last until dessert anyway! Your boys must not be big eaters, especially for teenagers. My son brings his friends over all the time and it amazes me how they go through food in one evening! LOL! My grocery bill has been running about $400 a week and that is just for DH, DS, DD 4 y/o, and myself! Of course we are also feeding friends. I see you only ordered 2 cokes. I can't remember but do the kids meals come with drinks too? If not then how do you decide who the lucky two are that get the drinks? There is no way I could budget that kind of thing. When we go out or on vacation I let the kids order what they want as long as they eat it. It just wouldn't be any fun to have to skimp like that.

 

[Belle5]

Terry,
Yes, cokes are includes at the theme park restaurants. I can assure you my children have rarely felt deprived. I think children from larger families are used to making some adjustments that others may not have to make. When we dine out with friends that have two kids in their family their children do typically order "differently" than ours. Embarrassment must build character because I have the most grateful kids on the planet. They come off as secure in their situation. Not ashamed. They just laugh and tell the kids they're eating with that when you come from a big family this is how you eat. As I assured Deep our boys never go hungry. Sometimes that means we order a little more or share off the adult plates or they clean up the chicken fingers and fries left over from the 5 year old. Think of it this way; people on this board always tell of how they split an adult meal with someone else. Consider my kids as getting to share from an adult meal plus they get a kids meal to boot.

 

[travelitis]

Belle,

I just wanted to tell you we are kindred spirits. I estimate each meal calculating exactly what we'll order, and I'm usually within a buck or 2. What would drain the fun right out is getting home before realizing I've plunked down $350 a day for food. If I blow that much on dining at Disney, it's going to cut into our budget elsewhere. I have too many cruises left to take to let that happen, and I want to make sure I'm set to travel after retirement! Our family of 5 (3 kids) eats character meals and can stay at $100 a day. We did that by utilizing vouchers and AP discounts, having cereal for b-fast and heading to a character meal for lunch, early supper, or late b-fast. We didn't want another meal after that. My bottomless pit 11 y.o. was so satisfied and full, his fanny pack of snacks wasn't close to depleted by the end of the day. We had 6 character meals, so it's safe to say my kids did not feel deprived. I think your plan is grand!

 

[wilderness01]

We (family of 5) were just there last month and we spent $130 per day on food. That did not include the cost of the nutri grain bars, juice boxes, raisin, fruit snacks, cereal bars, etc that we brought from home. A few meals were too big for all of us so we brought it back to our villa and reheated it for the next day. I thought an average of $130 per day for the 5 of us was great, especially at WDW!