Ranking the Specialty Restaurants on Riviera

[Nymich]

Based on your past experiences I am very curious to hear how you would rank the Specialty Restaurants 1 thru 4 and why?   Looking forward to reading these!

[1985rz1]

Ranking the restaurants on Oceania ships is a very subjective exercise since they are all excellent and ranking would be mostly be an indication of cuisine preferences.  Here's a link to the recent discussion on the topic for the Marina and you can see everyone has their favorites based on their culinary preferences.

 

In the end, it all comes down to your own tastes and cuisine preferences.  All are (normally) excellent.  But if you crave Italian, Toscana won't disappoint you.  If you are seeking out French bistro or brassiere dishes, then Jacques is the place.  If you want Asian Fusion, try Red Ginger, but if your tastes tend towards steakhouse fare, by all means head for Polo. 

Edited July 3, 2019 by 1985rz1

[Flatbush Flyer]

26 minutes ago, Nymich said:

Based on your past experiences I am very curious to hear how you would rank the Specialty Restaurants 1 thru 4 and why?   Looking forward to reading these!

IMO, that would be a somewhat useless exercise. Each restaurant has its pros and cons AND each features unrelated specialty dishes (e.g., aragosta fra diavolo in Toscana, spicy duck and watermelon salad in Red Ginger, etc).

 

Rather than "ranking" them, how about "which would you book more often" (and why)?

Polo Grill would be at the bottom of my list since we can get prime meats and seafood at home and easily duplicate most of the recipes. Also, there are great steak joints everywhere (just ate at FX Buckley in Dublin).

At the other extreme, I might put Jacques at the top of the list, if only because it's only available on the "O" class ships. (BTW, Sirena has Red Ginger due to combining Polo and Toscana as "Tuscan Steak."

[1985rz1]

You might want to look at the video in this thread: 

It's long but shows a vast array of the dishes in each venue.

[Nymich]

8 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

IMO, that would be a somewhat useless exercise. Each restaurant has its pros and cons AND each features unrelated specialty dishes (e.g., aragosta fra diavolo in Toscana, spicy duck and watermelon salad in Red Ginger, etc).

 

Rather than "ranking" them, how about "which would you book more often" (and why)?

Polo Grill would be at the bottom of my list since we can get prime meats and seafood at home and easily duplicate most of the recipes. Also, there are great steak joints everywhere (just ate at FX Buckley in Dublin).

At the other extreme, I might put Jacques at the top of the list, if only because it's only available on the "O" class ships. (BTW, Sirena has Red Ginger due to combining Polo and Toscana as "Tuscan Steak."

Fair enough we can skip the "useless exercise" and do it your way.  I appreciate the feedback!

[clo]

3 hours ago, Nymich said:

Fair enough we can skip the "useless exercise" and do it your way.  I appreciate the feedback!

You can look at the sample menus on their site and get a sense of what appeals to you.

[Mura]

Back to the original question, we haven't found much difference in any of the specialty restaurants on ANY of the ships.

 

Yes, the "O" ships have four, the "R" ships only have two.  But we haven't found that, say, Jacques varies from Marina to Riviera, or that Polo varies from any of the "R" ships -- assuming Polo still exists and isn't Tuscan Steak ...

 

Mura

[CintiPam]

I’ll play and offer my ranking opinion.  I enjoy the food in all so mainly rank by my view of the atmosphere and service.

 

1.  Red Ginger:  wonderful relaxing atmosphere and diverse interesting food.  And yes, I enjoy the little touches like the hot towel, chopstick choice and tea menu.  In general, we have the best service there.  That duck and watermelon salad is so good.  The entree dishes seem to change the most on this restaurant’s menu every year.  (We average one Oceania cruise per year.)

 

2.  Polo:  we always go our last night onboard.  On Marina in May, we were given the center aft table and viewed our glorious passage from Amalfi past Capri and on north.  Spouse enjoys the steak.  Also reliably excellent service.

 

3.  Jacques:  the most popular I believe but I find the space noisy with too low ceilings.  Food is excellent but the wait staff varies too widely in their training IMO leading to a frenetic impression often.  

 

4.  Toscana:  I originally am from

NJ; our children and grandchildren all live there now; and we have spent a lot of time eating on land in Italy these past few years.  The food simply does not approach those standards close enough IMO.  I also find the oil and vinegar choices overpretentious although definitely less pretentious than in the past.  

 

 

[keithm]

6 hours ago, Nymich said:

Based on your past experiences I am very curious to hear how you would rank the Specialty Restaurants 1 thru 4 and why?   Looking forward to reading these!

Always subject to debate! We're in the food industry & purchase several million $ of food product a year for our catering co. So I like to feel a bit more an expert than the average diner. So as L.W. would say: "On with tha showum" (10 points to who gets that!)

1) La Reserve. Love the food & the wine along with the camaraderie of the guests. Recommend the Le Bourgeoisie dinner course above the rest.

2) Jacques. The French Cuisine  is just outstanding as is the ambience of the rest. Really recommend the Sea Bass in Puff Pastry.

3) Red Ginger. My spouse is Chinese & we love the various Asian dishes offered Recommend the Miso Sea Bass.

4) Toscana. Pretty much anything here is a hit. I like the Dover Sole here a bit more than in Jacques.

5) Polo Grill. Obviously the best steak on board(though Toscana is fine, too) The Lobster here is excellent as well.

[Nymich]

4 minutes ago, keithm said:

4 minutes ago, keithm said:

Always subject to debate! We're in the food industry & purchase several million $ of food product a year for our catering co. So I like to feel a bit more an expert than the average diner. So as L.W. would say: "On with tha showum" (10 points to who gets that!)

1) La Reserve. Love the food & the wine along with the camaraderie of the guests. Recommend the Le Bourgeoisie dinner course above the rest.

2) Jacques. The French Cuisine  is just outstanding as is the ambience of the rest. Really recommend the Sea Bass in Puff Pastry.

3) Red Ginger. My spouse is Chinese & we love the various Asian dishes offered Recommend the Miso Sea Bass.

4) Toscana. Pretty much anything here is a hit. I like the Dover Sole here a bit more than in Jacques.

5) Polo Grill. Obviously the best steak on board(though Toscana is fine, too) The Lobster here is excellent as well.

Thanks for the great info!   I will take a shot at the ten points (no I did not google this).   Is it Ed Sullivan?

 

[keithm]

3 minutes ago, Nymich said:

 

 

4 minutes ago, Nymich said:

 

No, not Ed Sullivan. Look at the initials LW. Time frame was correct though.

[clo]

39 minutes ago, CintiPam said:

4.  Toscana:

They are house made pasta, right?

 

And re the oil and vinegars, I'm really 'into' cooking and will love that.  But I can understand that many would think it's pretentious.  Do they sell them also

Edited July 4, 2019 by clo

[Nymich]

11 minutes ago, keithm said:

 

No, not Ed Sullivan. Look at the initials LW. Time frame was correct though.

must be Lawrence Welk.

[pinotlover]

Re the lobster: while Toscana has normally  done a good job , our unfortunate experience has been that the Polo Grill to often grotesquely overcooks their lobster. 

 

We hate over cooked anything, particularly seafood!

[CintiPam]

9 minutes ago, clo said:

They are house made pasta, right?

 

And re the oil and vinegars, I'm really 'into' cooking and will love that.  But I can understand that many would think it's pretentious.  Do they sell them also

Not all of the pastas are house made, just a few of them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[clo]

1 minute ago, CintiPam said:

Not all of the pastas are house made, just a few of them.

 

I'm guessing the 'tubular' ones are house made and the things like linguini are. ?  Toscana first appealed to me quite a bit, really doesn't now.  Jacques is one I want to go to twice and have all apps.

[CintiPam]

3 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Re the lobster: while Toscana has normally  done a good job , our unfortunate experience has been that the Polo Grill to often grotesquely overcooks their lobster. 

 

We hate over cooked anything, particularly seafood!

Lobster at Red Ginger and Jacques both excellent.  I also really enjoy my “double lobster, no steak, no bun” at Waves Grill for lunch!

[CintiPam]

2 minutes ago, clo said:

I'm guessing the 'tubular' ones are house made and the things like linguini are. ?  Toscana first appealed to me quite a bit, really doesn't now.  Jacques is one I want to go to twice and have all apps.

Not sure but I always ask my server which ones are made in-house before I place my order.

[clo]

4 minutes ago, CintiPam said:

lobster,

I've thought about taking a tail back to our cabin and having a lunch of that and some other goodies.  Would that be frowned upon?   I would be discrete.

[CintiPam]

8 minutes ago, clo said:

I've thought about taking a tail back to our cabin and having a lunch of that and some other goodies.  Would that be frowned upon?   I would be discrete.

It comes in pieces at Waves Grill but in lovely large grilled tails at the Terrace Cafe dinner buffet.  My spouse does not eat seafood so “someone I know well” has been know to go to the Terrace Cafe for an appetizer plate of grilled shrimp and lobster tails and then meet her spouse for dinner in the Grand Dining Room.  (I personally do not enjoy eating in my cabin but to each her own!)

Edited July 4, 2019 by CintiPam

[keithm]

8 hours ago, Nymich said:

must be Lawrence Welk.

Yup.

[minirottie]

I look forward to the oil and vinegars in Toscana, on each cruise...are they still doing it in Tuscan Steak? We're sailing Sirena in November..

 

I tend to prefer Toscana and Polo, as it hits the staples that I like. We did not do Red Ginger our last cruise as my mom isn't a fan, but since Sirena is limited on specialities, will likely make a reservation there on our upcoming cruise. Jacques was good when we were last there, but found the service a bit lacking.

[RJB]

19 hours ago, CintiPam said:

Lobster at Red Ginger and Jacques both excellent.  I also really enjoy my “double lobster, no steak, no bun” at Waves Grill for lunch!

+1      Plus sometimes a burger.  

[Hawaiidan]

19 hours ago, RJB said:

+1      Plus sometimes a burger.  

The burger,  no cheese, grilled onions   and mayo... nothing else  done on the rare side but with a crust.  Best.....

[cruzzzinma]

Salmon burger! No bun...