This time next week... what a lovely thought!
How very nice that you will have the dining plan and will be able to indulge your cravings without too much attention to prices. Isn't it so fun to peruse the menus online thinking about what we'll eat in our happy place?
I did a little of that yesterday. It was quite fun.
If you use a CS for breakfast, you get 2 drinks since there is no dessert and since you get a mug there is no reason really for a drink so I have always gotten 2 waters to carry into the parks.
If you can convince Jill to go back to Pepper Market, those are great use of a CS meal. Those dessert are great too, just like Sunshine Seasons.
Snack credit worthy snacks.
Click here for the list.
I think I will convince Jill to go back to CSR eventually, but I don't think it will be on this trip. We're barely going to have time to even go to our three 'must-do's' - Poly, Wilderness Lodge, and Animal Kingdom Lodge. Maybe we can get to CSR this summer or at Christmas, when there is a little more time. I don't think John has ever been over there. We might take him to see it at Christmas so I can take decoration pictures.
Thanks for that list. I perused it for a while.
My favorite snacks have been:
cream cheese stuffed pretzel ~ MK Tomorrowland
school bread ~ Norway
strawberry shortcake sunday ~ MK Fantasyland/Ms. Pott's Cupboard
My favorite desserts are:
Chocolate "Moose" ~ Le Cellier
Creme Brulee ~ many TS restaurants
I think this is the PERFECT opportunity for you guys to eat at Wolfgang Puck Express. It is the absolute best use of a CS credit in all of WDW IMO (not just b/c of the cost but also the food). They have a huge menu for a CS place so I think you can all find something you like and it is very high quality food... more like TS to me.
I do like Wolfgang Puck. I told Jill that if she won't go to Puck, then Puck will come to her! I might just get food from there and bring it over to the Earl's table she'll be sitting at.
Did you know Mrs. Potts' Cupboard has been renamed? I can't remember the exact title - something like Storybook Treats or Storybook Sweets maybe? I'm wondering if there will be a new Mrs. Potts' Cupboard in Belle's Village.
Do you like barbeque? Flame Tree Barbeque is pretty good for a counter service credit! I love being on the dining plan, it's great having everything paid for ahead of time!!
We do like Flame Tree! They seem to have gone down a bit in the quality of food, though, in our last couple of visits. The chicken was still good, but the ribs were tough, and they got rid of that good cornbread.

The smell lures us in, though. We might give it another try. If we only eat one meal at Animal Kingdom, which is likely, we've decided to make it Restaurantosaurus, I think. We had a good meal there before, and Trent has never eaten there. Plus, there's indoor seating, in case it's too cool, too warm, or too windy.
If you guys find yourselves hungry at Downtown Disney, we think Wolfgang Puck Express is the best value counter service meal there is. I know you're big EoS fans (we are, too) but WPE is really good, too.
My favorite counterservice at each park:
MK - Casey's - can't beat a good hot dog. (I haven't tried CHH or that pirate place in Adventureland b/c it's always closed when I'm there)
EPCOT - Sunshine Seasons - such a great selection
HS - either Toy Story Pizza Planet or Backlot Express, although I'm not crazy about any CSs here.
AK - Flame Tree BBQ - great stuff!
Our favorite snacks on the
DDP are those spicy cheese pretzels (they used to have them in Tomorrowland at MK but I don't think they're there any more - they are at HS somewhere), Mickey bars (of course), ice cream sandwich cookies, frozen lemonade. And the top 2 for us are definitely a Dole whip float and the make-your-own treats at Goofy's at DTD. Although I'm not sure the last two are still on the DDP as snacks - it's been awhile since we've been on the DDP, but they used to be.
We've eaten at all of those. Columbia Harbour House is a favorite. The portions are huge. Did you know that they have now renamed Pirate and Parrot to something that starts with a T? I can't remember. Maybe Tortuga something or some island name?
There are so many snack options.... that are yummy!
Our favorites are Dole whips, Mickey ice cream bars, boxes of popcorn, sundaes @ POP, candy apples, slushies, bags of candy (rock candy), breakfast pastries, rice crispy treats....
Any of the desserts from Starring Rolls, Sunshine Seasons and Boulangerie Patisserie...
There is too much to choose from. You can even get fruit, drinks and bags of chips.
You will have so much fun trying out new snacks or getting some of your favorites!
We usually have some credits left at the end of our trips, so we use them in the gift shop for candy treats before we leave.
My DMom wants to do the Quick Dining plan this time for a change...... I can't imagine not making any ADR's.
She thinks it might be nice to not have to rush to a place for a certain time.
I don't know if I can give up going to the Table Services... I love them and there are still lots I havn't been to yet.
Time will tell. I don't have to make ADR's til March so I do have time to think about it.
I do like the idea of the free Resort mugs included in the plan.
We're paying out of pocket for Crystal Palace, and there is a chance we will either go to Sci Fi or Mama Melrose on our Hollywood day and pay out of pocket there. We only get eight meals, and we'll be there for the better part of five days, so with two table service meals, that will more than cover us. Crystal Palace is a for sure, but we'll decide on the Hollywood meals closer to time. We have them both, but can cancel and eat at Toy Story or wherever if we decide to.
Since we don't do a table service every day on any trip, I think the QS plan with a TS here and there will be perfect for us.
It will be fun to bring back some treats for friends with leftover snack credits. Our school guidance counselor has become a big Disney fan since her son took her last year, so I am going to send her phone pictures, and I will bring her a treat. She'll be thrilled.
I'm going to be really interested to see how the Quick Service plan works out for you guys. I've always considered it, but haven't used it yet. DH would love knowing everything is paid for in advance, and DS isn't too great at sit down restaurants, so I'm thinking that QS would be a perfect fit. I'm going to be paying close attention to help me make up my mind for May, thanks for doing the research for me!
Flame Tree is a favorite around my house, along with Sunshine seasons and Tangerine Cafe. It looks like you've gotten some great suggestions!
We will gladly do the research for you.
We love Sunshine Seasons. I think Tangierine Cafe will have to wait until the next time Jill is pregnant. She's not an adventurous eater. I would like to try it, but I think that is something I could get Kay to do with me on one of our 'grandma trips'.

We took a grandma trip each time Jill was pregnant and couldn't go. We traveled at a different speed - slow - and did different things than we do when the younger and youngest sets are around.
They only let us get one drink while we were at Pop for breakfast.
Did you take a lot of food pictures for us, or were you too 'chicken'?
oh yum, so many choices you're gonna have with the QS dining plan! I'm getting hungry reading everyone's responses on here. I discovered the jalapeno cheese stuffed pretzel at Animal Kingdom last year and it was so good. And of course you can't beat Disney's frozen lemonade, mmm!
I have had the cream cheese pretzel, but not the jalapeno. I'm not much on hot and spicy. How much zing does it have? If it's mild, it sounds like it could be good.
Frozen lemonade on a hot summer Animal Kingdom day is always a real treat!
For 2011 they dropped a drink for Breakfast. They used to offer a coffee and juice option to make up for not having a dessert.
Hmmmmm They trim more every year and raise the cost every year.
Sorry to give you outdated info.
Raise the price and trim the value - that seems to be more and more common everywhere we look!
Thankfully, drinks won't be a problem for me. I don't drink coffee at all, and I rarely drink anything but water. I do drink sodas when I am in Disney World, since we have the mugs, just for something different, so I will do that some, but I am mostly a water girl.
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A few gift shop pictures.
My gift shop browsing was cut short, though, when Jill informed me that I and my camera needed to come back to the table, because Brooklynn had just been selected as Pop Century's Chef of the Day.
Normally, Brooklynn is all about acting and drama and people making a fuss over her, but on this day, she was a little tired and a little shy.
She spent much of the event standing there with her fingers in her mouth while the nice CM's went on and on about the fun of all this.
This is the tasty little set-up she was given.
She didn't touch most of those items.
Her
momento of the moment picture.
I want a Pop Century apron, by the way. You think I could talk someone out of one on one of my early morning walks???
We helped Brooklynn eat her treat, because she wanted very little of it. I am the champion ice cream eater of all time, I think. I rarely turn down the chance to eat ice cream.
After that, we had to get back to Saratoga Springs, so we said our goodbyes to our cousins. They still had several days left, so we were jealous. It had been fun sharing some Disney time with them, and we hope that we will have more overlapping trips in the future. Since Brandy and I teach in the same school system and have the same breaks, I feel sure that will happen.
Have an awesome Sunday, everyone!