Palo Brunch Chicken Parm?

[Louise97]

Ok, OP here, back from my voyage. We ended up having both dinner and brunch at Palo. My husband loves gnocchi (his grandma used to make it fresh), so we decided to do a pre-dinner at Palo to just have a pasta course and some wine. Well. We are so happy our amazing server, Marko, talked us into ordering more. Everything was FREAKIN' AMAZING! From the pizza bread and gnocchi amuse bouche to the glorious, bring-tear-to-your-eye Osso Buco. It was all extraordinarily delicious. We had the Caprese salad, agnolotti (butternut squash ravioli), gnocchi, Osso Buco, and chocolate soufflé. The dessert was the only item I did not care for. It just didn't do anything for me. But man, that Osso Buco with saffron risotto was like a warm hug. We went back the next morning for brunch, which was probably a mistake, since we were still slightly full from the night before. Marko had prepared us that brunch is good but doesn't compare to dinner. He was quite firm about steering us away from certain items that weren't worth the stomach space, and I appreciated that. I wanted a Mickey waffle for the social media post, and he insisted I skip it. Was glad I did. Here's what we had:

Eggs benedict with rosemary ham - divine
Zucchini frittata - not bad. Loved the arugula on top and the parmesan crust on the outside.
Grape and Gorgonzola Pizza - - DELICIOUS (Marko told us he was bringing us a secret, off the menu item. I had seen it before on vlogs but didn't let on, so I didn't spoil his surprise.)
Chicken parmesan w/ risotto - very delicious, but I didn't finish it. It just didn't compare to the Osso Buco.
Lasagna - best I've ever tasted, but a bit too rich to finish.
Mushroom ravioli - just meh
Celery soup - contrary to what I had heard, it does indeed taste like celery (which I like), but wouldn't order again.
Almond croissant - heavenly (not as marzipan-y as I expected, like the ones Starbucks used to serve). Marko didn't bring us any other sweet pastries. He insisted we share only ONE croissant and would bring more at the end if we desired. We didn't...too full.
We tried the focaccia in the bread basket, but tasted just like what they serve at Cabanas. Marko suggested we not eat the regular bread/breadsticks, again, to save stomach space.
I don't eat seafood, but I did sample the meat/cheese/olive plate. Good but not necessary.
Desserts - buttermilk panna cotta - - oh.my.yum. Surprisingly delicious. Lemoncello tart - - didn't like. More sweet than lemony.

Was really glad we tried brunch but not sure we'll repeat until our kids are of age. But dinner... would book another cruise just to eat it again.

Oh, those Eggs Benedict with the rosemary ham... we went to Palo on our first cruise and I still think about that dish from time to time

 

[JWelch62]

Do you have a favorite for dinner? We will be doing diner at Palo for the first time in two weeks.

I will usually get either the Filet of Dover Sole, or the Osso Buco.

 

[disruptor32]

As someone of partial Italian heritage who has lived his entire life in the NY/NYC/NJ area (and who also happens to make a very good chicken parm himself), I can confidently say that the Palo chicken parm is ...... good, but not great, and not nearly as good as it gets hyped up for being. It is not as good as any of my local Italian spots (not even close). It is not as good as my mom's (not even close). It is not even as good as my own homemade.

I generally think Disney does a bad job with Italian food (see, e.g., Tony's Town Square, Mama Melrose, any of the Italian dishes in the main dining room on DCL) so Palo's food might seem better than it really is objectively. All that being said, I do get the chicken parm every time I do Palo brunch - and if we're being honest I think the lasagna is actually better than the parm.

 

[DCL Repeaters]

As someone of partial Italian heritage who has lived his entire life in the NY/NYC/NJ area (and who also happens to make a very good chicken parm himself), I can confidently say that the Palo chicken parm is ...... good, but not great, and not nearly as good as it gets hyped up for being. It is not as good as any of my local Italian spots (not even close). It is not as good as my mom's (not even close). It is not even as good as my own homemade.

I generally think Disney does a bad job with Italian food (see, e.g., Tony's Town Square, Mama Melrose, any of the Italian dishes in the main dining room on DCL) so Palo's food might seem better than it really is objectively. All that being said, I do get the chicken parm every time I do Palo brunch - and if we're being honest I think the lasagna is actually better than the parm.

Never have I ever seen Chicken Parmigiana in my many trips to Italy. Eggplant Parmigiana yes, but never chicken parmigiana. Count me as not a fan of the Palo version of Chicken Parm.

 

[brentm77]

Never have I ever seen Chicken Parmigiana in my many trips to Italy. Eggplant Parmigiana yes, but never chicken parmigiana. Count me as not a fan of the Palo version of Chicken Parm.

You aren't wrong. It's an Italian-American dish that originated in America.

 

[auntlynne]

Do you have a favorite for dinner? We will be doing diner at Palo for the first time in two weeks.

Not addressed to me - but I routinely have the filet. Even before the Prix Fixe menu, in the days when you could have anything (and everything).

The few times I have strayed, it’s the Dover Sole or the Osso Bucco. The sole is a lighter option. The veal is very rich and a lot of food.

As for pasta, I think I’ve only tried the butternut squash ravioli. It has 4-6 smallish pieces, but is also on the rich side, with its butter/oil sauce.

The arugula salad is a nice start.

 

[KKKKCS]

Funny story about the chicken parm: Several years ago, during the Palo buffet days, my wife and I sailed with another couple and went to the Palo brunch. After gorging ourselves at the buffet, and ordering and eating many main courses, Our waiter, an awesome and very Italian gentleman, asked us if we had tried the chicken parm. We replied that we had not, but we were all so full and there was absolutely no room in any of our bellies for a single bite of anything else. "Please, please please don't bring anything else, we are completely spent"

His reply (in his very Italian accent): "I know, I know, You all so full. No more room. I only bring two!"

And he did. And we ate every bit them. It was that good.

 

[holula]

Do you have a favorite for dinner? We will be doing diner at Palo for the first time in two weeks.

Osso bucco or the lobster paparadelle

 

[TXDCLfan]

The chicken parm is OK at best nothing special.

 

[Lisa F]

Try it yourself. there is no downside. If there is something else you want to try you can try that too. Doesn't matter what anyone thinks but you.

 

[Stitch'sCousin]

I make my own at home (and it is pretty good if I do say so myself ) but I really enjoy the chicken parm at Palo (as well as the lasagna) and I order it every time we go there for the brunch. It may have something to do with the ambiance in Palo and the fact that we are on a DCL cruise!

 

[BamaGuy44]

Food is so subjective, it wouldn't take long to find people online who say they wouldn't feed your favorite restaurant's food to their dog.

As for me the Palo chicken parm is is one of my favorite dishes I've had in any restaurant. As @Lisa F already said, there's no risk or downside to trying it.