You ate HOW MUCH food? Our DxDP results!

[aheape1979]

This is my first attempt at a dining review, so please bear with me. It will be relatively short and sweet!
We were on free dining, upgraded to deluxe dining from 9/16 to 9/27. After 29 (yes, 29!) dining reservations, we were ready for our longest vacation ever. Our cast was:
DH- 32, civil engineer, LOVES to eat (yet is so thin!)
Me- 30, Speech Language Pathologist, Love gourmet dining!
DD4 and DD2- not very picky, both love steak, chicken, and dessert!

I will also show which reservations we changed (or cancelled).

Here we go!

Wednesday, 9/16
We left SC at 5 a.m. when I couldn't sleep any more. I was too excited!
We arrived at CSR, checked in, then headed to the MK! As it was lunchtime, we decided to use our first credits and get a quick CS.

MK Bakery- 2 credits
Total: 25.71

Dinner reservations were for Kona Cafe. We weren't overly impressed with this dinner. It was okay, just not exactly what we wanted for our first WDW TS meal.

Kona Cafe- 3 Credits
Total: 92.68

Thursday, 9/17
This was a AK day, and we had breakfast ressies before the park opened. Tusker House was a good breakfast, and the character interaction was good. I liked the mealie pap, but my kids didn't

Tusker House Breakfast- 3 credits
Total: 57.48

We left the park at lunchtime for our reservation at Sanaa. I never ate African food before (except Boma last year) and these flavors were too strong for me! I must say that we were hot and tired by this time, so I can't totally say this was a bad meal

Sanaa- 3 credits
Total: 64.31

Dinner was at Artist Point at the Wilderness Lodge. We upgraded the day before to APs and got the TIW card, which gave us free valet parking. We drove to WL and Artist Point. This meal was awesome!

Artist Point- 6 credits
Total: 170.40

Friday, September 18
Breakfast this morning was at Rix Cafe at CSR. We were not overly impressed with this breakfast, but it sufficed.

Rix Cafe- 2 Credits
Total: around 14

Lunch was at Sci Fi Dine In. DD2 had a cold and had thrown up earlier in the day, so we were leery about even keeping this reservation. She fell asleep on the car seat and drank a milkshake when she woke up. This was a good meal, as we were already getting tired of HUGE meals all the time.

Sci Fi- 3 Credits
Total: 47.60

Dinner tonight was one of our favorites! We parked at the Boardwalk Inn and walked down to Flying Fish. Our server was one of the best ever and made excellent recommendations! The food was wonderful, as was my wine paring! This is a definate repeat for our May Anniversary trip! (Oh, Cat Kora and her partner sat 3 tables away from us!)

Flying Fish- 6 credits
Total: 159.68

Saturday, 9/19
This was a "3 meal" day, and I knew we needed to pace ourselves. Breakfast was at Chef Mickey's before our day in EPCOT. Great character interaction!

Chef Mickeys- 3 credits
Total: 68.13

Lunch was at Teppan Edo. We were sorely disappointed in this restaurant. The food was typical hibachi. Our server was not friendly to us, as she was much more interested in speaking to the Japanese couple at our table. She charged us for DD2's drink, which was the ONLY restaurant to do so. DD2 shared meals with us everywhere, but nowhere else charged us for her drink. The meal was overpriced, and we would have been upset had we not been on the DP.

Teppan Edo- 3 credits
Total: 101.34

Dinner tonight was at Kouzzina. This was the first night Cat had not been here, but that was fine with us. Our wait for a table was lengthy. We arrived 25 minutes before our reservation (they suggest 20) and weren't seated until 25 minutes after our reservation. DD2 was hungry and got very fussy! Dinner here was okay, but I wasn't overly impressed. We went to EPCOT and saw Illuminations after dinner, so that perked things up!

Kouzzina- 3 credits
Total: 97.58

More to follow!

 

[aheape1979]

Sunday, 9/20

This morning was a CS breakfast at MS Bakery. I got the cinnamon roll and DH got the croissant sandwich. He said mine was better!

MS Bakery- 2 credits
Total: 11.41

DD4 had a 10:30 BBB reservation, so DH and DD2 rode IASW multiple times while I stayed at BBB. Lunch was at CRT. We ate dinner there last year, and were disappointed at the food at lunch versus the dinner food. The princess interaction was better at lunch, though

CRT- 6 credits
Total: 122.17

Dinner tonight was at O'hana. This was tied for our favorite meal of the trip! The food was awesome! We really enjoyed this meal!

O'hana- 3 credits
Total: 78.81

Monday, 9/21

Breakfast this morning was at Crystal Palace. By this point, we were very tired and should probably have cancelled this and slept late. However, we really wanted to eat with Pooh and friends. DD2 was very tired and DH gave her a cup of chocolate milk. This was too much with her cold, and she immediately threw up into her napkin. At this point, DH took her back to the hotel and left DD4 and I to finish the meal. After breakfast, DD4 and I went back to the hotel. We all took a 4 hour nap!

Crystal Palace- 3 credits
Total: 52.16

Lunch today was supposed to be at GF Cafe, but we slept through the reservation! Instead, I ended up grabbing sandwiches at EOS in the early afternoon.

EOS- 1 credit
Total: 10.50

Dinner tonight was to celebrate my 30th birthday at Narcossee's. After our rest, we felt much better and were ready to enjoy dinner. This was a very good meal. I enjoyed my lobster and the cake we had ordered! We packed up our desserts to go.

Narcossees- 6 credits
Total: 162.19

Tuesday, 9/23

Today was the halfway point in our trip, and we had already had a TON of food! Tonight was also our MNSSHP, so we planned today as a "down day". We ended up cancelling our Boma breakfast so that we could sleep late! Instead, we ate quickly at Puck Express before heading into DtD.

Puck Express- 1 credit plus 2 snack credits
Total: around $20

Lunch was at Puck Cafe in the DtD Marketplace. This meal was ok, but we would have enjoyed Puck Express just as well.

Puck Cafe- 3 credits
Total: 76.69

Dinner was at the Plaza before the party. We had a decent wait time here as well, and were hurried to make it to the party in time. The food was adequate, but nothing exceptional.

Plaza- 3 credits
Total: 52.21

Wednesday, 9/23

We slept late this morning, as we were up late for the party. We ate quick breakfasts at Pepper Market and then headed back out.

Pepper Market- 2 credits
Total: 30.19

Lunch was at Liberty Tree Tavern, and we were seated promptly at our reservation time. The food here was good, and much like down home cooking!

Liberty Tree Tavern- 3 credits
Total: 75.04

Dinner tonight was at California Grill. We had a little wait, but were seated and drink orders taken promptly. The food was very good, but it was probably our least favorite of the signature restaurants. The others were just better. We didn't make the Wishes fireworks, as DD2 was getting tired and we didn't want her fussing in the restaurant.

California Grill- 6 credits
Total: 176.68

The end is near. . . more to come!

 

[aheape1979]

Thursday, 9/24

Breakfast this morning was supposed to be at 1900 Park Fare, but we overslept! Instead, we grabbed MS Bakery. This breakfast wasn't as good as the last one, but still okay.

MS Bakery- 2 credits
Total: 17.62

Lunch today was at the Wave restaurant. We had one of the best servers! She was very personable and talked to the children a lot! Our food was good. We both got burgers and the girls got chicken strips, because we were just not that hungry.

Wave- 3 credits
Total: 67.88

Dinner was at Coral Reef. There was a huge crowd waiting and we assumed that the wait would be long, so DH took the girls to ride Nemo next door while I waited. Well, the buzzer went off while they were gone. It only took 2 minutes before they got back, but I sweated it! The food here was good, but DH was ready to get back and see the USC game on ESPN, so we hurried a little more than I would have wanted.

Coral Reef- 3 credits
Total: 105.02

Friday, 9/25

Breakfast this morning was at Kona Cafe. . . can I say YUMMY? This totally trumped the dinner here! Macadamia Pineapple pancakes were SOOOOO good!

Kona Cafe- 3 credits
Total: 48.60

Lunch today was eating around the FWF. We didn't eat too terribly much, because it was hot and we just wanted to drink a lot!

Dinner tonight was our favorite of the trip. . . Tutto Italia!!!! The service here was absolutely impeccable! The waiters even asked if they could bring some spaghetti to DD2 when we got our apps so that she could go ahead and eat. Then, they came back multiple times to smile, because she enjoyed the spaghetti so much she wore it all over her face! This meal was expensive, but I wouldn't even complain if it were OOP. The food and service were awesome!

Tutto Italia- 3 credits
Total: 147.51

Saturday, 9/26

Breakfast was at Akershus at 8:00 a.m. We were ushered in within a few minutes, and were able to get our food from the cold bar. The lingonberry muffins were the BEST! When our hot food was brought out, we fell in love with the potatoes, and got seconds!

Akershus- 3 credits
Total: 86.24

We were so full from breakfast, we cancelled our Chefs de France lunch and ended up at the hotel. DH took DD2 to the playground, while DD4 and I ran to MK Confectionary and then Goofy's Candy Co. We then grabbed EOS for lunch. It was just as good as the first time!

EOS- 3 credits
Total: about $31

Dinner tonight was Le Cellier! This was the dinner I had been waiting for, and it did not disappoint! The waitress was great, as was the food. I got the cheese soup, the filet, and the maple creme brulee, as well as the mango smoothie. I was so full by the time we left!

Le Cellier- 3 credits
Total: 136.96

Once back at the hotel tonight, I ran to Rix Cafe and spent our last few meal credits on breakfast foods for the next morning, since we cancelled O'hana. We got on the road early, but were home at lunchtime to attend the funeral visitation of a friend that afternoon.

Rix Cafe- 2 credits
Total: about $30


So our total for the trip:

Upgrade to deluxe dining- $814.24

99 meal credits
3 mugs
66 snack credits

Total Cost of food- $2684.30


Total Free food: $1870.06!!!!!

 

[natalielongstaff]

Thats a lot of free food well done !

 

[BreTyPres87]

Thank you for your reviews!! Its nice to see a family with such young children on the DxDDP cause we're gonna be doing to same thing in January and I always get the "too much running around not enough enjoying the parks" response, but with toddlers those breaks i'm sure are welcome!

 

[KatMark]

Thanks for the awesome reviews -- I enjoyed reading them.

 

[aheape1979]

Thank you for your reviews!! Its nice to see a family with such young children on the DxDDP cause we're gonna be doing to same thing in January and I always get the "too much running around not enough enjoying the parks" response, but with toddlers those breaks i'm sure are welcome!

I'm glad you enjoyed it! Our kids are used to eating in restaurants, and behaving, because that's what they've done and has been expected of them since they were young. Table/ dining manners are important for us to impart to them. (We at at Outback for DH's birthday tonight!)

I heard a lot of comments about it being "too much food" and taking too much time, and I can see where people were coming from. . . but. . . we did many character meals for breakfast which kept us from standing in the long lines to see them with the "general public." We usually did 8:00 breakfasts, because we're used to getting up early. After a few hours in the parks, we were ready to sit down in the air conditioning to eat lunch. So many CS places have outdoor seating, and that just doesn't suit us as much!
We went back to the hotel after lunch almost every day and let the DD's get naps. At the very least, DD2 had a nap. We then showered, cleaned up, and dressed in clean, non-sweaty clothes for dinner. After dinner, we often had another hour or two in the parks before we went to bed. It worked for us!

Have a wonderful trip!