Why hasn't Disney improved deluxe counter service?

[Kimosabe]

1) Because some people don't want to eat large platters of heavily salted, fat-laden food for breakfast and would happily pay for healthier grab and go items. GF and BC have a far better selection than Poly, so it is possible.
2) If Disney wasn't generating revenue and profit on grab and go items, they wouldn't offer them. I believe charging $2.75 for a bottle of grab-and-go water and $3+ for a fruit cup is generating quite a profit. Now put a plain yogurt or a few boiled eggs in there for another $3-$4 more and you've just gotten the cost equivalent of an entree and side from me and it didn't require me to clog a line or use up kitchen staff labor.
3) Again, profit margin on grab-and-go at Disney is quite substantial. There is plenty of room in the fridge sections at the deluxe QS to offer healthier options.
4) If I owned the resort and eatery I would rather sell food that people are going to buy. We left there empty handed many days.

Although your premise seems probable, I wonder how many would go for the healthy alternative(s).

A lot of people would...a whole heck of a lot of people.

 

[jon18uk]

To be fair to Disney, if you stay at a full-service hotel, such as a Hilton, or W, or Intercontinental, or Marriott you will NOT find anything remotely close to a Disney QS. What they will have that is most similar to a QS is what BC has at the Marketplace - a counter that serves very limited items (coffee, pastries, etc.) and where you can take your food to limited tables, the lobby, or your room. If you actually want breakfast, or lunch, or dinner, you will go to one of their actual restaurants, where you sit down and order and are priced accordingly *or* order room service with the usual service charge and delivery fees. So, it's not a Disney thing, it's really a hotel industry-wide thing.

Personally, I would love to see better food options and seating at the deluxe QS, but I don't think there will be enough on an ROI for Disney to do this. In fact, it may take away from the profits from their regular restaurants. I love the BC/YC, but the Marketplace is sorely lacking. We've also stayed at Poly, AKL, and WL, and while their QS are a little better, it's not where I would want to regularly begin my day.

If you are at a city centre Hilton then you have the option of walking down the street to Chipotle, Five Guys, Subway or a huge number of other restaurants. At Disney you are somewhat more stuck to what the hotel offers. Also (in Europe at least) most hotels have the capacity to offer breakfast to all guests each morning, I don't think Disney has enough openings at TS for everyone.

Finally, if Disney are going to offer QS in deluxe then do it well. Almost better to offer nothing than a QS with slow service. Several reviews I read mentioned issues with QS at WL, would it be better to offer TS and a coffee bar only instead of having a slow limited QS?

 

[hedberg1661]

My family is a perfect example of this. I frequently stay at BC which arguably has one of the worst QS restaurants anywhere. However I never go there. Disney has me pegged. I stay at a Deluxe and well I spend more to eat at nicer places. That was their vision and we play right into their hands.

 

[Aurora0427]

We always stay deluxe and we've never given a second thought to the quality of the counter service available. We either do TS or room service. The few times we've availed ourselves of our resort's CS it was only for snacks or drinks so we've always found them to be adequate for our needs.

Same here. Or we eat at Epcot World Showcase. We dislike the food court atmosphere at mods and values. Our favorite deluxe QS restaurant is Gasparilla Grill at the GF. They have some interesting items, and a good selection. It is definitely better than what you find at WL and BC. It's also pretty relaxing. But we don't eat at the resort a ton. As much as we liked GG, we only ate a full meal there once over a 6 night stay, the rest of the time we had drinks and snacks.

 

[MelanieRI]

"Why hasn't Disney improved deluxe counter service?"

Hmm...to get me to pay extra for CL and the convince of it all? lol

 

[klinlin]

We stay deluxe and I would hate to see a food court. We are by no means rich, and the WDW trip is so ridiculously expensive, we can only go every two or three years. But when we are there, we are on vacation! The parks are hot, crowded and so much time is spent waiting in line. The Beach Club is my oasis! I don't want to spend any more time jockeying for position. I want to relax.

We have a sit down meal each day, and usually are in the park for rope drop. I have had no issues with the Marketplace, and had had some good quick service pool side from Hurricane Hannah's. We choose deluxe for proximity to the parks, and hotel amenities, not what counter service is available.

Having worked for over twenty years in the hospitality industry, I have to agree with Rusty. People always say they want healthier options, but when there is a choice, 8/10 choose the donut, the chicken wings, the pizza, etc... And the grab and go veggie tray gets tossed at the end of the day.

 

[goofy4prez]

Been to POR and POFQ before and my DH wanted to try a new resort. He also liked the look of WL when we walked through on a previous trip. But I remember on previous coming back after a day at Universal or somewhere and wanting a quick dinner and I was put off by the restrictive quick service menus at the deluxe resorts compared to the moderates and values.



I was basically thinking the opposite, I would spend the extra to stay at a deluxe resort, but Port Orleans has a better food court so is it really worth upgrading. Its not that improving the food court would make people want to upgrade. Just its currently the weakest part of the deluxe resorts in reviews I've read.

I'm curious on those reviews; are they from people who have stayed at a value or moderate or are they from those who frequently stay at a deluxe. I personally think this is one of the strengths of the deluxe resorts. I myself do not want a food court in a deluxe and may actually avoid it if there was one. I personally think that Roaring Forks at the WL is very good; I think that the Contempo Cafe at the CR is one of the best, I enjoy the Gasparilla Island Grill at the GF; I have no complaints about Captain Cooks at the Poly, Mara at the AKL is pretty nice as well. The only resorts I would say may be a bit on the weak side would be the Boardwalk area, but there are plenty of options a quick walk away, which is IMHO a much easier walk than the mile long walk to get to a food court from some of the value or moderate resorts.

All I can say to sum it up; each type of resort level is catering to a different experience and I for one don't want to see a food court in a deluxe resort. I'm not trying to sound elitist, snobbish, or stuck up, but I simply would avoid a food court and may actually avoid that resort as well. There are way more than enough hamburger, corn dog, frozen pizza, chicken nuggets, french fry and cold sandwich cs and food court places to be found all over WDW and am glad not to see them in the deluxe resorts.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I think it's part of the strategy with selling their packages. It's more likely that someone looking for a lower-priced vacation may be staying at a Value and would go for the QS Dining Plan (that's even how they package it during Free Dining). Therefore they would need a more substantial QS offering to satisfy those customers. At a Deluxe, perhaps they are trying to push the 1 TS a day dining plan, in which case, the QSs they have in place would be totally suitable for perhaps one meal a day/snacks/drinks. I think it's all tied in. The moderates would be in the middle. Not that these setups perfectly fit each individual's wants, but it's all designed deliberately...This definitely isn't an oversight on Disney's part.

 

[Madame]

We stayed at BC a few weeks ago & definitely preferred the POR food court to the Marketplace. We are a family of 5 who would stay value if we could, so our resort choice is not emotionally motivated. We had an *** deal which allowed us to stay deluxe (no DDP),otherwise we never would. We prefer 2-3 vacations a year in a mod or equivalent to 1 in a deluxe.

While we were better off than those staying at YC (friends were there at the same time and on the dining plan), the Marketplace needs to expand their menu. It was more chaotic there than the Riverside Mill as well! & I still had to stand in line to order, then to pay. Plus you're crushed in there with guests browsing the gift store side.

Fortunately we had hoppers & solved the issue by hopping into EP (especially to the Pâtisserie ). You could walk or boat over to the boardwalk, but that negates the 'quick' service.

For those of you who suggest room service. Just ugh! It's not the $, nor the menu (never even looked at it). At both POR & BC we brought cereal & snack foods for breakfast. 2 chairs (heavy to move) & a table at POR. Kids ate in turns. We adults didn't bother. 1 bowl of spilled cereal, 1 breakfast bar crushed on the floor .

BC one desk (too tall for my kids to eat at comfortably), a rolling little table pushed up to the daybed, 2 bowls of spilled cereal (felt so much worse about it in a newly renovated room!). Not complaining as we just cleaned it up & went about our day, but I cannot fathom eating sloppy sandwiches, pizza or something that required cutting with 3 children in a deluxe room .

 

[jon18uk]

I'm curious on those reviews; are they from people who have stayed at a value or moderate or are they from those who frequently stay at a deluxe. I personally think this is one of the strengths of the deluxe resorts. I myself do not want a food court in a deluxe and may actually avoid it if there was one. I personally think that Roaring Forks at the WL is very good; I think that the Contempo Cafe at the CR is one of the best, I enjoy the Gasparilla Island Grill at the GF; I have no complaints about Captain Cooks at the Poly, Mara at the AKL is pretty nice as well. The only resorts I would say may be a bit on the weak side would be the Boardwalk area, but there are plenty of options a quick walk away, which is IMHO a much easier walk than the mile long walk to get to a food court from some of the value or moderate resorts.

All I can say to sum it up; each type of resort level is catering to a different experience and I for one don't want to see a food court in a deluxe resort. I'm not trying to sound elitist, snobbish, or stuck up, but I simply would avoid a food court and may actually avoid that resort as well. There are way more than enough hamburger, corn dog, frozen pizza, chicken nuggets, french fry and cold sandwich cs and food court places to be found all over WDW and am glad not to see them in the deluxe resorts.

Reviews are general TripAdvisor ones so no idea if they have been before. But also see comments on here and other forums.


I don't want a food court, just a counter service that works. Many comments are that the deluxe CS are too small, chaotic and badly organised. That doesn't sound like a deluxe experience. As I said in another comment, look at Wolfgang Puck Express or Be Our Guest, real plates and silverware, good quality food and only needing to queue once.

 

[goofy4prez]

Reviews are general TripAdvisor ones so no idea if they have been before. But also see comments on here and other forums.


I don't want a food court, just a counter service that works. Many comments are that the deluxe CS are too small, chaotic and badly organised. That doesn't sound like a deluxe experience. As I said in another comment, look at Wolfgang Puck Express or Be Our Guest, real plates and silverware, good quality food and only needing to queue once.

I guess it's really a matter of opinion. I personally don't think Roaring Forks, Gasparilla Grill, Capt Cooks, or the Contempo Café are chaotic or badly organized. I will agree that Whispering Canyon may be small, but considering the size of the resort, it meets the need adequately. I also think the food offerings are pretty good with some nice variety even without real plates and silverware, which I really don't expect at a cs restaurant. As for WPE and BOG, they are completely different animals and cant even be compared to a cs in a resort; that would be like comparing Taco Bell to Chipotle. By the way, I do consider the ordering process and purchasing at BOG to be chaotic. Sure, I like WPE and BOG, but I would never expect that in a deluxe resort or any other resort in WDW.