[davlow06]

I don't bother complaining and I certainly don't yell at anybody. I just move on. I've just come to expect the worst. Anything better than that becomes a pleasant surprise. Setting your expectations low, is the way to go.

You did everything right (changing lanes and even entirely changing places, when things go bad). I don't have any other advice beyond that. All you can do is hope and pray when it is time to eat or get a drink at Carowinds. Sometimes it is not so bad.

Thanks for the replies from everyone so far. Kirkgun, I feel the same as you. I never yell at anyone, but sometimes will give a definite perplexed look to them, like, "Really?" I also rarely ever get anything in the park other than a drink, or yogurt. It's way too expensive and the food isn't any good. I've gotten it before at multiple places and learned my lessons. Over the past few years, we pack a cooler and go out to the parking lot for lunch.The only reason I bought the souvenier cup is because you get .99 cent refills.

I just had to rant and thought this was a good place to do it. We should all, as consumers, let everyone know of our experiences, but try to keep them real. I've read reviews on Yelp and Trip Advisor regarding places I've been to find that there are just some people that are too hard to please, and the people that say they aren't hard to please, are ALWAYS THE HARDEST TO PLEASE!!

I'm in Winston-Salem, so it's not always a quick easy ride to the park, but I'm still looking forward to more fun trips this year.

[CarowindsCentral]

I guess i'm lucky, i've had nothing but positive experiences with the food service this season.

[FamousAmos]

^Same here. All of the food I've had at the park has been hot and fresh every time.
Although Good Friday was very very crowded, the food was hot. I had to wait for Crab Fries for 30 minutes. I finally just asked for them. That's the only bad experience I've had. But that's because they were just very busy.

[davlow06]

^Same here. All of the food I've had at the park has been hot and fresh every time.
Although Good Friday was very very crowded, the food was hot. I had to wait for Crab Fries for 30 minutes. I finally just asked for them. That's the only bad experience I've had. But that's because they were just very busy.

"Lucky" or paying too much for the quality is my opinion of the food and service at Carowinds. I know going in it's mostly pretty much deep fried everything, but I personally don't like to pay $15 for a meal combo for one person, for just tossing some stuff in a deep fryer. Fortunately I don't really go to Carowinds for the dining experience, but just wanted to let everyone that reads here know the poor experience I received on my last visit. I know being busy had a lot to do with it, but my two experiences were pretty pathetic, even under the circumstances.

[uscbandfan]

Even with the "dining options", I still wont pay for more than 1 meal in the park and it's usually just a burger and drink (Still for $10 or more). Anyway, sometimes we bring a cooler in the car and go out there for lunch. I saw a family last time I was there having a picnic on a blanket out in the grass between the parking lot and the entrance road. I thought "what a neat idea". Dinner is usually after leaving the park. (Cracker Barrel is right across the street and Rock Hill is 10 mins away.)

Some of us just can't do $15-$20 per meal per person. I can't afford more than $100 in meals. ($15-$20 for picnic sandwich makings for all 3 of us combined and $30 at Cracker Barrel for a family of 3 is about the most I'm willing to do. That's half the cost or less than eating in the park.)

[davlow06]

Even with the "dining options", I still wont pay for more than 1 meal in the park and it's usually just a burger and drink (Still for $10 or more). Anyway, sometimes we bring a cooler in the car and go out there for lunch. I saw a family last time I was there having a picnic on a blanket out in the grass between the parking lot and the entrance road. I thought "what a neat idea". Dinner is usually after leaving the park. (Cracker Barrel is right across the street and Rock Hill is 10 mins away.)

Some of us just can't do $15-$20 per meal per person. I can't afford more than $100 in meals. ($15-$20 for picnic sandwich makings for all 3 of us combined and $30 at Cracker Barrel for a family of 3 is about the most I'm willing to do. That's half the cost or less than eating in the park.)

I totally can relate to that uscbandfan. I read some reviews somewhere else from people that said it was a hassle to go out to your car to eat then come back in, and thought, really? A hassle? I saw a lot of people picnicing outside in grassy areas this past Saturday, too. Nothing wrong with saving $75-100 when you're paying for 3-5 family members.

[stephanie4136]

^
We pack our food...have to with 8 of us. I used to love pulling out a big sheet up on the hill at the front of the old season pass lot or going over to the picnic tables under the trees when they were available. The walk wasn't too far to carry all the food and it was nicer than sitting in the car. With all of that gone now we just sit in our vehicle to eat. These extreme temps we are seeing make that pretty miserable. The AC doesn't kick in good if we aren't moving when it's that hot. But even with the hassle it's worth the money we save from what we would spend eating in the park.

[coasterbruh]

As a person who has eaten at countless theme parks and restaurants alike, I have to say Carowinds has some good quality real food. The variety alone puts it in a category or two above the average amusement food. The Just Harmony Hall alone will take care of even the pickiest eater. Deep fried everything? That’s a stretch…a HUGE stretch. Actually, not much is deep fried there anymore.

I take it most of you guys are season pass holders right? I don’t know if it’s just me but I budget in the cost of eating at a park whenever I visit. I’m not trying to knock anyone for what they do but I do understand it’s a hassle to take a large family out to a park. What I don’t understand is the constant complaining about the cost of food. Even if you are a day guest, how many people really still pay the gate price ever? I will argue that the price of a day at Carowinds (food, entrance and drink) is probably cheaper than the price of going to a concert or sporting event and doing the same thing…and they only last a few hours.

Pound for pound, it cost more to go to the movies and get snacks for an hour or two than an entire day at Carowinds with food. May be I’m the elite or privileged but every time I go to a park I eat inside the park and I don’t think the cost of food at theme parks is too much…well, except at six flags.

[tarheel1231]

Chickie's and Pete's totally changed my mentality of waiting until after visiting the park to eat. They have amazing food for generous portion sizes so we're always satisfied. It would be perfect, but the staff are always rude. Still, it's a small price to pay for C&P's.

[RollerBee]

^My favorite place to eat in the park. I haven't found any food I like at Harmony Hall, the baked pasta was good the other day but I wouldn't get it again. My wife had the brisket but it was nearly ice cold when she got it.

[uscbandfan]

Was a season pass holder until about a decade ago. Paid normal prices since then (of course with Coke can discounts or other coupons) until this year (because we only went once a year) when we got season passes again. We knew this year we'd be going more than once.. FURY in March and waterpark with my daughter later on. We always planned on eating no more than one meal in the park no matter what type of front gate we did. No matter the quality, it's just too expensive. And, yes, with our season football tickets, we also eat before or after the game to save on food.

[aoriole19]

As a "broke college kid" I can relate to not wanting to pay for food at Carowinds. Gotta save every dollar to pay for that tuition lol. Usually I bring my own lunch (and convince my friends to do the same) to eat out at the car. It's not a hassle to me and sometimes it's nice to just have a short break in the middle of the day.

I can't really complain about the food (meal-type food) prices though, because unless they were crazy cheap I would still probably pack my lunch, because it's just such an easy way to save money and also you can choose to bring anything you want. I guess I do wish the "snack" foods were cheaper. Like soft pretzels and funnel cakes and stuff. I just can't justify paying $10 for a "combo" of a soft pretzel and a lemonade. I would most likely buy snacks/dessert after lunch if they had lower prices on those.

Related question: Does the park sell fried Oreos? My friends and I were thinking about looking for them in the park but we ended up leaving before we got hungry and didn't even check if they had them.

[RollerBee]

I have an Oreo Churros stand.....
That I have never seen open.

[Jay]

Holy moly, I've only been to Chickie and Pete's once and thought it was awful. Sandwich was awful, fries were awful, service was awful. Not likely to go back since it's not on the dining plan.

Last year, on Harmony Hall's first day of operation, I got an absolutely incredible custom made salad, with fresh ingredients off the salad bar, which featured standard salad bar options -




I went again for opening day this year and was anticipating another salad, but unfortunately everything was pre-made and everything in the "salad bar" was non standard as far as salad options go. It was a major disappointment.

I'll have to give some other stuff a try soon.

[coasterbruh]

Why in the hell would you eat a salad!?!? Lol...but chickie and petes is on the dining plan...