Eating on the cheap(er)

Spook, you can use a table service credit for a quick Service meal.Its a waste, but you can do it. Also once when we were getting snacks before leaving in the store, and we mentioned we still had meals left, we got multiple snack credits for the meals. If I recall right it was like 6 or 8 snacks for a meal credit.

During the Food and Garden festival in May they let us do that. We had a lot left on our plan because we split some meals and a CM at one of the restaurants told us it was up to the discretion of the place you were dining at. They let us Trade a TS meal for several small plates and we shared them. We also traded a quick service for two snacks one day.

Years ago the dining plan use to give you that option app or dessert, but it changed or some reason. I have no reason why but Disney did offer that at one time and chose to change it.

I absolutely agree! I would be much more likely to do the dining plan if that were a real option. I normally order apps WAY more than dessert!!

I agonized over dining plan for our trip in November and ultimately decided no. We are doing the GF intimate dining and that wouldn't have fallen under it, and only plan on one or two other TS meals. We generally eat a big breakfast and dinner, so really it was silly to be locked into something that doesn't fit our pattern.

Instead, I've been buying $50 gift cards every month and plan on using those for food (except our GF dinner), so that our whole trip is nearly all prepaid. We might do dining plan when we take the whole family next time, though.

Yep, my strategy too...gift cards each month!

Hey how's this, we just paid more for a bottle of water at the Bethlehem Musik Fest then we do at Disney!

I agree too I eat desserts and hubby eats starters so we don't do DDP for that reason. We are using Garden Grocer for the first time and I have had my shopping list done for months! Problem is I keep going in and adding and subtracting things! Next week is our 60 day mark so I am going to "send" the order hopefully that will stop me. I agree with Spook about the supermarkets there are so many things different in US ones. I can spend hours in them! Then I get bored. But I love those snack biscuits that are cheese biscuits sandwiched with peanut butter. It sounds so wrong and tastes so good! I will be ordering 2 large boxes of those! And you have strawberry philadelphia

Sally-Ann, are talking like these?

Okay, as was suggested, I'm running the numbers, but I have a question. For your quick service restaurants, does bottled water count as the beverage with lunch or breakfast? Or is just soda? I know bottled water counts as a snack credit, but there are WAY better uses of a snack credit (hellooooo Aloha Isle!!).

Yes, you can get bottled water with a quick service on the dining plan. When I've had the dining plan & brought something to eat in the room for breakfast the nights I would eat dinner at the resort I would get a bottle of juice to go with breakfast the next morning or two & use my refillable mug for my beverage with dinner.

I also have a couple of questions. We have free quick service dining. It is great to know that water or juice can be the included drink with a meal. I understand the snack credits too. It is the actual counter service meals that confuse me. What actually is included in a quick service meal? Are there healthy options for the "dessert"? Let's imagine we were going to BOG for lunch. Can we order anything from the menu or are there restrictions with the dining plan? Are all counter service restaurants part of the dining plan? I would be interested to hear from anyone who has done quick service DDP and how they found it.

I haven't run into any "restaurant" that doesn't accept DDP. Quick service is usually entree and a dessert. You can have a salad or a burger lets say, but you will have to pay for one or the other if they are not listed as a menu item together. I just look at the menu like Caseys Corner says "All hot dogs served with apple slices or fries". Cosmic's says "......... served with apple slices, french fries or cucumber salad"

At lunch anything on BOG menu is included in the QS DDP, but BOG didn't have anything "healthy" as an option. I have seen sliced apples as a healthy dessert at other restaurant so look at the kids menu. That being said I have never seen a menu restriction on an DDP menu. At table services J usually goes with the most expensive steak on the menu and has never been restricted. At Narcoossee's when we order the Lobster dinner we don't get refused. The only time we have ever had a problem on the DDDP is out in DTD we were told that appetizers for two were not included as appetizer.

Look at the kids menu for the healthy desserts, that is usually where they will be listed if not listed a in the description like above.

One thing to remember on the QS DP is not limit yourself to burgers, chicken fingers, and hot dogs every meal, mix it up and enjoy.

Most QSRs have a handheld menu you can look at while waiting in line. One side has the menu and the other has what's included in a QSR meal.

QS includes 1 drink, 1 entree, and 1 dessert per person. BOG is a unique QS location, but most other QS locations are more like burger, sandwich, etc. You can get some healthy stuff, but don't really count on it. I don't like having just the QS plan because it feels like too much junk food for breakfast and dinner. That is just me though. I like the TS for dinner because more variety is included and you can actually sit in a heated/cooled restaurant and enjoy more selection.

We are doing the quick service dining plan in Sept and are really looking forward to it. We are just paying for a few TS meals and relying on the QSDP for the rest. We try to eat different all the time so we use it a lot at Epcot in regards to the different types of cultural foods offered there. My kids also love Pizza planet and Flame tree. We eat a lot of Mexican food and there are great options for that on the QSDP. I don't let them eat burgers and chicken fingers the whole time but it has never been a problem. We usually do the other dining plan if it is an adult only trip.

Yea. I would get the water at lunch and use a snack credit for better things like, um, a mickey bar!

We also find more healthy options on the QSDP at the resorts than at the parks. I also usually bring along healthy snacks to help get in the fruits and veggies. My problem is with 3 teenagers, they don't want to take the time for a sit down meal. I do like the options at the resorts for a QS breakfast like the veggie omelet and oatmeal with fruit. I have also found they will do an egg white omelet for you if you ask.

Absolutely!!! Love those Mickey Bars!

haha. I remember feeling the same way when I went as a teen. Stoping to eat was eating into my attraction time!! Now, I live for the dining experience!

Thanks for all the great responses

We normally pay for all our meals out of pocket, but the free QS dining means that we will only have to pay for TS meals. On a 15 day trip this should save us lots of money. We are planning to use our snack credits at the food and wine festival which will give variety.
Vacation is a time for a little bit of indulgence, but we eat super healthy at home, so if I had fried stuff/burgers etc. every meal I think I would feel ill after a few days! I certainly couldn't do two desserts per day for 15 days!!!
Now don't get me wrong, I will certainly be heading to Cosmic Rays for a chilli dog and I am looking forward to trying the carrot cake cookie, just not every meal, every day.
I like the QS in Morocco. I love the Earl of Sandwich and I am looking forward to trying Colombia Harbour House.
Where else do you all like for QS that is a little bit different?

I really enjoyed Mexico's QS! And I've heard Sunshine Seasons at The Land pavilion is great, with really fresh options. Flame Tree BBQ in Animal Kingdom is something different. And the resorts would be a great place to get really different options for QS, too! Especially Art of Animation's Food Court, but I loved the one at Pop Century too.

Mexico's QS is great, Japan is not bad. It is sushi, but it's like sushi from the grocery store, but it's decent and different. You can most likely get a salad at most major QS locations too. Oh, Pecos Bill in MK? I think that's the name - Wonderful taco salad there!

I actually had a shrimp salad with mandarin oranges at the Tomorrowland Terrace that was really good. I was very surprised at how fresh the shrimp was, and the salad was crisp. Very tasty and light. Disney is really stepping up the healthy offerings, obviously because guests are asking for them!