In an attempt to speed up main dining room dinner service and (if the company is being honest) pare down costs, Royal Caribbean is testing new dinner menus on the Symphony of the Seas. Depending on guest feedback, these menus, or some altered version of them, may eventually roll out fleet-wide.
For comparison purposes, you can see all the old menus (still being served on other Royal Caribbean ships) here:
Upon first glance, you’ll notice that the new menus (posted below) are shorter. On the old menus, there were a number of entree and dessert items that were offered every night: salmon, chicken, strip steak, and spaghetti bolognese plus five popular desserts. While some of these items still appear on certain nights, they are no longer all offered nightly.
You’ll also note a daily Indian entree and a vegan appetizer, entree, and dessert on the new menus. Prior to these new menus, there was a separate Indian and Vegan menu each night (provided upon request). This appears to be an attempt to eliminate those menus, providing less variety to vegetarians (who will now have to order the vegan entree) and vegans (who will only have one choice per category).
There is also a charge of $16.99 + 18% gratuity listed for ordering a second broiled lobster tail on night 6.
On the kids menu, you’ll note that the appetizer section has been eliminated. Keep in mind that kids can order from the regular menu too, but the kid friendly apps are gone.
Here are the new menus:
Early feedback seems to be overwhelmingly negative. The most common reaction I’ve seen is that Royal Caribbean has made deep cuts to menu offerings without anything positive in return. The quality of items and service speed have remained the same. And while these cuts are consistent with what we’re seeing across many lines, they may prompt some to remain a bit less loyal to Royal. Time will tell. And with that…
Class Dismissed.
Homework (10 points): Share your thoughts on these new menus to the comments. Bonus points if you’ve tried them on Symphony of the Seas!
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