Walt Disney World Dining Tips

Happy August, my friends! I hope that everyone has enjoyed their summer, and the kids are refreshed and ready for a great school year!

(Starting off this post with a photo of an ice cream sundae from Ample Hills Creamery at Disney's Boardwalk Resort- because who doesn't love ice cream sundaes?)

I have a friend who is going to Disney this October, and this will be her family’s first trip to Walt Disney World without my family tagging along. When she booked this trip, she contacted me to review her plans, and stated that she was nervous to travel to Walt Disney World without her ‘travel guide’ (that would be me!). I assured her that she would be fine, and that I would help her fine-tune her itinerary.

(In addition to other locations, my friend booked a reservation for Via Napoli in Italy at Epcot, which serves DELICIOUS pizza!)

She sent me her tentative plans, and told me that she had hoped to find a reservation for ‘Ohana, but that nothing was available, and so she was trying to figure out where to dine instead. I worked my magic and was able to get her an ‘Ohana reservation for 6 people less than 3 months out from the date they’d be dining there. There are some tricks to this, and that is what I would like to share with you today, in addition to a few other Disney dining tips that I've picked up throughout my travels.

(A few of the yummy appetizers served at 'Ohana- this is a family-style, all-you-can-eat restaurant)

After booking a Walt Disney World vacation (or even before it’s booked), you will want to download the ‘My Disney Experience’ app on your smartphone. This is an amazing app- you can review any reservations you’ve made and tickets that you’ve purchased, make dining reservations, choose your Fast Passes (see my post here for a planning timeline, including when you may book FastPasses), view any photos you have had taken by the PhotoPass photographers while on your trip, locate characters in the parks, and even order food at select Disney restaurants, which allows you to bypass the line once you are there! You’ll have to create an account to get in to view these (and other) features.

(You can make reservations for a quick-service lunch- and even pre-order your food- at Be Our Guest in the Magic Kingdom)

Okay, so on to the good stuff. When I am looking for a reservation that is difficult to obtain, and it is less than 180 days out, I arm myself with both my phone AND my laptop. I will use my laptop to search for reservations on the website, www.disneyworld.com, and my iPhone to search for reservations on the 'My Disney Experience' app. While all of the reservations should be the same, once in a while, I have found that the reservations available vary slightly, so I highly encourage you to try both methods. The other method is to call, but I will tell you that I have never had luck scoring a reservation via telephone if not available on the app or website.

(Chef Mickey's is one of those tough-to-get reservations)

The next thing I do is to vary my search parameters. You can select either a time, or simply a meal. So, for instance, I will try putting ‘Dinner’ into my search, and if that does not yield any results, I will put in a specific time- let's say, 7:00pm. If that does not pull anything up, I’ll try several other times- say, 5:00pm and even 9:00pm (we are night owls in my family, so I figure it’s worth a shot!). If you’ve tried this method on both the website and the app (and perhaps even called) and you have had no luck, don’t quit just yet! Keep trying! Try until the day you are wanting this reservation, if necessary. Since reservations have to be cancelled 24 hours in advance, this is a great time to try. I have never NOT been able to land a reservation that I wanted. I will note that we have never been interested in eating at Cinderella’s Royal Table, the most coveted reservation at Walt Disney World- this is one that you simply may not be able to get (but I could be wrong- for goodness sake, it’s worth a try!), but for most other restaurants, please keep trying!

(A delicious filet at Citrico's at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa- an overlooked restaurant that has AMAZING food, and also usually has last-minute reservations available)

And speaking of Disney Dining, I have some more tips to share that may help some of you out! Once you have made all of your dining reservations, and are now at Walt Disney World enjoying your coveted reservations, I want to point out that Walt Disney World is RIDICULOUSLY allergy-friendly. Last February, the two girlfriends that I traveled with for the Disney Princess Half Marathon both needed special dining accommodations. My good friend and former roommate Tiffany has a severe tree nut allergy, and my other travel friend Kari (my maid-of-honor in my wedding!) is a vegan. While all of the restaurants were super accommodating, one restaurant that really stands out is the Turf Club Bar and Grill at Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa. The Chef came out to speak to my friends personally, and he changed one of the entrees so that Tiffany (my friend with the tree nut allergy) would have no issues. He also created an entrée especially for my friend Kari who is a vegan, which she raved about, and brought out special vegan butter and rolls for her to enjoy. I truly feel that this restaurant went above and beyond for my friends!

(Did you know that Dole Whips are vegan? I certainly did not! Kari was not planning to have a Dole Whip, but asked if these were made with dairy, and was told that they are not, so she was able to enjoy one as well!)

(Epcot is a great place to go when you eat vegan- Kari was able to find many treats throughout World Showcase, including chips, guacamole and margaritas in Mexico, and a veggie platter in Morocco!)

Along those same lines, my mother is sensitive to some spices, and one night while dining at ‘Ohana at the Polynesian Village Resort, the Chef came out with unseasoned meats for her to enjoy. Even if someone in your party does not like a certain food- such as my dad with bread pudding (side note- I do not understand this! The bread pudding at ‘Ohana is what dreams are made of!), the staff is willing to accommodate you- they brought my dad fresh pineapple chunks with a caramel dipping sauce, which he ate every morsel of! No matter what your situation, Disney is willing to work with you to create a meal that you will love!

(My dad enjoying his fresh dessert at 'Ohana)

The next dining tip I have to offer is actually in regards to dining in your resort room. On our next trip, we are having groceries delivered to our resort, Saratoga Springs, from Garden Grocer. While we still are going to eat all of our dinners out, we are going to eat breakfast and some lunches in our room to save money. If I order our groceries 60 days ahead of time, I get a 10% discount. On arrival day, our groceries will be delivered in a time frame that I choose- if we are not at the resort at that time, bell services will store our groceries (they’ll refrigerate and freeze the items as appropriate), and we can get our groceries anytime we wish once we are back at the resort. (Edit: A friend is going next week and having groceries delivered to the Fort Wilderness Cabins, and she states that if her room is ready when Garden Grocer arrives, they will put them in the room for her, refrigerating and freezing as appropriate; she also states that if her cabin is not ready, bell services will deliver her groceries directly to the cabin her family will be staying in later on that day. I am not yet sure if this varies from resort-to-resort, which is why I am simply putting in this edit- I do know that whoever places the groceries and/ or stores them will do so appropriately, keeping cold foods cold and so forth).

(My girlfriends making vegan sloppy joe's in our villa one evening)

(Tiffany preparing breakfast in our villa one morning before hitting the parks!)

My last dining tip that I want to offer is that you truly can customize your trip to accommodate all of your dining wishes and needs. As you now know, you can do everything from eating a simple meal in your room, to enjoying a Disney Signature Restaurant (Disney’s best!), and everything in between. You can do a dining plan, or not. There are quick service spots located all throughout Walt Disney World, serving everything from burgers and nuggets, to Moroccan cuisine, French cuisine, and more. There are plenty of character dining locations that you can enjoy for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Table service locations vary greatly in theming- one night you can dine at a restaurant overlooking the African savanna, and the next morning, you may find yourself at a Polynesian-themed café sipping Kona coffee. And I recommend splurging and trying at least one Disney Signature Dining location- the filet mignon and lobster dish at Narcoosee’s at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa is truly a meal to write home about!

('Surf and turf' dinner at Narcoossee's at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa)

(Of course if you are feeling like a burger, fries and a Coke, you may get that at many WDW locations, including Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom)

I hope that some of these dining tips will help you on your next Walt Disney World vacation. As always, feel free to email me at dana_aimee@hotmail.com, and please check out my Disney-themed Instagram account- username: DanasMouseTails. Thanks for reading, and Happy Travels!