Help with my first night Dining and dining in general!

[chimo2u]

Hello Everyone! This is my first post and I have spent hours reading here soaking up so much information. My Family and I have planned a trip for when my husband comes home on his leave break from Afghanistan. We have 2 boys age 15 and almost 12.... Needless to say everyone is excited for this trip. It is our first and probably only trip to WDW. We are staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge in a Savannah view with bunks room. Our trip dates are Jan 15, 2008- Jan 24, 2008. We chose the DDP for our stay and I am having a tough time with making the best dining choices. I really like the idea of the buffets because they seem to give you the best value for your dollar. One question I have in particular is.... We are arriving in Orlando at 4pm on our first day. We originally were going to book BOMA for our first night, but now I am thinking of perhaps checking in the resort then taking a monorail ride to contemporarey resort and having dinner at Chef Mickey's to watch the fireworks after. OR Ohana, for the same experience as it is on the monorail too. What are your suggestions? Is this a good first night thing to do? I guess we will have an extra CS meal for all of our party (family of 4) since we are arriving too late on the 15th for lunch. I am trying to plan sit down dinners around the visiting of each theme park. So far, I thought the following:
Tue. Jan 15 -- Ohana or Chef Mickey buffet and fireworks first night
Wed. Jan 16 -- Epcot Day. Book Dinner at Coral Reef... Lunch will be QS
Thur. Jan 17-- MGM Day. Book 50's prime time for dinner and after take in Fantasmic
Friday Jan. 18 Animal Kingdom Yak/yeti's QS for lunch and Book BOMA for Dinner
Sat Jan. 19 Magic Kingdom day? Do Peco Bills in Frontierland for QS lunch and then Ohana's for dinner?
Sunday Jan 20.... Perhaps do Disney Quest today and go to Rainforest Cafe in Down town disney for dinner
Monday Jan 21.... Thinking of booking princess/pirate party and having dinner at Liberty Tree tavern around 5pm before parade.
Tue. Jan 22 ---Perhaps re-visit Epcot and do Biergarten for dinner
Wed Jan 23--- don't know if it'll be warm enough to visit a water park or not, if it's to cold for swimming, maybe re-visit a theme park and try a dinner at Whispering Canyon?
Thur. Jan 24 Check out day.... Maybe do Boma's for breakfast or Donald's Safari Character breakfast???
Have a QS lunch before heading to airport for 6pm flight.
I know this is a long post but any suggestions for making this better or if it is ok would be greatly appreciated as I am so lost planning this vacation!! Thanks in advance for any and all help!!
Marie

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

First of all - Welcome aboard :wave:

Secondly, your dining suggestions look fine to me - remember, this is your trip (not ours) so if you're happy then thats the main thing.

My only suggestion would be on Jan 20th - think twice about Rainforest Cafe - there's alot of better places around DTD (Raglan Road for example).

 

[Monty]

If you're on the Dining Plan then buffets are no longer the best value. You're paying the same amount regardless of where you eat, so go for the more expensive restaurants!

You mention Chef Mickey's and fireworks, you can't see the fireworks from Chef Mickey's, but you can from the California Grill [but it's two dining credits instead of one]. It also almost sounds like you want to take the monorail from AKL to get to monorail resorts... I'm hoping you know you'll have to take a bus to MK to catch the monorail to Contemp or Poly. [Both of these you probably already know, but it wasn't clear and I'd hate for you to have the wrong idea]

The water parks have heated water, so the real issue is how cool it is when you get out of the water... I'm from Canada and in January it's plenty warm enough for me, but it can feel chilly if you're from warmer parts of the country.

Definitely book the P&PP! DS and I went last February, last August and are going again this February! It's great! The best fireworks I've ever seen [try to be in front of the castle for the full effect], lots of chocolate booty and apparently a really good parade [we have yet to see the parade, been too busy with everything else :lol:]. If your boys are into pirates, let them create some costumes for the party. Even if they're not [teenagers can be fickle ], they'll still enjoy the short ride waits and everything else that goes on. My DS is 12 and absolutely loves the party.

I wouldn't worry about having left-over CS credits, there's a lot of food [even without the appetizer] on DDP. I always thought of myself as a big eater and I often leave food on my plate at WDW, our last trip we had 4 CS credits left... No snacks left because we used them all for Dole Floats

I hope you have a fantastic vacation! And please pass along my thanks to your husband for his service. I'm a Canadian vet, our troops are in Afghanistan with him and I appreciate his sacrifices and your family's. God bless you all.

 

[chimo2u]

Thank you so much for the 2 replies so far. I'm from Canada too, Monty.... currently posted in Alberta! Thank you for your support of our troops, it is so appreciated that people realize the sacrifice my husband and his men/women are making.... It's been a hard tour! (He's gone about 7 months and Jan. will be the first time we've been together since end July). I will re-think Chef-Mickey's and maybe do Ohana's that first night or stick to the buffet at Boma. I knew about the bus to get to the monorail thing as you correctly guessed! We just thought it might be fun to have the boys do the monorail the first night! I find the more expensive restaurants have too fancy of food, that's why I thought buffets are still good! Any ideas of better restaurants that we might try that have a nice selection for everyone? I figured out a way that we can use all our CS credits.... we won't have any left over as I'll use them for breakfast stuff (because on regular DP it only includes those 2 meals a day.) Any more ideas anyone would like to share is sure welcomed! Thanks for all the help,
Marie:wave:

 

[Monty]

Thank you so much for the 2 replies so far. I'm from Canada too, Monty.... currently posted in Alberta! Thank you for your support of our troops, it is so appreciated that people realize the sacrifice my husband and his men/women are making.... It's been a hard tour! (He's gone about 7 months and Jan. will be the first time we've been together since end July). I will re-think Chef-Mickey's and maybe do Ohana's that first night or stick to the buffet at Boma. I knew about the bus to get to the monorail thing as you correctly guessed! We just thought it might be fun to have the boys do the monorail the first night! I find the more expensive restaurants have too fancy of food, that's why I thought buffets are still good! Any ideas of better restaurants that we might try that have a nice selection for everyone? I figured out a way that we can use all our CS credits.... we won't have any left over as I'll use them for breakfast stuff (because on regular DP it only includes those 2 meals a day.) Any more ideas anyone would like to share is sure welcomed! Thanks for all the help,
Marie:wave:

:lol:

I'm so used to assuming folks are American around here unless they specifically indicate they're from elsewhere! Sorry.

Boma is definitely a must at some point... I'd suggest trying Le Cellier if you can get in, great food [and patriotic to boot]! :lol:

Another meal I've always enjoyed is the Garden Grill in Epcot. It's served family-style and they'll bring more of whatever you like!

 

[lighteningqueen]

I too think that buffets are the best. Every one can find something.As far fancy places, doesnt suit us either. This is supposed to be fun not stuffy. You can go fancy at home and still not pay what they ask. As far as the food (we are not lamb,duck, steak with macaroni whoever heard of that???weird food) people either. This will be our first time in dec and we have chosen Bomas, Whispering canyon, Trails End, Ohanas, San Angel,50's Prime, Chef Mickeys first night to set the mood we have been told. We get there late as well. All these places have entertainment for kids so thats why we chose them as well as being buffet or skillet type meals, something for everyone. You can use that extra CS meal for a breakfast somewhere one morning so all is not to waste. You go and have a great time and not think of anything but the time you all have together. Tell your husband thanks for all his hard work in trying to do what is right for our country. I pray for his saftey when he has to return, and that he will come back home soon to stay. For lunches we are also trying Pecos Bills, Flame Tree, Columbia House, Pinochios,Cantina de san angel, Sci fi, we have to pay for this one,Cosmic Rays. From all the reviews these seem to be the best of the parks. I agree on Rainforest it's ok but not worth going when there are so many places that you wont ever get to try again. Good Luck and have a wonderful trip

 

[GoofyMom2]

Wow! It sounds like you have an incredible trip planned! You have really done your homework


I have 2 sons, ages 8 and 11 and they enjoyed RainForest cafe, but it is on the expensive side. While we also have had great service both times, it does seem to take a long time to eat there for some reason. Wolfgang Puck's places are in DTD as well and have very good food, you can check out their menus.....they are also on DDP. I haven't eaten at raglan yet but hear rave reviews. For a quick bite, Earl of Sandwich is the way to go.

Oh, in case you haven't checked it out yet, go to www.allearsnet.com for menues, reviews etc.

LTT is a great character meal, it is a must for us on each visit. I love that you can sit and relax while the food is brought to you. While I love buffets, after a long day at the parks it feels good not to have to keep getting up!

Whispering Canyon Cafe is a hoot and very good food. What we like is that you can get the all-you-can-eat skillet or order off the menu. The non-stop milkshakes are too yummy! But I only ever manage one..... :lol:

We ate at Coral Reef for the first time in Sept and loved it.....you just can't beat the setting.

Well, I could go on and on about your wonderful choices, but it seems you have things well covered.

Wishes from O'Hana's is very nice, they even pipe in the music. I am addicted to their honey coriander wings.....

BTW, we stayed in a Savannah room w/ bunks in April and loved it.....one of the best experiences at Disney! We are huge animal lovers and that was money well spent. I could have sat on the balcony all night long. Make sure you take advantage of the activities they have around the resort. The pool their is also incredible....hopefully it will be warm enough for you.

I hope you and your family have a wonderful trip. :wave:

 

[markjohns1]

Looks like you have a good line-up for restaurants. If I may offer a few suggestions:

1. It has been said already, but I'd like to add another vote for Boma. It has all of the benefits of being a buffet, but the food really is awesome. One of the major pluses is that much of the food is lighter/healthier than a typical buffet offering, so you don't end up feeling so blah afterwards. Also, if you do Boma the first night, it should give you time to relax after the flight. The AKL is beautiful, and taking the first night slow can help you to get prepared for the coming adventures.
2. On your Epcot QS lunch, I'd definitely try to hit up the World Showcase. It's just an awesome collection of food from all around the world. Good for anyone's tastes. If you don't want to do that, or you want to stick in Future World for lunch, I'd go with the Sunshine Seasons in The Land pavilion. It's a step above the typical burgers/fries fare.
3. For your DTD destination, I'd say you'll just have to see what your particular tastes are. Rainforest is fun and it's easy to find something you'd like. Bongo's can be a lot of fun for dinner and is great food if you like Latin cuisine. My wife loves Planet Hollywood, and I love House of Blues. Honestly it's hard to go wrong at DTD (unless you end up in McDonald's). Oh, and try to save room for dessert at Ghirardelli's.
4. Biergarten is a ton of fun for dinner, and you'll be stuffed when you leave. Just make sure everyone likes sausage and potatoes, or you may have some problems.
5. I personally prefer Sci-Fi at DHS, as opposed to the 50's Prime Time, because I like the theming of it all. I know when I was in the 12-15 year old age range, I found Sci-Fi to be a "cool" place to eat. All down to personal preference, though.

As far as buffet vs. a la carte, I've never had an issue with portion sizes or leaving hungry. I'd say make the choice based on your particular tastes and the type of food you want to eat.

 

[coltow]

Tue. Jan 15 -- Ohana or Chef Mickey buffet and fireworks first night
Wed. Jan 16 -- Epcot Day. Book Dinner at Coral Reef... Lunch will be QS
Thur. Jan 17-- MGM Day. Book 50's prime time for dinner and after take in Fantasmic
Friday Jan. 18 Animal Kingdom Yak/yeti's QS for lunch and Book BOMA for Dinner
Sat Jan. 19 Magic Kingdom day? Do Peco Bills in Frontierland for QS lunch and then Ohana's for dinner?
Sunday Jan 20.... Perhaps do Disney Quest today and go to Rainforest Cafe in Down town disney for dinner
Monday Jan 21.... Thinking of booking princess/pirate party and having dinner at Liberty Tree tavern around 5pm before parade.
Tue. Jan 22 ---Perhaps re-visit Epcot and do Biergarten for dinner
Wed Jan 23--- don't know if it'll be warm enough to visit a water park or not, if it's to cold for swimming, maybe re-visit a theme park and try a dinner at Whispering Canyon?
Thur. Jan 24 Check out day.... Maybe do Boma's for breakfast or Donald's Safari Character breakfast???
Have a QS lunch before heading to airport for 6pm flight.
Marie

I agree that you have picked some good ones, However, if you have not booked these yet you need to. With the DDP alot of TS places sell out early. You can always try to change them later, but you're better off having something booked for every day BEFORE you arrive. Make sure to let us know what you end up with.

I vote for Boma on your first night, you could arrive late and be tired from your trip so it could be nice to not have to worry about travelling to another resort via bus and monorail just to have dinner. You then could go to Chef Mickey's on Friday instead.

 

[chimo2u]

Here's what I booked so far

OK EVERYONE!! Thanks for all the great advice. I just Got off the phone with WDW dine- line (a 45 min phone call!) and this is what reservations I was able to aquire... Hope you all think it is good choices:
ARRIVAL DAY:
Tues Jan 15- I took some of your advice and decided to book BOMA for 7:10 pm, and relax on arrival night instead of trapesing all over on the busses and monorail!!
Wed Jan. 16th- EPCOT day Coral REEF at 6:10 pm
Thurs. Jan 17th - MGM DAY Booked 50's prime time for 6:05 pm
Friday Jan 18th - MAGIC KINGDOM DAY Booked Chef Mickey's for 5:40 pm
Saturday, Jan 19th- ANIMAL KINGDOM DAY- Booked Tusker House Buffet for 6:00 pm
Sunday, Jan 20th- DISNEY QUEST DAY Booked the Biergarten at Epcot for 6:15 (don't mind park hopping for dinner)
Monday January 21- This is the only day I was a little dissapointed by the timings as the earliest they could get us into Liberty Tree was 6:30 pm. We also booked the Princess/Pirate party for this night, so we might miss a little of the beginning of the party due to dinner timing. Oh well, I'll keep trying to see if I can get an earlier seating over the next little while.
Tuesday Jan 22- We got into Whispering Canyon for 5:40 pm. Don't really know what to do yet this day, as I don't know what would be good for this spare day.
Wed. Jan 23 I booked OHANA's for 5:15pm. Another day that is un-scheduled as of yet. Perhaps a water park day???
Thur. Jan 24th - this is our check out day, Flights leave at 4pm, so we may hang for awhile in the resort pool and do a counter service lunch at Mara's
That's it for what I could come up with! What do ya'll think
Marie

 

[SweetMagic]

Your choices sound great to me, and it sounds like you got pretty good results booking them with only 2 months notice!

If you have a TS meal left you may want to consider Boma for breakfast on your check out day. I would hate to be right there in AKL and not try the breakfast buffet at Boma. It might be nice to have a good meal to start the travel day.

Have a great time :wave:

 

[ThinkTink721]

Hello Everyone! This is my first post and I have spent hours reading here soaking up so much information. My Family and I have planned a trip for when my husband comes home on his leave break from Afghanistan. We have 2 boys age 15 and almost 12.... Needless to say everyone is excited for this trip. It is our first and probably only trip to WDW. We are staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge in a Savannah view with bunks room. Our trip dates are Jan 15, 2008- Jan 24, 2008. We chose the DDP for our stay and I am having a tough time with making the best dining choices. I really like the idea of the buffets because they seem to give you the best value for your dollar. One question I have in particular is.... We are arriving in Orlando at 4pm on our first day. We originally were going to book BOMA for our first night, but now I am thinking of perhaps checking in the resort then taking a monorail ride to contemporarey resort and having dinner at Chef Mickey's to watch the fireworks after. OR Ohana, for the same experience as it is on the monorail too. What are your suggestions? Is this a good first night thing to do? I guess we will have an extra CS meal for all of our party (family of 4) since we are arriving too late on the 15th for lunch. I am trying to plan sit down dinners around the visiting of each theme park. So far, I thought the following:
Tue. Jan 15 -- Ohana or Chef Mickey buffet and fireworks first night
Wed. Jan 16 -- Epcot Day. Book Dinner at Coral Reef... Lunch will be QS
Thur. Jan 17-- MGM Day. Book 50's prime time for dinner and after take in Fantasmic
Friday Jan. 18 Animal Kingdom Yak/yeti's QS for lunch and Book BOMA for Dinner
Sat Jan. 19 Magic Kingdom day? Do Peco Bills in Frontierland for QS lunch and then Ohana's for dinner?
Sunday Jan 20.... Perhaps do Disney Quest today and go to Rainforest Cafe in Down town disney for dinner
Monday Jan 21.... Thinking of booking princess/pirate party and having dinner at Liberty Tree tavern around 5pm before parade.
Tue. Jan 22 ---Perhaps re-visit Epcot and do Biergarten for dinner
Wed Jan 23--- don't know if it'll be warm enough to visit a water park or not, if it's to cold for swimming, maybe re-visit a theme park and try a dinner at Whispering Canyon?
Thur. Jan 24 Check out day.... Maybe do Boma's for breakfast or Donald's Safari Character breakfast???
Have a QS lunch before heading to airport for 6pm flight.
I know this is a long post but any suggestions for making this better or if it is ok would be greatly appreciated as I am so lost planning this vacation!! Thanks in advance for any and all help!!
Marie

'Ohana's & Chef Mickey's are both great! :slurp:
We are going to try the Coral Reef & The Liberty Tree Tavern next year (I hear the atmosphere at the Coral Reef is good & the LTT is great for dinner).
I have heard that the 50's Prime Time Diner, Boma & Whispering Canyon are good also.
Restaurantasaurus, Tusker House or Flame Tree BBQ are also good at the AK (Tusker House is a TS restaurant).
Peco Bill's is a nice QS restaurant (but, it is usually crowded).
We did Rainforest Cafe' & we enjoyed it (despite mixed reviews that I have read).
We did Donald's Restaurantasaurus last year (it has been replace w/ Donald's Safari Breakfast) - we hope to do that one next year!
Hope this helps!
:wave:

 

[DougK]

Sounds like a great plan but if you want to do Chef Mickey's I would make my reservations NOW.

That is probably good advice for all of your choices, but especially Chef Mickey's and Ohana.

Have fun!

 

[lilclerk]

The day you're at Whispering Canyon, you may want to just take a break and tour some resorts or just relax in your room or at the pool... Or get some shopping done at DTD :lol: It's always nice to have a day in the middle to relax, you're going to get a LOT of exercise with all the walking!
Then at night, maybe head over to Epcot or MGM to see the fireworks/catch a few extra rides or shows.

 

[RussJT]

I found this thread after you made your reservations. I would have been another one to recommend Boma. Great food and a great atmosphere. I am getting hungry just thinking about it. Overall, you have picked some very good places to eat. You will be happy with your choices.

Thanks to your husband (and the rest of your family) for the sacrifices you have been willing to make. May he and the rest of the service men and women from the US and Canada return safely.

Enjoy your trip.

 

[chimo2u]

Thanks so much!

Thank you so much for everyone's wonderful replies and well- wishes for my husband and family... I pray everyday for the safe return of our soldiers! I made a couple changes due to the wonderful advice I've been recieving from all of you. I decided to do the World Showcase for lunch on our Epcot day and instead of Biergarten, I changed it for Dinner at Crystal Palace. I know it is in MKDM, but we have park hopper, so it should be no big deal. It should be fun for the boys to have characters at dinner! Also After all the rave reviews for BOMA, we will be having dinner there our first night and then enjoy exploring our resort! A more relaxing choice after a long day of flying from Alberta to Florida! Thanks for everyone's help, I really enjoyed reading your responses!
Sincerely,
Marie

 

[RussJT]

Now I'm jealous. 4 more months for me. Hopefully I can survive the Winter.

Enjoy and when you go to Boma (and the Crystal Palace) be sure you are hungry.

 

[Philo]

They all sound really good. I'm glad you managed to get in at all those great places.

This isn't really a comment on dining but I thought I would point out that you probably won't be able to fill up a whole day in Dinsey Quest. I love video games (having every console availalble!) but I couldn't spend a full day there. This is partially because it's a little bit busy / loud (and I play the drums!) for me and it feels very closed-in.

You will definatly be able to spend a few hours there but I would suggest you think about going to a park in the morning. Perhaps a water park (remember that BB will be down for refub).

Have a great time!

 

[shanny]

all your choices look wonderful to me, i just wish i could go back! we never made it to boma on our stay, but next time we will have something new only thing is, we had crystal palace for dinner one evening, the food was just ok, nothing great. and make sure your boys are fans of pooh, those are the characters there. i loved them, hubby, not such a pooh fan...just my opinion! have fun, oh, and at ohanas, if you will be partaking in an adult beverage, i have to suggest the raspberry mojito. BEST drink ive had!!! :slurp::wave:

 

[chimo2u]

Thanks for All the wonderful replies, they are helping so much! One thing I never really thought of was not being able to spend a whole day in Disney Quest. My boys are 15 and 11, so i thought that would be right up their alley!! I am actually at a loss about what to do on 2 or 3 days, as we have 8 day tickets with park hopping/water park and more options. I thought water park might be too cold in January?? The days I have definite plans for are, Wed. Jan 16 EPCOT (Hubby says we have to hit that one first, it's his favorite from when he was a teen visiting WDW!) Thur Jan 17th is MGM, Friday Jan. 18th is Magic Kingdom and Sat. Jan. 19th is Animal Kingdom. Then we are booked for Pirate Princess Party Jan 21.... probably making that another return to MK day. So Sun. Jan 20, Tue Jan. 22 and Wed. Jan 23 are open for suggestions on what to do to fill those days!??? We don't want to leave and spend any more money on outside activities (ie. Universal studios) as we have invested so much financially into this trip to Disney world! So, I am hoping there will still be things to do to fill those days where plans are not filled in yet!
Marie