Quantum Dining Review (the food, not Dynamic Dining)

[klitch]

We were on the March 1st sailing and I thought I would give you all our impressions of the good, the bad, and the ugly about the food.

 

I will say this and only this about Dynamic Dining, we were worried before we got on board that we wouldn't be able to eat where we wanted. It all worked out and with a lot less stress than I thought it would be, so be patient ask questions when you get on board and I'm sure you'll have a great time as we did. On to the food!

 

 

Chops Grille:

 

It's hard not to have a good meal at Chops. We've eaten at Chops on a few ships and it's been really good to great every time. Not much to say here except if you haven't eaten at Chops you totally should.

 

Jaimie's Italian

 

Our group had mixed reviews at Jaimie's, I thought it was good but not great certainly not worth paying extra money for. It was my least favorite of the restaurants. There was nothing that was memorable in either direction. As far as Italian food goes I thought it was run of the mill.

 

Wonderland

 

Wonderland is a very interesting experience that I know is not for everyone, my wife really enjoys inventive cuisine so we tried it. Our waitress was great and she walked us through ordering and gave us little tidbits about each menu item and some recommendations. The first 5 courses that we ordered we single bites all very flavorful, none that completely blew me away they were all good but not what I would consider spectacular.

 

Then we got to the main courses. I had the Beef Terrier and my wife had the fish (I think it was halibut). I have not had beef that tender in a very, very long time it is apparently cooked low and slow for 12 hours and man does it melt in your mouth it was absolutely amazing. I was also equally as impressed with the Halibut, it was cooked and served in parchment paper and it really drank up all of the sauce.

 

Like I told our traveling companions, even if you don't like any of the first 3-5 courses, it is well worth the wait for the main dishes.

 

Hot Dog "cart"

 

I like the idea of the hot dog/food truck at sea, and the hot dogs/brats/sausages were pretty good, we went back a few times to get them so I guess that might say something.

 

Grande

 

Grande is the closest thing that you are going to get to a "main dining room" experience on Quantum. For those of you looking for that every night I suggest you book Grande (and perhaps Chic) every night of your sailing.

 

There was not a bad bite of food here. The lobster tails were a bit small but nonetheless delicious they just gave us three instead of one. I don't remember everything else I had but it was all good. The one other thing I do remember is that one of the cocktails served was/is a Vesper Martini. After reading/seeing Casino Royale (James Bond) i'd always wanted one but didn't think I liked Gin. Well, I was wrong, Gin is awesome and Vesper Martini's are my new favorite drink. On a side note go to the Ice Bar at 270 and watch those guys make Martini's, it is truly something to behold.

 

Cafe at 270 for breakfast

 

The breakfast a 270 was a pleasant surprise; Canadian bacon, egg, and cheese on an english muffin was really good. they also have bacon and egg croissants which are nice for those mornings when you don't want too much. However the breakfast burrito can definitely be missed, it was more like a regular beef burrito, in my mind it didn't read as breakfast.

 

Cafe 270 for lunch

 

Before getting on the ship we had heard the reviews for the roast beef sandwich and it did not disappoint, it was really very good and the horseradish sauce was a nice addition.

 

Michaels Pub

 

The wings at Michaels pub are the second best thing I ate on board for the entirety of the trip, they're so good we had them at least 5 times. They are well worth the $4.00/plate. The onion dip was also very good and highly recommended.

 

Chic

 

Chic is basically Grande but without the dress code, the menu is obviously a bit different but the two restaurants were very similar in the type of foods served, it also has the most comfortable chairs of any of the eateries on board. The food was really very good here, again I don't remember any of the dishes but they were all good.

 

Silk

 

I think this was our second favorite meal combined. The tacos were out of this world good and everything else was awesome. It was also a nice departure from the standard meat, fish, or pasta choices at most of the other venues.

 

The only thing we had issue with here was the seating. If you go to Silk go as a group of four or more otherwise they may seat you at a table that is basically joining with another table of two. The tables are separated but only by maybe a 1/2 inch. It threw us off a bit because you didn't feel like you could have a conversation because there was someone sitting uncomfortably close to you.

 

Izumi

 

Words cannot express how good this meal was, it was by far the best food we had on the boat. If you don't like sushi I guess you may not agree.

 

I don't remember the name of it but my wife and I shared an Ahi tuna salad with a sesame dressing that was the best thing i ate the whole trip. The sushi was expertly made and absolutely amazing. I really wish I was better at describing my feelings after leaving Izumi, I wanted to go back as soon as I left. It is an a la carte menu it wound up costing us a total of $46.00, the quality of the meal probably would have been $150 on land.

 

Devinly Decadence

 

We ate here for lunch and dinner on the same day. This isn't going to say a lot but the burger that I had for lunch was the best burger that I have ever had on a Royal Caribbean ship. Other than that lunch was just regular.

 

For Dinner I had the Enchiladas, they were very good nothing spectacular but again the departure from the norm was definitely welcome.

 

The only rough spot at this restaurant was the service, it was a bit slow but really where was I going?

 

Windjammer

 

The food at the windjammer was better than I ever remember it being on any ship. We ate there twice for dinner and on both nights I had the Mongolian stir fry, it was really very good, they stir fry it in front of you while you wait so it doesn't have that same buffet feel. For lunch they also did a similar thing for fajitas.

 

 

Pizza/Promenade

 

I think the quality of the pizza has gone down a bit, or perhaps my taste has matured. They do allow you to "make your own" but the quality is still not great. They may not have the ovens hot enough, or perhaps they don't let the dough rest long enough either way it wasn't great, but at 1 or 2AM i wasn't really looking for gourmet.

 

The sandwiches at the promenade were pretty good, nothing special, but for a quick snack I wasn't going to complain.

 

Conclusion

 

The food was exceptional, there were a few things that weren't great but they were clearly out weighed by the things that were. The amount of choice and diversity in the different restaurants was really great. I can't imagine a 12 night cruise with only the main dining room and one specialty restaurant.

Edited March 23, 2015 by klitch

[swoopy2110]

Cheers for this .. already looking forward to our Anthem cruise in May just reading this!!

 

It's nice to read a non-whinging review for a change too :)

 

Glad you enjoyed the food

[Bobal]

Cheers for this .. already looking forward to our Anthem cruise in May just reading this!!

 

It's nice to read a non-whinging review for a change too :)

 

Glad you enjoyed the food

 

Totally agree :)

 

Thanks for such a comprehensive review. Can't wait to try it on Anthem and fingers firmly crossed that they introduce DD for our Allure and Oasis cruises later in the year.

 

Now let's hope this thread doesn't get taken over by the 'I don't want to plan my meals ahead of time' 'I'm a picky eater' 'I like to sit with the same people and have the same waiters' brigade :rolleyes:

Edited March 23, 2015 by Bobal

[klitch]

Totally agree :)

 

Thanks for such a comprehensive review. Can't wait to try it on Anthem and fingers firmly crossed that they introduce DD for our Allure and Oasis cruises later in the year.

 

My pleasure, hopefully your experience will be similar to mine, it was really nice to have more than just the two options that are standard aboard most of the the RCI ships.

[denatravels]

Totally agree :)

 

Thanks for such a comprehensive review. Can't wait to try it on Anthem and fingers firmly crossed that they introduce DD for our Allure and Oasis cruises later in the year.

 

Now let's hope this thread doesn't get taken over by the 'I don't want to plan my meals ahead of time' 'I'm a picky eater' 'I like to sit with the same people and have the same waiters' brigade :rolleyes:

 

 

I think that's what DD classic is for-- now I get to eat the way I want on anthem (and I already have dinner reservations for next February!!) and I don't need to hear the complainers because they get the same waiters and the same table! I'm looking forward to the DD system but glad they modified for others.

[VaTech8912]

Agree with OP. The food on our Q trip was great and options varied. Looking forward to booking Anthem soon and doing it as DD. Thanks for making me not feel crazy or alone in my opinions. :D

[Whittyone]

This is just 1 more reason we want to go on a Quantam class ship!

[Merion_Mom]

We were on the March 1st sailing and I thought I would give you all our impressions of the good, the bad, and the ugly about the food.

 

 

Pizza/Promenade

 

I think the quality of the pizza has gone down a bit, or perhaps my taste has matured. They do allow you to "make your own" but the quality is still not great. They may not have the ovens hot enough, or perhaps they don't let the dough rest long enough either way it wasn't great, but at 1 or 2AM i wasn't really looking for gourmet.

 

 

 

 

Down? DOWN??? It must be HORRIBLE and INEDIBLE now, then. I have always thought that RC's pizza was its Achilles heel.

 

:eek:

[PhilNDebbieAtSea]

Great review!! We enjoyed every meal!!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[crazymoosedog]

Thought that Jaimies was pretty good both times we ate there. Agreed, Chops was top shelf, same quality as on the Oasis. We went to Cafe 270 just to get away from the herds for a while during breakfast. Have no complaints about DD, we did our reservations back in Sept. Not too many misses with any eatery, except for an overcooked filet at Chic, and soggy lettuce wraps at Silk. Loved the fresh baked cookies every day at Windjammer, very popular spot, indeed. Plenty of options food wise, even on the 12 day cruise. Note: the menu at the included restaurants was adjusted slightly @ halfway thru the trip ,so you get some different choices...

Edited March 24, 2015 by crazymoosedog

[ISABELLA]

I hope we will have just as good on Anthem - looking forward to it.

[kezz]

Great honest chat about food.

 

Hope lessons have been learnt for the Antham.

 

Looking forward to all those restaurants.

 

Silk seating is a worry. Prefer to be on our own, not sat next to someone.

 

Thanks

 

Kezz

Edited March 26, 2015 by kezz

[dst87]

Thanks for the review! I'm really intrigued by the food on Anthem, as it's the bit I'm most concerned about after my first RCI cruise on Splendour.

 

Food is such a personal thing, but I though the MDR experience on Splendour was poor compared to the food I'd eat at home/in restaurants. Chops Grill was quite good, but Izumi on Splendour was awful - the worst sushi I've ever had! And the dogs at the Boardwalk Doghouse on Splendour were try and buns stale and chewy!

 

It seems like they're making an effort with Quantum though, so I'm SUPER excited to try it. Wonderland sounds very much to my taste, but I love all sorts so very very excited. I can't wait to try all of these venues on this amazing, shiny, tech-haven of a ship!! :D

[crazymoosedog]

Thanks for the review! I'm really intrigued by the food on Anthem, as it's the bit I'm most concerned about after my first RCI cruise on Splendour.

 

Food is such a personal thing, but I though the MDR experience on Splendour was poor compared to the food I'd eat at home/in restaurants. Chops Grill was quite good, but Izumi on Splendour was awful - the worst sushi I've ever had! And the dogs at the Boardwalk Doghouse on Splendour were try and buns stale and chewy!

 

It seems like they're making an effort with Quantum though, so I'm SUPER excited to try it. Wonderland sounds very much to my taste, but I love all sorts so very very excited. I can't wait to try all of these venues on this amazing, shiny, tech-haven of a ship!! :D

 

If you haven't already, book your restaurants as soon as you can . There were separate lines for reserved and non reserved at some of the eateries, with the non reserved being quite long some times. We booked ours @ 5 months in advance, just to be on the safe side. Enjoy the ship ! We sure did...

[K1200S]

I was on the same sailing as the OP and my feelings of the dining are not the same. We ate in the four complimentary restaurants plus Chops and Jamie's Italian. The two best dinners were in Chops and Jamie's Italian but that was to be expected. The food in the four complimentary dining rooms was not bad but we found the service to be slow, the food was barely warm, and the variety was not there for a 12 day cruise.

[klitch]

the variety was not there for a 12 day cruise.

 

Would you say you had more or less variety than you would have had on a standard RCL ship with only the Main Dining Room and one specialty restaurant?

[K1200S]

Would you say you had more or less variety than you would have had on a standard RCL ship with only the Main Dining Room and one specialty restaurant?

 

 

Less variety. A friend who went with said he never thought he would say he was tired of filet of beef. My DW has never had so many crab cakes due to lack of choice.

[dst87]

Less variety. A friend who went with said he never thought he would say he was tired of filet of beef. My DW has never had so many crab cakes due to lack of choice.

 

I don't get that though... are they especially fussy eaters?

 

I mean there are so many restaurants catering for evening meals, even EXCLUDING the buffet, chefs table, and suite-only Coastal Kitchen. And each of those venues has several items on the menu.

 

I'm going for 2 weeks and I'm worried I won't get to try everything I want!

[K1200S]

I don't get that though... are they especially fussy eaters?

 

 

 

I mean there are so many restaurants catering for evening meals, even EXCLUDING the buffet, chefs table, and suite-only Coastal Kitchen. And each of those venues has several items on the menu.

 

 

 

I'm going for 2 weeks and I'm worried I won't get to try everything I want!

 

 

I don't eat seafood so that eliminated a good portion of the menu in each of the four complimentary restaurants for me. I would not call my DW or our friends fussy/picky eaters. Of the 20+ cruises I have been on this is the first where I did not gain weight. One thing we look forward to are the chilled fruit soups but we did find them on any menu.

[klitch]

Less variety. A friend who went with said he never thought he would say he was tired of filet of beef. My DW has never had so many crab cakes due to lack of choice.

 

I don't understand that, not even a little. I guess you really can't please everyone. There has never been more variety of food on an RCI ship. You may not have liked the variety they offered but to deny that this ship has more of a variety than, for example, Explorer of the Seas is you just going through life with blinders.

 

You made up your mind and cannot see that you could be wrong.

[klitch]

 

I'm going for 2 weeks and I'm worried I won't get to try everything I want!

 

Exactly what we thought, in the end the problem was how were we going to eat our favorites more than once!

[K1200S]

I don't understand that, not even a little. I guess you really can't please everyone. There has never been more variety of food on an RCI ship. You may not have liked the variety they offered but to deny that this ship has more of a variety than, for example, Explorer of the Seas is you just going through life with blinders.

 

You made up your mind and cannot see that you could be wrong.

 

Let me define variety for you as I see it. Lots of choices of things one would eat. If a lot of the menu are things one would not eat then the variety is less.

I guess for those that will eat anything the variety isn't bad.

 

How am I wring in how I view it? It is my opinion after all.

[klitch]

Let me define variety for you as I see it. Lots of choices of things one would eat. If a lot of the menu are things one would not eat then the variety is less.

I guess for those that will eat anything the variety isn't bad.

 

How am I wring in how I view it? It is my opinion after all.

 

Because objectively there are more choices on this ship than most if not all RCI ships. I understand what you mean by your own tastes but it would be hard to argue that 2-3 restaurants have more variety than 9.

 

I'll also add that I was on a 12 day sailing and the menus changed on day 7, not sure if your sailing did the same or not.

[K1200S]

Because objectively there are more choices on this ship than most if not all RCI ships. I understand what you mean by your own tastes but it would be hard to argue that 2-3 restaurants have more variety than 9.

 

I'll also add that I was on a 12 day sailing and the menus changed on day 7, not sure if your sailing did the same or not.

 

 

We were on the same sailing. While the men's did change on day 7 it wasn't much of a change for example in Silk one entrée was removed and one added. There may have been other minor changes but it most certainly was not a whole new menu. Suffice it to say your experience was different from mine.

[TrojanUSC]

I'm on the ship now and I have to say that all the speciality and free venues surpass Oasis so far.

 

Having said that, the Windjammer is one of the worst dining experiences I've ever had, anywhere. The food is passable and in some cases better than any of the other RCI ships. However, it is so poorly managed in so many ways that just the thought of visiting stresses me out. They put mirror images of the less popular stations, while the most popular, which have lines all day long (hamburgers, hot dogs, etc), are cramped in a tiny corner without a mirror version. Lining up thirty people deep for a hamburger is not a recipe for a good buffet.

 

Employees are passive at best, outright rude at worst. The salad bar today was out of croutons, ranch, broccoli and nearly 2/3 of the items. Asking the man behind the counter manning the station if he could put out some more ranch, he passively directed me to the other salad bar area. Alas that station was also out of ranch. So I marched back to the original station and asked that guy if he could find more ranch (and croutons), since both stations were now out. He just said "sorry, sir" in the world's most condescending manner and continued leaning on the counter. No effort was made. As I was doing this, people from the other station came over to find ranch, as the guy at the other counter, who was also doing zero work, was directing people over to the alternate location. It was pandemonium and nobody was pleased. Why nobody could be bothered to get up and get more of what was out is beyond me. At least make it seem like you're on top of it.

 

Instead of having a few areas (I think Oasis has four) for soft drinks, they have ONE, unless you have your Freestyle cup, which I didn't happen to bring. When I asked the man where I could have a soda, he told me I couldn't get one without my cup. I told him this was inaccurate as I'd seen several people with soft drinks he argued for a bit and ultimately said "it's around here somewhere then." Great thanks for that insight, sir. I eventually found that soft drinks are served behind the single bar in the restaurant, so my simple Diet Coke request is behind seven people waiting for complicated alcoholic/frozen beverages. For no apparent reason, they didn't add soda guns to the other non-alcoholic beverage stations as every other ship has.

 

Bar service is another nightmare. Wholly understaffed bars are being attended to by bartenders without any sense of urgency. Tonight I spent literally fifteen minutes at a bar that had maybe 8 people waiting and a team of four working behind it. In no world should it take that long. After waiting, I saw two waiters standing around doing nothing. Perhaps they should have made an effort to approach the people waiting and see if they could perhaps help out.

 

Seems like most of the employees on this boat are utterly over their jobs and either biding their time until the contract is up or until the "real" guests arrive (aka Asian tourists).