Just back and not impressed with food options

[isaboo]

We were there for 5 days and I think the only burger we had was at Beaches and cream, and it was delish!

That said, we didn't do many counter service. We had breakfast in the club lounge at YC, then usually did a big TS meal with snacks in between.

The only counter service we ate was Columbia Harbour House (fried shrimp...you really can't go wrong) and the fish and chips stand at WS.

 

[bumbershoot]

And I am sorry, this "picky eater" thing just cracks me up. My family has a rule. "this is dinner, eat it or go hungry" Amazingly we have no picky eaters (and I have cured a few kids on Girl Scout trips simply by saying "this was the menu your group chose, sorry" LOL!)

It's unfortunate that you have never met my brothers. They would quite literally go hungry until they got EXACTLY what they wanted. What you got were kids that were lightweight in terms of picky eaters. Not on my brothers' caliber at all.

And this isn't just one set of parents; same dad (non custodial for me and full brother but in-house for the next two brothers) but different moms. None of them would eat anything they didn't want to eat. Hours and hours at the dinner table. (tell me WHY families punish the "good eaters" in the family? why?)

By the time my sister showed up dad and stepmom had given up, LOL.

And guess which ONE of the 5 of us has the allergies? Guesses? Yep. The good eater, the one that made peace by eating vile things just so she could hopefully leave the table.

Turns out those picky eaters seem to be protecting themselves from things their bodies can't deal with.

Jealous.

However, I think #1 should not apply. I usually have 2 TS meals each day at WDW, and I still lose weight. All that walking around does wonders. Now if you are on a cruise, or just lounging around the pool and grazing at buffets all day, you're gonna pack on the pounds. Everybody is different.

Well now it doesn't work that way for everyone. I lost 4 but DH didn't. He had major swelling, and that's despite having a diuretic that he takes for a different reason.




I should have mentioned in my first post that we're vegetarian so definitely aren't going for the burger (though their veggie burgers are decent), and have to seek out other things. We don't go to the first CS we come across, and if someone wants something from another place, we don't have any rules about everyone eating all at once. Since I grew up with those picky boys and therefore HATE food arguments, and my DH grew up with a mom who put him on a diet at THREE years old and therefore hates being forced to eat just anything, we have absolutely no problem making lunch/etc into a multi-stop thing. Of course, we've also sought out the places that work for everyone. Columbia Harbour House is amazing for us, and Sunshine Seasons is terrific. SS is confusing sometimes because each station has different things, you need to wait for the signs to cycle completely through, and sometimes they have things that aren't on the signs. Plus you can customize stuff there. It's FAR more flexible than it appears at first glance.

 

[ttintagel]

Which counter service areas have steak?

The one at the American pavilion in EPCOT World Showcase.

 

[DznyCrzy11]

The last time we ate a burger at WDW I believe was in 2008. We've gone every year since then and stay 6-7 nights each time. There are so many other QS food options besides burgers and fries. We purposely avoid eating burgers and fries at WDW.

Sent from my Galaxy SII

 

[railwife]

This is why I always go with the deluxe dining plan. I never feel tied down to ADR as I plan a breakfast (or an early lunch) and then a dinner. It's a great way to kickstart the day or end it. On our honeymoon (which was planned by my husbands aunt, who didn't tell us anything till 5 hours before our flight, blah) we didn't have it and I got soooo sick of those cs sandwiches and hamburgers. I didn't do my research before we left so we always ended up going to the closest spot... Bad idea.

 

[jimmysmom74]

My SIL went to WDW and said the same thing. The food was no good. I couldn't believe it. When we went to DL last year, I made all our dining plans, and she loved it. She said why don't they have food like this in WDW. I said they do, you just need to know where to look.

 

[cdhale]

I completely agree with OP as far as the kid's meals are concerned. Even with my girls getting grapes or carrots or apple sauce as sides, it still seems that they were eating pizza, grilled cheese and nuggets over and over again on our prior trips. This year they're disney adults and very excited to order off the real menu!

 

[Karbase8]

This is why I always go with the deluxe dining plan. I never feel tied down to ADR as I plan a breakfast (or an early lunch) and then a dinner. It's a great way to kickstart the day or end it. On our honeymoon (which was planned by my husbands aunt, who didn't tell us anything till 5 hours before our flight, blah) we didn't have it and I got soooo sick of those cs sandwiches and hamburgers. I didn't do my research before we left so we always ended up going to the closest spot... Bad idea.

I did a similar thing I ate at the closest spot was there last week and made a huge mistake eating a burger at the Liberty Inn in Epcot. Never again! I love burgers and most times had ok experiences at WDW but I still feel sick thinking about it. Columbia Harbor House is a good choice for variety and even there chicken fingers are of quality. There peach cobbler is awesome still dreaming about it! I have learned my lesson and will choose variety over burgers and fries at the CS in the future.

 

[bdklein]

I completely agree with OP as far as the kid's meals are concerned. Even with my girls getting grapes or carrots or apple sauce as sides, it still seems that they were eating pizza, grilled cheese and nuggets over and over again on our prior trips. This year they're disney adults and very excited to order off the real menu!

They could have ordered off the real menu before, uless you were on the Dining Plan. If you paid for it, sounds like a mistake.

 

[Masonmj84]

I confess to having never eaten a CS meal at Disney.

Our previous trips have all been on the DxDP and I spent a lot of time researching TS meals before each trip.

Along those lines, the only truly disappointing meal I've had was at Coral Reef.

Granted, everything is overpriced but you're at Disney.

Ironically, I think the least overpriced restaurants relative to a comparable counterpart outside of WDW, at least from a cost percentage standpoint, are the signatures (meals at these are IMO around 30% more expensive than restaurants of comparable quality outside of WDW, whereas the average non-signature TS or CS is roughly twice as expensive as an outside-WDW restaurant of comparable quality).

That being said, I wouldn't recommend using regular DDP credits for signature meals (DxDP or OOP with TIW is another story).

 

[MattRyan]

Hmmm, if I could, I would do no CS at all. I enjoy escaping from that hot August heat into a cool air conditioned table and having someone wait on me.

 

[Eureka]

We don't do CS either. On our trip last week, we did 2 CS meals -- one on a night we were tired and cancelled an ADR and another when we were at Seaworld and were done earlier than expected. We love to have some nice meals and the respite in AC is welcome. We still managed to do, ride and see about 95% of what we had planned.

 

[lmhall2000]

I think you have to seek out the best QS meals!!!

Epcot: Fish and Chips/Sugar Cookie at England (Rose & Crown?)
Bakery in France has a bunch of healthier options (salads/sandwiches)
Sunshine or Seasons whatever that place is
China has a QS option

DTD: Earl of Sandwich, Wolfgang Puck

MK: Columbia Harbor House has more options than just burger/fries

Boardwalk Bakery has sandwiches and such..

I can see where all the ones you run into the most at these parks are bleh, you just have to seek out good ones, Yak & Yeti at AK...I will go out of my way to get something tasty

 

[JennyDrake]

We only do CS, with the exception of one OOP TS each trip. It is just our preference to not be tied down to ADRs. However, I only might have one or two burgers the whole trip and never feel that I'm left without any good choices.

That said, you do have to carefully pick at which CS you eat. We find great food at Sunshine Seasons, AoA food court, Starring Rolls, etc. I also substitute kid's grapes or carrots as my dessert option at some places.

DITTO! My last two trips (both in 2013) have been w/ only 1 ADR per trip. I WON'T eat burgers, fries, chicken tenders, etc <shudder> yet I've hardly "gone without!"

Epcot has dozens of non-fast food options including CS at the different countries and Sunshine Seasons. I like the food at the AS, Pop and POR food courts: build your own pasta, chicken quesadilla, homemade veggie soup, build your own salad--YUM!

The other parks aren't as great (and the water parks are rather hopeless) but I find plenty of good options at WDW--and I am a Hard Core Foodie. BTW, every CS meal I have ordered has been more than willing to swap carrots or grapes instead of fries.

 

[CuteAsMinnie]

We usually dine mainly at CS at WDW and this year members of our family enjoyed:

Wonderfully prepared salmon (CHH)
Fantastic tuna sandwich (CHH)
Probably the best fried shrimp ever (CHH)
Lobster Roll (CHH and BWB)
Delicious turkey sandwich (Starring Rolls)
Terrific Taco Salad (Peco Bill)
The ONE burger for the trip with all the fixins! (Peco Bill)
The BEST brat (EPCOT - Sommerfest)
Great Ham & Swiss (EPCOT - Boulangerie Patisserie)
Oh, the Ribs (AK - Flame Tree)
and BBQ Chicken (AK - Flame Tree) great cole slaw too!

Breakfast was always CL

TS we enjoyed were BOG/dinner, CP for lunch and Via Napoli our new FAVE!!!!!


Amazing trip!

 

[MartDM]

It sounds like your family's picky eating habit harpooned you more so than the CS offerings OP. There are literally hundreds of CS options but it sounds like your family wasn't open to experiencing any of them.

If they will only eat burgers and you aren't willing to choose an alternate dining location for yourself, you're kind of stuck in their picky world along with them. I'm not seeing that as WDW's failing because there were other meals that could have been chosen (and healthier options to be sure!).

Sorry you got stuck in "burger world". Next time, just let them eat where they'd like and you eat where you'd like. That's the beauty of CS; you can all get what you want and meet at a table to enjoy it together DH, DS, and I do that all the time.

 

[Planogirl]

We eat mostly counter service and I usually have just one burger during a week at WDW. You just have to know where to eat as others have pointed out.

I still end up feeling bloated though. Too many desserts is my downfall!

 

[Praying Colonel]

The 1 and only time we eat burgers at WDW is Pecos Bills, so we can do the fixings bar thing. Non-burger CS options in every park are plentiful and varied.

 

[mom2my3kids]

I think you have to seek out the best QS meals!!!

Epcot: Fish and Chips/Sugar Cookie at England (Rose & Crown?)
Bakery in France has a bunch of healthier options (salads/sandwiches)
Sunshine or Seasons whatever that place is
China has a QS option

DTD: Earl of Sandwich, Wolfgang Puck

MK: Columbia Harbor House has more options than just burger/fries

Boardwalk Bakery has sandwiches and such..

I can see where all the ones you run into the most at these parks are bleh, you just have to seek out good ones, Yak & Yeti at AK...I will go out of my way to get something tasty

 

[mom2my3kids]

The 1 and only time we eat burgers at WDW is Pecos Bills, so we can do the fixings bar thing. Non-burger CS options in every park are plentiful and varied.

We love Peco Bills, but I will say the last time we ate there the burgers did not taste like burgers and dont get me started on the nasty buns..BUT we will try it again this year..