favorite treats in international cafe/ mdr

[kitkat343]

6 hours ago, Thrak said:

 

You are probably looking at the line for coffee. It's never much of a wait to get food.

I really hope so!  Thank you everyone for all the wonderful suggestions!

[Ombud]

#1 Strawberry / cream cheese filled croissants 

#2 Almond croissants 

#3 mozzarella cheese panini

[kluv2cruz]

I loved the pineapple slices, grapefruit sections, egg thingies (3 flavours), and muesli bars (with or without chocolate). Usually had with a yogurt with fruit or chia seed with fruit. Perfect breakfast!

[Kay S]

The egg thingies are new to me.  I will need to try those.

[Scottdalfonso]

3 hours ago, kluv2cruz said:

I loved the pineapple slices, grapefruit sections, egg thingies (3 flavours), and muesli bars (with or without chocolate). Usually had with a yogurt with fruit or chia seed with fruit. Perfect breakfast!

Well if that isn't the healthiest little breakfast I've ever seen.... 

[esad9556]

3 hours ago, kluv2cruz said:

I loved the pineapple slices, grapefruit sections, egg thingies (3 flavours), and muesli bars (with or without chocolate). Usually had with a yogurt with fruit or chia seed with fruit. Perfect breakfast!

The egg "thingies" are mini quiches.......and they are good.

[joejoe 59]

On 8/7/2024 at 2:39 PM, paddingtonbear said:

Ohh No!  I was just about to ask if there was anything gluten free in the IC that was good. The MDR is great apparently. 

 

We will be on the Majestic.  Sometimes the line up is different for different ships. 🤞

 

What is the GF bread like on board, generally?  Is it white cardboard?

 

We were on the Coral Princess in January to Tasmanian.  There is gf bread available, but it's best toasted.  They had a separate toaster for gf, & also gf scones at afternoon tea time. The mdr will work with you, the head waiter will come round to you at each dinner time with the following days menu's. If in doubt about anything even in the buffet just ask questions. You can also get gf pizza up on deck, you get the whole pizza made for you not just a slice. You just need to give them a bit of time to organise it.

 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

7 hours ago, kluv2cruz said:

those egg muffins (bottom) are the best thing ever! I had 4 every morning, and if they still have them next year, I will have 4 every morning again!

6 hours ago, Kay S said:

The egg thingies are new to me.  I will need to try those.

the staff warms them up for you - heavenly!

Edited August 8 by Itchy&Scratchy

[spethstation]

I may be the outlier here, but I absolutely loved the muesli they had in the mornings at the IC!

[zukecruiser]

Tuna salad croissants are the best for a quick lunch along with a peanut butter cookie, or two.

[KKB]

On 8/6/2024 at 6:09 PM, kitkat343 said:

It's been 11 years since we've sailed with Princess, and our first time with an international cafe.  What would you recommend? 

 

Also, any favorite MDR dishes

BIG fan of the egg salad sandwich at IC. BTW they often have soup at lunch & dinner time as well. It was our breakfast go to spot--I love their egg bites & some fruit. DH likes the breakfast burritos & sandwiches. OMG, yes those almond croissants--I tried to keep that treat to a minimum. SOOOOO yummy.

 

MDR varies widely. On the Regal in April we had different menus for 28 days! And it was VERY VERY good. Discovery in AK had different kinds of fresh salmon every night--not just prepared differently, but different kinds! (sockeye, coho, pink, etc). Honestly on other ships, the food is always good if not memorable. 

OH--the raspberry lychee dessert (every night) is...um...interesting. It tastes PINK. I am not kidding. All 4 of us tried it & felt that was the correct descriptor. Felt it was the perfect dessert for Barbie.

 

Have a wonderful time!

Edited August 8 by KKB

[KKB]

On 8/6/2024 at 11:39 PM, paddingtonbear said:

Ohh No!  I was just about to ask if there was anything gluten free in the IC that was good. The MDR is great apparently. 

 

We will be on the Majestic.  Sometimes the line up is different for different ships. 🤞

 

What is the GF bread like on board, generally?  Is it white cardboard?

 

I avoid gluten (tho from my above post, there are a few things I will treat myself to once in a while & just deal with the consequences), but found the GF items at IC to be solid--but only for breakfast! After that things get dicey. Pretty much fruit, maybe the soup. 

Egg bites are fantastice. GF muffins are solid. And the meusli things weren't too bad either. 
And fruit of course.

 

MDR is FANTASTIC about GF. Just let them know the 1st night (if not before via Special Requests form). A friend is celiac so since she was doing GF I chose to also. I was on the 2nd week solo as well. The 1st week they had been unable to get GF flour & maitre de was SUPER apologetic. No worries, not a huge dessert fan. Ice cream is fine. 2nd week they had GF flour & he brought me the GF dessert EVERY NIGHT, even when I didn't ask. It was very sweet...if a bit much!

[paddingtonbear]

55 minutes ago, KKB said:

I avoid gluten (tho from my above post, there are a few things I will treat myself to once in a while & just deal with the consequences), but found the GF items at IC to be solid--but only for breakfast! After that things get dicey. Pretty much fruit, maybe the soup. 

Egg bites are fantastice. GF muffins are solid. And the meusli things weren't too bad either. 
And fruit of course.

 

MDR is FANTASTIC about GF. Just let them know the 1st night (if not before via Special Requests form). A friend is celiac so since she was doing GF I chose to also. I was on the 2nd week solo as well. The 1st week they had been unable to get GF flour & maitre de was SUPER apologetic. No worries, not a huge dessert fan. Ice cream is fine. 2nd week they had GF flour & he brought me the GF dessert EVERY NIGHT, even when I didn't ask. It was very sweet...if a bit much!

Good to know the icecream is GF. In Europe, especially, it is not always GF so you have to be careful there. They add gluten to make it stretchy or something! 
 

I’ll be sick for 24hrs if I have gluten so I have to be pretty careful. 
Sounds like it’s good to be early at the IC! 

Edited August 8 by paddingtonbear

[KKB]

13 minutes ago, paddingtonbear said:

Good to know the icecream is GF. In Europe, especially, it is not always GF so you have to be careful there. They add gluten to make it stretchy or something! 
 

I’ll be sick for 24hrs if I have gluten so I have to be pretty careful. 
Sounds like it’s good to be early at the IC! 

Friend w/ celiac had ice cream regularly. Now, she had to avoid things like cookies & cream, obviously.

[paddingtonbear]

3 minutes ago, KKB said:

Friend w/ celiac had ice cream regularly. Now, she had to avoid things like cookies & cream, obviously.

Yes that’s a give away for gluten. But in Europe some vanilla icecream has gluten! I had no idea until I was sick. 
At home I just ensure I buy icecream made from cream without additives. 
 

Edited August 8 by paddingtonbear

[KKB]

Just now, paddingtonbear said:

Yes that’s a give away for gluten. But in Europe some vanilla icecream has gluten! 

Had no idea! Will let her know!

[VaCruzers]

Broccoli cheddar egg bites at IC! Best breakfast on the ship! Have two of those every morning!

[1emerald1]

On 8/6/2024 at 11:20 PM, trin880 said:

Counting days till getting my daily almond croissants for breakfast. I've never seen Pavlova, but will pay more attention next time. Brie sandwiches and few other varieties are really good.

I've also found Pavlova at the buffet.

[AlpacaBag]

Been years since our last cruise, but I still remember the pistachio pudding being amazing. I've never found anything like it off the ship and very much hope it's still there on our sailing later this year.

[PescadoAmarillo]

On 8/6/2024 at 10:21 PM, geoherb said:

Chocolate bretons (and the mini cheesecakes someone else mentioned).

These are the best!  I had non idea what they were until I Googled them. But they were the reason I had to stop by the IC before going to breakfast. 

[KreinKrunker]

12 hours ago, spethstation said:

I may be the outlier here, but I absolutely loved the muesli they had in the mornings at the IC!

You're not alone, but not the bars.

[kluv2cruz]

Just realized your title says International Cafe /MDR… ah, well then, crème brûlée is calorie worthy, as are the bread rolls… although with the latest “is it real butter” discussions, bread isn’t quite as good unless you ask for real butter. The old version of fettuccine Alfredo in the Parmesan basket also was calorie worthy, less so now. That’s top of mind, but now I am thinking of bay shrimp appie on day 1 lunch, and that first glass of white wine at day 1 lunch!

[Jilliebean28]

I have pretty simple tastes so I love the chocolate topped donuts in the IC!

[beshears]

Wallyj and Gvre, I just used the term "microwave", as I had no idea of how they would warm the sandwich up a tad, which turned out perfect for me and my friend.

[trin880]

On 8/8/2024 at 4:53 PM, 1emerald1 said:

I've also found Pavlova at the buffet.

Thank you for the tip. It'll be my second trip on Ruby this year, and I'll be certainly looking for Pavlova. I found few pictures on the web and don't recall it in IC on Ruby or Royal. I'll even try checking the buffet 😆 daily even though in the past we were not frequent visitors. Now, I need to shed few pounds before boarding that 16 days cruise to Hawaii 😂.