If you chose the Dynamic Dining Classic option onboard Anthem of the Seas, your restaurant rotation will be assigned to you and found in your stateroom or on your Royal IQ app upon embarkation. Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing this rotation ahead of time. During our recent cruise to Bermuda, our Dynamic Dining Classic rotation started with Chic Anthem of the Seas.

This modern, French inspired menu contains many familiar cruise dishes and offers a dining room more akin to the traditional main dining room of most cruise ships. On our previous Quantum of the Seas cruise, Chic was not one of our favorite restaurants, so we were interested to see if the menu and service had improved in the past year.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

Review: Chic Anthem of the Seas

With Dynamic Dining Classic, you are seated at the same table with the same waitstaff and rotate through the four complimentary restaurants, with a choice of early or late seating. We opted for the early dining time, which starts at 5:30pm. We learned that you can show up anytime between 5:30pm and 6:00pm and still get your same table and waitstaff, but after that your table will be given away.

On the first night, we arrived right at 5:30pm. Passing the line of Dynamic Dining Choice guests, we were entering the restaurant when a staff member asked if he could help us. Yes, we were looking for table 108. The host grabbed two menus and escorted us to our table. Lucky for us, it was a nice table for two right, adjacent to a window.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

We were seated for a few moments when our waiter, Manilow, came over to introduce himself. We would spend the next four nights moving through the restaurants with him. No dedicated assistant waiter and a somewhat aloof bar server would also join us. Manilow asked us our water preferences and if we were ready to order. Needing a few minutes, he returned with some bread and iced water. Since it was not on the table, we asked about a specialty drink menu, which he was happy to grab for us.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

When the bar server finally arrived, I ordered the Lazy Dayz and the Princess got the Hepburn. These were the same drinks we had gotten before, and they hit the spot. Unfortunately, getting a second round of drinks proved to be difficult.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

Before sailing, we had done some research on the Anthem of the Seas menus. We knew that there were a couple different menu rotations at each venue to allow for greater options on longer cruises. Of course, this menu was the one that the Princess liked the least, as it had no chicken on it. Appetizers were also not to her liking.

For a starter, the wife did a Caesar salad off the Classics menu. Being a pretty basic offering, the salad arrived as expected.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

Known for going a bit overboard with dining, I vowed to take it easy with the eating this cruise. So, I opted for only two starters. First, I had to do the Maryland Crab Cake, which was one of the shining gems from last cruise. While it was still good, they definitely changed the recipe as the texture and presentation was much different.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

The second starter was the Eggplant and Kalamata Olive Tartare. It was supposed to come with pita bread crisps, so you use the tartare as a spread. Instead, I took a few forkfuls and decided to move on. I needed room for the entree and dessert!

With no dedicated assistant waiter for our table, there was a substantial delay getting plates cleared. Throughout the cruise, our table would often have empty plates for a long period of time until our waiter had a moment to come by and take them.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

Given there was no chicken dish on this menu, only duck, the wife went out on a limb and tried the Spaghetti Vongole, which consisted of a light olive oil sauce and some steamed clams. The serving size was on par for a cruise, and while the meal was a bit bland, it did suit the Princess as she is not one for anything spicy.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

For my entree, I decided to venture beyond my usually offerings and went with the Roasted Pork Chop. I was glad I did. It was a breaded bone-in pork chop which was tender and lightly seasoned. It was paired with light apple cider jus and sweet potatoes. The combo worked well, and let’s just say that the only thing left on my plate was an empty bone.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

So far, Chic had surpassed what we recalled from our previous cruise, even if the menu options themselves didn’t appeal to the Princess. But, we still had dessert to go.

My coffee was actually delivered in time for me to enjoy with dessert- this is something I now use to gauge service as my coffee often arrives just about the time we are finished with dessert.  I went with the Pineapple Upside Down Cake. It was not exactly what I was expecting, but luckily, I also got an order of vanilla ice cream, so all was not lost.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

On the waiter’s recommendation, the wife got the Orange Citrus Baba. This turned out to be the better of the two desserts. With white chocolate cremeux and torched meringue, it was the clear winner of this evening’s dessert wars.

Chic Anthem of the Seas

This dessert also goes well with vanilla ice cream!

Chic Anthem of the Seas

For our first Dynamic Dining Classic experience, Chic was a vast improvement to what we encountered a year earlier. Dinner did take about 90 minutes, mostly due to lags between courses. While the menu was not optimal for the Princess, we both enjoyed our meals. Our waiter Manilow was nice and aimed to please, even if a few of my jokes got lost in translation.

Over the next couple of nights, I think he finally got me, but who knows.

Remember that the menu does change part way through the cruise, offering completely different dinner selections. We had two different menu rotations on our 5 day Bermuda cruise, “menu A” for nights 1-4 and “menu B” for night 5. You can view the menus here.

Summary

• Type of Food- Modern
• Meals served- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
• Dress code- Smart Casual
• Cost- Complimentary

Comments

Have you dined at Chic on Anthem of the Seas? What are your favorite menu items at this restaurant? Drop us an anchor below to share your dining experiences at this Quantum class dining venue.