The Disney Dining Plan just made its return in 2024!
Magic Kingdom
While the Disney Dining Plan can be a super helpful service that can make your dining plans less stressful, there are certain rules at certain restaurants. We just ran into this weird Disney Dining Plan rule at a popular Disney Springs quick-service spot, and we’re here to tell you about it so you won’t be surprised.
The Disney Dining Plan is a great way to pay for your food at Disney World in advance, and it just recently returned this year! Depending on which plan you choose, you get a certain amount of credits for snacks, quick-service, and table-service meals.
Disney Dining Plan Credit Logo
Click Here to Read All About the Disney Dining Plan!
You can get your money’s worth with these credits by using them wisely! One of our biggest tips is to use your snack credits at festival booths when EPCOT has an International Festival going. Festival booth foods tend to be pricier than the classic Mickey Bar and Mickey Pretzel.
We still love a Mickey Bar!
We went to one of our favorite spots at Disney Springs. Although they recently changed their menu, we still like to grab a bite to eat there!
Disney Springs
We are talking about Chicken Guy! at Disney Springs. This quick-service location is a third-party restaurant started by Food Network star Guy Fieri and Planet Hollywood founder Robert Earl. As we said, each location has different Disney Dining Plan rules, but this one really caught us off guard.
Chicken Guy!
At Chicken Guy! you can use a quick-service credit to get an entree and a drink, but what about a combo? Nope! For some reason, Chicken Guy! does not include their combos with side as a Disney Dining Plan credit.
Chicken Guy!
If you want to try one of their sides, like their fries or fried pickle chips, you will have to pay for those separately. While this is not the worst thing, it might catch you off guard — especially since you can get any size order of chicken tenders or a chicken sandwich as an entree.
We love sides!
If you are planning on using one of your quick-service dining credits at Chicken Guy! be prepared to pay an additional fee for your side. The Disney Dining Plan allows for an entree and drink as a meal credit. So, why do we get sides at some restaurants included? It all seems to come down to how things are listed on the menu. For example, “Fish and Chips” is listed as an entree on the menu for Yorkshire County Fish Shop — which means you’ll get both your fried fish and your french fries in your dining plan meal credit.
Fish & Chips
You’ll also get your Lobster Roll with fries on the dining plan at Columbia Harbour House, because both the sandwich and the fries are listed as the entree.
Lobster Roll from Columbia Harbour House
But at Connections Eatery, that French Bistro Burger will be served without fries on the Disney Dining Plan, because the fries are listed as a side on the menu, rather than as part of the entree.
French Bistro Burger
Our best suggestion for planning for this is to check on the menus in advance. If an entree lists the side within its description, it is probably part of your Disney Dining Plan meal credit. But if a side you are interested in is only listed under “sides” on the menu, you will probably need to budget extra money for it. Our friends at AllEars.net keep the Disney World menus updated right here! We will keep you updated if Chicken Guy! changes their rules for dining credits.
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Yes! I won’t be surprised if more restaurants start to do this. The way the economy is going.
Thank you for this article I’ll have to think twice about using my Disney dining plan at Chicken Guy
So could you choose your number of chicken fingers and get a shake for a quick service credit? Maybe I wouldn’t miss fries if I get enough protein.