Monday, July 23, 2012

Maximizing the Dining Plan Part One

I have written several posts on the dining plan in the past. By now it is probably obvious that I am only a fan of the plan if you get it for free (or if your family really enjoys having a sit down meal every day). We have been very lucky to get it for free almost every trip so I definitely wouldn't turn it down, but I also did not pay to add it to the last two trips we took to the World. Why? Truthfully, the amount of food you have to eat on it to make it worth the money is way too much for our family. I have kept our receipts for the last few years when we had free dining and it was about a wash with the price for the plan. I added up every penny we spent on snacks, counter service meals, and dinner and compared it to the price we would have paid to add the dining plan to our stay. Every time we came out almost even. In other words, we wouldn't have saved any money by adding the plan. In fact, we probably would have spent more because there were many times we were eating food we wouldn't have purchased out of pocket (mainly desserts). We were "forced" to get a dessert at every meal, and truth be told, we don't often spend money on desserts. I am not saying we didn't enjoy eating them, but very often we left food on our plates because it was way too much. I have written posts in the past about how we stretch the dining plan and share meals which allows us a few extra meals, plus it eliminates excessive waste of food. Even taking that into consideration though, we still wouldn't come out ahead as we would share those meals anyway if we were paying out of pocket.

Whether or not you pay for the plan, or if you are lucky enough to get it for free, I have a few tips for maximizing the plan to get the most value out of it. My husband always makes it his personal challenge to get the most expensive food and dessert at each restaurant so that he can make the most of the plan. So, based on his "research" I have a few tips.

Part one: Maximizing the Dining Plan Using Sit Down Meal Credits

First of all, I am not a big fan of using the dining plan on signature restaurants (these take two dining entitlements) or in room pizza delivery. I would rather have two sit down meals instead of one that takes two credits, and truthfully, I can get two pizzas at Pizza Hut for $20, and even if I have them delivered and pay a delivery fee it is cheaper than wasting a sit down meal credit. We have had Giordano's delivered to Pop Century before when we didn't have access to a car so I know that there are restaurants that deliver if you just don't want to go out. There are so many amazing restaurants to choose from on property so why do I want to waste a sit down meal on a pizza that is made at the food court (and really isn't that good)? As for the signature restaurants, I just don't feel like you can get your money's worth for two credits. Now, I must admit that I have done this once. A few years ago my princess wanted to eat inside the castle so we did use two credits a piece for this meal. While this did include gratuity (not usual for dining plan anymore) and a photo package with Cinderella, I probably wouldn't do it again unless she really begged. I would rather eat with Cinderella at 1900 Park Fare where the atmosphere is more relaxed, and the food is much much better.

Secondly, I wouldn't do breakfast unless it is something that your family really enjoys. You get much more food at lunch or dinner, and you aren't wasting a credit on bacon and eggs. We have had breakfast at a few sit downs now, and I walked away every time feeling like I just spent my life fortune on pancakes and waffles. None of the food was any different than what I could make at home (with the exception of maybe a casserole or two). Since our family isn't really into eating big breakfasts, we would rather have cereal or bagels at the hotel and save our meals for later. We had quick service for free last year and my daughter begged to eat at Chef Mickey's on her birthday. After looking at the prices, we decided to try their breakfast since it was considerably cheaper than dinner. Since we were paying out of pocket, we wanted to eat as cheap as possible. So, we took the plunge and tried it. After waiting in line to take our picture and get seated, we were starving by the time we were taken to our table. However, Mickey Mouse was really close to our table so we waited to see him. Then we raced to the buffet and filled our plates. By the time we got back, Goofy was one table away, so we spent the next few minutes getting ready for autographs and pictures. By the time he left and we started eating, our food was getting cold (as breakfast foods often do). So we ate a little then went to get more, only to come back to Minnie Mouse heading our way. So the cycle started again. By the time we had seen all of the characters it was an hour later and I had only eaten a few Mickey waffles, some scrambled eggs, some potato casserole and a muffin. I felt full as I was utterly exhausted, so we paid our bill and left. Our meal cost us $90 out of pocket by the time we paid for three buffets and left a tip. I really did not feel like the three of us had eaten $90 worth of food, and truthfully that is almost my whole grocery budget for a week. If we had eaten there for dinner as we usually do, we would have eaten a lot more food and I would have felt like I had gotten better value for my money since I would have had fresh carved beef, or ham, and lots of other goodies. I guess I just have a hard time spending so much on breakfast food that is really pretty cheap to make. Even if we had used a dining entitlement for our breakfast, and we had gotten the dining plan for free, I would have walked away from that meal feeling like I just threw money out the window. I am not saying we won't do breakfast again on the dining plan, but it will definitely only be when we get the plan for free. I am sure doing one or two breakfasts wouldn't be a big deal, but if you want to get your money's worth from the plan, breakfast is not your best value.

Finally, there are certain restaurants to avoid to get the best value out of your plan. The in room pizza delivery is number one on my list. Second choice would be The Plaza restaurant in Magic Kingdom. The prices are super cheap here, and the atmosphere is pretty laid back. The prices really aren't much higher than those at counter service locations, so you just can't get a good deal if you are on the plan. Now if you want a cheap sit down meal to pay out of pocket, then this is an awesome place to go. I would also avoid most of the sit down restaurants at the moderate resorts. These are geared towards the guests at those resorts, so again the prices are pretty affordable. Not only are the prices cheap, but the atmosphere is pretty laid back and simple (for example, Shutters at Caribbean Beach is open in the morning as extra seating for resort guests eating in the food court). The food may be good at these restaurants, but it is far from fancy and the value is not there if you are using the plan. One final restaurant that stands out as a low value for the plan is Beaches and Cream at the Beach Club. Here you will get burgers or sandwiches, and the desserts on the plan aren't as great as I would hope. you get a simple sundae or other small ice cream treat. I would rather go here for dessert only and enjoy a Banana Split or Kitchen Sink sundae out of pocket. Most other restaurants on property are going to be a decent value. If you are looking for a few that will give you your money's worth I suggest O'Hana, Teppan Edo, Portobello, Wolfgang Puck (lower dining room), T-Rex, Whispering Canyon Cafe, Boma or a Character Buffet for dinner (1900 Park Fare, Chef Mickey's, Akershus, or Crystal Palace). These are all pricier options with either big portions, yummy desserts, or a great atmosphere. I would put all of these at the top of my must do list for all newbies to the plan.

In the coming days (hopefully) I will post my tips for maximizing the plan with quick service options.

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Our sit down choices for our upcoming Disney trip

It is hard to believe, but it has already been three months since I woke up at the crack of dawn to make my dining reservations. On the flip side of that, it is even harder to believe that we are only three months out from our exciting trip to Disney World. If the next three months pass even half as quickly as the last three, I will be sitting on the new Dumbo before I even know it and eagerly anticipating that nights yummy meal. As I was re-writing my itinerary for the upteenth time it hit me that it has been a while since I posted on sit down restaurants (or really since I had posted at all thanks to summer and traveling). So, I thought I would share the list of restaurants we chose for our upcoming meal, and why we chose them. Hopefully it will help someone else who is planning a trip.

Before I list them, let me give you a little background on our travel party so some of my choices may make a little more sense :) It is myself, my husband, and our eight year old daughter (who will celebrate her ninth birthday while we are there). We are going for ten nights, and were able to snag the free dining promotion for our entire trip. Since we are staying at a value resort, we are getting the quick service plan for free (two counter service meals and one snack per day, per person). We chose to upgrade to the regular dining plan though which is an additional $36.31 per day total for all three of us. The regular dining plan includes one snack, one counter service, and one sit down meal, per day, per person. We have done the quick service plan for the entire 10 days and found ourselves getting really tired of the hamburgers, pizzas, and wraps by the end of our trip. Thus the reason for the upgrade :). This trip we also get the pleasure of my Aunt and Cousin joining us for four nights at the end of our trip, so that played a part in deciding which restaurants we chose as well. So, that is the background, and now I will get to the choices!

Day 1
We have a reservation at Portobello at Downtown Disney. I chose a time after 6:00 as I don't anticipate us staying late at the parks that day after driving late into the night to get there the night before. I have always wanted to try Portobello as our family really enjoys Italian meals, but in the past they have not been on the dining plan. Since this is the first year they are on the plan, I figured we had better try it in case they change their mind next year :). We also really enjoy trying new restaurants while we are at Disney, so this one was a perfect fit.

Day 2
We have dinner at 50s Prime Time Cafe. I cannot believe I finally talked my hubby into trying this one. I have been trying for years, but he always fights me. To give a little background, this restaurant is set with a 1950s theme and the waitresses are all supposed to be like your Mom...telling you to eat your vegetables. Well, seeing as most meals come with veggies, and my hubby has a gag reflex with most things green, it has never appealed to him. Add that to the fact that most of the menu is homecooked "favorites" (meatloaf, fried chicken, potpie, etc) which we don't eat a lot of, and you can see why it hasn't been high on our list. However, I know several people who love this restaurant and make it a must do every trip. Crossing my fingers that this one works out for us, and my hubby doesn't spend the evening in the corner for not eating his veggies.

Day 3
We have dinner with the Princesses at Akershus in Norway at Epcot. This is another one that took a lot of convincing for my hubby to book. We have eaten here three different times, and every time he swears we will never do it again. However, my daughter begged for it. After realizing that our little girl is very quickly growing up and will soon think she is too cool to eat with the Princesses, he relented and said he would give it one more try. A quick note, the food here is Norweigen for lunch and dinner for adults, but pretty normal American fare for the kids.

Day 4
We have dinner at Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom. Surprisingly, this is one of only three character meals this trip (this really makes me sad). This is an all you can eat buffet inside the park with Winnie the Pooh characters. We have eaten here before, but it was my daughter's first trip and she was only 22 months old. To say that she was terrified of the characters would be a gross understatement. She spent the entire meal under the table and her Daddy and I had to hold up napkins around her so she couldn't see the characters in order for her to eat. I am definitely ready to try this one again, and hopefully have a little less stressful meal!

Day 5
We have dinner at Les Chefs de France at Epcot. This is one that my hubby has been wanting to try for a while now. I am not usually an adventurous eater so I have resisted as long as I could. However, since he is letting my do 50's Prime Time, I really didn't have much choice :) Plus, Remy (from Ratatouille) visits the dining room on a meal cart most nights for dinner and interacts with the diners. I am looking forward to that the most! Crossing my fingers that this one works out for us as well.

Day 6
We have dinner at Captains Grille at the Yacht Club resort. This is another new one for us. I really like crab legs, and my hubby really likes crab cakes so we are hoping to enjoy a tasty seafood treat that night. Most of the restaurants that we wanted to try for seafood took two meal credits, and this was one of the few that took only one. By default, this one was the choice for the evening. Since we will be spending the day at Animal Kingdom and the water parks, and they both close at 5:00, it was the perfect day to eat at a resort for dinner.

Day 7
We have lunch at Sci Fi Dine In at Hollywood Studios. This is one of my daughter's favorite restaurants. What child wouldn't enjoy eating their dinner inside of a parked car while they watch clips from old movies on the big screen as if they were at a drive in movie? This is the first day our extra special guests will be with us, so I wanted something affordable for them since they probably won't be on the dining plan. Also, we are going to get Giordano's pizza that night, so we didn't want a super big and heavy lunch :)

Day 8
We have dinner at Teppan Edo at Epcot. This is a Hibachi steak house with the best food and cooking show of any Hibachi restaurant I know. We have only eaten here once, but I can already taste that super tender steak hot off the grill! I am not sure if my extended family will be eating this meal with us or not since it is pretty pricey, but I have a second reservation just in case that I will cancel as the trip gets closer and we are more sure of their plans. This is one meal that I don't want to miss so I made a reservation in my Aunt's name just to be safe!

Day 9
We have dinner at Paradiso 37 at Downtown Disney. This will be another new restaurant for us. This is the first year on the Dining plan for it as well, so I definitely wanted to give it a shot. It too is somewhat affordable since it has burgers and sandwiches on the menu, so I figured it was a good one to try with the family visiting as well. This restaurant has kind of a Mexican/American mixed menu that looks super yummy. I can't wait to try it!

Day 10
We have dinner with Cinderella, Prince Charming, and her step sisters at 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian resort. We have done this one almost every single trip for the last few years. This will be my daughter's actual birthday, so she got to choose dinner for that night. This meal is an all you can eat buffet, and the prime rib here is always super tasty, along with the strawberry soup. With the characters and the yummy food, this is one of my favorites as well.

So, there you have it. Those are our choices for this year. I am still in shock that we aren't going to Chef Mickey's or Whispering Canyon, but I know that we will love the ones we chose in their place. Off the top of my head I can't think of any restaurants on property that I just refuse to ever eat at again. I definitely have my favorites, but all the restaurants are very yummy and we always walk away with a smile on our face. I can't wait to try our new choices this year and see if our streak of good luck with restaurants continues!