One of the main dining rooms of the Harmony of the Seas, the American Icon (located on Deck 3 Aft)…read moreserved as the dining room for breakfast and lunch table service meals, as well as My Dining time guests. My brother and I had the opportunity to dine here multiple times, on two separate back to back week long cruises from Galveston. It started out really well, but the same dishes prepared the second week were not nearly as good. 'My Dining' is RC's answer to NCL's anytime dining, where instead of having a set time each night with the same waitstaff and fellow guests, one can reserve a different time each night. This dining room is what is used for this, and is also the same place for breakfast and/or lunch (which doesn't require a reservation). Once you approach the dining room, there are two queues during dinner: one for those with reservations and for those without. As one would expect, the reserved line goes a lot faster, but people in the other line were being seated within 20 minutes. The menu is the same across all the dining rooms. Week 1: Day 2 (L): mozzarella sticks (stretchy which I love), potato soup (very good), pulled pork and baked cod (both of which were excellent). Day 3 (D): escargot (good, missed having this since really only place to get it easily), carne asada (big pieces of flap steak), butter chicken (what you would expect from a buffet, which wasn't too bad) Day 5 (D): Lobster night, giving each person one 6oz cold water lobster tail. It was perfectly cooked and presented cracked with a little bit of drawn butter. For lobster lovers, this is a must. Also got a small piece of the lemon baked cod: just outstanding, they really found a good supplier for this cruise...the 'flakes' were the biggest I've seen for cod. And the dessert was baked alaska, which is one of my favorite desserts. Day 7 (L): Another great meal. Manhattan clam chowder (plenty of little clams), sweet corn cakes (really liked it), and a large piece of meat lasagna. Week 2 Day 3 (D) - very crowded and it took a bit of time to be seated. Got the filet of sole (as good as the cod was, the sole was bad in the other direction), parmesan arancini, beef carpaccio. Day 6 (D) - Lobster night, and the lobster tail was just as good as the week before. But the escargot and french onion soup were not good and the baked alaska was not well executed either. I also got a NY strip to try to make it into a surf-n-turf, but was strongly rebuffed with a huff by our server ("the plates will come out and served to you separately")...the only time during our cruise where I felt like I had asked a bad question/request.

With a name that doesn't really explain the cuisine, Mini Bites is the complementary Mexican buffet…read moreserving lunch on the Harmony of the Seas cruise boat. It is located next to the Sports Court area, in the Pool & Sports Zone neighborhood, on Deck 15 Aft. It is similar to El Loco Fresh, the pool-side Tex-Mex buffet found on older RC boats like the Navigator of the Seas. This is intentional: when it first opened, Mini Bites served finger foods like sliders, mini pizzas, meatballs, and hot dogs. But it has gradually evolved into a Loco Fresh clone. Very possible that it will be formally rebranded after the next dry dock for this ship (next year). In the same area, exists the really good soft serve ice cream dispenser, always manned by a crew member (sounds like self-serve is just too messy). There is outdoor seating. While eating, we got to have a great view of the Margaritaville ship while in port in Cozumel on Day 3 on the first week, and then made myself a plate of nachos exactly the way I love it (chips on bottom, little bit of black bean, then a bit of nacho sauce, then ton of lettuce, bit of red onion and chopped tomato, a lot of shredded cheese, and sour cream, guacamole, and a ton of very tomatoey jarred salsa, then a choice of meat on top...which in this case for me were the carnitas). They also have decent quesadilla (cheese or chicken) towards the end...no burritos or tacos, though. At the far end is the drink station, with plenty of portable water dispensers. The nachos tasted great, especially since I could modify the proportions exactly the way I've learned to like it. There was quite a line to go through the buffet, so going back to pick some missing pieces is not encouraged. And because all the buffet line dishes can not be seen in one view, many first timers (including me) thought the only meat ingredient was the beef chili, not knowing there was carne asada, chicken, and carnitas towards the end. The set-up at Loco Fresh (with the main ingredients in the main line, and all the condiments in a different bar) was better. But I loved how well chopped all the onions, lettuce, and tomato was. Perfect for nachos or as toppings for tacos.

We called to make a reservation for brunch on Sunday at The Fancy. After two calls that were never…read moreanswered, we finally had to call the front desk who said they would let the restaurant staff know to call us back but nobody did. We decided to try walking in despite never getting a hold of them and were told that it was fully booked for a private event. It would've been helpful if someone had at least communicated that to us before taking the long drive there. Such a shame since it's really such a nice hotel.

Best service Best food & drinks…read moreBest ambiance Best vibes Best pool Best private beach New favorite hotel in Galveston

Considered the fine dining restaurant on the Harmony of the Seas, 150 Central Park (so named…read morebecause the restaurant is exactly 150 feet from the entrance of the Central Park neighborhood on Oasis class of Royal Caribbean ships) serves a fixed price dinner of locally sourced dishes. My brother and I had the opportunity to dine in on our 4th day of the 2nd week-long cruise, coming from Galveston. Like most food on the boat, the various sampled dishes were anywhere from OK to really great. We were able to book a reservation for the same day, as long as we ate early (5:15). We were seated right away at a window table, tap water was offered, and a simple wine list was given. I chose two glasses of a Vermentino, which went well with the meal. We also started with a Parker House bread, which was very good. Royal Caribbean does bread well. We sampled different small plates and the two best things of the meal was in this group. The braised short rib was outstanding: a very good quality beef braised long and slow to produce the perfect bite, tender but not mushy. Another huge hit was the crispy pork belly: they kept it as one piece, letting you cut it at the table. The pork was great quality, and the skin was very crispy with just enough underneath fat to make you know it was pork belly (plus it made the meat underneath really moist). The portions were large as an 'appetizer'. I would absolutely get this again if offered. The honey glazed scallops weren't as successful, though the sea scallops were decent size and well cooked. For main plates, we got Lobster Thermidor, Roasted tenderloin, and Lamb Wellington. The Thermidor used a smaller lobster tail: a lot of effort to make it, but the complementary lobster tail one gets on Lobster night is better. The roasted tenderloin suffered from the same problem with all steaks on a cruise boat: one can't produce the type of high heat necessary to get a restaurant quality steak dish for safety reasons (it's the same reason why one can't get a decent steak knife either). It confirmed my previous suspicion that it's not worth the extra cost to go to a steakhouse on a cruise ship. And I thought the lamb wellington was a miss: the pastry crust was gummy, the lamb gamey. Dessert was fried cheesecake (not very elegant, like something one would eat on a stick at a county fair, but describes it accurately). It was good, with the whipped cream and nutella going well. Service was good throughout the meal, friendly but elegant. Really glad we had the opportunity to try this restaurant.

Oasis Kitchen is a Jamaican food truck I usually see behind UTMB, but at other times I've seen it…read morealong Seawall. They offer a variety of entrees that will keep you going back to try everything. I had the jerk chicken sandwich with the mac and cheese. The sandwich was delicious - I was expecting mostly meat, but there was corn and peppers that nicely complimented the chicken. The mac and cheese definitely had a little bit of a kick and also a bit of sweetness, so beware if you're sensitive to spice. Overall, all the flavors were delicious, The portions were definitely more than enough, and everything was reasonably priced. My order came out quickly, and they were very friendly! I have seen them delivering to various locations on UTMB campus, and they're also open to catering. Definitely come check this place out if you want to try some Jamaican food and support local businesses!

A little hidden gem in Bolivar! The mint cookies and cream milk shake was so decadent - my kids…read morewere fighting over every last sip . There's plenty of alcoholic and non alcoholic daiquiris flavors on the menu. We tried starburst & ocean sunrise and they were just what we needed to cool down after a hot day at the beach. The cashier was very friendly and gave us perfect suggestions on what to try based on our preferences. Lots of seating in the shade and little games to keep kids entertained. I would recommend this place to families or anyone looking for a sweet treat!

This is right off the highway in the lot next to the donut shop. Easy access in and out. Cool…read moreplace for families as it is very kid friendly with some activities (ring toss, cornhole) and a very chilled out vibe. Folks are very nice explaining the menu or adjusting orders to accommodate special diets, likes, etc. Menu is very large with all sizes. My wife did a Twisted and I did a milkshake (vanilla with caramel). Reasonable priced items (my wife's extra shot in her drink was $2.50 as an example). Only downside with that really attentive service and care in making is the wait. You can see they are trying to get them out fast as they can but it was a ten to twenty minute wait in line (a family of six ahead of us) and then another 10 minutes before orders were ready. But that time might be best spent off the phones and enjoying your family's company right? Also, seems like there is some kind of vent in the ground outside the ordering window which made for some interesting smells. Worth a stop.

Excellent coffee, (better than Starbucks..) and also extremely friendly customer service!…read more Located in the gift shop / on the pier... Its somewhat difficult to find. But once you get it once, you've got it! Did I mention friendly service?!?...

Come for the coffee stay for the fishing…read more Great little pier on far south side of island. You can rent poles and buy bait here. Tons of cute t-shirts and gifts. Upstairs you'll find a great restaurant with plenty of great food options and a killer view. Get off the beaten track and get your butt over here.

After checking out Nifany's reviews, I was excited to visit but when I pulled up, I wasn't so sure…read moreand when I went inside, I definitely wasn't sure. I got exactly what I thought. The food was mediocre. I love the fact that the waffles are dairy-free, but the portion size is small for the price. I ordered avocados and eggs on a croissant and it tasted like something you take out of a refrigerator and heat up. I didn't want to sit inside because the tables were not clean. It's a cute restaurant and decorated nicely with beach vibes but, could be cleaner. I did not try their waffle treat which is something people rave about. I wasn't in the mood for something that sweet early in the morning. I wish my experience had turned out better than it did.

This place was right below our Airbnb so it was very convenient. Plenty of seating options and…read moredrink options as well. Owner is very nice and the customer service felt very warm and cozy. This is definitely a spot to find something sweet and a variety of drink options. I did try the iced coffee but was expecting espresso. I'm not sure what coffee was used to make the latte but it was mostly syrup that I can mostly recall. Nevertheless, super cute and chill spot to visit. Happy Yelping!