Can you really order ahead of time, click a button, and have your food ready upon your arrival? Or will you wind up like Scar and the hyenas in a barren wasteland ...
I mean crowded queue waiting for your food?
On this past trip, we were determined to test out the My Disney Experience Mobile Order feature at several Quick Service locations across the Walt Disney World resort to see if it really is a time saver.
Mobile Ordering at Disney Springs
Our first test occurred unexpectedly one afternoon at Disney Springs. We’ve seen many tempting photos of the D-Luxe Burger offerings on social media and figured we’d give it a go. We were shocked when we saw that you could Mobile Order at the Springs, thinking that it was only available in the parks (the feature is now expanding to the resorts as well).
After peeking inside the restaurant only to see a line nearly at the door, we thought, ‘Mobile Order it is!’ Even though we were not as familiar with the restaurant as some of our favorite Quick Service go-to’s, the app was easy to navigate and we were able to order exactly what we wanted. We then went inside the restaurant and received a pager to place on the center of our table. In no more than ten minutes, our food was delivered directly to our table. It actually seemed shorter than that since there was a special guest beyond the railing who distracted us while snacking on a fry.
Lunchbox Food in Record Time
Yet another unforeseen occasion of Mobile Ordering happened the following night at Woody’s Lunchbox. We originally were going to wait on line, which was about two families deep. It did not seem that bad upon initially joining the line until the wait time continued to increase ... and increase ... and increase.
One party arrived at the ordering station uncertain of what they were going to order. They were inquisitive as to what was available and the cast member was happy to explain each item. The other family struggled to order due to a language barrier between themselves and the cast member assigned to the other podium. The two cast members wound up switching positions to better aid the guests in their ordering experience.
Due to the wait, and frankly our want to be able to do more in the park, we pulled ourselves aside out of the line to use the Mobile Order feature. Will you believe that we were not only able to order before both families had completed their transactions but also receive our order before one of those said families?! It was like cutting the line!
Pre-planned Ordering in the Magic Kingdom
A few days later, we set out to try the feature again at Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe. This was truly the only instance of Mobile Ordering that was planned in advance. We knew we would be at the Magic Kingdom during the general lunch timeframe (we were park hopping that day) and wanted to grab a bite right after the Festival of Fantasy Parade. Once the parade passed, we headed down to Pecos Bill. In just a few minutes, the cast member had our meal ready for us in addition to free cups of ice water (they’re always available at any stand or Quick Service location to help beat the heat). The experience was very quick and finding a table to sit down was fairly easy due to the numerous spaces available within the designated seating locations.
Sivako in Pandora
Our last Mobile Order of the trip was for our favorite quick service of all time - Satu’li Canteen. Once again, we did not necessarily plan ahead for our order.
We whipped out our phones, built our salads, completed our orders (with the awesome Pandoran Sunrise), all while inside the actual restaurant. Within 7 minutes (that’s right, we timed this one), we had ordered our food, approached the Mobile Order station, and picked up our food. Now I invite you to take a look at the winding line that we completely skipped.
Just imagine waiting in that line. You’ll be waiting double, if not, triple the time that we experienced in order to get your food. Now you’re hangry and no amount of gorgeous theming can turn that around because you’ll be battling for a table after that long wait for your food.
How Mobile Ordering Works
If all of that doesn’t have you hooked on the success of the Mobile Order feature, let’s get into how simple it is to use. When you open the My Disney Experience app, you can either filter the Mobile Order locations on the park map, tap the plus sign at the center of the bottom bar, or search directly for the location you wish to order from. Then, you will be able to build your order with entrees, desserts, beverages, and the like. You can also make custom changes if there is something you wish to remove from the offered meal due to likes or dietary needs. The app will give you a wide window in which you will be able to access your order. If you are on the dining plan, it will automatically register your meal selections that fit the plan (specialty desserts and souvenir items tend to be separate charges). Once you are ready to pick up your order, you will indicate that you are present with just a click of the phrase. Then, the cast members will be hard at work to bring you your meal. You can check on the progress of the order in the app too! Once it is ready, the app will alert you to head to the Mobile Order pickup window and send you a digital receipt of your order via email. It really is that easy!
From each of our experiences, we can honestly say that the Mobile Order feature is truly a time saver and totally worth it. Instead of waiting on long lines, you can indicate your meal selections (even hours in advance) and have it prepared quickly with just a click of a button.
With all that said ... On your next trip to the Walt Disney World Resort, will you be trying out the Mobile Order feature? If you are looking to SAVOR the magic, we most definitely think you should!
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