Best Places to Use Disney’s Dining Plan
When you use Disney’s Dining Plan at Walt Disney World, you’ll quickly realize something. Not all restaurants are created equal. On the contrary, some Disney meals can cost only a few dollars, while others charge more than $50 per person. You certainly want to maximize your dining plan entitlements to get the strongest value. Here are the best places to use Disney’s Dining Plan.
The Fundamentals of Disney’s Dining Plan
First of all, I should state that this list primarily applies to Table Service restaurants. These sit-down establishments cost one Table Service entitlement per person for a meal consisting of an entrée, a dessert, and a beverage.
Conversely, Signature Dining experiences cost two Table Service entitlements per person per meal. You won’t maximize the value of your entitlements by dining at these meals.
You’re generally better off paying cash at these places and saving your dining plan credits. The same statement applies to shows like Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue and Spirit of Aloha. They require two entitlements, also. It’s just not a smart usage of your Disney Dining Plan (DDP).
1900 Park Fare
Something that I want to stress here is that the restaurants listed here aren’t necessarily ones I would pick. Most of them are, but this discussion isn’t about personal recommendations for a change. Instead, it’s about dining at the places where the meals would cost the most when you pay out of pocket.
Your Table Service entitlements are “one size fits all” in that you get the meal no matter what the price is. As an example, one entitlement at 1900 Park Fare will pay for your breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
You’re getting the best deal when you eat dinner here, as that meal currently costs $58.58. Breakfast and lunch are “only” $42.60 at the time of publication. So, your entitlement has more value at dinner than during the other two meals. Of course, you’re still going to eat those other meals, but the best 1900 Park Fare dining plan deal occurs at dinner.
‘Ohana
The same statement applies to ‘Ohana, too. The character breakfast certainly isn’t cheap at $40.47 per person, but the price for the rest of the day is $55.38. When you have a set number of entitlements, you should always consider this aspect of meal charges.
Another facet of Disney’s dining plan that you’ll notice here involves character meals. Eight of the 11 restaurants listed here feature a character meal at least one meal per day. Disney prices these experiences higher because the demand is so strong.
You’ll also struggle to book Advanced Dining Reservations for some of the restaurants for the same reason. Character meals are legitimately one of the best parts of a Disney vacation for me and mine.
Akershus
I just ate there the other day and was once again in awe of the innovative cuisine. Norwegians are my kindred spirits when it comes to dining. They’re all about the meats and cheeses. Oh, and the Disney Princess greetings are pretty great, too.
To introduce yourself to Belle, Cinderella, and the rest of the team, you’ll pay a pretty penny. Dinner currently comes with a sticker shock price of $66.03. Even breakfast is $55.38. Thankfully, a single entitlement pays for your meal. Out of every possible option here, only one place presents better DDP value than Akershus.
Boma
At a price of only a bit over $30, Boma is actually a pretty good deal at breakfast. For the rest of the day, a meal here costs north of $50, which is a bit steep for cash payment. I firmly believe that Boma’s zebra domes are worth any price.
Unfortunately, vacation budgets only stretch so far, and that’s why the dining plan is a life-saver. One Table Service credit pays for all the zebra domes you can eat.
Cape May Café
This restaurant is one with a part-time character meal. At breakfast, Minnie’s Beach Bash Breakfast has become a joyous way for my family to start the day. It’s in line with other Disney character breakfasts at a bit over $40.
The more expensive meal comes at dinner when Cape May Café serves a seafood dinner that will blow your mind. I just watched a YouTube review wherein someone raved about the value of the $55 meal here, but it’s even better when you get it with a dining plan credit.
Chef Mickey’s
Disney describes its buffet services as All-You-Care-to-Enjoy (AYCE), a polite way of saying that you can eat as much as you want. Pedants will argue that some of the places aren’t actual buffets, but it’s a splitting of hairs. You’ll get all the food you want at Chef Mickey’s. Some would say that it’s not great food, as it decidedly skews young.
Of course, nobody dines at Chef Mickey’s for the food. Disney’s Fab Five characters roam the halls of this restaurant, interacting with the happiest children that you’ll ever see. It’s like a dream come true for kids who get to play with Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto, and Goofy. Disney prices it that way, too. Dinner costs almost $60, which means that you’ll undoubtedly want to use a Table Service credit here.
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace almost falls into the same category as Chef Mickey’s. It’s a $55 character meal with a phenomenal location, just off of Main Street, U.S.A.’s primary throughway. The primary difference is that the characters here are from Hundred Acre Wood.
Yes, Winnie the Pooh and friends wander around the restaurant, entertaining guests between bites. And there are plenty of bites here. It, too, is an AYCE meal. Disney likes for its character meals to fall into this category since diners eat more efficiently this way.
Hollywood & Vine
This restaurant is another one where the cuisine is divisive. Some diners enjoy the AYCE offerings, while others believe that it’s a Golden Corral-level menu. Disney prices Hollywood & Vine as one of the elite Disney establishments.
The character meal can be as much as $60 per adult. However, it comes with a bonus. You’ll gain reserved seating at Fantasmic!, which makes this an outstanding value on its own. For a single entitlement, it’s a steal of a deal.
Storybook Dining at Artist Point
The hot new place at Disney is somehow the unpopular old place. We once watched a manager at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge beg guests to dine at Artist Point. And that was crazy since the reviews of the place were always glowing. Disney vacationers just never took to the spot until Disney turned it into a character meal.
Now, Storybook Dining at Artist Point has become the toughest Advanced Dining Reservation at Walt Disney World. You’ll want to eat here at some point. But you’ll prefer paying with an entitlement rather than $59 per adult.
Tony’s Town Square
Not everyone is sold on the cuisine at Tony’s Town Square, but the location can’t be beaten. You’ll find this eatery on Main Street, U.S.A. in Magic Kingdom, which is important. Here’s the shocker on the list. Even though the restaurant isn’t beloved by all, it’s the most expensive option on this list.
Disney sells a Festival of Fantasy dining package at lunch. Anyone who purchases this combo gets a meal and reserved seating for the parade. Depending on when you buy it, this package could cost as much as $75…but you can also book it with a DDP entitlement!
Tusker House
The dining options at Disney’s Animal Kingdom are universally excellent. Tusker House is the only character meal, though. Some of your favorite Disney characters will dress like they’re out on safari, providing you with marvelous Insta-worthy pictures. The experience is more than $55 when you pay out of pocket, which again reinforces the value of the dining plan. You can eat here for one Table Service credit.
As you can see, the Disney Dining Plan more than pays for itself, at least when you know how to plan your meals.