buffets v meals

[toontycoon]

what is the best value for a family on a budget ?? can fellow dibbers give me any advice please thank you:grin:

[winnie-T-P]

we have 5 kids so we think that the buffet style places will be more economical for us as we have 2 that eat like adults,1 other good eater and 2picky ones so they can just eat what they want!!

[Dude]

We always found that the Golden corral buffets to be great value.

Dude

[susan1]

what is the best value for a family on a budget ?? can fellow dibbers give me any advice please thank you:grin:
hi
try to stay at an hotel that does complimentary breakfast not just coffee and a pastry. share drinks, buy one and ask for an extra cup. the drinks in the parks are huge.eat at buffets children under a certain age eat free or at least half price. try ponderosa and golden corral for yourself before making any decisions. if you can get to a walmart buy water there. you can also buy individual flavouring packets which make a change from plain water. buy light up nik-naks before you go also other disney bits, the pound shop and asda have them. if you put them on the chidrens pillow etc for them to find, they will be too excited to question where they came from.get the saturday and sunday orlando sentinel, they have wonderful fast food family bargains in their coupon section. we had roast beef mash and sweetcorn for six of us for $10 also a wonderful chocca mocca milkshake from arby's
we usually google budget orlando and see if it brings up anything special! hope you have a great time:grin:

[loadsapixiedust]

Buffets are great value if you all like a lot to eat. A big breakfast can save you needing anything but a small snack at lunch and so saves you even more $$$. We find that the days we do a buffet breakfast we only have a snack midday and then dinner in the evening, we almost never eat 3 full meals a day.

However if you have picky eaters or those who prefer smaller meals it may be more economical to share meals (which you can't do at a buffet) this is perfectly acceptable and we do it all the time. Adults can also usually order from the kids menu for smaller portion sizes and cheaper meals.

Look out for places which do kids-eat-free deals, some are offered up to age 12. Also pick up and use all the money off coupons in the tourist magazines, you will find them at lots of restaurants and in the hotel lobby.

[Karen Mouse]

I often just have a starter for a main course and then a pud. I have potato skins - you usually get 6 or 10!:omg: loaded with cheese, bacon etc - delicious,:tounge: followed (of course) by cheesecake (for a change!;) )

Or I order a kids meal - no one bats an eyelid over there. Its much nicer than over here where the waitress would tut if you wanted a kids dinner.

Dont forget to pick up coupon books.:wavey:

[disney owl]

With teenagers we find buffets the best value.

It also means that if they choose something they don't like they can try again!

We def use the coupons out of the books & would recommend you to do so.

[sharon]

We like doing the buffets because the kids are fussy so if they try something and they dont like it it doesn't matter :wave:

Sharon

[batleyboy26]

Golden Corral buffet is a big hit with us too. The boys love going up and selecting their own food, and they usually go for the healthier stuff as they are fed up too of the burgers and fries in the parks.

At around $40 for the 4 of us, the boys eating veggies and us all coming out of there absolutely stuffed, we think it is a wonderful place - although couln't go every night!

[TinkTatoo]

We almost always go to buffets as we have two children with autism who are very fussy eaters and have the attention span of a gnat in restaurants. The buffets have something that they will eat and they can get their food as soon as we arrive which keeps them happy. It also gives them the opportunity to try new things.

Our favorite one and the cheapest is Sweet Tomato which has a salad bar, home made soup, fresh cooked pasta and pizza and some lovely deserts. Another thing we do is get subs from Subway - they are lovely and very filling

[liljock]

another vote for buffets ,our dd5 is a really picky eater and would never sit down to large meal so its easier on her if she can just pick what she wants and have a little more if she likes it .we also use the vouchers and a lot off places where really helpfull pointing out discounts etc .we used subways on Idrive a few times as a change from junk food ,there is a coupon in the tourist books and if you buy one sub you get one free .really filling and makes a change from sitting down to dinner

[dvc]

We go to buffetts alot, even on property (try Cape May Cafe). Ponderosa on the 192 (near old town) and Golden Corrall (past Wal Mart on 192) are our favourites. We also like Bob Evans. This is not a buffet but the meals are good and you can share. it seems to be acceptable in the US and also acceptable to order kids meals. We fin dif we have buffett breakfast we don;t need lunch and ahve a late dinner. The only thing with buffets is you can't get carry out - with ordinary meals you can.
Hope this helps

[susan1]

hi
golden corral does carry out i think they charge by weight!

[alisonjones]

Golden Coral is a fav with us to but so is Ace Buffet Chinese rest
all u can eat chinese (with loads of english dishes as well)

Also they do a really great pizza in Big K Mart its in the pizza part called little ceasers - last year it was only $5.00 for a huge pizza and $1 for garlic breadsticks.:tounge:

[highlander447]

Hi the only buffet I'd be wary of with kids over 9 is Disney as the adult prices are about $25 dinner per person & $17 for breakfast so not too much value there but most do offer the character experience:smile:

[Bozza]

Hi the only buffet I'd be wary of with kids over 9 is Disney as the adult prices are about $25 dinner per person & $17 for breakfast so not too much value there but most do offer the character experience:smile:

I'd disagree with that comment quite strongly. They are certainly more expensive than those Corral type places but that does not neccesarily make them bad value in my book. $20 is still only £12 or so and if you compare that to eating breakfast in a hotel in the UK, where you can easily pay £20+, I think it compares favourably even before you take into account the fact you're having a Disney meal with Disney theming and Disney characters. You probably wouldn't do them every day, but I'd never call them 'bad value'.

[highlander447]

I'd disagree with that comment quite strongly. They are certainly more expensive than those Corral type places but that does not neccesarily make them bad value in my book. $20 is still only £12 or so and if you compare that to eating breakfast in a hotel in the UK, where you can easily pay £20+, I think it compares favourably even before you take into account the fact you're having a Disney meal with Disney theming and Disney characters. You probably wouldn't do them every day, but I'd never call them 'bad value'.
I was comparing to meals in states not uk thats the point not uk prices, and I did say u where paying for the characters, but if u think £10 each incl a kid is value for money for breakfast then good on u remember the tax and tip £45 in disney for family of 4 breakfast in disney incl tax and tip kids over 9, somewhere like GC same family pay £22, thats my point, thats all wouldn't dare bash disney:o:
orignal question was
what is the best value for a family on a budget ?? can fellow dibbers give me any advice please thank you:grin:

[Bozza]

I have never been of the opinion that there is a direct correlation between price and value. I don't think "cheap = good value" is always the case.

Many cheap things are good value, of course. But so are many things which may appear relatively expensive.

The comparison between The Corral and a Disney breakfast is not comparing like with like by a long stretch. You will have a cheaper breakfast at The Corral, but is it better value? To those for whom "cheap = good value", undoubtedly. As I said above, I doubt any of us would do a Disney breakfast every day, but if there was no value in them at all, none of us would ever have gone, would we?

[mona]

If a buffet is over say $15 pp I would say go for a meal if you are not all big eaters.
We loved Golden Coral and it filled us up till late that day...and there is something for everybody..... but a few times we went to more expensive buffets in the evening and my DS3 who is 10 hardly touched a thing because he didn't like it and I couldn't eat a lot either.....Very costly mistake !!
On the other hand if you go to say Chilis/TGI's you can all order small or bigger portions for very good value and quality !!

[Treacle44]

The buffets are great because there's something for everyone and you take a few cookies/bits of fruit etc away with you for snacks in the parks :-)

[mona]

The buffets are great because there's something for everyone and you take a few cookies/bits of fruit etc away with you for snacks in the parks :-)

I didn't know you can take food away with you when leaving a buffet meal... ??????????:confused2

[Treacle44]

I didn't know you can take food away with you when leaving a buffet meal... ??????????:confused2

I'm not talking a 3 course meal or anything but they were fine with us taking a couple of bananas and a few cookies for dd for snacks. We just put them on her plate as dessert and when she didn't eat them, just took them with us. They would've only thrown them away! :-)

[mona]

I'm not talking a 3 course meal or anything but they were fine with us taking a couple of bananas and a few cookies for dd for snacks. We just put them on her plate as dessert and when she didn't eat them, just took them with us. They would've only thrown them away! :-)

I should've been brave enough to ask, as DS3 kept having tantrums and refused to touch his food a few times while in a buffet.....We left with his plate still full !!!

[daveyoghurt]

I'm going to have to say that with the exception of Sweet Tomatoes I'm not really a big fan of the buffets, I've tried Ponderosa, Golden Corral and another (that I can't remember) and when I compare them to the meals (usually breakfast) that I've had at Dennys and the Village Inn, there's no real comparison. There's nothing better than something that's cooked to order and comes to the table piping hot, plus, the service at Dennys and the Village Inn has always encouraged me to go back there.

[yatomi]

If you want something special like ribs from damons *drools* meals are fine, but Id have to go with buffets as my favourite we eat at golden corral at least twice every holiday, including once for breakfast. Its good because you can get as much as one thing as you want and it allows you to try new things with out having to have a plate full of it. I tried maccaroni nd cheese, which i have never been brave enough to try before.

[mushyp]

like to vary the meals we eat. so we will always book several disney restaurants to eat at, then we often do buffet style meals.

[loops]

Sweet Tomatoes buffet is brilliant value and as there's a lot of vegetarian and healthy stuff it makes a nice change. I think it was about $9 for the buffet last year.
Louise

[mona]

Sweet Tomatoes buffet is brilliant value and as there's a lot of vegetarian and healthy stuff it makes a nice change. I think it was about $9 for the buffet last year.
Louise

I 2nd that....Sweet Tomatoes was fantastic. We went there twice , unfortunately it was quite a way from our villa otherwise we would've gone a lot more !!!!:tounge:

[uklad23]

Buffets sound cheap for "all you can eat" but are only good value if you eat a fair bit. I prefer a sitdown meal because most of the time I only want a main course so its cheaper than the $10 an all you can eat costs. I also get the food hot and served to me, so no waiting in line like a prison or school after a long day at the parks and eating from plastic plates. I like them from breakfast as I feel I get value from them, I also do go to Sweet Tomatoes as it's cheaper and worth it because of the food quality.

[toontycoon]

Thanks for all the great advice :)

[cotton]

We do a mixture of Buffets sit down meals and take-aways(macdonnalds for kids and subways or mexican for us). If you are staying anywhere near LBV try Cici's it is an all you can eat pizza place which includes salad pasta and desert and the best bit id its only $3.99 each so really cheap.;)

Jo