Quick Service Dining Plan - A Review & Pictures - 14 Days in August 2011

[mommykds]

We received an email (& snailmail) PIN for the free QSDP for our WDW stay in early August. The offer was for free QSDP at the Values & the Moderates so we chose Port Orleans Riverside for our stay. I already had a reservation booked at the All Star Music Family Suite. The All Stars Suite would have been $700 more than POR. I couldn't see spending more to stay in a value so I changed our reservation. POR was great, however looking back I think we really do need 2 rooms. Our kids are older now so showers & getting ready just take longer now.

I took pictures of what we had & will post some reviews if anyone has questions about the QSDP, I'd be glad to answer anything I can.

The savings of the free QSDP worked well for us as we are a family of 5. Mom (43), Dad (43), & 3 kids (15DD, 12DS, 10DD) All considered Disney adults. It was nice to let the kids have popcorn or an ice cream without being concerned about how much we would end up spending on food.

We did enjoy 3 sit down table service meals during the trip as well. T Rex, The Plaza, & 50's Prime Time.

 

[mommykds]

Columbia Harbor House

This is our favorite CS place in the MK & always our first stop.
My kids got the (adult) chicken nuggets & fries.

My DH got the Lighthouse Sandwich - hummus with tomato & broccoli slaw
& the apple crisp.

I got my favorite, the Anchors Aweigh Sandwich - tuna on multigrain & chocolate cake.

Desserts

Everything was great. Upstairs was nice and quiet & we ate lunch at 11am so we had the whole place to ourselves. That was not to be the case later in the week when we made a rookie mistake & ate lunch at 1pm at Pecos Bill.

We averaged around $75 for every counter service meal we had.

 

[chocolateMinnie]

great start - looking forward to more as we never seem to find attractive looking cs at WDW except for EPCOT. The lighthouse sandwich looks really tasty.

 

[MellyMouse]

Every time I see a picture of that apple crisp, I get so excited about our free QSDP trip next week. Well, that and the Starring Rolls cupcakes!

When I pay OOP I never order dessert, so you can tell what I'm most looking forward to...

Not sure how many of your reviews I'll get to see before I leave, but I'll be checking in with them while I can. Great start!

 

[loveysbydesign]

yum...hoping one day to try free dining!

 

[bluejasmine]

Yummy

 

[mommykds]

great start - looking forward to more as we never seem to find attractive looking cs at WDW except for EPCOT. The lighthouse sandwich looks really tasty.

It is! It comes with lettuce & tomato which I had them leave off. Also the side is a bag of chips but I asked for fries & they allowed that as part of the meal. Another time we went they did not allow the fries instead of chips so I used a snack credit for them.

 

[mommykds]

Every time I see a picture of that apple crisp, I get so excited about our free QSDP trip next week. Well, that and the Starring Rolls cupcakes!

When I pay OOP I never order dessert, so you can tell what I'm most looking forward to...

Not sure how many of your reviews I'll get to see before I leave, but I'll be checking in with them while I can. Great start!

Thanks!

We did go to Staring Rolls for the cupcakes & they were delicious!!! Especially the chocolate peanut butter one! I have pictures coming up.

 

[mommykds]

So after our first day at the MK we decided to go check out our room at POR. Dinner was at the foodcourt (which we ate at 3 more times for dinner, so you can tell we liked it). The foodcourt at dinner time was very manageable & not too crowded. There was plenty of seating which was not always the case at the height of breakfast.

Make Your Own Pasta. You can choose from 3 sauces (marinara, alfredo, & pesto) & 3 pastas (penne, spaghetti, & fettucine) then you can add any of the following...sun dried tomatoes, garlic, mushrooms, broccoli, spinach, black olives, artichokes, & red peppers. Absolutely the best value for your CS in variety & taste.

Here is the penne alfredo with garlic, artichokes, mushrooms, & sun dried tomatoes topped with a garlic crustini. This was filling, tasty, & prepared right in front of us...delicious! Side salad was a snack credit & dessert was cheesecake with strawberry sauce. The bakery had a lot of great choices like brownies, chocolate cakes, danish, fruit cups, & cupcakes.

Here is the penne with just alfredo.

The five of us all got alfredos....here's the cheesecake plain. My DS got ice cream for dessert. They stamped our receipt & came back after the meal for the ice cream.

This meal was closer to $85 as the pasta is $10.49 which is on the higher end of CS meals.

 

[mommykds]

Our next day was Epcot & we decided to eat at Sunshine Seasons for lunch. We got there at 11am. We always try to eat at off or early times especially with CS.

I was wondering what my kids would eat there as they are pretty fussy but they all did find something they liked without eating chicken nuggets & fries.

My Dh got the Beet & Goat Cheese Salad which he loved. It was then he said that he was surprised at what nice choices they have for CS. I guess he was afraid he'd be eating more "fast food" kind of stuff.

Three of us got the Chicken Caesar Salad. It was freshly prepared in front of us. Lots of chicken & dressing.

My DS got the Oak-fired Rotisserie Half Chicken with barbecued mixed beans and mashed potatoes. The beans totally freaked him out but loved the chicken & potatoes. The chicken was so moist inside & he ate every bite (after I removed the beans from his plate of course!)

Finally the desserts! Cheesecake, chocolate cake, brownie, strawberry shortcake, & fruit cup...(who ordered the fruit??? )
My DD didn't think the shortcake was all that great, but the chocolate cake was a big hit. It looked heavy but it was actually fluffy & the frosting was light & not too sugary. My DS ate the brownie too fast for anyone of us to try it...& well the fruit was just fruit.

 

[Marblies]

We loooooove SS and eat their multiple times during each stay. The beet and goat cheese salad is my fave. The choc. cake is a must! Thanks for the reviews, I'll stay tuned in for more.

 

[TanzUnited99]

Hi am joining in! Can't wait to eat at CHH and Sunshine Seasons after seeing your pics. It's a shame DD didn't enjoy the strawberry shortcake as that is one thing I am looking forward to trying.

Edit: Have just seen the cloudberry horn and oh my that is delish and def going on my wish list!

 

[mommykds]

It was snack time in Epcot!

Norway -

Cloudberry Horn. This was berry flavored cream inside a light pastry cornacopia. Very delicious.

I forgot what this was called.. My youngest DD loved it.

DH got a beer...no snack credit for him.

 

[mommykds]

More snacks in Germany.

DD got a cupcake & my other DD got the caramel & chocolate covered strawberry. Now the cupcake & the strawberry are both $3.95. I can see that price for a cupcake but $4 for ONE strawberry??? I drink the Disney Kool-Aid like any good Disney fan but $4 for one strawberry even with chocolate & caramel is ridiculous! We used 2 snack credits here but I would not pay cash for the strawberry.

 

[Terkina]

It was snack time in Epcot!

Norway -

I forgot what this was called.. My youngest DD loved it.

DH got a beer...no snack credit for him.

I really enjoy reading your review. Especially since I'm thinking of getting QSDP for our trip.

I know what the cake is called in Norwegian, but I'm not sure what it's called in English. Maybe it's called Swiss roll.

 

[bluejasmine]

Looking fwd to more!!!

 

[pix13dust]

yum!

 

[mommykds]

Our dinner in Epcot was at the Tangerine Cafe. This is my favorite CS in all of Epcot. We found a seat outside & listened to Moroccan perform. My kids were adventurous & actual tried the food rather than opt for the kids menu of chicken nuggets. My 12 year old DS said he really loved doing the CS plan because he got to try new things that he said he would not usually eat.

Here is my plate..the chicken swarma platter with hummus, coucous, pita, & tabouleh..YUMMMMM!!! Love this! I haven't mentioned drinks much so far but we mostly got large lemonades or bottled water. No one but my eldest DD likes baklavah (she loves it) so we ended up with 5 of them for her which we took home.

DH got the Vegetable Platter - Falafel, tangierine couscous salad, hummus, tabouleh, lentil salad and marinated olives. He enjoyed this very much. Being that he does not eat meat he said some of the veggie items at other CS locations were bland but this was very flavorful & we all really wanted to eat here again but did not get the chance.

One DD got the Lamb Wrap which she said was great. MY 2 youngest kids got the Morrocan Kefta Sandwich - Seasoned ground beef, grilled and served with fresh salsa and fries. They both liked it & said it was like a hamburger or meatball sandwich. Harrisa sauce also come with this but my kids left it off.

5 baklavahs for dessert & the bill came to over $85.

 

[mommykds]

The following day we went to Animal Kingdom. We braved EE during the rain which was a lot fun & we were so soaked there was no reason to wait for Kali River Rapids. We left early & ate at Wolfgang Puck Express. I know a lot of people love this place..however it didn't knock my socks off. Maybe we just had a not so happy server or hit it on a bad day. The food was Ok but once was enough for us..& oh & it was freezing in there so much we should have sat outside in the 90 degree heat.

I got the spaghetti & meatballs. The meatballs were more like chopped meat on top of the pasta. They were pink inside & our server was not happy with me when I asked if thats the way they were supposed to look like. The pasta was ok but the sauce was kind of watery.

My DD got the Turkey Club - Avocado, bacon, red onion, plum tomatoes, romaine, remoulade and chips.

Dh got the veggie pizza & my 2 younger kids got the cheese pizzas.

Desserts for us were a no sugar added brownie (kids thought it was not good), frozen yogurt with fruit, & creme brulee (again just OK)

The bill was around $100 & plus tip. I can't say I would make a special trip over here just to maximize our CS credits again.

 

[mommykds]

Downtown Disney - Snack time!!!

We used many snack credits on these boxes of candies that the kids brought home.

These are from Goofy's.
Cashew patty, M&M cup, white fudge, & a chocolate covered marshmallow mickey pop.