The Dining Plan + Me = True Love!

[kristenhh]

Cast:
Me, 35, last trip to WDW 15 years ago for Honeymoon
DH, 37, also present on Honeymoon
DD12, 1st Timer!
DD10, 1st Timer!
DS6, 1st Timer!
DS4, 1st Timer!
Mom, 64, hasn’t been to WDW for 17 years
Friend to Mom, 63, 1st Timer!

Dining Report:

We used the Dining Plan and we loved it! Somehow I just felt better knowing that everything was already paid for. It didn’t upset me that the kids ate barely anything at a buffet – I was cool with it. Shelling out $60 for every counter service meal (for the 6 people in my family) would have really gotten to me.

What really worked well for us was: having just a little something for breakfast, eating an early counter service lunch (11:00) and then having a table service diner around 6:30. We didn’t get too full and had plenty of food.

 

[kristenhh]

Day One: Old Port Royale Food Court (Caribbean Beach Resort)

We arrived in the evening and didn’t want to travel anywhere so we ate here. We had amongst ourselves: Rotissere Chicken, Pot Roast, Pizza, Child Chicken Nuggets. The Rotissere Chicken was the winner. Nothing was REALLY bad, but it wasn’t really good. However, later in the week we had pre-packed sandwiches from the Grab and Go Section and they were good.

Day Two: Flame Tree BBQ
Boma

The Flame Tree was good. We all had the ribs and there were plenty to go around. My DD’s really liked getting frozen lemonade for their dessert choice – that was the only place that we saw it. I also got a side of Onion Rings – not included on the plan – but well worth it – they were yummy.

Everyone in the party liked Boma, but I loved it. I was brave and took tiny amounts of nearly everything. I loved almost everything, except for a salad that had curry – I am not a curry fan. The others mostly stuck with American favorites, but they did not have the fabulous dining experience that I had. I would definitely go back. We did have to wait quite long for a table – after our scheduled ADR.

 

[kristenhh]

Day Three: Electric Umbrella
Le Cellier
Room Service Pizza

The Electric Umbrella had hamburgers and fries. The burgers were pretty dry, but we put lots of things on them from the condiment bar. They were Okay. The fries were better than I expected for WDW. I might even call them good. They did give us Large sodas here on the dining plan. Everywhere else it was the smaller size. We had cookies for dessert. I would try a different place next time.

Now I have read a lot of good things about Le Cellier, but it was better than amazing! We left the kids at the hotel and the four actual adults went. (2 of the kids are priced like adults, but we left them out!) For appetizers we had Candied Salmon, Shrimp Cocktail and Potato Soup. Everyone loved what they had. For our entrée, we each picked the Mushroom Filet Mignon. Oh my goodness! Every bite was like heaven. It was the best steak I have ever had, and I really like steak. Everyone at the table was like minded because there was no food left on anyone’s plate. We only had a few bites of cobbler for dessert because we were full, and it was okay. Nothing, however could take away from the wonderful meal we had. Nobody should miss this place!

We ordered a pizza through the resort for the kids. It looked yucky, and they didn’t eat much. However, it got me a peaceful meal away.

Day Four: Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Station
Trail’s End Buffet

I was looking forward to the Noodle Station because it would be little different. I had the Shrimp Pot Thai. It had a nice flavor, but was very very dry. Others had the Broccoli Beef and Terayaki Chicken. No one was
terribly impressed, but it wasn’t terrible. Actually I would rate it BELOW mall Chinese food. Oh well, we tried.

Here are some important things to remember about my comments about the Trail’s End Buffet:
1. I knew that it was at Fort Wilderness, but nothing else. Signs there will not help you. You need to know that it is at Pioneer Hall.
2. You cannot drive to or park by Pioneer Hall. Again, signs are no help. Luckily a nice cast member at the kennel there told me we needed to get on a bus.
3. Needless to say we were totally late and cranky by the time we got there.
4. After just eating at Boma and Le Cellier, I was expecting more magic.

Talk about a set up. The food at the buffet was actually pretty good. The set up for the buffet was terrible. There was only one line for the whole thing—so if you just wanted salad, you had to wait through everything. There needed to be a lot more space and access. The dessert was separated a little, but it was hard to get to because it was blocked by the other line! It was hard to get to, and not worth the effort in my opinion.

 

[kristenhh]

Day Five: Boma
Old Port Royale Food Court
Chef Mickey’s
Coral Reef

We had a leisurely breakfast at Boma’s. Again, I liked the original dishes and everyone else had standard breakfast fare. The standard fare was okay. I enjoyed mine!

For lunch we shared a couple of the club sandwiches from the food court. Unlike the hot entrees we had earlier, these were excellent!

For Dinner, DH and the kids went to Chef Mickey’s. We had a great time. My DS(4) could not eat because he was just so excited! We saw all of the characters and it was fun. They only stay long enough for a picture, maybe about 45 seconds, but the kid’s liked it. The dinner was pretty good. I really liked the Chicken-Artichoke-Noodle dish. It reminded me of the dish at
Pizza Port in Disneyland which I love. We had to try the Parmesan Mashed potatos. My DH thought they were good, but I wasn’t that impressed.

My mom and her friend went to the Coral Reef. I was surprised when I talked to them the next day to find out they did not have sea food. They had filet mignon again and it was not as good as Le Cellier, although they said it was a close second. Apparently they could not get lobster without extra money, and there was no crab. The price of the filet mignon was the same as Le Cellier, but it took 2 table credits. Totally not worth it in their opinion and the restaurant was very noisy.

Day 6: 50’s Prime Time Café
Pizza Planet

We had quite a long wait past our ADR time at the Prime Time. We had fun with our waitress. My husband even got a milkshake for his drink. I had some and then neither of us needed additional dessert! The appetizers we had were fried cheese, onion rings and Chicken noodle soup. I had the cheese and the rings and both were excellent. They bring you a horseradish dipping sauce for the rings. I didn’t think I would like it but I did! We got the following entrees: Pot Roast, Meat Loaf, Fried Chicken, Chicken Pot Pie and a Sandwich. Everything was mediocre except for the Pot roast. If we went again I would have that, but I would probably try somewhere else.

Pizza Planet was a surprise. I had read some pretty iffy reviews, but we thought the kids would like it. We were all still pretty full from lunch so we just split 3 Pizza salad combos. The pizza was great! They need to teach the folks at the Caribbean Beach Resort how to make pizza. They also have no kids meal there – they can have the pizza like everyone else. I had read a post earlier where this wasn’t the case, so they must have changed it.

 

[kristenhh]

Day 7: Sunshine Season’s Café
Biergarten

We were supposed to have a counter service in the world showcase, but we were too tired to walk over. I was pleasantly surprised with the Sunshine Season’s Café. First of all, I am used to Disneyland, which has almost all counter service restaurants. They all have a pretty good assortment of yummy desserts. The desserts here have been few choices, and not very
good. This café was the exception! I had a fruit tulip which was delicious. The cheesecakes were nice and you had a lot to pick from. For entrée’s we had chicken caeser salads, chicken with mashed potatoes and some Chinese food. I think the chicken and the potatoes were the best, the chicken in the salad was overcooked, but I overlooked it because I enjoyed my dessert so much! The rest of the party ate here later in the day and thought it was the best counter service they had on the trip.

We ate at Biergarten and the Candlelight Processional Package. The entertainment was fun and my DS(4) got up to dance and got to light their Christmas tree. After eating, my DH said he felt sorry for German’s if that was their typical food. I didn’t mind so much. Their pretzel bread was better than Le Cellier’s, in my opinion. It was probably our least favorite buffet.

Day 8: Peco’s Bills
Crystal Palace

We had to try the famous fixin’s bar at Peco’s Bills and it did not disappoint. We all had Bacon Cheeseburgers and I loaded mine with sauteed onions and mushrooms. They were tasty.

For dinner we ate at the Crystal Palace. Besides Boma, at least in my opinion, this was the best buffet we had. It was the top for the others in my family. The prime rib on the buffet was excellent. The salads were great, the potatoes were great, we liked everything. I don’t know if I have ever had excellent prime rib at a buffet, but this was excellent. I would highly recommend this character meal. We of course got lots of pictures with Pooh and friends. He even fed my DS’s some of their dessert. Totally cute. The only thing missing was honey!

Day 9: Old Port Royale Food Court

Leaving Day! We got a couple of breakfast platters at the food court and they were a good deal for WDW. I think they were $7.09 but they had: scrambled eggs, sausage, a biscuit, french toast and potatoes. There was plenty for sharing.

For lunch we got chicken salad, tuna salad and ham sandwiches at the Grab and Go. We took them on the plane for dinner and they were all very tasty. Sandwiches seem to be the way to go at the Caribbean Beach!

All in all we were very happy with our food. We loved the dining plan and maxed it out. It

 

[HLAuburn]

Thanks for the great reviews! Everything I read makes me even more happy that we added the dining plan. It's going to be so nice not dreading paying that bill at every meal.

Sounds like a nice trip!

 

[thelionqueen]

Enjoyed reading them. Sounds like you had a great time. We also love the dining plan and will never do without it again. I agree with you that somehow, it's almost magical to have it. No worries about how much that meal is, or if you can afford appetizers, etc. Just get what you want and pay nothing (although I know we paid for it earlier, having it prepaid is awesome!)
Thanks for posting!

 

[WAHMto5]

Thanks for the great reviews.......we are also looking soo foward to the dining plan!!

 

[redman group]

Thanks so much for writing all that out, in the process of reading it you answered alot of my questions.

 

[Dustmouse]

What a great review! I've been researching the dining plan and you were loads of help. We love to eat and I think we would really enjoy not thinking about prices on the menu! Was it difficult to keep track of what "credits" you used and what you had left?

 

[PaulaSB12]

Well you have convinced me, I am definatly going for the dining plan if I can get it added to my holiday.

 

[Meezers]

Even though we are not having the dining plan I appreciate your reviews.

I REALLY need to get someone to go to Crystal Palace with me for dinner....don't think 38 yoa DB will go and he and DM already have Teppanyaki plans for that day (my day alone in the MK...watch out)!

So....anyone want to go to CP on Jan 25th for dinner? I volunteer to take pictures!

 

[kristenhh]

What a great review! I've been researching the dining plan and you were loads of help. We love to eat and I think we would really enjoy not thinking about prices on the menu! Was it difficult to keep track of what "credits" you used and what you had left?

I actually made a spread sheet before we left that included: Park Hours, Restaurants, Reservations Times, and a credit tally. It was a little tricky because we had 2 rooms for our immediate family--they officially had 3 people in each room, and the meals were attached to the room each person was in. I just kept everyone's cards with me and I would place the food order's at counter service restaurants using 2 cards.

About half way through the trip, I had the concierge desk print me a copy of what we had used so far, and we were right on. Toward the end I had to make sure I used the right room key to pay for the meals as we were close to running out.

My advice is just make sure you have a definite plan and a schedule for all of your credits -- so much for spontaneity!

 

[Minniespal]

Enjoyed reading your reviews ~ Thanx for posting.

 

[Meezers]

You made a spreadsheet? And I thought I was borderline OCD!

All bow to the queen of planning!

 

[maya44]

We loved Sunshine Seasons. We had the flatbread with beef and the chicken and potatoes and the Salmon

All great. We loved that you could just go to the bakery section and choose any of the many, many desserts. The tupips with fruit and chocolate were incredible as were the brownies and cheesecakes.

And the CM told us to get the largest size drinks on the dining plan.