chops or portofino?

[jstducky]

i'm going on my first RCI cruise in less than 2 weeks!

 

i just wanted everyone's opinion on which alternate restaurant they would choose if you could only pick one. i am a huge steak fan and chops looks like it would be perfect, but i also love tiramisu and i heard that the tiramisu at portofino is to die for.... so i'm stuck!

 

why would you choose one restaurant over the other?

[SamIAm21]

I think I would try Chops first. We did Portofino last year and, don't get me wrong, it was a great meal, but I didn't quite like the menu. What I had was superbly prepared and delicious and the service was top notch, I just felt the menu was a bit limited. So, this is totally a personal opinion, but I left thinking I may have enjoyed Chops just a bit more.

[blackdogfarm]

We ate at Chops and it was so good we canceled our Portofino reservation and went to Chops again.

 

Also - if you go on Formal night, you don't have to get as dressed up.

[torpeedo]

We enjoyed eating at both restaurants earlier this year on the Radiance. Both are top notch, and you won't be disappointed as to food or service in either one. However I prefer steak, and my wife prefers seafood. So not surprisingly I would recommend Chops, and Mrs Torpeedo would tell you to try Portofino.

[Cya@Sea]

We are not Italian food fans, So we did Chops and were very happy. The food was great. We love steak and Chops did the job..

[robinm918]

I would go for Portofino over Chops. We can eat steak any time!

 

The food is excellent at Portofino and so is the service. Both times we ate there it was on the second formal night and it wasn't crowded and we were able to take our time and enjoy our meal.

 

You can always make reservations at both restaurants - if the menu doesn't suit you, you can always cancel!

 

Robin

[mtebor]

Would definitely do Chops unless you like seafood. Portafino's had a lot of seafood prepared Italian Style (At least that was my impression).

 

My wife and I Love Chops soooo much that we went a second time and All steaks are now compared to Chops!!!

[yarlenna]

We ate twice in each place - though the first of our Portifinos meals was the mystery dinner. IMHO Portifinos had MUCH better food and service. NO it is NOT American Italian or Italian Italian. It is a Caribbean adaptation of Italian food. I found the flavors fresh and delicious. After that, Chops felt tired. Besides, they never got my DH's steak correct.

[Merion_Mom]

jstducky:

 

I have not yet had the opportunity to eat in Chops, but we truly enjoyed Portofino's.

 

In the interest of "full disclosure", I must respond to your statement that you adore tiramisu. My daughter has the same passion. She actually WAY prefers the tiramisu in the dining room! That tiramisu is the classic preparation. In Portofino's, it is in a chocolate cup, rather than on a plate, and has a layer of raspberry, which she did not care for. There was some sort of sauce on it, too. (she's not here for me to ask about the details of the sauce) If this appeals to you, go for it, but realize that it's "different."

 

Carol

[KENLORJUS]

Why not both?

 

kenlorjus

[timbo89]

I can't vote on this, because my wife would probably vote for Portofinos and I would probably vote for Chops. However, we both thoroughly enjoy both dining venues.

 

It also depends on what mood my palate is in!!!!

[Nliedel]

Chops.. hands down. I too prefer the Tiramisu in the dining room and I ADORE the stuff.. I mean I could EASILY live off Tiramisu.. Oh good grief now I want Tiramisu... darn cravings.. Anyway... I am a steak lover and there are some really decent Italian places in the Ann Arbor area (OK we are not the Hill in St. Louis but we will do)... There are decent steak places here too but they are pricey..

[jezzdogg]

If we had to pick one I would pick Chops, it is baised on the Morton's of Chicago style and menu while the food on the Mariner was so so the dinner there was wonderful.

[dznymom]

Do they still offer lunch on Sea Days? Last summer we tried them both for lunch because we were enjoying the dining room too much to skip a dinner. (I believe it was only $10 pp for lunch also.) We enjoyed them both very much, but I personally preferred Portofino's. Maybe you could do one for dinner and the other for lunch.

 

Bon Appetit :)

[diane058]

My husband and I just got back from Serenade last night. We ate at Chops on Friday night and if we had done this at the beginning of our cruise, we would have eaten there more than once. My husband had the prime rib which was out of this world. I had the petite filet and it was so tender and tasty. The service was outstanding and the view was spectacular ( we were cruising through the Misty Fjords at dinnertime!). My first choice was Portofino's, but once I saw the menu at Chops, I changed my mind. I'd highly recommend Chops!

[darkauf]

Thanks for the info. we sail on radiance on 10/24/04 and it is for 14 nights. We figurered we would try both, one each week. I would just like to know when the formal nights are and which nights are the best to skip the dining room.

 

D & L

[critterchick]

The person taking your reservation will be able to tell you all of that. We were on Radiance & wanted to do both, so we just went down there & made our reservations shortly after boarding. They had one steak night & one lobster night in the dining room. We did Chops on steak night (first formal), and had scheduled Portofino's for what turned out to be lobster night (our waiter the first night knew this). So we rescheduled Portofino's for lunch on a sea day, which is $10 instead of $20.

 

The filet at Chops was heaven (I ordered it because of somebody's recommendation here - thanks!). DH had the signature steak, which was a little tough. Portofino's was very good, but I thought Chops was superior. We must have had a cheap crowd, because neither restaurant ever appeared to be full.

[lscole]

skip the dining room on caribbean night. The first formal night is the first full cruise day. Ask your waiter the first night which nights they recommend you skip. They may try to convince not to do the alternate restaurants. Portofino's on the Radiance IMHO was better than Portofino's on the Adventure of the Seas. chops was great if you can afford both go to both. On the Radiance Portofino's did have lunch service $10 pp not sure about Chops. Do 10 Panama Canal in Jan and I want to eat in both, but may try lunch and probably skip dinner I'm on the early seating.

[Kay D]

Anyone remember (or have) what is on the Sailaway Night menu in regular dining room on Radiance?

Thinking that's a night to go to Chops or Portofinos as not many people would think to go there the 1st night!!!

Plus the DR service is later by 1/2 hr or more on Sailaway Night than other nights.

[sailor moon]

We just did them both on the Mariner and I liked them both! Portofino's was a bit more elegant but the food was great at both places.

[hambone1205]

how early can you book chops before sailing

[critterchick]

We booked Chops at about 2:00, having boarded at noon. They had drawing if you went around & got somebody at about 10 locations to initial a slip of paper, you were eligible to win prizes, and Chops & Portofino were both on the paper. We had them initial the paper & make our reservations at the same time.

[sgttami]

On Serenade last September my sister and I did Chops and loved it..first time for both for an alternative restaurant...

 

On Radiance in March my husband and I did both, Chops and Portofino on each of the formal nights....

 

Don't get me wrong. They are both good but we just happened to enjoy Chops better. Don't know whether it is the choices, service, whatever but hands down, we'd do Chops again in a minute.

 

On Radiance we had told a couple we met about Chops on the first or second day. They had never been..they ended up dining ther 3 X during the cruise and tried something different each time. It was their third cruise but they swore they'd never eat in the dining room again if the alternatives were available.

 

We're going on Empress in November...haven't decided yet if we are going to try Portofino again..probably will. It was good, but we liked Chops choices better.

[Lyncruiser]

Neither. Have now eaten at Portofino on the Explorer, Chops on the Radiance and Chops on the Navigator just last week. Overall, the food is not that much better than in the dining room. Last week in Chops the shrimp were gritty from poor cleaning, my Dad's steak was tough and the so-called mud pie was nothing like mud pie -- just a gummy, chocolate mess. Further, there was a lag of at least 45 minutes between our appetizers and getting our steaks. Just poor timing and there were not more than 25 people in the restaurant. I would not waste money on either restaurant.

[MszKitty]

I would go for Portofino over Chops. We can eat steak any time!

 

The food is excellent at Portofino and so is the service. Both times we ate there it was on the second formal night and it wasn't crowded and we were able to take our time and enjoy our meal.

 

You can always make reservations at both restaurants - if the menu doesn't suit you, you can always cancel!

 

Robin

On Adventure of the Seas, "A fee of $20 per person will be charged on your SeaPass for a cancellation with less than 24 hours notice."

 

So if you do decide to cancel, make sure you do it prior to 24 hours.