Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas is home to several of the brand’s signature specialty restaurants. Among the new favorites is Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen. This family-friendly restaurant offers authentic Italian comfort food. We have dined at this restaurant before, so we were eager to test it out again on Wonder of the Seas. Did the restaurant live up to our high expectations? Find out in our Wonder of the Seas Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen restaurant review.
Wonder of the Seas Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen Restaurant Review
With limited reservations available, we decided to dine at this restaurant on Night 1 of our cruise. There was no better way to start this historic cruise then with our Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen Review.
We made dinner reservations for 7 pm. Though this is a bit later than usual for us, the timing worked out perfectly.
Our sail away from Port Everglades was delayed. Therefore, we needed the extra time to unpack and prepare for the first evening onboard this record breaking ship.
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Inside the Restaurant
Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen is located on Deck 8 in Central Park on Wonder of the Seas, taking the place of either Giovanni’s Table or Jamie’s Italian on other Oasis Class ships. This latest Italian restaurant offers both indoor and al fresco dining.
The casual and inviting interior resembles someone’s home kitchen. With earth tones and a few pops of color, it makes you feel like you are dining at your good friend’s house.
We particularly love the different textures. From the stone work on the walls, to the wooden floors, this venue just feels cozy and warm.
The various photos of Italian landmarks add just the right amount of theming without feeling over the top.
The centerpiece of this restaurant is the large pizza oven. This is where the chefs craft some of the best pizza at sea.
Dining at Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen
Upon arrival at Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen, we were quickly escorted to a table for two on the exterior wall directly across from the entrance of the restaurant. This gave us a great view of all the action.
Within a few minutes, our waiter came by to introduce himself and review the menu. While he was nice, the service during this visit did suffer.
The restaurant was actually quite busy and seemed understaffed. This meant our server was always running around the venue.
Given this was the first sailing on the ship, and the first night of the cruise, we did cut him some slack. Hopefully, the restaurant is better equipped to handle the nighttime rush going forward.
Sampling the Food
After placing our drink orders, our waiter returned with some of the restaurant’s signature garlic bread knots. Glazed with cheese and a garlic sauce, this bread is the perfect way to start your dining experience at this specialty restaurant.
For starters, we ordered a pizza. Since we have already tried many of the pizza selections, we decided on a new one, the truffle and egg pizza. This was essentially a cheese pizza with a fried egg and sprinkles of bacon.
While we love the pizza at Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen, this particular selection would not rank at the top of my list. Still, it far better than the complimentary pizza you find in the Royal Promenade. It had a thin, crisp crust with just the right combination of cheese and sauce.
I also ordered the calamari as an appetizer. This crispy starter is served in a unique style, with whole sections of squid breaded and fried.
For dinner, the wife ordered chicken parmesan. This large chicken cutlet came smothered in sauce and cheese, paired with just the right amount of al dente pasta. This dish is always a hit.
Since I have tried many dishes on this menu already, I was looking for something different tonight. So, I ordered the filet on the waiter’s recommendation. This medium rare seared steak was tender and delicious. It was served on a bed of mushrooms and sautéed spinach. These flavorful vegetables were the perfect complement to this lightly seasoned cut of beef.
By now, we were already 1.5 hours into our meal. As it was the first day of the cruise, we were both feeling a bit tired. It was also approaching the time for the Welcome Aboard show. Still, there was no way we could pass up classic Italian desserts.
Tonight, the wife went with the tiramisu, and I did the cannoli. The two cannoli came with a crispy shell and a sweet ricotta filling. This dessert had the right consistency and flavor to rival the popular pastry shops in Boston’s North End.
On the other hand, the tiramisu had a slightly different texture than we were expecting. Although, it still had the smooth coffee flavor you would expect from this staple Italian treat.
Finally finished 2+ hours later, we were both stuffed!
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Recap of Wonder of the Seas Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen Review
Even though there are several restaurants on Wonder of the Seas, Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen ranks at the top of our list. For us, this specialty restaurant is certainly worth the up-charge.
Truthfully, this experience wasn’t our best at this new restaurant. Our dinner on Odyssey of the Seas was better, but we are still big fans of this new concept.
While the service was slow, the food at Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen still delivered.
When compared to other Italian restaurants at sea, Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen dishes up hearty and well-prepared versions of all the classics. The food is much fresher and tastier than the counterparts found in the main dining room.
The pizza was still delicious, even if this new creation was not exactly what we envisioned. My steak was cooked to order and offered a different style than what you would get across the way at Chops Grille.
If sailing on Wonder of the Seas in the future, we would certainly make reservations at Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen again.
Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen Dinner and Dessert Menus
Comments
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