Skipper Canteen menu changes?

[UncleMike101]

I giggled, too. None of this would be exotic.



Two local, FANTASTIC steak houses. One has their strip at $38, one has it at $32.

http://domeats.com/pdfs/TSC_Dinner_Menu.pdf

http://mancinis.com/steakchicken.html

Annnnnd now, I am hungry!!

Does Disney own those two places??
They appear to have the same price structure.

 

[Nancyg56]

I haven't eaten at Skippers Canteen yet, but I have looked at the menu. I'm not sure I would classify it as "exotic", but definitely a departure from the typical theme park burgers and fries type food. If the conclusion they have come to is low revenue out of that restaurant is due to the menu not being "dumbed down" enough for Americans, then I suppose changing it is the right thing to do. Although I would hope that they would leave much of the menu the same and add one or two plainer items rather than swing the pendulum all the way to the other side and completely revamp it to be "American friendly" (whatever that means).

I agree. Why must they toss the baby with the bathwater. I have never understood why this restaurant did not have one or two "ordinary" items as well as the fare that Disney envisioned. When a family travels together and eats together on vacation they generally try to make sure their choices have at least one thing every one can or will eat. I know I do not drop $$$$$ on a trip and then when we arrive leave one out at dinner. I also think a few items that are "generic" on the kids menu would not drastically ruin the reputation of a restaurant.

I think that a good part of SC is not the menu though, it is the same day ADR. I plan my meals if I want to sit down to eat. I am not going to incur a penalty to try one on the spur of the moment. If I could make changes in my plan without a charge I would not think twice, but I am not dropping upwards of $60 to $90 for a meal I did not eat in order to do so.

 

[jon18uk]

typical theme park burgers and fries type food

I always find it strange when people say "typical theme park burgers" At the Magic Kingdom I can think of four QS that don't offer burgers and one that does (Cosmic Ray's), for Table Service only the Plaza offers burgers and five others don't offer burgers. In fact at Disney pizza seems to be more commonplace than burgers I think.

 

[simnia]

We are looking forward to eating here and trying some of the new items. If they do tweak the menu to appeal more to the masses, I hope it's just adding in some items and not removing.
Regarding ADRs, is it true you can only do it same day (or day prior)? That would explain why I haven't been able to make any ADRs there for our October trip.

 

[loves to dive]

My son and I ate there and both loved it. We loved the fact that we could walk up and only wait about 5 min. and get seated, with no ADRs just spur of the moment let's try it. We loved the food and the portions were plenty big for us, as a matter of fact we shared an appetizer and an entre and left feeling pretty well stuffed (he is a 35 year old by the way so not a small child). I can't imagine picking a place to eat based on the fact that one person might have problems. My honey is a meat and potatoes guy, no sauces, no vegetables and if it's fried that's better. My son will eat just about anything you put in front of him as long as it doesn't have coconut flakes. I'm not a huge fan of fish that tastes like fish, I'll eat lobster and crab and shrimp and some white fish but will not eat any fried fish (try being from Georgia and not liking fried catfish). We would never be able to eat out if we had to worry about finding somewhere everyone could eat. If we go to a fish place, I'll either find some shrimp or just eat a potatoe and coleslaw. If we go to a place that has "fancy" food honey can usually ask for a steak and ask them not to put sauce on it. One of the reasons my son is such an adventurous eater now is because I exposed him to it when he was young. No you don't need to get hot dogs at the mexican restaurant son, try something and if you don't like it fine, but at least try it.

 

[Nancyg56]

We are looking forward to eating here and trying some of the new items. If they do tweak the menu to appeal more to the masses, I hope it's just adding in some items and not removing.
Regarding ADRs, is it true you can only do it same day (or day prior)? That would explain why I haven't been able to make any ADRs there for our October trip.

Yes, you can only get same day ADR's here. I believe this is a good part of the issue. If we want to dine at a TS restaurant in the MK we need to make ADR's. If you cannot secure an ADR the day before at SC< you cannot cancel the one you have within the time Disney has determined to avoid penalty.

 

[Lisa F]

1) No way it would happen.
2) It takes the same amount of labor to make a big size as a slightly smaller size.
3) The only savings is in material, not labor, overhead, or utilities.
4) The DDP reimbursement rates would/could not cover such an expense.

NOTE: Of course there would be a large contingent of parents who complain the food is too fancy for their kids' tastes. This would be a no-win situation.

a lot of the restaurants already do that. CA Grill has a mini filet (although different sides) under their Mickey Check menu. 50's prime time has kids portion of chicken pot pie and pot roast. BoG has a mini portion of the braised pork. All of these options also have mac and cheese at a minimum for the picky crowd. Skipper Canteen already has mini portions of the adult menu as kids meals. I don't see at all how this is not possible, they just need to be a lot more consistent about it across the board. At a place like Sanaa there is no excuse to not offer a kiddie portion of something like the curries to kids, maybe a single option and smaller portion... those are prepared in large batches, not individually. Honestly I just think enough thought hasn't been given to the kids menus and they cater to the lowest common denominator (no one take offense to that, my kid is part of that group! it can be rough for his foodie mom but I am grateful that many of my favorites have at least some form of mac and cheese). Many kids will eat the "kid food" (mine included) and for the parents who squawk about how bad it is for them, there is the healthy version "mickey check" where the meats are grilled instead of fried and you get veggies. I'd love to see "mickey check" replaced with mini signature dishes... not because my kid will touch any of it but because I think it would be a positive change for the restaurants.

And I'm pretty sure at ANY restaurant (disney or otherwise) kids meals are not huge money makers. What they do do is get families in the door so that their parents can spend the big bucks on their own meals and a drinkie-poo or two knowing they will get a "deal" on their kids. The average TS kids meal is still 1/2 to 1/3 the price of a buffet meal for kids.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

My three year old would be fine with the current menu. If people want burgers and chicken nuggets there are plenty of other restaurants in Magic Kingdom that cater to them. SMH.

 

[Lisa F]

I can't imagine picking a place to eat based on the fact that one person might have problems.

I don't think it is at all unreasonable that when you are sitting down and spending $30-50 or more per person to eat a meal that everyone enjoys their meal. The examples you gave are examples of finding places where everyone in your family could get something they enjoy, either by modifying something on the menu or having alternate choices other than the main theme of the restaurant that you could choose from (choosing shrimp instead of fish is a good example). It can be tough to accommodate everyone's tastes and maybe not everyone will have every restaurant as their favorite, but I would never drag my family to a place where they could only eat cole slaw and potato salad while everyone else is enjoying a nice meal. I am traveling solo with my 8 year old and every single choice I made are places where he would enjoy the food too... mostly buffets because it takes the pressure off of him wasting a whole meal if he tries something new. there are other places I would pick if it were just me

 

[Matty_Disfan]

If the conclusion they have come to is low revenue out of that restaurant is due to the menu not being "dumbed down" enough for Americans, then I suppose changing it is the right thing to do. Although I would hope that they would leave much of the menu the same and add one or two plainer items rather than swing the pendulum all the way to the other side and completely revamp it to be "American friendly" (whatever that means).

I don't think it's "dumbing it down", I think it's getting hip with the times. People want food they can eat, not brag about next time their weird Aunt Ethel returns from the Far East where she helps villagers raise goats.....

And what if one of my family members wants chicken nuggets with an exciting dipping sauce, but another wants a hot dog???? It's not fair to just give them two possible options and then expect them to want 'one of these two things or it's back to listening to robo-aliens crooning'. I am willing to share a taco-dip with the best of them but we have children folks. They have needs.

 

[GillianP1301]

I agree. Why must they toss the baby with the bathwater. I have never understood why this restaurant did not have one or two "ordinary" items as well as the fare that Disney envisioned. When a family travels together and eats together on vacation they generally try to make sure their choices have at least one thing every one can or will eat. I know I do not drop $$$$$ on a trip and then when we arrive leave one out at dinner. I also think a few items that are "generic" on the kids menu would not drastically ruin the reputation of a restaurant.

I think that a good part of SC is not the menu though, it is the same day ADR. I plan my meals if I want to sit down to eat. I am not going to incur a penalty to try one on the spur of the moment. If I could make changes in my plan without a charge I would not think twice, but I am not dropping upwards of $60 to $90 for a meal I did not eat in order to do so.

Interesting point to be made on whether same day ADR is helping or hurting this restaurant. I'm sure there would be support for each approach. I was actually wondering if the lack of 180 day ADR on this restaurant was discouraging people from going there since everywhere else needs an advance ADR.

I always find it strange when people say "typical theme park burgers" At the Magic Kingdom I can think of four QS that don't offer burgers and one that does (Cosmic Ray's), for Table Service only the Plaza offers burgers and five others don't offer burgers. In fact at Disney pizza seems to be more commonplace than burgers I think.

I was just generalizing for the sake of making the point that Skippers Canteen has a more non traditional menu than your average theme park restaurant. I wasn't literally saying that every eatery in a theme park is burgers and nuggets.

 

[GillianP1301]

I don't think it's "dumbing it down", I think it's getting hip with the times. People want food they can eat, not brag about next time their weird Aunt Ethel returns from the Far East where she helps villagers raise goats.....

And what if one of my family members wants chicken nuggets with an exciting dipping sauce, but another wants a hot dog???? It's not fair to just give them two possible options and then expect them to want 'one of these two things or it's back to listening to robo-aliens crooning'. I am willing to share a taco-dip with the best of them but we have children folks. They have needs.

I may not necessarily agree with you, but that was funny!

I think there is such a huge variety of food all around WDW, that I just don't get the need for every single restaurant to serve hot dogs or nuggets or pizza or whatever "plain" food de jour you want to insert there. Having a menu be a bit more "exotic" (and I use that term loosely) doesn't seem that it should be an issue to me because of all the other choices. Remember the outrage (still some of it around) to the BOG menu and how people could possible cope without nuggets on the menu, yet that restaurant is still fully booked all the time.

Whoever is making decisions for Skippers Canteen will have the data they need. If entree A & B only get ordered 1% of the time and the remaining 6 entrees are getting ordered 99% of the time, then it's a no brainer to cut the duds and re-think the menu. I'm assuming that's what is happening here, time will tell once we see the new menu.

 

[porschegrl]

People want food they can eat

Quite right. And the current Skipper Canteen menu includes things I can eat. If they replace it all with burgers and nuggets, it becomes yet one more WDW restaurant I have to cross off my list. I'll understand if they feel they have to make the change, from a numbers perspective, but it'll still be a disappointment.

But FWIW, I still found the Aunt Ethel comment funny

 

[Lisa F]

I think it is hyperbole to say that any change to skipper canteen's menu will result in "burgers and nuggets." There is a LOT of room between "shrimp that is still looking at me" and "chicken nuggets." Yak and yeti is one of the most popular and well reviewed restaurants on the boards and it has a good mix of various types of asian inspired cuisine as well as a kobe burger and stuff for more plain eaters. It is possible to have a restaurant with a themed menu and ethnic inspired food and still have a few things that appeal to people who prefer more plain food and to do it all well.

Skipper Canteen doesn't exactly have the most stellar reviews even among foodie types... it still seems to be hit and miss and needs a bit more work. So maybe the shrimp with the heads and the fish collar go over to Tiffin as a better match with frog legs and other funky stuff they are advertising there but the char siu pork and pho and other well reviewed dishes stay and maybe a few more things are added. Really taking the heads off of shrimp is not tantamount to serving chicken nuggets.

 

[jon18uk]

I was just generalizing for the sake of making the point that Skippers Canteen has a more non traditional menu than your average theme park restaurant. I wasn't literally saying that every eatery in a theme park is burgers and nuggets.

I was also generalising, it wasn't so much about your comment, more that Disney has always offered more than burger and fries. Better options at Disney than Six Flags anyway.

 

[Jennasis]

If a restaurant serves food that I don't like or a member of my party doesn't like then we don't eat there. I don't complain that I don't get to eat there because somebody in my party has made the conscious choice to dislike certain foods (even children). And if the aversion to food is because of medical reasons be an allergy or otherwise, then we just avoid that restaurant anyway. That's life.

OR, we do eat there and the picky person has to find something to live with on the menu.

My husband would sooner die than to eat anything that lives in the ocean. I would sooner die than to eat anything that has any type of fruit in it. Have a family member with a peanut allergy . Haven't come across a restaurant yet we've had to cross off our list... though if they turn the canteen into just another restaurant then we'll cross that one off the list for sure.

 

[Lisa F]

I may not necessarily agree with you, but that was funny!

I think there is such a huge variety of food all around WDW, that I just don't get the need for every single restaurant to serve hot dogs or nuggets or pizza or whatever "plain" food de jour you want to insert there. Having a menu be a bit more "exotic" (and I use that term loosely) doesn't seem that it should be an issue to me because of all the other choices. Remember the outrage (still some of it around) to the BOG menu and how people could possible cope without nuggets on the menu, yet that restaurant is still fully booked all the time.

Whoever is making decisions for Skippers Canteen will have the data they need. If entree A & B only get ordered 1% of the time and the remaining 6 entrees are getting ordered 99% of the time, then it's a no brainer to cut the duds and re-think the menu. I'm assuming that's what is happening here, time will tell once we see the new menu.

BoG has other kid choices even if not nuggets.

The big deal is as an adult I have no desire to eat "plain food du jour" but I have a kid who does. I'm sure a lot of adults are in my situation. So having plain kid options at places that serve more interesting food expands my options and it should be no skin off the nose of anyone who wants to suck the contents of a shrimp head while the thing stares at your chin.

 

[Lisa F]

If a restaurant serves food that I don't like or a member of my party doesn't like then we don't eat there. I don't complain that I don't get to eat there because somebody in my party has made the conscious choice to dislike certain foods (even children). And if the aversion to food is because of medical reasons be an allergy or otherwise, then we just avoid that restaurant anyway. That's life.

OR, we do eat there and the picky person has to find something to live with on the menu.

My husband would sooner die than to eat anything that lives in the ocean. I would sooner die than to eat anything that has any type of fruit in it. Have a family member with a peanut allergy . Haven't come across a restaurant yet we've had to cross off our list... though if they turn the canteen into just another restaurant then we'll cross that one off the list for sure.

while I agree that you can't cater to EVERYONE's specific idiosyncrasies in regard to food and that not everyone is going to be able to or want to eat at every restaurant on property, I think it is a pretty widespread generalization (based on responses I've seen on the boards) that the lack of more plain options for the kids is keeping a lot of adults who might actually enjoy the more exotic menu from going to skipper canteen. There is no place I want to eat at badly enough that I would double my eating time by feeding my child elsewhere beforehand and then have him be bored while he sat and watched me eat, so I just cross that stuff off my list. Which is fine because my list is too long as it is, but I'd be all over SC if there was something my kid would eat available for him there. Also having a more plain kid menu that can also be made up in adult portion sizes (as many of the other restaurants do) would kill two birds with one stone.

 

[porschegrl]

I think it is hyperbole to say that any change to skipper canteen's menu will result in "burgers and nuggets."

Of course there is a middle ground, but I was responding directly to a poster who said people want burgers and nuggets (possibly allowing for exotic additions like Swiss cheese and Thai dipping sauce).

 

[Lisa F]

Of course there is a middle ground, but I was responding directly to a poster who said people want burgers and nuggets (possibly allowing for exotic additions like Swiss cheese and Thai dipping sauce).

A lot of people are saying that any change to the menu will result in burgers and nuggets. I don't think the sky is falling just yet. I did see the exotic swiss cheese post I think Yak and Yeti rides the line superbly and honestly I'm not sure why all of the remotely asian stuff is clustered in and around AK (not counting world showcase of course). SC is a prime opportunity for something similar in MK with a bit more widespread appeal.