Cooking Meals Reality

[APiratesLifeForMe2]

We are taking my dad, his wife and my teenage stepbrother with us in June staying in a 2 bedroom at BRV. We will likely also have 2 extended family members staying nearby, possibly shades of green for at least part of the trip. We are used to eating breakfast in the room and pretty much all other meals at quick service or table service. This is a budget trip for my dad and his wife so I don't expect they will want to be paying the price to eat out at as many meals as we normally do. I am trying to gauge how realistic it is to fix some meals in the rooms. What kind of meals might work given the kitchen supplies? Especially given we might be feeding 9 people. We are flying so won't have the ability to bring any extra supplies so I am only working with what's in the room.

 

[SteveAZee]

It's a fully stocked kitchen as far as utensils and appliances go. You might run short on tableware, since they only have enough for 8 people, I think. It'll be easy enough to make eggs, toast, sausages, etc for breakfast. If you're not going to go to supermarket, you can have groceries delivered.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Sheesh… we don’t even cook when we are home.

 

[Geomom]

Maybe pasta and meatballs? That would feed a lot of people and be relatively quick and easy to make. Or some other big 1 pot dish.

Truthfully, I wouldn't want to leave the parks to go back to the resort to cook/eat dinner. Maybe a Magic Kingdom day since you're near it, or on a down day. There are grills at the resort too.

We've only done breakfast --eggs, pancakes, sausages, tater tots (aka mini hash browns, lol), fruit.

 

[Narcoossee11]

The key is to check supplies BEFORE .
Item get shifted and may not be in the kitchen.
Housekeeping will bring your the items but you must give time (several hours).
Prepare at least one meal ahead.
Nothing line starting your meal on the stove and discover you need a item

 

[APiratesLifeForMe2]

Truthfully, I wouldn't want to leave the parks to go back to the resort to cook/eat dinner. Maybe a Magic Kingdom day since you're near it, or on a down day. There are grills at the resort too.

I thought the same thing. It will be June so planned to head back to the room mid days to avoid the intense heat and sun and return in the evening. I don’t think anyone will want to leave again or stay long enough for dinner in the room so hopefully we can narrow down to breakfast and lunch. Lunch should be much easier to plan and the grills are a great idea. I had forgotten about those. We may have a non park day so that could be a good plan for that day.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Are any of you driving, or just flying?

If you have the option to pack a cooler from home, I can provide a list of things you can freeze in advance into a cooler and load into the fridge. We have to do this when we go to Voyageurs or to some cabins and I have figured out a variety of things that prep well in advance and thus avoid issues with prep-only kitchens that lack herbs or flour or all the little stuff you use in small quantities.

 

[Chuck S]

Bear in mind, after a full day in the parks, you will be both hungry AND tired, especially your parents. And you'll be working around people taking showers and getting ready for bed. You'll want something quick and easy, even with a full kitchen. We usually do have a table service lunch in the parks, but for dinner when we get back to the room, we generally just do sandwiches or a frozen pizza. We do a nice breakfast in the room, though. Nine people in a two bedroom is kind of pushing it if you expect to make full meals, other than breakfast. And you most probably won't all be able to sit at the same dining room table at the same time, at Boulder Ridge you'll be spread around several different tables/eating areas.

With that many people, I'd consider trying to book a two bedroom AND a studio at OKW for almost the same amount of points. That would give two extra queen beds, and room to spread out a little. Just remember that there are no elevators, so if someone can't do stairs, you'll neeed to specify that you MUST have a ground floor room.

 

[DeeBee3]

In addition, to order groceries and cooking in the room, definitely order drinks and snacks. You can save a TON of money not buying bottled water or soda. It just depends on what everyone's drinking preferences are. We bring Brita water bottles so we just fill them up at the sink and wash them at night. We don't buy soda there so other than coffee, that's all we have to worry about.

Definitely bring snacks with you to the parks. All of that is allowed and if your father has certain times he likes to eat or snack (some people are particular), then make sure he has a backpack with some of those items. He will get sticker shock if he goes to buy an ice cream or a thing of fries.

Highly recommend grocery delivery, but also agree with others that you will be tired and keeping it simple is best.

 

[crazywig]

We are taking my dad, his wife and my teenage stepbrother with us in June staying in a 2 bedroom at BRV. We will likely also have 2 extended family members staying nearby, possibly shades of green for at least part of the trip. We are used to eating breakfast in the room and pretty much all other meals at quick service or table service. This is a budget trip for my dad and his wife so I don't expect they will want to be paying the price to eat out at as many meals as we normally do. I am trying to gauge how realistic it is to fix some meals in the rooms. What kind of meals might work given the kitchen supplies? Especially given we might be feeding 9 people. We are flying so won't have the ability to bring any extra supplies so I am only working with what's in the room.

We generally cook at least twice in the room now because even though money isn't an issue I just cannot deal with the ridiculous prices for pretty subpar food. One night we do a pasta dinner, frozen meatballs, garlic bread and salad. This is quick and feeds a ton of people with low prep.
The other meal is pizza. Buy the big pizza shells, get pepperoni, use any leftover meatballs for additional toppings as well.
Our next trip is a group of 10 and we'll be cooking in even more, planning on tacos one night, maybe some baked chicken etc. Since we are going in summer we take long breaks and prepping is not an issue. We will have 5 teens in the group so bags of nuggets and fries a must.

Inventory your room when you get there, check the oven for pans/sheet pans etc. If you need more cookie sheets (we do for pizza) housekeeping will bring. The only issue I have cooking in, is that the knives are terrible and I plan to put my own knives in my Owners Locker next trip.

We also carry Brita water bottles and never pay for non-alcoholic drinks in the parks .

 

[Brett Wyman]

Its definitely possible. Its the little things like salt, pepper, garlic, etc. that are easily to forget. On a resort only stay at the beginning of the pandemic we brought a couple dinners from meal kits we have and cooked them there.

 

[Brian Noble]

We do a lot of timeshare vacationing—at WDW and elsewhere—and usually have one or two dinners “in” In the space of a week-long trip. This isn’t so much to save money as it is some days we do not feel like rallying and Going Out For Dinner Again. The kitchens are usually serviceable but it is definitely not cooking at home. Things I notice: the knives are usually garbage, I do not have my spice rack or my condiment shelves, there isn’t much bakeware/it is too flimsy, there often isn’t a large-enough stock pot, and if you use nonstick cookware it is often scratched to high heaven. Unless you buy it, you also don’t have foil or parchment paper.

So, yes, the kitchen is ”equipped”, but it is not equipped. I keep a nonstick skillet in my owner’s locker for morning eggs. I haven’t yet pulled the trigger on a decent chef’s knife, but I’ve thought about it.

The other difference: you are probably out and about during the day, so there is no advance prep and meals that take more than about 45 minutes to an hour are probably out of bounds.

So, I find myself “assembling meals“ more than “cooking”. Some of our go-tos include tacos or fajitas, pasta, and brats (oven-baked if there aren’t decent grills—and there are not at DVC). A frozen lasagna is decent enough in a pinch. Bagged salad kits. If I have the time, running out and getting a roast chicken from the deli aisle and building a meal around that. If I am really ambitious I will roast some chicken parts (but again—no spice rack.)

 

[Counting Stars]

Your easiest meals at home are also your easiest meals at Disney. As others have said, check the kitchen supplies first- colanders, fry pans, etc. call housekeeping for missing items you might need. Pasta is easy to make in quantity, tacos and nachos always a favorite, sub sandwiches, club sandwiches, breakfast scramble or casseroles. This need not be gourmet cooking but will likely still surpass many of the counter-service, and some restaurant options Have a great trip!

 

[starry_solo]

We’ve only stayed in a one bedroom.
even then, we used the oven primarily to reheat items we bought.

but we did use for frozen pizza

what do your parents eat?

you’ll need to go grocery shopping when you get there or do a delivery.
you definitely don’t want to meal prep, you’ll be too tired from the parks (at least we were)

salt and pepper packets are easy enough to get from the parks, so figure out what meals you want to eat while in the room and go from there.

 

[Shellyred8]

One of the things we learned the hard way: don't forget the non-stick cooking spray! Trying to cook eggs in their pans is a bit of a nightmare without it.

I was thinking of getting the fixings for Tacos and Sandwiches (meats, cheese, PB&J). If you get flour tortillas, you could also use those to make quesadillas. I also liked one of the ideas above where they mentioned the frozen lasagna. Some of those are really good!
We don't cook in the room very often, but here are the things we usually keep in the room for snacks/light meals: fruit (bananas and grapes or whatever sounds good at the time we are shopping), peanut butter, bagels/bread, non-melty snack bars that we can bring with to the park, and beverages. We will usually get juice and powerade zero for beverages. If we are staying in the MK area, we will also get bottled water. I don't know why, but their water seems worse than other areas at WDW.

 

[StarCruzer]

In terms of ease, here's a few suggestions:

Grilled cheese sandwiches: bread, butter, cheeses/meats

Stir fry: prechopped veggies, meat of choice, teriyaki sauce, and microwave rice

Any sort of pasta with premade sauce (regular red, vodka sauce, alfredo, etc.). Trader Joe's does a frozen turkey bolognese sauce if you need protein but don't want to worry about cooking it yourself.

Lundberg does VERY delicious boxed risottos (I'd say 1 box per 2 people) which we've made into full meals by adding frozen peas and cooking cubed chicken.

 

[APiratesLifeForMe2]

Are any of you driving, or just flying?

We are flying

If you have the option to pack a cooler from home, I can provide a list of things you can freeze in advance into a cooler and load into the fridge. We have to do this when we go to Voyageurs or to some cabins and I have figured out a variety of things that prep well in advance and thus avoid issues with prep-only kitchens that lack herbs or flour or all the little stuff you use in small quantities.

We are flying. My dad might be driving but they will be making it a 2 day drive so don’t really want to send them with a cooler. I could fit some spices in my suitcase though. Those don’t take up any room.

Nine people in a two bedroom is kind of pushing it if you expect to make full meals, other than breakfast. And you most probably won't all be able to sit at the same dining room table at the same time, at Boulder Ridge you'll be spread around several different tables/eating areas.

With that many people, I'd consider trying to book a two bedroom AND a studio at OKW for almost the same amount of points. That would give two extra queen beds, and room to spread out a little. Just remember that there are no elevators, so if someone can't do stairs, you'll neeed to specify that you MUST have a ground floor room.

2 of the 9 are not staying with us but may join for meals. 2 of the 7 are my small kids so we have plenty of space for us in a 2 bedroom. Good point about seating space though.

In addition, to order groceries and cooking in the room, definitely order drinks and snacks. You can save a TON of money not buying bottled water or soda.

We always get groceries for water and snacks and our breakfast foods. We will probably make a trip ourselves but we have done delivery before as well.

We generally cook at least twice in the room now because even though money isn't an issue I just cannot deal with the ridiculous prices for pretty subpar food. One night we do a pasta dinner, frozen meatballs, garlic bread and salad. This is quick and feeds a ton of people with low prep.
The other meal is pizza. Buy the big pizza shells, get pepperoni, use any leftover meatballs for additional toppings as well.
Our next trip is a group of 10 and we'll be cooking in even more, planning on tacos one night, maybe some baked chicken etc. Since we are going in summer we take long breaks and prepping is not an issue. We will have 5 teens in the group so bags of nuggets and fries a must.

We may just get pizza offsite instead of trying to cook that but great night in meal.

We do a lot of timeshare vacationing—at WDW and elsewhere—and usually have one or two dinners “in” In the space of a week-long trip. This isn’t so much to save money as it is some days we do not feel like rallying and Going Out For Dinner Again. The kitchens are usually serviceable but it is definitely not cooking at home. Things I notice: the knives are usually garbage, I do not have my spice rack or my condiment shelves, there isn’t much bakeware/it is too flimsy, there often isn’t a large-enough stock pot, and if you use nonstick cookware it is often scratched to high heaven. Unless you buy it, you also don’t have foil or parchment paper.

So, yes, the kitchen is ”equipped”, but it is not equipped. I keep a nonstick skillet in my owner’s locker for morning eggs. I haven’t yet pulled the trigger on a decent chef’s knife, but I’ve thought about it.

The other difference: you are probably out and about during the day, so there is no advance prep and meals that take more than about 45 minutes to an hour are probably out of bounds.

So, I find myself “assembling meals“ more than “cooking”. Some of our go-tos include tacos or fajitas, pasta, and brats (oven-baked if there aren’t decent grills—and there are not at DVC). A frozen lasagna is decent enough in a pinch. Bagged salad kits. If I have the time, running out and getting a roast chicken from the deli aisle and building a meal around that. If I am really ambitious I will roast some chicken parts (but again—no spice rack.)

I love the knife idea. I’ve made baby food in the room the last few trips and sometimes just cutting up fruits and veggies was rough. I may buy a knife down there or send one with my dad if he drives and keep it in the owners locker. May do a small thing of foil too. Once the kids are older and I free up space from bubble wands and light up toys I might replace it with a non stick pan! Hoping the recent refurb of BRV will mean better kitchen supplies.

We’ve only stayed in a one bedroom.
even then, we used the oven primarily to reheat items we bought.

but we did use for frozen pizza

what do your parents eat?

you’ll need to go grocery shopping when you get there or do a delivery.
you definitely don’t want to meal prep, you’ll be too tired from the parks (at least we were)

salt and pepper packets are easy enough to get from the parks, so figure out what meals you want to eat while in the room and go from there.

We will do a grocery stop or two. Good point about only reheating. Spaghetti might be the extent of our coming.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Easy fajitas:

Get at least 2 peppers and an onion per pound of chicken and a packet of fajita seasoning. Can of cooking canola.

Slice chicken and peppers and onions. spray with canola and toss with fajita seasoning.

20-25 minutes in oven at 425. Squirt on some lime wedges.

 

[Sharene0724]

You can absolutely do several meals in the room, try the quick cook pasta in the refrigerated section (tortellini or ravioli) with a jar of sauce and garlic bread, and bag of salad from the store as well as frozen Asian food, fried rice or noodles, egg rolls in the oven, also rotisserie chicken mixed with some taco seasoning and tortillas makes great quick taco meals, you can add canned refried beans or premade rice you heat up in the microwave. It's really doable to have several easy meals in the one and two bedrooms with a kitchen. The tools and pans aren't "top notch" but very useable.

 

[s.r.disney nut]

Sheesh… we don’t even cook when we are home.

That's not what was asked, funny boy.