What fee at CSR?

[stitchlover]

Trying to make that decision between CBR and CSR...saw someone mention a fee and Pepper Market. Can Buzz or someone please explain?

 

[smep013]

If you visit Pepper Market and sit there to eat, a 10% gratuity is added to your check. It is a food court, but not like any other food courts I have ever seen, it is set up differently and cleaner and the quality of food is better. There is a server who seats you (and brings you your drink?? I cannot remember). If you take out from Pepper Market there is not a added gratuity.

 

[stitchlover]

Ahhhh...what a pain the butt! So I assume DDP does not cover that?

 

[Buzz2001]

Few Items from the lunch menu

Choose a steak

Infamous Wet Burrito

Italian Dishes

MUGS

 

[Buzz2001]

This is not your typical food court. Rather, there are several hot and cold food stations with individual chefs and servers. You can get breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert items at The Pepper Market. The following food stations can be found in The Pepper Market: Mexican Kitchen, Wok Kitchen, Soup, Salads, & Sandwiches, Grill Station, Pizza Kitchen, Pasta Kitchen, Children's Kitchen, Beverage Station, and Bakery Counter.

Upon entering the Pepper Market you will be given one meal card/receipt per person. You must keep these cards. DO NOT LOSE your meal card. Once your host seats you they will ask if you need anything to drink and tell you where the beverage station, etc..is. The Pepper Market hosts are NOT waiters. They are there to seat people and make sure their table has cutlery, napkins, etc... They will get drinks if you desire.

What makes this food court/restaurant different is that you go around to the various stations and select food as desired. Once you make a choice the chef at each counter will stamp your card and serve give you your chosen food. Many of the items at the stations are cooked to order. There is flexibility in combining items. This is a great place for someone who only wants a light meal and the rest of their family wants a heavy one. For example: you can grab a side of Spanish rice from the Mexican station and order a steak from the grill station. The combinations are nearly endless. I love the variety and being able to pick and choose at leisure. If I feel like I want another roll in the middle of my meal all I have to do is get up and head to the bakery station with my meal card.

The best thing is you do not pay until you see the cashier after your meal. While you have the card you can get up and retrieve food as often as you want without having to pay first. This is great since other food courts require you to carry money to each cashier every time you want something else. This is a wonderful option for someone that truly wants a casual meal. Alcohol is also available.

Once you have finished dining, collect your menu cards and take them to the cashier. The cashier calculates the total due. There is a ten percent gratuity automatically added to all orders. To me this is well worth the variety, service and flexible meal options. If you are only going in for take out the ten percent will be waived. Just tell the cashier you are only there for take out. Don't forget to tell the cooks you are there for take out so they package your food properly. You can then take the food back to your room or eat at one of the tables outdoors. In the Pepper Market you also receive real cutlery and cloth napkins (Paper ones are available as well) I found the food at the Pepper Market to be of higher quality than your average food court. Portions tend to be larger as well. If you only want to get your mugs refilled ask the host of a refillable mug pass and go to the beverage station. Upon exiting hand the cashier the pass on the way out.

Some people balk at paying a 10% gratuity. Personally the service and options are well worth a ten percent tip. I like that I can talk to the person preparing my food. If I don't want onions on my sandwich I can tell the cook directly instead of having to relay it through a cashier and then hope the chef got the message. No other Disney food court has as much variety. For someone like myself, who gets tired of typical burgers and sandwiches this food court was a blessing. I also found the portions to be larger than that of a typical Disney food court. This is also the only food court where one doesn't have to clean up after themselves. You simply leave your dishes and tray on your table when you exit and a clerk will clear the table. I found this restaurant to be one of the more relaxing ones at Disney. It was a nice change of pace from the endless lines at Theme Park restaurants

If you don't like the thought of paying the 10%, you can get a "TO GO" ticket and eat outside on the promenade.

 

[lynninpa]

I wouldn't let the fee at the PM be a deciding factor! Just returned in June from CSR and it was just wonderful! The PM has a wonderful atmosphere and is quite relaxing, unlike many other CS at Disney. And where else can you get prime rib with a horseradish drizzle for a CS?! (The prime rib was very good-cooked perfectly!) Just my two cent.
And, at least in 2007, the 10% "eat in" fee is covered by the DDP.

 

[Cool-Beans]

Grrrr...the fee!

OK, here goes. Even if the place is almost completely empty, you have to wait for someone to show up and assign you a table. They also give you silverware. For this privledge of waiting, you are charged an extra 10%.

I've eaten at the Pepper Market a gazillion times and only twice did they get my drink - and I got my own refills at the refill station.

So, in addition to getting all your own food and carrying it to your table and paying the cashier (like any other food court), you have to wait to be assigned a table that you could have just grabbed yourself and are charged 10%.

The fee drives me up the wall. I hate paying it. It isn't the principle of the thing - it's the money.

I tried to order the food To Go last time and take it outside, but it was raining so I had to pay the blasted fee. Argh. Foiled again.

I wouldn't describe the place as "relaxing" but it is pretty cool and fun, IMO. I love the Pepper Market - even made a special trip over to go there, show it to someone else and enjoy it myself - but I'm about ready to give up on the place.

Flippin fee.

(This 10% doesn't bother a lot of people, just me. Sorry Buzz.)

 

[stitchlover]

Thank you, thank you, thank you everyone. The way all of you described and explained that made perfect sense. With the option of eating outside that helps me make that decision. We go in mid-March and it is always beautiful...we can eat outside! I think I will give Disney a call and get a quote on changing over to CSR. That will make DH and DD happy. They want to try something "new".

 

[Stinky_Pete]

During my stay at CSR I tried PM three times and vowed that wild horses couldn't drag me back into that place. There were many reasons, but regarding the fee...

This story is from the 3rd and last time I visited PM:

I went in the morning to get some pastries & muffins "to go" to take back to our room to eat while getting ready to go to the parks. I told the gal at the pastry counter and she went to get a "to go" container. When she came back she for some reason started waiting on another person who walked up after I did(!?!) It was not a "serve yourself" set-up. I didn't care for being brushed aside like that...

After finally getting my breakfast items I told the cashier this was "to go." I should have been more attentive while she was ringing me up, but later looked at the receipt and found out I was again charged the 10%...

Moral of the story - pay close attention if you are getting a "to go" order or you very likely may be charged the 10%.

 

[Buzz2001]

During my stay at CSR I tried PM three times and vowed that wild horses couldn't drag me back into that place. There were many reasons, but regarding the fee...

This story is from the 3rd and last time I visited PM:

I went in the morning to get some pastries & muffins "to go" to take back to our room to eat while getting ready to go to the parks. I told the gal at the pastry counter and she went to get a "to go" container. When she came back she for some reason started waiting on another person who walked up after I did(!?!) It was not a "serve yourself" set-up. I didn't care for being brushed aside like that...

After finally getting my breakfast items I told the cashier this was "to go." I should have been more attentive while she was ringing me up, but later looked at the receipt and found out I was again charged the 10%...

Moral of the story - pay close attention if you are getting a "to go" order or you very likely may be charged the 10%.

Yes, I don't know about "TO GO" containers but make sure you get a "TO GO" ticket. That's the only way I know that the cashiers can tell you did not eat in. There is also a window outside the PM to purchase small items like pastries and muffins so you don't even have to go in. It's between the entrance to the PM and the Maya Grill.

 

[Buzz2001]

Grrrr...the fee!

OK, here goes. Even if the place is almost completely empty, you have to wait for someone to show up and assign you a table. They also give you silverware. For this privledge of waiting, you are charged an extra 10%.

I've eaten at the Pepper Market a gazillion times and only twice did they get my drink - and I got my own refills at the refill station.

So, in addition to getting all your own food and carrying it to your table and paying the cashier (like any other food court), you have to wait to be assigned a table that you could have just grabbed yourself and are charged 10%.

The fee drives me up the wall. I hate paying it. It isn't the principle of the thing - it's the money.

I tried to order the food To Go last time and take it outside, but it was raining so I had to pay the blasted fee. Argh. Foiled again.

I wouldn't describe the place as "relaxing" but it is pretty cool and fun, IMO. I love the Pepper Market - even made a special trip over to go there, show it to someone else and enjoy it myself - but I'm about ready to give up on the place.

Flippin fee.

(This 10% doesn't bother a lot of people, just me. Sorry Buzz.)

No worries. I've eaten there numerous times and I've never had the servers fail to get my drinks and refills and clear my table. The gratuity is also split among all the workers and chefs so it's not just for the waiting...

 

[i3utterfli82]

UGH..I found that the pepper market has the most unfriendly, and inattentive servers and staff anywhere on Disney Property. I think the 10% is nonsense and the food is overpriced for the quality if you are NOT on the DDP.

 

[Stinky_Pete]

UGH..I found that the pepper market has the most unfriendly, and inattentive servers and staff anywhere on Disney Property. I think the 10% is nonsense and the food is overpriced for the quality if you are NOT on the DDP.

Here here!

Buzz - I don't even know if they had "To Go" tickets then. I never heard about or saw them. This was a couple of years ago.

If they did have them I would think that the woman who got the "to go" container for me when I said I wanted to pick up some pastries "to go" might have mentioned it if there was such a thing. But she was too busy taking care of the other customer that arrived after I did. Plus, as I recall, she seemed to be about as bright as a small appliance light bulb...

 

[Cool-Beans]

No worries. I've eaten there numerous times and I've never had the servers fail to get my drinks and refills and clear my table. The gratuity is also split among all the workers and chefs so it's not just for the waiting...

ARGHgrrr. Buzz, you know I heart you and the Pepper Market and CSR. Your site is amazing as are your photography skills.

However, (that's kidna like a "but" only not so obvious ) it is NOT a gratuity. Gratuities are given, not demanded. They're gifts, tips, bonuses - little tiny philanthopic activity. It's a FEE. You are free to disagree, but I'm digging my heels into my Hating The Fee ground.

Also, I don't want to pay the workers and chefs. I want Disney to pay them, like they do in every other flippin food court.

If they want to gauge business travelers who don't care because the company is paying for it anyway, that's fine with me. Maybe they could have some kind of repeat guest card...like a Frequent Flier thing. If you've stayed at CSR and come back again to stay or visit, you don't have to pay the fee. I dunno. Just a thought. Grrr.

I've said it before: I think CSR is a fantastic resort. The grounds are lovely, the theming is outstanding, it is fun and funky and pretty and blah, blah, blah, etc. I just really, really, a lot, very much hate the fee.

But I'll quit *****ing about it. In this thread, anyway.

 

[Goofy4WDW1964]

We have stayed at CSR, POR and CBR.

We did not see any difference in the quality, selection, or serving sizes between any of the food courts for these resorts. They were all comparable. And, we ate at the food courts at all three of these resorts almost every day that we stayed at them. So, we did not try them just once.

I don't feel the CSR food court is any worse than the others. But, I do feel you are not usually getting anything for your 10% gratuity, except your table cleared off.

We ate at Pepper Market 4 times during our stay and not once did we get our drinks brought to us or our drinks refilled by anyone except ourselves. We liked the selections you have there. But, the others also have comparable selections. And, you also order from where it is cooked. Your order does not go through a cashier.

I would not let it deter you from trying the resort. It is a beautiful resort and only you can determine if the 10% gratuity is worth over looking.

 

[Buzz2001]

Everyone is entitled to their opinion. We can just agree to disagree.

I know there are many that don't like it or at least the fee but it doesn't bother me or many on this poll thread. Feel free to vote.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1133200

 

[Buzz2001]

Thank you, thank you, thank you everyone. The way all of you described and explained that made perfect sense. With the option of eating outside that helps me make that decision. We go in mid-March and it is always beautiful...we can eat outside! I think I will give Disney a call and get a quote on changing over to CSR. That will make DH and DD happy. They want to try something "new".

Have a great trip! Enjoy!!

 

[debsays]

I think that there's a big difference in the food court at CSR. Gott love eating out of dinnerware and not paper along with silverware and not plastic. We LOVE the food that they offer and even if we're at another resort, we go by for a meal or two. It's worth the 10%. Koodos to Pepper Mill and CSR