Ruby Princess – Dining Choices
Click on any photo to see the full size image.
Since the Ruby Princess does not solely cruise the inside passage, this post is not with the Inside Passage posts.
I had no problem finding great food on the Ruby Princess. Each of the Princess ships have some unique dining options, so you need to review your particular ship to see if there are exceptions or additional choices on the ship you will be taking. While this is specific to the Ruby Princess, there are some dining strategies that should be helpful in your dining decisions regardless of which Princess Cruise ship you take.
My choices will most likely be different than what you might have available. You can use my experience to decide if it is worth any extra cost for you to pay. Most importantly about the dining choices is that we were in a full suite, so we were allowed additional complimentary options only available to guests in full Suites and the Platinum and Elite level passengers.
There are other “premium” options available if you are willing to pay the surcharge for them, but the Da Vinci, Botticelli, and Montecello dining rooms had excellent food with the same menus for all. Horizon Court is where people seeking a buffet will want to go.
Formal Night(s)? Princess Cruises is trying to promote the era when you showed up for dinner on a ship dressed in formal attire, or at least a suit. But to no avail. People were walking around in shorts and a t-shirt while I wore a Burberry suit. I do not think they can throw you overboard for not wearing a tux or dark suit, but … maybe walk the plank, matey. I would suggest you wear something in which you would feel comfortable considering what others are wearing. Maybe just a sport coat, dark pants, and tie would suffice for you. A woman could easily wear an outfit you would wear to any fancy dinner. Hey, if I’m wearing shoes, then it’s a formal event.
SPECIALITY DINING
CROWN GRILL
We received complimentary dining at the Crown Grill on our first night which is normally a $29pp surcharge. The 4-course meal including Lobster was excellent and I would certainly consider returning just for the lobster if there were not so many other excellent choices on the Ruby Princess. There is a dessert sampler plate (see the photo) that is not listed, so ask if someone doesn’t tell you about it.
We were told by our cabin steward, Raul, that we did not need reservations because we were in a suite, but the girl at the front of a rather empty restaurant ever so slightly rolled her eyes when I said we had no reservations … until I mentioned we were in a suite. We never had another service issue (in fact service was great) at the restaurant and we ate there every day for our complimentary mimosa breakfast.
If you are staying in a suite, the breakfast menu is excellent (make sure you order a granola parfait) and I enjoyed the fresh lox and bagel every morning except when I chose the eggs benedict. Unfortunately, the poached eggs were overcooked on both of our plates. Sure, we could have had them remade, but I expect more from a chef than overcooked poached eggs. Make sure you specify how you want the yolks cooked and maybe you will be more fortunate. But the lox and bagel were absolutely fantastic, so I never missed not having good eggs benedict for breakfast on one morning.
Dean, the Crown Grill manager, also booked other food-related activities for us during the week ahead, like the Chef’s Table mentioned below and the Grapevine Wine Tasting. This outlet with its generally high level of service and food is definitely worth the extra price.
SHARE by Curtis Stone
Also a $29pp surcharge and you should probably have reservations. We read the menu and were not at all impressed by the multiple course offerings. We never ate here, but talked with people who had and they were not very impressed with their experience and the menu. You should check out the menu and decide for yourself.
CHEF’S TABLE
This was the most incredible dining experience (and best kept secret) offered on our Princess Cruise. It is as much an event as a premium dinner option ($95pp). It’s as close to a winemaker’s dinner as is possible on a cruise ship. The pairings were well executed by Federico Arcos Cantos (Maitre d’ Hotel) who is extremely knowledgeable about wine and Giancarlo Semeraro (Executive Chef). Click on the menu image to see the full size image (I don’t know how the wine spots got there). Your wine glass is kept full as you enjoy each course.
No less than 6 amuse-bouche were offered with a Gloria Ferrer bubbly in the galley area. These would be pupus or appetizers if this wasn’t the best dinner I have had since my last chef’s dinner on AMAWaterways.
Here’s what you need to know about this dinner. I found out about the Chef’s Table dinner by chance from a friend after talking about his Ketchikan sweatshirt one day. We were never offered the recipe book mentioned on the Princess Cruise web site above. This was just one of many instances where Princess failed to meet an expectation that they established for the customer.
It is true that only 10 people eat dinner together in a somewhat private section of the dining room. I do not know if it is offered on multiple nights during the Inside Passage cruise. Dean, the manager of Crown Grill, set this up for us on our 1st night on board. You should book it immediately upon boarding. Apparently you are not guaranteed a place at the table; just placed on a list and are notified a day or two later. In any case, I felt extremely lucky to be sitting at this table.
If you like to be the center of attention, note that other dining guests will be watching what is happening at your table and probably are wondering why the Executive Chef and Maitre d’ Hotel are catering to your every need.
THE MAIN DINING ROOMS
If you have booked a cabin that allows you “Club Class” dining, then you will be eating in the Da Vinci restaurant every night if you are smart. The entrance on the Ruby Princess is located port side (deck 6) and is clearly marked. The menus are the same for the 3 main restaurants (Da Vinci, Botticelli, and Michelangelo) on board, so having the quieter club class section is a joy. The main dining rooms are very noisy in comparison, but what choice do you have? We found 1 waiter, Moncarlo, who was so good that we tipped him an extra $20 for the week of consistently incredible service. I always try to sit in the same section whenever I find an outstanding waiter like him.
The Club Class section of Da Vinci also has nightly surprise specials cooked to order at a small station near the entrance. Look for a table that you might mistake for an omelet station anywhere else. One night was linguine and clams. Another night was cherries jubilee. Not prepared at this station on one night was the chanterelle soup. These items do not appear on the menus of the main dining rooms.
If you don’t want a full table service dinner, then there are several “fast food” options available ranging from pizza to hot dogs and until 9pm. The International Café (open 24 hours) was our favorite choice for quick service with excellent pastries and sandwiches even though you cannot order food, positioned 2 feet away, from the same person who takes your drink order (I understand why, but it’s a really stupid process). Food is free, but the reasonably priced drinks will cost you extra. We had a complimentary beverage package on the “Sip and Sail” promo that covered up to 15 drinks per day with a cost of $12 or under.
Horizon Court is the buffet option on board, but we never even visited it because we got spoiled by our available dining options. I cannot comment on the choices in Horizon Court nor the ambiance. But some people prefer buffets.
PREMIER BEVERAGE PACKAGE
Look for the Sip + Sail promotion if you are booking a balcony, mini-suite (not available on all ships), or a full suite. It is valued at $482.93pp by Princess Cruises for the 7-day Inside Passage cruise. It’s free if you book a certain class of cabin, but if you have to pay for it then you should think it through. Maybe searching for a cheaper fare without the beverage package would be a better deal for you, too. If you change your mind about the premier beverage package, you can buy it during the first day on-board the ship for the per person price of $59.99 + 18% gratuity per day of your cruise.
Basically, it entitles you to 15 drinks per day that are priced at US$12 or under. That includes sodas, small bottles of water, and also coffee from the International Café that is surprisingly inexpensive. There are also daily drink specials that can be about $6.50 each if you don’t have the beverage package. You also can get 25% off a full bottle of wine if you buy the package, but that makes no sense to me unless you want that bottle of Chateau Petrus sitting out on the counter of Vines.
The biggest pro for choosing this package is that you don’t have to even think about how many drinks you have had (or the cost). The person scanning your room card can even tell you how many you have had that day on the Sip + Sail promo (good for when you are approaching 15 drinks and forgot you were on a cruise ship). But, after a couple of days I found the $12 limitation to be an issue for me. There were several excellent wines above $12 for which I would have had to pay extra (and not just the difference in price). The under $12 wines were good, but the over $12 would have been exceptional. Do you fancy yourself to be a wine connoisseur?
Here’s the basic math to get you started:
- 4 glasses of wine at the very high end of $15 = $60pp per day (possibly more like $45 when you take less expensive wine into account)
- If you can’t wait for breakfast and free coffee, add a specialty coffee at the high end of $5 each.
- So, in this example a $65pp per day maximum charge for drinks would be a conservative assumption.
- 7 days x $65 = $455 (versus $12 x 15 maximum for $180 per day)
Some people would find the virtually unlimited drinks (15 per day) to be a much better value. Others would rather buy higher priced drinks and have flexible choices. I guess it depends on what kind of drinker you are. Are a few glasses of wine and 1-2 coffees enough for you? Or would you prefer to spend a day at sea on a rocking boat drinking until the boat’s rocking was offset by your wobbling?
LOUNGES/BARS
SKYWALKERS NIGHTCLUB
Located on the Ruby Princess stern (18th deck) and open from 4:30 – 6:30pm for the Platinum, Elite, and Suite guests. They have an assortment of cheeses, crudités, and some additional choices that change nightly. We showed up with our blue-colored room cards and were immediately told that the place was restricted to Platinum and Elite passengers without even asking if we were in a suite. I guess 1st time passengers (blue card) aren’t supposed to book a suite. While you can expect Princess Cruise management to be consistently excellent, there seems to be a lack in the training of other employees as evidenced by extreme inconsistency in the service levels we experienced throughout our voyage. It was obvious some people loved what they did and excited to be working there. Other people acted like they were working for a company that was going to close in the near future. Maybe walking the plank is a good idea.
Skywalkers has an excellent view and is a great place to relax with early pupus and a drink before dinner. How much food can you eat? The answer is that one night we passed on dinner because we weren’t even hungry.
It opens at 10pm for everyone as a nightclub, if you want to drink and dance your night away.
VINES
This wine bar was extremely disappointing. It looks and sounds great on the site, but …
- There were 2 wines that were not even in inventory for the last 3 months. No Sancerre from Domaine de la Perriere (Loire) and no Domaine Faively Montagny Burgundy. Apparently Princess Cruise Lines changed their wine lists in Fall 2018 and have been failing to buy an adequate inventory, which in this case is zero purchases.
- One of the bartenders had a serious negative attitude when I asked for these wines. He should not have been a waiter/bartender at all. He was like that all week.
- We only had wine here when there was little other choice. I would not consider Vines to be an asset with these inventory problems and the employee’s attitude. Wine lovers will continue to be disappointed if Princess chooses to ignore the problems with this outlet.
ADAGIO
This lounge is very hard to accidentally find. It is located on the aft section of Deck 16. Usually open from 5-11pm, it also is listed in the Patter newsletter as an unhosted venue for the LGBTQ passengers on board. If that bothers you, check the daily Patter for the “meeting” time as it changes. Or, just don’t go. Maybe that’s why it was never crowded when we were there. There is nightly music by a live band and it is a very comfortable place to relax and have a drink.
OTHER BARS/LOUNGES
There are many other places to enjoy a drink and your mood (and weather) will dictate whether you sit by a pool bar or an inside hallway on a couch with friends. Since the drinks are the same everywhere, pick the spot with the ambience that suits your current mood. Walk around the ship during the first day at sea and discover what moves you.
