Saving money on food

[gvandalay]

We can't get a meal plan because we have our rooms booked through Disney friends and family. Any tips on saving money? 5 adults two kids age 7 and 4. I want to book full service dinners soon

 

[rapunzels]

Do you have your own room?? It would seem to me, your friends/family should have been able to get you on the dining plan if your on property. Even if it's in your friends name, why couldn't they add you on, and have you pay for your own part???

 

[gvandalay]

The room was booked through a friend who is a Disney employee. The discount was huge . Due to this there is no meal plan offerered

 

[Nadjalu]

One thing you can do if able is take stuff for breakfast like granola bars or instant oatmeal.
That saves $$ on one meal.

Lunch pick a CS that has larger meals and have the kids split something (an adult meal is bigger) so if they aren't picky I would do that.

For dinners buffets are always a good choice as you can eat all you care. So if you have big eaters that will help them.
It also gives the others plenty of variety.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[sndral]

Spend some time studying the menus to get an idea of prices and options. Since you won't have the DP you aren't stuck w/ entree + desert @ table service restaurants. Perhaps a salad or soup and an appetizer might appeal more than an entree. Lunch prices I think are less @ sit down restaurants, too. Kids meals prices are pretty reasonable.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

Breakfast and lunch are less expensive for table service restaurants.

Some places offer a 3 course prix fixe plan like Le Chefs de France, Le Cellier and Kona Cafe.

The Plaza in MK is very reasonable.

When we went to Le Cellier last week the couple next to us got soup (along with the pretzel breadsticks that come free) and dessert, no entree. The got to enjoy the restaurant but had a reasonably priced meal. An appetizer and dessert will fill me up for sure but that might not work for those with a big appetite.

 

[drenalin'junkie]

Most restaurants kids menu is like $10.Adults will usually get full on 2 apps and a dessert.
We do breakfast in room/Dunkin Donuts/Cinnabon and take in water,chocolate and powerbar/granola for snacks but we do TS for dinner.

 

[dixonsontour]

Share meals at cs - alot of portions are very large.

Take bottled water with you and a cup of water is free at cs places.

Take snacks for breakfast - cereal bars etc

If you do character meals choose breakfast - cheaper.

Restaurant.com has gift certificates for some restaurants at disney - we used one at House of blues.

I think rainforest cafe had a kids eat free promotion on their website.

 

[kdluscher]

Last year we shipped a box with breakfast items and snacks in it. We had granola bars, small boxes of cereal, juices, small bags of snacks, like crackers and cookies. We would take those with us to the parks and eat that for breakfast or a snack. It worked out good, even though we were on the ddp it saved us money. My boyfriend is a big eater and if we didn't have those snacks we would have had to pay for breakfast or more snacks throughout the day. Just ship a package via UPS to your resort with you ressie number and check in date on it. It will get to you. Another thing, eat TS for lunch it is a lot cheaper than at dinner. And try sharing meals for your kids, it is better than paying $10 a piece for a kids meal.

 

[minnie56]

Not sure when you are going but Disney employees have a dining promo on for family/friends now I think until mid Feb with some blackout dates over Christmas/New Years?

My daughter is a CM and told me last week..

 

[Belleandtinker]

Definately do breakfast in the room, plus this will save you time in the morning.

My biggest suggestion - is don't do breakfast table service or character meals. If you are interested in a character meal, yes breakfast is cheaper, but you still have to eat again later. We find them to be a waste of money.

Schedule dinner for 5 - 6 pm, so you can get away with a lighter lunch.

Also, bring snacks into the parks and your own water bottles.

Good luck!

 

[Sandisw]

If you are looking at a lot of TS meals, have you considered buying an AP and then buying the TIW card.

It costs $75.00 to get but will save you 20% on most TS meals throughout the world, including alcohol.

Not sure what ticket you were planning to buy and whether or not it would amount to a savings in the end but something to investigate in terms of where you would like to it, the costs of those meals, and the savings you could potentially save.

It is good for an entire year (or closer to 13 months in some cases) and can be used for up to 10 people in your party. Only one person has to have an AP to purchase it.

 

[Kay1]

I agree you should study menus ahead of time. Some restaurants offer somewhat affordable options. Rose & Crown is one.

Have fun planning.

 

[BubMunkeyBles]

We often do a later character breakfast (10 am or so), snack for lunch and counter service for dinner. It works well for us, but we're not in a rush always to do everything at the parks (works good though to get fast passes, then go back to eat breakfast if you eat breakfast in the parks). Lunch menus are generally cheaper than dinner so a cheap breakfast in the room and counter service dinner works too.

 

[ILoveDisney&Cruising]

If you are looking at a lot of TS meals, have you considered buying an AP and then buying the TIW card.

It costs $75.00 to get but will save you 20% on most TS meals throughout the world, including alcohol.

This was going to be my suggestion, too!!

(btw, TIW = Tables in Wonderland if you want/need to Google it. We it! When you Google, you can also find out what restaurants it's good for.)

 

[Lou Holtz]

I think it's pretty clear they are asking for advice to dine on a small budget. At least half of these replies contain advice that are clearly more expensive than they're asking about. They do not want to eat at Le Celier or spend money to buy a card so they can get 20% off eating table service all week.

I completely agree with carrying bottled water and also bringing snacks that you've brought from home for breakfast or during the day. Maybe buy two meals plus one kid's meal at CS locations. If you want to do a table service or two, The Plaza and Sci Fi are probably the least expensive.

 

[leebee]

We found that doing a late b'fast or late lunch at a character meal buffet would overlap and serve as two meals. While character meals aren't cheap, you have to consider the time they save because you aren't standing in all those lines, waiting for autographs and photos with the characters. This falls into the "time=money" equation for Disney. Of course, this works at regular ts restaurants, too... just choose meal times carefully.

Seriously, portions are huge at WDW. DD and I shared many cs meals on our last trip. Breakfast platters at POP have a significant amount of food; DD and I routinely shared them. Adults can get a kids meal at cs locations, or two kids can share an adult meal. 50's Prime Time has reasonably priced options (and some more expensive) for ts. Starlight Rays has a chicken and ribs combo meal that would feed two adults and two kids (OK, maybe you'll need a side with that at supper, but still...). On the bright side, we found the chocolate cake and carrot cake desserts at the cs locations to be gross, so you can save some money there! In fact, I'd never order dessert with meals; save the money for an amazing snack later in the day!

Doing just cs is your cheapest option, but it won't limit your dining. CS in Morocco and Japan are wonderful places to eat. Breakfast in your room is also an option. Are you driving to WDW? Is your CM contact there? Have them get you some cereal, bagels, cream cheese, milk, juice pouches, and a styrofoam cooler (if you are staying at a value). You can replenish the ice in the cooler each evening... yes, the milk will stay fresh. If you are worried, buy milk by the quart in your food court. It'll cost more, but not as much as buying breakfast every day. You could even have bread, pb, and jelly in the room and bring sandwiches to the parks for lunch, if you really needed to save money.

I won't kid you... food isn't cheap at Disney, but you CAN survive eating just from the cs locations and not eat burgers, dogs, and nuggets your whole trip. In fact, you could eat strictly cs for a week and NEVER eat a single burger, dog, or nugget. Just think about what's being offered for food and how to best plan meals (sharing, etc) to keep everyone happy.

 

[ILoveDisney&Cruising]

I think it's pretty clear they are asking for advice to dine on a small budget. At least half of these replies contain advice that are clearly more expensive than they're asking about. They do not want to eat at Le Celier or spend money to buy a card so they can get 20% off eating table service all week.

Sorry - this wasn't clear to me, since she said she wanted to "book full service dinners soon."

 

[cglaura]

You can also split meals at non-buffet full service places. My mom and I split a meal at Liberty Tree Tavern (lunch) last time, and both left food on our plates..it was that large.

If you are really looking to save, I'd say find 1 or 2 full service restaurants you want, then do counter service the rest. Check the menus, the counter service are way more than burgers, dogs and nuggets. Roasted chicken, ribs, salads, etc.

You can also order just a sandwich, you don't have to get the combo they have listed. You'll have to ask for it, they don't have it up on the board.

 

[zannyscott]

We, too, have a great discount through Disney friends and family program. We've booked for June 2011. We were told we could get the dining plan, but we can't use a promotion/pin for anything else (like free dining). You may want to call Disney and clarify if you're interested in using the dining plan. If you're just looking for less expensive meal options and want to skip the dining plan, I totally understand! Have fun!