Unlimited food

calliest

Asante Sana, squash banana
Joined
Apr 22, 2015
How unlimited are we talking? And how does it work? For instance, on the Dream, if I go to Cabanas for the breakfast buffet as soon as it opens, do i scan my KTTWC when i go in? What if i wanted to indulge my Hobbit roots and go for Second Breakfast a few hours later? Can I do that, buffet twice in one morning!? Or would I have to go to quick service places until lunch? And how many times can you go to each of those in a day? Do they keep track?

*asking for a friend. :squirrel:
 
You can visit Cabanas and the quick services food places as often as you want. You can do the buffet, and then go to sit down breakfast and lunch. You can order more than one salad, app, entree, or dessert at the MDRs. You will definitely not starve on a cruise.
 


And, if you do a sit-down breakfast, they will bring you more than one entree if you want. DD and I had bagels and lox (our favorite while traveling) AND something else.
 
pixiedust:mind blown, you guys. THANK YOU!

On our recent cruise, it was not unknown to get some breakfast items (continental, not hot items) from Room Service (most items don't cost), as early in the morning as like 6 AM, then go to the MDR for breakfast, then hit the buffet for a couple of items, then lunch in an MDR, some pool-side items in the afternoon, wings and cheese plates from Room service while getting ready for dinner, then early dinner, a small buffet in one of the bars at 10:00 PM (adults only) and pizza at midnight. Did I mention I have teen-aged boys? The set up is great because different members of your group might want different things at different times. No problem. So much easier than normal "is your party all here yet" restaurants.

They really don't mind how much food you eat. One time we ordered food from Room Service when it was just my wife and I in the room, but just as the food arrived (15 minutes) my sons returned, so we called back to room service and said we wanted to re-order. They were worried that our food didn't arrive. We told them it did arrive but so did our sons, so they sent out another order right away plus a few other items that they suggested and we agreed to.

Another time we were doing late-night laundry so we ordered some room service. They won't deliver it to anywhere but your room, and there were some family members already asleep in our room, so we met them in the hallway. All we had to do to get the food was unlock the door with our room key to prove it was our room, then we took the food to a common area to eat it.

Have fun!
 
On our recent cruise, it was not unknown to get some breakfast items (continental, not hot items) from Room Service (most items don't cost), as early in the morning as like 6 AM, then go to the MDR for breakfast, then hit the buffet for a couple of items, then lunch in an MDR, some pool-side items in the afternoon, wings and cheese plates from Room service while getting ready for dinner, then early dinner, a small buffet in one of the bars at 10:00 PM (adults only) and pizza at midnight. Did I mention I have teen-aged boys? The set up is great because different members of your group might want different things at different times. No problem. So much easier than normal "is your party all here yet" restaurants.

They really don't mind how much food you eat. One time we ordered food from Room Service when it was just my wife and I in the room, but just as the food arrived (15 minutes) my sons returned, so we called back to room service and said we wanted to re-order. They were worried that our food didn't arrive. We told them it did arrive but so did our sons, so they sent out another order right away plus a few other items that they suggested and we agreed to.

Another time we were doing late-night laundry so we ordered some room service. They won't deliver it to anywhere but your room, and there were some family members already asleep in our room, so we met them in the hallway. All we had to do to get the food was unlock the door with our room key to prove it was our room, then we took the food to a common area to eat it.

Have fun!

WOW!!!! Seriously, wow. I had read somewhere that cat T staterooms may order room service from restaurants/hot food as there is a dining table in the room? Also, what is MDR and how does that work for different meals of the day?
 


WOW!!!! Seriously, wow. I had read somewhere that cat T staterooms may order room service from restaurants/hot food as there is a dining table in the room? Also, what is MDR and how does that work for different meals of the day?

MDR is Main Dining Room. There are three of them for dinner and you and your servers rotate together through the three restaurants on different days. For breakfast and lunch one of these three rooms is open for a sit down meal ordered off a menu. There is no assigned seating for breakfast and lunch so you just show up when you want during the 2 hours or so that it is open and they seat you, usually right away, and of course the Cabanas buffet is also open, usually a bit longer than the sit down ones are. For dinner, Cabanas is not a buffet, it serves selections form the other dining room menus, but you don't have to arrive at a fixed time, you can get served when you want within dinner hours.
 
MDR is main dining room. They have one open in the morning for breakfast if you prefer a sit down meal. Here they will ask you for your room number , they keep track of something I guess.

Then at night you will go to one of three and move the next night with your wait staff. On your key to the world card ...KTTW people use that short form , it will say Dinner: 8:15 if late dinning - your table number ( this will be the same table number in each dinning room) and then a bunch of letters. The letters are the first letter of each dinning room.

Between that you can eat anywhere on the ship. Only thing that is extra is by the theaters....Walt Disney and movie. There you pay for popcorn and snacks.

Specialty coffee is extra at the Cove but they have snacks in there that are free , sometimes it is cheese etc and sometimes it is sweets.

They have a late night small buffet in the adult area at night too around 10 or so. Depending on what ship you are on .

And of course Room service anytime just have to tip them a few dollars for bringing it .
 
There’s two times you can’t get food on your cruise. During the lifeboat drill and the last night of your cruise room service closes maybe 1 am forget the time.keep some food in your refrigerator for the last night of your cruise. You don’t want to wake up hungry and no food available. Remember try not to waste food. But eat all you want
 
You'll have a great time on the cruise and you will never go hungry.

I'll chime in a little but as others have said, you do have the free room service option in the morning for breakfast. Room service does run 24 hours. just throw them $1-2 per item as a tip. The menu is limited though, so do keep that in mind. Many love to start off with a coffee or tea and pastry in the morning. It's even better if you have a verandah so you can be out there and relax.

The best option in the morning is to head up to the main pool deck for Cabanas buffet. No need to scan your KTTW card. Nobody counts how many times you go up for food so you can definitely take advantage of those Hobbit appetites. Many times I'll just be walking through Cabanas to get somewhere else and I'll see something I want to snack on so I'll grab a plate. You can even load up and take it back to your room or into the movie theater if you want. Nobody is judging you. I wouldn't say it's a relaxed area as there are kids all over the place heh but it is what you'd expect at a Disney buffet. It's a very simplified process so you won't have any issues except where to put all the food.

For a more quieter setting, you can go to the restaurant (normally Enchanted Garden) where they also have a buffet-with fewer options as well as a table service menu. I tend to order a nice omelette there and the waiter will take your order. You've all talked me into bagels and lox now, so I need to try that on my upcoming cruise!

Lunch is the same deal as breakfast for the most part but you can also go to Tow Mater's Grill which is a quick service area open until the late evening for all your snacking needs. Food is aplenty here with all your favorite comfort foods such as pizza, burgers, hot dogs, sausages, sandwiches, chicken (amazing chicken tenders-WDW quality), fries, wraps, salads, desserts and fruits. I've read that they can also do custom orders as well so that's something to keep in mind. They also run a daily special so plenty of options.

*on Sailings of 4 days or more, Palo offers a brunch which comes highly recommended. I'm looking forward to my first experience.

For dinner, you'll experience Disney's renowned rotational dining where you'll dine in 1 of 3 beautifully themed restaurants each night. The seating times are roughly 6PM and 8PM with the latter not feeling as rushed. They do verify your room number upon entering. This is a full 4-course menu beginning with an appetizer followed by a soup or salad choice. The waiter will then bring you your entree and just when you think you're done, he or she will slide you the dessert menu as well. Now if you cannot decide between a certain dish, you can definitely ask for both or a double appetizer. Liked something the night before? They can still get it for you. I love the escargot so I'll order 2 of them if I'm not in the mood for their appetizer selection. The main takeaway here is that you are in control and the menu is only a suggestion. You can totally just order 6 desserts for dinner if you want. I'm not a huge fan of sweets, so I tend to order a double entree or double app.

You can also skip the dining room and head up to Cabanas as well. I've noticed a lot of people doing this to save on time so they can enjoy more activities.

Of course, you cannot forget about Remy (French) and Palo( Italian)- the adults-only dining options. These restaurants are not included with the cruise so you have to pay extra for them. Remy is currently $95 per person without wine pairing and Palo is $30. Both have very strict dress codes.

You do have the late-night pirate night buffet so be sure to save room for that.

And I almost forgot about Eye Scream ice cream available all day. Banana is my favorite!

So there ya go. The Food is very unlimited - including soda, and it goes the same for Castaway Cay as well.

Now I'm really hungry.
 
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You'll have a great time on the cruise and you will never go hungry.

I'll chime in a little but as others have said, you do have the free room service option in the morning for breakfast. Room service does run 24 hours. just throw them $1-2 per item as a tip. The menu is limited though, so do keep that in mind. Many love to start off with a coffee or tea and pastry in the morning. It's even better if you have a verandah so you can be out there and relax.

The best option in the morning is to head up to the main pool deck for Cabanas buffet. No need to scan your KTTW card. Nobody counts how many times you go up for food so you can definitely take advantage of those Hobbit appetites. Many times I'll just be walking through Cabanas to get somewhere else and I'll see something I want to snack on so I'll grab a plate. You can even load up and take it back to your room or into the movie theater if you want. Nobody is judging you. I wouldn't say it's a relaxed area as there are kids all over the place heh but it is what you'd expect at a Disney buffet. It's a very simplified process so you won't have any issues except where to put all the food.

For a more quieter setting, you can go to the restaurant (normally Enchanted Garden) where they also have a buffet-with fewer options as well as a table service menu. I tend to order a nice omelette there and the waiter will take your order. You've all talked me into bagels and lox so I need to try that during my next cruise!

Lunch is the same deal as breakfast for the most part but you can also go to Tow Mater's Grill which is a quick service area open until the late evening for all your snacking needs. Food is aplenty here with all your favorite comfort foods such as pizza, burgers, hot dogs, sausages, sandwiches, chicken (amazing chicken tenders-WDW quality), fries, wraps, salads, desserts and fruits. I've read that they can also do custom orders as well so that's something to keep in mind. They also run a daily special so plenty of options.

For dinner, you'll experience Disney's renowned rotational dining where you'll dine in 1 of 3 beautifully themed restaurants each night. The seating times are roughly 6PM and 8PM with the latter not feeling as rushed. They do verify your room number upon entering. This is a full 4-course menu beginning with an appetizer followed by a soup or salad choice. The waiter will then bring you your entree and just when you think you're done, he'll slide you the dessert menu as well. Now if you cannot decide between a certain dish, you can definitely ask for both or a double appetizer. Liked something the night before? They can still get it for you. I love the escargot so I'll order 2 of them if I'm not in the mood for their appetizer selection.

You can also skip the dining room and head up to Cabanas as well. I've noticed a lot of people doing this to save on time so they can enjoy more activities.

Of course, you cannot forget about Remy (French) and Palo( Italian)- the adults-only dining options.

You do have the late-night pirate night buffet so be sure to save room for that.

And I almost forgot about Eye Scream ice cream available all day. Banana is my favorite!

So there ya go. The Food is very unlimited - including soda, and it goes the same for Castaway Cay as well.


AMAZING! THANK YOU! i feel like i understand now. My only remaining question is about room service in category T (1 bedroom concierge) where we are staying. I had read somewhere in my research that my suite has the ability to order "hot" room service from the MDR's because there is a dining table in our room. I am wondering if this is accurate? we are travelling with 3 little kids, so I am trying to anticipate one of us having to be in the room one or more kid for any number of reasons during dinner time. We are only doing a 3-night for our first trip so I don't want to miss out on a rotation.
I haven't spoken to anyone at the concierge phone line yet.
 
My only remaining question is about room service in category T (1 bedroom concierge) where we are staying. I had read somewhere in my research that my suite has the ability to order "hot" room service from the MDR's because there is a dining table in our room. I am wondering if this is accurate? we are travelling with 3 little kids, so I am trying to anticipate one of us having to be in the room one or more kid for any number of reasons during dinner time. We are only doing a 3-night for our first trip so I don't want to miss out on a rotation.

Yes, in Cat T you may order hot breakfast and dinner from the main dining room. Hot breakfast is the same menu as the dining room breakfast. For dinner you pick a dining room and order from that menu. The menus are all kept in the lounge. The concierges will help you order.

Be prepared that the dinner experience is quite nice. The server status closer and delivers the meal in courses with a while tablecloth etc.

You'll also have access to the lounge for heavy snack type food and nicer continental breakfast options. For us, we tend to eat that more than quick serve food.
 
You can even load up and take it back to your room or into the movie theater if you want.

DH and I would often relax in our room in the afternoon and I'd run up and get a couple of slices of pizza or tacos or something, either order a drink from the bar or fill up my water bottle with ginger ale or something from the drink station and take it down to watch TV in our room or sit and eat on the verandah. So nice.

Be careful about assuming that you can take a full meal into the theatre. If it's busy, there's often a CM telling you that you can't take it in. Maybe ice cream or something but not a plate with burger and fries.

And I almost forgot about Eye Scream ice cream available all day. Banana is my favorite!

On our last cruise, a few people were sick so they had to lock down all of the buffets, drink stations and ice cream station. You had to ask a CM manning each station to get something for you. By day three, all of the CMs at the ice cream station already knew what each of us wanted. One of our friends preferred his in a cup rather than a cone. He'd go to the drink station, the CM would just hand him a cup as soon as he saw him, he'd go back to the ice cream station and they'd fill it with the chocolate/vanilla swirl, no questions needed. That's what happens when you go there twice a day.
 
Ancillary question - how about grab-n-go from Cabanas in the morning, or for that matter the MDRs? If we wanted to bring a yogurt, cereal, or piece of fruit along with us when we get off the boat for an excursion or midnight snack, would that be alright? What about coffee or tea?

Mark
 
I literally ate three lunches on embarkation day -- I had a quick plate from Cabanas, then realized I was hungry again later and got shawarma from one of the pool deck counters, then was hungry again after the drill and the sail-away party and got pizza from another. As long as the location is open, you can go back as many times as you want. The only time you're expected to sit down at eat at a particular time and place is dinner, and a.) you don't have to go to the MDR (though I'd highly recommend it!) and b.) you can order as much or as little as you want for your dinner. Want an item from every course (appetizer, soup, entree, and dessert)? Three entrees and nothing else? They'll give you whatever you order. They do check your KTTW when you enter the MDR, but it's so they know where you're supposed to be seated (and I think they might take attendance to monitor supply/demand? Not sure).

One word of caution, though -- not every source of food is free and unlimited! Extra charges apply to alcoholic drinks, specialty coffees, smoothies, popcorn purchased at the theaters, and any packaged foods -- think candy bars, canned sodas, etc. The lounges and theaters only serve popcorn, alcohol, and packaged foods, so there's no way to, say, get a Coke in Fathoms unless you either carry it down from the drink station or pay something like $2 for a can of it in the lounge. Most of the room service food is "free" (read: included), but there are some packaged items on the menu that do come with an upcharge (again - candy, etc.). Easiest rule of thumb if you're ever in doubt is that if they ask for your KTTW anywhere other than the entrance to the MDR, they're going to charge your room for whatever you just ordered.

Ancillary question - how about grab-n-go from Cabanas in the morning, or for that matter the MDRs? If we wanted to bring a yogurt, cereal, or piece of fruit along with us when we get off the boat for an excursion or midnight snack, would that be alright? What about coffee or tea?

Mark

Customs typically will not allow you to take any food off the ship unless it's in sealed, government-approved packaging.
 
I noticed that you said you’re doing a three-night and don’t want to miss a rotation in the MDRs... in that case, you’ll want to do breakfast or lunch as room service if you want to tr that aspect as well, since there are three rotations and no repeats on the three-night.
 

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