WAAAYTOOO

I assume that either you prepaid the standard tip amount or that your suite class covers gratuities.  If you are talking about additional tips, it is subjective and very personal to how you wish to proceed.  We tip Stateroom attendants an additional $200-ish throughout a 7 day, depending upon the level of service.  I give the room attendant $50 on the first day meeting, and $50 at the end, while leaving a $10 to $20 bill on the bed every day depending upon how much I win or lose at the Casino LOL
For Coastal Kitchen, my opinion is that CK is very, very good.  Way better than MDR and Windjammer, not as good as Central Park 150.  We checked out the sample menus on the app and based upon that, we made reservations on those days we liked the menu.  The concierge will e-mail you a few days before your sailing and you should reply with those Coastal Kitchen reservations that you want.  For our cruise, same day walk-ins were extremely limited.
Use the Suites Concierge for as much as you can.  For example, questions for your onboard account balances can be answered through the Suites Concierge so that you don't have to go directly to guest services.  Same with Wow Bands and pretty much all reservations.  

On serenade now. Left Vancouver today, got about 2 hours out, then had to turn around and we're currently back in Vancouver awaiting info tomorrow on what the problem/ plan is. Huge disappointment especially now that I've been reading about all the problems they've been having since it's dry dock earlier this year. 

CHEF'S TABLE

 
The recipe for Salted Caramel Espresso Martini can be found here:
https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/42039-cocktail-recipes-on-royal-caribbean-ships/page/12/#findComment-504223
 

They don't use powdered eggs, but they DO use liquid egg product for the scrambled eggs and omelets. If you want fresh eggs used for your omelet, you must specify when ordering.

100% agree.  Most reviews on youtube do not give Fish and Ships enough credit.  Honestly, we thought we were dumb for eating Fish and Ships before getting off the ship in Juneau, but we liked the Fish and Ships fish and chips better than what we paid for in Juneau, go figure.

mushroom soup, lobster bisque for sure.
Wedge salad was very good, but not much different from the wedge salads in other venues on Royal ships.  
The tuna tartar and "bacon" were just meh...for us.
The beef carpaccio is better than the MDR or Coastal Kitchen versions.
 

My husband usually gets this and I have a few spoonfuls. Agree that it's mediocre (we grew up in New England).

Also, at Hooked...I do not normally order fish at restaurants because (1) I am a fish snob and (2) I don't like complicated fish dishes, but the Branzino at Hooked was really solid.  One of my boys had the blackened Branzino, and again, I think overspicing fish is a sin, and it was very good.  I opted for the platter with lobster tail, grilled branzino and grilled shrimp and all 3 items were solid.  I will say that the lobster was miles better than the free lobster on lobster nights and I thoroughly enjoyed it. 
For dessert, do not underestimate the cherry pie.  I am particular to my mom's (RIP) cherry pies and this one was really good.  They are individual sized pies and the crust was flakier than any other pie I have had in a long, long while.  

Coconut shrimp....this late 90's food trend is still lingering at Hooked.  Honestly, they were pretty good.  
Crab cakes were the best of any on the ship. Still not Maryland, but may pass for "Maryland style" ...maybe...

We didn't even get cocktail sauce when we ordered them.  We only got 2 different migonettes. 
As to the oysters themselves, we had oysters in Boston and NYC Grand Central the days leading up to our cruise.  Having said that, Hooked fresh oysters were good, but not sure if they were anything truly special.

Easy one.  Cream of mushroom soup for me.

No particular reason aside from just not really caring for the musical, itself.  The ship version wasn’t the issue…just the show.  BTW, I have the same loathing for Hairspray…just sayin’…

I hated Chicago when it was on Oasis so not anxious to see that one again but LOVED Jersey Boys when we saw it in London a few years ago.  Problem is, I think NCL has the rights to that one…or used to…😤

YEP- I use ketchup on my scrambled eggs! And Hot dogs.... not ALWAYS a cheesesteak, but sometimes they need a little squirt. 

Hey Everyone!
I know I still need to recap days 6 and 7 and post about my travel day home today, sorry it got hectic at the end there! Anyways, look out for those in the next few days! Also, just letting everyone know I made it home today, an over 11 hour flight later.
Thanks!
Ashley

Easy one.  Cream of mushroom soup for me.

We have stayed in one of the forward GS on Vision class before.  Never again.  Lots of noise, particularly in the early morning.  Thr aft JS are very nice, but a bit of a trek.  No suite perks with the JS though.

Got plenty of help with Chops and Izumi but Hooked is almost nothing but oyster comments. What else did ya have?
And FWIW, even though we have mostly stuck to the same ones over and over, I think there's a good chance I'll enjoy the others like you did. Many people don't like Sabor but I would (and have) go there just for the guac and one app that I love (and a margarita of course but lots of those to be had).

No, pretty much burgers and fries, but that's super common in the Philly area (where we grew up) and I have at times.
Perfectly suitable condiment for eggs. 😋

I’m going to try and blog to at least photo dump. We are spending 6 nights inland pre cruise and then going Seward to Vancouver. Really excited to be back there. 

Thanks and I don't blame ya! Our one Alaska trip was pretty epic but the 10 days on land pre-cruise kind of spoiled us. We'll get back there but we're waiting until we're ready to make it another long one with a significant land portion.
Hope you'll be blogging. I need something to read in the cabin when my insomnia kicks in (unless food coma knocks me out).

Hello,
Cruising on Star of the Seas , 8/31 - 9/7, and it can’t get here soon enough! So so excited - 
 
Hope to see some of you on the Inaugural seven day! 

Lawd sakes, child. 
My mother would put ketchup on enchiladas. 

First of all enjoy Royal Suite Class.  But the perks differ depending of if you in a Star, Sky, or Sea Class Suite. 
Since this is your first time cruising in a suite I would suggest you take advantage of all the perks.  Some people on this site cruise in suites all the time so their view of what is a great perk and what is meh may not necessarily be what you experience.  You've paid for a suite take full advantage of whatever suite class you are in, if the perk is meh you can always find another venue but why pass up on a perk based off someone else's experience on a blog site when its your first time.   I say do it all and form your own opinion of the perks this way you have a good idea if Royal Suite Class is worth it based off your own experience. 
Case in point some time's I'll eat breakfast at Coastal Kitchen sometimes I'll eat breakfast at Windjammers, but you'll never see me or my husband in there for dinner.  We've had dinner in Coastal Kitchen more than a few times and it's just not for us. We'll go to the suite lounge on Oasis Class ships for a drink or two but we never linger for long in the suite lounge it's a bit stuffy for my taste up there we're not a fan of the atmosphere in there but that's our personal choice.  However we formed our opinion after trying all the perks multiple times then forming our opinion based off our own personal experiences.
So please enjoy the suite life, enjoy the cruise and who knows you may find it difficult to return to an ocean view balcony afterwards.   What I do know is this you don't want to walk off the ship feeling like you got gypped because you limited yourself and  your onboard experiences based off the opinion of others.