What I ate on NCL Getaway 10/14 Eastern Caribbean

[ludicrous_speed]

My first entree was the Mediterranean Sirloin Beef Brochette. This was ok to me. It was better with the charred lemon squeezed on it. My adult nephew and wife loved it- it was a big hit for them. I thought it lacked flavor.

[ludicrous_speed]

My second entree was the Hawaiian Pork belly with Sweet Soy Drizzle. I though this was presented well and I loved the flavors. It was on smashed yams and had a pineapple slaw on the side. The pork belly was charred wonderfully- I loved the crisp edges and the soft delicate fat layer. The glaze was delicious and it mixed well with the yams.

 

This entree won for me tonight!

[ludicrous_speed]

Dessert number one was the Espresso Cake. I really liked the presentation and it was very rich. The chocolate ganache was really good and the cake was moist! It was a small portion- but just the right size! It hit the spot.

[ludicrous_speed]

Dessert number two was Carrot Cake. I didn't give it enough attention because I like the Espresso Cake so much. I kinda remember it being dry but my wife ate it for me and she said it was good.

[ludicrous_speed]

Day Five- Tortola.

 

Again- I skipped breakfast as we had a 7:15 am excursion. We took the early Rebel Yell Catamaran to Jost Van Dyke.

 

This was the best beach we have ever been to. It was like a postcard.

 

Downside- no options for food once you arrive. Soggy Dollar is open but they were just serving drinks. They did have some chips available. They have a lunch menu that starts at 11 am but that was 3 hours away. Lucky for us, two ladies overheard us and said they were staying on the island and pointed us in the direction of The Perfect Pineapple. They said a lady sold breakfast sandwiches till 9 am. It was maybe an 1/8 of a mile back up the road from Soggy. It was a small home. The family was welcoming and cooked us up some breakfast sandwiches for $10 each (ouch!) But they were good. I took a picture with my wife's phone and I'll add it to this later.

 

Here are a few pics of White Bay in Jost Van Dyke. We want to get back here for a few days. A half day was not enough. 

[ludicrous_speed]

Dinner- Day Five- Tropicana

 

My first appetizer was the Stuffed Mushroom Caps. Shallots, Garlic, Walnuts, Breadcrumbs, Manchego Cheese.

 

I'm a fan of stuffed mushrooms and I thought there were pretty good!

[ludicrous_speed]

Appetizer Number Two- Lime & Dill Shrimp with Fingerling Potatoes

 

This was a nice surprise! It had a light delicate dill flavor. It was served chilled. The potatoes and shrimp were tender. I liked the presentation as well.

[ludicrous_speed]

I used my limits and went for a soup in addition to the two appetizers.

 

Sweet Yellow Corn & Chili Bisque

 

It was topped with a bit of jack cheese and a jalapeño slice. Think spicy corn chowder. I liked it. My boys ordered it as well and seemed to enjoy it.

[ludicrous_speed]

Entree Number One

 

Cajun Spiced Shrimp & Bacon. Server on Cheddar Corn Grits with peppers. Nice presentation! The bacon wrapped shrimp were tasty! I did not detect any cajun spices though. The grits were....grits. The only time I really enjoyed grits was in New Orleans.

[ludicrous_speed]

Entree Number Two

 

Potato Gnocchi

 

Served in a pesto cream sauce with sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts. I enjoyed it- the Gnocchi were tender but had a little "tooth" to them. The sauce was good- I'm a fan of pesto. The sun dried tomatoes gave a little sharp tangy kick to the dish. I liked this more than the shrimp entree.

[brookie848]

The lack of food was something that we didn't like about the Soggy Dollar. Like you, we took the early excursion and wanted some food (even though we ate breakfast). Thanks for the tip about the egg sandwiches. We're taking the same excursion for the second time when we cruise in February.

[UBP....YES!!!!]

Hello Ludicrous_Speed,

I’m really enjoying your food/ photos review.

I will be on the Getaway in September. I will be in the Haven, but plan to eat in the MDR’s occasionally. What is the white sauce on the lobster roll. Have wanted to try one on my last three NCL cruises, but never got around to it.

Looking  forward to reading about your last few days of eating 😳

Thanks, Brian

[chloemonkey]

10 hours ago, ludicrous_speed said:

I skipped breakfast on day 4. My wife and kids ran up to the buffet to eat a little before we left for our excursion.

 

We spent a few hours at Magens Bay. We walked just outside of the security fence and asked one of the transportation gentlemen for transportation. Since there were 8 of us, the pricing was $8.00 per person each way. (under 8 people- $10 per person). We had our own van and there ride took about 20 min. The drive up and over the ridge/mountain was beautiful.

 

Once we arrived, we paid an entrance fee of $5 per person. 12 and under are free. Our driver gave us his phone number to call him when we were ready to return. We offered to pay for the first half of our trip but he said it was not necessary and he would collect on the return.

 

The bay was beautiful. It was clean and they had a few bathroom facilities. They also have a concession stand and a bar. Chairs and umbrellas are available to rent and they require a deposit- bring cash. The concession stand and bar accept credit card but have a minimum purchase- I believe it was $15 at the bar and $10 and the concession stand. drinks and food were a little pricy as they are the only option available.

 

Here are a few pictures of the beach/bay.

 

You must have gotten there early as when we got there, it was PACKED!  Also had off and on rain showers......

[chloemonkey]

5 hours ago, ludicrous_speed said:

Day Five- Tortola.

 

Again- I skipped breakfast as we had a 7:15 am excursion. We took the early Rebel Yell Catamaran to Jost Van Dyke.

 

This was the best beach we have ever been to. It was like a postcard.

 

Downside- no options for food once you arrive. Soggy Dollar is open but they were just serving drinks. They did have some chips available. They have a lunch menu that starts at 11 am but that was 3 hours away. Lucky for us, two ladies overheard us and said they were staying on the island and pointed us in the direction of The Perfect Pineapple. They said a lady sold breakfast sandwiches till 9 am. It was maybe an 1/8 of a mile back up the road from Soggy. It was a small home. The family was welcoming and cooked us up some breakfast sandwiches for $10 each (ouch!) But they were good. I took a picture with my wife's phone and I'll add it to this later.

 

Here are a few pics of White Bay in Jost Van Dyke. We want to get back here for a few days. A half day was not enough. 

We were on the later Jost Van Dyke excursion and walked a bit farther down the beach...think  it is called Gertrudes?  MUCH more quiet, and they DID have food.  The chicken was yummy...as were the Pina Coladas.  This if our 4th. trip to Jost on the Rebel Yell and it is our favorite beach in the world!  We were also on the cruise the week previous and were disappointed as due to the hurricane we missed Harvest Caye....and I had worked SO hard to secure a beach cabana!  But all in all it was a great two weeks!  Your photos def brought back memories!  Although we ate in the regular dining room only twice as we LOVE the Haven restaurant.  I am going through withdrawals and already planning the next cruise!

[Itchy&Scratchy]

16 hours ago, ludicrous_speed said:

Entree Number Two

 

Potato Gnocchi

 

Served in a pesto cream sauce with sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts. I enjoyed it- the Gnocchi were tender but had a little "tooth" to them. The sauce was good- I'm a fan of pesto. The sun dried tomatoes gave a little sharp tangy kick to the dish. I liked this more than the shrimp entree.

 

Hubby would love that! He usually gets 2-3 helpings of Gnocchi on cruises.

Edited October 26, 2018 by Itchy&Scratchy

[ludicrous_speed]

19 hours ago, brookie848 said:

The lack of food was something that we didn't like about the Soggy Dollar. Like you, we took the early excursion and wanted some food (even though we ate breakfast). Thanks for the tip about the egg sandwiches. We're taking the same excursion for the second time when we cruise in February.

Certainly! Glad I could help. I'm jealous- have a drink for me in Feb!!

[ludicrous_speed]

18 hours ago, UBP....YES!!!! said:

Hello Ludicrous_Speed,

I’m really enjoying your food/ photos review.

I will be on the Getaway in September. I will be in the Haven, but plan to eat in the MDR’s occasionally. What is the white sauce on the lobster roll. Have wanted to try one on my last three NCL cruises, but never got around to it.

Looking  forward to reading about your last few days of eating 😳

Thanks, Brian

Glad you are enjoying! They list the sauce as a sweet mustard sauce. I didn't get that out of it but there was a lot of flavors happening. Seemed to be mayo based- I tasted garlic but that could've been on the bread. I highly recommend the roll. 

[peacefulOR]

18 minutes ago, ludicrous_speed said:

Thank you peacefulOR!

You are most welcome. We will be back on the Getaway for an April TA and are really enjoying your photos and commentary! Now I know to get a lobster roll early in the cruise (just in case I want to repeat, lol), try some of your other recommendations and ignore a couple that you said were "meh". Love your sense of humor and generosity in spending the time and effort to do the most entertaining  and honest food review I've read on CC.

We eat very healthy, Mediterranean style meals at home and see cruises as our annual vacation from so much food prep and enjoying a few "treats" across the board. We are fortunate in the US that we have such a huge variety of foods available for every taste, pocketbook, and the freedom to choose how we spend our calories.  I do hope you have more to contribute on this thread; it's fun and informative!

[ludicrous_speed]

Dessert Number one tonight was the Fig and Apple Cobbler. I like apple cobbler and most of my experience with figs is in the form of Fig Newtons- which I love. I never thought about mixing apple and fig and it seemed so simple. I really liked this and I'm thinking about how to create this at home in the coming cold winter months. I'll probably end up dipping Fig Newtons in Apple Cobbler.

[ludicrous_speed]

Dessert Number Two tonight was the Flourless Chocolate Cake. Go take a look at the picture....................

 

It looked like my kids sucked the chocolate and caramel off a Twix Bar. Someone in the kitchen put those on a plate and said "I'm gonna angle them a little off center here annnnd......perfect! Nothing else needed!"

 

I don't know how they tasted. 

[ludicrous_speed]

I forgot to mention earlier in the day, as we were departing Tortola, my son and I were walking along the Waterfront on Deck 8. We saw a line forming so we assumed food was at the end. We were at the Gelato Bar. My son ordered Banana and I went with Lime Sorbet. They were one scoop and I think about $2.50? The Banana was really good- I usually avoid things that I assume have artificial banana flavor- that banana taffy flavor. This had a mellow fresh banana taste to me. My Lime Sorbet was good. Here in the St. Louis area we have "Steak n Shake". I'm not sure how far they reach but I don't recall seeing them in the west, northeast, or deep south so I assume it is more of a Midwest thing (correct me if I'm wrong). Steak n Shake used to have a Lime Freeze that I was crazy about as a kid. I'm still in search of a substitute for that Lime Freeze so I get a "Lime Whatever" whenever I can.

 

Also- If you have never been to Steak n Shake and you come across one, get a double or triple burger with whatever topping you like, some thin crispy fries, a cup of chili, and a shake of your favorite flavor. 

[ludicrous_speed]

Day Six- Breakfast- The Buffet

 

So this was out of the ordinary for us as we typically eat in the main dining room for breakfast. My wife and I were up early and just finished coffee of the Waterfront.

 

Let me switch gears for a minute. If you like to get up early and go outside and enjoy coffee, they set up stations near The Sunset Bar (outside) and by Sugarcane (outside). Lots of places to sit and relax, enjoy the ocean, and have a cup of coffee while the rest of the ship starts to wake up. 

 

Our kids decided they wanted to sleep in and my wife and I decided to walk up to the buffet to take a look. We decided to give it a try- everything looks fresh and delicious.

 

This is a picture of my plate. The second picture is also my plate but we wanted to remember the view and the mimosa. Clockwise from the top:

 

Belgian Waffle with caramel/banana sauce: looked awesome! The sauce was gritty and the banana was the dried banana chips (which now took on a chewy texture as they soaked in the sauce) Total bummer.

 

French Toast: I was impressed with how it looked. Was let down when I poured the syrup out of the container- it was so light colored I thought I accidentally picked up Karo. 

 

Ham: tasted great!

 

Corned Beef Hash: Tasted fine. My wife made fun of my selection.

 

Chorizo Benedict: Interesting mix- I liked it! Eggs were cooked perfect!

 

Traditional Eggs Benedict: Great- perfect eggs again. Impressive for a buffet!

 

Bacon: I have nothing bad to say about bacon. 

 

 

[ludicrous_speed]

For months I followed Getaway reviews and found a pretty consistent complaint about how little seating is available at the buffet at meal times. I didn't spend that much time there but for what its worth, I took this picture at 7:45 am.

[ludicrous_speed]

Day Six- Lunch- O'Sheehan's.

 

The four of us decided to eat lunch n the pub. We ordered Spinach Dip as an appetizer to share. It tasted similar to what you would find at a casual chain restaurant. The chips tasted fresh again.

[ludicrous_speed]

I ordered a bowl of clam chowder. I love clam chowder. It was ok.

 

West of St. Louis on I-70 near the Missouri River was "Noah's Ark". It was a huge ark/restaurant. It's long gone but they had awesome clam chowder. I've seen copycat versions of their chowder and for a quick fix at home I use that suggestion.

 

A couple years ago I had the Clam Chowder on the Queen Mary in Long Beach (prior to a Carnival Cruise) and it was really good.