When you add Universal in...

[slbgnb]

We will do 5 days at Disney and 2 days at Universal. On the days people do Universal, do you tend to leave the Universal park with time to do an ADR at Disney restaurant or is it best to eat at Universal or just leave the night "open"? Thanks!

 

[jeanico2000]

Just my opinion of course, but there are so many nice places to eat at Universal (in the parks, or City Walk, or the onsite hotels), that I would definitely enjoy a dinner there before returning to Disney!

 

[wdw4rfam]

It depends. We usually try and catch free dining at Disney, so if we have the dining plans, yes, try and get back for dinner. We usually do 2-3 days at universal, so it's plenty of time. Do keep in mind that I-4 is a nightmare at rush hour, so we usually try and leave a little before.

 

[JimmyV]

FWIW, when we decided to add a Universal side trip to the middle of our upcoming Disney vacation, we cancelled our ADR for that night and will wing it. As noted above, there are plenty of dining options at Universal/City Walk that equal or surpass Disney dining, and even if we decide to go back to our resort in time for dinner, since we are staying in the Boardwalk area, I am certain that we can walk in to one of the Swan/Dolphin restaurants without an ADR.

 

[Hootch]

We have stayed at the parks we were visiting when we visited both WDW and Universal. The Universal express pass, available with the deluxe hotels, makes touring much easier.

If you opt to stay at Disney, I would think about eating at one of the resorts or in City Walk. They have added some interesting causal restaurants and some very good upscale restaurants depending on your preference. The drive back is not bad at all. A couple of turns out of the parking garage and you're on the interstate.

 

[BrianL]

If eating at Universal I highly recommend Mythos, which is really great. There are good places on Citywalk too, but nothing amazing.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I would either eat at Universal or wing it. In terms of theme park and resort options, Universal is superior to Disney IMHO (with the exception of the Swan/Dolphin restaurants which are great). Plus you can make many Universal restaurant reservations on opentable or through Universal and they don't require a cc hold. We particularly liked Mythos, Mamma Dellas and Cowfish. The Kitchen was good too.

 

[showers2flowers]

Just my opinion of course, but there are so many nice places to eat at Universal (in the parks, or City Walk, or the onsite hotels), that I would definitely enjoy a dinner there before returning to Disney!

This. I don't find WDW dining options to be bad, and to be sure there are some great ones, but you will find a much greater variety, with unique food that for the most part hasn't been as 'dumbed down' as WDW food can be, at UO. From Tchoup Chop at Royal Pacific, to Mythos inside the park, to the Cowfish and many others in CityWalk, I'd take advantage of the opportunity and try something at UO.

 

[Crystal824]

Last trip we did Universal, we had the DP so we ate at the foodcourt back at our hotel that evening. With no DP (or if you plan to use credits elsewhere) then I would eat at Universal.

 

[matheke]

Check the Universall site. There are many choices and a wide variety of restaurants.

Just my opinion of course, but there are so many nice places to eat at Universal (in the parks, or City Walk, or the onsite hotels), that I would definitely enjoy a dinner there before returning to Disney!

This. I don't find WDW dining options to be bad,

I think they were talking about "returning to Disney" as in that night and not in general.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

On the days people do Universal, do you tend to leave the Universal park with time to do an ADR at Disney restaurant?

NO! traffic between the two parks at rush hour is often slow. Not worth doing unless you are constrained by the DDP.

is it best to eat at Universal or just leave the night "open"? Thanks!

YES! Both!

One beautiful aspect of Universal is that you can get decent quality food (almost) whenever you want! Most places, most times, waits are under 30 minutes. Really! If you want a reservation, you can make them 3-24 hours in advance to avoid any wait. I do suggest making one for Mythos.

The other places that get a little busy are the Harry Potter QS's, especially Three Broomsticks during peak lunch on busy days. Mostly, we've had our food in 15min. The food and theming are SUPER though!

Universal offers many options at all different price points. Overall we find the US food to be better than WDW. Universal has the new free choice Coke machines. Super for free water refills! It blows my mind that WDW doesn't have them.

There are also many offerings just off property. Next door is a plaza with a fun Whole Foods. Not inexpensive, but it has an extensive hot bar/salad bar: over a dozen soups, bbq, fresh prepped seafood+sushi, full bakery, fresh squeezed juice bar, brick oven pizza, etc. Some I-Drive places are to be avoided. Though if you happen to like ANY American chains, there's probably a branch in the WDW/US vicinity!

We've only tried a few options in the hotels, but we were very pleased. RP serves sushi at 5pm. It was slightly $$ (expected at a hotel), but high quality, good portions, and NO ADR. Portofino's Trattoria has an all you can eat custom pasta option with meats/veggies, soup, even gluten free pasta choice. I think $26 adults/$12 kids w/non-alcohol beverage. (I'm not 100% on that price.)

Universal also has many adult beverage paired with food. options. In the park, we really liked the food at Finnegan's Pub. Some of the in-park QS options are fried junk, but much US food is now better than WDW.

 

[slbgnb]

Just what I needed to hear. Thank you!!!

 

[strat68]

As was mentioned I would spend 2 nights at either end of the trip staying at a Universal Hotel just to get the express pass for free. Dining at City Walk is varied and always pretty good. When Disney Springs is done it might just catch up to City Walk dining.

So yes, eat at somewhere at Universal.

 

[illinidp]

We don't spend as much time at Universal so we tend to leave the night open and do QS for lunch and dinner, esp since we get the express pass now. The Simpsons area, the Harry Potter areas, and the Jurassic Park area all have great counter service options.

 

[PrincessJo]

We love The Kitchen at the Hard Rock Hotel. We go every time we are there. Last time we went it was a character dinner and the minion was freaking hilarious. I have it on video and it makes me laugh every time.

 

[showers2flowers]

Check the Universall site. There are many choices and a wide variety of restaurants.





I think they were talking about "returning to Disney" as in that night and not in general.

Oh, I know. I was just responding to the question about where to eat that evening by recommending the opportunity to try something new, since they'll already be at UO anyway.

 

[goofy4tink]

I love Tchoup Chop, at RPR, a lot. Yes, it's expensive. But what a nice way to end your day and relax a bit before heading back to WDW! If you eat later in the day, you should be able to miss the worst of the traffic.

 

[epcotty]

I say eat at Universal! We always do that. Otherwise it wastes time and defeats the purpose of going to Universal

 

[cdnjason]

Depends on how many butterbeers I've and whether or not I'm fit to drive afterwards.

 

[Jetta8300]

We will do 5 days at Disney and 2 days at Universal. On the days people do Universal, do you tend to leave the Universal park with time to do an ADR at Disney restaurant or is it best to eat at Universal or just leave the night "open"? Thanks!

We do Universal every trip and we always come back to Disney to eat dinner with an ADR. Having said that, we always get Express passes. But the food in Universal isn't that good in our opinion, especially in the parks. And Universal is also EXHAUSTING. So by about 6-7:00, we are definitely done. We usually do Islands of Adventure in the morning, and then eat at Hard Rock or something else for lunch there at City Walk. Then do Universal Studios in the afternoon and finish up by about 6:30, we are exhausted. It's great to come back to Disney for a good meal and some time to sit. We aren't dressed properly usually for Emeril's or anything, so going back to Disney is usually a better option.