Wonderland on Anthem

[bfloluci2]

I know its a little pricey...but for those who have eaten there...is it worth it? What's so special?

[dodgestang]

I hated it.  Lucky for me....I got a call right after the apps came out and had to ditch ;).

 

My wife tells me some of the entrees were okay....when she stopped the waiter from pouring all kinds of stuff on top of them.

 

Everyone's pallet is different so who knows if you will like it or not.

[Iamcruzin]

We enjoyed it last week for DW's 50th birthday. It's a Tapas menu with unique plating of unusual flavors and prepared food. I wouldn't recommend it to someone who is strictly meat and potatoes and not experimental. We were waiting for someone to approach us to book it in which case I would have asked for a discount. However it seems to be the most popular restaurant on the ship and the only one that was filled each night. They were really pushing Jamies which we had no intention of going to but since they offered us a 25% discount I booked it. I should have held out for 30% because the next night after we had eaten there they offered us 30% for 3 of us and 40% for my wife because it was her birthday. Overall we enjoyed Wonderland the food was very good but at the price I would only go there again if it was discounted. It's a one and done kind of venue. We didn't order off of the menu they just brought everything. Unless you have an allergy to some type of food I noticed that they did the same for everyone.

 

 

[SteelCityCruiser10]

For me it’s more about the experience than the food.  It was ok.  The main entrees were good but I didn’t care for most of the other dishes.  I prefer chops any day.  I’m glad I went once but I wouldn’t go again.

[njkruzer]

We enjoyed it. We have food issues and they worked with us. Would go again. 

[Merion_Mom]

I love it.  Food is indeed subjective.  No one can tell you if you will like it.  There are some youtube videos out there.  Try googling.

[maryjaden]

We have eaten there.  I Really enjoyed it and would definitely go again.  My husband (meat and potatoes guy) didn't go away hungry but probably only go again if I really coerced him. 

[Norwich Cruiser]

We’ve dined there once and quite enjoyed the experience.

But wouldn’t go again.

Definitely our preference is for Chops Grille and 150 Central Park.

[chawkjewel]

We've done it twice.  Once just as a couple and once with a group.  It was much more fun as a group.  I think they brought us everything they have available.  We probably won't go back unless we have a group.

[dpostman]

We also very much enjoyed Wonderland.  We also went as a group and as mentioned by others, I think you get a better experience as a group.  If we cruised several times a year, we probably would not go every time, but would look forward to going again for sure.

 

dp

[parrotfeathers]

I think it is something everyone should try once.  I loved it.  But you need to have an open mind and be willing to try new tastes.  

[tinkertwo]

I booked it but my husband was very dismissive and didn't want to go.  I dragged him screaming and yelling but once we got there he fell in love with the place.  He is a basic eater and he even enjoyed the food.  When we left he asked to be booked there again (we were on a B2B) so I booked us for the following week as well.  If I can get him to go and like it I would think anyone who goes would like it.  You do have to have an open mind, which normally he doesn't have, but I'm so glad we went.  

 

ETA--this was on the Symphony and there was a Mad Hatter so that could be part of why he enjoyed it so much.  The Hatter was fun to interact with.  Not sure if the Anthem has a Hatter yet. 

Edited June 21, 2019 by tinkertwo

[Iamcruzin]

25 minutes ago, tinkertwo said:

I booked it but my husband was very dismissive and didn't want to go.  I dragged him screaming and yelling but once we got there he fell in love with the place.  He is a basic eater and he even enjoyed the food.  When we left he asked to be booked there again (we were on a B2B) so I booked us for the following week as well.  If I can get him to go and like it I would think anyone who goes would like it.  You do have to have an open mind, which normally he doesn't have, but I'm so glad we went.  

 

ETA--this was on the Symphony and there was a Mad Hatter so that could be part of why he enjoyed it so much.  The Hatter was fun to interact with.  Not sure if the Anthem has a Hatter yet. 

No Hatter on Anthem.

[zooma]

We also recently went as a group (13 of us; some on dining package and others just paid for individual meal) and had a blast! They brought out 3 of everything in large family-style platters. Presentation and service were terrific. Some dishes were amazing, some really good, and maybe just one small app that I didn't care for. Very inventive and fun, with unique and yummy flavor combinations. (None of us had any food or allergy issues, and all went in with open minds.) And I think we also liked all the tasty and interesting sauces!

 

Yes, we would go again (though not twice on same cruise, with exact same menu, but absolutely if they switch things up).

[tinkertwo]

47 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

No Hatter on Anthem.

That's to bad, he was amazing.  They should all have one.  Having said that, ours was the original, right into the roll and so much fun to interact with.   I recently saw a video of another one and he didn't look quite as good but I only saw a small bit of him.  

[Queen of Oakville]

The pictures remind me of QSINE on Celebrity

[tserface]

We went to this restaurant on Anthem and we liked it a lot. The food is weird, to say the least, but it's an experience.  We just had the waiter choose for us so we didn't have to figure out the menu and we liked everything he brought. It was a pricey restaurant, but it's more than just the food.  It's a pretty fun experience.  It's not the kind of place we'd go back to because they have a great steak like Giovanni's, but we talked about the experience with lots of people and after some time we'd do it again.

 

It's fun to try different experiences on cruises.  When we're on vacation we want to try things we wouldn't necessarily do at home.  Imagine how much a restaurant like this would cost in New York or Los Angeles (to get a similar experience).

If you can afford it and like to try new things, I definitely consider it.

[Iamcruzin]

4 hours ago, Queen of Oakville said:

The pictures remind me of QSINE on Celebrity

Yes it was very similar. I liked Wonderland better because I felt the food was more unique in flavor. Qsine was  nothing special other than the decor and unusual presentation of food. 

[Waterluv]

We went on the Anthems inaugural sailing, it was awesome. Very good and unique experience. The food is part of the experience I actually laughed and passed on most of the wonders put in front of me 😋 lol. I would do it again given the opportunity. We will be on the ATS in August and it is not an option.

[lovescats5]

We have been a couple of times and it is very unique and different.  We were a party of 4 with an 11 yr old granddaughter who tried everything they gave us.  Some was pretty good and some was meh... but the experience was fun.  We will probably go again in November because it is included in Star Class.  Really loved the silver wear.

[ostrich710]

If it's in the budget, we highly recommend it.  It was our favorite specialty on Anthem (we did Chops, Jamie's, Izumi, Wonderland) and we missed it on our Allure cruise later in the year.  

 

For us, all of the specialty restaurants were good, both in service and quality of food.  Wonderland was something out of the ordinary that we never would have had at home.  Many people warn that you must be an adventurous eater to enjoy Wonderland -- we did not find that to be the case.  We are not picky, but did not find anything to be off-putting or unappetizing.  The food was delicious, the service was excellent, and the experience was something that felt vacation-worthy.

[JAMESCC]

We did it our first night on Anthem last year and I was not looking forward to it but I ended up loving it. It was a very fun experience and I thought the food while different, was for the most part very good. It was definitely a lot of fun and a nice way to kick off our cruise. I would do it again definitely. We are on Anthem in September so maybe we will do it again.

[Tljcruiser]

We did and all enjoyed it....3 generations from 9-67.  In fact my daughter now asks me if there is a Wonderland on every ship we have been on since.  We plan on going again while on the Symphony this fall.  

[JasonMason]

We did it back in May - I would agree that it is heavily focused on the "experience" more than the actual taste... However, that having been said, as we all know on CC, taste is a very subjective topic. We both felt that the quality of the food was very good, but the memorable aspect was definitely the presentation of the food and the way the components of the meal interacted with each other (had a very Grant Achatz restaurant feel). I do recommend experiencing it at least once 😎

 

P.S. Have a BLAST on Anthem! Its a great ship!!

[mets07]

We did not enjoy it and would not do it again.  We simply like more standard fare.  The "experience" was interesting but not something we really felt strongly about or would want to repeat. 

 

As some have said, this is very subjective. 

 

Whatever you decide, have fun. 🛳️🍴