Filling in the blanks (and picking the best DDP)

toonaspie

Just a poser
Joined
May 30, 2010
Call me crazy for planning this 15 months away but who can wait? I'm looking to do new experiences (if possible) on this trip as far as dining.

From what I recall from back in my CP days, I've dined at the following restaurants:

MK - Tony's Town Square, Pecos Bill, Columbia Harbor House, Pinocchio Village Haus
EP - Nine Dragons, Teppan Edo, Katsuri Grill, Lotus Blossom Cafe
DHS - ABC Commissary, Sci-Fi Dine In, Backlot Express, Pizza Planet (now Pizzerizzo)
DAK - Flame Tree Barbecue, Pizzafari, Rainforest Cafe, Restaurantosaurus
Disney Springs/DTD - Earl of Sandwich


Currently, I'm planning a 5-night/4-day stay as the goal. However this could be subject to change depending on what flights I can get and other factors.

But let's work with the premise that I am doing one-park-per-day. I know only a few of the restaurants I want to try. The rest I need help filling the blanks if you will.

Disney Springs (dinner) on Arrival Night
Preferred QS: D-Luxe Burger
Preferred TS: Planet Hollywood (you may also rec'd a different TS if desired)

Magic Kingdom Day
Breakfast: ???
Lunch: Be Our Guest QS
Dinner: Skipper Canteen (or another rec'd TS)

Epcot Day
Breakfast: Garden Grill (or a rec'd QS)
Lunch: Via Napoli or Tutto Italia (or another rec'd TS)
Dinner: ????

DHS Day
Breakfast: ?????
Lunch: ????
Dinner: Mama Melrose (or another rec'd TS)

(*I feel there's too much Italian food in my choices. Something I want to avoid.)

DAK Day
Breakfast: Satuuli Canteen
Lunch: ????
Dinner: Yak and Yeti (QS or TS)

Leaving Day: eat at resort

Sorry if this is too much work for you guys. I'm trying to decide how much of a variety between QS and TS I want without going overboard. I'm thinking of averaging 1 TS per day with maybe a special exception here and there.

With that in mind, I should aim for the Reg Dining Plan yes? I'm traveling solo so I'm trying to figure out if the cost would be worth it.
 
I think you'll make your best decision by looking at the menus for the restaurants you want and making an estimated budget based on the prices of the dishes you're likely to order. Unless you are choosing pricier locations or character meals, you're unlikely to save money with the DDP.

In my personal experience, the dining plan has never been worth it. We always feel trapped into our reservations, end up eating more often than we want and ordering the more expensive items rather than the dishes we really want.
A lot of places, we don't want to order an entree, like at Sci Fi, we'd rather order apps as our meals but that doesn't qualify for the plan. Turf Club last year was a similar experience, what I wanted was cheaper than an entree but they couldn't swap it. We had an especially bad food trip on the DDP last fall and I will never pay for it again.
 
So you are visiting October 2018, correct? Well, dining is certainly a great way to escape the heat. I would not waste a dining credit on Planet Hollywood with all of the wonderful choices at DS. On your MK day how about breakfast at a character breakfast at one of the Deluxe Resorts? Dinner at Skipper Canteen sounds a wee bit boring after lunch at BOG. Where are you staying, BTW? How about skipping lunch and using two credits on some signature restaurants, instead?
Whether the dining plan is worth it comes down to not money, but experience. Sounds like you want a dining experience. In that case - it's worth it.
 


I'd recommend Homecoming at DS for dinner on your arrival night. We are from SC and it was some of the best "comfort food" we've had. If fried chicken isn't your thing, they have a lot of other things as well (the BBQ was delicious and their salads are HUGE). I wouldn't waste a credit at Planet Hollywood... I know they just redid it but I don't think it's getting great reviews. Plus, you can eat at a Planet Hollywood in just about every tourist town.

For your MK day.. if you are looking to maximize (save money) on the dining plan I would book BOG for breakfast pre park opening (I personally like this breakfast.. the milk free waffles and pastries are really good.. your food arrives quickly and you can be out before the park opens and in line for 7DMT. It's not guaranteed, but we even got two rides in before the park opened in May) Then I would do Skippers for Dinner (haven't dined there, but gets good reviews and the food seems better than other MK restaurants).

I like the breakfast at Garden Grill in Epcot and it's a pretty good value on the Dining Plan (I think it's $30-$33/person?). I'd do a QS lunch in Epcot since the QS options are plentiful. I hear good things about Sunshine Seasons. For dinner.. if you want Italian I would choose Tutto based on maximizing the dining plan. Otherwise I'd recommend Spice Road Table.

For DHS.. I'd book the Mama Melrose Fantasmic package as a late lunch (if it's still one credit) you get app, entree, and dessert even if you are on the regular dining plan. Can't recommend any of the QS options at DHS

I'd leave AK as is. I think the regular dining plan comes with 1 QS and 1 TS per day? So you would need to eat QS for both breakfast and dinner here. We love Yak and Yeti TS, but haven't tried the QS

This would leave one QS credit for departure day (I think)

As far as saving money on the dining plan.. it is doable but you have to do your research and eat at the right places, order the right entrees, and use snacks wisely. We saved $200 on the Deluxe Plan in May by eating a TS for breakfast or lunch and a signature dinner every day. And we used over half of our snacks on 20 oz Coffee drinks at Starbucks :rotfl2:
 

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