Just returned from WDW and FP+ stinks

[PlayaMan]

If you don't have a rental car and are relying solely on Disney transportation--as many if not most on-site visitors do--then #1 and #2 are true. During high season #3 is often true as well. And #4 is true a lot of the time given the lack of diversity of on-site counter-service food options, especially at MK and the Value food courts.

There are cabs. There are buses to Downtown Disney. There are grocery delivery services. One could have even brought peanut butter and jelly in their suitcases for all we know. The point is, it is hyperbole, once again to say that people, even those without their own cars or rentals are somehow FORCED to eat onsite and relegated to cheeseburgers and hot dogs should they fail to secure ADRs.

 

[wen8jr]

Yes. I'm a DLR vet and from my perspective Magic Kingdom has very little variety in counter-service options compared to the west coast parks, and especially compared to Disneyland. It's the DLR vet version of WDW vets going to DL and wondering where the castle went. We go to MK and wonder where all the food options went.

I really don't like MK CS options either. We struggle at both MK and HS, tried several places over time and now most often we eat snacks while in the park if hungry and plan to go back to the resort or DTD to eat mid-day for lunch/dinner. Also, it seems overly crowded at all the CS to me at both of these parks, with limited seating which is annoying. Both parks have good sweet choices though.

Maybe for us, I just don't like most of what is offered even though there are many places to choose from and that is why it seems like there isn't much of a choice now.

We do like to eat at AK and Epcot is by far our favorite.

 

[Suellen]

OK So you had me going there. It has been a few years for me, but I was scratching my head cause last time I went it was all hot dogs/burgers/chicken. So I wen to ALLEARS to check it out. I have not been since Fantasyland and that is where the new stuff was. Other than that YEP same old same old and if the new stuff is anything like Josh @easywdw had posted in his reviewI will pass.

As to Earl of Sanwhich Yes love it, but most do not want to take an hour bus ride for a counter service. The same goes for having to go back to your hotel. Epcot was the only one that ever had CS variety.

DL just knows how to do counter service. So yes coming back to WDW and looking for the good food you find at DL only to be left with WDW burgers and Casey Corners hot dogs is just disappointing.

Columbia Harbour House:
Lighthouse Sandwich - hummus with tomato & broccoli slaw on toasted multigrain bread with potato chips $9.19
Anchors Aweigh Sandwich - white tuna with lettuce and tomato on toasted multigrain bun with potato chips $9.19
Lobster Roll - served with potato chips $10.19
Fried Shrimp Platter - Served with cole slaw and choice of steamed fresh broccoli, apple slices or French Fries $9.99
Chicken Breast Nuggets and Fish - choice of steamed fresh broccoli, apple slices or French Fries $9.29
Battered Fish Basket - choice of steamed fresh broccoli, apple slices or French Fries $7.99
Chicken Breast Nuggets (8 pieces) - Served with steamed fresh broccoli or French Fries or Apple Slices $8.69
Grilled Salmon - served with couscous and steamed fresh broccoli $10.99
Broccoli Peppercorn Salad - mixed greens, garden vegetables, chicken, broccoli, parmesan cheese, tossed with a creamy peppercorn dressing $8.59
Garden Harvest Salad - mixed greens, garden vegetables, green beans, carrots and chicken $8.59
Vegetarian Chili $4.79
New England Clam Chowder $4.99
Steamed Fresh Broccoli $1.99
Couscous $2.99

Diamond Horseshoe:
Entrees

Served with Apple Slices or Potato Chips
Barbecued Turkey Sandwich $9.19
Hand-carved Turkey Sandwich $9.19
Hand-carved Pork Brisket Sandwich $9.19
Tuna Salad with Croissant $9.19
Portobello Sandwich $9.19
Portobello Salad $7.49
Mixed Green Salad - served with hand-carved turkey or pork brisket

Pinocchios
Pepperoni Flatbread - $8.79
Barbecue Chicken Flatbread - $9.99
Caprese Flatbread - $9.99
Entrees

Italian Flatbread Sub - Italian meats, cheese, dressing and balsamic glaze $9.99
Mediterranean Salad - Mixed greens, chicken, mozzarella, roasted red pepper, red onion and black olives $8.69
Meatball Sub Sandwich - served with fries or apple slices $9.19
Chicken Breast Nuggets (8 pcs. served with apple slices or french fries) $8.69
Caesar Salad with Chicken - romaine, chicken and parmesan $7.99

Tommorowland Terrace:
Fried Chicken Sandwich - topped with lettuce, tomato, and ranch dresing, served with french fries or apple slices $8.99
Pasta Primavera $6.99; with shrimp $9.99
Pasta Alfredo with chicken $8.99
Lobster Roll - served with homemade chips $9.99
Beef and Blue Cheese Salad - served with Balsamic Vinaigrette $8.39
Citrus Shrimp Salad - served Mandarin Orange Dressing $8.19
Chicken Breast Nuggets - with french fries or apple slices $8.19

Tortuga Tavern:
Burrito - chicken or beef - with cilantro rice and black beans $8.39
Taco Salad - Crisp flour tortilla with seasoned beef $8.79
Beef Nachos - with black bean salsa $7.69
Vegetarian Burrito - filled with cilantro rice and black beans $7.79
Caesar Salad with Chicken $8.29
Toppings Bar with all entrees: tomatoes, cheese, lettuce and salsa

I admit I did leave the burger off one menu... though a hot dog not anywhere in site... and only ONE burger on the menu between these all. I didn't even bother with Be Our Guest... but again... NO BURGER!

I don't get why people keep saying all they have is burgers and hotdogs and chicken. There are many different options!

 

[wen8jr]

Now that I think about it, the CS at MK and HS is why I became a big TS fan from the first visit on. But I'm still not crazy with TS at either of these parks. I don't know what it is with what they offer, I'd just rather eat at DTD, a resort, or Epcot if I can.

 

[Mad Hattered]

How ironic that you were the first to go off topic.

Actually, that started in post #4 where the poster KNOWS that the booking window is 60 days and took a jab at the OP by "questioning" them...but I digress.

 

[Mad Hattered]

Columbia Harbour House:
Lighthouse Sandwich - hummus with tomato & broccoli slaw on toasted multigrain bread with potato chips $9.19
Anchors Aweigh Sandwich - white tuna with lettuce and tomato on toasted multigrain bun with potato chips $9.19
Lobster Roll - served with potato chips $10.19
Fried Shrimp Platter - Served with cole slaw and choice of steamed fresh broccoli, apple slices or French Fries $9.99
Chicken Breast Nuggets and Fish - choice of steamed fresh broccoli, apple slices or French Fries $9.29
Battered Fish Basket - choice of steamed fresh broccoli, apple slices or French Fries $7.99
Chicken Breast Nuggets (8 pieces) - Served with steamed fresh broccoli or French Fries or Apple Slices $8.69
Grilled Salmon - served with couscous and steamed fresh broccoli $10.99
Broccoli Peppercorn Salad - mixed greens, garden vegetables, chicken, broccoli, parmesan cheese, tossed with a creamy peppercorn dressing $8.59
Garden Harvest Salad - mixed greens, garden vegetables, green beans, carrots and chicken $8.59
Vegetarian Chili $4.79
New England Clam Chowder $4.99
Steamed Fresh Broccoli $1.99
Couscous $2.99

Diamond Horseshoe:
Entrees

Served with Apple Slices or Potato Chips
Barbecued Turkey Sandwich $9.19
Hand-carved Turkey Sandwich $9.19
Hand-carved Pork Brisket Sandwich $9.19
Tuna Salad with Croissant $9.19
Portobello Sandwich $9.19
Portobello Salad $7.49
Mixed Green Salad - served with hand-carved turkey or pork brisket

Pinocchios
Pepperoni Flatbread - $8.79
Barbecue Chicken Flatbread - $9.99
Caprese Flatbread - $9.99
Entrees

Italian Flatbread Sub - Italian meats, cheese, dressing and balsamic glaze $9.99
Mediterranean Salad - Mixed greens, chicken, mozzarella, roasted red pepper, red onion and black olives $8.69
Meatball Sub Sandwich - served with fries or apple slices $9.19
Chicken Breast Nuggets (8 pcs. served with apple slices or french fries) $8.69
Caesar Salad with Chicken - romaine, chicken and parmesan $7.99

Tommorowland Terrace:
Fried Chicken Sandwich - topped with lettuce, tomato, and ranch dresing, served with french fries or apple slices $8.99
Pasta Primavera $6.99; with shrimp $9.99
Pasta Alfredo with chicken $8.99
Lobster Roll - served with homemade chips $9.99
Beef and Blue Cheese Salad - served with Balsamic Vinaigrette $8.39
Citrus Shrimp Salad - served Mandarin Orange Dressing $8.19
Chicken Breast Nuggets - with french fries or apple slices $8.19

Tortuga Tavern:
Burrito - chicken or beef - with cilantro rice and black beans $8.39
Taco Salad - Crisp flour tortilla with seasoned beef $8.79
Beef Nachos - with black bean salsa $7.69
Vegetarian Burrito - filled with cilantro rice and black beans $7.79
Caesar Salad with Chicken $8.29
Toppings Bar with all entrees: tomatoes, cheese, lettuce and salsa

I admit I did leave the burger off one menu... though a hot dog not anywhere in site... and only ONE burger on the menu between these all. I didn't even bother with Be Our Guest... but again... NO BURGER!

I don't get why people keep saying all they have is burgers and hotdogs and chicken. There are many different options!

At least two of those "restaurants" listed above are only open seasonally and not year-round.

 

[MsMagical]

To clarify about my OP. It was to solely be a mini-trip report of my experience with FP+. I did not come on here prior to my trip so to not form any opinions before I left for my trip. I have been to WDW many times and was very good at using FP- system for the attractions we liked and how we toured the parks, i.e. waiting for our FP-window to arrive and grabbing another FP for the same ride later or another attraction on our way to use the FP- we were currently holding. All of this is now gone. Of course you could stand in line at a FP+ line and wait 20-30 minutes for someone to help you adjust your FP+ choices and hope that there were some available when you got to the guest service person. Otherwise you just wasted a half hour or use your MDE app with possibly the same results. Here are some bullet points of my experience:

*I wasn't sure of the time window, I just thought it was the same as ADR's, my mistake
*Still, having to choose FP and attractions before you leave home is difficult when there is no way to know how the crowd flow or unforeseen circumstances may affect that day's touring plan
*The fact that you can't actually choose specific times for attraction FP+. It may be easier if you could choose a FP+ say for Aerial JOTLM if you plan to be in Fantasyland first thing in the morning then choose BTM later in the afternoon when you expect to be in Frontierland . However, the system makes you choose the attractions you want then spits out times that may not be conducive to your family's touring style along with dining times. We seemed to be zig-zagging more than usual.
*I am not going to get into the crowd argument here, but it was much more crowded than I have experienced in the past this time of year even beyond the Brazilians
*What really got under my skin though was the literature proclaiming more flexibility, time to see and do more when it is exactly the opposite
*Finally, less chances for spontaneity and opportunity when it presents itself

Sorry, if I offended anyone. I was trying to give my opinion from my personal experience while it was fresh in my mind.

I'm sorry it was tough ride-wise for your family. For what it is worth, you can go in after initially making your fastpass selection and change attractions and/or times to better suit your touring style/timeline. If you are staying on site, this is possible as soon as you are able to make fp+ reservations at 60 days. I ended up looking at our ADRs and working from there to get a plan that made sense and don't leave us running around or zig-zagging about.

 

[smitch425]

At least two of those "restaurants" listed above are only open seasonally and not year-round.

It isn't a complete list, either. Cosmic Ray's, BOG, Gaston's and Sleepy Hollow are missing just to name a few.

I'm still wondering what type of food some are wanting that they cannot find.

 

[Suellen]

At least two of those "restaurants" listed above are only open seasonally and not year-round.

So? There are also two others that are always opened and then also Be Our Guest.

There are options other than a burger and hotdogs. And "usually" one of the three seasonal places are open and often all three at very busy times.

I've even seen them open a makeshift restaurant in Adventureland when very busy. They served sloppy joes! Hadn't had one of those in YEARS.

 

[Planogirl]

It isn't a complete list, either. Cosmic Ray's, BOG, Gaston's and Sleepy Hollow are missing just to name a few.

I'm still wondering what type of food some are wanting that they cannot find.

Maybe they just didn't like the food? I think that most of those listed are pretty bleh. I haven't tried BOG yet so I'll reserve judgment on that one.

 

[wisblue]

OK So you had me going there. It has been a few years for me, but I was scratching my head cause last time I went it was all hot dogs/burgers/chicken. So I wen to ALLEARS to check it out. I have not been since Fantasyland and that is where the new stuff was. Other than that YEP same old same old and if the new stuff is anything like Josh @easywdw had posted in his reviewI will pass.

As to Earl of Sanwhich Yes love it, but most do not want to take an hour bus ride for a counter service. The same goes for having to go back to your hotel. Epcot was the only one that ever had CS variety.

DL just knows how to do counter service. So yes coming back to WDW and looking for the good food you find at DL only to be left with WDW burgers and Casey Corners hot dogs is just disappointing.

I don't want to get into a major debate about the variety or quality of the food at WDW. I also haven't been to DLR enough to compare it to WDW.

But, I think you can see how far this has strayed from the original "if you don't have a car and don't make ADR's all you can get is burgers and hot dogs". You added chicken, which would include chicken strips, grilled chicken sandwiches, and rotisserie chicken, all of which you can get at Cosmic Ray's. Some family members also like things like flatbreads and salads that are available at Pinocchio's. We also like Columbia Harbor House.

Because we like to take a break in the middle of the day anyway, going out of the park to grab something to eat is no hardship for us. And, if we are staying at our home resort of SSR, Earl of Sandwich and Wolfgang Puck Express are a short walk away; we always request a place at Congress Park for that reason. We also start our days with cereal, muffins, and juice that we get from the resort, so we don't need to worry about breakfast in the parks.

 

[Suellen]

Maybe they just didn't like the food? I think that most of those listed are pretty bleh. I haven't tried BOG yet so I'll reserve judgment on that one.

Well maybe not. BUT point is there is still a variety or choices... even if you don't like the choices you can't say that every place only serves hotdogs and hamburgers when you can't even get those two items at more than 1/2 the places there! That's all.

 

[Mad Hattered]

So? There are also two others that are always opened and then also Be Our Guest.

There are options other than a burger and hotdogs. And "usually" one of the three seasonal places are open and often all three at very busy times.

I've even seen them open a makeshift restaurant in Adventureland when very busy. They served sloppy joes! Hadn't had one of those in YEARS.

I wasn't saying you were wrong, just stating that those two aren't always an option. And I agree, there is much more than burgers and dogs in MK. Personally, we enjoy CHH because it seems like more of a value to us...and it tastes pretty darn good to boot. I loved sitting up top and people watching while enjoying lunch.

We enjoyed hopping on the Monorail over to Poly to eat an early dinner at the Kona sushi bar and skipping back over to jump on a few rides and then enjoy the fireworks.

 

[smitch425]

Maybe they just didn't like the food? I think that most of those listed are pretty bleh. I haven't tried BOG yet so I'll reserve judgment on that one.

The statements "lack of diversity" and "very little variety" with regards to MK sound like it isn't just a matter of taste. It sounds like lack of research to me.

 

[peyjax]

I'm still wondering what type of food some are wanting that they cannot find.

Good food!

Gastons does look promising and will have to try it! Thanks

 

[agavegirl1]

The statements "lack of diversity" and "very little variety" with regards to MK sound like it isn't just a matter of taste. It sounds like lack of research to me.

Way back on page one I just said that not making ADRs really "limited our dining options". We did eat CS that trip (did manage to get a walk up at Cape May and Boma) most of our meals and I don't even remember what we ate. We just got something to fill our bellies. I like to "dine".

 

[Shaden]

I don't want to get into a major debate about the variety or quality of the food at WDW. I also haven't been to DLR enough to compare it to WDW.

But, I think you can see how far this has strayed from the original "if you don't have a car and don't make ADR's all you can get is burgers and hot dogs". You added chicken, which would include chicken strips, grilled chicken sandwiches, and rotisserie chicken, all of which you can get at Cosmic Ray's. Some family members also like things like flatbreads and salads that are available at Pinocchio's. We also like Columbia Harbor House.

Because we like to take a break in the middle of the day anyway, going out of the park to grab something to eat is no hardship for us. And, if we are staying at our home resort of SSR, Earl of Sandwich and Wolfgang Puck Express are a short walk away; we always request a place at Congress Park for that reason. We also start our days with cereal, muffins, and juice that we get from the resort, so we don't need to worry about breakfast in the parks.

While other earlier and repeat posters might just be here to antagonize, Wisblue is pretty correct. Even in the parks, there actually is a pretty good variety of food, and if you want to make the trip back to a resort or to DTD, heck there is a ton of food options.

And while in a literal sense the OP isn't FORCED to eat on property, I think their overall point is relatively solid, most people aren't going to take a cab, or don't know the area enough, or don't want to spend the money, etc etc. There is a large enough hurdle to going off property for most visitors.

Now, its possible the OP only hit the places that have similar food, there are a lot of places that offer essentially the same thing, but that doesn't mean there isn't also a variety.


And yes, the person just might not have liked the food, also fair, but that too, doesn't mean there isn't a variety.

And lastly (lol) it might also be true that, comparatively (to the past or to DL) there is less variety (I don't really know I started going in 2011) ... variety still exists, I am a pretty big foodie, and going for a couple weeks at a time gives us lots of time to try different places. There are a ton of repeat foods at the QS places for sure, but there is also a good bit of variety.

 

[Planogirl]

Well maybe not. BUT point is there is still a variety or choices... even if you don't like the choices you can't say that every place only serves hotdogs and hamburgers when you can't even get those two items at more than 1/2 the places there! That's all.

True. They might be lumping it all together as food they don't like is what I'm assuming. I can't speak for them though.

I didn't know that Pinocchio's had flatbreads. I need to do some research too.

 

[Shaden]

Also, I currently can't stop alternating thoughts between Earl of Sandwich and Flame Tree BBQ .... mmmmmmmmm

 

[Angel Ariel]

I tend to agree. Folks who have just had a really good or bad experience can and should let us know about them. What bothers me is the group of people who try to invalidate a good or bad post by offering their opposite experience.