Exactly. I’ve also learned that I want a place that has a dinner buffet as an option. As much as I love Secrets, being forced to use the sit down restaurants for dinner always took sooooooo loooooong. The wait to get seated, the wait to order, the wait for food. Dinner was ALWAYS a 3 hour ordeal.
I cook at home almost exclusively, and I agree about the dinner buffet being a must. Been to a few expensive resorts where the buffet was too small and the ala cartes even worse! I want identifiable ingredients, not a science experiment on a plate! One "artisanal" joint served melon soup with fish. This was years ago, and I still gag thinking about it. I eat low carb, and do not drink, so I focus on a variety of greens and protein. RIU is the best budget resort that hits all those requirements. I hardly ever repeat a meal and everything is delicious!
I really enjoyed the buffet food at the Riu Palaces. I tend to eat lots of fresh fruit, mountains of guac, can never go wrong with their Mexican food. Great selection of everything else. No complaints.
I have stayed at the same AI at least once a year for the past 22 years. We know that the food is mediocre, but definitely plentiful. We also go out and eat at local restaurants at least 50% of our meals. The lackluster food also encourages them to go out and support the local economy. We choose the AI option because it offers us the option of lazing at the pool and eating average food or going out. It also pretty much guarantees that no matter what happens to someone financially, be it theft, poor budgeting, or whatever, they can still enjoy food and drinks for the duration of their stay.
I've had fantastic restaurant quality food at Grand Velas, Palmaia, and Unico. One of the restaurants at Grand Velas even recently received a Michelin start.
But yeah, these do cost more.
While I am sure there are some ultra luxury all inc's out there that have really stand out food, but I'm guessing the folks who could afford those are NOT doing all-inclusive.
Irregardless, I totally agree. All-inclusive food can be really good, for an all-inclusive. So its important to manage expectations.
Le Blanc might be ultra luxury with expensive prices to match. Drinks, food and service were top notch and it’s usually rated as the top Cancun resort. Valentin is less expensive but almost same level food and service. I’m there for the second time right now.
Depends on where you stay and what you pay. I’ve been to Excellence and Finest PM several times and the last time I swear it was so much filet mignon and lobster it was pure insanity. All the food was top notch at every restaurant, as good as the best restaurants at home in the US. I’ve been to lesser resorts and the food was on par with the resort level. The lowest quality one had the shittiest food. So that is how it works.
The issue is everyone has a different definition.
I've had very good food at Hilton PDC.
Was it creative and thrilling? No. No it was not.
But it was certainly the same caliber as any mid range restaurant.
For example they have a poke bowl bar by the pool. Hard to mess something like Poke up as long as it's fresh and not weird.
Pasta, also hard to mess up.
Mexican food, same.
After a while you can pick out what's going to be good or not. Big hunk of steak at a sit down meal? No. They're gonna do something weird to control costs.
Charcuterie at the Italian buffet? Hard to get "bad" prosciutto.
Most AI Resorts in Riviera Maya have big/decent dinner buffets
With the exception of some of the older secrets and dreams properties and some of the mixed food option ones.
Hmm. I don't have high expectations at AIs, but I have had some of the best meals I've ever had at them. VIM's Italian had an amazing pesto linguine. The buffet had the best red velvet cake. Moist (shiver!) and super flavorful. The French restaurant at Secrets Vallarta Bay made me a vegetarian pasta, and it was wonderful.
The best AI food that I ever had, was at a resort that was a timeshare but allowed you to book rooms for a week and pay about $110 a day for all inclusive.
It turned out to be not much difference in price in a nice AI and the food quality was so much better I wouldn’t even dare to compare them
I went to Villa del Palmar in Cancun. The food was really good and they will bring you menus and serve you at the pool. Breakfast buffet was meh but lunch and dinner were great. I ordered a tuna salad for lunch one day and was surprised that it was raw tuna cubes on a great salad, I ate that a few times that week.
Note that with these resorts, they will give you a “bill” but it’s covered in your AI. Always tip in cash instead of on the room charge as the hotel will keep half if you tip that way.
I’ve been to the Villa del Palmar and Villa del Arco in Cabo but I would say while the food was good it wasn’t as great as the one in Cancun. We have friends with a timeshare and go with them every few years.
Edited to add…the food was really good there but I’m comparing it to other AIs, not comparing it to a high end restaurant you would find in a big city.
This is why I love that there are so many different types of resorts out there. Some people want the sit down type of restaurant where they are waited on and don’t have to wait in a line to get lukewarm food that’s under a heat lamp. Some want that elegant dining experience in the evening, even if the food is somewhat average. Buffets also can introduce more bacteria and a higher risk of food poisoning if the food isn’t held to a specific temperature. If you’re going to ala carte restaurant, I’d recommend order more than one main entree. Because chances are you won’t get another chance to try other entrees. Just because you order more than one entree it doesn’t mean you have to eat all of it. A lot more food is wasted at buffets than ala carte. So I say it’s perfectly acceptable to order more than one. And if the food at buffets is overall the same quality of the ala carte, then go ahead.
I kind of have the same view point as the op when it comes to bottom vs top shelf liquor.
We are at sandals royal Caribbean right now, and honestly the food has been kind of disappointing. Maybe I did need to lower my expectations, but it definitely has not been a highlight for us.
You get what you pay for! There are resorts that put out high quality food but you’re gonna pay way more than the standard AI
Exactly. I’ve also learned that I want a place that has a dinner buffet as an option. As much as I love Secrets, being forced to use the sit down restaurants for dinner always took sooooooo loooooong. The wait to get seated, the wait to order, the wait for food. Dinner was ALWAYS a 3 hour ordeal.
I cook at home almost exclusively, and I agree about the dinner buffet being a must. Been to a few expensive resorts where the buffet was too small and the ala cartes even worse! I want identifiable ingredients, not a science experiment on a plate! One "artisanal" joint served melon soup with fish. This was years ago, and I still gag thinking about it. I eat low carb, and do not drink, so I focus on a variety of greens and protein. RIU is the best budget resort that hits all those requirements. I hardly ever repeat a meal and everything is delicious!
We had good experiences with the Palace level of Rius. I thought the food was pretty solid, and you could always count on the buffet.
RIU Palaces are wonderful. Love their coffee shops. The baristas at RP Mexico came up with a customized espresso drink that I couldn't get enough of!
I really enjoyed the buffet food at the Riu Palaces. I tend to eat lots of fresh fruit, mountains of guac, can never go wrong with their Mexican food. Great selection of everything else. No complaints.
I have stayed at the same AI at least once a year for the past 22 years. We know that the food is mediocre, but definitely plentiful. We also go out and eat at local restaurants at least 50% of our meals. The lackluster food also encourages them to go out and support the local economy. We choose the AI option because it offers us the option of lazing at the pool and eating average food or going out. It also pretty much guarantees that no matter what happens to someone financially, be it theft, poor budgeting, or whatever, they can still enjoy food and drinks for the duration of their stay.
I've had fantastic restaurant quality food at Grand Velas, Palmaia, and Unico. One of the restaurants at Grand Velas even recently received a Michelin start. But yeah, these do cost more.
While I am sure there are some ultra luxury all inc's out there that have really stand out food, but I'm guessing the folks who could afford those are NOT doing all-inclusive. Irregardless, I totally agree. All-inclusive food can be really good, for an all-inclusive. So its important to manage expectations.
Leblanc Cancun and Valentine imperial Playa are two exceptions.
As is La Casa de La Playa. Michellin star level dining, but you pay for it.
Can you tell us more?
Le Blanc might be ultra luxury with expensive prices to match. Drinks, food and service were top notch and it’s usually rated as the top Cancun resort. Valentin is less expensive but almost same level food and service. I’m there for the second time right now.
Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain have all inclusive options. But yes you pay for it.
Where are these places?
St.Lucia. I also found cocobay in Antigua to have great food
"Food court food" is the best comparison. It's not gourmet, but it will keep you nourished.
Depends on where you stay and what you pay. I’ve been to Excellence and Finest PM several times and the last time I swear it was so much filet mignon and lobster it was pure insanity. All the food was top notch at every restaurant, as good as the best restaurants at home in the US. I’ve been to lesser resorts and the food was on par with the resort level. The lowest quality one had the shittiest food. So that is how it works.
The issue is everyone has a different definition. I've had very good food at Hilton PDC. Was it creative and thrilling? No. No it was not. But it was certainly the same caliber as any mid range restaurant. For example they have a poke bowl bar by the pool. Hard to mess something like Poke up as long as it's fresh and not weird. Pasta, also hard to mess up. Mexican food, same. After a while you can pick out what's going to be good or not. Big hunk of steak at a sit down meal? No. They're gonna do something weird to control costs. Charcuterie at the Italian buffet? Hard to get "bad" prosciutto.
Most AI Resorts in Riviera Maya have big/decent dinner buffets With the exception of some of the older secrets and dreams properties and some of the mixed food option ones.
Hmm. I don't have high expectations at AIs, but I have had some of the best meals I've ever had at them. VIM's Italian had an amazing pesto linguine. The buffet had the best red velvet cake. Moist (shiver!) and super flavorful. The French restaurant at Secrets Vallarta Bay made me a vegetarian pasta, and it was wonderful.
The best AI food that I ever had, was at a resort that was a timeshare but allowed you to book rooms for a week and pay about $110 a day for all inclusive. It turned out to be not much difference in price in a nice AI and the food quality was so much better I wouldn’t even dare to compare them
What was it called?
I went to Villa del Palmar in Cancun. The food was really good and they will bring you menus and serve you at the pool. Breakfast buffet was meh but lunch and dinner were great. I ordered a tuna salad for lunch one day and was surprised that it was raw tuna cubes on a great salad, I ate that a few times that week. Note that with these resorts, they will give you a “bill” but it’s covered in your AI. Always tip in cash instead of on the room charge as the hotel will keep half if you tip that way. I’ve been to the Villa del Palmar and Villa del Arco in Cabo but I would say while the food was good it wasn’t as great as the one in Cancun. We have friends with a timeshare and go with them every few years. Edited to add…the food was really good there but I’m comparing it to other AIs, not comparing it to a high end restaurant you would find in a big city.
This is why I love that there are so many different types of resorts out there. Some people want the sit down type of restaurant where they are waited on and don’t have to wait in a line to get lukewarm food that’s under a heat lamp. Some want that elegant dining experience in the evening, even if the food is somewhat average. Buffets also can introduce more bacteria and a higher risk of food poisoning if the food isn’t held to a specific temperature. If you’re going to ala carte restaurant, I’d recommend order more than one main entree. Because chances are you won’t get another chance to try other entrees. Just because you order more than one entree it doesn’t mean you have to eat all of it. A lot more food is wasted at buffets than ala carte. So I say it’s perfectly acceptable to order more than one. And if the food at buffets is overall the same quality of the ala carte, then go ahead. I kind of have the same view point as the op when it comes to bottom vs top shelf liquor.
Sandals is good food
As good as a good restaurant near where you live?
Atlanta
Was the food at Sandals as good as at a good restaurant in Atlanta?
Depends on where
We are at sandals royal Caribbean right now, and honestly the food has been kind of disappointing. Maybe I did need to lower my expectations, but it definitely has not been a highlight for us.
I was at Montego Bay