Why do people eat at the food courts?

[Patience]

I keep reading about how all the food courts are always packed, especially at the values, or how someone didn't like their room because it was too far from the food court. I think I might be missing something here. We have the basic dining plan and we are planning to eat maybe a light breakfast (muffin, bagel, protein bar, etc.) and then eat an early counter service lunch in whatever park we are in and a table service dinner in that same park with a snack in between the meals. I had assumed that most people do the same thing but then why all the comments about the food courts being packed and crazy busy all day? I am thinking if we step in them at all, it would just be to get a drink.

Just wondering

 

[Reddy]

getting the free refills with the old mugs - unless at ASSp

I do the quick service plan so I would go get "snacks" for breakfast - I saw others doing the same thing - most of the time I would see people getting drinks at all times

 

[dawgsgirl]

Not everyone is on the dining plan!!

 

[Patience]

Right, I know not everyone is on the dining plan but I am wondering why people choose food court over restaurants in the parks and why people feel it is important to be close to a food court? Is the food less expensive or is it better than the quick service meals in the parks? More convenient than eating in the parks?

 

[sissy_ib]

Right, I know not everyone is on the dining plan but I am wondering why people choose food court over restaurants in the parks and why people feel it is important to be close to a food court? Is the food less expensive or is it better than the quick service meals in the parks? More convenient than eating in the parks?

Definitely more convenient than the parks. I was very happy with the food at the ASMo food court. They had a good variety for every meal, more so than any one CS in a park. I would not say the food is better than in the parks but I would rather have breakfast at the resort than in a park and waste park time if I am going to eat CS anyways. Plus do any of the CS places in the parks serve B-fast? I mean a CS meal like in the food courts, Mickey waffles, eggs, etc. A muffin or granola bar in the morning is just not enough for most people. I would be cranky before I walked through the turnstiles!

 

[Pixiedust34]

We like to spend some time hanging out at the resort relaxing and swimming. If we're at the resort, the food court is the most convenient place to eat.

 

[razzzbere]

For me it would definately have to be convenience...everyone is in a hurry to get to the parks right? I know I am!

 

[mountdew1]

Right, I know not everyone is on the dining plan but I am wondering why people choose food court over restaurants in the parks and why people feel it is important to be close to a food court? Is the food less expensive or is it better than the quick service meals in the parks? More convenient than eating in the parks?

Breakfast -
Well, most people feel that being at rope drop is important as usually within a few hours of park open, it gets most crowded. So taking advantage of that slower time period is usually viewed as being crucial. So we greatly prefer to eat, and then get to the parks for rope drop and not have to worry about getting food at that point.
Also, some people need to eat within a certain time of waking up, or it screws up their system for the day. Sluggish, grumpy, etc. So they don't have the ability to wait until you get to the parks.
Lastly, the in park breakfast options are pretty bad. Most CS locations really only do lunch/dinner type foods. There are a few exceptions, but not many. So for the most part in the parks you either grab a muffin, croissant, what have you, or do character breakfast.

Lunch -
No idea why people would eat at the resort. The best thing I can think of is those who go back to nap, swim, etc. It may be easier for them to eat there.

Dinner -
Same thing as lunch. Some people like to go back to change, switch from water park to theme park, etc. Personally we do several smaller meals, so DW and I often will grab something to split when we get back to the hotel as we are usually hungry again by that time.


Is it less expensive or better than at the parks? Not really. WDW has done a solid job of equalizing the prices across property. A fountain soda will cost pretty much the same any where. Same for a milk, burger, omelet, etc.

And the food quality is about the same. Now the resort food courts do tend to offer one of two things. The ones at the values and some moderates tend to offer a bigger selection than you would find at any one location in park. Having 4 windows to serve from gives you the same selection as 3-4 park locations. And the ones at the deluxe resorts may be smaller, but they often have more unique or slightly upscale options. Flatbreads, fancy salads and the like that aren't as common at the other locations. So they do have that going for them.

 

[mpls_mm]

We aren't huge fans of the food courts either, except Coronado. That one seems exceptional if you ignore rude help and don't mind chaos. We eat there even on DDP.

 

[EPCOTatNight]

Definitely more convenient than the parks. I was very happy with the food at the ASMo food court. They had a good variety for every meal, more so than any one CS in a park. I would not say the food is better than in the parks but I would rather have breakfast at the resort than in a park and waste park time if I am going to eat CS anyways. Plus do any of the CS places in the parks serve B-fast? I mean a CS meal like in the food courts, Mickey waffles, eggs, etc. A muffin or granola bar in the morning is just not enough for most people. I would be cranky before I walked through the turnstiles!

 

[TheRustyScupper]

Why do people eat at the food courts?

Because
. . . it is relatively cheap, even for Disney standards
. . . good tasting, even compared to some Signature eateries
. . . usually convenient to the bus stops
. . . normally pretty quick to get in and out
. . . large enough that even big crowds can fit

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

We don't always do a park on our first day so when we're at a value or a mod, we usually have lunch at the food court. We also do breakfast there - either sit down or someone brings it back to the room. I actually like the food and variety at the food courts and I miss them at some of the deluxes.

 

[Buckimion]

Meals eaten before and/or after at the hotel means less ride time wasted eating.

 

[Lumiere Lover]

For some people, the food courts are quicker. I like to use them to get a quick snack, or a quick meal. When I am in the parks, I only want to spend one meal sitting down and waiting for service. I prefer to eat quickly and move on.

 

[WantToGoNow]

On our last trip to POR, I would go up every morning and refill all of our mugs and get pastries for breakfasts. One day we left the park at 1 and went back for rest/swimming - we stopped at the food court for lunch on the way. Two nights during our 9 night trip, we had dinner at the food court after the parks closed. The food selection was very good and my kids actually had real meals to choose from - sliced turkey, ham, pasta w/ alfredo.

 

[MickeyNicki]

Why do we eat at the food courts? Cheaper than TS, easy quick breakfast and when you hang at the pool all day you want to eat and not get all cleaned up and travel some place just to eat and go back to the pool

 

[ford91exploder]

I keep reading about how all the food courts are always packed, especially at the values, or how someone didn't like their room because it was too far from the food court. I think I might be missing something here. We have the basic dining plan and we are planning to eat maybe a light breakfast (muffin, bagel, protein bar, etc.) and then eat an early counter service lunch in whatever park we are in and a table service dinner in that same park with a snack in between the meals. I had assumed that most people do the same thing but then why all the comments about the food courts being packed and crazy busy all day? I am thinking if we step in them at all, it would just be to get a drink.

Just wondering

Especially at DVC resorts you can get something light quickly, Flatbreads and deli sandwiches come to mind immediately and you can usually be in and out in 15 minutes.

I frequently stay at SSR and when we want a light supper the Artist's Pallette is just right and we can take the food back to our villa or eat there and we can be in and out in 15 minutes or less with a satisfying reasonably priced meal.

I also enjoy the Turf Club at SSR but for 2 people you are not getting out of there for less than $100

Just look at the food courts as another dining option, Another example at the MK hot dogs are usually uninspiring, but at Casey's Corner they are fantastic. (so I eat hot dogs only there!)

The whinging about the food courts I think comes from people who are unhappy unless they have something to complain about.

Think of it like this "A Bad Day at Disney is better than a good day in the REAL World"

 

[cajunprincess]

My family and I always enjoy going to the food courts for breakfast. It's usually plenty of food, so we just use our snack credit for lunch. That usually holds us over until dinner. I do love the food courts.

 

[Order66]

We always eat at the food court at least a few times. Our last 2 stays were at POR and I think they've got better food than most of the CS at the parks.

We generally don't go right to the parks upon arrival. We take later flights and arrive late afternoon to early evening. We'll either eat at DTD or the food court. Lunch is always on the way to the airport, so we're pretty hungry when we arrive.

I'm not a real breakfast eater, so I typically bring cereal and pop tarts for the kids. But at least a couple of times we need our fix of Mickey waffles. Missing out on those would be like skipping POTC! So it's much cheaper and faster to get them there than pay $35 (or a TS credit) for my 11 year old to eat 2 waffles and a piece of bacon at Chef Mickey. At the food court they'll give him 4 of the mini waffles for an adult credit. That's enough for he and I to share....since he's a small eater and I'm a coffee for breakfast kind of person.

Now we do splurge on 1 or 2 character meals (and I'll only do buffets for breakfast) but my kids are better eaters for a sit down lunch or dinner.

We also take at least 1 day "off" on our trips that are usually 8-10 nights. We chill at the pool, eat lunch at the resort and either go to DQ or hit a park for an evening. We also pick one day to come back early, get a large pizza and eat by the pool. My kids will always vote for this at the "favorite meal" of the trip.

We've also had times when we've had a lunch real late and were still not hungry by dinner time. But by the time the park is closing we are. When we get back to the resort we head to the food court.

On our last full day we stay out at whatever park is open latest, midnight or sometimes later. So our departure day is sleep in, a last swim and lunch at the resort. So we easily do 5 or so meals at the resort.

regards

 

[lisam427]

i actually really liked the food courts at both riverside and cbr (especially cbr). i never found either crowded and we easily were able to find a table even during times when it was supposed to be super busy. the food was always really good. with the exception of wolfgang puck, we ate most of our counter service meals at the resort food courts, and used quite a few of our snack credits there too. i am looking forward to trying peppermarket several times during our upcoming trip. i have never been to the food courts at the values or the deluxes, but the moderates i have been to so far have great food courts!