ABOARD THE REGAL PRINCESS — Let’s talk about food. Or better yet, let’s look at photos of food. The best would be to share together one of the fantastic meals I’ve had so far on the Regal Princess.
However, looking at the food video I created is about as close as we can come. I will warn you that it is best not to look at the video if you are the slightest bit hungry. Even though I ate less than two hours ago, those photos of tempting dishes still make me feel as though I need to go get a snack.
Dining choices are abundant on the Regal Princess. Some place always seems to be serving taste tempters any time of the day or night.
The Regal Princess has three main dining rooms – Symphony, Allegro and Concerto. I’ve already written about the pay-extra-to-dine restaurants on the ship, the snack bars, my favorite Alfredo’s and the upper deck Horizon Court and Bistro.
New cruise friends Alan and Suzanne of Tampa told me they plan to eat most of their meals at Horizon Court. They like the abundant choice of food; the notion that they can just walk in and eat dinner from 5:30 to 11 p.m.; the comfort of dining in shorts and T-shirts; great views from large windows overlooking the ocean; quick service of choosing from the buffet line as soon as they enter and the ability to go back for seconds of food they like.
I sure understand those reasons to choose Horizon Court. I have been eating lunch there for those same reasons. I have made it a habit each day to walk through the entire massive buffet to see what is being offered before I start filling my plate. Yesterday, I was adding some boiled shrimp to my plate of sushi when the woman next to me asked where I got the sushi. Her plate was already full so I’m not sure where she would put anything else but it’s good to see all the day’s offerings before making a commitment. Helps prevent waste.
The Regal Princess emphasizes health practices and signs of that are abundant around the ship. Along with the customary hand sanitizing stations, the ship also has little alcoves with sinks, soap and paper towels before entering Horizon Court.
As noted in a printed health advisory given to us when we boarded the ship, “hand sanitizers are only partially effective against norovirus and should therefore be used after and not instead of hand washing, particularly before eating in the buffet.” Rather than having to go in a bathroom, those hand-washing stations are very handy. A great idea.
Although I like dining in the big open buffet for lunch, I prefer having dinner in the dining room where the atmosphere is more quiet and elegant. Since I chose “anytime” for my dining option, I eat in the Symphony dining room.
As I’ve already said, I can choose to dine alone or eat at a “shared” table. I’ve done both and appreciate being given the choice. Some cruise lines place solo diners where they want them which is usually at a shared table and often in a corner away from a window view.
The Symphony menu changes daily and has a good variety of choices. One side of the menu, however, does not change. It is called Princess Favorites and those are available every evening. That list includes Caribbean shrimp cocktail, classic Caesar salad, fettuccine Alfredo, grilled salmon, country chicken and the Princess Gourmet Beef BLT Burger. Each comes with sides, of course.
I have never ordered anything from the Princess Favorites because the evening specials are so good. The “starters” themselves sound like a meal. One night, the starters were a cocktail of bay scallops, calamari, shrimp and black mussels; poached pear and blue cheese crumbles; escargots bourguignon; Jamaican pepper pot soup; roasted tomato cream soup; chilled goat cheese and apple soup; or Belgian endive, Boston lettuce and tomato salad.
I’ve noticed that diners often order two starters or two entrées or even two desserts. I am happy to see that serving sizes over the decades I have been cruising have become much smaller. I saw so much waste before because servings were way too big. This way, if a diner has a bigger appetite, it is always possible to order more.
One night the entrée choices were veal pasta, pan-seared snapper, broiled lobster tail and king prawns, roasted farm-raised pheasant, Beef Wellington, red wine braised beef short ribs, and vegetarian pumpkin, walnut and mascarpone filled crepe. Tough choices. All sounded great. I chose the lobster.
If a later snack is needed, the International Café on Deck 5 is open 24 hours a day and carries complimentary pastries, paninis, pastas and salads. I’ve noticed many passengers getting an after-dinner dessert at the Café, then carrying it over to a table in the Piazza to enjoy the band, dancers and other entertainment.
Doesn’t take long to figure out where the delicious dining posts are on the Regal Princess. Everything I’ve ordered so far has been great and, as the food video shows, the presentation has been tops, too.
Photos and video by Jackie Sheckler Finch
