My Full Review: Sailing with Royal Caribbean as a Vegan

[SG65CB]

On 2/17/2023 at 12:34 PM, WyKnott said:

I'm not vegan, but my best friend is. On previous cruises, she had a selection from the separate vegan menu, now it looks like the choices are fewer. How did that affect your dinners?

 

With the old menus, in the main dining room there was a separate vegan menu (on request) which was different each night and had a choice of two appetizers, two entrees, and two desserts. 

 

On the new menu the vegan dishes are integrated into the menu instead of being on a separate menu, and there is one vegan appetizer, one entree, and one dessert each day. The items are different every day.

[rockmom]

While I'm glad that Royal recognizes that there should be vegan options, by moving the vegan menu that used to be on the app (or you could ask for the paper menu), they have pretty much made the choice to be either you eat meat/seafood or you eat vegan.  For the many vegetarians out there, that become much more restrictive.  A vegan menu will not have butter, dairy, eggs--and nothing that is made with any of those things.  Vegetarians are sort of stuck in the middle.  So many things have milk, cheese, eggs or egg whites and butter as an ingredient. Not everyone wants to be as strict as a vegan diet needs to be, but they do want to enjoy meat-free meals.  And with the 'no special requests' mandate, ordering a baked potato with butter and sour cream, or add shredded cheese of some sort to one of the vegan dishes isn't an option.  Seems so odd because there are far more vegetarians than true vegans, there must be a way to accommodate both.   

[raoden]

Is it confirmed at this point that they are strict about not allowing requests for vegetarian food that is not on the menu? If yes that is definitely a big downside for the vegetarians.

 

I guess the following page is out of date now?

What Options Are Available for Dietary Restrictions? | Royal Caribbean Cruises

 

Especially the following...

"A variety of vegetarian Meals are available on all menus in the Main Dining Room and Windjammer Cafe every day. Guests do not need to make a special request for these meals."

[JustinPlusLauren]

On 2/21/2023 at 7:59 PM, raoden said:

Is it confirmed at this point that they are strict about not allowing requests for vegetarian food that is not on the menu? If yes that is definitely a big downside for the vegetarians.

 

I guess the following page is out of date now?

What Options Are Available for Dietary Restrictions? | Royal Caribbean Cruises

 

Especially the following...

"A variety of vegetarian Meals are available on all menus in the Main Dining Room and Windjammer Cafe every day. Guests do not need to make a special request for these meals."

 

I'm not sure what you mean about not allowing requests (please let me know!). There are always vegetarian/vegan options on the main dining room menus and there are lots of options in the Windjammer. 

 

There was a time when I wanted one of the vegetarian pastas to be made vegan in the MDR and they had no problem doing that.  There are still some vegetarian items on the menu that aren't vegan, in addition to the vegan ones.

 

Anyway, let me know what you mean regarding a request for vegetarian food and I'll try to help.

[JustinPlusLauren]

On 2/21/2023 at 7:02 PM, rockmom said:

While I'm glad that Royal recognizes that there should be vegan options, by moving the vegan menu that used to be on the app (or you could ask for the paper menu), they have pretty much made the choice to be either you eat meat/seafood or you eat vegan.  For the many vegetarians out there, that become much more restrictive.  A vegan menu will not have butter, dairy, eggs--and nothing that is made with any of those things.  Vegetarians are sort of stuck in the middle.  So many things have milk, cheese, eggs or egg whites and butter as an ingredient. Not everyone wants to be as strict as a vegan diet needs to be, but they do want to enjoy meat-free meals.  And with the 'no special requests' mandate, ordering a baked potato with butter and sour cream, or add shredded cheese of some sort to one of the vegan dishes isn't an option.  Seems so odd because there are far more vegetarians than true vegans, there must be a way to accommodate both.   

 

I was vegetarian for many years before I was vegan, so I hear you. There were still some vegetarian dishes on the menu that weren't vegan. Lots of things with cheese, etc. And lots of other things in the buffet that were vegetarian and not vegan. So, you still have options. I had them make one of the vegetarian pastas into a vegan one for me when I didn't love the vegan entree option that night.

 

By making a vegan option on the menu, it is more inclusive because both vegetarians, vegans, and those who have allergies to eggs and dairy (or those choosing not to eat eggs or dairy products) can eat them.

 

 

[JustinPlusLauren]

Also, thank you so much Cruise Critic for the award for my review! I'm honored! 🙂 

[raoden]

On 2/25/2023 at 5:55 PM, JustinPlusLauren said:

 

I'm not sure what you mean about not allowing requests (please let me know!). There are always vegetarian/vegan options on the main dining room menus and there are lots of options in the Windjammer. 

 

There was a time when I wanted one of the vegetarian pastas to be made vegan in the MDR and they had no problem doing that.  There are still some vegetarian items on the menu that aren't vegan, in addition to the vegan ones.

 

Anyway, let me know what you mean regarding a request for vegetarian food and I'll try to help.

Sorry for the late response. Somehow missed the notification.

 

I had read a lot of forum posts before the New Menus that said people were able to request off menu vegetarian food in the MDR and the MDR staff tried their best to accommodate it.

 

Based on forum posts since the new menu, it seems like the MDR does not honor any requests for off menu options for vegetarians. I was trying to find out if this was indeed true. If this is true and if it happens we don't like vegetarian/vegan item on the menu in MDR then our only choice would be to go to Windjammer. Which is obviously not the same experience.

[ShillyShally]

2 hours ago, raoden said:

Sorry for the late response. Somehow missed the notification.

 

I had read a lot of forum posts before the New Menus that said people were able to request off menu vegetarian food in the MDR and the MDR staff tried their best to accommodate it.

 

Based on forum posts since the new menu, it seems like the MDR does not honor any requests for off menu options for vegetarians. I was trying to find out if this was indeed true. If this is true and if it happens we don't like vegetarian/vegan item on the menu in MDR then our only choice would be to go to Windjammer. Which is obviously not the same experience.

I expect it's all a bit of a work in progress. I expect they'll make adaptations as they learn what works and what doesn't. I think they have to honor some requests for those that aren't accommodated by the menu since the menus have more than one option for those who do eat meat/fish and one or possibly two for those who don't (from menus I've seen it's one option per category).  I do agree it would be great if they made base vegan dishes that people could add cheese or meat to if they wanted, it would streamline the kitchen too, but they haven't asked me for my insights 🙂  

[fabby50]

As a vegan leaning vegetarian (I occasionally eat dairy products), what I get tired of is the chefs seem to think all we eat are pasta dishes.  We are going on our first RCCL cruise in a few years since they have now returned to California, and I sure hope I can get something other than vegetarian pasta or other Italian food.  I have not had much luck on Celebrity, NCL, Princess, etc.  Of all the main stream lines, I've found Carnival to be the most accommodating.  I find it most frustrating in the specialty restaurants where they put on their menus they'll make a vegetarian choice, all you have to do is ask, you do, and they say they can make you pasta.  I usually end up with a plain baked potato and whatever vegetable they have instead, for an extra specialty restaurant charge.  My husband is a confirmed meat eater, which is why I end up there, he wants his filet mignon.  First world problems are the worst 🙂 

[TwoMisfits]

3 hours ago, ShillyShally said:

I expect it's all a bit of a work in progress. I expect they'll make adaptations as they learn what works and what doesn't. I think they have to honor some requests for those that aren't accommodated by the menu since the menus have more than one option for those who do eat meat/fish and one or possibly two for those who don't (from menus I've seen it's one option per category).  I do agree it would be great if they made base vegan dishes that people could add cheese or meat to if they wanted, it would streamline the kitchen too, but they haven't asked me for my insights 🙂  

 

There's a restaurant I frequent in Williamsburg that is on the top 10 allergy places to eat in America that does this.  It's genius to have a "make your own" dish that can be pieced together, and that was the one thing that shocked me that wasn't on the menu.  Even if that dish is a main course "make your own salad" with the ability to add (say, like select up to 3 - grilled steak, fish, chicken, tofu, portobello mushroom, cheese, eggs, chick'n, etc, etc) to a salad of raw and/or cooked veg with an oil and lemon or oil and vinegar dressing...

[ShillyShally]

12 minutes ago, TwoMisfits said:

 

There's a restaurant I frequent in Williamsburg that is on the top 10 allergy places to eat in America that does this.  It's genius to have a "make your own" dish that can be pieced together, and that was the one thing that shocked me that wasn't on the menu.  Even if that dish is a main course "make your own salad" with the ability to add (say, like select up to 3 - grilled steak, fish, chicken, tofu, portobello mushroom, cheese, eggs, chick'n, etc, etc) to a salad of raw and/or cooked veg with an oil and lemon or oil and vinegar dressing...

Very cool, it's such a smart way to do things and still have them be accessible to all.  So many salads aren't an option because they're premade with all the things that aren't vegan.  Heck, use veggie broth as bases, oil instead of butter (or water/broth saute), etc.  I realize it's hard to cater to all palates but some changes that don't appear to be more difficult would be a great place to start.

[raoden]

21 hours ago, ShillyShally said:

I expect it's all a bit of a work in progress. I expect they'll make adaptations as they learn what works and what doesn't. I think they have to honor some requests for those that aren't accommodated by the menu since the menus have more than one option for those who do eat meat/fish and one or possibly two for those who don't (from menus I've seen it's one option per category).  I do agree it would be great if they made base vegan dishes that people could add cheese or meat to if they wanted, it would streamline the kitchen too, but they haven't asked me for my insights 🙂  

I hope they do.  I am cruising on the Harmony in about 3 weeks. I will post back on this thread how accommodating the MDR is regarding off the menu vegetarian/vegan requests.

 

Your idea of a base vegan dish with an option to add cheeses/milk products/meat on top is a great one. I wish the cruise lines would listen

[TwoMisfits]

7 minutes ago, raoden said:

I hope they do.  I am cruising on the Harmony in about 3 weeks. I will post back on this thread how accommodating the MDR is regarding off the menu vegetarian/vegan requests.

 

Your idea of a base vegan dish with an option to add cheeses/milk products/meat on top is a great one. I wish the cruise lines would listen

 

Thanks, I actually have a few base dishes, not just a salad, that would work in my mental mind...some even fit the food theme nights (like another could be a raw bruschetta topped grilled protein with a white bean ragu and a macedonia fruit salad for Italian night, vs "have a vegan pasta" - I did this for a murder mystery dinner party for chicken breast, chicken thigh, and roasted portobello b/c I had folks who only ate chicken breast, folks who only ate chicken thigh, and folks who ate vegan - and one person didn't eat the topping, but since it was raw topping and added after the protein cook, that was an easy leave-off - see component cooking at its best)...

[ShillyShally]

1 hour ago, TwoMisfits said:

 

Thanks, I actually have a few base dishes, not just a salad, that would work in my mental mind...some even fit the food theme nights (like another could be a raw bruschetta topped grilled protein with a white bean ragu and a macedonia fruit salad for Italian night, vs "have a vegan pasta" - I did this for a murder mystery dinner party for chicken breast, chicken thigh, and roasted portobello b/c I had folks who only ate chicken breast, folks who only ate chicken thigh, and folks who ate vegan - and one person didn't eat the topping, but since it was raw topping and added after the protein cook, that was an easy leave-off - see component cooking at its best)...

Exactly, there are a lot of base meals that don't require unique ingredients.  I find on many vegan travel groups there is a great divide between those who want options and those who want specific options.  As we know not all vegan cheese is the same, nor are all vegan burgers, etc.  We all have those we like and we all have those we'd skip even if it was the only option.  I'm more worried about the reports of a limited salad bar because I've been able to create some great ones and I carry a tiny whisk so I can make a better dressing option from the condiments available.  I've even used something from every station in the WJ to put together veggie sandwiches that people wanted to know where I found them.  There are so many options that wouldn't even have to be labeled vegan (as we know how that can "help") but just be obvious they were - grilled veggies, etc..I'd be happy with ingredients listed or at least top allergens noted.  Like just label it vegetarian and add "no dairy" and "no egg".