Bayou menu on Coral Princess

[Gerko]

Does anyone know if the menu on Australian cruises on Coral Princess is similar to the sample menu on the Princess website?

https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/Onboard_Experience/Bayou-Cafe-Menu-Sample.pdf

Just seems this is a very American menu and a lot of the meal ingredients wouldn't be available in Australia. I've got two Coral cruises coming up and deciding whether to prebook for Sabatini's or Bayou.

[OzKiwiJJ]

There are two Bayou Cafe menus on the Princess website. The one you looked at is the Island Princess one.

 

This is the Coral Princess one:

 

 

[Gerko]

That is terrific. Thank you very much!

[arxcards]

9 minutes ago, Gerko said:

That is terrific. Thank you very much!

Sorry, no alligator ribs for you.

[OzKiwiJJ]

I think it's a shame they didn't leave a couple of the original menu items on the Coral menu - perhaps the Gumbo or the Jambalaya - to fit the theme of the restaurant. It's very much just a steakhouse menu. One other thing I noticed is they have structured the menu as a three course menu. The original Bayou menu is four course, and the Crown Grill / Sterling Steakhouse menus are also four course menus. It's a bit disappointing that they have downgraded the Australian experience. 

 

Thank goodness they haven't done something similar to Sabatinis, it's better than ever.

[Gerko]

I just did a comparison and whilst it may now be called Bayou Cafe, the menu is almost identical to the old Sterling Steakhouse. They've changed the name but not the menu, which is a shame.

[OzKiwiJJ]

I think it's slightly better than the old Sterling Steakhouse menu. There is more choice of appetisers, they don't charge extra for the steak tartare any more, and there is excellent lobster on the menu without a surcharge. Better desserts as well.

 

I guess they decided that Australians wouldn't be interested in Creole and Cajun cuisine at all whereas I think some of the original menu items would have gone down well here. We are so used to cuisines from all over the world in our multicultural society and many people would happily try something different.

[arxcards]

41 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

I think it's slightly better than the old Sterling Steakhouse menu. There is more choice of appetisers, they don't charge extra for the steak tartare any more, and there is excellent lobster on the menu without a surcharge. Better desserts as well.

 

I guess they decided that Australians wouldn't be interested in Creole and Cajun cuisine at all whereas I think some of the original menu items would have gone down well here. We are so used to cuisines from all over the world in our multicultural society and many people would happily try something different.

Yes, I agree. Cajun is not my 1st choice, but nice to have the option. I guess they want butts on seats every night, so are trying to satisfy a general Aussie palate. Still, I am glad I can have what is pretty much a Crown Grill spec steak and black n blue onion soup, and neither would be present on a Bayou menu. 

[SinbadThePorter]

1 hour ago, arxcards said:

Sorry, no alligator ribs for you.

 

They pop up in the buffet now and then.

[arxcards]

1 hour ago, Gerko said:

I just did a comparison and whilst it may now be called Bayou Cafe, the menu is almost identical to the old Sterling Steakhouse. They've changed the name but not the menu, which is a shame.

It has long been Bayou Cafe, and prior to covid it shared the same menu as Island Princess mentioned above. When the ship was relocated here they Australianised the menu, but yes, it is now a Princess steakhouse by another name. 

[arxcards]

1 minute ago, SinbadThePorter said:

 

They pop up in the buffet now and then.

Cool. As long as they aren't just leftovers from the back of the freezer. 😀

[OzKiwiJJ]

11 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Yes, I agree. Cajun is not my 1st choice, but nice to have the option. I guess they want butts on seats every night, so are trying to satisfy a general Aussie palate. Still, I am glad I can have what is pretty much a Crown Grill spec steak and black n blue onion soup, and neither would be present on a Bayou menu. 

True. I was disappointed with the onion soup when we went there. It was too heavy on the cheese topping, which made it taste greasy. The soup itself was nowhere near as good as it used to be, it seemed to be lacking in flavour although it had plenty of onions in it. Perhaps underseasoned. 

[geoff2802]

Wa ate dinner at Bayou on Coral in June.  Food and service were both good.  
I was a bit disappointed that there is little in the way of Cajun or Creole dishes. I lived in New Orleans for a while and love the food (and the city and people too).  
But it’s well worth a try.  

[possum52]

1 hour ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

True. I was disappointed with the onion soup when we went there. It was too heavy on the cheese topping, which made it taste greasy. The soup itself was nowhere near as good as it used to be, it seemed to be lacking in flavour although it had plenty of onions in it. Perhaps underseasoned. 

One of our meals at Crown Grill, I had the onion soup and I found the the cheese topping was the same Julie, I was a little disappointed as my previous onion soup courses had been wonderful and I thoroughly enjoyed them.

[OzKiwiJJ]

10 minutes ago, possum52 said:

One of our meals at Crown Grill, I had the onion soup and I found the the cheese topping was the same Julie, I was a little disappointed as my previous onion soup courses had been wonderful and I thoroughly enjoyed them.

Every ship seems to have a weakness in the cuisine, just one or two items that are usually wonderful on other ships. When we were on Diamond the souffles were terrible - heavy and undercooked. On another ship it was the escargots. It sounds like onion soup might be Coral's weak spot. 😪

[NSWP]

2 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

True. I was disappointed with the onion soup when we went there. It was too heavy on the cheese topping, which made it taste greasy. The soup itself was nowhere near as good as it used to be, it seemed to be lacking in flavour although it had plenty of onions in it. Perhaps underseasoned. 

They use the gruyere cheese do they not, a wonderful soup that princess french onion soup, minus the croutons for me. I buy gf croutons in Coles, should put a pack in the suitcase, lol.

 

Edited August 9, 2022 by NSWP

[OzKiwiJJ]

12 minutes ago, NSWP said:

They use the gruyere cheese do they not, a wonderful soup that princess french onion soup, minus the croutons for me. I buy gf croutons in Coles, should put a pack in the suitcase, lol.

 

Possibly gruyere in the MDR version but the Black and Blue onion soup is made with blue cheese.

 

I didn't get to try the MDR version on Coral but hope to try it on our next cruises.

[NSWP]

8 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Possibly gruyere in the MDR version but the Black and Blue onion soup is made with blue cheese.

 

I didn't get to try the MDR version on Coral but hope to try it on our next cruises.

You should and the 'Love Boat Dream' dessert, although the Creme Brulee is my favourite, accompanied with a side of two scoops of vanilla icecream, lol.  All lo cal, lol.

Edited August 9, 2022 by NSWP

[arxcards]

10 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Possibly gruyere in the MDR version but the Black and Blue onion soup is made with blue cheese.

 

I didn't get to try the MDR version on Coral but hope to try it on our next cruises.

Yes, the Princess cookbook has the MDR version which uses gruyere.

 

Crown Grill Black & Blue has blue, specifically Roquefort. If grilled a bit too much, it would explain the oiliness coming from such a high moisture content.

[OzKiwiJJ]

11 minutes ago, NSWP said:

You should and the 'Love Boat Dream' dessert, although the Creme Brulee is my favourite, accompanied with a side of two scoops of vanilla icecream, lol.  All lo cal, lol.

I discovered the merlot on the current wine list goes exceptionally well with the Love Boat Dream dessert. I'm going to have to restrict myself on the next cruise or I'll be eating it every night! 🤣🤣🤣

[OzKiwiJJ]

22 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Yes, the Princess cookbook has the MDR version which uses gruyere.

 

Crown Grill Black & Blue has blue, specifically Roquefort. If grilled a bit too much, it would explain the oiliness coming from such a high moisture content.

Yes, and there was a bit too much of it as well. Normally the blue taste is quite subtle but on Coral it was very strong. Actually that may have been why the soup itself tasted a bit bland - the blue cheese was too overpowering so swamped my tastebuds.

[yes!yes!yes!]

A bit disappointed, I was looking forward to the carpetbagger steak and some fried green tomatoes.

[MicCanberra]

Like any regional food, some is delicious others a bit ordinary and others still, just to try the once.

[Tripmode33]

Hope to try this menu in October. Even though it is styled as a three course now, has anyone tried it as a four course? For example I'd like to try the soup, then a second appetizer before main then desert. Also, of the three deserts, does anyone have a favourite?

[OzKiwiJJ]

44 minutes ago, Tripmode33 said:

Hope to try this menu in October. Even though it is styled as a three course now, has anyone tried it as a four course? For example I'd like to try the soup, then a second appetizer before main then desert. Also, of the three deserts, does anyone have a favourite?

I'm thinking of seeing if I can try it as a four course meal on our September cruise as there are a couple of appetisers I'd like to try and I'd like to give the black and blue onion soup another go to see if it was just a bad day for soup last time.

 

I really loved the key lime pie dessert. Traditional key lime pie it ain't but it was amazing. Rolf had the cheesecake brulee which was clever but just cheesecake with a brulee top - I'm not a big fan of cheesecake but he loves it.