We had both brunch and dinner on the Dream two weeks ago. Brunch was a bigger miss for us food wise, although dinner was less fun with the new pricing structure.
For brunch DH and I ordered 1 of each of the antipasti and seafood plates, 1 Benedict, 1 almond croissant, 1 artichoke ravioli, 1 veal saltimbocca, 1 red fish, 2 lava cakes (they’re calling it something else now, I think fondant cake). The starter plates were disappointing. I want more of what I want, and I don’t want the other stuff. I also really missed a few favorite items from the buffet, like the warm sticky buns. The artichoke ravioli was better than usual and the bread assortment we received was also better than the buffet breads we remember. The veal saltimbocca and redfish were just ok, but we both felt like it’s been better on past sailings. The almond croissant was inedible (tasted like plastic wrap) and the Benedict was cold. The lava cakes were very good, however I did feel that it was less decadent and amazing than before. Somehow the recipe or the ingredient quality has changed. The cake itself seemed more spongy and less dense. I really missed the chocolate covered strawberries and lots of little things that aren’t a big deal but were just part of the old brunch experience. We have brunch scheduled again on the Magic in a few weeks, and I plan to order slightly differently.
For Palo dinner two weeks ago we both ordered a la carte. I was unhappy with the price of the antipasti platter because I really just wanted a nibble of a thing or two and hated having to commit to the large plate with the large price. We both ordered the Buffalo Caprese and it was better than ever! Omg! Somehow my favorite app is even more my favorite now. The Buffalo mozzarella was so dang good I could hardly stand it. DH ordered the dover sole and it was better than ever too. I ordered the osso bucco and it was excellent as usual but I did have a few small complaints: the risotto was not al dente, it was just straight-up not cooked all the way. And my marrow was hardly enough to fit on the little spoon for one little bite. I know the pieces all vary, but usually the narrow is so rich that after a couple bites I’m willing to share it with DH, but for the first time I wished I had more (and he didn’t even get a nibble). We also ordered a side of spinach (forgettable-don’t waste your time!) and a side of the cavatappi Mac and cheese. The cavatappi was amazing! I ended up eating the cavatappi with bites of my osso bucco instead of the crunchy risotto and it was heaven! We had 1 of each soufflé and they were exactly as I remember, both excellent. We have dinner booked again on the Magic in a few weeks too and I can’t wait!
We ended up spending a bit more than we would have if it was the old $45/person for anything you want. But it wasn’t a huge amount more. I wished I could have had just a couple bites of antipasti and I wished the waiter had brought out something random we hadn’t ordered for us to try like the old days. We had tons of food, don’t get me wrong, but the lavish feeling was a bit more checked now. Either way we’ll go back, but I used to look forward to brunch more and dinner seems to have taken the spotlight for me.
