Dina's and Peter's FANTAS(y)TIC First!!

[MomtoLandK]

I just discovered your trip report and really enjoyed it! We were supposed to go the Fantasy Western Caribbean cruise in June of 2020, but that obviously didn't happen. We have rebooked for next July and I'm so excited! I'm really looking forward to hearing about your Remy experience. I have been trying to decide if my husband and I should try to book Palo or Remy one night. We will have our kids with us though so they would have be ok going to the kids club.

 

[iloveeeyore]

I fell behind! I hate when the DIS doesn't keep me notified of updates!

OH, how crushing not to be able to dock at Castaway Cay!! Bad enough you weren't able to dock, but to literally be so close and then unable, BOOOOO!

I'm surprised, as you both mentioned, that there wasn't a contingency plan immediately put into effect! I'd love to know the behind the scenes story of who dropped the ball on that one!!

Sounds like you had a nice, relaxing at sea day at least. Shuffleboard was one of my son's favorite parts of our days at sea on his first (only!) cruise in 2019. He still talks about how he wants to go on another cruise...just to play shuffleboard

I'm really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on Remy! We've done Palo before, but have never experienced Remy before.

I haven't been receiving notifications from the DIS either, wonder what that's about? I'm glad you're still following and appreciate your patience. Crushing about CC, yes, we were so looking forward to it. Our upcoming cruise dropped Key West and inserted a second day at CC, so we are hoping to finally make it there in January (two chances increases the odds, at least)! It's too cute about your son and shuffleboard! I bet you could find a cheaper way to hook him up...but then, maybe you wouldn't want to? Remy coming up!

I just discovered your trip report and really enjoyed it! We were supposed to go the Fantasy Western Caribbean cruise in June of 2020, but that obviously didn't happen. We have rebooked for next July and I'm so excited! I'm really looking forward to hearing about your Remy experience. I have been trying to decide if my husband and I should try to book Palo or Remy one night. We will have our kids with us though so they would have be ok going to the kids club.

Glad you were able to find the report and so happy to hear you enjoyed it. I feel your pain about having to cancel your cruise, and wish you the best with your July plans. The Fantasy is absolutely amazing, I would sail on her again absolutely any opportunity! I think Remy and Palo are both real treats, and would recommend for everyone to give each a try if they're able. Only you can decide if either or both suits you! I hope to give a good account of our experience at Remy...upcoming!

 

[iloveeeyore]

Friday, January 10, 2020 - dinner at Remy

One thing was NOT subjective about this dinner. No argument, discussion or waffling here. The service was absolutely outstanding! We felt like royalty from the moment we stepped up to the podium.

The first thing that happened after we were seated was the table-side preparation of the signature, complimentary cocktail, the Colette. This is a delicious (not too sweet) combination of champagne, Creme de Cassis pearls, Grand Marnier, vodka and dried pineapple. I know this because Google is my friend, not because I remember the details. And though Peter and I both really enjoy Creme de Cassis, we don't know what the pearls are. TBH, neither of us remembers any "pearls" of any kind in our drinks, but in looking closely at the photo of the drinks, I think I do discern a whisper of something cassis-colored.





Like I said, these were delicious, and also, there's something about that feeling you get when a cart is pushed over to your table and something magical and tasty is prepared for your enjoyment right in front of you, involving you in the process. The table-side production is taking this theater to the next level, the incorportation of more of the senses! A feast for the eyes as well as the mouth, and an increased feeling of anticipation and excitement for the drink itself, but also all the rest of the magic that will follow it!

Our wonderful server explained that there are 2 tasting menus, one Saveur (by Chef Lallement) and one Gout (chef Hunnel). He described it as one more French, one more American, IIRC. We could either pick and choose course by course from each menu to customize to our tastes, or do what he suggests, which is to order full-course meal from each chef so we could taste everything. Of course we went with that choice. I'm going through my pictures, I didn't take notes because I just wanted to savor the experience, and now, sadly, I can't really remember what eveything is and the photos aren't always even helpful! I will try to unravel it for you...and invite you to chime in and share your knowledge and expertise in everything Remy!

Amuse bouches:

some kind of canapes? Look at the presentation a silver platter!


some kind of soup?


No, not soup, lol! This next photo is of the same dish pictured above - looks like perhaps smoked salmon? tomato with pesto and cheese? craime fraiche? So sorry I didn't take notes!


Amazing bread service with salt and multiple flavored butters. They were so good, it was so hard to stop eating bread!


Maybe this first course is the Langoustine Royale? That looks like caviar on the side. I feel like I had some langoustine in a roll and it tasted great but felt very undercooked on the inside, and since this is a roll, i think this is it.


I have no idea what this is. Wait, maybe this is is the langoustine? That may mean the one above is the smoked bison?


Next course...A scallop? Pork?


Fish


Photo limit for this post, more coming up!

 

[missjackiemcg]

Off to quite a tasty start, whether labeled correctly or not, everything looks tremendous!!

The signature cocktail sounds delightful! I love that it's prepared and served tableside, too. I have to agree, there is just something magical about moments like those!

 

[iloveeeyore]

Friday, January 10, 2020 - dinner at Remy continued

Next course was served on these large wooden plates. Mine was a large piece of cauliflower? seasoned in exotic spices and roasted and served with a sauce. IIRC, this was a bit middle eastern in flavor and flair.

close-up of my veggie plate


Peter's plate...duck? lamb?


Next course

My plate...some kind of meat with crust, gravy or viniagrette, artichoke hearts. Beef? Maybe even tuna?


A different view of the same plate


And Peter's...I think this is lamb or kobe-style beef? I guess it could also be lamb or pork. Bad colors in my photos, note to self, flash next time!


Different view

 

[iloveeeyore]

Firday, January 10, 2020 - Dinner at Remy, continued

Next course was the cheese course and tbh, this was our favorite! First of all...the tableside cart. Second...CHEESE! No need to say more. We took a taste of every single one, and our server arranged them clockwise around the plates from mild to sharp.








Every bite was rich and delicious and the pairings were perfect, every mouthful an absolute delight!

Next, our server brought us this special dessert surprise, a lovely little presentation for our anniversary.




It looked like a silver egg, and when opened, a sweet gateau



The gateau:


I can't remember how that sauce got there? Now that I think of it, I believe they brought the egg back into the kitchen and plated the gateau there and returned it to us.

Then the actual desserts

I think this is a fruite torte with meringue on top.


Sorbet with meringue? or white chocolate? and reaspberries. That topping looks the same as the topping on the torte but I don't remember realizing that at the time.


You'd think we'd be completely done for the meal, but you'd be wrong!

 

[iloveeeyore]

Friday, January 10, 2020 - dinner at Remy STILL going

We thought we were done, but then the server appeared with this delightful platter of candies:



We laughed and said we didn't have room for even one more bite, so they brought them back in a box


OMG and now looking at the above photos, I'm realizing there were ALSO lollipops!


It was time to roll out of Remy so we could catch the See ya Real Soon ceremony, so it was time to say goodnight to our wonderful servers.

Overall thoughts about Remy. We were pampered to the max. No way service could have been any better. The meal itself...wasn't that memorable, as perhaps you can tell from my terrible reporting. Even the pictures don't help spark our memories much. Honestly, when I think of the quality at Remy, I think about that delicious cocktail, the unbelievable cheese cart, the uniqueness of the surprise dessert in the egg, the simplicity of the cauliflower, and the undercooked langoustine. Now nothing was bad at all. But certainly not anywhere near the best meal we've ever had. The service was on par with V&A for sure, but the food? Not even close, in our opinion. We've done chefs table at V&A and tasting menus at some of the best restaurants in NYC, so we admit we had very high expectations for this meal from the comparisons we had read. The food definitely did not measure up to the expectations. That said, we'd MAYBE give it another try in the future for a very special occasion, just to see if maybe we hit it on an off night. Maybe earlier in the 7-day cruise matters? We'd be more likely to do brunch at Palo, which kind of did blow us away, for less than half the price. It was simply a better value for us. YMMV.

 

[iloveeeyore]

Friday, January 10 - Saturday, January 11, 2020 - See Ya Real Soon!

After dinner we somehow made our way to the Atrium, where we said so long to all our favorite characters. I only have this one photo of the very beginning of the little ceremony. It was really cute and emotional


Back in the stateroom, what the heck is this?


We packed and hit the hay because we had to get up early for our last breakfast and debarkation.

Cabanas was open but with fewer selections, but we wanted to get a head start as we were carrying our own bags off the ship, so no sit down breakfast for us. Debarkation was quick, easy and organized and customs was really a breeze.


We found our way to the GoPort shuttle and scored some seats on the one that was sitting there. We were back at MCO around 9. The problem was our flight wasn't until later on, maybe around 3. So we sat for a long time in the airport, watching many flights head to NY before ours, I think one even went to White Plains. The other issue was this was where I started coughing. I coughed and coughed and coughed this dry annoying cough that started to make me really self-conscious as people kept staring at me like why would you even travel?! This was right when we started to be aware of Covid in China but didn't think/know it was here yet. Anyway I have no idea if I had it, but I did have an antibody test later in May when it became available and that was completely negative. We made it home safely and I eventually stopped coughing a few weeks later.

That's a wrap on this report. I look forward to writing another one in about two months after our January 2022 5-night Marvel Day at Sea on the Magic! See ya real soon!

 

[MainStreetFireman]

Can't wait to cruise with you again, my fabulous wife! But I still love reading your past trip reports as they spark memories of all our special times together. Here's to many more together!

 

[missjackiemcg]

The other issue was this was where I started coughing. I coughed and coughed and coughed this dry annoying cough that started to make me really self-conscious as people kept staring at me like why would you even travel?! This was right when we started to be aware of Covid in China but didn't think/know it was here yet. Anyway I have no idea if I had it, but I did have an antibody test later in May when it became available and that was completely negative. We made it home safely and I eventually stopped coughing a few weeks later.

That's a wrap on this report. I look forward to writing another one in about two months after our January 2022 5-night Marvel Day at Sea on the Magic! See ya real soon!

My Mom and I both had what we assumed to be terrible colds when we got off our very merrytime cruise in December 2019. She swears that we both had COVID, too. I'm not sure, but boy I've never been more miserably sick than I was that following week!

Thanks so much for sharing your report! We're super excited to sail on the Fantasy this summer--our make-up cruise for the 15th Anniversary trip we were meant to take last summer. I look forward to reading along if you decide to write another report in January

 

[TinkLoverSam]

We did Chef’s Table at V&A’s for our wedding dinner and when they brought out that tray of chocolates and asked (after 8? Courses plus 2 desserts) “and what would the bride like?” I said “a box, the bride would like a box!”