Sooooo, what if you DON'T have a picky eater?

[Crystal_27]

My 3 year old DD loves food of all types. She eats everything - veggies, pasta, steak, pork, chicken, fruits (and her fair share of sweets - LOL). My review of a lot of the menus shows that the only offerings for children are hot dogs, chicken fingers, and macaroni and cheese. That is all well and good if you have a "picky" eater, but my sweetie loves a variety of food. Are we going to be forced to either order her something from the adult menu or let her share off of our plates? Does anyone with toddlers of similar appetites have any suggestions? Thanks in advance!

 

[badblackpug]

I have totally non picky eaters. We added a fair share of buffets into our meals so that they can get a variety.

 

[CTPinkPrincess]

I have a non-picky eater as well (sometimes that's not a good thing because who wants to share their lobster and shrimp ) We usually let her order what she wants from the kids menu (or ask if they could do something a little less "kiddie" - like a small salad) and share our meals as well.

The buffetts are a good idea too...that way she can pick exactly what she wants!

 

[Crystal_27]

Thank you for the replies. I agree that buffets are going to be our best bet, but I would also like to have a few full sit-downs while we're there as well - LOL!

I really am thankful that she's a great eater, but I find that most restaurants (at WDW and otherwise) are so limiting as to choices for children. I would think that the chefs would appreciate making a meal for a child that wasn't yellow . Oh well - if that's my biggest complaint, I think I'm doing okay.

 

[tjmw2727]

My kids are great eaters and rarely eat off the childrens menu. I find that by ordering soups and salads or appetizers and sharing from the adult meals we can make a nice "family style" meal instead of limiting them to a kids meal.

TJ

 

[PatriciaH]

Yes, the children's menus are so limited now a days. They used to be a small version of adult meals. Salads, Chicken Parm, Small steak/veggies, etc.. What happened?

 

[phyllis1966]

I also have a non-picky eater! If we're somewhere in WDW that only has the typical kids'-menu offerings, we'll often just have DD pick a kids' item, then we'll share whatever we have with her - the adult portions are usually so generous that no one goes hungry. DD is 8 now, but has been complaining about "boring kids' menus" since she was 5!

As others have mentioned, buffets are a great way to avoid chicken nugget burnout...have a great time in WDW!

 

[nessz79]

One of our kids is a non-picky eater. He usually gets an appetizer from the regular menu or he gets a kids' meal but also eats off of our plates. I agree that kids' menus are very limited!

 

[mom2aredhead]

For every post complaining about the kids selections being bad for picky eaters, there's a post about how the menus are bad for kids that eat everything. It's a no-win. I'm really not sure what some parents are looking for - if/when you go out at home, what do they eat?

Along with a kids standard (chicken strips, pasta) there are other choices:

Grilled Fish is on the menu at Mama Melrose
Grilled Chicken and Grilled Steak are on the menu at Concourse
Grilled BBQ chicken and Grouper are on the menu at Brown Derby
Rose and Crown has Bangers and Mash or Cottage Pie
Jiko has a beef Filet and broiled fish
Spoodles has a beef kabob
Whispering Canyon has grilled fish, grilled chicken or a kids skillet
Rainforest Cafe has popcorn shrimp or turkey wraps
Wolfgang Puck has salmon
Plaza has a chef salad

I will agree that the CS choices are pretty terrible, but for TS, there are alternatives on the menu.

 

[Claire L]

Le Cellier has steak

San Angel Inn has Mahi-Mahi or Quesadilla de Pollo

Akershaus has Princesses plus a cold buffet and entree choices of Grilled Chicken Breast or Grilled Salmon served with corn and boiled potatoes, must be good for a little girl

So there are a few choices out there and may be best to note which restaurants have the bigger and more unusual choices before you go.

Claire

 

[phyllis1966]

Obviously, it depends on where you are eating...DD enjoyed the steak both at Le Cellier and Citricos. At the Plaza Restarant in December, she enjoyed the grilled chicken skewers from the kids' menu - they came with steamed white rice (she was in heaven) and barbecue sauce for dipping - the appetizer was tomato soup, but when we asked, she was given Yankee Bean instead. I agree that you can absolutely find restaurants with at least 1 more interesting choice than the standard kids' fare, but when we have dinner someplace with a more standard menu, we share our food with her and everyone's happy. It didn't actually seem to me like anyone was complaining...just asking for and giving some recommendations.

 

[Crystal_27]

Grilled Fish is on the menu at Mama Melrose
Grilled Chicken and Grilled Steak are on the menu at Concourse
Grilled BBQ chicken and Grouper are on the menu at Brown Derby
Rose and Crown has Bangers and Mash or Cottage Pie
Jiko has a beef Filet and broiled fish
Spoodles has a beef kabob
Whispering Canyon has grilled fish, grilled chicken or a kids skillet
Rainforest Cafe has popcorn shrimp or turkey wraps
Wolfgang Puck has salmon
Plaza has a chef salad

Great list!

Also, Claire L and phyllis1966 - you both have great good suggestions as well. Thank you so much!

 

[MzGemini]

I have seen posts on here stating that some restaurants allowed their child to order off the adults menu and they made the meal in a child sized portion. It doesn't hurt to ask...

 

[mom2aredhead]

Great list!

Also, Claire L and phyllis1966 - you both have great good suggestions as well. Thank you so much!

Thanks...
The funny part is that I, unfortunately, am the mother of a chicken nugget kid!

 

[Mommymcgee]

CRT Dinner only has meat items on the child's menu. We were able to get DD a child's portion of the adult vegetarian option instead. That might also be the case in other TS places.