HI there! We're back from a split stay,
DDP for the first part and DXDP for the second. We've had the dining plan in the past and DS4 really enjoyed adult entrees more than the kids, he would eat salmon every meal if he could. So our plan was to just order family style and share, knowing DH and I would likely end up eating his kid's meal. Here's a quick report on our experience.
Quick Service:
Geyser Point: Yes! This really is a QS credit! Excellent for adults and DS4 really liked the finger food Kids Meal. I think this was the only Kids Meal he ate the entire meal himself.
Be Our Guest (breakfast): We pre-ordered. The family in front of us (2 adults + 2 kids), pre-orded 4 kids meals, but were only able to use the 2 on their plan. I wouldn't plan on using extra kids credits at BoG. Other QS where you mobile order and don't cash-out with a Cast Member will let you, but it seems BoG will not. When we "paid" the Cast Member insisted on two separate orders. The Kids Meal first and then adults. Messed up our substitution (which we've always ordered) but the excellent servers in the dining room made up for it. DS4 ate everyone's fruit cup and that's it. Thankfully Dad is happy to clear his plate for him.
D-Luxe Burger: We mobile ordered two kids meals and two floats (snack credits!) The burger or chicken sandwich kids meal (with double fries) are definitely a nice lunch for an adult. DS4 had a few bites and a few sips. We bring along nutritious snacks we know he'll love because he really doesn't eat much at restaurants.
Polite Pig: The kids meal here looked sparse compared to the excellent adult meals, that's why we had two kids credits to use at D-Luxe. The half chicken meal is plenty to share, especially if you substitute the coleslaw (meh) for a full side. Well worth the $4 out of pocket. And DS4 was able to eat the salmon he always asks for
Docking Bay 7: It's great that the Kids Meals are mostly smaller versions of the adults! We thought this was an excellent use of the adult AND child credits.
On the regular DDP, we did all character dining/packages for our table service so the kids credits were straight forward. The nights we had Deluxe DP were a little more complicated.
Table Service (all deluxe credits):
'Ohana: straightforward use of our credits, just wanted to mention that this was the only restaurant that offered DS4 a specialty drink. He LOVED his virgin fruity concoction. I'd be interested in other restaurants that offer kids fun drinks. I'll be sure to ask every time during our next trip.
Raglan Road: Though the Deluxe plan includes an appetizer for adults (and kids), RR doesn't include an app for kids meals. Our server made that clear. Kids meal here sounded great (chicken. mashed potatoes and broccoli). It was cold and bland. Zero seasoning. No one at the table liked it. We were surprised because all of the adult items were delicious. We'd definitely use adult credits here in the future but not children's.
Jiko and Sanaa: Both were excellent meals including the kid's selections. Sanaa adult meals on the DXDP are extra generous, more than enough to share. The kid's menu at both restaurants had the easy, kid-friendly items you expect and also more adventurous items (shrimp, butter chicken etc.).
Morimoto Asia (lunch): DS4 wasn't interested in anything, so we ordered two adult meals and shared some with him. Our server seemed a little confused that were wanted to do this and asked twice..."two adults, one child credit?" No. Two adults. This was an excellent, filling meal. We could have easily shared. I wish we would have ordered the kids meal here instead of Raglan Road, there's always next time to try that
Child QS to Snack:
We used all our snack credits for straight snack credits
However in line at the
Festival of the Arts booth in France (name?), the guest in front of me wanted to use a child's QS credit for ONE snack and was told that the booth did not participate in that exchange. edit: It sounded like "we do not exchange child's credits"...perhaps they would exchange an adult credit for 3 snacks? Now I'm curious!
We have a trip coming up in May. Another split stay with DDP and DXDP. I'd like to look at our reservations and whether it would be better to age up our DS4 for dining plan purposes. IMO, the table service meals (non-buffet) just weren't worth it. Even Sanaa and Jiko, it would have been better to just order an extra adult meal, value wise. I know this was long, I thought it might help someone to know about our experience. I've learned so much from all of you!