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Liberty mini review


Asphodel

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We usually cruise once a year in Feb. Earlier this year my bf whined he needed a break so I booked the cheapest cruise I could find. Interior deck 3 (normally we're in a balcony). We were underneath the Schooner Bar (yes we could hear it and the Theatre). 

 

Most memorable thing? I broke a finger. Serious break, surgery is tomorrow. Other than my finger, I'm fine.

 

We won a lot at trivia. (hehe) Finally scored something better than the ubiquitous highliters and keychains. A baseball hat!! :D

 

What was the deal with the bacon? A couple mornings they kept running out. They'd put out a fresh batch, 'twould be gone in 7 nanoseconds. I took to standing in line with the other hopefuls. The first time some 10-12 year old kid cut in front of me, proceeded to take 2 huge  tongs full of bacon. At that point I snapped at him to leave some but he had taken approx half the bacon (not exaggerating). Another time a woman again cut right in front of me. "There's a line for the bacon."  She ignored me. "Ma'am see the people behind me? That's the line for the bacon." She made some non-committal remark about the line coming from the other side but from the way she refused to look at me or speak I knew she knew she was in the wrong.

 

People are getting so rude. We tried to sit in some "saved" seats (2 guys holding half of row 2 - about 8 seats) but the 2 guys got belligerent with us, one of them going so far as to shove my bf. My boyfriend has Bipolar Disorder and it took all his restraint not to slug the jerk back. All around us people were commenting how *we* were the rude ones to try to steal these people's seats. What happened to Royal's policy of no saving seats?

 

At the cashier redeeming a paltry 75 cent voucher, was behind a woman redeeming a handful of vouchers. One got rejected as already redeemed, I snuck a peek it, was for $80. Whoa, I'd like to know the story behind that.

 

Missed Grand Cayman due to bad weather, our second cruise in a row to do so.

 

In Jamaica we did the Red Stripe Beach excursion. I wasn't expecting much but it was better than anticipated. It was obvious they had trucked in a lot of sand as the surrounding area was swampy. However, the beach was nice, the water pleasant, a DJ providing music. They had all the usual accoutrements for a fee - food, beer, lawn chairs. The only glitch was not enough buses going back. The bus would fill up leaving a whole bunch of grumpy people to wait 20 to 40 minutes for the next one.

 

At the embarkation point was a guy soliciting for Sabor. Arizona his name was. Against my better judgement I said okay. (I live in Houston where there's great authentic Mexican food {street taco trucks to higher end fare}) as well as Tex-Mex.  Oh man, it sucked. We hated it. And we didn't hide our displeasure so the waiters picked up on it and got edgy around us. Waiter brings the bill gives it to my bf. "Why not me? I protested. "Because he is the gentleman," was the response as I pulled out my Seapass card and handed it to him. He brings back the bill and again hands it to my BF. I was offended at this crass display of sexism.

 

First cultural crossup: In Cozumel in a shop, there were some wooden snakes. My bf (I wish he wouldn't) told the shop ladies I have snakes as pets. "Oh?" they say. They were more curious than repulsed. "What do you feed them? "Mice," I said. "oooooh, maize", she responded. No, no, no not corn. (amused and chuckling facepalm) They did understand rat and mouse.

 

Second cultural crossup: They had congee at breakfast!! I love congee! (major Chinatown near to where I live)  But. The congee in the Windjammer is not exactly what I'm used to. I asked a Chinese waitress about it, she said she didn't eat rice. Where she came from they ate noodles. Strike one. 

Another time there was a blond lady with an accent I couldn't place dishing some up. "Oh, it's chicken soup," she said. She tried it first day and really liked it. Chicken soup. Strike two.

 

Saturday night 2:20 am they made an announcement so-and-so please come to Guest Services deck 5. Twice they announced! WTF? If you wake me up at 2am I'm going to have trouble getting back to sleep and I'll likely oversleep the following morning. 

 

We were debarking and right behind us they refused debarkation to some woman, turning her back. We were like, hmmmm, someone trying to skip out on their gambling debt.....

 

And finally in the car trying to leave and a man and a woman greeted each other with great fanfare, then began smooching. Standing in the middle of the road, right in front of us, blocking egress. I tried to honk but my bf kept knocking my hand away. We rolled down the window and yelled at them; they were oblivious. Finally I got in a honk. They turned around with an indignant EXCUUUUUUSE-ME!!!!! look, but moved to the sidewalk where they continued smooching. A true (facepalm) moment.

 

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More things. (gee it's a pain typing with 1 1/2 hands)

 

Since it was an impromptu cruise, I decided not to do any formal nights and somewhere in there we decided to eat dinner in the Windjammer. We were pleasantly surprised at how good it was. Sushi most nights, different foods from the dining room and same things too like lamb chops. Stations where they made up fresh things like stirfry, Asian style soup, pasta, fajitas. Not crowded at all, plus more flexible, we didn't have to schedule around a fixed time.  Guess I burned out on the dining room after 14 cruises.

 

This was my bf's first cruise as Emerald.

 

We hit Vintages a couple/three times, one for a tasting. The tasting was excellent, well worth the price. 

 

Got positive comments on a couple of my tees. One my Hillary tee, the other my Flight Aware tee.

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No didn't even go up to the sports deck. I don't know if you recall a thread months ago where I opined that water slides are dangerous, I hate water slides. Watched the twin slides in action last Feb, saw a woman come out the bottom and slip under the water and flounder for several seconds while the crew member standing there did nothing to help her. I'm like absolutely no way.

 

As far as the other slide goes. The death on the Kansas water slide this past summer reinforces my aversion to water slides.

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As far as the other slide goes. The death on the Kansas water slide this past summer reinforces my aversion to water slides.

Not judging you, because we all have our own aversions and thoughts on everything.  As an example, you will not catch me skydiving no matter how many people tell me it is safe/fun! 

 

I believe the slides on RC are plenty safe and what happened in Kansas should not stop anyone from trying these slides.  I can't wait to do it myself.  

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How'd the finger break?

 

I walked into a plate glass door. Had surgery yesterday evening. It hurts.  :(

 

Best thing you ate onboard?

 

Foodwise, nothing really stands out. Things I can think of offhand - the sushi, chilaquiles, lambchops, congee - all in the Windjammer. Any plain steamed vegetable. My bf chowed down on the hamburgers and anything beef-stew-ish, especially if there was gravy to spoon over rice.

 

The best thing I had all week was the wine tasting in Vintages. Forgot to mention how awesome the sommelier was.

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You do realize that not liking Sabor is like throwing down a gantlet here, right? ;)

 

I feel the same way about Izumi. While it's good, it's no better than what we have in California, and i can usually do it for less here. If the prices were a little bit less considering I'm already paying for food in my cruise fare, then I'd be less critical.

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You do realize that not liking Sabor is like throwing down a gantlet here, right? ;)

 

 

I did not know that. To console myself, I'll walk approx 4 blocks down through my subdivision to find the Latino guy who sells food out of the back of a pickup truck and buy me a cup of Mexican street corn. Cut off the cob, with mayo, powdered cheese & chili pepper. The taco truck I mentioned above has the best lengua tacos I've ever had. Fiery green salsa. They also had voter's registration pamphlets last time I was there tho they're not on a corner. More in a parking lot by an H-E-B.

 

My thoughts on Sabor.

 

Our guacamole was not made to order, they just brought it. The guac they make on the pool deck is pretty good but ours was a sloppy mess.

 

The salsas had no spice at all, totally flat. The waiter brought me some minced jalapenos which he stirred into the green salsa w/o asking where I wanted it, I put the rest in the pico de gallo which really needs serranos.

 

I wanted to try everything so I ordered a lot of appetizers. My BF also ordered the tortilla soup which he seemed to like but he thought it was going to be something else he never made clear.

 

I ordered: Gazpacho, it was really strange like ultra smooth tomato puree. Tasteless and flat. I like the chunky kind made with fresh tomatoes, cucumber, bell peppers, onion, oil and vinegar.

 

Queso. Again very strange and where was the cheese? The tortillas didn't taste right.

 

Ceviche. I realize there is more than one style of ceviche but I was expecting the kind marinated in citrus juice long enough that it firms up, mixed with tomatoes, onions, peppers, other things. Zesty. What I got was mushy tasteless bits of raw fish.

 

The fried calamari was okay but everything tastes better fried.

 

BF ordered sides of rice and beans, they were tiny portions! Like 1/4 cup each.

 

At this point we were afraid to order any entrees (barbacoa tacos with BBQ sauce -SRSLY?) and we wanted to go to the show so we decided to cut our losses. The literature said it was $25pp but they charged us $30pp.

 

Ironic they named it Sabor, everything was so tasteless.

 

And Arizona the guy who convinced me to come to Sabor by telling me he'd be my waiter? Come to my house! he said, I will *craft* your tableside guacamole! He was waiting on another table and did not even acknowledge us. Not a dealbreaker, just another strange thing to add to the list.

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Table side guacamole not made table side is a bit odd since it advertised as such.  And while I'm eager to try Sabor on the Allure in 76 days, I suspect I may be a bit critical coming from San Diego as we have access to all kinds of excellent Mexican food, ranging from cheap to expensive, which may be part of the reason I'm also a bit critical about Izumi.  If I lived in Saginaw, however, I might think differently about both restaurants as the options for these times of establishments is much more limited in my experience.

 

Perhaps they're suffering from trying to appeal to a wide palate?

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Table side guacamole not made table side is a bit odd since it advertised as such.  

 

Table side would be debatable. The cart was there, it was about 10 feet behind our table. We got asked do you want it mild, medium, spicy? And that was right before it got placed on our table. My BF dipped in a chip and was like "WTH is this?" It was runny (for guac) and not blended well.

 

It was not "crafted" to order. Not like Escalante's where they bring the cart right up to your table. Show you all the ingredients, do you want this, this, this? A little more, a little less? I'm not sure they're trying to appeal to a wider palate so much as an ignorant one. Don't understand why they solicit for people to eat there. It was hopping and busy. filled up fast at soon as they opened.

 

I dined at Izumi once a couple years ago. The food was competent but it was very expensive. I could see running up a $150+ bill easily. I got like one appetizer, one sushi roll, and cut out.

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Waiter brings the bill gives it to my bf. "Why not me? I protested. "Because he is the gentleman," was the response as I pulled out my Seapass card and handed it to him. He brings back the bill and again hands it to my BF. I was offended at this crass display of sexism.

 

This made me think of something else I found curious at the time. When we were seated at our table, the person seating us went and held my BF's chair and helped him sit down but not me. Isn't that the opposite of how it's suppose to go?

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This made me think of something else I found curious at the time. When we were seated at our table, the person seating us went and held my BF's chair and helped him sit down but not me. Isn't that the opposite of how it's suppose to go?

Perhaps in the U.S., but not necessarily in the country the crew member is from. There are vast culture difference in what is considered normal and appropriate behavior.

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Perhaps in the U.S., but not necessarily in the country the crew member is from. There are vast culture difference in what is considered normal and appropriate behavior.

Do you know this for a fact or are you just surmising? I have never seen anything like this in all the decades I've been dining in any of the countries I've been to, US or other. I've been web searching and haven't turned up anything suggesting such is normal table etiquette in Latin countries (or European or Asian).

 

My best guess as to what happened is these waiters were given a crash course in US table/dining etiquette and someone got confused over whose seat he was supposed to be holding.

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Do you know this for a fact or are you just surmising? I have never seen anything like this in all the decades I've been dining in any of the countries I've been to, US or other. I've been web searching and haven't turned up anything suggesting such is normal table etiquette in Latin countries (or European or Asian).

 

My best guess as to what happened is these waiters were given a crash course in US table/dining etiquette and someone got confused over whose seat he was supposed to be holding.

I am surmising based on the premise the gender norms are vastly different from country to country and my experience with international students. Depending on where you are dining overseas, you may find the staff trained in a much more westernized fashion, where these differences aren't as pronounced.

 

At one time, Royal only hired servers that had experience in 4 and 5 start hotels in Europe, but that time has long passed. Thus, I think your idea of a failed crash course may be accurate.

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We are going to try Sabor on our upcoming cruise over Christmas. I am a bit disappointed in the reports on the guacamole -- The making of that is a show in itself at most upscale Mexican restaurants around here. Hopefully, we'll have a better experience.

There was a table of 14 that had been recently seated and I suspect they were the reason our guacamole got rushed. Still, I don't think great table side guacamole is worth the $60 (for 2) they charge for dinner at Sabor.

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Agree with above, $60 for Mexican?????.......... it would have to be over the top, jaw dropping wonderful....Have some really great joints around here, we get out out for under $40 for a WOW dinner.

I haven't had the pleasure yet, but an realty looking forward to trying it on Allure where pricing is a la carte and send to beer less as you can get a $19 appetizer to dessert package. However, keep in mind that this is gourmet food that includes things like duck and tubs tacos; we're not talking Taco Bell here.

 

Based on everything I've read and have heard about Sabor, this seems to be a one-off experience. I hear about 20 people rave about Sabor for every one complaint.

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