DAVE(Darkcabbie)

That is what I have been thinking - I think they have been renovating Port Canaveral to hold bigger ships so hoping one moves to PC sometime in the future.

Post your food photos here! If you haven't noticed I enjoy food, especially dessert. Well, okay I really enjoy tiramisu.
 
If you're sailing on a Royal Caribbean ship that has a Portofino specialty restaurant, you should really have dinner there. Each year the number of ships that have Portofino goes down as they are converted to Giovanni's Table. Giovanni's is good, but serves more casual Italian cuisine family style. Where Portofino is a fine Italian dining experience.
 

Tiramisu Portfino, in an edible chocolate cup. From Matt's Portofino reivew, found here: http://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2013/03/12/restaurant-review-portofino
I love this photo Matt, you've got mad photog skills.
 
On the hunt: Tiramisu is served in other locations onboard. Italian night in the MDR offers tiramisu on the dessert menu. Although it lacks in presentation when compared to the Portofino version, it is still good. Giovanni's Table also serves tiramisu which is made in a large tray and scooped onto a plate. Again, not as fancy, but good. Sorrento's Pizzeria also has a number of dessert cups which include a tiramisu dessert cup. It is a must try portable version. You won't be disappointed.
 
 

Tartufo al Cioccolato Portofino: Presentation is key with the desserts at Portofino. This is good, but I'm biased and nothing will overrule the tiramisu for me. Photo credit: RCLBlog member Marc
 

Portofino also has a great bread basket and selection of tapenade for spreading. Royal Caribbean serves kalamata olive tapenade in Portofino as well as in the MDR when lunch is served.
 

Passion Fruit Mousse Chops Grille, light and refreshing.
 

Chops also serves a number of heavier desserts like NYC Cheesecake and Chocolate Mud Pie, both pictured above. There's something guaranteed to suit your fancy on the Chops Grille dessert menu.
 
Now, don't just go to Chops or Portofino for dessert. The food is excellent at both. Even if you don't eat steak, Chops has chicken and the side dishes (served family style) are amazing as well. You'll find everything from steak, chicken, seafood, and pasta at Portofino.

If you're a frequent Royal Caribbean cruiser, then there is no doubt that a dish you loved is probably no longer on the menu. For me, it was the Blue Cheese Tortellini. Served in the MDR, I had this on Liberty in 2008 and Freedom in 2010. Rich and full of flavor, cheese tortellini topped with a cream sauce and crumbled, melted blue cheese.
 

Blue Cheese Tortellini MDR

Hope you both have a fantastic cruise Don and can't wait to read about it.
 
Enjoy Chops Grille :) :) :)

Photo was taken in Labadee, Haiti. Glad you're back and hope you are feeling better.

Well said.  You don't have to go crazy with planning.  But I do think a little research goes a long way to save you time and money.  The more research you can put in, potentially more savings for you.  This goes with anything really, being an informed consumer is always to your advantage.

Hey Tylor how u doin. Yes I'm back :) , had some health issues. Wow I love that picture where was it taken.

You're back! So on the whole tiramisu thing, I'm a little obsessed with the Italian dessert tiramisu. So the best onboard is in either Portofino or Giovanni's Table, both are good. However, there is a tiramisu dessert cup available in Sorrento's that is quite good as well. Now if I could only get Royal Caribbean to partner with The Cheesecake Factory and have available all of their desserts, life would be made!  ;)

How was this message sent. Seems very peculiar "Hello, this is Royal Caribbean International."
 
I would DEFINITELY prefer that they clean. I would prefer EVEN MORE that people would practice good hygiene. It's not RC's fault that there was an outbreak, it's the fault of Frank and Mildred Patterson who, at 80 years old, just feel that washing their hands is a waste of time, or that reaching their bare hands into the food in the buffet is acceptable.
 
*cringe*
 
I could even AVOID the buffet if I wanted, but if enough people are dumb, an outbreak is an outbreak.
 
"Good morning, please sanitize your hands!" Yes. Done. I'll do it twice. Thank you for asking!

You guys are are really doing me in! Good thing we sail in 21 days! Planning speciality venues probably 4 or 6 nights? We are early diners so not sure what we will do on late 12 hour tour returns from Florence, Rome, & Naples - although we have MDR resevations, maybe quick bite in Windjammer. Yes, those ports are correct! It's not so much about what dessert you will choose, but where you will have it! TAKE THAT-- NOW WE'RE EVEN!

In a previous post i suggested that RC should maybe have there own version on their ships maybe called RCs Burger Shack or similar and having now tried Johnny Rockets and read your comments i really think this would be cool.
 
RC could still charge the $5.00 or even more and produce a venue with the same old style theme but with high quality handmade steak burgers, hand cut fries and very high quality sundaes and shakes etc and if on top of that they gave you the same service and dinning experience as the other specialty restaurants it would be a sure winner  :) .

Exactly what I do.  Glad to hear it's not just me

Thanks Matt, but most of all THANK YOU :D  for all the hard word work you put in to keep this all going. I would not of had such a great cruise without the information provided by you and all the other people who are part of this blog.
 
I also think of you and everone as friends and hope we can all meet one day.
 
A very Merry Christmas to you and you family and I hope you have a happy and healthy New Year.
 
Dave & Samantha Viney.

I sailed on Adventure back in 2010 my first cruise.Loved the ship.Just been on Liberty this September.Booked on Independence for next October 2'nd for 11 nights in a Junior Suite mid ship.

There are some great shows around and i am going to guess it could be one of these that will be on Anthem.
 
1. Wicked
2. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory
3. We Will Rock You
4. Dirty Dancing
5. Phantom Of The Opera
 
I am hoping that it will be Wicked  :)

There are some great shows around and i am going to guess it could be one of these that will be on Anthem.
 
1. Wicked
2. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory
3. We Will Rock You
4. Dirty Dancing
5. Phantom Of The Opera
 
I am hoping that it will be Wicked  :)

Really cool episode Matt it was great to hear about all the ships old and new classes and what they have to offer.

I wonder if the Broadway show on Anthem will be British themed? I feel like a lot of ships right now (NCL's Breakway, Getaway, and Quantum) are customizing several elements or onboard experiences to the cities and or areas where they are home ported. :D  We have yet to see the Broadway show on Quantum, but several shows would fit the ships theme including Jersey Boys and Wicked.
 
How does Royal Caribbean keep all this so hush hush? In this modern age of instant technology how can something remain so quiet? We know the US spies on every country in the world in many different ways. :ph34r:  We know who has what weapons and what they are doing with them. But we can't crack the code on what Royal Caribbean is up to with their latest class of ships.  :unsure:
 
It is interested to note the pace at which this new class of ships are being built at a different ship building company/yard when compared to the Freedom and Oasis class. Things seem to be progressing rather quickly this time around with the second ship already beginning to be built and it will be released only a few months after the first. Not a whole year like as in Freedom or Oasis class.  :o

It may have been our first RC Cruise but we love the Freedom Class.

That would be a great idea Tyler as P&O do that in their restaurants with 3 celeb chefs.
 
You are so right when you said --(For the most part, dining onboard a Royal Caribbean ship is an upscale inviting experience with quality ingredients and attention to detail.)-- so RC should ensure that this level is kept up in any restaurants they have on onboard as food is a BIG reason why we all Cruise.

We probably need to discuss this topic title over dinner at Chops and further our research! :)

They should probably partner with a celebrity chef like Carnival did with Guy's Burger Joint. The whole 1950's diner theme is just odd on a cruise ship. And I think Guy's is free. I've heard those burger's are really good.

Darkcabbie, restart your useful thigs to know subject -- this one quickly turned into a discussion of food which obviously deteriorates to how many ways one can enjoy Chops. OR, is "don't fail to dine at Chops the #ONE useful thing to know"?

Now what's for lunch? Imagine an eleven or twelve day cruise with Chops three meals a day! Could be that dream trip you've been looking for!

Now there's a great start to your day Shawn , a great steak with some eggs :) .