catne
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 1, 2008
we have been to about 50 of the Disney restaurants...virtually all of the "steakhouse" restaurants, including the 1 TS credit places, serve bread or rolls as a starter. This would include Kona, Grand Floridian Cafe, Turf Club, Le Cellier (lunch--you get those yummy breadsticks), and so on. Specialty restaurants like Yak & Yeti, Via Napoli do not serve bread at the start. San Angel and La Hacienda de San Angel (the Mexican table service places) both served chips & salsa as a starter.
You won't get salad unless you pay extra to get an appetizer...none of the restaurants automatically include salad as a starter so you can't count on getting full on salad & bread before your entree arrives.
You don't pay for your toddler on the dining plan...have to be 3 yrs old to get the dining plan. You can feed him off your plate (even at the buffets and family style this is allowed...so at 'Ohana he eats free with your paid 1 credit meals.)
I would keep the character buffets for several reasons...1) again, your toddler under 3 eats free at the buffet 2) you and hubby get your choice, including salad & other itmes considered appetizer type foods. and 3) most important...character buffets are the easiest and most efficient way to get those coveted character pictures...the characters come to every table & pose for pictures. If you try to catch them in the park you'll have to be lucky and wait in a long line to get the pictures. And that will depend on you being in the right part of the right park at the right time...not fun planning your days around waiting in line for pictures. What if your toddler freaks at characters? Then you wasted a lot of time waiting in line for nothing. At least at the character buffet if he freaks, you can wave the characters away from your table & still get a decent meal. Just my 2 Cents, of course.
You should be able to split a counter service breakfast (virtually every resort we've stayed at there had some sort of large breakfast platter available for one credit...example would be the Bounty Platter at Port Orleans French Quarter. For one credit you get scrambled eggs, bacon, breakfast potatoes and a small Mickey waffle. Easily enough for two. And same at lunch...many places have large platter-type meals that are plenty for two people. Example would be Cosmic Rays in Magic Kingdom...has a chicken & ribs platter that comes with mashed potatoes & green beans. Large servings on the meats, and adequate on the vegs--hubby and I have split that platter and actually couldn't finish all of it.
RE: extra desserts for celebrations...we've been there for my birthday, for my husband's birthday, son's birthday, our anniversary and our son's anniversary multiple times over the past 4 years...on regular or deluxe dining every time. Our experience has been that you RARELY get an extra dessert when on the dining plan. Instead, they stick a candle in the dessert you ordered (even ice cream, lol) or the chef writes "happy birthday" or "congratulations" in powdered sugar or cocoa on the plate of the dessert you ordered for dining plan. Only a couple of times was an extra dessert given...and in those cases, it was just a fairly plain cupcake with a candle in it. Not worth drooling over, for sure. But most places just sang Happy Birthday, or said Congratulations
You won't get salad unless you pay extra to get an appetizer...none of the restaurants automatically include salad as a starter so you can't count on getting full on salad & bread before your entree arrives.
You don't pay for your toddler on the dining plan...have to be 3 yrs old to get the dining plan. You can feed him off your plate (even at the buffets and family style this is allowed...so at 'Ohana he eats free with your paid 1 credit meals.)
I would keep the character buffets for several reasons...1) again, your toddler under 3 eats free at the buffet 2) you and hubby get your choice, including salad & other itmes considered appetizer type foods. and 3) most important...character buffets are the easiest and most efficient way to get those coveted character pictures...the characters come to every table & pose for pictures. If you try to catch them in the park you'll have to be lucky and wait in a long line to get the pictures. And that will depend on you being in the right part of the right park at the right time...not fun planning your days around waiting in line for pictures. What if your toddler freaks at characters? Then you wasted a lot of time waiting in line for nothing. At least at the character buffet if he freaks, you can wave the characters away from your table & still get a decent meal. Just my 2 Cents, of course.
You should be able to split a counter service breakfast (virtually every resort we've stayed at there had some sort of large breakfast platter available for one credit...example would be the Bounty Platter at Port Orleans French Quarter. For one credit you get scrambled eggs, bacon, breakfast potatoes and a small Mickey waffle. Easily enough for two. And same at lunch...many places have large platter-type meals that are plenty for two people. Example would be Cosmic Rays in Magic Kingdom...has a chicken & ribs platter that comes with mashed potatoes & green beans. Large servings on the meats, and adequate on the vegs--hubby and I have split that platter and actually couldn't finish all of it.
RE: extra desserts for celebrations...we've been there for my birthday, for my husband's birthday, son's birthday, our anniversary and our son's anniversary multiple times over the past 4 years...on regular or deluxe dining every time. Our experience has been that you RARELY get an extra dessert when on the dining plan. Instead, they stick a candle in the dessert you ordered (even ice cream, lol) or the chef writes "happy birthday" or "congratulations" in powdered sugar or cocoa on the plate of the dessert you ordered for dining plan. Only a couple of times was an extra dessert given...and in those cases, it was just a fairly plain cupcake with a candle in it. Not worth drooling over, for sure. But most places just sang Happy Birthday, or said Congratulations
