Showing posts with label Specialty Restaurants. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Specialty Restaurants. Show all posts

Monday, July 14, 2025

The Back to Back- Sea Day #1

 In Slow Motion
June 28. 2025
Sea Day #1 


Sea Days are our FAVORITE! 

Morning
After a decent night's sleep we got ready for the day and made our way to Café Latitudes on Deck 5 for a coffee. TIP- This location serves Starbucks coffee but IT IS included in your Ultimate Beverage Package. While there we noticed some small breakfast items like sandwiches and burritos so we opted to completely forgo the Windjammer and try these breakfast items since we had lunch and dinner specialty reservations. This prompted us to try and not eat in the Windjammer at all this whole cruise... Challenge Accepted. These small breakfast items were actually really good and reminded me of the Café at 270* on the Anthem of the Seas in June 2025. 


Well hello there Saturday... We LOVE YOU! 


Café Latitudes breakfast options... These were a great way to avoid the Windjammer! 
The coffee was lacking a bit in my opinion! 

After breakfast we made our way to the Schooner Bar for the Morning Puzzle followed by 4 different trivia contests. Unfortunately, we did not win any of these but we met new cruise friends and had a great time chatting with them and trying to win these ridiculous trivia questions. We then went to our lunch reservation at Giovanni's Table. 


It's time for Giovanni's Table! I am so excited! 

Afternoon
Once again, Giovanni's was so impressive and we were completely blown away by the food. I swear the lunch may have been even better than the dinner. And as mentioned before, the Mushroom Risotto is delicious and worth every calorie. TIP- Giovanni's lunch is well priced at only $20-25 per person and WELL worth not having to fight the Windjammer.  We left "fat and happy" and then decided to go walking on the outside of Deck 5. 


Giovanni's Table came as if out of NOWHERE and we were so impressed with the food! 


Meat and Cheese Board- 3.5
The meat and cheese board to share was pretty good... We loved the cheese and olives. 


Caprese Salad- 5.0
Seriously... this was SO GOOD! 


Spaghetti Bolognese- 2.0 
The pasta was weird and fat but the sauce was good 
Mushroom Risotto- 5.0+ 
This is the best thing I have had to eat in a LONG TIME (on sea or land). 


Panna Cotta- 4.0
This was really rich but so good! 

We walked several laps around the ship before deciding to lay out in the shade of Deck 5 listening to the ocean go by. Although we noticed not only were the seas calm but we were moving SUPER SLOW. After we laid for about an hour, we decided to check out the map on the TV to see how fast we were going... It turns out, we were going 7 knots or 3 miles per hour. Basically just traveling in a circle as we made our way to Coco Cay. 


This is always my FAVORITE view! 


This right here... calms me even from the biggest anxiety attacks. 
No kidding... I watch this to reduce my blood pressure! 


The elevator door on Deck 3 was shattered... It was not like this early on this day! 

The rest of our afternoon was spent at the Casino. TIP- The Jewel has a TINY casino and doesn't offer very many table games, but the Casino bar has plenty of seating while waiting for a table or slot machine to open!  After about a 20 minute wait, we were able to find 2 spots at the $10 blackjack table where we stayed for nearly 2 hours. Chris got down fairly quick after the 2 hours but I kept going and walked away up, but not by much. Unfortunately, we missed the Friends Trivia but we had fun in the Casino. 

Evening
We went to the Pre-Dinner Trivia in Schooner Bar and once again came close to winning but we did not. We opted to go get ready for dinner and then come back to the Safari Lounge for the Family Feud gameshow. It was formal night and we got dressed in our "semi formal wear" and fit right in. TIP- Royal Caribbean suggest attire but it is not enforced by any means. Nowadays, cruise formal wear is pretty much anything YOU feel comfortable in. I wore a nicer "church/ professional" dress and Chris wore khakis and a button down shirt. No coat and tie needed on Royal- which is nice! 


Formal Night #1... We love the "laid back" Formal vibes on Royal Caribbean! 

After the Family Feud gameshow we went to listen to the piano player in Schooner Bar before our Chops Grille dinner reservation. Chops Grille, as always, was SO good. The food is made to order and is always the best steak at sea. We had a great meal and even got to see the Icon of the Seas and the Carnival Celebration pass by... proving we were going SUPER SLOW! 


The Chops Grille main menu (we were able to order more than one appetizer) 


The Crab Cake- 4.5
This NEVER disappoints and is LOADED with flavor! 


The Shrimp Cocktail- 4.5
Chris LOVED this! 


The Lobster Bisque- 4.0
This is always so good but SO RICH! 


Goat Cheese Salad- 4.5
This is always my favorite part of the meal, it is so light and flavorful and the pecans just make it pop! 


Side Dishes- 4.0
These were SO GOOD. The tater tots were my favorite! 


The Chops Grille dessert menu 


Sky High Apple Pie 4.0
I am not a pie person but this was really good and cooked very well! 


Hello Icon of the Seas! 
Despite being on a VERY small ship with very little to do overall, this just doesn't appeal to me right now! 6K+ passengers and the amount of kids alone just screams "no thank you". Maybe one of these days (and not during the summer). 

After dinner we went to the Comedy show in the Coral Theater and this was a bigger hit than the Tango show but was still a miss in our book. TIP- Royal Caribbean just DOES NOT do comedy well overall. In our opinion and experience, Comedy is the BIGGEST PLUS Carnival has to offer. They do comedy SO WELL! 

We ended our night once again watching cricket in the Pit Stop Sports Bar before heading to bed around 11:30PM. Tomorrow was Coco Cay and we were so excited to explore this private island of Royal Caribbean's on our own. The last time we came to Coco Cay on the Independence of the Seas 2024, we spent the day at the adults only beach club- Hideaway Beach Club so we were excited to see what all Coco Cay has to offer! 


We love Sea Days! 

Up Next... Coco Cay on our own! Stay tuned! 

God is Good... ALL THE TIME! 

Click on a link to see our past cruising adventures:
Anthem of the Seas (Alaska)- June 2025








 


Carnival Conquest- 2006

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Sunday, July 13, 2025

The Back to Back- Embarkation Day #1

The Ultimate Embarkation
June 27, 2025
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 


Cruise #26 and the FIRST LEG of this Back to Back... Let's GO! 

Morning
It's CRUISE DAY... The BEST DAY EVER! We had an 11:30AM arrival time so we were slow to get around and ready for our embarkation aboard the Jewel of the Seas. TIP- Check in for the cruise happens 45 days prior to the cruise embarkation day at midnight LOCAL time (11PM our time). I was online checking in the literal SECOND it changed to 11PM but I still got an 11:30AM arrival time- our latest ever. This was disappointing but since this was a much smaller ship we assumed it was the earliest time. I also got that time for the SECOND cruise and I checked in at 5AM the next day. 

Once we were ready we decided to Door Dash McDonald's for breakfast instead of pay the $40-50 for the breakfast at the hotel restaurant. This breakfast, with tip, was $22. However, it took nearly an hour for delivery despite quoting 25 minutes. Since we were not in a rush, this wasn't a concern. But when the food arrived while opening the bag, Chris spilt his coffee all over the table and my phone. Unfortunately, liquid got into the charging port and my phone would not receive a charge for several hours. We then realized we were missing two burritos from our bag. I tried calling the driver and the restaurant but had to go through Door Dash. I was finally able to get a $12 credit but it was so frustrating. It was a disastrous way to start our day but I was not going to let it spoil anything! Like I said... It's the BEST day EVER! 

Our Uber arrived at 10:30AM to get us to the cruise terminal that was about 6 miles away. This Uber was a Toyota Tacoma truck and getting all of our luggage in the back of the truck and secure took a while but we finally were on the way to the ship at 10:45AM. There was a lot of construction on the way to the terminal and then once we arrived we had to be searched by security just to enter the pier area. This was very odd and our Uber driver did not speak any English but we all got cleared and we were at Pier 25 by 11:05AM. 

This was EASILY the absolute easiest embarkation we have EVER had. From the moment we stepped out of the truck with our luggage to the time of stepping on the ship was LESS THAN 10 MINUTES! No kidding... It was flawless. It's hard to tell if this was the port, the arrival time or smaller ship but I am IN LOVE! TIP- We did notice on the 2nd cruise that people started arriving at 10:30AM so we did not have the earliest arrival time like I originally thought. We heard our FIRST DING at 11:14AM. 


Check it out... Easily the FASTEST and EASIEST Embarkation EVER! 


Hello Jewel of the Seas! 
It's Friday and it's the BEST DAY EVER! 

We immediately got on board and went to our Muster Station to get checked in and cleared for our cruise. TIP- Royal Caribbean still has the post-Covid Muster Drill that allows you to watch a video prior to embarking on the ship and then checking in with a crew member instead of the MASSIVE crowds at the pre-Covid meetings. THANK YOU ROYAL CARIBBEAN (and most other cruise lines too). This is so much easier and I hope we NEVER go back to the large group muster station drill. 


CHEERS to Cruise #26! 

Afternoon
On this first 3 day cruise, we decided we would splurge and pay for the Ultimate Dining Package. This allowed you to eat lunch and dinner in Specialty Restaurants. In fact, we NEVER ate in the Windjammer for this cruise and for that reason alone, this cruise was a MAJOR SUCCESS!  We went to Chops to confirm all of our reservations for the week before chilling at Schooner Bar before lunch. We had a 12:30PM reservation at Chops and this would be our first time to eat LUNCH in Chops. This meal was incredible and I may now be addicted to lunch in Chops. We both got steaks and while it was so fulfilling, it was SO GOOD! TIP- During lunch Chops enforces the only ONE per category of ordering. So only 1 appetizer, entrée and dessert each. We have almost ALWAYS had 2 appetizers but at lunch they only allowed one of each and only 4 sides total. 


The Chops Grill LUNCH menu
(It is a little smaller and some offerings are missing) 


Mushroom Soup- 5.0+ 
It's a MUST and literally the best soup either of us have EVER had! 


The 5oz Filet (cooked to perfection)- 4.5
This steak was perfect! 


Key Lime Pie- 4.5
I don't even like pie but this was PERFECT! 

After lunch the staterooms were ready so we made our way to Deck 3 forward to our inside cabin. This cabin was well appointed for an interior room but it was still rather small compared to the Anthem of the Seas we just got off of. In fact, it was VERY OUTDATED and needed an upgrade in the worst way. Again, I may have noticed this more since we just got off a newly built and up to date tech room in the Anthem of the Seas but it was visibly needing repairs and showing age. But it worked and we didn't complain. I was able to spot all of our luggage at the end of the hallway and was able to completely unpack all of our suitcases while Chris took a nap. 


Overall, I have no complaints of this cabin! It got the job done! 

We walked all the decks and open areas and decided that Vortex Lounge on Deck 13 would be where we would watch sail away. As the passengers boarded the ship we noticed not too many kids but a lot of adults and party atmosphere was present. In fact, it was a "Spirit Airlines" type of vibe from the get go. We could tell this was going to be a "Booze Cruise" crowd and we were right. Lots of rude, obnoxious and rowdy adults but we didn't let that bother us because the service of Royal Caribbean made up for this. TIP- We have heard that the 3 day weekend cruises out of Miami are ALWAYS Booze Cruises and this was true out of Ft. Lauderdale too. Again, this didn't bother us but be mindful of this.


We are ready to set sail to Coco Cay! 


My traditional buoy picture... 26 strong! 


Goodbye Ft. Lauderdale, we will see you in THREE days! 


We are about 2 hours into sailing and you can still see Miami and Ft. Lauderdale! 

Evening
We watched sail away in Vortex for nearly 2 hours before going to Schooner Bar for Pre-Dinner Trivia. We did NOT win the General Knowledge Trivia but we did win the Love Songs trivia. We won on the FIRST DAY again- We are on a roll! We went to chill at the Safari Lounge until our reservations at Giovanni's Table. We had eaten at Giovanni's a few times in the past but this was a HUGE surprise and completely blew us away. The food and service were phenomenal, albeit a little slower than we prefer, and we couldn't get enough. The Mushroom risotto was "to die for" and the Caprese Salad has been in my dreams the last week it was so good! 


WINNERS- Love Song Trivia! 


I loved the Safari Lounge and the views of the wake- my favorite! 


Giovanni's Table Menu 


Crispy Calamari- 4.0
This was cooked to perfection and nice BIG pieces. 


Caprese Salad- 4.5
Wow... the beefsteaks tomatoes made this so delicious! 


Seafood Linguini- 4.5
This was the most decadent white sauce I have ever had!

The Garlic Prawns-4.0
I was so full at this point! 


Pork Cutlet- 3.5
Chris said this was a little bit of a miss !

Tiramisu- 3.5
This was almost TOO rich to eat! 

Cannoli- 3.5

Giovanni's was the SURPRISE of the cruise and overall we would rate the FOOD a 4.5 and the service 4.0. This may be a new MUST do specialty restaurant! 

After dinner we walked around the outside of Deck 5 on the Promenade to help walk off our dinner as we were SO full. Then we went back to the room to take medication and of course, took a brief 30 minute nap before going to the Coral Theater for the TANGO Dance show. This was not a typical Royal Caribbean Production show and we were not impressed at all. In fact, the entertainment was probably the biggest disappointment of our time on the Jewel of the Seas. 


I seriously HATE this in the Royal Caribbean theaters- the cup holders. 
These don't hold all glasses and the seats seem really small (even for smaller passengers I have questioned). It is tight and uncomfortable in my opinion! Carnival does this SO MUCH better with the couch seating and small tables for drinks!


This show was so boring... Once you have seen them do one tango dance move, you've seen the whole show. It just wasn't for us! 

We left the Tango show early to go to the Pit Stop Sports Bar and watch Cricket until the bar closed at midnight. 


Our new summer cruise tradition- watching Cricket in the Sports Bar! 
It's weird but kinda cool! 

It was a great embarkation day and it really was the ULTIMATE way to spend a day aboard a cruise ship! 


Embarkation Day #1 was a success! 

Up Next... The ONLY Sea Day of our First Cruise. Stay Tuned! 

God is Good... ALL THE TIME! 

Click on a link to see our past cruising adventures:
Anthem of the Seas (Alaska)- June 2025








 


Carnival Conquest- 2006

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