What to do with un-needed sit-down meals on Free Meal Plan promotional?

RonAnnArbor

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
So...In September, my partner and I will be at the World and we never get the meal plan, because we never eat dinner at restaurants that take the meal plan.

But we will each have the meal plan free as part of the promotional for that period this year.

What to do with those sit-down meals that we will not use?

Do they let you use them for counter-service instead? Or are we basically going to throw away 5 days of sit-down meals?
 

TwoTigersMom

Well-Known Member
Hi Ron, I read in here a few weeks back that you could use your sit downs as counter service, but you have to use all your counters up first. Your not even going to eat at Cali Grill or Yachtsman's or anything? You probably already know, but you can use up two of the sit downs by eating at one of the Signature restraunts.
 

tigsmom

Well-Known Member
Why not try one or two restaurants you have never been to before that serve foods you like/might like. We get into a rut about eating at the same places all the time so we have made trying a new place each time a goal.
 

RonAnnArbor

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
THANK YOU HAGENSMOMMIE!!!! That is exactly what I needed to know.

For those who offered we eat at other restaurants - we've eaten at almost all of them over the years. The only ones we go to now on Disney property are Bistro de Paris and V&A and neither take the meal plan. Otherwise we go to restaurants in Orlando -- believe it or not, there are fantastic restaurants OFF property. If we were going to stay exclusively within the park, there are many wonderful choices. But we go to non-Disney restaurants we like better.
 

DisneyBunny

Active Member
How about making some Disney Magic for some lucky family? If they'r just going to go to waste, if you don't end up cashing them in, perhaps you could offer to pay for someone else's meal? We do this all the time with unused Fastpasses... although I would have loved to have been surprised with a free meal. Pity we aren't going to be down at the same time you are. I'd gladly take them off your hands! :lol:
 

bluejasmine

Active Member
Yea I have to agree if your going to have some TS credits left i would do a couple signature dining experiences. Like hoopdedoo or the luau or even crt..
 

RonAnnArbor

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Do they let you give away the meals on your plan? I would gladly treat someone to sit-down dinner...of course, the irony being, you would need to be inside the restaurant to do that, and we don't plan on going to one of them.
 

mousermerf

Account Suspended
I'd atleast do like Concourse and Maya Grill, but if you're set on no sit downs *shrug*

You should probably atleast use the snacks on bottle of water to stay hyrated, and som small yummy things like dole whips or pastries.
 

RonAnnArbor

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I don't want this to become a "chastise the guy for prefering restaurants off property" so thanks for all the suggestions, I'm just not going to use any of them.

Basically I wanted to know if we can do a couple extra counter services during the day, and got the answer I needed from Hagensmommie. Thanks for the concern, though, folks.

As an alternative, I will suggest that some of you get off property and check out restaurants like Boheme, Emeril's Orlando, and La Coq au Vin in Orlando then you can see why we find them to be far superior.

Thanks!
 

scorp111

Well-Known Member
RonAnnArbor said:
I don't want this to become a "chastise the guy for prefering restaurants off property" so thanks for all the suggestions, I'm just not going to use any of them.

Basically I wanted to know if we can do a couple extra counter services during the day, and got the answer I needed from Hagensmommie. Thanks for the concern, though, folks.

As an alternative, I will suggest that some of you get off property and check out restaurants like Boheme, Emeril's Orlando, and La Coq au Vin in Orlando then you can see why we find them to be far superior.

Thanks!


Kind of ironic that you don't want posters to chastise you for your choice, when the tone of your posts seem to chastise others for theirs (eating exclusively on-site).

Just my two cents, but to each their own.
 

RonAnnArbor

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I wasn't chastising them for eating on property. I was telling them that I asked about what to do with the un-needed credits, not where to use them in the park. I got my question answered. We've eaten everywhere in the park. I wasn't slamming any of the restaurants on property. I was saying we like those off property better, and between us have 10 dinner credits to get rid of. The post was about what to do with those credits, not where to eat.
 

DisneyBride94

New Member
RonAnnArbor said:
I wasn't chastising them for eating on property. I was telling them that I asked about what to do with the un-needed credits, not where to use them in the park. I got my question answered. We've eaten everywhere in the park. I wasn't slamming any of the restaurants on property. I was saying we like those off property better, and between us have 10 dinner credits to get rid of. The post was about what to do with those credits, not where to eat.

THe problem with the free dining promotion is that it really is not free... if you get a room only reservation--you can usually get a FAR BETTER room rate...when they package it all up with "Free" dining...your overall package rate is more expensive... If you are not interested in free dining, you are better off getting an AP if you are going to be there more than 7 days, and use the AP rate for your room if you can get an AP rate... I think there were some other discounted room rates available to non-AP holders as well...for the upcoming months...

We priced out doing the AP room rate vs. the face value of the dining plan...and we come out slightly ahead with the meal plan (and even further ahead depending on our dining selections).

It's fine that you like off property dining... there are certrainly some good places to eat outside the world...but I hate wasting time off property...I'm a Disney only kind of girl when I got to Orlando... And we don't rent a car anymore now that they have the DME... (They are doing a creditable job keeping Disney guests at Disney instead of loosing them to other area attractions, hotels and eateries...I give them kudos for their marketing strategy!

Maybe if it were just DH and I we'd feel more foot loose and fancy free to escape the parks...but with three small kidlets (2, 4, 6) it's too much of a hassle to exit the parks for our grub. :) And if you're eating off property you won't be subjected to their noise. :) LOL.

I must say that California Grill is really very good, imo. But if you'd rather the counter serive meals...that sounds like it will work for you... I'm not a big fan of the c/s at any of the parks save for Flametree...

IN fact, we find the counter service at MK so bad...and SO OVERCROWDED and OVERPRICED that we've been known to hope on the monorail for a nice quiet, serviced lunch at Kona Cafe at the Poly... It's air conditioned... peaceful... and they have really great coffee if nothing else... we just get burgers there...but they are several steps above the counter service at MK... and for the time it takes to stand on line and order at MK c/s... (and not be able to find a seat!) we can be resting our tired tootsies at Kona... We're in and out like a flash...and if we have a sleeping kid in a stroller... the monorails are stroller friendly in a pinch. :) It's usually dead over there at lunch time!
 

MMP

New Member
The nicest thing I ever saw happen at Disney was when I was working Cinderella's Royal Table for the weekend and one family used their extra TS credit to pay for another families meal and then left quietly before the other family found out. I cried.
 

RonAnnArbor

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
MMP, I really really like that idea. What I think we decided to do is just that - grab one dinner on property, and then treat a tablesof 4 without them knowing it, while using our remaining table credits for a few extra hot dogs here and there.
 

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