Hi Jody,
Congratulations on your upcoming vacation to Walt Disney World!
The value of the Disney Dining Plan will depend on your family's individual dining choices. If you plan on eating a lot of table-service meals (including character dining), the Disney Dining Plan becomes more cost-effective.
While many items throughout the resort are available using the Disney Dining Plan, there will be some limitations which your family may find restrictive or not a problem at all. For example, a meal at Bistro de Paris in Epcot is not included on the Disney Dining Plan.
I would look at the
list of restaurants and their respective menus. You can find a link to some menus via the restaurant dining pages. See
here for Captain's Grille. Tally up the cost of the Disney Dining Plan versus the expense if you were paying out of pocket. You'll get the most for your money if you dine at dinner with the Plan but you can save money out of pocket if having a late breakfast and calling it brunch!
We are a family of three and usually the Disney Dining Plan does not work for us. But, we are also picky eaters so those gourmet cuisine meals are not top on our list of dining reservations.