Le Librije - recent experience?

[magandab]

Anyone done the De Librije dinner lately? I created my usual calendar for my August cruise, and this dinner is being served on Mom's 86th birthday? I plan to reserve it, but is it worth it? Are the wine pairings worth the extra? I see there are wine tastings (2 oz pours) and wine pairings (4 oz pours, I think). I'm thinking the tastings will be enough wine for us.

 

Is it a special enough night for a birthday celebration? Opinions either way are welcome.

 

I won't order the deconstructed apple pie, just don't get that whole idea.

 

Sorry for the Le instead of De in the thread title!

Edited January 28, 2014 by magandab
De not Le

[Aruba]

We'll be on the same cruise with you. Am anxious to read the replies to your question!

[cruise_bunnies]

We had this experience book on our December Cruise so, a month ago or so we did this.

 

Disclaimer: We are Dutch, we have had dinner in several Michelin Star restaurants, but never at De Librije.

 

What did we get:

We paid $69 for the full menu with the wine tastings, the wine tastings are around 1/2 glass full which was enough for us and we received 4 glasses of wine.

 

You start with an amuse, which is meant to get you into a nice appetite, and it was v. nice. Strangely enough we received a glass of wine with the instructions that it was for the starter (which we assumed would be the first course, amuses are never counted as a course and you can receive between 1-3 depending on the chef). Sadly this wine was meant to go with the amuse, which we only found at the next course. No wine was served with dessert (very strange)

 

We then had 4 courses of nice food, beautifully presented, but wine service was not very good (cork in the wine 3 times) and one of my courses the fish was much much too dry and inedible. I had to send it back (never happened to me before :( in a Michelin star restaurant)

 

Coffee is also included with some truffles and you will receive a surprise in your cabin.

 

Compared to a dinner somewhere else on the cruise:

If you like food that is meant to taste relatively exciting with pairings you wouldn't do at home and ways of making it that are impossible unless in a professional kitchen, plus in a relaxed beautiful ambiance, you will be happy.

 

Compared to other dinners in Michelin restaurants:

We knew we wouldn't get Michelin star server from our waiters, because that type of service is something else. I didn't mind that much, except feeling rushed through dinner. Normally we take 2-3 hours for 4 courses, now we were 3 courses in and only an hour had passed. We asked to have a bit of rest before getting the dessert and that was no problem.

 

We thought we'd at least get the courses well prepared, but, we knew it probably wouldn't be perfect. I was still disappointed with the fish though, it was so overcooked, the rest was beautiful and tasted well though. They offered me something else, but I didn't want to eat more.

 

We were also disappointed with the wine service, not only did we have cork in our wine (ugh, hate that), we also felt the wine pairings were unexciting and not special. The wine used is from the Lady Librije Label, which is the label of the Librije itself and those are not expensive or very special wines. They sell them in their shop themselves. I didn't expect high wines, due to the price we had to pay, $69 is exceedingly cheap, but I also didn't expect totally forgettable wines.

 

Normally, the friandises, or the snacks with the coffee or tea services are interesting and usually range between 3-6 different flavors although I've been in restaurants where you can choose as many as you want, so I was disappointed with some bland truffles.

 

Would we do it again?

If we'd be looking for an intimate dinner to celebrate, probably, but we feel that if this is a 'taste', we are not interested in a full meal at De Librije. We would have preferred to pay more to get a better experience.

Edited January 29, 2014 by cruise_bunnies

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you cruise bunnies for explaining about that special dinner.

The first time we did Le Cirque, we paid the extra price for the wines. Got only 3. The first was nothing more than the cheap sparking wine that they give out everywhere on the ship. The other 2 wines were nothing special either -- barely 3 ounces each. After that experience we either just order cocktails or a bottle of wine of our choice.

[cruise_bunnies]

Thank you cruise bunnies for explaining about that special dinner.

The first time we did Le Cirque, we paid the extra price for the wines. Got only 3. The first was nothing more than the cheap sparking wine that they give out everywhere on the ship. The other 2 wines were nothing special either -- barely 3 ounces each. After that experience we either just order cocktails or a bottle of wine of our choice.

 

Thanks for sharing your Le Cirque experience, too bad the wines weren't what you were expecting. We heard more grumblings about Le Cirque on board then about De Librije. We checked but I didn't like the menu, so we didn't book it.

 

I usually don't drink much wine, but the wine pairings in a Michelin star restaurant are usually really good and make the food more special, so then the foodie in me demands I do the wine. I've been very rarely disappointed in the wine and many times pleasantly surprised. Then I have to look around to see where I can find that particular wine though, which is usually a bit of a bother until I found a good store that usually only offers their wines to restaurants ;)

 

Next time, I wouldn't bother with the wine and only drink water.

[jongbj]

Thanks for sharing your Le Cirque experience, too bad the wines weren't what you were expecting. We heard more grumblings about Le Cirque on board then about De Librije. We checked but I didn't like the menu, so we didn't book it.

 

I usually don't drink much wine, but the wine pairings in a Michelin star restaurant are usually really good and make the food more special, so then the foodie in me demands I do the wine. I've been very rarely disappointed in the wine and many times pleasantly surprised. Then I have to look around to see where I can find that particular wine though, which is usually a bit of a bother until I found a good store that usually only offers their wines to restaurants ;)

 

Next time, I wouldn't bother with the wine and only drink water.

 

If you skip the pairing at Le Cirque, they have a few wines by the glass that go well with the food and you can have different wines for the appetizer and the main course.

We've never done the De Librije as we didn't find the price right for what was offered.

I am very carefull with pairings at HAL as I find that most of the wine steward have absolutely no knowledge of wines. They know how to open bottles and that's it.

[cruise_bunnies]

If you skip the pairing at Le Cirque, they have a few wines by the glass that go well with the food and you can have different wines for the appetizer and the main course.

We've never done the De Librije as we didn't find the price right for what was offered.

I am very carefull with pairings at HAL as I find that most of the wine steward have absolutely no knowledge of wines. They know how to open bottles and that's it.

 

The pairing in De Librije is done deliberately and not by HAL, but by the chef, Jonnie Boer. However, we spoke to somebody at HAL (not sure who he was) and he told us that the wine pairings were probably going to change in the near future. Not sure if this move is a change coming from the chef or from HAL.

 

I also noted that the wine steward at the MDR had no clue about wines. I'm not very knowledgeable, but why are you offering me a light fruity white wine when I'm asking you for a mineral white wine to fit my sea food and fish courses? I finally just checked the wine menu until I found a white wine specifying mineral tones and went with that.

 

May I ask why you didn't think the price was right? Normally a 4-course dinner with wine pairings in a 3* Michelin Restaurant runs you between 300-500 euros a person, which would be past $400 at the moment. We felt the price of $69 was as bargain in many ways.

[Aruba]

The first time we did Le Cirque, we paid the extra price for the wines. Got only 3. The first was nothing more than the cheap sparking wine that they give out everywhere on the ship. The other 2 wines were nothing special either -- barely 3 ounces each. After that experience we either just order cocktails or a bottle of wine of our choice.

We do the same thing at Le Cirque because we've found that the regular wines on the Admiral package are better and less expensive than the "special" Le Cirque menu wines.

[Aruba]

Does any one have a copy of the De Librije menu that they could post?

Am I correct that it is only offered on Rotterdam?

[magandab]

Does any one have a copy of the De Librije menu that they could post?

Am I correct that it is only offered on Rotterdam?

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1829614&highlight=de+librije+menu

 

Yes, that's correct, as far as I know. I booked it yesterday. I want to lock it in as it's Mom's birthday (that dinner is on the 5th) and I want it to be more special than in the dining room.

[Aruba]

Thanks -- here's a link to the menu if anyone's interested:

http://www.hollandamerica.com/assets/cruise-vacation-onboard/DeLibrije-menu.pdf

(I wonder what "deconstructed apple pie" is?!:confused:)

[Aruba]

I see it's $69 with the wine pairing. Anyone know the price without the wine pairing?

[chrispb]

Thanks -- here's a link to the menu if anyone's interested:

http://www.hollandamerica.com/assets/cruise-vacation-onboard/DeLibrije-menu.pdf

(I wonder what "deconstructed apple pie" is?!:confused:)

 

I think it may be the apples sliced/stewed with pieces of pastry within instead of the pastry being a lid? This is what I seem to recall, anyway.

[kura]

Does anyone know if Mariner discount applies to these special menus in the Pinnacle?

[magandab]

Does anyone know if Mariner discount applies to these special menus in the Pinnacle?

 

It did for our Le Cirque dinner so I assume it also will for this one.

[pralientje]

Aruba, the price will be usd 49,= without the wine.

The deconstructed apple pie: you get a plate with all different ingredients and you can make your own apple pie. This is what I remember from the Librije diner. My dinner partner was having the apple pie. I really enjoyed the food and the only thing I did not like was the wine choice with the dessert. A very bitter tasting red wine, the others were all whites. Well worth the usd 69,= in my opinion.

[kura]

It did for our Le Cirque dinner so I assume it also will for this one.

Thanks for that....I see you are doing the midnight sun cruise this year...we did it in the Ryndam last year.....absolutely fantastic and we were lucky with the weather too. We are going on the Rotterdam in March..around Indonesia.

[pschweig]

My husband and I were on the Rotterdam Nov 2013 and had the De Librije dinner. I had the wine pairing option, which was fine for me. My husband had the wine tasting option, which was a much better option for him. As another person responded, the wine selections are chosen by the De Librije chef and not HAL. We enjoyed all of them; I had an outstanding chardonnay.

 

Food presentation was unbelievable. The dinner was worth experiencing just for the chance to enjoy this. I wish I had taken pictures of each dish. They were like culinary works of art sitting in front of us. I cannot begin to imagine how much time was spent preparing for this dinner.

 

I found this menu on another post with my comments (marked *). This isn't exactly what was offered last November but it does give you an idea of what to expect. We were told that the chefs from De Librije recently visited the Rotterdam, ensuring that the food and presentation was exactly as they planned. I think at that time the menu was changed a little.

 

North Sea Scallop - black garlic pearls, celeriac juice

* neither of us cared for this. The scallop is served raw. This was the only negative aspect of our experience.

________________________________________________

Torched Langoustine with Green Bean Coulis - butternut squash quinoa salad

or

Oyster on the Beach - foie gras, oyster, micro greens

or

Goats Cheese Basil Croutons - cucumber juice

* I frankly cannot remember what we had. I think the second two options are very close to what was offered last Nov. We both think we had something very close to the first option. It was excellent.

_______________________________________________

Potato Soup with Lobster and Chorizo - potato soufflé

or

Chilled ClearTomato Gazpacho - black olive and celeriac mousse

* we both had the first soup. We don't remember it having chorizo.

_______________________________________________

Seared North Sea Cod with Speck Ham - coconut foam and lemon grass

or

Duo of Lamb Loin and Crusted Lamb Neck - lentil sprouts, watercress, carrot coulis and lamb jus reduction

or

Baked Red Mullet with Couscous - cockles and bay shrimps

or

Venison Loin and Beef Tenderloin - bulgur wheat and smoked olive oil foam

* finally can help you. I had the north sea cod. It was excellent. My husband had lamb. It was not exactly as described above. He pronounced it to be excellent.

________________________________________________

Deconstructed Apple Pie - vanilla gelato and Chantilly-style cream

or

 

Rice Chocolate Stones - tuile and strawberries

or

Assortment of Sorbets

* we both had the apple pie. It was totally different than what we expected. Deconstructed meant that they represented apple pie ingredients on your plate. For example, an apple pie would contain vanilla so a vanilla bean was on your plate made from dark chocolate. Very interesting.

 

I hope this was helpful. Are we glad we went? - yes. It was quite an experience. We love culinary experiences. Would we go again? No. My husband just made me laugh. His answer was "since we went, now we won't go again."

[cruise_bunnies]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1829614&highlight=de+librije+menu

 

Yes, that's correct, as far as I know. I booked it yesterday. I want to lock it in as it's Mom's birthday (that dinner is on the 5th) and I want it to be more special than in the dining room.

 

Glad you got it booked! Let us know how you enjoyed it!

 

Food presentation in Michelin Star restaurants is really something indeed and it's quite lovely. I never make pictures because I feel embarrassed, but my mom does.

[Aruba]

I see it's $69 with the wine pairing. Anyone know the price without the wine pairing?

I understand now -- it's $69pp including wine "tastings" (2 oz pours), according to the website. The wine "pairing" option (5 oz pours) is an additional $20pp.

[magandab]

I think the tastings would be fine for us. If we want something else, we have the Above and Beyond bonus, which gives us up to 15 drinks per day, if they are $7 or under. That will leave us a good bit of discretionary spending $$$ for some fine glasses of wine if we want it.

[jongbj]

The pairing in De Librije is done deliberately and not by HAL, but by the chef, Jonnie Boer. However, we spoke to somebody at HAL (not sure who he was) and he told us that the wine pairings were probably going to change in the near future. Not sure if this move is a change coming from the chef or from HAL.

 

I also noted that the wine steward at the MDR had no clue about wines. I'm not very knowledgeable, but why are you offering me a light fruity white wine when I'm asking you for a mineral white wine to fit my sea food and fish courses? I finally just checked the wine menu until I found a white wine specifying mineral tones and went with that.

 

May I ask why you didn't think the price was right? Normally a 4-course dinner with wine pairings in a 3* Michelin Restaurant runs you between 300-500 euros a person, which would be past $400 at the moment. We felt the price of $69 was as bargain in many ways.

 

Ofcourse you may ask. The only 3-star restaurant we ate at was the Joel Roubishon in Las Vegas where we had the 16-course discovery menu at $450 per person (+300 for 6 glasses of wine). We do dine regurarly in 1-star restaurants in the Netherlands where we pay 100 euro's for a 7-course menu.

This said: The PG comes nowhere near a Michelin star restaurant. Not even when the menu was made by Jonnie Boer.

[Aruba]

The only 3-star restaurant we ate at was the Joel Roubishon in Las Vegas where we had the 16-course discovery menu at $450 per person (+300 for 6 glasses of wine).

Ay caramba! :eek:

[jongbj]

Ay caramba! :eek:

 

That was the cheap wine package, the medium was 600 and the best was $999, all for 6 glasses of wine.

[cruise_bunnies]

Ofcourse you may ask. The only 3-star restaurant we ate at was the Joel Roubishon in Las Vegas where we had the 16-course discovery menu at $450 per person (+300 for 6 glasses of wine). We do dine regurarly in 1-star restaurants in the Netherlands where we pay 100 euro's for a 7-course menu.

This said: The PG comes nowhere near a Michelin star restaurant. Not even when the menu was made by Jonnie Boer.

 

Thank you for replying, much appreciated. I didn't know what PG would be like, as it was our first cruise. We have eaten in many 1* restaurants as well, but never paid 100 euros for 7 courses. We usually pay more, but eat less courses and include wine and champagne for the Mr. I hate Champagne, hehehe. :p

 

Did you ever try Parkheuvel (2-star now) in Rotterdam? That's my favourite I must admit, although the wine is more expensive then the menu.