Saving money on food at WDW

[eeyoresmom]

I found the problem with all these meals that are supposedly "Huge" is that they maybe too much for one person, they are rarely enough for two grown people to feel satisfied.

That chicken at cosmic rays? Yes it was too much for me but we had to supplement it with a side of fries and a drink for me and my 14 year old son to feel satisfied.

So truthfully for the 3.99 we saved on that meal, I would have simply preferred that everyone had their individual meal.

Same thing at Peco's bill which is supposedly another place for "huge" portions. Dh and I split the bbq pork meal. we brought no extra sides. Maybe 1 hour later we were starving and we ended buying 2 frozen lemonaides and a box of popcorn for 8 bucks. No savings there.
Totally agree with you. We are a family of very small females and I never count on us sharing entrees anywhere. Once in awhile we may share 3 entrees between 4 adults and we do share desserts and snacks, but I have yet to come across any entree that was large enough for two of us to share and be totally satisfied. I never suggest to newbies to count on sharing.

I've yet to find one cs meal that can satisfy my dh and I fully without adding extra or getting a snack soon afterwards, which pretty much defeats the purpose.

ITA. We are a family of very small females and almost never share entrees. Maybe a few times a trip we will share 3 entrees among 4 of us. We do share desserts and some snacks, but I have yet to see the entree that was huge and definitely shareable and we have been over 50 times and have eaten at every cs restaurant and almost every ts in all the parks ( and most resorts)

 

[crisi]

If you do table service AND you are a light eater, consider making a meal out of an appetizer, a cup of soup and/or a salad.

If you have a car, there are a ton of restaurants off site.

We almost never have breakfast anywhere other than our room.

We use energy bars from home and trail mix from home to supplement and snack. I hate finding anything remotely healthy to snack at at Disney. The once in a blue moon fruit stand with over priced fruit or the Goofy Candy Company overpriced trail mix are not my favorites.

 

[PatsMom]

Eating breakfast in the room
Splitting meals- FLAME TREE has HUGE portions
Double burgers and ask for extra bun= 2 burgers
Order entree only ( this will omit fries and is less expensive)
If you want TS- Go at lunch. Prices are less.

No more double burgers to be had that I can think of. They went to larger single patties instead. Disney caught on to the "buy a bun" trick. You can slce the larger burger in half.

Entree only works but often leaves me hungry. But I do get fruit or veg instead of fries since they are better for me.

Flame Tree has trimmed back on portion size for most meals. Same is true for Cosmic Rays. I think they got lots of comments about waste.

Kids meals are a good option if you are a light eater but they also have smaller portion sizes than they did a few years ago. But if you get the fruit sides you will have more food than if you get fries.

Breakfast in the room is the biggest saver of all for me. And easy to bring from home. Bring a box of Cheerios and buy a half gallon (largest size sold in gift shop) of milk. Unless you are ordering lots of stuff not worth the delivery charge for Garden Grocer for one or two items. I have had good luck with them on larger family trips though when I wanted "real" groceries!

You will find that you save lots of money on the hotel by getting a discounted rate rather than free food. So you will have some money from there to contribute to a dining budget.

If you are going to eat mostly quick service anyhow, check on prices for the quick service dining plan - might be just as cheap without the hassles of sharing meals. Sometimes people just don't feel like eating the same thing.

The free ice water is the greatest thing since sliced bread though! Cold and refreshing. And filtered so it doesn't have the "taste" that Florida water often has. My family has been doing that one for years. We bring wide mouth refillable bottles to accommodate the ice and just fill up as needed. The counter service restaurants can't fill your water bottle directly but they will provide you with a cup of ice water that you can pour in. If you are at a counter service like Restarauntasauras that has the serve yourself soda fountain, you can just fill the water bottle directly. Also at the resort counter service you can use the ice water spigot at the refillable mug station.