It's not as pricey as you think. At all. The flight costs more to get there, sure. But from there it can be cheaper than WDW or DL. The park tickets are MUCH cheaper... And you can stay in one of the partner hotels for very similar prices to a Marriott or Sheraton here (I've stayed in both there and thought they were just fine).
Food is similar in pricing. Last time I was there we stayed at the Marriott which included free breakfast in the on-site restaurant. It was a FULL buffet. Both western and eastern foods. We would eat a ton, then have one meal at the park in the late afternoon, then a snack in the room before bed.
Heck, if you really wanted to do it on a shoestring, you could leave the park for your meal and walk to Ikspiari (SORT of like their version of downtown Disney, but not really close). There are a number of cheaper options there, from noodle stands to grocery stores.
Not to mention the tix are 2/3 the price of WDW tix!
If you watch the airfare and are flexible, a trip to Tokyo Disney isn't as far out of reach as everyone believes it to be.
And the language barrier isn't as scary as most think either. Especially once on Disney property. Most speak English. It gets more dicey if you venture out into Tokyo (and you SHOULD!). But even then, it's not impossible, and more importantly, the people of Japan are FANTASTIC and WANT to help you.