For the Love Of All Disney Parks! — Page 3

^ That's to be expected in Japan, where even public restrooms have a 2 hour wait line.


(Okay, I'm not speaking from experience, but I do know that Tokyo Disneyland is NEVER not crowded. Ever. Japanese people are very populous and like Disney very, very much.)

^ Disney's still benefiting. They're standardizing and cheapening all the meals, so you can only get the same three things at all the restauraunts, as opposed to when all the restaurants had their own specialized menus. The dining plan really sucks for people who visit Disney World often. Also, servers get automatically included tips from people on the dining plan, so they can be as rude and inattentive as they want.

I forget all the reasons why Disney is making money and why the dining plan sucks... I'll have to ask my mother. She's all-knowing when it comes to Disney. She used to write the Anita Answer column on AllEars.net.


ANYWAY... My favorite restaurants are Cape May Cafe (at the Beach Club resort), Teppan Edo (in the Japan pavilion at Epcot), Tony's (in the Town Square at Magic Kingdom), Ohana (at the Polynesian resort), and Boma (at the Animal Kingdom Lodge). Yum! Even though Boma always makes me sick afterwards.

Updated On: 9/8/09 at 08:52 PM

Well, when we tried it a few years ago, the gratuity was still included. I don't keep up with the dining plan because we don't use it. And if you look closely, you're gonna find that some menus have the same items on them. The menus aren't all exactly the same, no, but there are some dishes that are present at more than one restaurant.

Also, I don't really think the dining plan helps that much to keep people on property. I mean, it's pretty hard to leave without a car, and even most of the people who have cars don't know where the heck they're going. It's probably used to get people to spend more money on souvenirs or stay exclusively at Disney resorts. I don't know the logistics of it, but trust me, Disney's making money off of it somehow. They're clever. As long as no one's getting ripped off, though, I'm fine with it.

Updated On: 9/8/09 at 09:05 PM

So, is it bad idea to include in my online dating profiles "Must love Disney parks?" :)

---

Add me to the list of Disney fans. I've been going to WDW every November for the past 8 years or so. Great time to go. No lines whatsoever! I highly recommend that everyone go to the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater at Hollywood Studios. It is a fun place to eat. They have good shakes and burgers. The tables are made to look like convertibles and, while you eat, you can enjoy some clips of old monster movies on the big screen. It's just a really cool drive-in atmosphere.

Lots of people have told me about the dinner plan. I think it is worth it if you plan on staying and eating on Disney property only. However, if you are like me, then I don't think it would be beneficial. Even though we stay on Disney property, we don't really eat there. Many of our fave Orlando restaurants are not on Disney property. Plus, we also go to the Universal parks and their eateries are obviously not part of the deal.

I think the last time I ate at Le Cellier, we booked it probably four or five months in advance. That's another thing about the dining plan; it makes it a lot harder to get into restaurants because more people are booking reservations on it. (It used to be that you could walk into Le Cellier without a reservation and be seated either right away or after some waiting. Nowadays, forget it. Unless it's off season, you're not getting in without booking it in advance.)

The most difficult meals on property to get a priority seating for are, in order: Cinderella's Royal Table, Victoria and Albert's, Le Cellier, California Grill, and Chef Mickey's.

The order I quoted above comes from Disney, I'm not just guestimating. The reason Cindy's Royal Table remains the hardest is because of the novelty of getting to go in the castle, coupled with the absolutely teeny tiny dining room make it nearly impossible to get into (read The Unofficial Guide's description of how to get a reservation, which involves atomic time, setting a stop watch, and practicing your phone call for an idea). The draw there certainly isn't the food.

Their two page description of how to get a priority seating for Cinderella's Royal Table never fails to make me laugh, no matter how many times I've read it. It reads like a 12-step plan for the occupation of a foreign country. I guess there's no limit to what some parents will do for their kids...

I got my Le Celllier reservation by calling 90 days out and saying, ""We're here on these dates, is there anything available at Le Cellier?," and boom, we were hooked up.
I also got dinner at Crystal Palace this past time with little trouble. We got one of the last seatings and went out to the deck for a postcard view of Spetctromagic and Wishes.
For the record, I liked Crystal Palace much more than Le Cellier.

---

I've only ever had breakfast at Crystal Palace (since 1976!), but it has always been so great, I've never thought of having lunch or dinner there. I think I booked Le Cellier about 3 months in advance, but I can't remember. It was three years ago. I remember being surprised because the restaurant used to be cafeteria-style long ago and it was always one of our favorites back then. I do remember that our bill at Le Cellier would have been approximately $120 had we not used the dining plan. Gratuity was included then, but we always had excellent service (not so much at Disneyland Paris where we walked out of one of the restaurants). With the new dining plan upgrade, I'll probably end up booking mostly table meals as you are no longer limited to just one per day, but you do still have to trade two table meals for one signature meal (i.e. Cinderella's Castle, Jiko, California Grill, etc.). And I almost forgot the fantastic Raglan Road in Downtown Disney. We had to make a quick change in our dinner reservations and chose to eat there before a performance of La Nouba and we were delighted! The live music and dancing were wonderful and the food was excellent. By the way, has anyone tried Boma or Sanaa at the Animal Kingdom Lodge? I'm curious to hear some opinions on those.

For a cheaper option, they also have a quick-service only dining package including three meals and two snacks for those not interested in dealing with table service meals (though I assume it is not as economical as the ones including table service meals), but all their plans are geared towards guests staying at the resorts for extended stays who do not intend to travel off the property, just as the extended hours in the parks are a way of luring guests into staying at a Disney resort. In my case, it was a great option and it worked beautifully.

---

I' have never been a fan of DL's food.

Sure, they've upgraded it over the years, but it's just too overpriced for the quality.

Besides, who goes for the food?!



I also thought I'd change the thread title since the thread seems to have morphed.

---