Strategies for bringing food into parks

[6loversofdisney]

For an upcoming trip, we won't be on the DDP. We will eat one meal (Counter/Quick Service) for dinner each day. I need ideas for a breakfast options that are easy and we can have in the room. Also, lunch options that we can pack easily and take into the parks.

I am either going to the store once upon arrival or doing a grocery delivery.

This trip will be two adults and two older kids (16 and 13).

Thanks

 

[scrappinginontario]

- bagels with cream cheese (can use toaster in food court if you want them toasted)
- granola bars
- cereal and milk
- breakfast sandwiches (can be heated in microwave in food court)
- juice
- yogurt drinks
- bottled smoothies
- packaged cheese and crackers

 

[kagmypts]

In our unit, we eat cereal, waffles, sandwiches, or Greek yogurt for breakfast. We pack bottled water, sandwiches, granola bars, fresh fruit, and assorted snacks for lunch.

 

[siren0119]

We just did this on our trip last year. We ordered food plus paper goods (bowls, sandwich bags, tinfoil and plastic silverware) to be delivered to the room the day we arrived, and we kind of set up the dresser as our food cabinet.

Breakfast: Bananas, cereal and milk, instant oatmeal (for my husband - we didn't have a microwave in the room but our room was close to the dining hall at POP so he'd walk down and heat up his breakfast while picking up my coffee). Granola bars were sort of double duty snacks/breakfast.

Lunch: sandwiches and wraps (We got bread, PB&J, some lunch meat and cheese and a small head of lettuce). Apples, grapes (they were on sale at the grocer when we ordered), fruit snacks, baby carrots, and lunchbox bags of chips.

We paid about $100 total for all the food and dry goods, for 8 days on property and we still ended up with plenty of leftover snacks for the plane ride home.

 

[6loversofdisney]

We just did this on our trip last year. We ordered food plus paper goods (bowls, sandwich bags, tinfoil and plastic silverware) to be delivered to the room the day we arrived, and we kind of set up the dresser as our food cabinet.

Breakfast: Bananas, cereal and milk, instant oatmeal (for my husband - we didn't have a microwave in the room but our room was close to the dining hall at POP so he'd walk down and heat up his breakfast while picking up my coffee). Granola bars were sort of double duty snacks/breakfast.

Lunch: sandwiches and wraps (We got bread, PB&J, some lunch meat and cheese and a small head of lettuce). Apples, grapes (they were on sale at the grocer when we ordered), fruit snacks, baby carrots, and lunchbox bags of chips.

We paid about $100 total for all the food and dry goods, for 8 days on property and we still ended up with plenty of leftover snacks for the plane ride home.

This all sounds fantastic and what a savings! One meal would have cost you that $100.00 Plus it sounds kind of fun Thank you!

 

[siren0119]

This all sounds fantastic and what a savings! One meal would have cost you that $100.00 Plus it sounds kind of fun Thank you!

It worked really well! Eating in the room also meant we didn't have to lug ourselves out of bed that much earlier to go sit down somewhere. I wouldn't do it any other way! I forgot to add that we brought refillable water bottles in with us so we really never needed to buy food unless it was a snack we REALLY wanted to try, or a planned sit down meal.

With four of us (two adults two kids) I had a pretty basic over-shoulder tote bag that was divided (the bottom unzipped to an insulated storage area - sandwiches and fruit went in that compartment, grab and go snacks in the main tote bag along with incidental stuff we'd need for the day (Sunblock, hubby's diabetic testing stuff, charger for the cell phones, small wallet with our ID's and credit card). We had no issues either bringing it on rides or stowing it with a CM.

 

[Klayfish]

Do you have access to a fridge? If not, it'll really limit you to non-perishables. Cereal, granola, pb&j, some fruits, that kind of stuff. If you do, then your options get much bigger. Yogurt, milk for your cereal, lunch meats, keep fruits cold (such as grapes, etc...).

We stay offsite, so we have a full kitchen. We pack all of our food to bring to the parks, except breakfast which we eat in the condo. Besides the sandwiches and fruits/veggies, good snacks are things like Pringles. They're much easier to transport than a bag of chips. Or snack bars, or ziplock bags of whatever snack.

You can rent a locker if you don't want to carry the stuff around. However, since we're a family of 5 and packing a full dinner requires a big bag, we just stick it in an umbrella stroller. We park it somewhere and just leave it. When we're ready to eat, we come back to it and have dinner. Then leave it again until it's time to head out. Works awesome.

We spend literally a small fraction of what people who are on the dining plan or eat in the restaurants do.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Cheese sticks, Crackers, pepperoni and a couple cookies makes a good lunch. Town House hummus and crackers and the hummus does not need refrigerated and add a cheese stick to it as well. Trail mix is a good portable snack.

 

[davper]

If you want a hot lunch , you could get some hikers dehydrated meals. You can order online from Mountain House or Backpackers Pantry. MOuntain House can be found at your local Walmart.

Just get a cup of hot water where they sell coffee and tea, usually free, and add to the package of food. In 15 minutes, hot lunch. You can do the same thing for breakfast in room by using the coffee pot to heat water.

For 8 to $10 each, you can feed 2 people.

 

[theone74733]

We usually go to McDonalds for breakfast and split a Big Breakfast with pancakes or have a breakfast sandwich meal. I will normally buy 2 apple pies on the way out for a midday snack/lunch with other snacks brought from home. This usually holds me well through dinner time as I noticed I don't tend to eat very much with the humid weather. You could also go to the grocery store and get deli meats/cheese for some easy sandwiches for lunch.

 

[pmanko]

we always stay in 1 bedroom so we had full kitchen and would use for breakfast almost every day - used Garden Grocer; this year we downsized to a studio and we are driving so we'll bring food. We will have only a kitchenette.
we will take a water for each of us (3) and a soft drink (tea, gatorade, pop) each day along with nuts, granola bars, slim jims, beef jerkey, lunchables, crackers, cheese, processed meats, fruit - we will sit down for either lunch or dinner once a day either ( some reservations some QS).

 

[rideswithchrist]

When stayed at Pop, we had yogurt packs, fruits and granola bars for quick breakfasts. Cereal is not good for us because we would be starving an hour later, but some folks like it.
Lunches were sandwiches (using the sandwich rounds because they hold up better than regular bread), meat and cheese or PB sandwiches, carrot sticks, nuts, trail mix, fruit squeezes and some organic gummies.
We did not take water in because you can get it for free at all sorts of places, but we brought in water bottles and True Lime flavor packs because I am a water snob.