Planning Dining Comments, Suggestions?

[SDisney90]

We use to avoid leaving the parks for meals too but once we were AP holders and let ourselves really start trying different things and not going into panic mode over the idea of leaving the parks we really started enjoying trying the different restaurants. When we do leave the parks to go eat we still stick to a place near the park that we're in that day. If we're at MK we do the monorail loop or WL, boardwalk area if we're at dhs...you get the idea. Don't be afraid to branch out. You may find they become as much a part of your vacation experience as your time in the parks.

Thank you, I'm hoping that's what will happen. Figured I was the only person out there that hates the thought of leaving the parks to go dine but, guess not. Great advice on sticking with the surrounding area restaurants, that should really help. Thank you for helping me put my mind at ease!

 

[SnarkyMonkey]

Oh totally do California Grill! You won't regret it!! Just plan to have a really late dinner that night and make that the last thing you do before heading back to the resorts and you won't have to worry about returning to the parks. Plan on watching the fireworks up there, of course.

 

[SDisney90]

Oh totally do California Grill! You won't regret it!! Just plan to have a really late dinner that night and make that the last thing you do before heading back to the resorts and you won't have to worry about returning to the parks. Plan on watching the fireworks up there, of course.

I threw this idea to her this evening and she was up for it! Her manager goes to Disney at least twice a year never does the dining plan and always goes to Cali grill. She mentioned to him how she doesn't like sushi and such and he basically told her his wife is the same way, and they went out of their way to create her own unique dish..SCORE for me!

 

[LAKid53]

Let me start off with I will not be visiting the world until January 7th 2016. I'm so excited to go I could not wait to get a rough idea of what my girlfriend (Courtney) and I will be doing, where we are going and of course our dining selections.

We will be staying from the 7th-15th and going to the parks for 6 days..Here is the rough draft of our selections please feel free to give any comments or suggestions to what we have decided as of yet.

*No days are in order just a rough draft..

Arrival: QS: Earl of Sandwich
TS: Grand Floridian Cafe; been here 2 years in a row and we love it. This place is a must do
in our books and will continue to go (we are only using 1 DDP credit here)

AK: QS: Flame Tree BBQ for myself and Pizzafari for my girlfriend.
TS: Ohanas

MK part 1: QS: Be our guest or Columbia Harbour House
TS: Kona Cafe..This is where it gets complicated for me and not so much my girlfriend. Yes, we
are the crazies that stay in the parks open to close but here is my issue..I've never left a park
to go get dinner and I'm honestly not too crazy on the idea. I'd love to stay in the parks to dine
but, MK only has 1 restaurant I enjoy immensely (coming later) Does anyone else have this problem?
We have dined at Tony's Town Square twice now, I do like it but would like to do something
different this time around...any suggestions for dining or help me get over this silly situation?

HS part 1: QS: Back lot express (up for any suggestions)
TS: 50's Prime Time (must do for Courtney I also enjoy my time/meal here

Off Day: QS: AoA food court or Captain Cooks (all suggestions welcome)
TS: Whispering Canyon Cafe (Courtney has great memories here from when she was a child and would love to go back to ask for some more KETCHUP)

Epcot: QS: Sunshine Seasons of course!!
TS: Garden Grill (love this meal simple and delicious)

HS part 2: QS: Back lot express (again up for all and any suggestions)
TS: Mama Melrose (had a wonderful dinner here in 2014, excited to go back)

MK part 2: QS: Caseys Corner or Cosmic Rays
TS: Liberty Tree Tavern (as long as the menu is the same after refurb or whatever is going on there. We both really enjoyed this meal and would be our 3rd time going back.)

Depart day: QS: Wolfgang Puck Express
TS: This is up in the air..we have no plans this day yet and have plenty of time to decide. We will not have any park tickets so we would have to dine somewhere in DTD or in the resorts. Flight potentially departing at 6PM so we would most likely have to have a lunch table service.

Thank you for taking the time and looking at our plans please, all suggestions are welcome. In the end after typing this all out the biggest problem I have is our MK part 1. I'd really love to stay in Mk for dinner but can't seem to pick a different restaurant other than LTT. Maybe it's time that I do leave the park and head somewhere else to go dine after all, dining outside of the parks are the best, right?

Also our final day, we will have 1 credit left to use for a TS all recommendations welcome!

Last time we ate lunch at BOG, you really needed a FP to get in - which apparently is only available to resort guests and standby required a paper return ticket. Hopefully, by the time of your trip, this will have changed.

I think your selections are excellent. I too love GF Café for both breakfast and dinner (love their Citrus pancakes).

For MK Part 1, why not leave the Park for dinner? You can take the Monorail to the Contemporary and eat at either The Wave or Chef Mickey's (which is busy, busy and character dining and decent food)? Then you can take the Monorail back to the Park for Wishes. I'm not a big fan of Tony's anymore - it's more like Olive Garden.

And for your TS choice on departure day, try one of the new restaurants at DTD, excuse me, Disney Springs, that hopefully will be open by 2016. My favorite lunch choices at DTD are Earl's and Puck's Express, which is a table service masquerading as a quick service, IMO.

 

[SnarkyMonkey]

Yes...the signatures are especially great at working with you to find you something fabulous to eat that you will enjoy, despite allergies and preferences.

You certainly don't have to go with sushi. There are lots of other options. They have great flatbreads, for instance, that most palates would enjoy. She might also like the pork or chicken, with a few adjustments to how they are served (different or no sauce, etc.)

Definitely give it a try. You are going to love it!

 

[LAKid53]

I threw this idea to her this evening and she was up for it! Her manager goes to Disney at least twice a year never does the dining plan and always goes to Cali grill. She mentioned to him how she doesn't like sushi and such and he basically told her his wife is the same way, and they went out of their way to create her own unique dish..SCORE for me!

However, if you are going to use the DDP, Cali Grill is 2 table service credits per person for dinner.

 

[SnarkyMonkey]

Last time we ate lunch at BOG, you really needed a FP to get in - which apparently is only available to resort guests and standby required a paper return ticket. Hopefully, by the time of your trip, this will have changed.

The OP is on the DDP so I assume he is a resort guest but why would non-resort guests not be able to get a FP for BOG?

 

[LAKid53]

The OP is on the DDP so I assume he is a resort guest but why would non-resort guests not be able to get a FP for BOG?

That is a question Disney needs to answer. BOG FP+ is a separate system and you need your resort reservation number to initially log in. About a week or so before your trip, you get an e-mail from BOG "inviting" you to book a FP for lunch. That may have changed since we last ate there for lunch in November. There's been a boat load of discussions about BOG FP for lunch on WDWMagic. But yes, if he's purchasing DDP, then he's a resort guest and will probably get the e-mail "invite". I did notice when we were at MK a couple of weeks ago and walked by BOG around lunch, we didn't see the sign on the bridge regarding the paper ticket return times for standby, so maybe Disney shelved that.

 

[SDisney90]

Yes Cali grill is 2 credits but we usually save a credit on dining..Example: Grand Floridian Cafe - I usually pay for my meal (burger) out of pocket while Courtney opts to use her credit on her meal which is usually the steak. My meal roughly is around 18 dollars or so and her steak is in the 30's I believe. We usually do this when it's not worth using a credit so I'm sure I could get 3 more credits some where else as well.

 

[SDisney90]

Last time we ate lunch at BOG, you really needed a FP to get in - which apparently is only available to resort guests and standby required a paper return ticket. Hopefully, by the time of your trip, this will have changed.

I think your selections are excellent. I too love GF Café for both breakfast and dinner (love their Citrus pancakes).

For MK Part 1, why not leave the Park for dinner? You can take the Monorail to the Contemporary and eat at either The Wave or Chef Mickey's (which is busy, busy and character dining and decent food)? Then you can take the Monorail back to the Park for Wishes. I'm not a big fan of Tony's anymore - it's more like Olive Garden.

And for your TS choice on departure day, try one of the new restaurants at DTD, excuse me, Disney Springs, that hopefully will be open by 2016. My favorite lunch choices at DTD are Earl's and Puck's Express, which is a table service masquerading as a quick service, IMO.

For whatever reason, leaving the park was never something I'd like to do especially to leave for dinner. I'm not sure if it's just because I feel as if I'm not getting my full value at the park or whatever it may be. I'll just have to get over this and just do it and enjoy myself. Worse case scenario I'm not comfortable leaving and I won't do it again, right?

I've dined at Wolf Gang Puck's Express last year on our departure day for lunch I absolutely loved it. We were seating right next to the water and had a full view of "DTD" and Saratoga Springs..it's a great little place to go and I will definitely be back again.

As for BOG - that's a little much with whatever they're doing with the FP and emails or whatever. We are going in the off season but to go through that for it IMO is not worth it. My meal there was good, but not that good. Not a big deal if I can get in or not there's other places I'd love to go. IE Caseys BBQ Slaw Dog MMMMM

 

[SDisney90]

Yes...the signatures are especially great at working with you to find you something fabulous to eat that you will enjoy, despite allergies and preferences.

You certainly don't have to go with sushi. There are lots of other options. They have great flatbreads, for instance, that most palates would enjoy. She might also like the pork or chicken, with a few adjustments to how they are served (different or no sauce, etc.)

Definitely give it a try. You are going to love it!

I myself, LOVE sushi and is the main reason why I would love to go here. Going through the food pictures of the day pushes me that much closer to it. I think a nice signature dining experience will be nice especially since I'm trying to do things we've never done before. Le Cellier is also still in my mind for Epcot...still pushing her for that one

 

[LAKid53]

For whatever reason, leaving the park was never something I'd like to do especially to leave for dinner. I'm not sure if it's just because I feel as if I'm not getting my full value at the park or whatever it may be. I'll just have to get over this and just do it and enjoy myself. Worse case scenario I'm not comfortable leaving and I won't do it again, right?

I've dined at Wolf Gang Puck's Express last year on our departure day for lunch I absolutely loved it. We were seating right next to the water and had a full view of "DTD" and Saratoga Springs..it's a great little place to go and I will definitely be back again.

As for BOG - that's a little much with whatever they're doing with the FP and emails or whatever. We are going in the off season but to go through that for it IMO is not worth it. My meal there was good, but not that good. Not a big deal if I can get in or not there's other places I'd love to go. IE Caseys BBQ Slaw Dog MMMMM

Agree. BOG lunch doesn't compare to dinner. And dinner is easier to get, provided you make your ADR the second your 180 window opens up. lol.

Agree on Casey's. Best chili dog ever. Many times my preferred dinner selection if I go to the park late afternoon and will be staying for a special event, like MNSSHP or MVMCP. And if I'm staying at either a monorail resort or Wilderness Lodge (boat transport), usually my dinner choice day of arrival.

 

[SnarkyMonkey]

That is a question Disney needs to answer. BOG FP+ is a separate system and you need your resort reservation number to initially log in. About a week or so before your trip, you get an e-mail from BOG "inviting" you to book a FP for lunch. That may have changed since we last ate there for lunch in November. There's been a boat load of discussions about BOG FP for lunch on WDWMagic. But yes, if he's purchasing DDP, then he's a resort guest and will probably get the e-mail "invite". I did notice when we were at MK a couple of weeks ago and walked by BOG around lunch, we didn't see the sign on the bridge regarding the paper ticket return times for standby, so maybe Disney shelved that.

Sorry...I haven't been a part of those threads as I don't particularly care about BOG. Thank you for explaining it to me. It makes no sense of me that people would use a FP for this but depends what you are into, I guess.

 

[SDisney90]

Agree. BOG lunch doesn't compare to dinner. And dinner is easier to get, provided you make your ADR the second your 180 window opens up. lol.

Agree on Casey's. Best chili dog ever. Many times my preferred dinner selection if I go to the park late afternoon and will be staying for a special event, like MNSSHP or MVMCP. And if I'm staying at either a monorail resort or Wilderness Lodge (boat transport), usually my dinner choice day of arrival.

Unfortunately I'll never be able to go during MNSSHP or MVMCP due to my business schedule I can only visit the world during the months of January-March latest. I'm also planning a possible surprise stay at AKL or the Wilderness Lodge for a split stay - possibly 2-3 nights. Not sure how I'll be able to keep it a secret

 

[LAKid53]

Sorry...I haven't been a part of those threads as I don't particularly care about BOG. Thank you for explaining it to me. It makes no sense of me that people would use a FP for this but depends what you are into, I guess.

Different FP, not part of the 3 selections for rides. When BOG first offered this, confused lots of people. And I've read rumors that Disney may try this at other popular lunch restaurants. Horrors.

 

[SDisney90]

Sorry...I haven't been a part of those threads as I don't particularly care about BOG. Thank you for explaining it to me. It makes no sense of me that people would use a FP for this but depends what you are into, I guess.

I agree with you Snarky, it's really not that great to use a FP on. But, hey if you've never been in to check it out it may be worth it?

 

[SDisney90]

Different FP, not part of the 3 selections for rides. When BOG first offered this, confused lots of people. And I've read rumors that Disney may try this at other popular lunch restaurants. Horrors.

I really hope not...thanks for clearing that up though.

 

[LAKid53]

Unfortunately I'll never be able to go during MNSSHP or MVMCP due to my business schedule I can only visit the world during the months of January-March latest. I'm also planning a possible surprise stay at AKL or the Wilderness Lodge for a split stay - possibly 2-3 nights. Not sure how I'll be able to keep it a secret

Either don't let her see your MDE account or don't select "share your activities" with her MDE account. Had the same issue with my daughter's birthday trip over MLK. Wanted to make it special so I booked GF - "Mom, why are we turning left instead of right to stay at Wilderness Lodge. OMG, we're staying at the Grand Floridian?!" as we pulled up to the resort entry gate. However, there was no way Disney travel could "hide" that reservation since our accounts are linked. I would have to unlink our accounts, which would have made her suspicious.

If you stay at Wilderness Lodge, make sure to book a Woods View room (much quieter than a lobby view room) and request one of the top floors with a view of the Magic Kingdom. Granted, the trees will obscure most of the Castle, but you can still see the fireworks & the Lagoon parade from your room balcony.

 

[SDisney90]

Either don't let her see your MDE account or don't select "share your activities" with her MDE account. Had the same issue with my daughter's birthday trip over MLK. Wanted to make it special so I booked GF - "Mom, why are we turning left instead of right to stay at Wilderness Lodge. OMG, we're staying at the Grand Floridian?!" as we pulled up to the resort entry gate. However, there was no way Disney travel could "hide" that reservation since our accounts are linked. I would have to unlink our accounts, which would have made her suspicious.

If you stay at Wilderness Lodge, make sure to book a Woods View room (much quieter than a lobby view room) and request one of the top floors with a view of the Magic Kingdom. Granted, the trees will obscure most of the Castle, but you can still see the fireworks & the Lagoon parade from your room balcony.

Thank you for the tips I really appreciate it. I'm the one that handles everything on the vacation. Luggage tags, booking, reservations etc. So hiding it from her won't be an issue until she sees her tag for POP century that says we're only staying for let's say 7 days 6 nights and not 9 days 8 nights. Ill just have to figure this out later on, for now it's all about dining...I'm cranky when I'm hungry! Lol

 

[LAKid53]

Thank you for the tips I really appreciate it. I'm the one that handles everything on the vacation. Luggage tags, booking, reservations etc. So hiding it from her won't be an issue until she sees her tag for POP century that says we're only staying for let's say 7 days 6 nights and not 9 days 8 nights. Ill just have to figure this out later on, for now it's all about dining...I'm cranky when I'm hungry! Lol

Which you can blame on Disney travel and won't be too far fetched. So the luggage tags for MDE also have the length of your stay on them....