The Budget Planner...May 2013 at POR and NO DDP...SUSHI!

[TxRabbit]

It's the first week of DS's summer vacation...

In fact, it's the first DAY of summer vacation

That is, the first day of our WDW trip is...

And we will be heading south, a new direction for us, to WDW for the first time in 3 years...

We moved from around Houston, TX to around Atlanta, GA last summer. We drove to WDW twice...a pretty long haul...I'm really looking forward to the shorter distance this time!

A LOT has changed since we've been...so I have a LOT to catch up on for planning our trip.

A little about us...

My family...DH, DS12 and myself...have been to WDW 4X now.

DS Kindergarten Spring Break 2007 for 4 nights...planned last minute...AKL, old DDP with appetizers, tax, and gratuity included.

The week before school started the same year August 2007...because we loved it so much...original ressie at AKL, upgraded to BC because of construction...upgraded to Club Level at check in as the family of the day. Old DDP again.

Early Summer June 2009...WL...the 4/7 deal...DxDDP because DS was still a child and it was the only way we could afford it...purchased 10-day, Water Parks & More, non-expiring tickets.

Late Summer August 2010...ASSp with free QSDDP with DS9 upgraded to an adult with the minimum MYW purchase and using non-expiring tickets.

DH and I had decided on our very first trip that we would like to stay at all the different Disney resorts over time...

This time we have a room only at POR from May 24 to May 30. I've been stalking the available rooms hoping that a non-Royal Guest room would become available. This morning, finally, a preferred room became available and I snagged it.

I don't really care about the preferred room...I care about the ceiling fan. I know this sounds ridiculous but my family sleeps with ceiling fans...and that was one thing that was a definite thumbs down with our stay at ASSp. The Royal Guest rooms do not have ceiling fans...so they do not have our family.

And the full sized bed...DH and I sleep on a King...it's not really vacation to downgrade all the way to a full with a 6'1" hubby...

So, finally, WDW had upgraded the moderates to queens! YAY!

We love DTD...DS is a big time gamer and loves Disney Quest...so POR makes sense on so many levels...

I'm very hopeful that we will actually be able to take this trip...I need to figure out the cost involved in taking this trip...so I'm starting this PTR so that I can gather all my research here. And maybe this research will be helpful to others...

So...

POR
Friday, May 24 to Thursday, May 30
Using previous tickets...
OOP for food...

Let the planning begin!

Research Titles:
Sushi at Wolfgang Puck West Side
Sushi at Kona Island
Snacks

 

[TxRabbit]

DS LOVES Sushi...

I thought about having a splurge dinner at CA Grill...we ate there on the DxDDP and LOVED it...but fortunately, the decision is easy...the restaurant is closed for reno during our stay. So where else can we eat Sushi?

Wolfgang Puck Sushi Bar:

http://www.wolfgangpuckcafeorlando.com/Sushi_sampler-menu
http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/content/files/foodmenu_foodmenu_WP Cafe Sushi Menu.pdf

We've eaten at this West Side Restaurant a couple times...and I have a vague recollection of the sushi bar/lounge area. If you want to eat sushi in the Cafe, you can, but then we would be dealing with a wait...possibly...it seems that there is a loyalty card that you can get that can give you priority seating, even if you don't have a ressie:

http://www.wolfgangpuckcafeorlando.com/preferred_program

My family tends to enjoy eating at odd hours though...Disney Quest opens much later than the parks...11:30 AM...so hitting rope drop isn't an issue...generally, we eat a leisurely breakfast and then get there early...and we are ready for a break and some real food right around 3 pm or so...and as it turns out, there's a happy hour at the lounge which features 50% off sushi, sake, and draft beer from 2 pm to 5 pm:

http://www.wolfgangpuckcafeorlando.com/news_reviews

If we were to go to town on sushi, I THINK we would order...prices rounded up:

Miso Soup $12
Edamame $3
Specialty Roll $20
Second Roll $15
Nigiri Sushi x3 $21
Sake x2 $16
Beer x2 $12

Total $99
or
Cocktail Hour Total $50

Then tax and gratuity...

Definitely would want to go during happy hour!

Perfect plan for a Disney Quest day...

 

[TxRabbit]

Kona Island is the Sushi Bar at the Poly.

It appears to only be open from 5 pm to 10 pm. It doesn't accept ressies or the DDP...so perfect for another OOP dining experience.

This would be a great dinner on an MK day.

http://allears.net/menu/men_sushi.htm

Any day that we went to MK would be good plan...

Since we don't have park hoppers...if we decided to take an afternoon break...we could go to the Poly for dinner and then back to the park for some parade watching and Wishes and some evening ambiance...

Another bonus with Kona Island is that is serves Kona brew! I wonder if it's on tap?

What we might order:

Roll x3 $45
Nigiri or Sashimi $17
Draft Kona x4 $13

Total $75

Then tax and gratuity...

 

[TxRabbit]

Magic Kingdom

Funnel Cakes $5.69 - $6.29
Dole Whip $3.79
Soft Serve $3.49

 

[TxRabbit]

An interesting dilemma...

It would appear that the pricing of the new BOG restaurant is similar to The Plaza. As much as I would like to experience the BOG restaurant...I don't think DH or DS would be very patient waiting for a long line, if there was one... From what I read...the dessert would definitely be better at the Plaza...and we could probably split a dessert since we will probably have other snacks...

So I think I'm talking myself into lunch at the Plaza again. It was very pleasant to eat there in 2009. We did AM EMH and were very ready for our lunch by the time it was time for lunch. And the burgers and fries did not disappoint...

And I loved being served...rather than dealing with the whole counter service thing...which I don't find to be all that wonderful in MK...

Sunday, May 26 is the only AM EMH during our stay...

12:05 ADR at The Plaza

Should be around $50 BTT (before tax and tip)

Which seems rather pricey for a burger and fries and a splitting a sundae...

We also had a very pleasant lunch on one trip when we just split a couple turkey leg meals, grabbed some fresh fruit from the produce market...and sat in the square and people watched...

The turkey legs were $8 each then...the fruit was $3.50 and $3.00 ish...
So we're talking about $22.50 BTT

That's a huge difference...even if we added chips

In trying to verify the current pricing of the turkey legs...I have discovered some press about a roasted shank at Gaston's Tavern...hmmm...