An HONEST review of the NEW Royal MDR Menu

[aubreyc1988]

47 minutes ago, TinkBellaMom said:

I also think a change in the menu is a good thing.  I think what folks are missing here is not so much that the food is horrible, but the quality has really sunk low.  We honestly never had a hot meal, they are pre-plating food and allowing it to sit too long.  I had my own catering business, I know about plating.  Garnishes only, then add everything and serve.  Sauces congeal, meats gets tough as they cool.  I’m hoping they can pull it together.  Speedy isn’t important to us, we like to slow down on vacation.

Most of my food was PIPING hot and I love hot temp food so this overjoyed me. And I do think if you want a slower dinner service, you could certainly convey that to your wait staff, I am sure they would slow it down some.

 

Desserts have always been the weakest point in the cruising industry, in my opinion, but I did have a couple enjoyable ones this trip. Man, that gooey choco chip cookie thing was amazing! And they brought me a scoop of icecream with every dessert without even me having to ask!

[aubreyc1988]

3 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Thank you for your honest review. Most people resist change. "If I can't get my chicken fingers, Royal is cutting corners". 

 

"The Birds" are cheerleaders for the evolution of the cruise industry to meet the needs and desires of the contemporary cruiser (even though we are pretty old, retired birds). We have been cruising for a long time and would never, ever want it go back to the old days. We spend almost every evening meal in the MDR,,, but have not cruised since the change. Your positive outlook makes us anxious to try it out. 

 

Thank you!

While I am sure Royal is feeling the pricing pinch in regards to food (I mean, we all are experiencing that, I spent 200.00 on 4 small bags of groceries at Walmart today and we are only 2 people in our household), nothing was super glaring to me besides the no extra lobster. I do think the upcharge prices for the Chops Filet, Maine Lobster have gone up a few dollars, but I am not certain. 

 

I would have actually preferred if the menu had changed more drastically, it still feels like not a lot changed besides a few dishes leaving and a few new dishes and not having the classics every day.  I like variety. In fact, on the Harmony in April, we may actually eat dinner a few nights somewhere else to just have a change of menu, nothing to do with quality or service but just need some fresh new dishes to try. 

[aubreyc1988]

2 hours ago, Straughn said:

I only ate in the MDR twice  on Jewel last week. My impression of what I ate was somewhere between Denny’s and Olive Garden. Conversations with other passengers produced complaints similar to mine. Some examples: Creme Brûlée was the consistency of soup, the lobster tail , after removed from the shell, was about 2 inches long, food was either bland or overly salted, portion size was not consistent- two people could order the same item and one got a significantly larger portion than the other one. 
 

I had two excellent meals in Izumi, one excellent and one good dinner  in Giovanni’s, one not so good dinner in Chops, one excellent dinner in Chops, and two decent lunches in Chops. 
 

Mornings in the buffet had the usual fare-eggs, bacon, sausage, English breakfast, omelet bar. I found the pastries at breakfast to be dry and the cakes at lunch to be tasteless. The salad bar was good for the first four days. They must have run out of the mixed lettuce as the last few days only chopped iceberg available.
 

Some of this is picky, but these are the things I judge by and I wasn’t impressed. 

Yeah, food is so subjective and I can see some not being impressed. I also think it depends on each individual's standards. For me, I am a terrible cook and normally eat a lot of salad or easy prep meals...I also do not go out to eat more than once a month, so I find mainstream cruise line food to be amazing. And if you have excellent meals at specialty and love those and hate the MDR, I'd just fork over the money and do the unlimited dining plan. It's a little pricey but it is important to enjoy your meals! 

[ATG]

Our Odyssey cruise was a mixed bag.  We ate in the MDR 3 times (had MTD with reservations and on lobster night the line was so long that we gave up).  English night was the best, chicken tikka and roast beef with Yorkshire pudding was great.  The garlic shrimp were very good.  However, Mexican night was horrible.  The carne asada was, by far, the worst meal I’ve ever gotten on a RC ship.  It was very tough and had a strange, almost metallic flavor.  Service was good and fairly quick, about an hour from seating to leaving.

[kruzerci]

Is the title insinuating that the negative reviews are NOT honest? 🤨

[aubreyc1988]

9 minutes ago, kruzerci said:

Is the title insinuating that the negative reviews are NOT honest? 🤨

no, but I have read a lot of people (who haven't even tried the menu) giving it a ton of bad negative reviews. 

[mikefromny]

I second your positive thoughts on Symphony and the new menu. We were on the ship in January and ate at the MDR six out of seven nights and enjoyed every night! While not everything was great, we were definitely not lacking for plenty of very good food. Most nights there were at least two or three items from each course that we had problems choosing from. Many nights we didn't bother choosing and just got multiples. And were too were asked if we wanted them at the same time or in succession.

 

I agree with you - great service, mostly interesting menus and mostly very good food! After that great experience we decided on three more RCI cruises - two on Oasis and another on Symphony.

[Mum2Mercury]

20 hours ago, aubreyc1988 said:

I think a lot of people do not realize how hard it is to prepare food for so many people, and certainly it isn't possible to please everyone .... 

I firmly believe everyone should work food service and work in a factory at some point in his or her life.  Those two things give you a perspective on how things work "behind the scenes".  

16 hours ago, Ozark_Kid said:

... If the food experience is as bad as some say then why are so many rebooking. 

Good question.  

15 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Thank you for your honest review. Most people resist change. "If I can't get my chicken fingers, Royal is cutting corners". ...

Another way of saying that is, "Fish & Chips has been my favorite meal in the MDR, and now it's gone!"  It's fine to be upset that your old favorite has disappeared; what's unfair is saying that you dislike anything new without having experienced it.  

14 hours ago, CntPAcruiser said:

They had fresh figs? ...

I've never seen fresh figs on a ship -- yum!  Do consider that whatever fruit you see on Day 1 is what they'll have for the duration of the cruise.  They can't make new fruit appear in the middle of the ocean.  

12 hours ago, aubreyc1988 said:

... Desserts have always been the weakest point in the cruising industry, in my opinion, but I did have a couple enjoyable ones this trip. Man, that gooey choco chip cookie thing was amazing! And they brought me a scoop of icecream with every dessert without even me having to ask!

Agree, and not just because I have a small bakery business as a side-hussle.  

I think they've improved over recent years; in the past most desserts seemed to be overly-whipped /more air than taste.  

[Donsyb]

On 2/26/2023 at 2:52 PM, Jasukkie said:

I'm flexible on food but is 30 minutes for dinner seen as a good thing? I guess they got a lot of complaints about overly long service. I will miss the days of the fruit and cheese plate and enjoying some wine and letting food settle.

 

Not joking...just package it up and have a pick-up section like Panera. I'd rather eat on my balcony anyway. Can take my sweet time and relax.

I don’t think 30 minutes is the norm, most reports I’ve seen have said it’s and hour to an hour 30 mins.

[DirtyDawg]

1 hour ago, kruzerci said:

Is the title insinuating that the negative reviews are NOT honest? 🤨

"An HONEST review of the NEW Royal MDR Menu"

 

For once I'd like to read a DISHONEST review around here!

 

Not a negative review - lots of those -  but a really DISHONEST one. 😉

[Donsyb]

20 minutes ago, Mum2Mercury said:

 

I've never seen fresh figs on a ship -- yum!  Do consider that whatever fruit you see on Day 1 is what they'll have for the duration of the cruise.  They can't make new fruit appear in the middle of the ocean.  

Not in the middle of the ocean, but they do get supplies from certain ports during the cruise. They had a wine delivery during our last cruise, there was a wine on the menu they didn’t have and one night the bar tender in vintages said “we had a delivery today, let me check if we have it now”. I also believe the reason the NJ sailings always stop at port Canaveral is to collect supplies.

[aubreyc1988]

15 minutes ago, Donsyb said:

I don’t think 30 minutes is the norm, most reports I’ve seen have said it’s and hour to an hour 30 mins.

It is probably averaging an hour. Remember, my party was only 2 people, so the more people you add, the longer the service. We are fast eaters as well. 

[PolicromaSol]

Everything I'm hearing about the Indian food is that RC has kind of type-casted themselves as having good Indian food, to the point that it's always expected.

 

I don't mind. Pass the butter chicken!

[aubreyc1988]

28 minutes ago, PolicromaSol said:

Everything I'm hearing about the Indian food is that RC has kind of type-casted themselves as having good Indian food, to the point that it's always expected.

 

I don't mind. Pass the butter chicken!

 

NCL has really good Indian food as well, maybe their chefs are from India? 

[PolicromaSol]

11 minutes ago, aubreyc1988 said:

 

NCL has really good Indian food as well, maybe their chefs are from India? 

That's what I hear.

[Mum2Mercury]

5 hours ago, DirtyDawg said:

... For once I'd like to read a DISHONEST review around here!

 

Not a negative review - lots of those -  but a really DISHONEST one. 😉

I'm sure we've read some on the tipping threads:  "I tipped the soft serve guy $50 for the great cones he made for my kids!"  (Made up example ... sarcasm.)  

4 hours ago, Donsyb said:

Not in the middle of the ocean, but they do get supplies from certain ports during the cruise. They had a wine delivery during our last cruise, there was a wine on the menu they didn’t have and one night the bar tender in vintages said “we had a delivery today, let mse check if we have it now”. I also believe the reason the NJ sailings always stop at port Canaveral is to collect supplies.

Okay, makes sense, but I suspect the majority of the foodstuff is loaded along with passengers on embarkation day.  

Still, I'd like to see some figs.  So yummy with cheese and crackers.  

4 hours ago, aubreyc1988 said:

It is probably averaging an hour. Remember, my party was only 2 people, so the more people you add, the longer the service. We are fast eaters as well. 

We're usually a party of two, and we averaged 50-60 minutes.  I'd say we eat at an average speed. 

4 hours ago, PolicromaSol said:

Everything I'm hearing about the Indian food is that RC has kind of type-casted themselves as having good Indian food, to the point that it's always expected.

 

I don't mind. Pass the butter chicken!

Butter chicken.  Yum. 

Edited February 27, 2023 by Mum2Mercury

[DirtyDawg]

16 minutes ago, Mum2Mercury said:

I'm sure we've read some on the tipping threads:  "I tipped the soft serve guy $50 for the great cones he made for my kids!"  (Made up example ... sarcasm.)  

 

But those are not reviews. I need a wonderfully dishonest review of a cruise or a dishonest review of MDR dining or a Port visit. "My DISHONEST Review of my Oasis sailing". 🥳

 

Tipping threads and Casino threads are just like internet dating sites where everyone looks like Brad Pitt or Sofia Vergara, when in fact, they look like Elmer Fudd or Cruella de Vil! 😁

 

Edited February 27, 2023 by DirtyDawg

[Mum2Mercury]

1 hour ago, DirtyDawg said:

But those are not reviews. I need a wonderfully dishonest review of a cruise or a dishonest review of MDR dining or a Port visit. "My DISHONEST Review of my Oasis sailing". 🥳

 

Tipping threads and Casino threads are just like internet dating sites where everyone looks like Brad Pitt or Sofia Vergara, when in fact, they look like Elmer Fudd or Cruella de Vil! 😁

 

Ah, you're right.  

[Jasukkie]

7 hours ago, Donsyb said:

I don’t think 30 minutes is the norm, most reports I’ve seen have said it’s and hour to an hour 30 mins.

I think this will vary a lot by party size. Parties of two I know have reported 30 to 45 minutes. Of course, they won't kick you out, but the service sets the tone. It's not always a bad thing but it is a change. I've noticed in the past we never had a problem if we told our waiter we had something scheduled and needed to be out by a certain time. 

 

[John&LaLa]

9 hours ago, kruzerci said:

Is the title insinuating that the negative reviews are NOT honest? 🤨

 

I always tell the truth😇

[John&LaLa]

7 hours ago, aubreyc1988 said:

 

NCL has really good Indian food as well, maybe their chefs are from India? 

 

Royal has tons of Jamaican chefs, but they can't cook a decent patty 😉

[John&LaLa]

3 hours ago, DirtyDawg said:

But those are not reviews. I need a wonderfully dishonest review of a cruise or a dishonest review of MDR dining or a Port visit. "My DISHONEST Review of my Oasis sailing". 🥳

 

Tipping threads and Casino threads are just like internet dating sites where everyone looks like Brad Pitt or Sofia Vergara, when in fact, they look like Elmer Fudd or Cruella de Vil! 😁

 

 

Look for an interesting Oasis perspective late next week😉

 

[Ashland]

11 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Royal has tons of Jamaican chefs, but they can't cook a decent patty 😉

I wish they could actually bake !!

[slyster]

Thank you for your review.  30 minutes from the time you sat down to the time you left?  I'm all for faster service (I experienced 2 to 2 1/2 hours for my meals too) but not "fast food" fast LOL!  I'm looking forward to trying the new menus.  

[teddybear231]

Do you happen to have any pictures of the new menus, and pictures of food items?