Just back DxDDP with kids, our experiences and thoughts

[chicagodisfan]

We just got back from our trip last week and it was our first time on the DxDDP. We booked a split stay so we were able to do the regular plan for the first half and the deluxe plan for the second half. We've always wanted to try it and this trip my mom came with us who has numerous food allergies, and we knew that sit down meals would be better for her, so we figured we'd give it a try! This board was so helpful in planning our trip, I wanted to come back and share our experiences.

It was me, DH, DS 9, DS 6 and DD 2 and my mom. We ate at:

Les Chefs de France (lunch),
Le Cellier (dinner),
Mama Melrose (lunch),
Cape May Cafe (dinner),
Hollywood Brown Derby (lunch),
Hollywood and Vine (dinner),
1900 Park Fare (breakfast),
Cinderella's Royal Table (dinner), and
Cape May Cafe (breakfast).

I know that it is often a question if kids are allowed to order off the adult menu. At every restaurant our kids were allowed to order off the adult menu. At Le Chefs de France, the server told us outright when we sat down that they could. At all the others, I had to ask but was always told yes. The server was a little hesitant at Brown Derby because we were on a Fantasmic Package, but the kids wanted items off the kids menu there anyway. She did give my oldest a soup off the adult menu as an appetizer. We frequently ordered the kids some or all of their items from the adult menu. I actually thought it was pretty funny watching them explain the different types of artisanal cheeses in France and Canada to my DS 6 as he looked at them quizzically!

At Mama Melrose they were particularly great. Both my sons wanted the kids cheese pizza for lunch and I was just going to order a third for DD OOP since she's under three and he said he would order both the boys adult sized cheese pizzas (the kids cheese pizza larger, not the adult flatbread) so they could share with DD and we wouldn't have to pay OOP. I thought that was really nice of him! In addition, he switched the desserts around so she could have one of the kids sundaes for dessert without having to pay for it. He was really great! At Le Chef de France, they boys both got adult portions of the Gruyere Mac and cheese and we split it for all three kids and it was still a ton of food for them. I think we could have stretched the credits even more had I been more creative. At Cinderella's Royal Table our server brought an adult sized portion of chicken tenders for my DS 6 and we shared them with DD2. At all the buffets, it obviously wasn't an issue.

Having now done it, here are our thoughts:

1. We really enjoyed the experience and are glad we tried it. It was the perfect time for us to do the deluxe plan as my DS 9 turned 10 on the trip and is now a "Disney adult" and my DD2 was free. It was great too for my mom's allergies as the chefs came to our table at every single restaurant. Having said that, we will probably stick to the regular plan in the future. It is a lot of food and we were prepared for that, but what we weren't prepared for is the amount of time we spent in each restaurant, especially the non-buffets! A three-course meal averaged us about an hour and a half to two hours per meal. At the fine dining restaurants, they tended not to bring the next course until everyone was done with the earlier course and since my mom tends to eat slower that dragged out the meals even more. My kids had a hard time handling that, even with the bag of games, crayons and activities I brought with us. I felt like most of our Epcot day was spent in restaurants. The character buffets were fine. The desserts with lunch got to be a bit much too. We usually switch them out when we eat counter service for lunch but wanted to try them at the sit down restaurants because they sounded so good (and were!) but it got to be a little too much for us.

2. I thought there was no way we would get through the 40 snack credits but I am happy to say that we used them all! It helped that my DH has an iced coffee addiction. And we only ended up with 7 at the end for character treats to bring home. I thought I would think it was a waste to use them on snacks for home, but I have thoroughly enjoyed eating Mickey shaped goldfish, pretzels, licorice and Rice Krispie treats as well as the wonderful things we grabbed from the German caramel shop on our last day. It's made the transition back to real life a little easier.

3. I completely overbought from Garden Grocer for our breakfast items because we were never very hungry for breakfast in the morning. I was used to the regular plan where we ate a decent breakfast in the room to last us to our counter service lunch. Between the big meals and the snacks, we really didn't need too much for breakfast.

I hope this helps if any of you are planning a trip with the DxDDP in the future! Let me know if you have any questions!

 

[emij]

Excellent info, thank you.

 

[JennyT1]

How was your dinner at Cape May? We have an adr there but it's a maybe to change.

 

[chicagodisfan]

How was your dinner at Cape May? We have an adr there but it's a maybe to change.

Wonderful!!! We were staying at BCV so I booked it at first because it was convenient and my mom had never been there. We've eaten there whenever we've been at the Beach Club. But once we were there I remembered how much we loved it! The food is excellent, service was great and there is always plenty for the kids to eat. There is a separate kids buffet and kids dessert buffet as well as all the adult options. The crab legs and steamed mussels were excellent as were all the seafood offerings. There were a number of non-seafood choices as well and a carving station but I didn't have any room for them! They were beyond great with my mom's food allergies, bringing her several specially made things from the back. It was one of our best meals!

In addition, we ate at Sanaa, Crystal Palace and Tusker House, all for dinner, during the first part of our trip when we were on the regular DDP, if anyone has any questions about those.

 

[JennyT1]

Thank you .... I think I'll keep it

 

[Candycane83]

Great reviews! We're bringing DS2 for his first trip and we will be on DxDP for the first part of our trip! It's nice to know that the timing would be that long! He's pretty good at restaurants but I doubt he would be able to handle 2 hours sitting down I would need to rethink my plans of how much toys to bring with me

 

[Lisa F]

I am doing DxDDP as part of a split stay. I think going to a TS restaurant right at opening keeps it moving (I did 3 courses at CA Grill in 2014 OOP). My kiddo will not eat most of the appetizers (they are mostly raw veggies or fruit salad or lettuce with fat free ranch) so what I did at CA Grill was he ate some bread and colored while I had my sushi, then we both ate our meals and desserts. It was probably about an hour total, maybe a LITTLE more, but neither of us are very slow eaters. If they let him order an appetizer off the adult menu but still order a kid meal I might order something for him to try with no pressure... like I wonder if they would just do a plain cheese flatbread for him at ca grill or something. If not, no big deal and kid appetizers did not figure into my calculations at all.

 

[Lisa F]

We just got back from our trip last week and it was our first time on the DxDDP. We booked a split stay so we were able to do the regular plan for the first half and the deluxe plan for the second half. We've always wanted to try it and this trip my mom came with us who has numerous food allergies, and we knew that sit down meals would be better for her, so we figured we'd give it a try! This board was so helpful in planning our trip, I wanted to come back and share our experiences.

It was me, DH, DS 9, DS 6 and DD 2 and my mom. We ate at:

Les Chefs de France (lunch),
Le Cellier (dinner),
Mama Melrose (lunch),
Cape May Cafe (dinner),
Hollywood Brown Derby (lunch),
Hollywood and Vine (dinner),
1900 Park Fare (breakfast),
Cinderella's Royal Table (dinner), and
Cape May Cafe (breakfast).

I know that it is often a question if kids are allowed to order off the adult menu. At every restaurant our kids were allowed to order off the adult menu. At Le Chefs de France, the server told us outright when we sat down that they could. At all the others, I had to ask but was always told yes. The server was a little hesitant at Brown Derby because we were on a Fantasmic Package, but the kids wanted items off the kids menu there anyway. She did give my oldest a soup off the adult menu as an appetizer. We frequently ordered the kids some or all of their items from the adult menu. I actually thought it was pretty funny watching them explain the different types of artisanal cheeses in France and Canada to my DS 6 as he looked at them quizzically!

At Mama Melrose they were particularly great. Both my sons wanted the kids cheese pizza for lunch and I was just going to order a third for DD OOP since she's under three and he said he would order both the boys adult sized cheese pizzas (the kids cheese pizza larger, not the adult flatbread) so they could share with DD and we wouldn't have to pay OOP. I thought that was really nice of him! In addition, he switched the desserts around so she could have one of the kids sundaes for dessert without having to pay for it. He was really great! At Le Chef de France, they boys both got adult portions of the Gruyere Mac and cheese and we split it for all three kids and it was still a ton of food for them. I think we could have stretched the credits even more had I been more creative. At Cinderella's Royal Table our server brought an adult sized portion of chicken tenders for my DS 6 and we shared them with DD2. At all the buffets, it obviously wasn't an issue.

Having now done it, here are our thoughts:

1. We really enjoyed the experience and are glad we tried it. It was the perfect time for us to do the deluxe plan as my DS 9 turned 10 on the trip and is now a "Disney adult" and my DD2 was free. It was great too for my mom's allergies as the chefs came to our table at every single restaurant. Having said that, we will probably stick to the regular plan in the future. It is a lot of food and we were prepared for that, but what we weren't prepared for is the amount of time we spent in each restaurant, especially the non-buffets! A three-course meal averaged us about an hour and a half to two hours per meal. At the fine dining restaurants, they tended not to bring the next course until everyone was done with the earlier course and since my mom tends to eat slower that dragged out the meals even more. My kids had a hard time handling that, even with the bag of games, crayons and activities I brought with us. I felt like most of our Epcot day was spent in restaurants. The character buffets were fine. The desserts with lunch got to be a bit much too. We usually switch them out when we eat counter service for lunch but wanted to try them at the sit down restaurants because they sounded so good (and were!) but it got to be a little too much for us.

2. I thought there was no way we would get through the 40 snack credits but I am happy to say that we used them all! It helped that my DH has an iced coffee addiction. And we only ended up with 7 at the end for character treats to bring home. I thought I would think it was a waste to use them on snacks for home, but I have thoroughly enjoyed eating Mickey shaped goldfish, pretzels, licorice and Rice Krispie treats as well as the wonderful things we grabbed from the German caramel shop on our last day. It's made the transition back to real life a little easier.

3. I completely overbought from Garden Grocer for our breakfast items because we were never very hungry for breakfast in the morning. I was used to the regular plan where we ate a decent breakfast in the room to last us to our counter service lunch. Between the big meals and the snacks, we really didn't need too much for breakfast.

I hope this helps if any of you are planning a trip with the DxDDP in the future! Let me know if you have any questions!

ooh I just thought of a question... did you have any experience with your kids ordering an adult portion of a kids menu item? In particular the mac and cheese can be a bit skimpy at TS restaurants which is why I tend to go to buffets where it is more like a side than a main meal. My kid would probably still favor the kid menu but I might get him a bigger portion if that is allowed.

 

[chicagodisfan]

ooh I just thought of a question... did you have any experience with your kids ordering an adult portion of a kids menu item? In particular the mac and cheese can be a bit skimpy at TS restaurants which is why I tend to go to buffets where it is more like a side than a main meal. My kid would probably still favor the kid menu but I might get him a bigger portion if that is allowed.

Yes! We did this several times. At Le Cellier both boys got an adult portion of the mac and cheese from the kids menu. At Mama Melrose, they both got adult portions of the kids cheese pizza (which ended up being about a 12 inch pizza each!) And at Cinderella's Royal Table, they both got an adult portion of the kids cheddar cheese and grapes appetizer and my DS 6 got an adult portion of the kids chicken nuggets. Everywhere we went the servers were great about it. At Mama Melrose and CRT, the servers actually suggested it so they could share with DD2. At Le Cellier, I think I asked if we could do it and we could. It worked out great!

 

[chicagodisfan]

Great reviews! We're bringing DS2 for his first trip and we will be on DxDP for the first part of our trip! It's nice to know that the timing would be that long! He's pretty good at restaurants but I doubt he would be able to handle 2 hours sitting down I would need to rethink my plans of how much toys to bring with me

Looking back, I think the longest meals were Les Chefs de France, Le Cellier and Hollywood Brown Derby. I know at Le Cellier and Brown Derby they did not want to serve the next course until we were all done with the earlier course. I saw the staff come over, look around and maybe clear a plate or two and then leave. If you all eat at a normal rate, you may fare a little better. My mom likes to enjoy her meals quite leisurely (and wasn't used to the craziness of eating at a sit down restaurant with three kids!). Le Chefs de France was the slowest. I felt like we were waiting for our food there forever - but it was wonderful when it came! My mom's food allergies might have had something to do with it too because her dish was made separately. But often times her food came out before ours, so who knows! Then again, even at Mama Melrose where I felt like the food seemed to be served quite quickly, when I looked at my watch we were still there for an hour and a half! So who knows! And the character meals and buffets were never a problem! The non-character meal buffets we were done in an hour or so, the character meals were longer but just because we were having so much fun with the characters. DH often took DD 2 out to run around while I settled up the bill (and finished everyone's desserts ).

If they let him order an appetizer off the adult menu but still order a kid meal I might order something for him to try with no pressure... like I wonder if they would just do a plain cheese flatbread for him at ca grill or something. If not, no big deal and kid appetizers did not figure into my calculations at all.

They for sure will let him do that. I did that for my boys a lot. I figured it was a great way for them to try something new and if they didn't like it, no big deal. We tried all sorts of new cheeses in France and Canada, different soups, etc. (Usually, I ended up loving whatever it was!) They were great about modifications too. We ordered the fresh mozzarella appetizer at Mama Melrose for DS 9 and asked them to hold the balsamic vinaigrette. Other times we just ordered another appetizer for the table and split it.

 

[Candycane83]

Looking back, I think the longest meals were Les Chefs de France, Le Cellier and Hollywood Brown Derby. I know at Le Cellier and Brown Derby they did not want to serve the next course until we were all done with the earlier course. I saw the staff come over, look around and maybe clear a plate or two and then leave. If you all eat at a normal rate, you may fare a little better. My mom likes to enjoy her meals quite leisurely (and wasn't used to the craziness of eating at a sit down restaurant with three kids!). Le Chefs de France was the slowest. I felt like we were waiting for our food there forever - but it was wonderful when it came! My mom's food allergies might have had something to do with it too because her dish was made separately. But often times her food came out before ours, so who knows! Then again, even at Mama Melrose where I felt like the food seemed to be served quite quickly, when I looked at my watch we were still there for an hour and a half! So who knows! And the character meals and buffets were never a problem! The non-character meal buffets we were done in an hour or so, the character meals were longer but just because we were having so much fun with the characters. DH often took DD 2 out to run around while I settled up the bill (and finished everyone's desserts ).

That's good to know, I have Narcoosee's and Tiffins planned so I'm guessing those would take a little longer. DH and I are usually fast eaters, I have inhaled a plate of pasta in 10 minutes when I was in a hurry I considered Chefs de France but DH and I went there on our last trip so I wanted to try as many new things as possible with mostly uniquely Disney places. Plus I guess somewhere our toddler would like I would definitely get DH to run out with DS2 at the end of the meal. We normally already do that thanks so much for sharing your experience! I love hearing about other people's experiences, I'm sure it'll help even if I can't predict what will happen with DS2.

 

[GillianP1301]

Thanks for taking the time to provide this info. I've done the DxDP with my son the past few years and have it planned again this year. I'm really happy to hear you didn't have any trouble with your kids ordering off of the adult menu. That change is something that was very new the last time we went and my son wasn't really keen on having anything other than kids menu stuff, so we didn't take advantage of it much. But this year, he will likely want to dip into the adult menu (steak is his new favourite food and it's rarely on the kids menus). I will definitely be sure to ask when we're there for the adult menu for him.

 

[Lisa F]

Thanks for taking the time to provide this info. I've done the DxDP with my son the past few years and have it planned again this year. I'm really happy to hear you didn't have any trouble with your kids ordering off of the adult menu. That change is something that was very new the last time we went and my son wasn't really keen on having anything other than kids menu stuff, so we didn't take advantage of it much. But this year, he will likely want to dip into the adult menu (steak is his new favourite food and it's rarely on the kids menus). I will definitely be sure to ask when we're there for the adult menu for him.

Lol, my kiddo has recently discovered steak as well!

 

[Nancyg56]

Lol, my kiddo has recently discovered steak as well!

This is why we ended up with adult meals for the girls. They liked steak and when they could order the adult meals they got a nice cut. We always let the kids order what they want, so in our case the upgrade was WAY worth it.

 

[Candycane83]

This is why we ended up with adult meals for the girls. They liked steak and when they could order the adult meals they got a nice cut. We always let the kids order what they want, so in our case the upgrade was WAY worth it.

I remember my parents doing this with us when my sister and I were kids. I don't think they ever considered letting us eat burgers and chicken nuggets for dinner...? I don't think I have eaten a burger until I was a teen... Weird I know.