Disney World recs?

[Pokeyonekenobie]

I thought of something I forgot to mention.  If you have a child in your group who is too small to ride a ride, ask about the "Child Swap".  This is only available on rides with a height restriction.  The way it works is one parent rides the ride and then the other is swapped in with little to no wait so that the child isn't left unattended and you don't have to wait through the whole line twice.  The Cast Member at the beginning of the line will get you set up.

[RainbowQuartz]

I live near Disney and have been there a billion times. You actually don't need to worry about restaurants and food plans at all if you're staying somewhere with a kitchen, as you are allowed to bring food into the park. I feel like people don't realize that. My son is a type 1 diabetic so we have to know the exact amount of carbs in everything that he puts into his mouth and when I called to find out about food stuff they said you're allowed to bring things in.

Otherwise, I don't have a lot of advice. I hate Disney during the day time because of the heat and the crowds and we really only go for the holiday parties at night now. I hope you have a good trip, though.

[Pokeyonekenobie]

RainbowQuartz brings up a good point.  If you have food sensitivities, ask to speak to the chef about it and they will do whatever they can to get you food you can eat.  When I worked at the All Star Music Food Court we used to a "Magical Moment" where we would pick a child to decorate a brownie.  One day the child they picked was allergic to gluten so they let her decorate the brownie and then gave her a gluten-free Popsicle to eat instead.  Don't be embarrassed to ask, the Chefs are very good at knowing what is in the meals they prepare and every restaurant (even the fast food ones) has a Chef that is in charge of that kind of thing.

[lovesbabysquirmy]

...Okay what about restaurant recommendations?  We ended up getting the dining plan that requires that I micromanage this kind of stuff and make reservations. 

[Pokeyonekenobie]

Tusker House at Animal Kingdom is good, as is the Yak 'n Yeti.

EPCOT has SO many places to pick from.  If you want to eat in the countries, pick your favorite kind of food and go from there.  Otherwise I really like the food in the Land Pavilion at Seasons.  I'll be honest, they have mashed red potatoes and they're kind of my favorite. 

Disney Hollywood has a lot of fun places, too.  There's the Sci-Fi Drive in that has "cars" to sit in while you eat and they play old 60's space cartoons.  Pizza Planet is fun, especially if you're a fan of Toy Story. 

Magic Kingdom has Cinderella's Royal Table, Crystal Palace (I think that's what it's called) Character Dining, and the new Beauty and the Beast restaurant. 

You also might want to consider some meals at the resorts.  The Polynesian Resort has Ohana's, which I've heard is super awesome (I've never had the chance to go there myself) and depending on your reservation time you can watch the fireworks from there.
The Hoop De Doo Revue at Fort Wilderness was really fun (a bit pricey, but if you leave hungry it's your fault).  It is one of the longest running show in America.  It's been going for more than 40 years.
There are also restaurants at the Board Walk and Downtown Disney, so it wouldn't hurt to bring up some maps and see if anywhere looks like someplace you want to try.

[Mkia]

I've heard the Be Our Guest restaurant (Beauty and the Beast themed) is awesome!

[JazzMatazz]

I've heard the Be Our Guest restaurant (Beauty and the Beast themed) is awesome!

Dunno about the food but i was disappointed in the cupcake. The grey stuff icing was great but the cake itself tasted like a processed hoho Plus overpriced. Was worth it to see the inside though! The Waffle shop is cheaper and Pinocchio restaurant was tasty and more reasonable in price.

[shelvesofwhimsy]

...Okay what about restaurant recommendations?  We ended up getting the dining plan that requires that I micromanage this kind of stuff and make reservations. 

I could actually go on forever lol. Also I've eaten more places than this but these are the most recent I can remember

Hollywood Studios:
50's Prime time!
Sci Fi Dine in Theatre (One of my favorites!!)

Epcot:
Beaches N Cream (its nearby)
Chefs du France
Coral Reef Restaurant (Good food, awesome atmosphere)
Rose & Crown (Yummy fish and chips)
San Angel Inn Restaurant

Magic Kingdom:
Tony's
Be Our Guest (Awesome Atmosphere, food is good)
Cinderella's Royal Table (great for the experience but very $$$)
Grand Floridian Café (food is ok, but the atmosphere is nice)
Kona Café (yum yum yum!)
The Plaza Restaurant (Good food!)

Animal Kingdom:
Rainforest Café (classic, not a ton of options in this park)

[Foxtale]

Thanks everyone.  I have been driving myself insane with the amount of planning that is having to go into this.  Did I mention I LIKE to vacation by just flying someplace and figuring it out along the way?  hahahaha

I think it will be really interesting to see how much has changed and NOT changed since last I remember.  There's a family tradition photo that has to be taken at Epcot if I can find the spot by the fountain! 

I doubt we will be going to Animal Kingdom unless it's for a restaurant.  We've pretty much burnt ourselves out on wild animals now that we have had a Calgary Zoo membership for the last 6 years. 

But there are a bunch of things that are going to be closed so that's annoying.  Swiss Family Robinson!  Tom Sawyer!  Country Jamboree!  Tiki Room!  It's a Small World!  The Steamboat, the Railroads.... Most of Hollywood - except we only wanted to see the Walt Disney bio  (closed!) and the Muppets.  I cannot believe the macro playground from Honey! I Shrunk the Kids is still there...

We want to stay at the Port New Orleans Riverside hotel if anyone has ever been there...  my child LOVES sushi and I have found 22 Asian restaurants so far... 

I am a huge Disney World Nerd (I go 1-2 times a year) so feel free to ask anything. I'm current planning for my trip in February for a family reunion.

January is a great time to go to avoid crowds (as long as you don't go on a marathon weekend). The weather is nice, and besides the water parks most things are in operation.

Don't get discouraged about the closings. Things sometimes say they are closed but open randomly during your time there. For example, I was there in September and it's a Small World was closed for refurb, but it opened the Saturday we were there to accommodate crowds.  I can assure you the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground is gone... mostly nothing is left of Hollywood Studios right now unless you like Tower of Terror or Star Wars. The Disney biography thing "One Man's Dream" exhibit should be open and the movie they play should go back by then because Moana will have been out for awhile.

Port Orleans Riverside is a great hotel! My second favorite after Caribbean Beach. I get motion sick easily as well, but they have a super relaxing Boat Ride from the hotel to Disney Springs (the shopping and food district) that is great at night and I don't get sick on. Also they have a lot of resort recreation such as Fishing and Swimming. I personally just love the relaxing theming.

What kind of food does your family like? Picky eaters, big eaters?

[ghouldilocks]

...Okay what about restaurant recommendations?  We ended up getting the dining plan that requires that I micromanage this kind of stuff and make reservations. 

You should check out the Disney Food Blog (http://www.disneyfoodblog.com), and DISboards has a board dedicated to Disney restaurants (http://www.disboards.com/forums/disney-restaurants.14). You can get some tips and information about working with the dining plans there, for sure. 

[lovesbabysquirmy]

...Okay what about restaurant recommendations?  We ended up getting the dining plan that requires that I micromanage this kind of stuff and make reservations. 

You should check out the Disney Food Blog (http://www.disneyfoodblog.com), and DISboards has a board dedicated to Disney restaurants (http://www.disboards.com/forums/disney-restaurants.14). You can get some tips and information about working with the dining plans there, for sure. 

Oh good!  More reading!   

I have spent more hours researching this trip than any other vacation, I think!  really!  I took a road trip clear across the Midwest once, and just followed highway signs - hence how I came to find out that "lil' white girls don' stop fer gas in Ferguson!"   

[lovesbabysquirmy]

Eeeeek sorry to double-post but it has been awhile!

Restaurant reviews for Morimoto Asia anyone?  My child is a sushi addict - you can get her to do ANYTHING if you promise her a fish.  LOL  I will be the one eating off the kid's menu there ahahaha.  And what other restaurants serve actual sashimi?  I see a number of seafood options but if they are cooking the fish, nobody at my table will touch it. 

[Pokeyonekenobie]

I haven't eaten there (not a fan of seafood in any form) but I did try one of the restaurants in the Japan Pavilion at EPCOT and it was okay.  I ended up getting chicken of some kind.  Though, my opinion is probably not the best because I'm not a huge fan of Japanese cuisine. 

It looks like this site has the menus for the Disney Restaurants.  On the search page I put in "Japanese" as the cuisine type and it had a list.  Maybe it will be helpful.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningmain.cfm
 
Looks like Kimonos at the Swan (Boardwalk area hotel) has sashimi.  The site looks like it hasn't been updated overly recently but you can use that as a starting point.  And if there's a restaurant in a hotel that you want to go to, you don't need to be staying at that hotel.  You can just go in and tell the cast members that you're looking for that restaurant and they'll get you there.

[Icicle]

Eeeeek sorry to double-post but it has been awhile!

Restaurant reviews for Morimoto Asia anyone?  My child is a sushi addict - you can get her to do ANYTHING if you promise her a fish.  LOL  I will be the one eating off the kid's menu there ahahaha.  And what other restaurants serve actual sashimi?  I see a number of seafood options but if they are cooking the fish, nobody at my table will touch it. 

I've eaten at Morimoto Asia 1 1/2 times (one was their like street food snacks lol). But it was really good! My husband let me try some of his spicy tuna roll and I loved it. And I hate fish in any form.  I mean he is ruined for sushi after that night. And the duck ramen I got was really good and filling for the price if anyone wanted to try something new in that respect.

[LunaMoonCustoms1212]

...Okay what about restaurant recommendations?  We ended up getting the dining plan that requires that I micromanage this kind of stuff and make reservations. 

I could actually go on forever lol. Also I've eaten more places than this but these are the most recent I can remember

Hollywood Studios:
50's Prime time!

This was definitely my favorite place as well, the food was delicious and the atmosphere was great.