Here is a link to WDW's page of participating restaurants. It breaks it down by park and what type of food, snack, quick service, table service.Metalfan wrote:I actually came up with a question that maybe someone here can help with. The dining plans. My girlfriend and I are completely different eaters (I love food, she loves a little bit of food) and those plans confuse me. Funny enough I have a degree in journalism and had to take many English classes, etc yet reading has never been my big thing. I don't enjoy books. Is there anywhere that explains it easily or anyone have any idea someone to call that can explain exactly what they do and where you can use it, etc?
http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-dining-pl ... urants.htm
And here is a link that explains the plan itself...this one gives some examples of purchases and how the dining plan stacks up money-wise.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-dining-plan.htm
We have had the quick service plan twice now. Both times it was included for free as part of our package. It isn't as confusing as it seems. You'll get the hang of it pretty quickly. The receipts list exactly how many dining credits and snack credits remain for your trip so you don't have to keep a tally in your head.
All that being said, if your girlfriend is not a big eater, you might be better off just paying for your food as you go. My Mom and I easily split almost every meal from the quick service restaurants because they give you so much food! The one benefit we noticed last time we went is they would allow substitutions if you were on the meal plan, but not if you were paying out of pocket. Not sure why the difference, and I would think it would be the other way around actually, but that is what we found. I am a person that will weigh whether or not I will enjoy something that costs $2 more than something else, and my Mom worries about the cost of everything, so it gave us a little more freedom to order what we wanted instead of worrying about the price. And Mom enjoyed not having to have money with her, as you just use your room key card.
If you do end up with the dining plan, it is a good idea to ask a cast member if you want clarification on anything. We didn't find out until the last few days of our second trip that we could choose ice cream for a dessert with our quick service meal. We found out when I mentioned to the cashier that my Mom really would have liked a Mickey Mouse ice cream bar for dessert but we were afraid it would melt before she finished eating. They told us that they would mark our receipt and we could come back after we had finished our meal to get the dessert. (I have since noticed this fact mentioned on a few of the other Disney forums.)