Inexpensive dining?

[Symba14]

Hi everyone,

My husband and I are going to WDW this July 02'. Was wondering if someone would offer any advice on which places are inexpensive to eat at? Any suggestions on how to plan a budget for meals?

Thanks a bunch!!

Symba14

 

[ducklite]

The best way to budget for meals is to look at the menus available at either wdwig.com or here on the DIS and see what appeals and what the prices are. Do'nt forget to add on the tax (6%) and tip when figuring your budget.

Alcohol is expensive at DW, and can add to your dinner bill very quickly. You might be better off bringing a bottle of wine and enjoying a glass in the late afternoon in your room while refreshing yourself before dinner.

DH and I budget $125 a day for food, snacks and incidentals. We tend to eat dinner at a full service upscale restaurant. We own DVC, and generally when not using that we stay concierge at the resort we're staying at, so breakfast is generally little to no cost, although we usually do one character breakfast on each trip.

Some days we have lunch in a full service restaurant, but often we just eat on the fly. We like the Yakitori House in Japan for great fresh steamed veggies, rice, and chicken/shrimp terriyaki that's very inexpensive. If we eat breakfast out, we don't have lunch.

There are a lot of really great inexpensive restaurants. If you like seafood the Cape May Cafe is one of Disney's best values. The yacht Club Galley, Grand Floridian Cafe, Kona Cafe, Mama Melroses, Plaza Restaurant, Beaches and Cream, and Liberty Tree Tavern are all fairly inexpensive and have good food. A little pricier but good value for the money are the Concourse Steakhouse and Le Cellier.

Pricier but excellent meals can be had at the California Grill and Jiko. There you can expect to spend $80-150 for dinner for two.

I guess the big question is how much do you want to budget daily for meals? Let us know that and we can suggest ideas that will stay within your budget.

Anne

 

[LuvTigger]

Hi Symba,

Welcome to the DIS!!

I agree with ducklite's post, I am always checking wdwig.com's menus, and we also budget about $125 per day (me and significant other) for meals and snacks.

However, you really have to evaluate your eating habits and what kinds of places you will be eating, it doesn't HAVE to cost that much. We really like Akershus in Norway, a great bang for the buck since it's a buffet, and I think lunch only costs about $12.00. Also, if you're on a budget, you could buy a cheap styrofoam cooler from an offsite store and fill it with drinks and buy some breakfast and snack foods.

I also recommend checking the Restaurants Board and Budget Board. The Budget Board sometimes has posts on what other people budget for their trips, and the restaurant board can give you some budget tips as well as give you suggestions for places to eat.

Happy planning!

 

[DeeP]

ducklite is correct, alcohol is very expensive at WDW and does very quickly bring up the total to your bill. We also bring our own wine and have a glass while we are getting ready for dinner or relaxing on our balcony after we return from the parks.
Just 2 weeks ago we tried for the first time the lunch buffet at China. It was about $13.00 a person for all you can eat chinese food and it was very good. We were pleasantly surprised.

 

[PamCo88]

Another suggestion would be to have late lunches at the nicer restaurants. Lunch prices are much lower. That and it makes having something sweet for dinner easier to justify.

 

[msr709]

Don't forget to stop for groceries for your room. With the heat as high as it gets in FL, I usually always stop at a grocery on my way to the hotel from the airport and buy breakfast and snacks, including some fruit and cheeses and sometimes wind up eating that at night if its too hot to eat! It also saves a bundle. When I'm hot I don't eat much cooked food, I prefer salads and fruits and thats something you can get and keep in a cooler in your room. Don't feel shy, everyone does it. Also, you didn't mention whether you wanted only onsite restaurants because from I have heard there are tons of restaurants outside WDW that are much cheaper, the closest being the ones at Crossroads Malls that is close to DTD, I understand there is TGIF, Olive Garden and the like (I can't say specifically which ones are available because I never drive while at WDW) but I have read a lot of threads on the DIS Restaurant and Budget threads. Maybe someone else can elaborate on these other restaurants. HTH

 

[PennConn]

I would recommend eating a big breakfast, and then a late lunch, and then an evening snack. As a solo traveler I budget about $65 per day for food and drink.

 

[Carrieberry]

We must eat cheap! We budget $100 a day for food and we always have tons of $$ left over for souviners! We don't drink (makes poor DH sleepy so maybe that's the price difference?

We do a couple of sit down breakfasts and maybe one dinner, but for the most part we eat counter service and enjoy it. We do go during the cooler months, so we don't spend a lot on drinks/water. We usually have quite a bit left over, and after looking at all of the menus, I can see why. We only spend maybe $70 a day on food when we do counter service and maybe $85 when we do sit down-usually breakfasts since they are cheaper and they last us through lunch if we go later in the morning like around 10:30.

 

[GoofysPrincess]

You can also split meals. Many WDW restaurants serve large portions and are often enough for two -- especially if you want dessert or want to leave room for snacks here and there.

If you don't value character interaction, skip those meals as you definitely pay more for them.

We also tend to do a buffet at least once a day -- either midmorning or midafternoon. We often just have one other meal on those days. We might share a counter-service meal in the evening then.

Basically, we like to eat smaller portions so we can try more things. There is so much yummy food to work your way through. Definitely requires multiple trips...

$100/day for food would definitely cover both of us most days, but we usually have minimal alcohol and tend to be 'either appetizer or dessert but not both' people.

 

[Tiggerlover91]

I would go to http://www.wdwig.com and go to RESTAURANT MENUS FROM AROUND THE WORLD and budget your meals that way. That's what I'm doing for DH and I and it's working beautifully!!

 

[spiceycat]

Food court are definitely cheaper than restuarants - however if you have a car Kissimmee is very close on US192 - they have a bunch of cheap restuarants (but it takes time)- if you want to stay on WDW property - the Land counter service - Sunshine Season Food Fair at Epcot is very good - also at Epcot in Norway the counter service - Kringla Og Bakeri.

at the MK the Columbia Harbour House