Taste of Royal Lunch

[blueridgemama]

I had no luck finding any reviews for this lunch offering so I am writing a review.

I reserved it in the cruise planner for $35pp

Ours was held on the last day of our cruise which was a sea day.

We received a letter in our room with the details of where and when to meet.

We met in the  Chops Grill Patio at 11:30 where we signed some forms.

We were taken in small groups (10-12 people) on a mini galley tour of the galley behind 150CP where we met the head chef in charge of the specialty restaurants. She explained the food prep differences between the specialty restaurants and the Main Dining rooms.

Upon leaving the galley we were given a glass of the Hooked Seafood specialty drink, Aperol Spritz. I have no idea what is in it but it was really good and we got refills during the lunch.

We were escorted back to 150CP  where there were tables set up. The table size varied, we sat at a table for 6 with a family of 4.

Our waiter came, introduced himself, explained the menu and asked if there were any allergies, did we prefer spicy or not spicy and how we wanted our filet cooked.

The roll served was from 150CP and you could ask for more during the meal.

The appetizer was from Wonderland, Citrus Seas Tuna Tartar. I am not a fan of raw fish but I enjoyed it a lot.

The offering from Giovannis Kitchen was mascarpone risotto with crabmeat. This was a large serving and was delicious. My favorite of the meal.

Chops Grill was the main course and was surf and turf with a filet, jumbo shrimp, a veggie and potato. I asked for medium rare and it was cooked to my liking.

Dessert was from 150CP. Their signature fried cheesecake with Nutella, whipped cream and caramelized popcorn.

Service was excellent and moved along well. I estimate the entire lunch start to finish to be about 90 minutes.

Their was a lot of food presented and it was a pleasant way to enjoy lunch on the last sea day. It was also an opportunity to sample the food from a variety of the specialty restaurant.

They add 18% gratuity to your bill. I reserved it online in my cruise planner and they mistakenly presented me with a bill for the entire meal. This was rectified immediately and I just paid the gratuity.

My husband and I thought it was a good value at the $35 price point.

[flkaren71]

Thank you for the review. I have it booked for my trip next month. Although I have seen the menu, reviews are hard to come by. I am looking forward to this lunch. I will be on Empress and there are not many food options to nice to have something additional. 

[Merion_Mom]

16 minutes ago, flkaren71 said:

Thank you for the review. I have it booked for my trip next month. Although I have seen the menu, reviews are hard to come by. I am looking forward to this lunch. I will be on Empress and there are not many food options to nice to have something additional. 

 

It should be very interesting on the Empress.  The only specialty restaurant on her is Chops.  I guess that the chefs will be studying some new recipes.  😉😄

[flkaren71]

Ha, I suppose! When I come back I will post my thoughts with some pictures!

[jrmende63]

We had this lunch prepaid and had it on the last sea day as well. We were on the Rhapsody of the Seas. I got the wine flight that went with the lunch, for 19.99. Well worth it. We enjoyed it and will do it again if it is offered.

 

[Merion_Mom]

4 hours ago, blueridgemama said:

 

Upon leaving the galley we were given a glass of the Hooked Seafood specialty drink, Aperol Spritz. I have no idea what is in it but it was really good and we got refills during the lunch.

 

 

I found it on the website for you!

 

Saint Peter's Spritzer

St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur, Aperol, fresh lemon juice, topped with prosecco

[SandiLynn]

I wonder how different it would be for us. We are hopefully on Majesty in April. There are no specialty restaurants.

Edited March 9, 2020 by SandiLynn

[blueridgemama]

10 hours ago, SandiLynn said:

I wonder how different it would be for us. We are hopefully on Majesty in April. There are no specialty restaurants.

 

If it is available to reserve in your cruise planner then it should be the same experience. I believe that its intention is for you to sample food from the specialty restaurants even if the specialty restaurant is not on your ship. Oasis of the Seas does not have Wonderland or Hooked Seafood.

I don't know where it would be held though and if there are no specialty restaurants there would probably be no galley tour.

[gerif]

Thank you for your review. Just wondering why they don’t have it earlier in the cruise to entice people to have a full meal at one of the restaurants after sampling their offerings. 

[NanciRDH]

11 hours ago, gerif said:

Thank you for your review. Just wondering why they don’t have it earlier in the cruise to entice people to have a full meal at one of the restaurants after sampling their offerings. 

 

Probably for the reason Blueridgemama said, to give you a sample of what's available in the fleet's specialty restaurants, even if they aren't on your current ship.  Chances are someone will do this dining event, and then book a future cruise on a ship that has one or more of them.  And even if nobody does, they still spent more $$ onboard for something extra instead of eating a meal already included in  their cruise fare.  

[blueridgemama]

13 hours ago, gerif said:

Thank you for your review. Just wondering why they don’t have it earlier in the cruise to entice people to have a full meal at one of the restaurants after sampling their offerings. 

 

The portions weren't samples. They were full meal portions.

Our lunch was supposed to be on the 2nd day(sea day) but was changed to the last day. I'm not sure why the day was changed.

[CanadaRob]

Excited about this now. Just saw it on cruise planner for Oasis in December recently and wasn’t sure but I’ll go in hungry now

[gerif]

8 hours ago, blueridgemama said:

 

The portions weren't samples. They were full meal portions.

Our lunch was supposed to be on the 2nd day(sea day) but was changed to the last day. I'm not sure why the day was changed.

No, I understand they were full portions (I said samplings, not samples). What I meant was - if someone really liked the appetizer served from one restaurant they might want to try the whole menu.