PALO--to tip or not?

[JLSM97]

Personally, I saw a lot more reason to tip in Palo than I did in the rotation restaurants. We thought the food was a BAZILLION times better, and we got personal attention the entire meal. We didn't even try to figure out how much our meal would've cost on land; we added $50 to our $10 dining fee because we were so completely impressed with the service. We didn't tip nearly as much at brunch or tea, mostly because the food wasn't quite as elaborate and there was a LITTLE less personal attention--though still plenty!

If fine dining isn't your thing at home, you probably won't enjoy paying extra to eat at Palo. But if you do go, don't forget to tip, and pay attention to the dress code in consideration for your fellow diners.

Just my two cents!

 

[mrsltg]

But what do you do when you get exceptional service when your tips have been included?

Smile and say, "thank you".

Erin

 

[professorandmom]

An experience at Palo will easily answer the whether to tip question.....
Barb

 

[paulcrsb]

We have always tipped extra. The food and service is always extremely good! Also we have never had a problem getting a second night at Palo. I like to think it was because we tipped well and they would like us to come back!

Paul

 

[bmattessich]

WE loved it! The view, the service, the food, was all spectacular!

We left a $30 tip also. And I would certainely do Palo's again on our next cruise.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

My DH and I were curious about the CM's opinion of working in Palo as opposed to the dining rooms.

Chuckling here. At brunch I found myself looking at one of the waiters trying to remember where I'd seen him before. I then remembered him as the ice cream server at Scoops from the day before. Also, the brunch Maitre D was supervising breakfast at BBB debarkation morning. I guess the servers aren't assigned to Palo exclusively, at least not all of them. But it just goes to show you the potential people have if placed in the right situation.

 

[Pooh_Friend#1]

Everytime I go to Palo's I leave an extra $20 for tip on top of the $10 charge. I think the staff deserves it, they are excellent.

 

[fodc8]

Originally posted by wnissen
Well, tipping is expected at all the other restaurants as well, so it only stands to reason that Palo is the same. I can appreciate the reasoning of those who reegard the #10 fee as a gratuity, but we left $30 anyway.

Walt

We just ate at palo Last week on the Wonder. It was amazing. We asked about the 10 dollar fee and were told that it goes directly to the servers. We still tipped 20 bucks more.

 

[admepo]

We just returned from the Aug 28-Sept 7 Magic and I can tell you I was very nervous about tipping in Palo and making sure it was enough. My husband and I are generally large tippers for great service and I received nothing but EXCELLENT service from Kristof from Belgium in Palo. So much so that we requested him for brunch and had a second dinner there (due to the cruise extension) and requested him again! I think we were in the restaurant for a minimum of three hours each time. He kept the food coming and the wonderful service the whole time! We even enjoyed seeing him during their rotations at Scoops and Topsiders as well! Can't wait to book again so we can go back!

Melanie

 

[DawnL]

We had Kristof also on our 8/14 Magic cruise and he was absolutely wonderful. We planned on leaving a $20 cash tip, but he was so great, that I quickly went back to our room to get a little more cash and left him $30. I did see him the next afternoon preparing ice-cream at Scoops, so I guess even the Palo waiters have additional responsibilities during the day.

 

[SeaSpray]

DH and I were fortunate enough to have Gemma from England, as our server, for both brunch and dinner. Gemma made excellent food recommendations, and brought extra dishes for us to try. We left a $25 tip for brunch (in addition to the fee), and $35 for dinner (in additon to the fee).

Gemma works at the ice cream place on Deck 9, called "Scoops" sometimes during the day, when she's not working the afternoon tea at Palo. So yes, they do work elsewhere when not in Palo, but not in a tipped position. (this is Gemma's work routine, not sure about the other servers from Palo).