Palo…… is it worth it anymore?

[pennymike]

We were in the first sailing of the Disney Dream of this year. DCL did a great job all things considered…..Disembarkment was a hot mess…… for another post.

We had reservations at Palo, but canceled them after we found out there was a prix fixe menu, very limited, and everything else was à la carte. We are platinum, so the prix fixe would have been at no charge, but this used to be such a special dining event with the options available. Since my wife is a vegetarian she only had one option under the prix fixe menu (basic pasta with a red sauce)…… and I hate to say it, but the prix fixe items were a boring selection.
Thoughts?
#nickelanddimeus

 

[AquaDame]

Basically just that I agree.... we are not interested in the prix fixe options. If we tended to order those already it would be a no brainer. If I were to order what I enjoyed in the past I would pay much more - and I don't go crazy, we're talking an appetizer, entree and souffle here. If we did not already know we enjoyed the evening we would likely skip at the new price point, just as we have skipped Remy on all but one cruise (back when it was $75 pp).

 

[kathi]

We feel the same way. I'm also a vegetarian and the one option is not good. We have 2 cruises coming up in September - we will do Palo brunch to use our Platinum meal, but then just go to Remy for dinner. I would not even do brunch if it weren't free. It's definitely not the special restaurant experience it used to be. I hope they reconsider and put it back - but this seems like a cost cutting measure, so I doubt it.

 

[tvguy]

Well, to be honest, I think it will be months before anyone can reasonably expect anything close to what things were before the pandemic. But I think OP knew that when they decided to take the cruise.

 

[kathi]

Well, to be honest, I think it will be months before anyone can reasonably expect anything close to what things were before the pandemic. But I think OP knew that when they decided to take the cruise.

I disagree that these changes have anything to do with the pandemic and everything to do with cutting costs.

 

[tvguy]

I disagree that these changes have anything to do with the pandemic and everything to do with cutting costs.

Only time will tell.

 

[Keyser]

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I had understood that you don't have to order from the prix fixe menu, but can order entirely a la carte (at least, that's what I'm planning to do if we go...). And, for platinum cruisers, they could either do the prix fixe menu or have $45 credit toward a la carte items for "free". So, your wife may have been able to order several vegetarian items and still come out under the $45 of credit.

 

[sethschroeder]

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I had understood that you don't have to order from the prix fixe menu, but can order entirely a la carte (at least, that's what I'm planning to do if we go...). And, for platinum cruisers, they could either do the prix fixe menu or have $45 credit toward a la carte items for "free". So, your wife may have been able to order several vegetarian items and still come out under the $45 of credit.

That's what I thought but not positive.

 

[gismo1554]

Same here my understanding is you can use the credit towards the a la carte menu. I did brunch as our free platinum perk as wasn't convinced it would work out great value. I was honestly surprised at how much I enjoyed it even without the buffet. That sad I preferred the old style and definitely wouldn't rush to pay for it going forward

 

[Cheburashka]

We are platinum, so the prix fixe would have been at no charge, but this used to be such a special dining event with the options available. Since my wife is a vegetarian she only had one option under the prix fixe menu (basic pasta with a red sauce)…… and I hate to say it, but the prix fixe items were a boring selection.
Thoughts?

I was never a huge fan of Palo brunch, so the loss of its buffet doesn't matter to me. Dinner is what I like at Palo, and my favorite items are offered within the prix fixe menu. I'm not a foodie so I don't need food to be interesting, just delicious.

I'm sure a dietary limitation like being vegetarian makes it harder to find satisfactory offerings, though, as it does in most restaurants.

 

[Cheburashka]

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I had understood that you don't have to order from the prix fixe menu, but can order entirely a la carte (at least, that's what I'm planning to do if we go...). And, for platinum cruisers, they could either do the prix fixe menu or have $45 credit toward a la carte items for "free". So, your wife may have been able to order several vegetarian items and still come out under the $45 of credit.

That has been reported by cruisers to be the case for paying customers, but I haven't yet seen confirmation either way for Platinum. It seems likely the policy would follow the same principle for them, but only cruisers reporting back can confirm that.

 

[Cheburashka]

I disagree that these changes have anything to do with the pandemic and everything to do with cutting costs.

The decision to remove the buffet at Palo brunch is likely Covid-related, but it's definitely a money-saver, too. A lot of people gush about the buffet so it's definitely something that draws people to Palo. I could see DCL bringing it back if Covid ever goes away. Right now it just isn't social-distancing friendly, even with a server handing out the food. And imagine how much plexiglass they'd have to use to cover all those items. Not exactly an ambiance-builder.

I do think that prix-fixe pricing at Palo is here to stay.

 

[mcd2745]

Dinner is probably not worth it any more. The same dinner that used to cost us $80, would now cost at least double. I would still say brunch is worth it until that goes a la carte too - which is probably only a matter of time.

 

[auntlynne]

…We are platinum, so the prix fixe would have been at no charge, but this used to be such a special dining event with the options available. Since my wife is a vegetarian she only had one option under the prix fixe menu (basic pasta with a red sauce)…… and I hate to say it, but the prix fixe items were a boring selection.
Thoughts?
#nickelanddimeus

Any chance you asked about using the Platinum perk as a $45 credit towards purchasing a la carte items? We’d love to have that hope verified.

 

[SandyinMonterey]

I would not be interested in the prix fixe meal/menu. Pass for us.

 

[randumb0]

My wife is a vegetarian and we are not Platinum. Hard pass

 

[Keyser]

I guess I am really confused by some of the replies. To be clear, I don't like the change, myself, but the prix fixe menu/meal is NOT required. If you don't like the prix fixe menu, you can order from the a la carte options, of which there are several more (including many more vegetarian options), and some of them are cheaper (and several are more expensive). The same meal I last got myself at Palo (under the old system) would now be $46 from the a la carte menu, for instance. I can understand not wanting to eat at Palo with this arrangement, but just not liking the prix fixe menu is not a reason not to go.

It is an open question about whether the Platinum "free" meal is only the prix fixe one or if it's also good for $45 toward a la carte items. I had heard on this board (before the cruise restarts) that it was also good toward a la carte, but I don't think there's be a confirmation from someone who actually cruised.

 

[Lillebelle]

I'll start by saying that I'm not a fan of the changes to the pricing structure.

That said, I am not Platinum, so we've always had to pay for Palo. It looks like ordering the things I would want (half of which are not on the prix fixe menu) would total $49, so not that far off from the cost of the prix fixe menu anyway. But, I get that that would vary a lot depending on people's tastes (which is probably why they went this route to begin with).

Since the dishes I loved are still available a la carte, and I assume the service is still stellar, I still plan to dine at Palo.

 

[SnowWhite2]

Palo dinner took a big hit for me when the antipasto cart was taken away and it was made an appetizer. I could still get it but I felt it was a downgrade. Well, that doesn't seem too bad now! I'm going to try brunch and dinner and see how it goes. If dinner is a lot more money for us (the prix fixe doesn't have my favs) we will pass in the future. I love the buffet part the most for brunch so that seems disappointing but I'm going to try it to see.

 

[dclpluto]

Palo is only worth it for platinum members.