Complimentary Steak Option in the MDR?

[DrSea]

Does anyone who has sailed with RCI after the restart know if there is a complimentary steak option in the MDR?

 

If so, can I order more than one portion per sitting without any extra charges?

 

Please let me know. Thanks for your help.

[Auntiemomo]

7 minutes ago, DrSea said:

Does anyone who has sailed with RCI after the restart know if there is a complimentary steak option in the MDR?

 

If so, can I order more than one portion per sitting without any extra charges?

 

Please let me know. Thanks for your help.

Yes, it's an everyday strip steak along with a salmon on the evening MDR menu.  Order as many as you would like.

[DrSea]

7 minutes ago, Auntiemomo said:

Yes, it's an everyday strip steak along with a salmon on the evening MDR menu.  Order as many as you would like.

Thank you for letting me know kind sir

[firefly333]

How is this steak?  The one on carnival for MDR was too tough for me. I couldnt eat it. Boarding rcl in a week and hope rcl is better, but I'm not a big beef eater. Picky. Has to be tender or I wouldnt eat it.

[PhillyFan33579]

16 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

How is this steak?  The one on carnival for MDR was too tough for me. I couldnt eat it. Boarding rcl in a week and hope rcl is better, but I'm not a big beef eater. Picky. Has to be tender or I wouldnt eat it.

 
On various ships the steak has ranged from very good to average in my opinion. On most ships it has been very good but when we were on Adventure this Summer the steak was average at best. On subsequent cruises this Fall I thought the steak was very good so maybe my experience on Adventure was due to it being one of the first cruises on the ship. Keep in mind it’s not as good as steaks in the steak house, but I think most people understand that.  

[PiperHolliday]

1 hour ago, firefly333 said:

How is this steak?  The one on carnival for MDR was too tough for me. I couldnt eat it. Boarding rcl in a week and hope rcl is better, but I'm not a big beef eater. Picky. Has to be tender or I wouldnt eat it.

 

To be fair, one of the worst steaks I've had in over a decade was at the specialty steakhouse onboard Carnival. It was the lowest quality "Wagyu" I've ever tasted. Skirt steak would have been better. Royal does much better with food. 

[firefly333]

21 minutes ago, PiperHolliday said:

 

To be fair, one of the worst steaks I've had in over a decade was at the specialty steakhouse onboard Carnival. It was the lowest quality "Wagyu" I've ever tasted. Skirt steak would have been better. Royal does much better with food. 

I've read other bad reviews about the wagyu. I had the surf and turk twice with the filet and liked it. 

 

 Never heard anything good about the wagyu in carnival steakhouse so I knew not to order it. Stick to the filet. 

[bmblob]

The steak is a New York or Top Sirloin cut which is generally on the tougher side (than ribeye or filet mignon) but can be ordered as you wish.  I always order mine more rare than medium rare and they turn out generally more medium anyway (as in this picture from Adventure OTS in October 2019 - Snowbird Migration).  The MDR steaks are still line-produced and sit under the warming lamps waiting to be picked up regardless of how you might order it.

 

I have actually had better mixed luck with the Windjammer since sometimes in the past the grill is making steaks to order.  The cuts are thinner but an attentive short order chef sometimes gets it right and it is more to my liking.

 

Chops, of course, is supposed to be individually prepared with prime beef cuts and usually quite good if not great.  

[firefly333]

I've had steak in the Windjammer pre covid and it wasnt bad. Not top notch but edible. Small which is good as I dont want a large steak. One of the things about rcl i liked was dinner in the WJ with a small steak. 

 

Another week to board and then I'll know for myself after covid.

[LGW59]

1 hour ago, PiperHolliday said:

 

To be fair, one of the worst steaks I've had in over a decade was at the specialty steakhouse onboard Carnival. It was the lowest quality "Wagyu" I've ever tasted. Skirt steak would have been better. Royal does much better with food. 

It’s Carnival, seriously what would one expect.  Only sailed them once, one and done, almost everything I ate was barely edible 

[PiperHolliday]

5 hours ago, LGW59 said:

It’s Carnival, seriously what would one expect.  Only sailed them once, one and done, almost everything I ate was barely edible 

 

It wasn't my choice, unfortunately. I spent the whole cruise saying, "well...it's Carnival...". Fortunately, the pricepoint reflected the product at less than $200 for the week. 

 

Honestly, Royal isn't one I go for very often, either. They aren't my favorite but they end up having some pretty cheap fares compared to the quality they offer and I cruise based on itinerary and date more than anything else so it winds up in the rotation. Carnival, however, is never in that rotation after trying them once. 

[PiperHolliday]

6 hours ago, firefly333 said:

I've read other bad reviews about the wagyu. I had the surf and turk twice with the filet and liked it. 

 

 Never heard anything good about the wagyu in carnival steakhouse so I knew not to order it. Stick to the filet. 

 

They replaced it with the filet, which was edible but overdone. I really don't cruise for the food, though. It usually lets me down. I live in one of the greatest food cities in the world and do land-based trips around the world on a regular basis sometimes for the cuisine alone. Cruise ships just can't offer what I'm used to. I just accept that and still enjoy my cruise. 

Edited December 5, 2021 by PiperHolliday

[DrSea]

If we do dine my way, is it possible for them to sit us with people that we haven't met yet? One of my guests wants to meet different people but also wants to decide what time to eat in case something fun comes up.

[bonsai3s]

New York Strip steak available every night in the MDR.

 

There's also usually a meat dish each night...prime rib, steak diane, beef tenderloin, rack of lamb, braised short ribs...yes, you can have as much as you'd like.

[flamingos]

I'll second the Windjammer Grill - if you get there at the right time, they have nice slices that you can get rare or medium rare.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

 

Our waiter told me that Steak Diane was the same NY strip steak which is available every day, but had a different cognac-mushroom sauce. I ordered it medium, it was medium and it was ok. I am definitely more of a ribeye person and definitely less of a cognac-mushroom sauce person. I think it the sauce that I didn't like the most.

I like the Outlaw Ribeye at Longhorn as a point of reference. Without any sauce.

[loman]

I usually dont order  the steak in the main dining room as there is always something else that interests me more . I expect that it wont be the best steak i ever had so i avoid it.

[AtSeaWithChris]

20 hours ago, PiperHolliday said:

 

To be fair, one of the worst steaks I've had in over a decade was at the specialty steakhouse onboard Carnival. It was the lowest quality "Wagyu" I've ever tasted. Skirt steak would have been better. Royal does much better with food. 

I got the Wagyu steak at Mardi Gras steakhouse and sent it back. They fixed me a filet and it was delicious. It was very tough. The Wagyu cut of meat is the flank cut. Worse than the MDR option for free which is also flank. 

[SKSMIKE5]

On 12/4/2021 at 9:09 PM, firefly333 said:

How is this steak?  The one on carnival for MDR was too tough for me. I couldnt eat it. Boarding rcl in a week and hope rcl is better, but I'm not a big beef eater. Picky. Has to be tender or I wouldnt eat it.

Just got off Harmony in November and one gentleman in our group got the sirloin steak A LOT and said it was very good.

[RockHoundTX]

My daughter is a steak eating machine (all 90 pounds of her). Pretty much orders steak in the MDR every night. The standard New York Strip varies from OK down to shoe-leather. If you don't like it, send it back. The first few nights on our last Liberty trip (pre-covid), the first steak they brought was BAD: cold, over-cook, tough, etc. In almost all cases, the second was actually pretty decent. As the week went on, the steaks got better since I think the server knew not to grab the first plate he could. My experience across about a dozen cruises on RCL is that the steaks seemed to be cooked about 1 level beyond what you ordered. If you want medium-rare, order the rare. If you order medium-rare, about 90% of the time they will be medium (or at least the ends will be medium and only the very middle of the cut is medium-rare). 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

10 hours ago, RockHoundTX said:

My daughter is a steak eating machine (all 90 pounds of her). Pretty much orders steak in the MDR every night.

my 10 yo 95# kiddo tried the minute steak off the kid's menu and disliked it. I tried it and thought it was very decent. You know, for a medium minute steak off the kid's menu. And yes, it was medium and relatively tender.

DS then refused to try any other steak/tenderloin/prime rib that I ordered for myself.

[Sea Dog]

On 12/4/2021 at 8:09 PM, firefly333 said:

How is this steak?  The one on carnival for MDR was too tough for me. I couldnt eat it. Boarding rcl in a week and hope rcl is better, but I'm not a big beef eater. Picky. Has to be tender or I wouldnt eat it.

Filet Mignon is always the best cut to get. The Chop's filet up charge in the MDR may be the way to go.

Get it medium rare or medium. Anything over that ruins the meat.

[SilkySal]

3 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

Filet Mignon is always the best cut to get. The Chop's filet up charge in the MDR may be the way to go.

Get it medium rare or medium. Anything over that ruins the meat.

On our last cruise, the up charge from Chops was only $17 for the filet, which was cooked to perfection when asked for medium rare! Well worth the money and not having to pay for the ambiance! Will definitely do that again, again, and again!

[Sea Dog]

4 hours ago, SilkySal said:

for the filet, which was cooked to perfection when asked for medium rare!

Both times we ate at Chops on Explorer last month the filets were cooked to perfection. I was extremely pleased with the taste. A filet is a great cut. All need to do is season it with salt and pepper. If cooked right it's a winer every time. I need to try the upcharge in the MDR. That is a great idea without paying for the price of Chops.

[read2learn]

The Chops steak is so tender and juicy! The MDR has prime rib and beef tenderloin a couple of nights that is very tender and delicious as well. I was mooing when I left from all the beef !!!  🐄