What was the best meal you had on Princess?

[tere247]

We’ve been cruising on Princess since 2006 and can remember when most meals wowed us.  Our 10 course Dinner at Sabitinis that year stands out.  The crab claws in the buffet upon embarkation was special as well. The buffet in the Royal Princess in her inaugural year was wonderful.  Candied macadamia nuts, fresh strawberries and whipped cream, wonderful selection of fruit and cheese with larger size crackers.  We’ve had a few hits and misses throughout the years, but in my opinion, there have been more misses lately than hits. Princess is still our favorite and will continue to cruise with her as long as we’re able to. 

[tere247]

On 6/14/2020 at 10:17 AM, san diego sue said:

Wine Makers Dinner on the Royal Princess and then again on the Sky.So worth the $40.00 a person.

And the best brunch ever was on Pacific Princess , for Princess 50th Anniversary cruise.

 

We’ve wanted to try the Wine Makers Dinner for quite a while but never knew if it was offered.  How did you find out when it was offered?  

[Hlitner]

43 minutes ago, tere247 said:

We’ve wanted to try the Wine Makers Dinner for quite a while but never knew if it was offered.  How did you find out when it was offered?  

Quite a few years ago we went to the "Chef's Table" dinner which is an option on most cruises.  When we first did this it cost $65 per person and included a tour of the galley with French Champagne, photos, the Princess cook book, and a multicourse meal paired with various wines.  That first Chefs Table dinner was the best.  We have since repeated the experience (the price has increased) and it was never as good as that first time.   Our 2nd best meal would have been in the Crown Grill (which is hit or miss),

 

Hank

[tere247]

1 hour ago, Hlitner said:

Quite a few years ago we went to the "Chef's Table" dinner which is an option on most cruises.  When we first did this it cost $65 per person and included a tour of the galley with French Champagne, photos, the Princess cook book, and a multicourse meal paired with various wines.  That first Chefs Table dinner was the best.  We have since repeated the experience (the price has increased) and it was never as good as that first time.   Our 2nd best meal would have been in the Crown Grill (which is hit or miss),

 

Hank

I’m a light eater. As much as I would love to try that, I’m afraid it would be too much food for me.  I would hate for them to think I didn’t enjoy my meal.  I understand that the wine makers meal is not as much food. 

Edited June 17, 2020 by tere247

[Hlitner]

30 minutes ago, tere247 said:

I’m a light eater. As much as I would love to try that, I’m afraid it would be too much food for me.  I would hate for them to think I didn’t enjoy my meal.  I understand that the wine makers meal is not as much food. 

My DW hear's you :).  The Chef's Table does (or did) involve a lot of food and drink.  Consider that it started with meeting in a lounge where we all had cocktails as we chatted with the Dining Room Manager and Maitre'd.  It then moved to the galley where we were served glasses of decent Champagne and some very special hors d'oeuvres by the executive chef with a lot of explanation.  The group then moved to a large reserved table in the MDR when we were served course after course with matched wines.  By the time they served dessert (also specially prepared) we were all a bit tipsy and stuffed!  That same Chef's Table is now about twice the price so we no longer see it as a good value.  What happens in the post COVID-19 world....who knows?

 

Hank

[san diego sue]

2 hours ago, tere247 said:

We’ve wanted to try the Wine Makers Dinner for quite a while but never knew if it was offered.  How did you find out when it was offered?  

Only offered on Royal Class ships. Royal, Regal, sky etc.

It is held in a special room  area of dining room, We asked our Head Waiter to arrange it for our group. there was 8 of us. I think the room may hold up to 12 people.There is wine pairing with each course. Food was good. 

[tere247]

24 minutes ago, san diego sue said:

Only offered on Royal Class ships. Royal, Regal, sky etc.

It is held in a special room  area of dining room, We asked our Head Waiter to arrange it for our group. there was 8 of us. I think the room may hold up to 12 people.There is wine pairing with each course. Food was good. 

So, you have to remember and ask about it.  I get so excited once I get on our cruise, that I only remember once I get off.  I was hoping there would have been a notice somewhere that I may have missed.

[san diego sue]

16 minutes ago, tere247 said:

So, you have to remember and ask about it.  I get so excited once I get on our cruise, that I only remember once I get off.  I was hoping there would have been a notice somewhere that I may have missed.

It is very popular  so no notices are put out. Just ask your Head Waiter right away so you won't forget. They may do this dinner multiple nights of the cruise. Our last cruise was a transatlantic so a sea day evening. I really like this dinner much more than the Chefs Table dinner. At only $40.00 ,good value.Was able to enjoy each course. However at the main course, really couldn't finish it. Still, had room for the yummy dessert.

[Thrak]

2 hours ago, tere247 said:

I’m a light eater. As much as I would love to try that, I’m afraid it would be too much food for me.  I would hate for them to think I didn’t enjoy my meal.  I understand that the wine makers meal is not as much food. 

 

We would never do the Chef's Table dinner. Way too much food for us. We can't even do justice to a meal in Crown Grill. We like the fact that the meals in MDR aren't huge. The portions are small enough that we can eat an appetizer, main, and dessert without being stuffed full. I just don't see the point of having a huge amount of food that I can't possibly eat.

[rkacruiser]

5 hours ago, Thrak said:

We would never do the Chef's Table dinner.

 

Once upon a time, I enjoyed a few of these multi-course dinners with a different wine during each course.  This was on Princess as well as Carnival and HAL.  (Maybe a surprise to some, but Carnival's was every bit as good and maybe more entertaining than a couple of the others on HAL.)  After I experienced the last such dinner, I knew:  no more!  The capacity for food/drink is no longer there as it had been in my earlier years.  That night, for several hours, I was in my stateroom in misery.  I was so stuffed.   

 

7 hours ago, Hlitner said:

Consider that it started with meeting in a lounge where we all had cocktails as we chatted with the Dining Room Manager and Maitre'd.  It then moved to the galley where we were served glasses of decent Champagne and some very special hors d'oeuvres by the executive chef with a lot of explanation.  The group then moved to a large reserved table in the MDR when we were served course after course with matched wines.  By the time they served dessert (also specially prepared) we were all a bit tipsy and stuffed! 

 

Hlitner's description is very accurate!

 

I'll admit that I keep being tempted by these dinners with the thought of "I'll only have a couple of bites of each of the courses and only 2-3 sips of the wine".  But, then, I think about the food waste and the waste of perfectly good wine.  And, then, would I really have such self-control during such an event?  

 

At least, for me, it's better that I don't book these special dinners any more so that I won't be tempted to eat/drink more than is now good for me.  

[taxatty]

Definitely the Chef's Table. It is a long but extremely enjoyable experience with the type of personal attention you don't get elsewhere on Princess. Second place could be any one of the dinners we had in Club Class on the Pacific Princess where the entree (or dessert) was cooked nearby by the Maitre 'd--all were excellent, and he loved to show off his culinary talents.

[Bemidji Ty]

We enjoy the salmon lunch on embarkation day as a ritual for getting our cruise started.  We also enjoy Sabatini's, Share and the steak house.  I was looking thru some old cruise info and came across this from our first Princess cruise.   We were presented with new menus from each night at the end of the cruise.  The waiters made table side  offerings each night.  'Twas magic.

 

Cheers.

[XBGuy]

1. Super Tuscan Dinner served in Sabatini's on the Royal Princess last September.  Terrific Italian food accompanied by some outstanding wines.
2. Tie among about a dozen visits to SHARE on the Ruby Princess and the Emerald Princess.  I was looking forward to visiting SHARE, again, on the Emerald Princess in December, but, unfortunately, I doubt that will happen.
3. Tie among four or five Ultimate Balcony Dinners on various ships.  Outstanding meal and two servers dedicated to pampering me.  A consistently excellent experience regardless of the ship.

To the poster who asked about arranging the Ultimate Balcony Dinner for two couples, we have never done that, but I have read multiple reports, here on Cruise Critic, of people who have done so.  I believe the price is $100 per couple.

[KevintheIrishDJ]

Does anyone remember when the Maitre 'd would serve one course at every table.

[cvpends]

6 hours ago, XBGuy said:

1.  
2. Tie among about a dozen visits to SHARE on the Ruby Princess and the Emerald Princess.  I was looking forward to visiting SHARE, again, on the Emerald Princess in December, but, unfortunately, I doubt that will happen.
3.  

I am with you on Share!  We are booked on Ruby in January and again in February.  I sure hope that we sail so we can get ourselves back to that wonderful restaurant!

[ckb104]

Crown Grill on the Ruby, Summer 2017. 

I started with the lobster & pancetta bisque which was amazing! 

Filet Mignon and Lobster, both perfectly cooked.

For sides, we ordered mushrooms and asparagus.  They brought the spinach and mashed potatoes, as well.  My Mom discovered that she loves creamed spinach.  😃  

For dessert, we had the mini-dessert collection.  I love that they do that.  

It was the most we had eaten in one meal, but it was so worth the stuffed-ness.  

[sunviking82]

So many, but two that stand out,  Crown Grill on Crown Princess, a wonderful fillet and every side plus dessert! The best was in Sabatini's  on the Caribbean Princess.  Never ate so much that was so good in a single seating.  I have a third, sitting down for breakfast in the main dinning room on the Grand. . .nothing better than a fresh breakfast served to you in the morning at sea.  

[Diver2014]

On 6/16/2020 at 5:21 PM, rkacruiser said:

I am surprised that no one has mentioned Fettuccine Alfredo.  I do not recall the first time that I had this delicious pasta on a Princess ship.  But, it was an item that I must always have when I sail on a Princess cruise.  Sometimes, more than once.  When it is well prepared, it is truly delicious!

 

 

Omg —THE best Fettuccine Alfredo I have ever had!!!! Thank you for mentioning that!

[Squire5000]

 I'm not trying to be a smart a$$, but I haven't had what I would call a great meal on Princess in years.  Our most memorable meal was when they first opened Sabatini's.  Now that was a dinner, probably 8 courses.   As for recent dining experiences, forget it.  Sabatini's is mediocre Italian food, the steak house wouldn't know what to do with a good piece of meat.  Sorry for the sour grapes, but we cruise to get away from the cold in the winter.  We have yet to find a better alternative to cruising, (pre coronavirus) but if dining is the criteria  to cruise, we'd stay home.

[earlydiner]

I agree with Diver2014 on the fettuccine alfredo.  Love the parmesan cheese bowls they had.   I will add of an addition I discovered.  Ordered the fettuccine with shrimp cocktail (no sauce) and put the shrimp with the fettuccine.  After one night of doing the process myself, the waiter catches on and removes the tails and puts them on the top.  Sometime if there is another shrimp dinner on the menu, they will add those shrimp.  DELICIOUS!!!

[geoherb]

On 6/18/2020 at 12:48 PM, Bemidji Ty said:

We enjoy the salmon lunch on embarkation day as a ritual for getting our cruise started.  We also enjoy Sabatini's, Share and the steak house.  I was looking thru some old cruise info and came across this from our first Princess cruise.   We were presented with new menus from each night at the end of the cruise.  The waiters made table side  offerings each night.  'Twas magic.

 

 

I love seeing the old menu. When it lists "Selection of Vegetables," were those served tableside as well? That's how it was on our first cruise on a Norwegian Cruise Line ship in 1989. The assistant waiter would have two or three vegetables to serve with the main course. By the time we took our first Princess cruise, the menu was similar to the current ones--with each main course served plated with the accompanying vegetables.

 

And I thought of another favorite Princess meal--when they used to offer a champagne brunch menu at Sabatini's. It included a cold seafood and sushi buffet that was wonderful.

[trbarton]

Any Chef’s dinner is a memorable meal. And any meal at Share is also good. At my last cruise a couple joined me & they loved it. 
 

Tom😀

Edited July 23, 2020 by trbarton

[Bemidji Ty]

GeoHerb

 

I just asked my DW.  She remembers staff coming by with trays of vegetables for us to choose a be served from.

 

I can't wait to safely get back to sea. 

 

Cheers

[getting older slowly]

Actually our last cruise on the Golden in the Crown Grill one night in December 2019..

 

Staff were wonderful... calm seas....

 

Steak was perfect, so were the prawns to begin with and tasting plate for dessert

 

Along with a great bottle of shiraz  .. Compliments of our TA...

 

Just every thing came together.....

 

Will remember it.... as might be the last great dinner on Princess...

well is was the last on the Golden anyway...

 

Cheers Don    

Edited July 23, 2020 by getting older slowly
spelling adn fat fingers

[caribbean2000]

Absolutely agree about the Wine Maker's Dinner, which we've done twice, and the Chef's Table, done once. Both were excellent but we feel the WMD is a better value considering the amount of wine that is offered. The steak I had at the first WMD we attended on the Regal a couple years ago was hands-down the BEST steak I'e ever had, and I've eaten in just about every high-end steakhouse in Vegas and many in other places. Really, really hoping it is offered on our cruise on the Crown next March (assuming it happens......  ;~(   ....... )