which place to pay out of pocket for on Dining Plan?

[GreenCupcake]

Less than 2 weeks to go! I am so excited.. My husband and I are heading to WDW Oct 16-21 and I purchased the dining package (1 table service, 1 snack, 1 quick meal per day). We are staying at All Star Movies, so I don't intend to eat there and will probably pack some cereal or snack bars for when we are at hotel.

I got some great ADR's, but last week a spot at Crystal Palace opened up and I booked it b/c my husband loves Winnie the Pooh (still trying for Be Our Guest, but not expecting it will happen), so now we are over ADR spots for table service. I know I'll end up paying for a meal, which is fine because CP is worth it to go over. Not sure I should cancel a dinner either, because I'm fairly excited for the places I picked. Looking at our itinerary, any advice in which meal I should pay out of pocket for?

Sun Oct 16 ( arrival day) - Raglan Rd. (because we are not going to parks that day)
Mon Oct 17 - Crystal Palace (early lunch), Skipper Canteen (8pm dinner)
Tues Oct 18 (anniversary) - San Angel Inn for dinner (will be at food and wine during day using snack options)
Weds Oct 19- Hollywood Brown Derby Fantamsic lunch pkg (2 waivers)
Thurs Oct 20- No ADR's, plan to use quick service options

Right now I am leaning towards paying out of pocket for Raglan Rd., but would also consider San angel Inn since we will probably be getting wine and such and that's not included. Raglan rd also has a great drinks selection and I imagine after traveling all day a beer will be welcome.

Any advice is appreciated!

 

[Weather_Lady]

A la carte TS restaurants are almost always cheaper out of pocket ("OOP") than buffets (especially if you don't intend to order a fountain beverage and dessert at each one). I'd take a look at the menus for Raglan Road, San Angel Inn, Brown Derby (make the estimate, then cut it in half, to see the value of each of the 2 TS credits it's costing you) and Skipper Canteen, and take an educated guess as to what you would most likely order and what it will cost. Then pay for the cheapest one(s) OOP. Don't even factor alcoholic drinks into the equation, since you'll be paying for those OOP regardless.

 

[rob0519]

I would think Raglan Road would be the least expensive, but as Weather Lady wrote, be sure to factor in any alcohol if you choose to partake. Raglan has a great bar and even a Bailey's milkshake, but it should still be less expensive than Crystal Palace.

 

[GreenCupcake]

I've compared menus, and HBD is very pricey, so if I did OOP I would likely get a salad or something smaller than the big entrees. Basically the restaurants are all comparable depending on what we order, but I know on DDP the appetizers are not included, so if one place had an amazing one, that might sway me to pick that. I have often made a meal of appetizers

 

[MightyMouse]

I'm a WDW rookie, so I don't know anything. What I can tell you though is you won't want to spend your anniversary dinner thinking twice about the cost of your meal, so I'd recommend using your dining credits at San Angel and just sit back and enjoy your meal.

Having never dined at San Angel, this fine piece of advice will cost you a review of your meal upon your return.

 

[senor_jorge]

I've compared menus, and HBD is very pricey, so if I did OOP I would likely get a salad or something smaller than the big entrees. Basically the restaurants are all comparable depending on what we order, but I know on DDP the appetizers are not included, so if one place had an amazing one, that might sway me to pick that. I have often made a meal of appetizers

We often have the Cobb salad as an entree. My wife and I can each get a salad and split the grapefruit cake, and leave full.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

any advice in which meal I should pay out of pocket for?

Dinner options are usually the dearest - you should be looking at paying for a lunch or breakfast ADR

 

[Trisha Lynn]

Your itinerary is very similar to mine (arrival Sunday, departure on Thursday) and I'm trying to work this out for myself as well. So far (and without confirmed ADRs), and only counting what I am likely to order (including alcohol), the most expensive meal is actually going to be the buffet dinner at Garden Grill (I used the upper limit 59.99 amount as my dollar amount).

The Garden Grill $59.99
The Garden Grill/Citrus Freeze $11.25
INSERT ITEM ABOVE
Sub-Total $71.24
Tax Rate (6.5%) $4.63
Tip (18% pre-tax) $12.82
GRAND TOTAL $88.69

Here's my Brown Derby calculation in comparison:

The Brown Derby/Cobb Salad $11.00
The Brown Derby/Roast Rack of Lamb $43.00
INSERT ITEM ABOVE
Sub-Total $54.00
Tax Rate (6.5%) $3.51
Tip (18% pre-tax) $9.72
GRAND TOTAL $67.23

 

[GreenCupcake]

Your itinerary is very similar to mine (arrival Sunday, departure on Thursday) and I'm trying to work this out for myself as well. So far (and without confirmed ADRs), and only counting what I am likely to order (including alcohol), the most expensive meal is actually going to be the buffet dinner at Garden Grill (I used the upper limit 59.99 amount as my dollar amount).

The Garden Grill $59.99
The Garden Grill/Citrus Freeze $11.25
INSERT ITEM ABOVE
Sub-Total $71.24
Tax Rate (6.5%) $4.63
Tip (18% pre-tax) $12.82
GRAND TOTAL $88.69

Here's my Brown Derby calculation in comparison:

The Brown Derby/Cobb Salad $11.00
The Brown Derby/Roast Rack of Lamb $43.00
INSERT ITEM ABOVE
Sub-Total $54.00
Tax Rate (6.5%) $3.51
Tip (18% pre-tax) $9.72
GRAND TOTAL $67.23

That is helpful...HBD might be best option since it's lunch and requires 2 waivers...Then I have another table res if we want to do another dinner.

Lunches will likely be lighter than our dinner fare since we are doing rides and I don't want to be super full while on the rides