Oasis of the Seas: is the food good??

[holliday27]

I am looking into cruising for my honeymoon next July 2015 and am currently trying to decide between the Oasis of the Seas and the Disney Fantasy. I have read some not so great reviews of the food on Royal Caribbean cruises and would like to know if this is the norm. Is the food at the "included" venues only par at best? I would rather not have to pay for the other restaurants every night...also, are the restaurants you have to pay additional for worth it?

 

I am currently leaning towards Disney but the price is a major concern. Please help!

[nhraformula00]

My wife and I just got off of her last Saturday. We thought it was pretty good, and on par with Carnival. I thought it was a tad better than Carnival, then I had 1 or 2 dishes in the MDR that were so so. Windjammer buffet was better than Carnival.

[Paulette3028]

I am looking into cruising for my honeymoon next July 2015 and am currently trying to decide between the Oasis of the Seas and the Disney Fantasy. I have read some not so great reviews of the food on Royal Caribbean cruises and would like to know if this is the norm. Is the food at the "included" venues only par at best? I would rather not have to pay for the other restaurants every night...also, are the restaurants you have to pay additional for worth it?

 

I am currently leaning towards Disney but the price is a major concern. Please help!

 

The most difficult part of this question is everyone has a different interpretation of 'good'. I have been to restaurants that others said were wonderful and was disappointed; when at other times I went to a restaurant that others said was simply OK, and found it terrific.

 

What kind of restaurant eater are YOU? How difficult are you to please when you are at a restaurant?

 

I have been on Royal cruises 14 times, never once yet visited a Specialty Restaurant. I have always found interesting and delicious food to eat from the MDR menu and Windjammer when we went there for lunch or breakfast (we have never gone for dinner, we go to the MDR). We have lunched at the cafes and Compass Deli, that are included in our cruise costs. We do plan on going to Izumi, when we sail on Allure -- we enjoy Japanese food and will indulge on the cruise.

 

If I have ordered something from the dining room menu and did not like it, I ordered something else.....maybe once or twice in 14 cruises can I remember that happening.

 

Some people might consider DH and I, easy 'foodees'. We are just the way we are!

[Sumisid]

Been on Oasis twice. The first time, I was kind of scared that I would not like the food in the MDR because I've read some reviews where people said it was not good. So I booked Chops, Giovannis and 150 Central Park to be on the safe side. The other meals we had in the MDR and guess what? Wo loved it! I can assure you, good food is importand to DH and me on vacations. It makes or breakes a holiday.

 

So on our last cruise on Oasis in February, we had all our dinners (except one, when we went to Chef's Table) in the MDR and it was very good.

[LA_CA_GAL]

There are so many "food choices" on the Oasis it is ridiculous. If you cannot be happy with the food, you have "issues".

 

Sure, you can go to the MDR and order Bavarian Swamp Frogs and not like it, however, when I want to try something that I am not sure, I order 2 entres to be safe. Sometimes I also order 3 apps.

 

Bound to like something that way.

[ryano]

Food is too subjective to give a blanket answer you are looking for. Paulette summed it up best IMHO.

 

For the most part, I enjoy the food on ANY RCI ship and I dont pay for specialty dining. I find most things pretty good, some really good and some excellent. You shouldnt have a problem finding many things to choose from to eat.

 

Or since you are also looking at Disney, you may be able to book Oasis, eat in specialty dining places every night and still come out ahead

[Cruisegirl6]

My parents are the type of people that say they paid for the cruise they want to eat free, they are missing so much but then again, they consider a diner and apple bees to be very good haha so no wonder THEY like the main dining room.

 

To us (and that includes my daughter, my other half, sister/brother/father in law) we are big foodies and know good quality and variety when it comes to restaurants. I also go to ruby tuesday, longhorn and occasionally Chili's so I do now the comparison of food from establishment to establishment. The main dining room offers banquet quality food, nothing wrong with it we just want and expect more on a vacation when it comes to dinner. We prefer to pay for the specialty restaurants and don't mind the cost because you get what you pay for, although we just got off the Allure this past sunday and dined at Chops two evenings happens to be our porterhouse and NY Strip at Longhorn exceeded what we got in Chops. (I have a review continuously going daily until I finish) We probably won't go back to Chops and now they will be reducing the items to less quality and taking away most of the veggies adding carb side dishes, they totally ruined the old Chops experience. What they are doing now is that you pay $30/$35 to get into Chops and some ships (not the Allure yet) they took away the large filet minion, took away the NY Strip and Porterhouse and added a steak burger and other less quality entrees BUT if you remain to want the porterhouse or the NY Strip you have to pay an additional charge which only shows they are lowering the quality what is offered on the menu in hopes you upgrade and pay for the better beef. I don't mind paying extra, but just charge a fee that I won't have to see dollar signs on the menu!

 

This past cruise we did not try the main dining room once, we usually eat in the main dining room twice or three times at most but this cruise offered us choices and we took advantage of it, again, the extra cost is nothing considering the price of the cruise, my philosophy is if your going to go do it right. But my negative experiences with Chops has made me want to go back to the main dining room those two evenings, Chops was not worth going to we were very disappointed. I do love the other specialty restaurants that are on the ship, with the exception of Rita's which we did for lunch and I suggest its not a dinner but best to go for a lunch.

 

When I am in the main dining room for dinner, if I don't like something I just don't eat it and I may order something else. I also don't want to be rushed eating one course after another and have them rushing me out, I like a true dining experience not a diner type quality as my parents are used to.

[smeck]

Main dining room is similiar to the quality of a good wedding. Remember they're not cooking just for you but 3000 other guest.

[Sitzmark]

I am looking into cruising for my honeymoon next July 2015 and am currently trying to decide between the Oasis of the Seas and the Disney Fantasy. I have read some not so great reviews of the food on Royal Caribbean cruises and would like to know if this is the norm. Is the food at the "included" venues only par at best? I would rather not have to pay for the other restaurants every night...also, are the restaurants you have to pay additional for worth it?

 

I am currently leaning towards Disney but the price is a major concern. Please help!

 

I haven't been on Oasis yet but we did go on the Disney Fantasy. I found the food on the Fantasy to be awful. I did not like the theming in the MDRs and our best meals were in Cabanas restaurant which could compete with perhaps a Ponderosa. We ate at Palo on Fantasy which was nice but is a bit overpriced for what it is, however if you want a decent steak it's the only option onboard.

 

Don't get me wrong, there were many things on the Fantasy we enjoyed, the Aquaduck is fun, the Detective agency is also fun. But the food is not good and we won't be going back there. We normally make annual trips to the parks and have always enjoyed them, the let down on the Fantasy was a surprise for us. I think our expectations had been set unrealistically high by the koolaid drinkers.

 

Like others have mentioned, everyone has a different opinion of food, you might love it.

[BamaGuy44]

Main dining room is similiar to the quality of a good wedding. Remember they're not cooking just for you but 3000 other guest.

 

Agreed. A lot of it depends on expectations. If you expect the MDR food to be like 5 star dining where a chef lovingly prepares each plate one at a time, you'll be disappointed.

 

I've always found cruise ship MDR food to be good to very good, especially considering the volumes they are preparing. Quality and presentation is usually a step above the average chain based restaurants IMO. I enjoy the MDR food, but I'm far from the pickiest eater around.

 

And like everyone else said, it's so subjective. Do a search of your absolute favorite restaurant. There will be reviews online saying it's slop they wouldn't feed to their dog.

[ryano]

. Do a search of your absolute favorite restaurant. There will be reviews online saying it's slop they wouldn't feed to their dog.

 

Exactly

[ttnc4me]

...and if you don't like it, then you can switch. There are so many options on board that only the crabbiest people find something wrong with all the food choices.

[Deeliteful]

Whilst I haven't been on Oasis, I have been on several RCL ships and have rarely had a bad meal - and I invariably eat in the MDR. I have been described as a foodie and I know what I like, so as others have said, it won't be 5 star but beats cooking at home by a country mile :-)

You won't be disappointed IMHO

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[Spurschick]

Have you reviewed the menus that will be offered onboard in the MDR?

 

I say this because if you look at and feel restricted by choices as they are not foods you would normally care for then I would say the MDR is not for you. If on the other hand there are several dishes on the menus that you would struggle to choose from then you shouldn't have a problem.

 

Generally speaking, we have found most offerings in the WJ to contain some of the dishes from the MDR that night, but obviously in buffet format. These will be in addition to the standard daily offerings that vary little.

 

Food is always subjective to personal tastes, and there will always be some meals that outclass others.

Enjoy whatever you choose, and congratulations on your upcoming wedding:)

[jpcello]

I was on Oasis last summer. We thought the food in the MDR was excellent. Lunch was either MDR or Park Cafe. We even had burgers at Johnny Rockets a couple of days. We weren't impressed with Windjammer. I usually love Windjammer, especially for breakfast but absolutely nothing was cooked to order so it was just blah. Ended up in MDR for breakfast as well (I considered it a win).

 

Best roast beef sandwiches EVER at the Park Cafe.

 

My sister and I consider ourselves foodies. This summer we're doing Allure and thinking about one or two specialty restaurants (or even Chef's Table if we can).

[leisuretraveler223]

Is the food at the "included" venues only par at best?

 

I would answer that inquiry in the affirmative.

[njmomof2]

I sailed on Oasis in April. We did not do specialty dining. We only ate in the MDR.

 

Now, this trip, I was eating differently than I usually do. When we have sailed before, I eat what I want (of course, that's the reason I had to change my eating habits). This time, I was extremely conscious of my choices, trying to select items that were very low in carbs, lower in sugar, higher in protein.

 

I had a few nights with nice choices. I enjoyed the salmon on the first night, which was one of the highlighted dishes. I had the beef duo on another night. But I also had a piece of prime rib that I simply could not eat. I like mine med rare but this one was way over to the rare side. I could have asked for another piece, but by the time I got part way through, I lost my appetite. I ordered a piece of fish one night, took one bite and that was it. Tasteless and fishy. It was I believe the pan seared filet. I again could have ordered something else but once the main dish was served, I was not going to make everyone wait for me to get another dinner. I also ended up with a salad for my appetizer most nights since a lot of the options were not good choices for me.

 

I usually am content with most anything, rarely find fault with food. And living in NJ, we are the diner capital of the world, so everyone eats in diners. Some of the best food around, in my opinion.

 

But I found myself very limited on Oasis, and even the other free options were just more of the same. I liked the Tutti Salad bar but again, have to watch what you add or the calories and fat really add up. But I was not able to eat at Giovanni's, Seafood Shack, and we did not want Chops.

[BGCruiser85]

On the oasis right now. All dinners have been tasty and well prepared. Especially good at Chops. Dined there on Monday and going back in an hour!

 

 

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[fluffysue]

Speaking mainly of dinner, I have been very happy with the food on Royal Caribbean. But then, I am happy so long as they do not run out of shrimp cocktail. I do know there were others on my most recent cruise (on Grandeur) who were not happy with it, so clearly that is subjective. I don't think it's necessary to pay extra to eat at the specialty restaurants to get a good meal (although my 2 meals at Giovanni's were both fabulous.:)). If you do not like what you order you can always get something else. Oasis has so many options that it is impossible to not be able to find something you like.

Edited May 21, 2014 by fluffysue

[ekatiel]

I've sailed on both Oasis and Disney Magic. I did not find the food on either line to be all that different from one another. I would take the food out of the equation when thinking about which ship to sail-- they are both about equal. Now, the SHIPS, on the other hand, are anything BUT equal. There is simply no other ship that compares to Oasis and Allure. You will be completely blown away by Oasis. Also, I think for a honeymoon, you will find Oasis more appealing. I personally would not sail Disney without kids. The ships are like floating preschools. There are kids everywhere. More kids than I've ever seen on a ship, and we've sailed on Mariner over Texas' Spring Break before. I would definitely choose Oasis for a romantic adult getaway.

[MR LED]

We are huge Disney World fans, as we go every year for a week, but believe the Disney Cruise ships are too childish to handle for more than a 3 day cruise. Disney Cruise Lines primary target audiences are families with children so if it’s just 2 adults its feels at times odd. Note: after 10 PM the Disney Ships are like a ghost town as nothing is going on. Disney does not have “my time dining” so you will sit with others at dinner. DCL’s breakfast and lunch selections are so much better than RCCL. However we found the quality of dinner in the main dining room “s” to be about the same for both DCL and RCCL. DCL has good desserts, RCCL's are usually below average. DCL and RCCL specialty restaurants are both great and in my opinion worth the extra cost, at least 1 once during the cruise.

I would recommend the Oasis of the Seas for a honeymoon. The Oasis has excellent entertainment, shows, and activities for all ages.

[Paulette3028]

Food is too subjective to give a blanket answer you are looking for. Paulette summed it up best IMHO.

 

For the most part, I enjoy the food on ANY RCI ship and I dont pay for specialty dining. I find most things pretty good, some really good and some excellent. You shouldnt have a problem finding many things to choose from to eat.

 

Or since you are also looking at Disney, you may be able to book Oasis, eat in specialty dining places every night and still come out ahead

 

Food threads always evoke such passion......here is what I am ecstatic about on a cruise when it comes to food --- I am ecstatic that I did not do the shopping, planning, cooking or cleanup. That shopping cart would be way to heavy for me to lug around the supermarket.

 

Don't get me wrong....I love good food, I enjoy good food -- I don't go back to restaurants I find mediocre -- I would rather try a new restaurant for the first time than go back to someplace that has been mediocre. I have been on 14 cruises with Royal and have enjoyed their food....regardless of the ship we have been on.

[debbs0723]

I have been on Royal and Disney as well within a year and a half of each other and I think the food is the same on both but I found there were more options of different places to eat (that did not charge) on Royal than there were on Disney.

 

 

I did find that the specialty restaurants are just more tasty than the others but that goes for both ships. MDR and included food was the same on both but I might give the nod to Royal for Windjammer food.

 

I would not pick the food based on the food you hear about. I've been one of them so I can say this but Disney fans are super Disney loyal no matter what so you might hear only the good over there.

 

Debbie

Edited May 21, 2014 by debbs0723

[thebooth]

I am not a fan of the MDR food, but you might be able to eat at specialty restaurants each night and still pay less than Disney Fantasy. There are some great specialty restaurants on Oasis...

 

 

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[OCruisers]

The food in the Specialty Restaurants on Oasis is extremely good! :)

LuLu