Liberty 21 July trip report

[Marine7]

8 minutes ago, Petroplex said:

It was not on my sailing. In Chops, we were the only table there for most of the time. A second table also got there as we were finishing entrees.

 

I am working on uploading MDR menus. Generally speaking, though, I very much enjoyed what I ate on this cruise.

 

One note as I am collecting random thoughts: We had Voom Surf and Stream. It was awful, and the awfulness was consistent regardless of where on the ship we were. Sometimes it was painfully slow, and sometimes we couldn't connect at all. I couldn't get any picture to upload anywhere, and I certainly couldn't do anything like construct a blog post.

Thank You.

[bighairtexan]

Ditto on Sabor for the embarkation lunch a couple months ago.

So you were the only one in Chops more or less on embarkation? Didn't they have the KEY on your cruise? I was wondering how this would effect us in November.  Not that you have a crystal ball for November... but if ya DO..... 😵  Again your blog is one of the best things out there for Liberty. Thanks again.

[Petroplex]

16 hours ago, bighairtexan said:

Ditto on Sabor for the embarkation lunch a couple months ago.

So you were the only one in Chops more or less on embarkation? Didn't they have the KEY on your cruise? I was wondering how this would effect us in November.  Not that you have a crystal ball for November... but if ya DO..... 😵  Again your blog is one of the best things out there for Liberty. Thanks again.

They had The Key, and they promoted it aggressively. However, those folks had their Chops lunch in the MDR. The folks I talked to said they enjoyed it very much.

[Petroplex]

I just posted all of the menus from the main dining room. Earlier in this thread, I posted the bar menus. For now, though, I want to review the food in the main dining room.

 

Let's start with things which aren't dinner. Breakfast was the same menu every day. However, it was essentially all of the breakfast options on the ship. It was a nice and relaxed setting if you wanted someone to bring food to you rather than schlepping it from the buffet and finding your own table. They also had a small buffet set up for breakfast in the MDR. Overall, this strikes me as the spot for breakfast. The exception to that is if you have a suite (we did) and have the option of having your breakfast at Chops.

 

Lunch was only open on the three sea days, and I only have one of those menus. It was a good deal more crowded than I would have expected, and the gnocchi I ordered were too mushy and served with too much sauce. However, the carpaccio I had was excellent. They had a huge salad bar and a huge dessert bar. There was also a lot of bread types and, oddly, a giant wok full of fried chicken on the buffet. As with all meals in the MDR, if you don't like what you order they will bring you more. I tend to enjoy specialty restaurants at lunch (when they are cheaper and I am not missing an MDR dinner), so I don't know that I would go back to the MDR lunch. It was fine, and it was a good option. For my money, however, it wasn't actually the best option.

 

Now to dinner, but things which still aren't the formal dinner menu. The kid's menu had a lot of kid-friendly choices, and our waiter and assistant waiter worked hard to make sure the kids in our group were happy with their meals. When two of the kids at our table of 14 wanted an appetizer of just strawberries, they got it. Kids were free, of course, to order from the regular menu. Many of the kids in our group did, and they liked it. Long story short, your kids will be fine at dinner in the main dining room. If there are allergies or food sensitivities, tell you wait staff. They will work with you. If you have something particularly serious, you might call the cruise line in advance.

 

The wine list at dinner was... adequate. My standard for adequacy is what is covered by the $12 limit on the drink package. The drink package does indeed work in the main dining room-- both for my wine and for my post-dinner cappuccino. The wine list was essentially the only opportunity on the ship to spend extra on my drink package if I was so inclined. I was not. The Estancia pinot noir was nice, and the Ravenswood Zinfandel and the KJ cabernet were also reasonable. I had friends who enjoyed the Malbec. My wife ordered wine in a color that was not red and reported that it was "yummy." Then again, dinner happened sufficiently late in the day that wine may or may not have been the first alcohol we consumed. Our taste buds were dulled.

 

As for dinner itself, I genuinely enjoyed every meal I had. My 13 year old learned to love duck and lamb, although he says he prefers duck. Cool. The spaghetti bolognese which appeared most nights was universally cooked to a nice al dente, and everyone who tried it (me included) enjoyed the meat sauce. The free steak was always really good, which was not the answer I expected. I am not sure why they had the first formal night (Monday, a sea day) as there was nothing special about what was offered. The second formal night (Friday, also a sea day) was lobster night. The lobster was not, in my judgment, all that good. I had friends at the table who ate 3 or 4 tails, though, so perhaps my judgment was flawed. I wound up ordering an impromptu surf and turf that night by ordering 2 entrees, and the prime rib was excellent.

 

The other thing which stood out to me is  that they had fish dishes which usually looked very nice. My 11 year old enjoyed several. Catering to vegans might have required some creativity, although I am certain they could do that. If you are vegetarian, however, the options were excellent. I had the polenta and feta cheese on the first night, and it was excellent. At various points I also had the veggie korma (although that was the next day in the buffet) and the mushroom risotto. The veggie dishes were excellent. All of them used creams or butters or cheeses, though, which is worth knowing if you are a strict vegan.

 

I genuinely enjoyed dinner in the MDR. Lunch and breakfast were fine. Kids were well catered to, and the staff seemed anxious to accommodate whatever our preferences were. I will post over the next week (ish) with specialty menus and Cruise Compasses. I will talk about shipboard activities when I post those. For now, lemme know all of your food related questions.

[bighairtexan]

42 minutes ago, Petroplex said:

They had The Key, and they promoted it aggressively. However, those folks had their Chops lunch in the MDR. The folks I talked to said they enjoyed it very much.

OH wow! Somehow I missed that Chops key lunch wasn't in CHOPS!!! 😄   We tend to do the UDP so in the recent past DID do lunch in Chops.  Pre-Key.

[Petroplex]

3 minutes ago, bighairtexan said:

OH wow! Somehow I missed that Chops key lunch wasn't in CHOPS!!! 😄   We tend to do the UDP so in the recent past DID do lunch in Chops.  Pre-Key.

So if you use your UDP reservation, that would still be in Chops. And thanks very much for your kind words earlier about my blog. I got frustrated by the information I couldn't find, so I started writing to that goal. It helps my mind to stay on vacation even when my body isn't!

[rede2go6464]

Thank you for the menus! I love researching and finding out all I can about my upcoming cruise, even though it's a year away. The detailed info you are giving about specifically the Liberty is so helpful and exciting to me. I've printed off your bar and dinner menus already! 

We aren't planning on doing any of the specialty restaurants, so I am relieved to read your review of the MDR. 

 

You may not know the answer to this since you were at a specified dining time, but do you know if they have the waiters do all the "song, dance and napkin waving" during My Time Dining? Or is that just on Early/Late Dining?

 

 

[Clarea]

2 minutes ago, rede2go6464 said:

 ...

You may not know the answer to this since you were at a specified dining time, but do you know if they have the waiters do all the "song, dance and napkin waving" during My Time Dining? Or is that just on Early/Late Dining?

 

 

Everyone gets to enjoy these dinner interruptions now.

[rede2go6464]

7 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

Everyone gets to enjoy these dinner interruptions now.

 

Haha....rats :)

[Julia429]

2 hours ago, Petroplex said:

I just posted all of the menus from the main dining room. Earlier in this thread, I posted the bar menus. For now, though, I want to review the food in the main dining room.

 

Let's start with things which aren't dinner. Breakfast was the same menu every day. However, it was essentially all of the breakfast options on the ship. It was a nice and relaxed setting if you wanted someone to bring food to you rather than schlepping it from the buffet and finding your own table. They also had a small buffet set up for breakfast in the MDR. Overall, this strikes me as the spot for breakfast. The exception to that is if you have a suite (we did) and have the option of having your breakfast at Chops.

 

Lunch was only open on the three sea days, and I only have one of those menus. It was a good deal more crowded than I would have expected, and the gnocchi I ordered were too mushy and served with too much sauce. However, the carpaccio I had was excellent. They had a huge salad bar and a huge dessert bar. There was also a lot of bread types and, oddly, a giant wok full of fried chicken on the buffet. As with all meals in the MDR, if you don't like what you order they will bring you more. I tend to enjoy specialty restaurants at lunch (when they are cheaper and I am not missing an MDR dinner), so I don't know that I would go back to the MDR lunch. It was fine, and it was a good option. For my money, however, it wasn't actually the best option.

 

Now to dinner, but things which still aren't the formal dinner menu. The kid's menu had a lot of kid-friendly choices, and our waiter and assistant waiter worked hard to make sure the kids in our group were happy with their meals. When two of the kids at our table of 14 wanted an appetizer of just strawberries, they got it. Kids were free, of course, to order from the regular menu. Many of the kids in our group did, and they liked it. Long story short, your kids will be fine at dinner in the main dining room. If there are allergies or food sensitivities, tell you wait staff. They will work with you. If you have something particularly serious, you might call the cruise line in advance.

 

The wine list at dinner was... adequate. My standard for adequacy is what is covered by the $12 limit on the drink package. The drink package does indeed work in the main dining room-- both for my wine and for my post-dinner cappuccino. The wine list was essentially the only opportunity on the ship to spend extra on my drink package if I was so inclined. I was not. The Estancia pinot noir was nice, and the Ravenswood Zinfandel and the KJ cabernet were also reasonable. I had friends who enjoyed the Malbec. My wife ordered wine in a color that was not red and reported that it was "yummy." Then again, dinner happened sufficiently late in the day that wine may or may not have been the first alcohol we consumed. Our taste buds were dulled.

 

As for dinner itself, I genuinely enjoyed every meal I had. My 13 year old learned to love duck and lamb, although he says he prefers duck. Cool. The spaghetti bolognese which appeared most nights was universally cooked to a nice al dente, and everyone who tried it (me included) enjoyed the meat sauce. The free steak was always really good, which was not the answer I expected. I am not sure why they had the first formal night (Monday, a sea day) as there was nothing special about what was offered. The second formal night (Friday, also a sea day) was lobster night. The lobster was not, in my judgment, all that good. I had friends at the table who ate 3 or 4 tails, though, so perhaps my judgment was flawed. I wound up ordering an impromptu surf and turf that night by ordering 2 entrees, and the prime rib was excellent.

 

The other thing which stood out to me is  that they had fish dishes which usually looked very nice. My 11 year old enjoyed several. Catering to vegans might have required some creativity, although I am certain they could do that. If you are vegetarian, however, the options were excellent. I had the polenta and feta cheese on the first night, and it was excellent. At various points I also had the veggie korma (although that was the next day in the buffet) and the mushroom risotto. The veggie dishes were excellent. All of them used creams or butters or cheeses, though, which is worth knowing if you are a strict vegan.

 

I genuinely enjoyed dinner in the MDR. Lunch and breakfast were fine. Kids were well catered to, and the staff seemed anxious to accommodate whatever our preferences were. I will post over the next week (ish) with specialty menus and Cruise Compasses. I will talk about shipboard activities when I post those. For now, lemme know all of your food related questions.

Thanks for all of your post! I love to plan too and this is so helpful!

[firstsgtsteiner]

Did you happen to see if they had Blanton's in the onboard shops? 

[Marine7]

Would any happen to know if you can use your Unlimited Dining Package for the premium selections in the main dining room?

Thank You.

[HicksRA]

45 minutes ago, firstsgtsteiner said:

Did you happen to see if they had Blanton's in the onboard shops? 

They usually do have Blanton’s on the Liberty, but buy it early if you see it. 

Ive seen it sell out and if you decide to wait till the last night to get it, it may be gone. 

[Biker19]

14 minutes ago, Marine7 said:

Would any happen to know if you can use your Unlimited Dining Package for the premium selections in the main dining room?

Curious, why would you go the MDR to get the Chops filet instead of Chops?

Edited July 31, 2019 by Biker19

[Marine7]

Just now, Biker19 said:

Curious, why would you go the MDR to get the Chops filet instead of Chops?

Biker19 not sure I ever would again but my DW ( C. E. O . ) might have other ideas, Ha!. I roll with the waves to keep peace in the family. Makes for a better cruise experience!

[bighairtexan]

15 minutes ago, Marine7 said:

Would any happen to know if you can use your Unlimited Dining Package for the premium selections in the main dining room?

Thank You.

In my experience the answer is NO. The UDP covers the "Cover Charge" at the specialty restaurants. None of the upcharge steaks etc are covered in the MDR or the Specialty.  

[Tasm3n]

Thank you for posting the review of the dining.  I have to admit I had my worries and you've calmed them some.  

 

You said you were staying in a suite, how did you find the suite lounge?

[Marine7]

6 minutes ago, bighairtexan said:

In my experience the answer is NO. The UDP covers the "Cover Charge" at the specialty restaurants. None of the upcharge steaks etc are covered in the MDR or the Specialty.  

Thank You.

[Petroplex]

49 minutes ago, Tasm3n said:

Thank you for posting the review of the dining.  I have to admit I had my worries and you've calmed them some.  

 

You said you were staying in a suite, how did you find the suite lounge?

I loved the suite lounge, and that is one of the principal reasons I book suites. I have a short video of the suite lounge if you want to take a look at it. The short version-- I hate being in lines on vacation. Having access to the concierge helps solve that. The lounge itself was a nice place to get away. They also have an excellent continental breakfast, and each afternoon have a cocktail reception and heavy appetizers.

[Tasm3n]

1 minute ago, Petroplex said:

I loved the suite lounge, and that is one of the principal reasons I book suites. I have a short video of the suite lounge if you want to take a look at it. The short version-- I hate being in lines on vacation. Having access to the concierge helps solve that. The lounge itself was a nice place to get away. They also have an excellent continental breakfast, and each afternoon have a cocktail reception and heavy appetizers.

 

We are cut from the same cloth, it seems.  I also hate standing in lines during vacation.  I throw money at line avoidance ALL the time.  We are staying in a 2 bedroom grand suite for our July 2020 sailing.

 

Thank you for the link!  I will check it out.

[jlocole]

If you purchase a bottle of wine in the MDR, can you take it with you of you don't finish it? Or do they have to store it?

[Clarea]

19 minutes ago, jlocole said:

If you purchase a bottle of wine in the MDR, can you take it with you of you don't finish it? Or do they have to store it?

 

You can take it wherever you like.

[texhockey]

Thanks for your review and I love your website.  I'm in the Villa suite in October so reading about it has been nice.  I have also been experiencing the joys of Royal shore side customer service.  We have 8 in the suite and 14 other right by us and I have been worried about dining. I'm glad to hear the concierge is helpful.  One question that is probably weird,  does the pub have a dart board?  We enjoy that the carnival ships have at least a plastic tip board.  Once again I am enjoying your review.

 

 

[jakecp12]

Killer post/ review! Also loved your website, commented on your mlife post there...

 

I’m going on liberty in September for my 30th bday and booked the drink package, the key, and 3 night specialty dining package. Was hoping to be in Chops for the welcome lunch so hopefully the food is just as good.

 

This will be my first time with RCCL and first solo cruise so all the info you’ve provided is great.

 

Hope to learn more about the mLife benefits soon since I’m gold with MGM. It’s been a hassle so far getting the OBC and it seems they have not read that PDF on the MGM and RCCL websites lol.

 

Edit: Also thank you for the website again, Royal Caribbean Blog and other sites seem to all cater to FL, NY, and Alaska sailings so nice to see info on my home state port. Would love to see a parking post there, I’ve read a few here on CC and think I’m going to go with falstaff in Sept.

Edited August 1, 2019 by jakecp12

[hukoli]

Thank you for all the information you have provided!

 

We have a cruise booked in Feb 20, and it has been hard to find any recent info about cruising from Galveston. I'm trying to make some sort of a guide for our group, since only 3 of us have cruised once before, and no one from Galveston. MDR menus were very helpful in showing that specialty dining is not needed.