Main Dining Room Menu on Longer Cruises such as Transatlantic or Transpacific

[SelectSys]

Does the menu just keep getting rotated every week or do the chefs try and do some different each nigh?  Thanks for any insight regarding menu rotation in the MDR.

[Biker19]

32 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

Does the menu just keep getting rotated every week or do the chefs try and do some different each nigh?  Thanks for any insight regarding menu rotation in the MDR.

The menu itself will likely be different but some of the menu items will repeat. 

[SelectSys]

6 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

The menu itself will likely be different but some of the menu items will repeat. 

I hope you are correct.  I would hate to see the same menu occur 2 or more times on a single cruise.

[cruisegirl1]

56 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

The menu itself will likely be different but some of the menu items will repeat. 

 

49 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

I hope you are correct.  I would hate to see the same menu occur 2 or more times on a single cruise.

It is correct. We recently returned from 17 days on Jewel. No repeat menus but a few repeat items.

 

M

 

[SelectSys]

2 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

It is correct. We recently returned from 17 days on Jewel. No repeat menus but a few repeat items.

Thanks so much.  We will be leaving on a similarly long cruise and hoped that things would be still switched up given all the menu changes that have happened of late.

[Mikamarii]

We did a 19 night TP last October on Ovation. They had a week long menu that repeated on the new week. So nights 1-7 then repeated 8-15 and again 16-19.  That was before all the recent menu changes though.

[SelectSys]

20 hours ago, Mikamarii said:

19 night TP last October on Ovation

@Mikamarii Yikes, that is my cruise starting on the 15th!  I was hoping for fresh menus every day.  My suspicion is that the menu changes of late aren't a plus in terms of variety.  Regardless, I think we are going to have a great time.

 

BTW - do you have any suggestions or lessons learned from taking this cruise last year?

 

[njkruzer]

We're on Radiance Pacific Coast,  8 nts. Will stay on the 16 nt Panama Canal.  Asked a chef last night.  He says he has 15 menus. Only 1 will repeat.  I assume certain items will repeat thoigh, like the Caesar salad. 

[Mikamarii]

51 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

@Mikamarii Yikes, that is my cruise starting on the 15th!  I was hoping for fresh menus every day.  My suspicion is that the menu changes of late aren't a plus in terms of variety.  Regardless, I think we are going to have a great time.

 

BTW - do you have any suggestions or lessons learned from taking this cruise last year?

 

We thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it and hope to do it again one day. It was at half capacity so we never waited in line for anything and ship was never really busy. It was amazing. We did have a drink package and internet package because prices were dirt cheap at that time. I think we paid 55$cdn a person so it was well worth it and allowed us to try a bunch of different things. If it wasn't so cheap I don't think we would have gotten it. 

 

We're from Northern Canada so cold weather doesn't bother us but after leaving NZ and head towards Sydney it was pretty cold and windy. Upper decks pretty much shut down and heavy rocking on the ship. So may want to consider bringing some layers since your from a warmer climate. Other than that weather was amazing.

 

I know there are lots of complaints about food now but we didn't have a bad meal. That was before the changes though. 

 

I'm not sure your stops in FP but if you have a stop in Moorea I suggest thats where you spend your time and money Touring. We liked Papeete but it was very commercialized. It reminded me a lot of downtown Honolulu. Moorea is postcard material and what I would think of when picturing an island paradise. There are plenty of vendors right at the pier with good pricing. We used a company called Albert's transport that toured the whole island. Simply amazing. They have a little souvenir shop they stop at that makes fresh fruit smoothies from the island.  We had an overnight stay there so got to spend some extra time. There is a beach nearby. I think it was about a 25min walk but roads are very narrow. We took a transport there which was a couple bucks a person and caught a cab back which was no more than 10$.

 

Its sad thinking that was a year ago! Any questions just ask but it is truly an amazing cruise.

[Jasukkie]

Just off 14 nights on Jewel and they repeated a lot of choices, but not on the same nights. Overall, I would say the food was more basic but the execution has improved. Service was great.

[SelectSys]

2 hours ago, Mikamarii said:

after leaving NZ and head towards Sydney it was pretty cold and windy. Upper decks pretty much shut down and heavy rocking on the ship. So may want to consider bringing some layers since your from a warmer climate. Other than that weather was amazing

Great tip.  I hadn't been considering this part of the trip too much!

 

2 hours ago, Mikamarii said:

There are plenty of vendors right at the pier with good pricing

This is nice to hear.  I would prefer simply dealing with the locals.

 

2 hours ago, Mikamarii said:

Any questions just ask but it is truly an amazing cruise.

Thanks!  I will certainly reach out if I can think of anything else.

 

2 hours ago, Jasukkie said:

Overall, I would say the food was more basic but the execution has improved. Service was great.

Good to hear the dinners were executed well and the service remains good.  This is our first RCCL cruise since the menu change of course every ship is a bit different.

[lseee]

We just got off the Anthem on October 30th from the transatlantic itinerary.  We have been on the Anthem a few times before as well.  Our experience with food was generally good.

 

The staff in eating areas was very helpful and courteous.   The quality of the food was good in both the Windjammer and Main Dining Room. 

 

The negative to mention is the new menu in the Main Dining Room.   There were typically 5 entrees to pick from.   If you are meat eaters, you may consider it ok.  However, if you are looking for a variety of fish options, you may be very disappointed.   

 

Salmon was featured 9 out of 15 nights on our cruise.   Shrimp dishes were offered a few times.  Chicken breast was one entree every single night.  Spaghetti bolognese was prominent many nights as well.   We were told by the Maitre'D that they had been getting considerable negative feedback on the new menu.  He expected that Royal will have to be making some changes.  We did notice that the main dining room was often only 1/2 filled during prime time (my time dining option at 7 pm).

 

Another disappointment was how the Solarium Bistro was handled.   In the past, there was a menu presented and your entre was cooked to order.   You went up to the buffet to get your appetizers and dessert.  Now they put all the menu entree items precooked on a small pate plate, not cooked to order.  The only items that you can order is the specialty steak option.   If we are going to get up from the table and go to the limited buffet in Solarium Bistro, we decided to opt for the Windjammer instead.  

 

We had a back to back booked after this cruise in January 2024, but we have changed the second leg of the back to back to the Caribbean, since we did not want salmon so many days in a row.  A few other minor changes of note were no-sugar added lemon cookies were not offered anymore.  Also the favorite dessert of apple blossom was not to be found for dinner in the main dining room.   

 

Many nights we went to the Windjammer that offered a wider variety of entree each night.  We were very pleased with the Windjammer.  They offered pan fried fish many night, based on a few different types of fish. 

 

Notwithstanding my comments above, we were generally pleased with our cruise.  However, if they do not adjust the menu in the main dining room, the number of complaints will continue to come in.

[Morecruisesplz]

We were recently on a TA on Symphony. No menus were repeated, but worse IMHO, was some of the dinner menu options seemed odd for a cruise. The first night was very positive: good menu choices, ample portions, great service and no problem with ordering extras. But dinner menu choices from there became mostly odd choices. We had a 7 night specialty dining plan, so just ate in the Windjammer or had pizza the other nights. (Specialty dining reservations were hard to come by--my wife spent a lot of time every day trying to find times earlier than 9pm at any of the choices.) Hibachi at Izumi was excellent. We also were new to Park Cafe, so we enjoyed the roast beef sandwiches, soup and/or salad a few days for snacks. Chops was also excellent, as usual. (Issues a couple times with steak being done properly, but staff was happy to make it over correctly.) We have always preferred Giovani's Table over Jamie's, but the service and food at Jamie's was very good. Hope this is helpful.