anniecat
February 25th, 2005, 12:05 PM
Part 2....again My opinions only. on board shopping..same old stuff. casino...nickle slots are my speed..and they had plenty. The culinary classes...(new) in the Wajang theater were worthwhile..free classes one day and a hands-on class for $19 (you get an apron, a camera and a 25% discount at the Pinnacle) was very worthwhile...worth it to me anyway, we made chile rellano, a chilled soup and crepes. The shows were quite varied..the contortionist was lame..so bad it was funny. But the rest were worth sitting through. (especially the guitarist)
In general the food on the Ryndam was very good to excellent. Yes, it is true they had "comfort food" as a choice every night in the Dining Room...meatloaf on a Formal night even (weird timing in my opinion but I spoke with several people who had it and they loved it). The soups were always great...none just ordinary (and I tried most) the chilled soups especially were totally so yummy I had seconds on several. The salads were a great improvement over the Amsterdam salads..great leafy greens and nice dressings and little extras (croutons, cheeses, dried fruits, ripe tomatos etc). the fish dishes...especially the lunch in the lido ones were wonderful..grouper, salmon, talapia, mahimahi, and many others...all well prepared and very tasty. The beef/lamb/pork dishes at dinner were well liked by all at our table. The lamb chops I had one night were very yummy but hard to cut due the small size of the chops (3 of them) but worth the work. We went to the Pinnacle one night..WOW. The best steak I've ever had, wonderful experience and highly recommend. and yes the chocolate volcanoe is incredible. Lobster night was the last formal night..two medium size lobster tails, drawn butter on the side (I didn't feel that they or I needed the butter though). Since I don't eat bread or potatoe I didn't taste any..but all the bread disappeared everynight and all plates were cleaned. The desserts were very good, well presented and extras offered. BTW..get get the crepe suzettes. Personal tastes and preferences were accomodated, a table mate who can't eat cream sauces was warned by the steward what to avoid. So..basically..lots of wonderful food...something for everyone. On the not so good side...the coffe was fair only, no caviar at all, cappucino only free in the dining room, it was hard to find a 'after the late show' snack until 1130pm (like I needed one).
BTW...there is a scale in the Gym in case anyone wants to know the damage.
Bar service...mixed drinks seemd to be either waterdown down or strange mixtures. At least I've never heard of club soda in a Margarita. We had a few bottles of wine, a drink several times and basically drank much less than we would going out at home. The wines were fairly expensive for the brands but ok quality. (and they will save your left-over bottle for you for the next night)
I'll mention the Copper Canyon meal service here...but will post the review at the PORT area for the Mexican Riveria. The Copper Canyon train meal service was quite a disappointment..the boxed "breakfast" on your seat upon arrival was a bottle of JUMEX 'juice", an orange, a granola bar, and a cinnamon roll that was rather like a piece of wonderbread leftover for a few days, and a container of yogurt and a bottle of water. Coffee was $2 US and not very good. The lunch at the canyon was served buffet style...lovely baked fish and a mild spiced piece of chicken, tasty rice, and some vege's, and cheese quesadilla. Also a bottle of water, a punch and coffee and several ok but not great desserts. OK, but a disappointment. Then, the infamous "substantial snack"...a boxed snack of Jumex juice, an orange, a ham sandwich which had been lying around all day (since 6 am at least), a snickers bar and a bottle of water. A bar on the train was open and many people said they enjoyed drinks..but I don't know how expensive. It was great to get back to the ship and the late night LIDO.
more reviews later.
In general the food on the Ryndam was very good to excellent. Yes, it is true they had "comfort food" as a choice every night in the Dining Room...meatloaf on a Formal night even (weird timing in my opinion but I spoke with several people who had it and they loved it). The soups were always great...none just ordinary (and I tried most) the chilled soups especially were totally so yummy I had seconds on several. The salads were a great improvement over the Amsterdam salads..great leafy greens and nice dressings and little extras (croutons, cheeses, dried fruits, ripe tomatos etc). the fish dishes...especially the lunch in the lido ones were wonderful..grouper, salmon, talapia, mahimahi, and many others...all well prepared and very tasty. The beef/lamb/pork dishes at dinner were well liked by all at our table. The lamb chops I had one night were very yummy but hard to cut due the small size of the chops (3 of them) but worth the work. We went to the Pinnacle one night..WOW. The best steak I've ever had, wonderful experience and highly recommend. and yes the chocolate volcanoe is incredible. Lobster night was the last formal night..two medium size lobster tails, drawn butter on the side (I didn't feel that they or I needed the butter though). Since I don't eat bread or potatoe I didn't taste any..but all the bread disappeared everynight and all plates were cleaned. The desserts were very good, well presented and extras offered. BTW..get get the crepe suzettes. Personal tastes and preferences were accomodated, a table mate who can't eat cream sauces was warned by the steward what to avoid. So..basically..lots of wonderful food...something for everyone. On the not so good side...the coffe was fair only, no caviar at all, cappucino only free in the dining room, it was hard to find a 'after the late show' snack until 1130pm (like I needed one).
BTW...there is a scale in the Gym in case anyone wants to know the damage.
Bar service...mixed drinks seemd to be either waterdown down or strange mixtures. At least I've never heard of club soda in a Margarita. We had a few bottles of wine, a drink several times and basically drank much less than we would going out at home. The wines were fairly expensive for the brands but ok quality. (and they will save your left-over bottle for you for the next night)
I'll mention the Copper Canyon meal service here...but will post the review at the PORT area for the Mexican Riveria. The Copper Canyon train meal service was quite a disappointment..the boxed "breakfast" on your seat upon arrival was a bottle of JUMEX 'juice", an orange, a granola bar, and a cinnamon roll that was rather like a piece of wonderbread leftover for a few days, and a container of yogurt and a bottle of water. Coffee was $2 US and not very good. The lunch at the canyon was served buffet style...lovely baked fish and a mild spiced piece of chicken, tasty rice, and some vege's, and cheese quesadilla. Also a bottle of water, a punch and coffee and several ok but not great desserts. OK, but a disappointment. Then, the infamous "substantial snack"...a boxed snack of Jumex juice, an orange, a ham sandwich which had been lying around all day (since 6 am at least), a snickers bar and a bottle of water. A bar on the train was open and many people said they enjoyed drinks..but I don't know how expensive. It was great to get back to the ship and the late night LIDO.
more reviews later.