Trip on a Budget where do we EAT?

[bumbershoot]

I'll third Sweet Tomatoes!

 

[Bonniec]

Since everyyone gave suggestions for outside the park, I will share my tips for inside. We are at one of the parks every weekend so we have to eat cheap, lol. All of the TS restaurants are really expensive and we just can't afford them.

Regarding Seaworld and Universal....I don't really like any of the food at those. The Seaworld all you can eat deal is a good value but the food is bleh imo. I would eat snacks and then go outside the parks to eat. I have heard Mythos at IOA is wonderful and not too pricey but I've not tried it yet.


Disney has some really great deals if you know where to look. I will often buy a kid's meal for myself at QS locations. Skip the chicken nuggets, they don't give you many but the mac n cheese and pizzas are good. I will also share an adult meal with my child a lot.

Some QS places are better than others but you are still looking at around $10 a person. But keep in mind you can bu a la carte even though the menu onl lists a whole meal. You can get a burger without the fries. And order ice water (always free) instead of soda.

At MK, I really love Columbia Harbor House. They have a grilled salmon with cous cous and broccoli for like $10 which is really nice. Their mac n cheese kid's meal comes with yogurt and grapes and plenty enough for an adult. Plus the place is very quiet, especially up stairs and it's a good place to unwind.

I've also heard Pecos Bills is nice and Tortuga Tavern. Both are supposed to have nice toppings bars.

At Epcot, Sunshine Seasons is a really nice QS location and you can refill the sodas there.



But even with that, we rarely eat QS. We mostly snack all day. Disney has some very delicous snacks. The bakeries are your friend! A lot of them have really delicous sandwiches for around $6. Get that with an ice water. Also, the muffins and cupcakes are HUGE. Check out the Disney food blog and search for snacks and where to get them. There are definately some must do's.

Pics of a cupcake and one of those $6 sandwiches here

You can also bring snacks into the park.

 

[MinnieForMe]

And consider getting kids meals at the CS places - I always do, and save a ton, and with grapes and carrots as my sides, I feel like I'm eating healthier, too.

KC

I have to agree. The kids and I all got kids meals at Peco Bill's (Magic Kingdom) and my husband got an adult meal. There was more than enough for me to eat plus I believe a small drink came with the kid's drink. It was a very reasonable lunch for around $30.00 for the five of us!

 

[torinsmom]

There is a Giordano's really close to the Windsor Hill area, up by where you turn onto Formosa Gardens. We ate really cheap there with the restaurant.com certificate and man, was it good! There is a CiCis really close there, along with lots of other restaurants. A couple places have 3.99 breakfast buffets if you are big breakfast eaters. We LOVE Chikfila and there is one about 2 miles down Formosa.

In the parks, order water and bring in flavor packs if you don't want plain water. That saves $2-$3/ drink and really adds up. You can get free ice water at any CS restaurant or kiosk that sells fountain sodas. I also order kids meals often. The choices are healthier and they are a lot cheaper. I've also shared an adult meal with my son when he was younger. We didn't ask for the extra bun; we just cut the burger down the middle and it was plenty with the fries. You can also bring in snacks to have when you get hungry. I being in crackers, fruit snacks, granola bars, etc. We get to the parks for rope drop and head back to the house for a break/lunch.

 

[KCMiller]

I just came back from a whirlwind trip to visit my DD22 who's doing a CP, and have a suggestion for a good way to save if the kids meals at the QS places don't appeal.

We ate at Mama Melroses one evening, and for the three of us, we got the antipasto platter, a flatbread pizza, and a bowl of the kids pasta with meat sauce. The server couldn't have been more pleasant about letting us order like that - she even volunteered that if we ordered a kids portion instead of a side of pasta (which is what we would have done), we'd get a much better deal. So instead of spending a huge amount, we had plenty to eat, and spend a reasonable amount.

Basically, the thing is to order things to share - not a separate entree for each person. And consider that you can order a PART of a kids meal - you don't have to pay for the sides if you don't want them. You can always order more food if you're still hungry, right? And the other trick to save money if you're doing table service is to just drink water, and don't order dessert. LOTS of savings right there, and it's no bad thing, anyway, to save those calories for a Mickey Bar (which costs about half what a table service dessert will).

KC

 

[bankgirl05]

thank you so much for all the ideas, I guess I didn't realize there were going to be that many options right there (PHEW!) I was reading horror stories of the high prices in the "nicer" restaurants inside the parks and thought we were doomed!

You won't exactly have "sticker shock" but do be aware that THEME PARK food is still more expensive than just running to your corner MickeyD's and ordering off of the dollar menu. I think after a few days of this, your family will be begging you to make a "real meal" (I made a quick spaghetti and meat sauce on our last trip when we stayed at the cabins, and my family was sooo relieved to have something cooked by mom!!!) We had the Dining Plan with CS and TS and we were just sick of THEME PARK food. Some was good, some was ok, some was meh, but that's just us. Cooking is kinda my first love... my family is spoiled.

I took my DD16 and her BFF to Universal in May, and again theme park food, a bit pricey, even on City walk, but at Margaritaville she ordered the Nacho Volcano (not sure if that is what it was called, but that is what it looked like) We could possibly have fed 5 people with it!!!

I just have a hard time paying almost $5 for a cup of cut up fruit that no doubt cost less than .60 from the carts in the parks.

The frozen water bottles are always a life saver for us, we have those thermal huggies that zip around the bottles (a souvenier from our 2007 trip) that we reuse all the time, keeps water cold half the day, and even while it was still half ice, I would get a free cup of ice water at CS and top off my bottle.

 

[Planogirl]

OP, you might want to check the Universal board for more information about where to eat. There is a sticky thread with menus and there are definitely good places to eat at Universal.

 

[disney_me]

Another one here for Sweet Tomatoes! Love that place! We head back to WDW in February and Sweet Tomatoes is on our list of places to eat.

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

We found Sea World to have expensive food, and that is the park you don't want to leave to get lunch b/c of the shows. We always stop at Publix and get sandwiches and subs from the deli. There are several near the park.

 

[neatokimmo]

At Seaworld, I generally just have a Shamu bar. I'm not a big fan of Seaworld's food so snacking is the way to go for me.

Seaworld's food is awful. We went there for 3 or 4 days awhile back and ended up buying sandwich fixings to take with us.