Chops and Chef's Table-Pros and Cons and worth the extra $$

[bowie123]

We love food and my DH loves to cook. Are Chops and Chef's Table worth the extra money?

Thanks.:confused:

[terpfan101]

take a look at this thread: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1243807&highlight=brianalt for help, but most people will say yes.

[Zach1213]

My girlfriend and I did Chops for Valentine's Day on Liberty this year, and we enjoyed it...but didn't love it. Now, we come from a part of the country with very good beef, so factor that in to our opinion.

 

Service was not great. Starters were. Steaks were not great. Side dishes were. Dessert was the best part, without a doubt.

 

$30 per person? Considering we hated the food in MDR and Windjammer, it was worth it, plus it was Valentine's Day. However, the place had a couple flaws in our opinion.

[capsoncc]

When we were on Allure in January we decided to give Chops a try, and i can definately say i did NOT think it was worth the extra money. I ordered the Porter House steak and the steak was not very good at all, and I was extremely dissappointed. I had a Porter house at Swith and Wollensky restaurant in Miami the day before we boarded the ship and it was way better, more tender, and tastier then the steak i had at chops. Maybe my expectations were set to high, but I figured this is a steak restaurant and the steaks should all be tender and taste good, especially since you are paying for it. The people we were travelling with thought it was OK, but nobody thought it was great. The best part of the meal for me was the Dessert.

[bus man]

I'm not a foodie and I hate to cook, so take what I say for what it's worth. I thought the meal at Chops was very good, but not great. The service was excellent.

 

Was it worth the extra money? For me, not really; not when I can be perfectly satisfied by a meal that's already included in the fare. We did Chops as a special occasion (10th anniversary), so it was worth it for the higher level of service and intimate environment. But I'm not sure I would do it again.

 

Chef's Table? No how, no way. I have yet to meet the meal that was worth $75 to me. (To date, the most expensive meal I've ever eaten was about $125 for two, including tip.)

 

That said, given that you love food and DH loves to cook, these restaurants may well be worth it TO YOU. I would give serious consideration to trying them, just so you'd know.

[librayacht]

We were on Oasis last May and ate at the Chef's Table on one night. We found it to be a very enjoyable experience with a wide variety of small quantities of first class food. I am allergic to shellfish and I made them aware of it ahead of time and was served a different dish to replace the two shellfish courses.

We are going again on Oasis in September and will be the first in line to reserve the Chef's Table, despite the price increase, as soon as the reservations open.

We have obviously eaten many times in Chops on many different ships and, much as we enjoy it, there is no comparison to the Chef's Table.

[Big_G]

We've done Chops and Portofino and found both well worth the money. I think experiences can vary from ship to ship and there is no accounting for varying tastes. We experienced excellent food and service.

[yogimax]

Is it worth the money?

 

That's a totally subjective question depending on everything from how much money you have to spend to how much you are happy with food in the MDR.

 

Personally, I would say "no," but others would give a different answer.

[Mach1]

We did Chops & Portofino’s on our first cruise, while the food was good and we enjoyed the service, I don’t think I would do it again. If you like steak I would do Chops – we loved the steak

But it does depend on your budget for the cruise too & other things you want to do

[silentbob007]

I'm not the hugest fan of Chops ... not too much on the menu that is different than from a traditional steakhouse. I go with my B1G1 D+ coupon, but would not go without it.

 

As for Chef's Table, I thought it was a great experience. I'm not sure I would do it again, but I definitely thought that the first time was worth it for me.

[skandls]

If you like wine tasting dinners you will enjoy the Chef's Table. It is a long meal with explanations of each dish and wine. I do like this type of experience - only you can decide if the $95pp is worth it. We did this once - because of the price I don't need to go again.

 

Chop's seems to have lost some quality of food. I use to look forward to eating there but the last couple of times have been disappointing.

[bowie123]

I think we will try Chef's Table!:)

[GXmanDC]

We loved Chef's Table on Allure a few weeks ago. The meal was excellent, the wine was good as was the company. Well worth it in my opinion.

[skandls]

You did not mention it - but if you are on the Allure or Oasis the 150 Park Avenue restaurant is very good. Check out the menus (there are 2) when you board - the food is quite good. The wine pairing is expensive - but since DH is not as into wine as I am he gets a glass of something and I do share some of the wines with him but not the really good ones :D.

[cruise pup]

On Navigator several years ago I was more impressed with Portofino than with Chops. In fact I went to Portofino twice. Basically I thought all of the appetizers, soups, desserts,service, etc. were better in Portofino and the main course was better in Chops. Last year on Liberty I went to both again, but this time Chops won hands down. I thought the food was meh in Portofino but service was still excellent. However, everything was perfrect about Chops. My friend enjoyed the meal so much he picked up the tab. Going on Liberty again but I'm a bit concerned because I'm reading mostly negative reviews for Chops lately. I think I'll book for the end of the cruise and wait and see what the other passengers are saying and then cancel if it's not good.

[Iluvcruising2]

We had Portofino on the Brilliance and we love it. Looking forward to Porto again on Voyager.

[Janet524]

IMO..Chef's Table absolutely worth it. We had an outstanding meal paired with excellent wines. Each course was presented by the chef and accompanying wines explained by the sommilier. Chops...Save your money. You can get just as good a good steak and service at any nice restaurant at home.

[cb at sea]

You aren't actually paying for the food in those specialty restaurants....you're paying for the service and tip! The actual cost of the food is included in the fare you pay....

 

So, don't go expecting Smith and Wollensky or Ruth Chris quality of food! The prep and presentation are better than in the dining room, since it's all on a smaller, more personal scale than the dining room, but that's about it.

[capsoncc]

You aren't actually paying for the food in those specialty restaurants....you're paying for the service and tip! The actual cost of the food is included in the fare you pay....

 

So, don't go expecting Smith and Wollensky or Ruth Chris quality of food! The prep and presentation are better than in the dining room, since it's all on a smaller, more personal scale than the dining room, but that's about it.

 

Well we certainly didn't get a steak anywhere close to Smith and Wollensky, or the service that we received there. The service we received in Chops was no better then the MDR in my opinion, but perhaps we just went on a bad night. We have always had great service in the MDR on all cruises we have taken, so i was expecting better quality food in Chops then we received, specifically if you are eating at a steak specialty restaurant and order a steak.