Please critique my dining reservations...

[live4him]

MY WIFE & I, ALONG WITH OUR TWO BOYS, 4 & 8, WILL BE IN DISNEY JUNE 12th-19th. THIS WILL BE OUR FIRST TIME TO USE THE DINING PLAN. WE ARE STAYING FOR 8 DAYS & 7 NIGHTS WITH THE DDP. I AM DESPERATELY SEEKING SOME FEEDBACK FROM THOSE THAT HAVE EXPERIENCE WITH THIS..PLEASE TAKE A LOOK @ OUR MEALS AND DO NOT HESITATE TO GIVE CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM...I WANT THIS TO BE THE BEST TRIP MY BOYS HAS EVER EXPERIENCED!!!!!!THANKS!!!

FRI 06/12/09 HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS

50'S PRIME TIME 12:20 LUNCH
WHISPERING CANYON 7:05 DINNER

SAT 06/13/09 A.K.

SAFARI BRKFST 9:15 A.M.
FLAME TREE BBQ LUNCH
SPIRIT OF ALOHA 8:00 PM

SUN 06/14/09 BACK TO HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS(STAR WARS WEEKEND)

CHEF MICKEYS 10:35 BRK(THE ONLY TIME I COULD GET)
HOLLYWOOD & VINE 1:55LUNCH(THINKING OF CHANGING THIS??)
YATCHSMAN 7:30 DINNER

MON 06/15/09 MAGIC KINGDOM

CRYSTAL PALACE 9:30 BRK
COUNTER SERVICE ANY SUGGESTIONS!!!!!!!!!!
OHANA'S 6:35 DINNER

TUE 06/16/09 EPCOT

TEPPAN EDO 12:20 LUNCH
CORAL REEF 6:55 DINNER

WED 06/17/09 WATER PARKS/DTD IN THE EVENING

O'HANA BRKFST 9:30 BRKFST
COUNTER SERVICE @ TYPHOON LAGOON
PLANET HOLLYWOOD 8:15 DINNER

THURS 06/18/09 A.K.(KID'S CHOICE)

RAINFOREST CAFE 1:45 LUNCH (I KNOW ITS OOP)
MICKEY'S BBQ 6:30 DINNER

FRI 06/19/09 KID'S CHOICE

LE CELLIER 2:50 LATE LUNCH
BOMA 7:55 DINNER

NOTE: I AM STILL TRYING TO GET A DINNER @ LECELLIER, BUT IT IS VERY DIFFICULT....I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO YOUR COMMENTS AND SUGGETIONS...THANKS AGAIN!!!!!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

50'S PRIME TIME -Great Choice - we love the food and fun there. Did you think about Sci Fi? Your boys would probably love the cars.

WHISPERING CANYON - We didn't love it here the one time we tried it but many do so we may have had an off night. Should be fun if you get a waiter that wants to "play" with your boys!

SAFARI BRKFST
Loved this last year!
FLAME TREE BBQ
Another fav of ours!
SPIRIT OF ALOHA
Just a slight warning here ... we went when DS was 9 and he was fairly bored until the fire dances came out. Food was good though.

CHEF MICKEYS
Definitely go for it if it is your only time available
HOLLYWOOD & VINE( THINKING OF CHANGING THIS??) -
Anything at Sci Fi? Probably not from what I have been reading
YATCHSMAN
Haven't been here but may try it next trip

CRYSTAL PALACE
Yum! A must for us
COUNTER SERVICE ANY SUGGESTIONS!!!!!!!!!!
Tough one ... we don't love the CS in MK. What about maybe the Plaza for a light lunch?
OHANA'S
Another fav of ours from last trip!

TEPPAN EDO
Haven't eaten here because we have a hitachi restaurant in town ...should be a fun meal!
CORAL REEF
Good food here and you can't beat the aquarium!

O'HANA BRKFST
Our favorite breakfast ... love the eggs, waffles & Stitch!
COUNTER SERVICE @ TYPHOON LAGOON
Never been so I can't comment
PLANET HOLLYWOOD
Haven't eaten at that one but did enjoy the one in NYC

RAINFOREST CAFE
We like the food here ... big portions!
MICKEY'S BBQ
I am partial to this one because it was our first on sight meal on DS's first trip when he was 8. Food was just ok for us but we had great fun!

LE CELLIER
Our favorite. We have had dinner here just about every trip. We actually plan to try lunch next trip.
BOMA
This didn't 'wow' us. Food was good but I went in with much higher expectations because of the Dis!

Sounds like a great trip! Have fun!!!

 

[jkearson]

RAINFOREST CAFE 1:45 LUNCH (I KNOW ITS OOP)
Do you mean that this restaurant is not on the dining plan, or are you just choosing to pay out of pocket? We're considering Rainforest for our FDining trip, but not if it's not on the dining plan. Your other choices looked good to me. My kids loved Chef Mickey and Whispering Canyon.

 

[adventure_woman]

My only comment is:

SUN 06/14/09 BACK TO HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS(STAR WARS WEEKEND)

CHEF MICKEYS 10:35 BRK(THE ONLY TIME I COULD GET)
HOLLYWOOD & VINE 1:55LUNCH(THINKING OF CHANGING THIS??)
YATCHSMAN 7:30 DINNER

You're not going to be hungry by 1:55 if you eat at Chef Mickey's at 10:30. You won't get out of there until 11:30-12:00, and it is buffet so you guys will be stuffed!

 

[adventure_woman]

RAINFOREST CAFE 1:45 LUNCH (I KNOW ITS OOP)
Do you mean that this restaurant is not on the dining plan, or are you just choosing to pay out of pocket? We're considering Rainforest for our FDining trip, but not if it's not on the dining plan. Your other choices looked good to me. My kids loved Chef Mickey and Whispering Canyon.

Rainforest does NOT participate in the DDP.

 

[Jennia]

SUN 06/14/09 BACK TO HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS(STAR WARS WEEKEND)

CHEF MICKEYS 10:35 BRK(THE ONLY TIME I COULD GET)
HOLLYWOOD & VINE 1:55LUNCH(THINKING OF CHANGING THIS??)
YATCHSMAN 7:30 DINNER

I agree with another poster, the lunch and breakfast times are too close together. Maybe go with counter service instead, or even just some snacks would probably be enough until dinner.

 

[DVC_Princess]

I agree with the other posters about changing Hollywood & Vine cause you won't be hungry after Chef Mickey's (it's so delicious!!!) I think your boys will love Whispering Canyon. You have a lot of our favs on there as well: Yachtsman, Boma, Flame Tree, Chef Mickey's, Le Cellier, etc. You're going to have a great trip!!

The only other advice that I have is since it's mid-June and your boys are still pretty young, make sure to take plenty of breaks and try to do the major rides early in the morning or late in the day. They'd probably love to take some mid-day swimming breaks as well if you can manage it. And also if it rains, enjoy the light crowds and make the best of it. Some of our favorite moments were when we had a summer t-storm, the park emptied, we got soaked, rode tons of rides, and had a blast!!!

 

[KKB]

You have WAY too many table service (TS) meals scheduled. Only if you are on the deluxe plan (the one that runs around $70/day for adults) will that work. Otherwise you are going to be paying WAY more out of pocket.
You didn't mention that you were on the deluxe plan...if you are on the basic plan, you are entitled to one TS & 1 CS/night. And several of your choices require 2TS credits.
I think you are going to find this to be WAY too much food...JMO. Also, children that age are rarely going to be patient enough to sit down for meals that often (and wait to be served), ESPECIALLY at WDW. My children adore restaurants, but they want to experience the parks more than the food.

 

[catne]

Yes, I agree -- hope the OP has the Deluxe plan or this will be a very expensive trip!

On this forum DDP stands for Disney Dining Plan (see abbreviations thread) and refers to the basic dining plan with 1 TS, 1 CS and 1 snack...but some people mistakenly use "DDP" for Deluxe Dining Plan. Many people use DxDP for Deluxe Dining Plan. Hope that helps

And if this is a first trip, I would not use the Deluxe plan at all...way too much time getting to & from restaurants, waiting for your table, eating & then going back to whatever you were doing for a couple of hours, only to repeat. You will hardly have time between meals to get much done - and if you're looking to make this a fabulous experience for your kids you will not want more than one sit-down reservation a day...anymore than that and you'll have to cut out a lot of attractions. On the deluxe with 3 meals a day you can spend 6-8 hours just revolving around your meals. Way too much food, too, with appetisers & desserts every meal. Even if you're on the DxDDP, you will be paying for quite a few meals out of pocket -- breakfasts on 6/16, 6/18/, 6/19 plus Rainforest.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

FRI 06/12/09 HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS

50'S PRIME TIME 12:20 LUNCH We had a blast there. Especially when the cousins had my FIL eat his veggies. The kids loved that.
WHISPERING CANYON 7:05 DINNER Again, our kids loved this place especially when they made me dance. They also brought me a pitcher of tea to drink out of as I was going through it so fast. The kids still talk about this place and beg to go back each trip.

SAT 06/13/09 A.K.

SAFARI BRKFST 9:15 A.M.
FLAME TREE BBQ LUNCH (We really enjoy this CS but will be trying Yak & Yeti on our next trip).
SPIRIT OF ALOHA 8:00 PM

SUN 06/14/09 BACK TO HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS(STAR WARS WEEKEND)

CHEF MICKEYS 10:35 BRK(THE ONLY TIME I COULD GET)
HOLLYWOOD & VINE 1:55LUNCH(THINKING OF CHANGING THIS??)
YATCHSMAN 7:30 DINNER

MON 06/15/09 MAGIC KINGDOM

CRYSTAL PALACE 9:30 BRK Again, one of our favorites. Even though the boys are not into the Pooh characters, they enjoy this restaurant.
COUNTER SERVICE ANY SUGGESTIONS!!!!!!!!!! See below, but I recommend eating a burger at least once on your trip and for this I'd suggest Cosmic Rays
OHANA'S 6:35 DINNER

TUE 06/16/09 EPCOT

TEPPAN EDO 12:20 LUNCH We're trying both of these places for the first time on our upcoming trip.
CORAL REEF 6:55 DINNER

WED 06/17/09 WATER PARKS/DTD IN THE EVENING

O'HANA BRKFST 9:30 BRKFST If your kids love Stitch, they'll enjoy this. This is our kid's second favorite character breakfast after CM's
COUNTER SERVICE @ TYPHOON LAGOON
PLANET HOLLYWOOD 8:15 DINNER I personally cannot stand this restaurant. Way too loud, food is mediocre. It just wasn't any fun. For DTD, we really enjoy Earl of Sandwich. For a sit-down, I'd try anyplace but here.

THURS 06/18/09 A.K.(KID'S CHOICE)

RAINFOREST CAFE 1:45 LUNCH (I KNOW ITS OOP)
MICKEY'S BBQ 6:30 DINNER

FRI 06/19/09 KID'S CHOICE

LE CELLIER 2:50 LATE LUNCH We're trying this for the first time on our upcoming trip. Good luck with the dinner reservation.
BOMA 7:55 DINNER I really like this restaurant. It seems to be more relaxing than most other WDW buffet's. Plus, the AKL is a beautiful place. I will say that my picky eater middle DS did not like Bomas.

NOTE: I AM STILL TRYING TO GET A DINNER @ LECELLIER, BUT IT IS VERY DIFFICULT....I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO YOUR COMMENTS AND SUGGETIONS...THANKS AGAIN!!!!!

First as an FYI to a couple of PP's, the OP mentioned that Rainforest Cafe would be OOP. That's short for out-of-pocket.

To the OP:

I agree with a couple of PP's about Hollywood & Vine being too close to Chef Mickey's. Usually when we do Chef Mickey's (or any late breakfast) we skip lunch altogether.

As far as Counter Service in the MK, we like Cosmic Ray's. It's a fun place and you've got to have a burger during your stay at least once. We like the topping bar with the mushrooms, sauteed onions, etc. for the burgers.

Finally, I would also have to concur that you've got a lot of sit-down restaurants. That's a lot of sitting time for restless boys while they're in WDW. I'm not sure I could get ours to sit down that long twice a day. We are on the basic dining plan on our upcoming trip and I think one sit-down a meal a day is going to be okay as we need a break every day. When we cruise, they sometimes beg us not to go to the evening meal as they'd rather be doing something else. On our shorter cruises, we made them eat with us every night (such bad parents). On our 15 night cruise, we let them skip a few nights and stay with their friends. On those nights, they ate "counter service" or even room service.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

I would not do Chef Mickey's on the day you are going to DHS for Star Wars week-end. If you want to do the star wars stuff, it's important to be there early.

I'd suggest cancelling Chef Mickey's and Hollywood and Vine and instead book the Brown Derby because it keeps you in the park (and there is a good chance that there are still openings).

 

[brendaziz]

Here's my thoughts!

FRI 06/12/09 HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS

50'S PRIME TIME 12:20 LUNCH - Good times/yummy
WHISPERING CANYON 7:05 DINNER- should be good. maybe request being in the middle of the action/fun server.

SAT 06/13/09 A.K.

SAFARI BRKFST 9:15 A.M.- One of our FAVS- THOUGH, this seems like an awkward time. You won't be able to get on any rides until 10 or so- but hten again, you can run and get some Fast Passes for Kilimanjaro Safaris or something else good before you head to breakfast. I would DEF do that b4 eating.
FLAME TREE BBQ LUNCH- yummy
SPIRIT OF ALOHA 8:00 PM- I've been and loved it- I've heard some say it's a tad boring at times for kids, but i'm sure you'll enjoy.

SUN 06/14/09 BACK TO HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS(STAR WARS WEEKEND)

CHEF MICKEYS 10:35 BRK(THE ONLY TIME I COULD GET)- good times
HOLLYWOOD & VINE 1:55LUNCH(THINKING OF CHANGING THIS??)- UNLESS your 4 year old LOVES little einsteins, i'd skip it. but if he DOES love em, keep it for that reason only.
YATCHSMAN 7:30 DINNER- never been but heard good things.

MON 06/15/09 MAGIC KINGDOM

CRYSTAL PALACE 9:30 BRK - MMMM- Again, be SURE you get on maybe 1 ride and grab some fast passes before heading to breakfast. You don't wanna waste precious park time!
COUNTER SERVICE ANY SUGGESTIONS!!!!!!!!!!- I like everything there But MOSTLY the snacks Aloha isle dole whip floats!!!
OHANA'S 6:35 DINNER- never been but heard good things!

TUE 06/16/09 EPCOT

TEPPAN EDO 12:20 LUNCH- been- very good and fun!
CORAL REEF 6:55 DINNER- We love it here. Nothing beats seeing sharks while u eat!

WED 06/17/09 WATER PARKS/DTD IN THE EVENING- you should try T-Rex for the boys (though not on ddp) OR Raglan Road is supposed to be amazing!

O'HANA BRKFST 9:30 BRKFST- MMM/fun
COUNTER SERVICE @ TYPHOON LAGOON
PLANET HOLLYWOOD 8:15 DINNER- can't go wrong

THURS 06/18/09 A.K.(KID'S CHOICE)

RAINFOREST CAFE 1:45 LUNCH (I KNOW ITS OOP)- good stuff
MICKEY'S BBQ 6:30 DINNER - haven't heard GREAT things, but the rope guy is supposed to be amazing! i'm sure if you're boys have ever goen through a cowboy phase they'll LOVE it.

FRI 06/19/09 KID'S CHOICE

LE CELLIER 2:50 LATE LUNCH- MMM
BOMA 7:55 DINNER- and MORE mmmmmm