Walt Disney World is an expensive place to vacation. Without a plan the expenses of a Walt Disney World vacation can easily reach a point that a middle class family simply can’t afford to go anymore.
Dining affordably can mean giving up the premier experience, but it doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice taste. In fact, some of my favorite restaurants on property are the ones I find to be budget conscious. This article’s objective is to show you that you can eat decent food without paying enormous amounts of money, and that while quick service restaurants can be a great option because they are cheap, you also have other great affordable options.
The Plaza
In some cases, dining affordably doesn’t mean you have to give up on the table service experience. The Plaza located in the Magic Kingdom is a great place to sit down with your family and enjoy a meal together. A dinner entrée at The Plaza is on average about ten dollars cheaper a person than a dinner at Be Our Guest Restaurant. For an average family of four, that extra forty dollars saved by going to The Plaza for dinner rather than Be Our Guest Restaurant can go a long way. Saving without sacrificing is the key to a great Walt Disney World vacation, and I think The Plaza is a great place to save.
The Wave
For breakfast The Wave is another great table service experience for close to the the cost of a quick service restaurant. A kid’s cheese omelet at The Wave is $6.99, which is considered pretty affordable for Walt Disney World standards. Adult entrées like Eggs Benedict or The Wave Signature Sweet Potato Pancakes are on average about twelve dollars, which are still quite affordable when compared to other breakfast options in Walt Disney World. For example, the pricier breakfast dining experiences like ‘Ohana’s Best Friends Breakfast featuring Lilo and Stitch can cost up adults up to thirty dollars, and children aren’t much cheaper, costing around eighteen or nineteen dollars. The Wave might not provide the character dining experience, but for a budget conscious family it will still provide a great table service meal that can fuel you for a long day in the Magic Kingdom just as much as the breakfast at the more expensive breakfast options like Ohana’s.
Wolfgang Puck Express
This is personally my favorite deal in Walt Disney World. Wolfgang Puck Express provides a unique dining experience where you pay and order your food at the counter like a quick service restaurant, but then it is served to your table like a table service restaurant. Personally for the price this is the best food I think you’ll be able to find in Walt Disney World property. Bacon-wrapped Meatloaf, Cavatappi Chicken Alfredo, and Ricotta Cheese Ravioli are just a few of the many delicious choices for adult entrées. Most entrées are around fifteen dollars and there is nothing more than twenty dollars on the adult entrée menu. The kid’s menu has choices like Spaghetti, Crispy Chicken Fingers, and Macaroni & Cheese in which the most expensive choice is only 8 dollars. The quality of the food here is something that I think they could charge a lot more for, which is something I don’t want to say to loudly in case they get any ideas. Overall, Wolfgang Puck Express is my must do for any budget conscious family.
Stephen "Steve" Porter started going to the parks with his family in 1996. Since then he hasn't looked back! Steve was a cast member participating in the Disney College Program in 2013. Most recently he graduated from Penn State University!
