ScubaCat3

Regarding Coastal Kitchen on Symphony - I very recently did a B3B on Symphony. On week three they debuted some new dishes on the Coastal Kitchen menu. Most of the menu is the same but there are one or two new dishes per day - many with "lobster" in the title though not necessarily on the plate. For example, one dish was titled "Lobster and Shrimp Ravioli". You might think the ravioli contained lobster and shrimp but you would be wrong. It was actually a good dish with a bad name. The ravioli contained spinach and cheese (which was very good) topped with a few smallish, stringy shrimp. The lobster was nowhere in sight. The server checked with the chef and said the lobster was in the red sauce. After very close inspection I might have found a piece of lobster the size of an eyelash but no flavor added. Once I readjusted my expections appropriately I really enjoyed the cheesy ravioli with red sauce. I would order it again knowing what was coming. Another new item was arancini. I liked it better than Jamie's version because Coastal Kitchen plated the arancini on three sauces - red, white and green (pesto). It was very tasty. I hope you find some new dishes you enjoy!

@jennellen I love traveling solo. I just got back from three weeks on Symphony of the Seas by myself. There is a whole forum on Cruise Critic for solo travelers covering any topic you can imagine. Look here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/279-solo-cruisers/

Hooked (seafood) is not open for lunch on embarkation day. I enjoy Coastal Kitchen for the calm atmosphere and good food. They open at noon.

I don’t see it mentioned, but I wish it would apply to the captain’s daily announcement as well. It is so annoying when people insist on talking over it.

This is from the welcome email from last weeks cruise in a Grand Suite on Symphony of the Seas. “Bar service is available from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm in the Suite Lounge for Beer, Wine, Soda & Water. Hors d'oeuvres, petit fours and complimentary bar setup with a selection of wine, spirits, beer and soft drinks every evening from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm.·” So have I been misunderstanding this? I have always taken this to mean beer and wine are complementary when the bar is open but spirits are only free (no voucher) between 5:00 and 8:00 pm.

@DennysDad The champagne tasting (along with several other wine tastings) are listed in the app.

@travelberlin I participated in the Moet & Chandon Champagne tasting on Symphony in fall of 2022. We tasted 3 Champagnes. The only addition was a bottle of water - no food. If you enjoy champagne and are okay with the price it can be a pleasant way to pass an hour. The quality of the event strongly depends on the presenter.

@miyanc It’s a good idea to bring your own as the ship sometimes runs out of a particular type of tea. As @zebra36 stated, they offer Bigelow brand tea bags. On Symphony (not Ovation, but they probably have similar offerings) from memory they had Mint, Chamomile, Green Tea, English Teatime Black Tea, English Breakfast and my favorite - Earl Grey. They ran out of Earl Grey after a few days so I was glad I brought my own stash with me. I’m sure I forgot a few but there were about 6-8 options.

Like everything else Royal Caribbean, there appears to be a lot of inconsistency. I have had onion rings at Johnny Rockets on two different ships this year (not Anthem). Both times they were excellent, crispy real onion rings. I look forward to having them again. I have also had onion rings at Playmakers. While they were good, I slightly preferred the Johnny Rockets version.

@Scoobydobe7 The Hooked lunch menu photo I have is from Wonder of the Seas (January 2024) not Icon. I would be surprised if they were different, but it is certainly possible! Verify the menu when you board the ship.

Another option: Hooked offers non-seafood dishes for lunch such as steak, cheeseburger, crispy chicken sandwich or caesar salad with grilled chicken - if any of that appeals to you.

From Oasis of the Seas in 2023:

There is a roll call thread for this cruise with many posts here:

There is a sub forum dedicated to solo cruising. You will a multitude of post covering all aspects of the subject here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/279-solo-cruisers/ Enjoy!

In the past the Coastal Kitchen menus were available in the app several weeks prior to the cruise. For my last two cruises the menus either showed up a few days before departure or only after I boarded the ship. I’m not sure why because the menus don’t seem to have changed.