Saturday, January 30, 2016

Dinner on the Disney Fantasy - Part 2

Last week, my family took a seven night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Disney Fantasy.  This was our 7th time cruising with the Disney Cruise Line, but our first on the Disney Fantasy.  You can read my first three dinner reviews from our latest cruise here.


On the fourth night of our cruise, we dined in Animator's Palate for the second time.  Your first dinner at Animator's Palate on the Disney Fantasy features the Underwater Magic show with characters from Finding Nemo.  The fourth night of our cruise was Pirate night, so all three Main Dining restaurants featured the same menu.


I started my meal with my usual plate of fruit, special ordered through Massiel, our amazing server.


The night before, I pre-ordered the Buccaneer's sun-ripened pineapple as my appetizer, which was marked gluten free on the menu.  I asked for no coconut, so the coconut covered banana was not included with my pineapple with an orange glaze.


For the soups & salads course, there were three gluten free options listed on the menu - chilled-to-the-bone honeydew & watermelon soup, jerk chicken salad, and Mr. Smee's bibb lettuce salad.  I chose Mr. Smee's bibb lettuce salad with bibb lettuce, baby greens, chicory, tomatoes, toasted pine nuts, and raspberry vinaigrette.  My first two courses were good, but I wish I had ordered the jerk chicken salad, which several of my family members ordered and enjoyed.  


The only entrees listed as gluten free on Pirate night were the lighter note offerings, which I was not in the mood for, so I pre-ordered the Castaway Chicken Breast rubbed with Pirate Island spice, rice and beans, and fried okra on a rich spiced glaze.  I am not sure what part of this dish was originally not gluten free, but it was modified for me to make it safe.  I thought for sure that it would be overcooked based on how it looked when it was set in front of me, but the chicken was very tender, well seasoned, and paired well with the rice & beans, and glaze.  The Castaway Chicken Breast was one of best main courses I had on our cruise in the Main Dining restaurants.


The only gluten free dessert listed on the menu was coconut cream treasure encased with passion fruit jelly and mango sauce.  I don't eat anything with coconut, so Massiel appeared with two desserts for me.  The chocolate cake had a slightly spongy texture, but it tasted really good.


I was also brought a modified Crunch Time Sundae with rum raisin ice cream, but only had a few bites, because I am not a big fan of raisins.


On the fifth night of our cruise, we dined at the Enchanted Garden for the second time.  All three Main Dining restaurants were featuring a Prince & Princess menu that evening.


I started my meal with my pre-ordered plate of fruit, and Princess Tiana's sauteed shrimp on jambalaya rice.  I had two other gluten free appetizers to choose from, the Royal marinated salmon, and Aurora's green & white asparagus spears, but I was very happy with my choice.


For the soups & salads course, I bypassed Phillip's pancetta salad in favor of the Beast's lentil soup with sausage and vegetables, which was very good.


For my main course, I ordered the New York strip steak "Fitzherbert" with truffle layered potatoes, honey parsnips, and buttered spinach with pepper sauce.  My meal came with the unseasoned vegetables that are usually served with the lighter note entrees instead of the honey parsnips and spinach like I was expecting, which was disappointing, and I was not impressed by the steak or potatoes.


My meal ended on a great note though with Prince Charming's flourless chocolate cake layered with vanilla and chocolate cream.  It was one of the best desserts I had on our cruise on the Disney Fantasy.


On the sixth night of our cruise, we dined at the Royal Court for the second time.  All three main dining restaurants were featuring the Captain's Gala menu that evening.


Our second meal at the Royal Court was the best dinner I had at the Main Dining restaurants on our cruise.


I started my meal with a beautiful plate of fruit, and for an appetizer, I pre-ordered the aged prosciutto served with sun-dried tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, and roasted garlic.


My second course, the green pea and fava bean risotto from the vegetarian menu, was just as delicious as my appetizer.  This was one of my favorite dishes from our cruise on the Disney Magic.  The risotto is drizzled with pesto sauce and served with roasted pine nuts.  I ordered this dish instead of a soup or salad, because there was another main course that I wanted to try.


Both the oven-roasted lobster tail and the oven-roasted pork tenderloin were marked as gluten free main courses.  Our server Massiel was shocked that I did not order the lobster tail, but I was not that impressed by it on our last cruise, so I chose the pork tenderloin with creamy cheese polenta, sauteed wild mushrooms, and a Merlot reduction.


I would definitely not pass up this main course on future cruises, because I loved everything on my plate.  The pork was nice and tender, and the polenta was just how it was described on the menu- cheesy and creamy.


I was not surprised that Massiel also pre-ordered me a lobster tail after I told her that I do love lobster.  With some melted butter drizzled on top, it was pretty good.


With two gluten free desserts on the menu, I was disappointed that the chef made me chocolate mousse, so Massiel brought me a bananas foster sundae.


It was good, but I would have much preferred the banana creme brulee I tried on our cruise on the Disney Magic.  The only reason I did not ask for it was because I was so full from all the food I had eaten.  On future cruises, I will definitely look at the dessert menu the night before, and specify what dessert I would like if there are multiple gluten free options on the menu.  I am not sure why the chef went off menu on the final night of our cruise.  I do like chocolate, but I was looking forward to the gluten free desserts on the menu.  I saw children at neighboring tables eating Mickey's Premium Ice Cream Bars, so ask for one if you are not interested in any of the gluten free dessert offerings listed on the menu.


My husband and I decided to dine at Palo on the final night of our cruise, which you can read about here.  I was not that impressed by the See Ya Real Soon menu featured at all three Main Dining restaurants that evening.  It was my least favorite meal on our cruise on the Disney Magic, so it was the perfect night to dine at Palo.  Oddly enough, they only offer one appetizer, and one soup/salad for the final dinner.


I took some screenshots of the menu from my Disney Cruise Line Navigator app.


The soup was not listed as gluten free, and there were no gluten free options on the dessert menu, but gluten free alternatives would have been offered to me if we had dined with my family that evening.  Sadly, we missed the Animation Magic show featured that night at Animator's Palate, where everyone draws their own character, and watches them come to life, dancing with classic Disney characters on the screens around the restaurant.


A couple final notes about our cruise.  I called Guest Services about the chocolates left on our bed during turndown service, and received this note later that evening.  The Sleepy chocolates contain milk and soy, and have a cross contamination warning for wheat, peanuts, and tree nuts.


We never order room service, but when I looked at the menu in my app, it only listed two gluten free options - the Greek salad, and a fresh fruit bowl.  If you are interested in room service, I would talk to your head server the first night of your cruise.  Our dining team made every effort to make our cruise a magical one, so I know accommodations will be made if you choose to order room service, which is available 24 hours a day, except on the final night of your cruise, when is is only available until 1:30 AM.


This is my seventh and final review of our dining experiences on the Disney Fantasy, but I still have a Castaway Cay post I need to work on from our cruise on the Disney Magic.  It will include information about dining gluten free on Disney's private island.

You can view all my other Disney Fantasy dining reviews here.

We booked our next DCL cruise on the Disney Wonder, which is the only Disney Cruise Line ship we have not sailed on.  My family is also taking a land & sea trip to Alaska this summer with Princess, and a northern European cruise with Celebrity in 2017, so I am looking forward to seeing how they compare to the Disney Cruise Line when it comes to special diets.  Any experiences with Princess or Celebrity that you could share would be appreciated.

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