Hi all, I am heading to WDW for the first time at the end of January and the big difference I have discovered from all the reading I have done, is the emphasis on dining at WDW (at DLR the food is pretty ordinary so we have never focused on it). Anyway, I have a rough plan now of where we are going to be on each of our ten days, and a list of restaurants that I want to eat at. I am hoping that our dates are going to be low attendance times, and I want to know if I have to make ADR for these restaurants, at that time of year (I don't want to run up a $100 bill ringing from australia and waiting to get through to the dining line, if i don't have to) or if I can leave it until we get to Orlando and make the bookings then. this is what we are thinking about (2 of us, both vegetarians):


29 Jan - 8 Feb

29th: Cosmic Rays for lunch, California Grill for dinner
30th: CS somewhere for lunch, Marrakesh for dinner
31st: Rainforest Cafe for lunch, then Les Chefs de France for dinner
1st : AK then DTD - not sure where to eat (maybe Yak and Yeti, and Earl of Sandwich for dinner?)
2nd: Sunshine Seasons for lunch, Rose and Crown for dinner
3rd: Kringla Bakeri (Norway) for lunch, Tonys Town Square for dinner
4th: Mama Melrose for lunch, Coral Reef for dinner
5th: Universal Studios
6th: shopping day!
7th: no plans
8th: no plans

We're staying at the wilderness lodge so plan on having breakfast there each day before we leave.

So, in your experience, are there any of these restaurants that I really need to book ahead for now, and if any of you are vegetarians, have I made decent choices?

many thanks!!!
emma

While you are going during a slower time, I would be concerned that if you dont make ADR's you are not going to have much to chose from when you get there. (Referring to TS eateries only, of course.)

My advice would be that if you dont want to spend the money calling for ADR's (which I can see that point for sure being that you are from Australia,) do not use the Disney Dining Plan. That will allow you to at least be more flexible about where you can eat and still get your money's worth. The DDP would not be a good value if you get stuck using the plan for mainly counter service places.

As a side note - there have been many times where I have called later in the day to make ADR's and had minimal wait times. Maybe that is something to consider as well.

As for your selections and how they rank for vegetarian selections? Cant help you there. :)

As far as the vegetarian options:

Cosmic Rays has a vegie burger with a pretty good topping bar available, but we prefer Columbia Harbour House for CS at MK. Columbia House has a good vegetarian chili and a vegetarian hummus sandwich that I love (and you can get a soup/sandwich combo). Depends also on the atmosphere you want though -- the're both great, but very different.

As far as your other choices, the vegetarian Cuban sandwich at Sunshine Seasons is really good and Chefs de France has two delicious vegetarian entrees. And if I'm remembering right both Mama Melrose's and Tony's Town Square had some good choices as well.

I also really liked the tofu with mango sauce dish they had at Sci-Fi. Most places that serve burgers also have the vegie burger option so ask even if its not on the menu. I really think it keeps getting better and better for vegetarians at WDW.

We eat all our dinners at table serve restaurants and go 3 weeks every year to WDW. You will be OK at all the restaurants you have chosen except possibly Coral Reef and California Grill which are the more expensive eating establishments. These restaurants stay busy even during slack periods. Understand, that only a small percentage in each restaurant will they give advance reservations, until the day of. So you might still get in even if you don't have an advance reservation, just call the morning of.

Understand, that only a small percentage in each restaurant will they give advance reservations, until the day of. So you might still get in even if you don't have an advance reservation, just call the morning of.

Sorry, but this just isn't true any more. Disney sells out many restaurants months in advance for all seats. They don't hold inventory back for day of. With the popularity of the dining plan, there are some restaurants that you simply can't get into any more unless you call six months out. I'd suggest that you attempt to get ADR's on every one of your table service choices NOW. I doubt you'll be able to get into the Coral Reef or California Grill unless you're willing to dine at off times.

Sorry to be such a downer, but the WDW dining situation has really changed for the worse in the past couple of years.

I'm definitely in the "spend the money and call for reservations" camp! I'm going in November (the off season just before thanksgiving) and lots of things were booked solid when I called four months in advance! It's worth making the sacrifice of calling for the sake of some great and memorable meals. And if you know where you want to eat, you can do all your reservations in one call.

As far as being vegetarians, you'll find WDW to be amazingly accommodating! Virtually any restaurant will be able to help you. Pretty much every disney owned restaurant has at least one or two vegetarian options, and even if you don't see something on the menu the looks appealing, the chefs will work with you. Usually they'll have your waiter ask you some questions, and then they'll come up with something generally spectacular! (I've had this lovely experience a few times. It requires a little faith, trust, pixie dust and bravery, but they're some of the best meals I've ever had!) The one piece of advice I have would be to avoid the restaurants in the China pavilion at Epcot. They have stir-fry's and veggie lo-mein that you would think should be made without meat, but last I checked, they're all made with chicken broth! (Also, if you do make ADR's, you can have the CM note on *all* your reservations that your party is vegetarian, that way the kitchen and wait-staff don't get surprised by it. Also, if you do Victoria & Albert's [not on the dining plan] you'll even get a complete special vegetarian menu that's entirely different from the menus all other guests receive!)

One last thought: you might want to look at menus for restaurants (on this site and others) to see the average prices of vegetarian food. In general, it's a whole lot cheaper to eat vegetarian (no $32 steaks from le cellier!) so you might find you won't get such a good deal with the dining plan (especially since they're revamping it to not include apps and tips). However, if you're doing the DDP for the convenience of having your meals paid for up front, then it might still be a good idea. Depends on your wants and needs. Have a great time!

Regarding the long wait time - I called yesterday about 3 pm Eastern, and didn't have to wait at all for the initial person to come on the phone. So I'd recommend calling after mid-morning Eastern, but before 5pm Eastern. Unfortunately, that might be prime 'sleeping hours' for you.

Emmah, if you want to PM me with your information, I'll call the toll-free WDW number and try to make your ADRs for you. Let me know!!!

wow, thank you so much for this information, it is amazingly helpful. We are not doing the dining plan - I know that it is incredibly popular amongst nearly everyone on these boards, but we just did not see it as being good value for us and given that we plan to spend at least a couple of days off-campus we are happy with the freedom of paying as we go. We really like the look of the California Grill so I hope that it is not impossible - we are still four months out so fingers crossed. And thanks for those specific suggestions about places and food - it sounds yummy! and really really different to DLR where the vegetarian food is all pretty uniformly awful.

I will take your advice and call the dining line (yes, it will be the middle of the night!); Wendi thank you so much for your offer, its incredibly sweet of you. I'll give it a go on my own and if I just get put on hold, I'll get back to you.

thanks again everyone, i really appreciate your help!

emma

I agree with your choice of not using the dining plan. With the nicer restaurants that I like to visit, the plan just isn't very practical for me. Good luck with your phone call, and please feel free to ask any more questions. And of course let us know how it all goes with your dining booking.