Is Palo Brunch still worth it without the Buffet?

[Snowwhyt]

I probably shouldn’t ask because it’s no longer available but what made the brunch buffet so special?

I could not reload the photos on to my phone to repost here. And many of them didn’t post well anyway.
'Palo Brunch Buffet Back??'
https://www.disboards.com/threads/palo-brunch-buffet-back.3878986/post-63976420

The grainy-pixelated photos don’t do it justice.

 

[o&smom]

I probably shouldn’t ask because it’s no longer available but what made the brunch buffet so special?

ALL of the food!!! So many choices from different stations in addition to the made to order options.

 

[auntlynne]

I probably shouldn’t ask because it’s no longer available but what made the brunch buffet so special?

It was definitely a step up in offerings over Cabanas. I can recall caviar with Accompaniments, stone crab claws, ahi tuna, olives, a table of breads, cheeses. Salad greens and dressings. Pecan sticky buns kept covered to keep from drying out. Stollen bread + berries and whipped cream. A wide variety of desserts including chocolate covered strawberries. There were probably things I don’t eat eat, so can’t remember.

And then they showed you the hot offerings.

Everything was hotter or fresher, as they were not feeding the masses.

(And for Platinums, it is complementary - that does make things taste better. Plus, we had it this way for a decade or more.)

 

[Doofenshmirtz513]

We're cruising next month and are considering ordering all of the desserts but hate to waste food; any advice on which ones to skip?

We found the pistachio cake (pretty mild flavor; not super into pistachios anyway) and lemoncello almond torte (not tart enough) to be the weakest offerings. The other four are all pretty fantastic depending on what you are in the mood for.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

I probably shouldn’t ask because it’s no longer available but what made the brunch buffet so special?

Caviar and accompaniments, seared tuna two ways (spicy or regular), pickled or marinated vegetables and olives, etc., smoked salmon, shrimp with spicy tomato juice, mussels, scallops, many different cheeses (including an incredible Reggiano Parmigiano with some premium balsamic vinegar that’s about $50 for 8 oz if you buy it on Amazon), chocolate-covered strawberries, multiple small samples of delicious desserts, a variety of croissants (plain, chocolate, etc.), other breads (hard to remember, since I don’t fill up on bread in the face of such a generous spread of other foods).

I usually limited myself to one entrée after grazing through the buffet a couple of times. The eggs benedict with salmon was my most frequent selection.

 

[Chrissy-Mickey]

We found the pistachio cake (pretty mild flavor; not super into pistachios anyway) and lemoncello almond torte (not tart enough) to be the weakest offerings. The other four are all pretty fantastic depending on what you are in the mood for.

Thanks! The other 4 are the ones we'll be trying then in one week's time!

 

[auntlynne]

Caviar and accompaniments, seared tuna two ways (spicy or regular), pickled or marinated vegetables and olives, etc., smoked salmon, shrimp with spicy tomato juice, mussels, scallops, many different cheeses (including an incredible Reggiano Parmigiano with some premium balsamic vinegar that’s about $50 for 8 oz if you buy it on Amazon), chocolate-covered strawberries, multiple small samples of delicious desserts, a variety of croissants (plain, chocolate, etc.), other breads (hard to remember, since I don’t fill up on bread in the face of such a generous spread of other foods).

I usually limited myself to one entrée after grazing through the buffet a couple of times. The eggs benedict with salmon was my most frequent selection.

Much better write-up than mine. Do you remember this or have a photo for reference. Either way, I am impressed. I have a vague memory of taking photos but can’t find one. Probably on an SD card.

Thanks.

 

[squirk]

We are sailing on the Wish in November. We currently are booked for Palo Brunch but are trying to decide if it is worth getting dressed for the brunch without the buffet anymore. The buffet was always a big part of the brunch to us. We are Platinum and have done both Palo dinner and brunch several times before. We really enjoyed the brunch with the buffet but fear we will be disapointed without it.

I know I am coming in late to this party, but I will throw in with those who say Palo isn’t the same without the brunch.

I just love buffets in general. I can’t explain why. Maybe it’s the control freak in me, who wants to take in the multitude of choices, and then pick just the right amounts of this and that to make a perfect combination of stuff on my plate.

We went to Palo on the Fantasy a few months back. I had forgotten that the buffet was no longer being offered, so when we arrived, I was bummed to hear that there was no longer a buffet.

The food served to us was good, but it just wasn’t the same experience anymore. If I am going to be served (vs. serving myself), I think I prefer the Remy brunch instead.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

Much better write-up than mine. Do you remember this or have a photo for reference. Either way, I am impressed. I have a vague memory of taking photos but can’t find one. Probably on an SD card.

Thanks.

I do remember, but DW has reminded me with her photos as well. Of course, it helps that we do Palo brunch on just about every cruise, probably at least 15 times over 20 cruises (19 pre-Covid, so with the buffet). Food photos (and character photos and sightseeing/excursion photos, you get the idea) are an integral part of DW’s vacation experience.