3-Night package on Symphony--which restaurants to try?

[baelor]

This is our first cruise (and therefore first cruise with RCI as well).  We want to try the included options, but the price for the 3-night package is pretty good (like $100), so we figured it would make sense to try some of the specialty restaurants. 

 

The ones we were thinking about include:

Wonderland--seems unique and fun.  But if the food is nasty, we will skip.  The more similar it is to unusual presentation/molecular gastronomy, the more interested we would be.

Izumi--I like sushi a lot; I think our group would be interested in the teppanyaki as well, even given the surcharge.  Not sure whether sushi (a la carte?) or teppanyaki is the better move here.

150 Central Park--The menu really appeals to us.  I cannot seem to find consistent information about how the menu works, whether it is even included in the package, etc.  

Hooked--We like seafood and would be hoping that the seafood there would be more unusual or in larger quantities than we could get in MDR/Windjammer.

 

 

Ones we are not sure about:

Jamie's Italian--Menu looks good, but we are from areas with really good Italian food from red-sauce to Michelin-star, so we are okay passing on Jamie's unless there are awesome dishes or something we should try.

Chops Grille--Same with Jamie's:  We have access to amazing steakhouses, so hitting up another one is not a huge priority unless there are unique items worth trying.

 

 

Not really interested in:

Playmakers--We like sports bars but it seems like there are other attractive/more unique options.

Johnny Rockets--We can get it on the mainland and seems like not the best bang for our buck.

 

 

 

Any recommendations/thoughts welcome.  All of the menus look pretty mainstream to us, so no worries about picky eaters.

 

Also, I assume that (in contrast to the MDR) the prix fixe restaurants do not allow you to order multiple items each course.  Is that right?

[Rajona]

Just got back from a Wonder sailing where we had the UDP. Of the four you outlined...the three I would do are: Izumi, 150 Central Park, & Hooked. Wonderland wasn't for me. Too "adventurous" for my tastes and found myself hungry afterwards. Many people do enjoy it though for its "adventurous" menu. Enjoy....no matter which options you choose.

[Mapleleafforever]

You never forget your first, I'm excited for you!! 

 

The food at Wonderland is definitely not nasty in fact we really enjoyed it, like a lot. Having said that it is a bit of a novelty and we probably won't go again. I recommend to try at least once though and who knows, you may want to go over and over. 

 

Izumi for me, meh, others love it. 

 

150 Central Park was great when we went but apparently it has changed quite a bit since.... but based on our experience I recommend....but not over the next 2. 

 

Jamie's Italian I could dine nightly and never get bored. We love the variety of the menu and they treated our 15 month old like gold, even made her extra special dishes not on the menu. We dined 3 times in one week there I believe. 

 

Chops I would go just for the pork belly. It's a typical steakhouse with some good sides. Careful with the apps, save room for the beef. 

 

So I recommend Wonderland, Jamie's Italian, and Chops. And if you like something don't hesitate to tell your server and they can bring extra.....or anything you like actually, they aim to please and the service is quite a lot better compared with the main dining room IMO. 

 

Ate at Johnny Rockets twice.....felt gross the rest of the day both times.....all the fried stuff is not for me. 

 

Edited April 20, 2022 by Mapleleafforever

[Mapleleafforever]

6 minutes ago, Rajona said:

Just got back from a Wonder sailing where we had the UDP. Of the four you outlined...the three I would do are: Izumi, 150 Central Park, & Hooked. Wonderland wasn't for me. Too "adventurous" for my tastes and found myself hungry afterwards. Many people do enjoy it though for its "adventurous" menu. Enjoy....no matter which options you choose.

We would have had the same problem at Wonderland but we got extra of pretty much everything we ate......so yeah, pretty small portions. Pretty sure we tried almost everything on the menu.....and we still weren't as stuffed as we should have been. 

[baelor]

Thanks for the feedback so far!

[baelor]

22 minutes ago, Rajona said:

Wonderland wasn't for me. Too "adventurous" for my tastes and found myself hungry afterwards

Could you elaborate on what you mean by "adventurous"?  We are pretty much fine with anything--escargot fits within our "mainstream," and we have had no problem with crickets, barnacles, chicken feet, duck tongues, foie gras, snake, alligator, squab, etc.  I would draw the line at balut, though.

 

But if you meant "adventurous" as in kitschy or focusing too much on presentation, that would be good to know.

[yogimax]

Would definitely try Hooked.  We had an excellent dinner there with the surf &turf option.

 

Second choice  would be 150 Central Park.  It's on our list to try and I've seen excellent reviews.

[jrapps]

Wow this is a TOUGH ONE. They are really all so good.

 

If you like a multi-course sensory meal, go with Wonderland. Its the kind of meal that appeals to sights, smells, and flavor. They are big on presentation and the food is unique. If you've never tried anything like it before, its a great experience.

 

If you love seafood, can't go wrong with Hooked.

 

Izumi...i personally would go for the Hibachi over the sushi. Not that the sushi is bad, it's really good, but it may not be better than local sushi you can get on land. The teppanyaki/hibachi is just a fun experience, and you can always pay the $12 or so and get a sushi roll as an appetizer so you get the best of both worlds there.

 

I know you said only 3, but for 150 it is a bit more elegant, white tablecloth kind of place. If you do it, save it for a formal night. Food is amazing, and their bread is divine.

 

Overall, you wont be disappointed with whichever 3 you choose! Your only regret will be not splurging for the UDP to do them all!

[taglovestocruise]

58 minutes ago, Mapleleafforever said:

 

Chops I would go just for the pork belly. It's a typical steakhouse with some good sides. Careful with the apps, save room for the beef. 

 

 

That crispy Berkshire black pepper pork belly is my favorite appetizer on the ship.  Always ask for it to be extra crispy. Sometimes comes out as large as my wife's filet. 

 

 

[Ozark_Kid]

We sailed Symphony last October with another couple.  We ate at Wonderland, Izumi, Hooked, Jamie’s and Chops.  

We really enjoyed Wonderland.  It was a fun experience and great food.  Before you eat the chef will visit with you to get an idea of the type of food you enjoy and if there are foods to void.  We enjoyed it enough that we did a repeat on Harmony.  
I really liked Izumi.  Although my wife does not like sushi, she really liked the teriyaki bowl.  She did a la carte while the rest of us did the prix fixe menu for $34.99.  I would highly recommend it.

We enjoyed Hooked and would do it again.  The only thing I did not enjoy was The Whole Maine Lobster stuffed with crab. When asked I mentioned that I did not like it.  They told me they were having trouble getting high quality crab meat.  They replaced it with lobster tails.  They kept offering more!

We ate at Jamie’s. I really enjoyed the meat plank but the main meal to me was just ok.  The other 3 enjoyed their meal.  We tried Jamie’s again on Harmony and we all did not see it a special.

Chops is good.  I really liked the pork belly.  
 

Here is my suggestion.  With having great Italian and steakhouse restaurants at home I would skip them. I would do the first 4 you mentioned.  If you use your 3 dining plan on Wonderland, 150 Central Park and Hooked.  Then add Izumi which would be no more than $34.99 each if you do not add teppanyaki.  
150 Central Park has never appealed to me so if I only wanted 3 I would drop it but that is just me.  I believe you will enjoy any of the 1st four you mentioned.  Have a great cruise!

[Ozark_Kid]

And welcome to CC.

[Rajona]

"Adventurous" as I found it kitschy and focus on presentation. Although if it helps you decide...I wouldn't eat any of the other things you listed 🙂. Wonderland just wasn't for me. I can now say I've been there...done that. Won't be doing it ever again.

[baelor]

10 minutes ago, Rajona said:

"Adventurous" as I found it kitschy and focus on presentation. Although if it helps you decide...I wouldn't eat any of the other things you listed 🙂. Wonderland just wasn't for me. I can now say I've been there...done that. Won't be doing it ever again.

At least you gave it a try! 

[GStanMus]

The first step is to review all of the menus and rank the restaurants that you would enjoy eating at.  But I assume that you have already done that.

Here are my rankings based on the quality of food::

1. 150 Central Park- again make sure those rich, over the top menu items appeal to you. 

2. Hooked/Chops- I would give the higher ranking to Hooked. Hooked is also limited and only on a couple ships.

3.Wonderland- Like most say the experience is the main draw here.  You really have to be into the creamy textures of food items.  I personally would go one time for the experience.

Edited April 21, 2022 by GStanMus
Added an item

[udamom]

150 Park- is always good Nicest atmosphere if your looking for a nice restaurant kind of feel.

Wonderland was a one and done for us. The food IMO wasn't great 

Chops is usually very good. If you are used to really good steakhouses it may not live up to your standards. But its tasty

Izumi we do the teppanyaki and it is always fun and pretty good food

Jamie's Italian for us has been hit or miss. We have had very good meals there and then some that are just so so. You said you have good Italian near you at home so you may be disappointed in it

Hooked it good -I'm not a big seafood person but my husband likes it and they made me a nice steak ;o)

Second dress up night for the week is almost always lobster night in the MDR. You can ask when booking the restaurants which night that will be on your cruise.

Enjoy whatever you choose! 

 

[baelor]

Thanks for the additional replies!  @udamom, we definitely plan to eat in the MDR on lobster night!

 

9 hours ago, GStanMus said:

1. 150 Central Park- again make sure those rich, over the top menu items appeal to you. 

 

Could you elaborate on the rich + over the top?  The menus available seemed to us to be pretty normal food-wise.  Are those inaccurate?

 

Edited April 21, 2022 by baelor

[bjlbbk]

On our last cruise we tried Jamie's and Hooked for the first time and absolutely LOVED them both. I've never been so full after a meal than I was at Hooked. It was A LOT!! 

 

Also I would not choose Playmakers as part of your package but I wouldn't rule it out as a place to try for a lunch or late afternoon snack. We are not huge sports bar fans but absolutely loved the atmosphere sitting outside on the boardwalk on our Symphony cruise. The wings and nachos hit the spot and we loved the drink options there as well. 

[taglovestocruise]

5 hours ago, baelor said:

Thanks for the additional replies!  @udamom, we definitely plan to eat in the MDR on lobster night!

 

Could you elaborate on the rich + over the top?  The menus available seemed to us to be pretty normal food-wise.  Are those inaccurate?

 

It would be a pretty safe bet that you will be unimpressed and very disappointed by Royals Specialty dining.  You may be part of the crowd that compares MDR to a bad night at Appleby's. 

[baelor]

3 hours ago, bjlbbk said:

On our last cruise we tried Jamie's and Hooked for the first time and absolutely LOVED them both. I've never been so full after a meal than I was at Hooked. It was A LOT!! 

 

Thanks for the recommendations!

[baelor]

10 minutes ago, taglovestocruise said:

It would be a pretty safe bet that you will be unimpressed and very disappointed by Royals Specialty dining.  You may be part of the crowd that compares MDR to a bad night at Appleby's. 

Is there such a thing as a good night at Applebee's?  I kid, I kid.  But more broadly, what do you mean?