My unlimited dining experience

[cravingthis]

51 minutes ago, Judyrem said:

Yes, I like to cook and try new recipes, this week's efforts were not so good!🙄

 

Maybe the chef at Chops was having a bad night?

I tried a recipe for the Austrian Strietzel bread from some RCI cookbook and it turned out awful too 😥

 

Re: Chef/Chops - hope that was it ...

[mickeygirl78]

21 hours ago, cindivan said:

I know you said izumi was not the time you wanted. Were the other restaurants available for times you wanted? What time do you typically like dining?

 

Thanks for your review. We have gone back-and-forth over booking that for a couple cruises, but we really prefer to eat between 630 and 730, and we end up paying maybe 25% more to get the times we want and just book ahead.  I try to read all the reviews, but I never really get a sense of how possible it is to book prime time for most nights for the restaurants you want.

 

 

We were offered Izumi at 5pm or 9pm. We took the 5pm. My preference is 6-6:30 but most of our meals were 5:30 with one 6pm. They told us they were full but most restaurants were not full when we were there. 

[cindivan]

1 hour ago, mickeygirl78 said:

We were offered Izumi at 5pm or 9pm. We took the 5pm. My preference is 6-6:30 but most of our meals were 5:30 with one 6pm. They told us they were full but most restaurants were not full when we were there. 

 Thanks so much for that reply.   That really helps my decision

[amybk27]

On 10/24/2019 at 5:53 PM, mickeygirl78 said:

We were offered Izumi at 5pm or 9pm. We took the 5pm. My preference is 6-6:30 but most of our meals were 5:30 with one 6pm. They told us they were full but most restaurants were not full when we were there. 

From what I remember, Izumi hibachi is not included in UDP, but sometimes you can get it on the first night included.  Has this changed?  

[orkaren1]

We just got off Harmony from the October 20 sailing and also had the Unlimited Dining with a party of 7, including two children.  We had lunch at Sabor's on embarkation day with no waiting for a table. Service was a little slow but I think this was due more to the fact that it was very early (around 1130).  We made our reservations for dinners for the rest of the week while we were at Sabor.  The gentleman taking the reserations just wrote everything on a piece of paper so we were a bit concerned that it would not get entered correctly, but we got everything we wanted with no issues.  It took an hour or so for the reservations to show up on the Royal app.  It did not seem to have any reservations already booked for us.  We did need to go directly to Izumi to book the hibachi grill but they were able to accommodate all 7 of us the first night with no problem.  Wonderland was interesting and the food was good, our only complaint was the print on the menu was very small and the lighting was dim so it was a bit difficult to read the menu.  As others have said we just told our server what we liked and did not like to eat and let him choose our appetizers.  We ate at Chops once and Jaimies and 150 Central Park twice.  All were excellent although we enjoyed Jaimies the most.  Our server brought us almost all the appetizers to share as well as almost all the pastas to share in addition to our entrees.  Our second night at Jaimies was lobster night in the MDR and our server brought lobster tails for our entire party in addition to our entrees.  We did not make reservations for lunch on our two sea days but had no problem getting into Sabor both days.  One thing we found most nights at all the restaurants was one member of our group had the drink package and the servers usually put all of our dinner cocktails and wine on that package so none of us paid extra for the drinks except on night.  Overall a great experience and definately worth the price.

[orkaren1]

31 minutes ago, amybk27 said:

From what I remember, Izumi hibachi is not included in UDP, but sometimes you can get it on the first night included.  Has this changed?  

We had to go directly to Izumi to make our reservation but were told right away it was included in the UDP.  When we were seated they told us what was covered by the UDP (one protein)  and if we wanted to add anything it would be an additional $4. We chose that because an additional $4 for lobster and scallops was well worth it.

[orkaren1]

On 10/23/2019 at 7:40 AM, rusty nut said:

Is this what it has come down to? Chops, a steakhouse, only has one steak on the menu? A filet? Really?

It appears that UDP guests get a different menu after all.

We had the full menu with all the steak offerings.  One person got a 6 oz filet but could have gotten two other sizes, another in our group had the strip steak with a couple different size offerings available.

[mickeygirl78]

48 minutes ago, amybk27 said:

From what I remember, Izumi hibachi is not included in UDP, but sometimes you can get it on the first night included.  Has this changed?  

It is included on the unlimited dining plan with one protein. If you want two proteins it’s an extra $4.

[ChollaChick]

Thank you so much for this review.  My husband and I are doing the Unlimited Dining on our Allure TA in March.  We are really looking forward to trying new things and your review got me even more excited about our upcoming cruise.  :)  Thank you!!!

[jandj1224]

We just booked Unlimited Dining for our 4 night cruise on Navigator. 

To clarify it seems the consensus is lunch is included on embarkation day at specialty restaurant or pay snack locations (Playmakers, Johnny Rockets)?

 

The original poster mentioned lunch at Sabor on a day docked at St. Martin.  Was that included?  We plan on staying on the ship in Nassau and wondering if we will be able to do a specialty lunch that day as well.

 

Thanks!

[Tulsacoker]

3 minutes ago, jandj1224 said:

The original poster mentioned lunch at Sabor on a day docked at St. Martin.  Was that included?  We plan on staying on the ship in Nassau and wondering if we will be able to do a specialty lunch that day as well.

 

Thanks!

I would say if the specialty restaurant is open at lunch time it's included, however, I never experienced one open  during port (except JR and we paid for that even with UDP)  

[marci22]

On 10/30/2019 at 12:36 PM, orkaren1 said:

 One thing we found most nights at all the restaurants was one member of our group had the drink package and the servers usually put all of our dinner cocktails and wine on that package so none of us paid extra for the drinks except on night. 

 

I can't believe more heads are not exploding over this.

[tomservo]

45 minutes ago, marci22 said:

 

I can't believe more heads are not exploding over this.

I think stuff like that happens, like you order a mocktail or soda for your kid and bartender charges it to your drink package instead of your kid on purpose. It sounds like this was the server doing this, not the one person with the drink package ordering a bunch of drinks and passing them around. I will say that it surprised me too.

[marci22]

1 hour ago, tomservo said:

I think stuff like that happens, like you order a mocktail or soda for your kid and bartender charges it to your drink package instead of your kid on purpose. It sounds like this was the server doing this, not the one person with the drink package ordering a bunch of drinks and passing them around. I will say that it surprised me too.

Even if the server was doing it, it's crazy. Putting a party of 7's drinks on one drink package all week long? People on here go crazy if someone shares one drink. Even a soda.

[tomservo]

28 minutes ago, marci22 said:

Even if the server was doing it, it's crazy. Putting a party of 7's drinks on one drink package all week long? People on here go crazy if someone shares one drink. Even a soda.

 

I know, but even the people who are extremely strict about it (the ones who would scream at me for sharing a bite of my steak in a specialty with my child because they didn't pay for it) probably see the difference between people sharing drinks they're not supposed to and the server giving you free drinks. Sometimes restaurants give you a complimentary bottle of wine, sometimes bartenders give you a free drink or two, it happens.

 

Regarding the soda thing, I have seen people go nuts on here over soda sharing with their kids, even if it was one soda the whole cruise. Easy solution for me - my kids don't get soda 😀

[orkaren1]

On 11/1/2019 at 1:06 PM, marci22 said:

 

I can't believe more heads are not exploding over this.

We never asked for the drinks to be covered, we just noticed we did not get a seperate bill for drinks most of the time and assumed they put the charge on the card with the drink package.  It was usually only three extra drinks and not at all the restaurants every night. One night at 150 Central Park we were not charged for the specialty martini and one night we were. Perhaps the servers just charged them to the card with the drink package or maybe just neglected to generate a separate bill.

[joyhannah]

does lunch come with the package on day one when you get on the ship or did you have to pay for that?

[HBE4]

3 hours ago, orkaren1 said:

We never asked for the drinks to be covered, we just noticed we did not get a seperate bill for drinks most of the time and assumed they put the charge on the card with the drink package.  It was usually only three extra drinks and not at all the restaurants every night. One night at 150 Central Park we were not charged for the specialty martini and one night we were. Perhaps the servers just charged them to the card with the drink package or maybe just neglected to generate a separate bill.

 

Sometimes if the severs know you have a drink package, they don't even bother asking for your SeaPass card.  I've had bartenders wave me off when I try to hand them my SeaPass.

[marci22]

16 hours ago, orkaren1 said:

We never asked for the drinks to be covered, we just noticed we did not get a seperate bill for drinks most of the time and assumed they put the charge on the card with the drink package.  It was usually only three extra drinks and not at all the restaurants every night. One night at 150 Central Park we were not charged for the specialty martini and one night we were. Perhaps the servers just charged them to the card with the drink package or maybe just neglected to generate a separate bill.

Oh I wasn't implying that, just that people get so crazy when someone shares a sip of soda, implying that it increases costs of the package. I think server freebies would increase the cost of the package as well. It's illogical that posters go crazy about people sharing but it's ok when a bartender/server does it, working on their tip. Or just being lazy, for that matter.

[FPP777]

Thanks for all the information. You have convinced me to switch from the 3 night plan to the UDP the next time the price drops.

[Dcun201]

I just got off the Harmony and had the UDP package. On this specific ship you could it go dine one specialty restaurant during lunch and dinner per night even though fine print on the UDP states you can dine as much as you want all night.

 

For Izumi you get $35 credit per guest. So if you do the hibachi you will be paying $10 upcharge since the cheapest protein was $45. Tip to avoid the charge is if you have a party of 2 you can share a protein and have some left over credit for a sushi roll or other a la carte apps since you both combine will have a $70 credit. The cook still gave out two fried rice and veggie portion to both shared diners. 

 

For the specialty restaurant you can order as many apps and dessert as you like but you are only allowed to order one MAIN entree. If you would like to order a second one they will charge you $10 upcharge per extra main entree. Some waiters do let you order extra mains for free but ymmv.

 

I tried the MDR for formal night, the quality of the food ofcourse was not as good as the specialty restaurant. Service was great though. I find the windjammer dinner buffet to be a little better than the MDR. Especially when they have theme food nights. The windjammer's themed food was always great!

 

[legaljen1969]

On 10/23/2019 at 1:46 PM, red-dragon said:

 

Thanks so much for such a detailed review with pictures!!  We loved Chops Grille from a previous cruise but I recall the service was painstakingly slow, and our server was unfortunately very rude.  It ruined the experience for us, but the food was good.  We have our hearts set on trying it again, but the reviews on service and food seem up/down!

 

Ugh, so sorry to hear of your bad experience at Chops.  I wonder why it's so up/down?  Different servers, understaffed?   

 

Wow, it just got worse for you.  I'm seriously re-thinking Chops.  Your server sounds like the one we had back in the day.  The funny thing is the server at the very next table was so friendly and outgoing, I looked at my hubby and said, "I want him!"  

Our experience in Chops on Allure 2016, was not great.  My husband was much more willing to forgive "not great."  We went with my brother and SIL.  The guys loved it. We girls didn't care for it at all. The meal was meh and the service was rushed and rude. 
I would have been happy to send my husband and brother back to Chops, but I wasn't paying to go again. 

[budmeister]

Hi, Did you have to pay for lunch for embarkation day? 

[tomservo]

13 hours ago, Dcun201 said:

I just got off the Harmony and had the UDP package. On this specific ship you could it go dine one specialty restaurant during lunch and dinner per night even though fine print on the UDP states you can dine as much as you want all night.

 

For Izumi you get $35 credit per guest. So if you do the hibachi you will be paying $10 upcharge since the cheapest protein was $45. Tip to avoid the charge is if you have a party of 2 you can share a protein and have some left over credit for a sushi roll or other a la carte apps since you both combine will have a $70 credit. The cook still gave out two fried rice and veggie portion to both shared diners. 

 

That's unfortunate that you had to pay the upcharge for Hibachi. Others have reported only having to pay for a 2nd protein.

 

I'm surprised they told you that you only got one restaurant for each lunch/dinner. They changed the name of the program from Ultimate to Unlimited. So what part is unlimited anymore?

[katiel53]

16 hours ago, Dcun201 said:

 

For Izumi you get $35 credit per guest. So if you do the hibachi you will be paying $10 upcharge since the cheapest protein was $45. Tip to avoid the charge is if you have a party of 2 you can share a protein and have some left over credit for a sushi roll or other a la carte apps since you both combine will have a $70 credit. The cook still gave out two fried rice and veggie portion to both shared diners. 

 

 

Our experience in Hibachi was not like you described at all.  The Hibachi meal

 is included with the UDP, but if you choose to eat in Izumi (the sushi area) then the $35 credit applies.

 

Did you actually go to Hibachi or are you posting from what many believe is posted on the website.  It is broken down on the website and it is confusing.  We have done Hibachi on Harmony and Allure and both have not had the $10 uncharge.  We do not do sushi ever.

Edited November 11, 2019 by katiel53