eating at Disney?

Question

i know you can get a dining plan if you are staying in one of the disney resorts in orlando but are there any other dining plans if you are staying off site? we want to get an early start on the days we are visiting so this would make it a little difficult to stop off somewhere beforehand and have a good breakfast. i thought maybe breakfast in the park then a late lunch and i guess its expensive to eat at the park. average price of a meal here in the uk is around £10 to £15 which is around $5 to $8?

Answer 1

As with anything, eating on a budget in Florida is just as simple as it is anywhere else. The difficult part is making sure that the budget you have is one you can afford. Generally you'll find that like most things, food is cheaper in Florida than it is in the UK. If you can afford to eat in the UK, you'll definitely be able to afford to eat in the same style in Florida, and if you can't afford it in the UK, you may well be able to on Florida (large steaks particularly).

One of the questions I frequently see asked in the newsgroup is "How much will it cost for a family of four to eat for 2-weeks ?". This always strikes me as a strange question to be asking, because the obvious answer is that it's going to cost at least as much as it does for the same family to eat normally for two weeks. Most of the guides etc seem to recommend budgeting to spend around $50 per day per person, however, this seems rather high to me.

So far each time I've been to WDW, I've ended up spending around $150 - $180 per person for a two week duration holiday. Having said that, most of the main meals were taken outside of the parks, and only light snacks bought from the restaurants inside the parks.

The cheapest places to get a relatively good meal are any of the larger eateries outside of WDW property. Most offer a good selection of choices on the menu. Vegetarians are catered for with most places having vegetarian options on their menu, although frequently there may only be one vegetarian dish available. Also Vegan options seem to be very limited. Note: As of Dec'96 neither Burger King nor MacDonalds in Florida seemed to offer vegetarian alternatives as they do in the UK.

Eating in the theme parks works out relatively expensive, when compared to the prices at Dennys, Wendys, etc but then you have to remember that you are pretty much a captive audience (you're not going to want to leave the park, and drive to a restaurant outside the park just for lunch). However the prices are not prohibitvely expensive, and there are a lot of very nice eating places in the main parks that are well worth visiting.

In most eating houses, drinks such as Soda (Coke, Sprite etc) usually include free topups, so you only pay for the first drink per person. This also applies to Tea and Coffee, though not to alcoholic drinks, nor as far as I could tell to Orange Juice, though being one of Florida's natural resources fresh Orange Juice is ridiculously cheap anyway.

If you are planning to spend the day in one of the Disney parks, or in any of the Non-Disney parks, the cheapest way to eat seems to be to stoke-up with a large breakfast from somewhere like Dennys or Wendys before entering the park, so you don't necessarily need to stop for a full lunch, but can just grab a small snack from one of the cafe's in the park whenever you're hungry.

This is great if you're staying outside of WDW property, but isn't really convenient if you are on-property, unless you plan an early visit to a non WDW attraction, in which case you can head out early and stop for breakfast on the way.

If you are staying on property, many of the hotels have a food court, where a reasonably good buffet-breakfast is served for a reasonable though not particularly cheap price. If the hotel you're staying at doesn't have a food court, you're probably not going to be needing to keep an eye on the food bill anyway!

Another tip to keep the costs down but still eat on-site is to remember that at Epcot particularly, the Lunch and Dinner menus are virtually identical at most places, but the Dinner menu is usually more expensive than the lunch menu.

Some of the cheaper places to eat outside of WDW property (in no particular order) are:

Dennys
Wendys
IHOP (International House of Pancakes)
Waffle House
Dunkin' Donuts
Pizza Hut
MacDonalds

Answer 2

The dining plan is a benefit to staying at one of the onsite resorts, so there really isn't anything available to offsite guests, like the plan (it is also their way to bring the cost of the rooms down a little) Disney actually loses money on the dining plan, so it is definitely a good deal.

Eating before going to the parks can take away a lot of time from the parks. What I would do is bring in some muffins, or any breakfast item you can bring with you and maybe some bottled water (if you don't mind carrying it) The onsite breakfast options are kind of expensive, so this would save you a lot of money.

If you want to eat at a counter service meal you will be spending about $10 per person for a hamburger and fry. There are some counter-service options that are still around $10 but offer chicken and a few other things, since eating all hamburgers can get old.

The table-service meals get a little more expensive, around $20 and up. Buffets are going to be the least expensive way to go, but will run close to $20.

If you really want to stay around $5 to $8 a person, counter-service is going to be your best option. If you want to save money on breakfast, bring some food/snacks with you. I would have an early dinner to help get your through the day. But some snacks and things will help.

Also, check what options you have at or around your hotel. A lot of the offsite hotels are near restaurants or have something right onsite.

I hope this helps!

Have a great time!

Answer 3

Depending on where you are staying, I would most likely say that you should try to eat breakfast prior to entering the park. Most of the parks do not have many full service breakfast restaurants. Most open for lunch and dinner. If you leave early and have a light breakfast, then you can have a good lunch and then a light dinner. If you find a grocery store while you are here, you can stock up on snacks to take with you into the park. (fruit, crackers, etc.)

Some of the parks have meals that are actually quite reasonable. I had lunch at Animal Kingdom the other day (grilled salmon, wild rice, steamed veggies) and it was about $8. Not a bad price!

At Disney (as any other vaca), you can spend as little or as much as you want -- you just have to plan it out.
Here are a few places that I like:

Boma at Animal Kingdom Lodge: not cheap, but it is a buffet and delicious.
Tusker House at Animal Kingdom Park: reasonable prices for good food. (open daily from 11ish until 4ish)
Downtown Disney: So many fun places to eat. But.. for cheap prices - the Earl of Sandwich has good salads and sandwiches. House of Blues is good too.

I always bring a small, soft cooler with me. something lightweight and easy to carry. (I have a one year old -- we have to have snacks with us at all times!) Cheese, crackers, something sweet, protein bars, etc. You will be using up a lot of energy - you need to eat and drink regularly during the day.

You can also contact your hotel and see if they can give you a list of good places to eat around your hotel.

Still, I would count on 8 to 20 dollars per meal with tip. (check the portion sizes wherever you go. You can usually split one entree between two adults.)

have fun....

Answer 4

No - Disney only offers the one Dining Plan for its resort guests. Check to see if your hotel has a restaurant or continental breakfast available. Also, feel free to email me and I'd be happy to let you know the best, and cheapest restaurants located near your hotel.
[e-mail]
Downtown Disney's McDonalds is a good place to stop and grab breakfast. It is cheap and works best with kids. Also consider purchasing nutri grain bars at a nearby grocery store to have each morning. And if your hotel has a kitchennette or full kitchen, run out and grab a few small boxes of cereal and milk.
You could plan to do a nice, all you can eat breakfast buffet one day. Those can be expensive, but they are well worth it. Eat late so you can skip lunch and then just have snacks and dinner.

For breakfast buffets, I recommend 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian (this is a character buffet with Cinderella and friends)! I also recommend the Garden Grill at EPCOT. Mickey and his friends invite you for a spin in this rotating restaurant where they serve you delicious fresh signature skillets all day long!
Chef Mickey's at The Contemporary is also a terrific breakfast buffet, character dining location!

If you would like help planning for your next trip or if you would just like to read up on some fun tips and ideas that are updated monthly, visit my Disney Vacation Services My space page, at:

http://www.myspace.com/disneymickeyvacation

Have a great time!

Answer 5

The parks are expensive but the food is good quality and the portions are large, you will pay a bit extra inside the parks than outside, expect to pay about $15 to $20, you could always buy something in the supermarkets and eat it in your accommodation before you set off to the parks, supermarket prices are quiet reasonable

Answer 6

To be honest, i was pleasently surprised at the cost of meals... they were a LOT less than you imagine, probably from visiting Alton Towers ect.

A good breakfast is money saving however, as you can then have a snack at lunch time, when the park empties a little, as people break for lunch.

Have a good holiday =]

x

Answer 7

I think Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary resort is good and the Boardwalk. There's also 50s Prime Time Cafe at MGM, and I think there's a Pizza Planet in Tommorrowland at Magic Kingdom and Pizzafarri in Animal Kingdom. I also listed a great fan site that lists all the menus at Disney (resorts and all).

Answer 8

Stop off at the Ponderosa to have breakfast before the park opens, all you can eat for $4 each,they have everything , bacon, eggs, beans , tomatoes,sausages,pancakes, cereals, fresh fruit etc. Well worth a visit.
They have many sites,2 that i know of on international drive,use the money off coupons as well.
Exchange rate $1.85 to £1.00
$4 = £2.16 approx

Answer 9

counter service meals in the parks run from 5.69 to 8.99( does not include a drink) but alot of the portions are large enough to share, a childs meal is between 3.99-4.99 and includes a drink. If you are not abig eater then you should also consider buying childs meals.

Allears.net has all of the dining menu's with prices for every restaurant on property.

Here's an example of a meal that my husband and I share

Pecos Bills restaurant we order a childs meal for our daughter for 3.99
Bacon Double cheeseburger w/fries 7.39
Extra Bun .89
2 drinks 4.18
---------
3 people 16.45 + tax

Use one of the patties from the Double cheeseburger to make a 2nd burger with the extra bun. There's enough fries in one meal for two people to share. And this place has a killer fixens bar to beef up your burgers. And don't worry about looking cheap, alot of people share and Disney doesn't have a problem with it.

Answer 10

You would be better off stopping somewhere like Denny's before going to the park - even if this means setting out earlier. and remember you are talking about US size breakfasts here - probably enough to keep you going until evening.