FAQ about the Disney Dining Plan

[BeccaGrace]

This is a fabulous thread, thank you so much OP and everyone else who has added to it.

I am also interested in hearing what people have gotten as snacks in resort food courts since they seem to allow the most flexibility in what is considered a snack; also what was received as a dessert for breakfast.

We are going with two kids who eat very little (one averages 5 bites of food and the other about 8--they have yet to finish a shared Happy Meal) ....since we have my mom with us we are paying for 3 adult meals and 1 child. Knowing my kids eating habits I plan on only using the 3 adult meals and letting them share with us...between 3 appetizers, 3 meals and 3 desserts I know we'll be set at TS meals but if we use it for counter service I'm wondering if there will be enough food--for those that shared did the CS meals provide enough to satisfy everyone?

 

[Nora94]

most beverages allowed for a snack or counter service were under $2 in price, as we aren't coffee drinkers, can't tell you about specialty coffees. They could be your non alcoholic drink at table service if they are on the menu.

Snack items at the resorts seemed to be a wide variety. We had sometimes where it would ring up, and others where it wouldn't. When it wouldn't than the person usually was nice enough to ring it up as a banana.

We got zuchinni and banana bread as both snack and dessert. Danishes, fruit cups/bowls, cookies, rice crispy treat Mickey's, and OJ or choc milk were also things we got as snack/dessert at the resort.

As far as the sharing of food, you will easily be able to feed two small eaters sharing counter services. Just make sure you order an entree that has something they will eat part of and do a fruit cup as one of your desserts. Believe me you will have plenty of food if you order adult entree's.

Nora

 

[Good Ol Gal]

With all the ??? about the dining plan this is one of the best threads going on the board right now!

 

[kdtwiss]

As far as coffe goes, I think it is not included. My dh got two coffees and did not look at the receipt. When I looked at it we had been charged 2 CS MEALS! Yikes - took about 30 minutes to straighten that one out. I would specifically ask each time if coffee is covered at the particular place you are at and make sure it is as a snack - not a cs credit.

Just so everyone knows also - because almost all of our plans for our TS meals were, let's say - ruined, we were able to pick up dinner at 1900 PF for my mom, sister and BIL, lunch at CP for 5 extra adults, and dinner at O'Hana's for 5 extra adults. We may not have gotten to fully utilize the plan as I had envisioned,but being able to say - "I'll get that" w/o having to reach for our wallets wassuper nice.
Also - one thing I found really funny - at Park Faire our waiter made a big deal of letting us know of the special priviledge that came along with our dining plan there. He said we were ":entitled" to try the delicious smoothies, and all we had to do was tell him after how they were. Wow - what a smart waiter - with 5 adults and 6 kids - he really upped that bill and therefore his tip. I knew why he was doing it,but my mom was horrified at the extra $$! Lovely being able to say - it's included mom - don't sweat it!

FYI at any meal where I intended to pick up the bill for others, I simply informed the waiter/waitress how I would like the bill split. Never had any problems at all!

 

[jenndisney]

For those who have used the plan….Do you get to see a breakdown of what your ordered with prices when your meal is complete? Does it include the tip in the breakdown?

Just so I know how much to tip extra if I want to.

(I can’t wait until I come back and I can be the “expert”)

Sprinkling pixie dust to the wishes for a sticky

 

[eddieras]

when you get the check you get one that has all the items, costs, etc - this is the restaurant copy. so you do see the figures-- but the copy you take with you doesn't have any $$ amounts-

 

[bigbabyblues]

If you use the dining plan at a resort counter service, do you get all your items then go to pay? For instance, if I'm at ASMo, I get my combo meal, where do I find the dessert, and how do I know which ones I can get? I guess I'm just confused on how it works. Any experiences appreciated!

 

[dani12]

Jenndisney: Like Eddieras said, you get to see a copy of the bill but the server keeps that copy. When you check out, you will get a detailed bill of your expenses which is nice to see so you know how much money you did save!

bibbabyblues: We also stayed at ASMo and had the dining plan. You just get all your food and take it to the counter. It is very easy to figure out once you see the layout. Also, if you have any questions that CMs are very helpful. I had one CM send me back b/c I only got a small OJ and she told me to go and get a big OJ. Everyone was very helpful when it came to using the dining plan.

 

[DisneyJen0504]

Great thread-just subscribing...

 

[cosmicdaisy]

Hi there! This is my very first post!

Anyways, I have a few questions about the Dining Plan. First of all, the answer to this may void my next question. If I didn't add the dining plan at time of reservation (package), can I still add it? Next, I notice the details of the dining plan state children should order from the kids menu and maybe it says when possible, but I am not sure. My DD has food allergies and will more than likely need most things prepared specially for her. Can she still use a voucher/credit/whateveryoucallit for her meal?

And what is the difference between the dining plan and these meal vouchers I have seen for sell on ebay et.al. but can't find much detailed info about.

Thanks a bunch!

One more thing...totally OT with regards to restaurants, but do you think if you call ahead and explained that you *need* a fridge there is a way to make sure you get one?

TIA!

 

[Nora94]

Hi there! This is my very first post!

Anyways, I have a few questions about the Dining Plan. First of all, the answer to this may void my next question. If I didn't add the dining plan at time of reservation (package), can I still add it? Next, I notice the details of the dining plan state children should order from the kids menu and maybe it says when possible, but I am not sure. My DD has food allergies and will more than likely need most things prepared specially for her. Can she still use a voucher/credit/whateveryoucallit for her meal?

And what is the difference between the dining plan and these meal vouchers I have seen for sell on ebay et.al. but can't find much detailed info about.

Thanks a bunch!

One more thing...totally OT with regards to restaurants, but do you think if you call ahead and explained that you *need* a fridge there is a way to make sure you get one?

TIA!

Fridge - yes, call ahead and tell them you need it for medical reasons, they will have one there for you.

Vouchers vs Dining Plan - two totally different things. Dining plan is tied to your hotel room key and can not be bought via auctions.

Adding Plan later - yes, you can do it as long as it's before a certain number of days ahead. We reserved our package and put down the deposit, than added the Dining Plan later w/o a problem.

Special Diet - the waiters will work with you on the special diet, but you may want to do a search for "allergies and dining" threads to find out more of how. I know that you can still use the dining plan with special diet meals. You just probably want to tell the CM when you make the reservations. Again, do a search about that cause I know that (how to order for allergies) has been covered a lot.

Nora

 

[makelab]

be careful with those vouchers, as most of them have expired, or expire tomorrow. they aren't being sold anymore, except for the animal kingdom ones.

 

[scrapperjill]

We just notifyed Pop today that we'd need a fridge in our room for medical reasons also...then seem to make it sound as if it was no problem at all.

Now back to the dinning plan and more questions...a previous posted said something about the server suggesting or recomending...the smoothies as a way to rack up the bill to increase his tip....just how does the tip work..I know it's something that is included into the package already....but really how do the servers get tipped in the end?

Anyone else know anything or have any experience with getting espresso's and/or specitly coffee drinks as snacks or with TS meals?

 

[dani12]

scrapperjill: The servers typically get their tips at the end of their shift. Sometimes it is once a week. I'm not sure how WDW does it but most do it daily. Once they calculate your bill, the gratuity is figured out from that. So the higher the check, the higher the tip. It's kind of like when you go to a restaurant that adds in the tip; the servers work hard to get a higher bill b/c it's guaranteed money in their pocket. When they run their report at night, they can take their tips out from the cash they have; kind of like a credit card tip.

 

[cosmicdaisy]

Just wanted to say thanks for the responses!

 

[kdtwiss]

Just wanted to add - to avoid any confusion. The tips I saw were 18% and INCLUDED in the dining plan. We did tip extra when we had good service, but this amount was what the waiter was guaranteed. Another reason why I feel the dining plan was such a phenomenal deal. We saved oodles and did not even come close to maximizing the plan.
When you get the bill you get two copies - one with the total spent (including tip) for you to sign,the other for you to keep with zero totals as that is what you pay. Zippo!

Awesome deal!

 

[eblondie]

Oh genie of the lamp I wish for a dining plan sticky!

 

[jjohnson]

notice the genie has failed so far

 

[scrapperjill]

Well that tip thing sure works well...And benifits all those who purchased the dinning plan...by encouraging the waiters to push you towards the higher priced items... ...Makes total sence...push for the higher items and in return get a bigger gauarenteed tip.

 

[Bartoli]

I apologize if this is a repeat question, but..... If we have dining credits left over on the day we check out, can we still use them that day? I know the dining credits are tied to a nights stay. We will probably check out of the hotel and go to the park for a couple of hours. I was hoping we could use left over credits (if any) for snacks or CS meals that day.