Meal Deals, and meal deals

[King Ding Dong]

17 minutes ago, silver2005 said:

I'm not sure about Coney Mall's PW, but when I worked at the RT stand, it was peanut oil.  It was mentioned on the menu listing.  

Just checked and KI does not currently mention anything about soy.  CP does say this about soy.  "All french fries served within in-park foods contains soy" & "Hamburger, Hoagie and Hot dog primarily used throughout in-park foods". 

Would think they use the same vendors, but maybe not.

[silver2005]

^To clarify, I mean the menu listing on the overhead menu at the stand itself.

[jcgoble3]

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2017/april/reds-hall-of-fame-grille-makes-it-quicker-to-eat

So not only have they completely changed Reds Grille from a table service restaurant to just a glorified counter service stand with self-serve drinks, where the only thing the staff has to do is deliver your food to the table (like quite a few fast-food joints do), but you're still expected to tip? Yeah, I can't see that working out very well.

[silver2005]

^Has anyone here been there this season and can elaborate on how it is now compared to previous years?

[King Ding Dong]

31 minutes ago, jcgoble3 said:

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2017/april/reds-hall-of-fame-grille-makes-it-quicker-to-eat

So not only have they completely changed Reds Grille from a table service restaurant to just a glorified counter service stand with self-serve drinks, where the only thing the staff has to do is deliver your food to the table (like quite a few fast-food joints do), but you're still expected to tip? Yeah, I can't see that working out very well.

If I happen to eat there I would still tip.  But sure as hell won't be 15-20%.   If the only service I am getting is carrying a tray 30 feet to my table, that might be worth a buck.  Maybe two if is my whole family.  

[chuck norris]

On normal keto I would be fine with the levels of fat but I can see it being a problem for some especially females.   My current plan has my protein at 158g/day for an active day (I am big), which is nearly 30oz of meat so would need like 3 burgers or grilled chickens per meal.  That would be outrageously expensive.  
For you the anti-pasta salad may work, maybe the chicken wings at Reds (if your fat macro can handle it)  In theory a burrito bowl at Hanks would work but I have not checked out what fillers if any are added to the meat. It is not listed as gluten free and if it were clean meat it should be.  I am bit leary of their guacamole because it is nothing like a mashed up avocado.  Will be requesting some additional details from food service soon to see what they are jazzing it up with.  
Something else I noticed poking around the website is they use soybean oil in a lot of stuff.  My wife is celiac and although on both her visits she ate gluten free she still had issues.  For her soy is just as bad, so that may have been the culprit.  
 

I'm sure the burrito bowls have cross contamination as they use the same spoons to fill burritos... But the bowls are listed as gluten free on the ki allergen website.


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[chuck norris]

If I happen to eat there I would still tip.  But sure as hell won't be 15-20%.   If the only service I am getting is carrying a tray 30 feet to my table, that might be worth a buck.  Maybe two if is my whole family.  

Wow, maybe I've been doing it wrong, but this is just like noodles and company... And I never tip there.


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[disco2000]

^Or Fazoli's or McCalister's or Tom+Chee or...

[silver2005]

Today had a perfect example why I choose not to get the dining plans. 

Festhaus,  full queues, only a register on both sides open but one on each side only open for the drink plans.  2 registers are still closed.  They have about double the staff they need in the back that they need with the Reds HOF crew there since it was closed until 5 and put way too much pizza out than what the 2 lone cashiers are capable of handling.  Unless anything has changed in the food department, all food staff is trained on register.  So why weren't all the registers filled?  

[malem]

^ Transactions at the registers were going very slow, seemingly a combination the cashier training in progress and school groups disproportionately using cash and/or special Group Sales vouchers.

The unused (yet staffed) register allocated to drinks should have taken the overflow from the food line. Leaving customers with cold pizza after standing in a ~30 minute line wasn't ideal.

The problem today seemed to be mainly during the lunch rush after 12:00. Food lines were much shorter (or nonexistent) at other times of the day.

[88bb]

Just tried to get a salad at festhaus. Was denied. WTF?

 

Got one here a week ago no problem.

 

Edit: the meal plan entree salad with breadsticks.

 

 

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[billgonemad]

Apparently the entree salad isn't an option anymore at festhaus. Was just told I'd have to pay for it... But I was able to get it opening weekend. What gives?

 

Edit: sorry didn't see the wife already posted.

 

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[King Ding Dong]

Whatever happened I'll bet you a radish some bean counter armed with a spreadsheet had something to do with it.  

[zombiejane]

Luckily, we ate before we got here.......bUT it did take awhile to get our drinks.

[billgonemad]

Kind of upset over this as I try to avoid eating all the fried fatty foods all the time, and this was one of the few healthier meal deals in the park.

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[zombiejane]

Is it available elsewhere?  

 

 

I wish they would come up with a snack meal deal and/or better healthier options.

[billgonemad]

Is it available elsewhere?  
 
 
I wish they would come up with a snack meal deal and/or better healthier options.

Not sure, I'll be checking later though. Snack deals would be great, I'd take a pretzel over chicken and fries anytime. I did get the salad at Chicken shack yesterday.

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[billgonemad]

Antipasto salad is an option at Riverton la Rosa's.

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[shark6495]

A wise person here once said the park doesn't care after they got your money.... already paid for they can change stuff


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[billgonemad]

A wise person here once said the park doesn't care after they got your money.... already paid for they can change stuff


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Pretty shady though that it's still listed on the printout you can get at the gate.

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[Magenta Lizard]

I doubt removing the salad at Festhaus is permanent (or hope not), but simply confusion. When I was there yesterday, the young man working the register told me the salad wasn't programmed into the system as part of the dining plan and apologized because he took extra-long clicking away to make it work on his side. He clearly recognized it was /supposed/ to be included. 

Today, you probably got someone who didn't know/hadn't been taught how to circumvent this problem (and it hasn't been fixed yet). I forget, do they have the tv-monitor menus at that location? If so, does the meal plan logo show on the salad?

Presumably they still have the prints about the meal plan (I've seen them next to registers, and next to the maps at the front gate) and I am sure they haven't printed new ones. I personally would take one of those into guest services and explain your trouble. They need to know about it. 

[alsoran]

I have had the meal plan since they started it, I believe.  After coming Friday and spending more time in line waiting on cashiers than what we could have left the park, got better food and returned.  Makes me wonder if it is worth it.  I am sure we will return again this year a few times, but if things are not any better, I will not be getting the meal plan again next year. I bought it for convenience.  It would be quicker to get a bite to eat without leaving, but even when they were not that busy that it takes that long.  I don't see it getting any better.

[Gannersdaddy]

Drink plan + Mystic Timbers = Nice

[gad198]

Just got back from the park.  I got in line at the Skyline on International Street at 4:15.  The line at that time was to the door with the one switchback open.  I walked out at 40 minutes later right at 4:55.

I apologize if this has already been discussed, but there are two issues with the setup at that particular location:

1. The drink stand setup is abysmal.  The drink stand is located between the serving line and the cashier station.  In and of itself that's not a big issue, but there were no drink cups at that location.  People who want drinks have to go to the cashier station and then go back to the drink station, cutting back behind people in line behind you.
2. There was only one cashier...on a Saturday...at the beginning of prime meal times.

Look, I get that it's early in the season and that finding enough people to work until schools are let out is tough.  However, it's becoming more and more clear that the biggest bottlenecks at most of the food stands are at the cashier stations.  I don't know why the folks responsible for implementing food service simply refuse to take positive steps towards eliminating major bottlenecks at food service locations.  There are only a few potential bottlenecks at each particular location; the cashier stations, waffle fries at Chick-Fil-A, etc.  If Kings Island food service management refuses to address these issues and address them quickly, there are going to be many people who will simply spend their food dollars elsewhere.

I do have a food plan.  Having said that, I'm not going to wait 40 minutes again for two cheese coneys, fries and a drink.  More and more I realize that my time is way more valuable to any "value" I feel like I need to extract from my meal plan.  I would much rather pay double for my meal plan and be able to have quick service. 

To the folks at Kings Island food service management, something has to be done.  You can do what you can to improve the situation or you'll have the situation improved for others as people don't renew their plans.  The dining plans offer amazing convenience, and your consumers want to be loyal.  Having said that, your consumer base isn't inelastic as far as the demand.  Your consumers are only going to buy if there's value - good food AND quick service, and right now we're not getting the latter.  KI - it's your move.   

[King Ding Dong]

It does get better, or at least was better by June last summer.   However any park is going have long food lines at peak lunch and dinner times or on very busy days like in October.   The exception being the stands at Planet Snoopy, they never got better last year.  

[zombiejane]

 

5 hours ago, billgonemad said:

 

Not sure, I'll be checking later though. Snack deals would be great, I'd take a pretzel over chicken and fries anytime. I did get the salad at Chicken shack yesterday.

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Exactly,  if I wasn't doing the low carb thing, I'd be all over some soft pretzels.

[disco2000]

5 hours ago, shark6495 said:

A wise person here once said the park doesn't care after they got your money.... already paid for they can change stuff


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I have said this before in the forum, but probably worth repeating for newer members.  I have believed for many years that KI hoped the meal plan would go bust and tried to help that cause by not upgrading to accommodate the demand it would create.  Other CF parks don't seem to have the same problem, plus they have better food variety.  I have called out many of the issues and potential solutions.  It wasn't until last year that we started to see these changes - adding a queue line to International Street LaRosa's and increasing number of cash registers; adding more drink only stations, etc.  I would like to think that part of the solutions were a direct result of comments on this forum.  Plus I think CF also said meal plans are not going away so address it.

As others have said, don't formulate your opinion based on a few opening operating weekends.  Last year was the first time with the meal plan that I think after June they had enough infrastructure and personnel in place to accommodate the meal plan.  Fingers crossed that we see it improve as the weeks go on.

[YOULLBEBACK]

I get the whole new season, new employees thing, but I would argue that it's an unfair business practice to offer an all day meal plan, only to have 20+ minute waits any time you want something, which absolutely was the case yesterday, all over, from 11am-4pm.  A realistic customer expectation has to be set when you sell a product.  I *expect* to wait for a coaster on a Sunday.  Not 30+ minutes for deep fried junk food. 

I waited 50 (!) minutes around 1:30pm yesterday and the Juke Box.  Insane! 

Let's be honest here.  This is not rocket science.  Chicken fingers, burgers and fries.  Deep fryer.  5 star dining it is not.  Pay more, hire more, fix the problem.  Period.

What *really* burns me is watching the care and dedication the ride ops on MT and Beast have (apples and oranges, but still), then watching 4-5 kids laughing and looking completely apathetic at food stands like Juke Box, while people in food lines wait, and wait, and wait...

 

[YOULLBEBACK]

Not letting me edit for some reason...so I'll add this.  It really wasn't a super busy day at the park either.  It just stinks to see it this bad 3 weekends into it.  I trust it will improve as the summer months go on, but my patience for being apologetic for the park's food issues took a bit of a hit with that experience.

[King Ding Dong]

I saw that line at Jukebox at 1:30.  My youngest was hungry but decided he wasn't 1/2 wait in line hungry.   Eventually around the line wasn't pouring out of Chicken Shack around 3 so we stopped in.   The hold up there seemed to be the They couldn't keep up with the Texas Toast.  

2 things really stood out.   I ordered the chicken salad and the server just plopped two huge strips on top and handed it to me.  They have forks but no knives.  Really?  How am I supposed to eat this? 

Although I didn't need condiments we sat near the table and watched as people came up.  All that was left was honey mustard.   No ketchup or anything else, people were visibly angry.   A worker eventually came out and just took the dispensers away but never returned full ones.   I can sort of understand running out mid summer when operations are running full tilt 7 days a week, but when you are only open weekends?   They had all week to secure product.   If your supplier is really out run to Coscto or Sams, they have palates of the stuff in stock.

Of course that is not the problem, this also isn't a training issue of new employees.  They don't order product, management does.