DougK
Well-Known Member
It's easy to blame DDP, but some sort of DDP has been around since at least 2000. The food quality has only went down since 2005.
Disney inflate the price for non DDP to force people to go to the DDP. It's Disney taking advantage of the plan over years.
It's the DDP.
With the DDP there are many people who eat at the TS restaurants that never did before because they couldn't afford it, just look through these boards and you will find many postings to that effect. So essentially what Disney has with the DDP is:
1) you pre-pay your meals (Disney gets money sooner, a good thing for any business)
2) you really have to work the system to get your money's worth, and even better for Disney, most people don't even mind! They like the convenience of pre-paying even if they do not get the full value
3) the customer base is less discerning (those people who normally wouldn't eat at a TS restaurant likely don't do fine dining much at home either)
All of this adds up to:
1) less selection (a restaurant manager would be foolish to offer a $50 entree if 90% of the people who would buy it are on the DDP)
2) less overall quality
3) less availability for ADR's
I don't blame Disney for having the DDP, but I hate it!
For those of use who used to enjoy going to a TS restaurant with a same-day reservation, and for those who enjoyed some of the nicer selections that are now gone from the menu and for those who enjoyed really high-quality food at WDW, do what I do. Rent a car and go off property to eat. Oh and as a bonus the money you save can pay for the car and you get the flexibility a car offers you.
Of course the fact is the masses will continue to pay for the plan, even with the HUGE increase in price (getting rid of appetizer AND gratuity and only lowering the price $1 is the eqivalent of a HUGE increase). I hope I am wrong but I doubt it.