If not on the dining plan....

[deebs]

where do I eat without it costing $100 for a family of 3??
I don't want counter service, but I also don't want $25 entee's.
It doesn't seem like there are any middle of the road restaurants.

Am I just better off eating off property for dinner?

 

[Lewisc]

Yacht Club Gallery, Spoodles and Mama Melrose are 3 of the more reasonable TS restaurants.

Food is good. If you just want to sit down and grab a burger Beaches and Cream is good.

 

[oogieboogie]

Trail's End is a great place for meals that aren't expensive.

Make your sit down meals during lunch and you'll save a bundle. Kona Cafe has some great meals and we usually spend about $40 for 2 adults, 2 kids.

Split and share some meals. You'll find that the portions are quite big and can easily feed mom and child.

Don't knock the counter service either... a lot of them have varieties other than burgers and fries and they're pretty delicious. Take Tusker House at AK - it's counter service but you can get salmon with steamed green beans and rice for about $8. It's pretty filling and the salmon is really good. Or take Cosmic Rays at MK - you can get rotisserie chicken or wraps.

Then there are all the counter services in Epcot. Tangerine Cafe in Morrocco has a great selection of food, the shwarmas and tabbouleh are really good. You have fish and chips at UK.

Earl of Sandwich in DTD has some nice selections too.

 

[disneymom727]

I think Whispering Canyon Cafe would be a good choice. Great food, not too expensive and a lot of fun.

 

[deebs]

thanks!! I'll research everything you suggested.

I didn't realize Morocco had a little Cafe. I've eaten at the restaurant a few times and love it. Tusker House at AK also sounds promising.

When I think of counter service, I guess I do think of burger and fries!

 

[oogieboogie]

check out the menus on allearsnet. Since it also has the prices, you can easily figure out a budget that works for you.

http://www.allearsnet.com/menu/menus.htm

 

[PJV57]

I read that the Plaza restaurant (TS) in MK is quite good and reasonably priced. I'm going to try it on my trip in November.

We're taking a short trip (5 days) so I don't care to spend time for TS. I found an article on MousePlanet called "Dining on a Shoestring Budget" (look for Mike Scopa's articles). Most, if not, all of the restaurants are CS. Take a look. You may want to reconsider avoiding CS.

 

[Beauty]

Rainforest Cafe has some large portions if you want to share.

Sci-Fi at MGM is Middle of the Road

At Epcot they have Counter Service that is much different from just Burgers and Fries.

At Animal Kingdom Tusker House BBQ is good.

At Magic Kingdom you have The Plaza, Caseys, Pecos Bills, and a few more.

At Downtown Disney you have Rainforest, Earl of Sandwich, Wolfgang Puck Express, House of Blues and even McDonalds...LOL!

There is also a shopping center right outside Disney with middle of the road restaurants.

 

[jann1033]

we usually do sit down , rarely buffet or counter except at epcot to sample round the world and we like trails end. our last trip was bout $50-60 a day for 2 adults... ( would have been less but we got a lot of pastry we really didn't need ) most meals at a lot of disney places are pretty large. we can split stuff and get another appe or something if need be. we also usually eat our large meal at lunch( so you walk it off too and pay lots less for the same thing) and get something light for dinner if we want it( we usually only eat 2 meals anytime we travel as well as a snack ) we steer clear of buffets except Trails' end cause they are expensive and you can't split at them and we never get our monies worth..never ever had anyone act odd about us spliting, sometimes they will even bring out the meal pre-divided onto 2 plates

 

[LiteBrite]

Prime Time in MGM is one of the less expensive TS restaurants. Their fried chicken is only $12.99, and it's a huge potion, plenty to share, which makes it even cheaper!