Food obsession-good or bad?

mdcpr

mdcpr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
40+ days to WDW! What I have found the most surprising about all this planning is the obsession with food among the many forums participants. Either 'the food is awful' attitude, or 'I'll stuff myself while I'm there.' Is the food at WDW such an important component of the experience?

I did my ADRs, but mostly for the experiences, i.e. CRT so we can see princesses and eat, BOG so we can see Beast, Tusker Hall so we could see characters and get tickets to ROL. But to be honest, a lot of the food pictures I've encountered look like a scary food experiment that went bonkers.
 
Weather_Lady

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
Some of us are pretty much lifelong dieters -- except when we're on vacation! -- so the food we eat while traveling seems particularly precious and important. Plus, dining time is valuable "down time" in an otherwise hectic Disney day, so we want it to be in the most enjoyable possible setting.

I confess to being one of those who obsesses over picking the right restaurants (both individually, and in combination with one another) when we travel, whether it's to WDW or anywhere else. I try to pick restaurants (and not to pick restaurants, but to leave time slots for spontaneous or counter-service meals) that will offer just the thing we want, at a particular time of day, at a convenient location, during a given part of our trip, and that won't be repetitive of something we've already had. Even though I know my vacation planning can't be perfect, I at least try. :)

That being said, I have no delusions that Disney food is worth obsessing over. It's certainly no better (and in most cases is worse) than what we can find in our local restaurants at home. Instead, we, like you, try to choose restaurants that will offer unique "experiences," and which offer a decent value (in Disney terms), which generally means avoiding signatures, character meals and buffets unless it's something really special. Nobody in my family eats that much anyway, diet or no! ;)
 
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Dog Ate Mouse

Dog Ate Mouse

Well-Known Member
Honestly part of my vacation is being at the parks and resorts and having fun dining experiences that I would not have at home. My wife and I like others make our plans and just have a great time. As you know we can't always get to eat where we want and had to make reservations at other restaurants we never tried and had a wonderful experience, One place in mind was Germany in EPCOT. The dining for us is just having a good to great meal in a nice environment that is fun or really cool theme as well. The dining is part of the Disney experience for us.
 
networkpro

networkpro

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
Yes
We've always been of the mind that dining should enhance our park visits not be the focus of them. We eat the foods and cuisines we enjoy. We aim to have at least two sit down meals a day (y'all would classify them as table service) because meat and three (vegetables) is what we do.

Don't be scared of the food, it's been Americanized so it's more palatable to most people. You're not going to get sheep lungs, tripe or brains.
 
mdcpr

mdcpr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
networkpro said:
We've always been of the mind that dining should enhance our park visits not be the focus of them. We eat the foods and cuisines we enjoy. We aim to have at least two sit down meals a day (y'all would classify them as table service) because meat and three (vegetables) is what we do.

Don't be scared of the food, it's been Americanized so it's more palatable to most people. You're not going to get sheep lungs, tripe or brains.
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I happen to like tripe and brains. :)
 
Vacationeer

Vacationeer

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Good! Each trip we have a theme. Next is our first visit around Christmastime. We've also done a characters/shows trip and food trips with DDP. Food is fun! I see why people love Free Dining because you can plan tons of food experiences and not be distracted by prices.

Meals are probably where we do the most bonding with our son in WDW. Taking time out of a hectic park day to explore resort restaurants, theming of restaurants in the parks, different QS menus, carts, or food booths... helps us relax to enjoy the moments.
 
Queen of the WDW Scene

Queen of the WDW Scene

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
For me being able to eat something I enjoy is a big part of the trip. Food gives you the energy you need throughout the day so its definitely important.

I'm sure you've seen my posts about your restaurant choices and how they certainly aren't my cup of tea.
Atmosphere may be there but if I can't find something on the menu I want to try its not worth it to me.
I've done CRT and the food was not appealing to me. My sister ont he other hand enjoyed the food because they offered things that she likes to eat.
BOG for dinner does not appeal to me due to the menu and the fact that its 2 TS credits when for breakfast/lunch its 1 QS credit and in my opinion a better menu and has the same atmosphere just minus meeting Beast on the way out the door.

But we all have different tastes and opinions so if those places interest you then try them and form your own opinion about them. :)
 
U

unmitigated disaster

Well-Known Member
Personally I think people can go overboard anywhere on food. Sometimes I just want to tell them to chill and have some meatloaf. Not everything has to be exquisitely handcrafted from truffles, fairy dust, roasted unicorn and rare Himalayan plants.,

That said, we have certainly been disappointed by Park food - Pecos Bill, I'm looking at you - but have been happy with other places (Tusker House, Tangierine Cafe and Flame Tree BBQ to name a few). But again, I've been disappointed by non-Disney restaurants as well. There are a few here in Tucson we won't be back to.
 
H

Hockey89

Well-Known Member
When I go on vacation, Food is one of the biggest factors.... Whether it is Vegas, Napa, Chi, or NYC, It is why I go there.... Disney is a little different because I know the food will be well behind those locations but I still love going...
 
Heppenheimer

Heppenheimer

Well-Known Member
mdcpr said:
I don’t know what that is, but tripe for dim sum and calf brains on a wine sauce are delicious.
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Scrapple is breakfast meat popular (or infamous, depending on who you ask) in SE Pennsylvania, Delaware and southern NJ. More or less, it's a loaf of pressings of the very last scraps of left-over pig flesh, corn meal and some seasonings. It's prepared by slicing and pan frying. Roughly similar to some 'breakfast puddings" you sometimes find in the British Isles, and various meat and grain mixtures from Germany , the Netherlands and Flanders.

I grew up in the Philadelphia area and I love it, especially with some maple syrup. But scrapple seems to be one of those foods, like marmite in Britain, that nobody who didn't grow up with it can tolerate.

Scrapple isn't available in most of the US (along with another regional favorite, Lebanon bologna), so it's one of those regional foods that Pennsylvania ex-pats tend to miss once we move away.
 
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Heppenheimer

Heppenheimer

Well-Known Member
mdcpr said:
Interesting, I've never heard of that before.
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You might be able to find scrapple in grocery stores in the NYC area. When I lived near Niagara Falls for a few years, it would show up in my local store every now and again. Completely unavailable and unknown where I currently live in northern New England, however.

Otherwise, most non-chain diners within the greater Philadephia tri-state region will usually offer it as an optional side item with breakfast.
 

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