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Chops Price Increase to $39

cjhbeh

By cjhbeh,
in Royal Caribbean International

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Daghis

Daghis

Posted
Posted
Actually, it is more than $35.

 

You are giving up a meal that you paid for with your cruise, worth conservatively $15.

 

Add that to the $35 surcharge (plus extra tip) and you are now at $50 (plus extra tip).

I generally agree with you, but I'm curious how you're coming up with that $15 number. Is that the perceived value to the guest of dinner in the main dining room, or the cost of that dinner to Royal Caribbean?

 

If the latter, then you're about twice as high as the actual number. I just checked the 2014 annual report, and the approximate per-person cost to Royal Caribbean for food is $13/day. Dinner's probably the largest portion of that, so I figured it's about $8/person for each dinner in the main dining room, on average.

 

Is Chops Grille worth $39, or even $35? I don't know. How much would a truly comparable meal on land cost? I don't have the answer to that since our steakhouses here are of the Outback or Longhorn variety, and those may not be appropriate comparisons.

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John&LaLa "Live from...." Rare

John&LaLa

Posted
Posted
Actually, it is more than $35.

 

You are giving up a meal that you paid for with your cruise, worth conservatively $15.

 

Add that to the $35 surcharge (plus extra tip) and you are now at $50 (plus extra tip).

 

Sometimes it worth it to get away from the folks you got stuck with in MDR. :o

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kruzerci

kruzerci

Posted
Posted

That's sterching it. $25 was a good deal. $30 was fine. $35 is pushing it. $39 is too much for Chops. On our past two cruises, the quality has been really subpar compared to similar land based restaurants and prior experiences.

 

Chops does not even use Prime grade beef. On top of that the sides in the "new menu" are not of high quality.

 

Finally, it's nothing short of "Royally" irritating when they spend five minutes describing how much better the upgraded dry aged steaks are than the steaks included in the cover you have already paid to dine in the specialty venue.

 

I still love Portofino and Giovanni's, but I'm done with Chops unless it is taking advantage of the BOGO D+ coupon or it is free from some sort of promo.

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Cuizer2

Cuizer2

Posted
Posted
I generally agree with you, but I'm curious how you're coming up with that $15 number. Is that the perceived value to the guest of dinner in the main dining room, or the cost of that dinner to Royal Caribbean?

 

If the latter, then you're about twice as high as the actual number. I just checked the 2014 annual report, and the approximate per-person cost to Royal Caribbean for food is $13/day. Dinner's probably the largest portion of that, so I figured it's about $8/person for each dinner in the main dining room, on average.

 

Is Chops Grille worth $39, or even $35? I don't know. How much would a truly comparable meal on land cost? I don't have the answer to that since our steakhouses here are of the Outback or Longhorn variety, and those may not be appropriate comparisons.

 

Well, if you are on a ship without Chops, the Chops' quality steaks cost $16.95 plus a 15% tip or $19.49. Since the Chops' fee includes the tip, you are actually on paying $30.43 for the $35 meal or $33.91 for the $39 meal. So you are actually only paying about $11 or $14.50 plus the lost free meal for the Chops' experience and side dishes.

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psupa

psupa

Posted
Posted

Maybe it's me, but what's all the hype with these pay for restaurants. I know it's none of my business what people do with their money, but we find the MDR food to be very good. This is just my opinion so no flaming please.

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kruzerci

kruzerci

Posted
Posted
Maybe it's me, but what's all the hype with these pay for restaurants. I know it's none of my business what people do with their money, but we find the MDR food to be very good. This is just my opinion so no flaming please.

 

 

The atmosphere and service... and the food used to be fantastic at the specialty restaurants. Now it's along the lines of what the MDR was ten years ago :rolleyes:

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George C

George C

Posted
Posted
Maybe it's me, but what's all the hype with these pay for restaurants. I know it's none of my business what people do with their money, but we find the MDR food to be very good. This is just my opinion so no flaming please.

 

WE have a friend who is a chef and a very nice upscale restaurant and was a little surprised that he really liked the MDR, we only had a few meals there on last cruise and they were fine. service is another factor on why we do specialty restaurants

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awhcruiser

awhcruiser

Posted
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:rolleyes: What is your source of information?

Actually, it is more than $35.

 

You are giving up a meal that you paid for with your cruise, worth conservatively $15.

Add that to the $35 surcharge (plus extra tip) and you are now at $50 (plus extra tip).

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Groucho

Groucho

Posted
Posted

For a future cruise on Oasis Chops is listed for $39.00. Also, it looks like the listed menu is back to the previous one without the "Something Special" items. No tater tots either. I hope the web site is correct about the menu. We will only eat there on the BOGO nights.

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Mac303

Mac303

Posted
Posted (edited)

When Chops was $20. Per person, the service and atmosphere were exactly like an upscale land based steak house, over the years the service and quality has reduced while the price has increased.

 

We have stopped going to Chops, mainly because of the quality that just hasn't been there for several years, prices increase all the time for most things we enjoy, Chops just forgot to continue the quality and service, while increasing the price to double what we Originally paid when first going to the restaurant.

Edited by Mac303
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PSCruiser

PSCruiser

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Posted

We have tried Chops and other specialty restaurants on several RC ships, looking for a special meal and experience. We've been consistently underwhelmed by these meals, never once did we think any was worth anywhere near the upcharge.

I'm beginning to think that some guests think they get a superior meal and experience, just because they are paying more.

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nbsjcruiser Great Review Rare

nbsjcruiser

Posted
Posted (edited)

Last year when we were on the Indy we got a 20% off on the first day - a common occurrence. We actually used that on the 3rd day because we already had Giovanni's booked for the first day. When we arrived at Chops the place was near empty. I would say for the 2 hours we were there, it never got above 20% capacity. Near the end of the meal they offered us another 20% discount to come another night. We politely said no thanks as $30 per person was right on the edge for us anyway. At $40? Now they're starting to get into a nice meal on a land based restaurant. Remember, the initial $20 for a meal at Chops was tip only for the waiters. It was meant as a small surcharge to go to the waiters for an upgrade meal over one you already paid for, thus the reason for a non-exorbitant price. So while tips have gone up slightly over the years, they certainly haven't gone up 100%. And where is this extra 100% charge going? I'm betting that it isn't going to the waiters.

 

The latest scam from Royal that has people getting 30% on board credit for purchasing Chops ahead of time (I think it was 30%) is something NOBODY should participate in, All they did was what they did with their WOW sales - up the price and then try and trick you into thinking you're getting something with this special. Don't fall for it. There are no sacred cows on RCI now, just cash cows and sadly they're really starting to annoy me. I like RCI's product. When I look for a cruise, RCI website is the first place I go to but not anymore. Their tricks and scams are pushing me towards other lines and maybe this is what they want. Perhaps their ships are too full, their specialty restaurants too full. It would appear they are driving away customers for a reason, its the only conclusion I can draw from their tricks.

Edited by nbsjcruiser
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