Royal kummelweck sandwich

[John63]

I have heard, that this sandwich is served at the Park cafe, and is free.  I am eager to try it, has anyone tried it, and what did you think?

[OCSC Mike]

Many times. It wasn't as good as I remembered on Harmony about 6 weeks ago but still tasty.

[John63]

thank youOCSC Mike, looking forward to trying out the sandwich, 15 August on the Grandeur of the seas.

[Pooch]

Had it on Harmony, it was ok.  Nothing to write home to mother about.

[John63]

thank you Pooch, something to try out.

[WAAAYTOOO]

The kummelweck sandwich has “evolved” (and not in a good way, IMO) from its earliest incarnation.  The last couple of times we tried it, we were so disappointed that we just gave up.  They have obviously downgraded the beef b/c it is way chewier and fattier than it used to be.  Also, long gone is the good au jus that they used to serve which has been replaced with a nasty thick gravy.  Ugh.

Hopefully you’ll have better luck with the kummelweck than we did.  Such a shame, really b/c it was a really unique and enjoyable quick bite to grab.  It used to be our go-to embarkation lunch.

[OCSC Mike]

57 minutes ago, John63 said:

thank you Pooch, something to try out.

I try anything and everything if it's included, lol. Don't discriminate.

[Srp431]

Prefer the sandwich with spicy mustard instead of the gravy. Agreed quality has gone downhill some

[DunkelBierJay]

I like it loaded with horseradish

[Moby Dick]

What's it made of?  

[Moby Dick]

19 minutes ago, DunkelBierJay said:

I like it loaded with horseradish

I like just about any sliced beef sandwich with horseradish, the hotter the better.  Don't like that Mayo type crap like you get at Arby's. et al.

[Moby Dick]

14 minutes ago, Moby Dick said:

What's it made of?  

Never mind, I found this:

https://www.royalcaribbeanpresscenter.com/video/304/a-sensational-sandwich-royal-caribbeans-kummelweck-tantalizes-guests/

[Ampurp85]

I had it on Allure, with gravy, and was impressed enough to get it 2 more times. Many months later I tried on Indy as they had it as a boarding day special......it was horrible. I should have gotten it on Harmony to compare but was star class and had too much of the other foods. Although there isn't a park cafe on Mariner, they too had it as a boarding day special. It was horrible, nothing but greasy fat. So, if you are on a ship that has park cafe, try it.

[Peter D]

Its a sandwich I get every time its available on a sailing, but it is definitely variable in quality.  That said, on my Symphony cruise in March and Radiance cruise in May, they were both superb.  

[Pooch]

So will Explorer have it somewhere?  I try to give everything a second chance.

[Pattycruise]

I had it on Oasis in Park Cafe and on Anthem in Two70.  I like it, I do wish they’d cut off the fat. I ask for extra gravy, so it’s a mess, get extra napkins if you do this.

the amount of meat on the sand which-I feel varies on the person slicing or perhaps if they are trying to stretch it (or a combo?)  I’ve had 2 thick slices of 2 slices so thin it’s almost a “deli slice”. Once or twice 3 thick slices (not enjoyable).  Don’t forget, at least on these 2 ships, they have the little bags of chips-type varies -hidden-you must ask if you want them.  

[JimnKathy]

3 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

The kummelweck sandwich has “evolved” (and not in a good way, IMO) from its earliest incarnation.  The last couple of times we tried it, we were so disappointed that we just gave up.  They have obviously downgraded the beef b/c it is way chewier and fattier than it used to be.  Also, long gone is the good au jus that they used to serve which has been replaced with a nasty thick gravy.  Ugh.

Hopefully you’ll have better luck with the kummelweck than we did.  Such a shame, really b/c it was a really unique and enjoyable quick bite to grab.  It used to be our go-to embarkation lunch.

My better half and I agree.

On our Wonder sailing this past March, we noticed a big drop-off in the meat quality. It could also be a result of cooking the meat at too high of a temperature too quickly instead of low and slow.

What seemed to make it a little better was to ask for double gravy.

[FoxboroCruiser]

Loved it.  Had three on our Anthem Cruise in April. Simple, but delicious .

[Moby Dick]

I just eat and now I'm hungry, again.  Stooooooooop already.  I'm still trying to lose weight from my last cruise, damnit.  

[OutToSea]

just hope the hot dogs and sausage are still good at the hotdog stand I remember them being good

 

[Moby Dick]

1 hour ago, OutToSea said:

just hope the hot dogs and sausage are still good at the hotdog stand I remember them being good

 

We were on the May 13th on Ovation.  The sausage was okay but seriously over boiled/cooked, the buns came right out of the frig and a serious lack of condiments, no relish, mayo, just catsup and yellow mustard .  Hopefully its gotten better.

[leesam82]

I do like the sandwich. But have had mixed experiences depending on the ship. On my allure OTS sailing i thought it was amazing (but this could be just first time bias). Then on the my Anthem OTS sailing at cafe 270 i thought this was average. But my family on their first sailing was amazed by it (again first time bias possible). On my most recent sailing on the Oasis OTS, i had it again and thought it was ok while my family didn't care for it compared to their previous sailing.

I think there could be some first time amazement when you try it and depending on the ship some hit or misses. But like with everything in life don't knock it till you try it. 

 

[JDiggs84]

When they first introduce the sandwich it was amazing and now after it is just bland. I use to look forward to that sandwich every time I cruised on an Oasis class ship.

[FManke]

I'm not sure there is another food item on all of RC that gets such mixed reviews as the kummelweck. The quality and reviews for it seem to vary from ship to ship and cruise to cruise.

 

Happy Cruising!

[Aron_Ross]

I had a version of this once at an Anchor Bar chain in Orange CA, which I heard does not compare to the original location in Buffalo.  I will say the wings (and I've had plenty of wings growing up in NYC) were FANTASTIC!!  The sandwich was ok and barely had any caraway seeds on it. 

I'm sad to hear the ones on Royal have gone downhill.  I hope people have mentioned this in their post cruise surveys?  Anyway,  I plan to give it a try on Harmony this Nov and I'm sure my other half won't bother since she doesn't like caraway seeds.  She grew up in SoCal, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.. ha ha!

[Al Miller]

Definitely a your milage may vary situation. Give the piece of meat they are slicing from a good look beforehand. Look at the previous persons serving if you can. If the hunk of meat sits for too long under that heat lamp it gets dry. If they slice it with the grain, it will be tough no matter what. If it looks dry to me or they are slicing it wrong, I'll get something else. If it looks okay, you can ask them to slice it thin. They may not have the knife skills to do it, but you can ask. It's better if they cut it thinly. They also seem to want to skimp on the amount, so you can ask for another slice. They could say no, but usually they will oblige. It's not a very authentic Kummelweck, but it okay when the stars align, you get a good carver, and the beef is not overcooked and dry.

[AndrewPunch]

Best way to describe it is Inconsistent.

Had some that are amazing tender, juicy goodness.  Other's chewy, fatty tendon filled mess.

[Lexster]

I tried it on the Oasis of the Seas back in May and it was good, but...I wouldn't say I'm "tantalized" as the Royal Caribbean Press article says. It's sliced beef in a roll, so...it really rides on how good the beef is. For me, the roll seemed stale. Actually, that was a problem throughout that sailing. The rolls were often hard, but sometimes I'd get one that was soft like it was freshly baked.

 

Overall, it's free, so definitely worth a try. Maybe the quality varies ship-to-ship.

[Ampurp85]

20 minutes ago, Lexster said:

I tried it on the Oasis of the Seas back in May and it was good, but...I wouldn't say I'm "tantalized" as the Royal Caribbean Press article says. It's sliced beef in a roll, so...it really rides on how good the beef is. For me, the roll seemed stale. Actually, that was a problem throughout that sailing. The rolls were often hard, but sometimes I'd get one that was soft like it was freshly baked.

 

Overall, it's free, so definitely worth a try. Maybe the quality varies ship-to-ship.

Quality does vary ship-to-ship and I think that is the problem. I had an amazing couple on Allure but then they had them at lunch on Freedom and Indy, it was all fat and no meat. The rolls were different too. 

[Pooch]

On 7/14/2022 at 9:48 PM, Moby Dick said:

We were on the May 13th on Ovation.  The sausage was okay but seriously over boiled/cooked, the buns came right out of the frig and a serious lack of condiments, no relish, mayo, just catsup and yellow mustard .  Hopefully its gotten better.

Mayo on a hot dog or sausage????  

[rjac]

2 hours ago, Pooch said:

Mayo on a hot dog or sausage????  

Must be a Connecticut thing. Kind of like shrimp and grits in the South. 

[Pooch]

I know NO ONE in CT who would put Mayo on a hot dog or sausage.    And we have many better options than plain yellow mustard.

[cruisellama]

On 7/14/2022 at 12:30 PM, John63 said:

I have heard, that this sandwich is served at the Park cafe, and is free.  I am eager to try it, has anyone tried it, and what did you think?

Excellent - my wife goes to the Park to get one as soon as we board.

[John63]

I have been looking forward to trying the sandwich.

[mom2mybugs]

On 7/14/2022 at 1:32 PM, WAAAYTOOO said:

The kummelweck sandwich has “evolved” (and not in a good way, IMO) from its earliest incarnation.  The last couple of times we tried it, we were so disappointed that we just gave up.  They have obviously downgraded the beef b/c it is way chewier and fattier than it used to be.  Also, long gone is the good au jus that they used to serve which has been replaced with a nasty thick gravy.  Ugh.

Hopefully you’ll have better luck with the kummelweck than we did.  Such a shame, really b/c it was a really unique and enjoyable quick bite to grab.  It used to be our go-to embarkation lunch.

I found it was chewy and fatty too.  Still an ok sandwich, but not the "big deal" like I had heard it was!  Jane