Giovanni's Table on Liberty of the Seas

Royal Caribbean Cruise Line has wonderful specialty dining options on all of their ships.  They all have some variety of an Italian restaurant and I've tried Jamie's Italian on the Symphony of the Seas and now Giovanni's Table on Liberty of the Seas. The restaurant is located by the Windjammer Buffet, tucked off to one side as you enter the area.  Once inside, the atmosphere is dark and cozy, very different from the buffet hectic world outside the doors.  There is an open kitchen along the one wall and windows along the other.  The restaurant is a set upcharge, and then you can order whatever you want from the food menu that is to your liking throughout the meal. 

Giovanni's is actually undergoing some changes on a lot of RCCL ships, but Liberty hadn't had those changes yet so it was still the "old" one, which was fine by us. We had an amazing meal here, and wouldn't hesitate to come back again on a future cruise.  You might see Giovanni's Kitchen on your cruise, which is the updated concept.   Our server was outstanding, and really gave us an amazing meal experience (it was our honeymoon, so we were relaxing and enjoying at a slow pace the whole trip!)  I apologize for some dark photos, the atmosphere was certainly on the romantic side so the lighting was not the best for pictures. We had the Deluxe Beverage Package, so we enjoyed glasses of wine throughout our meal as well.

Despite the meal starting with bread which is plenty to be an appetizer on it's own, I had to get the meat and cheese plank because I feel like it is a staple based on everything I'd heard about this restaurant option, and then we couldn't decide on what else we wanted so we got two more appetizers. This was already our downfall!  The appetizers were all delicious and set us up for high hopes for the rest of the meal ahead.  

Italian Cheese and Cured Meat Plank w/ pickled vegetables

tonno crudo - ahi tuna, pepperoncini, citrus olive oil, garlic chips

mozzarella di bufala - heirloom tomatoes and fresh basil

I love that you can get half portions on the pasta dishes which allowed us to try even more things, but they are still huge! We got three half portions to share between the two of us. We ultimately chose the Tagliatelle alla Carbonara: crispy pancetta, poached egg, carbonara sauce, the Bucatini alla Bolognese: beef ragu, red wine, basil, san marzano tomatoes, parmesan and the Pasta of the Day. I think the bucatini was our favorite, just a great classic pasta dish. Plus, bucatini is my favorite pasta shape!

 

This definitely would have been enough food but we rallied and got entrees as well. Again we couldn't agree so we both got one. While this is a "pasta place" that filet was so so good! Borderline better than the one at Chef's Table. We added shrimp to the filet to make a surf and turf at the suggestion of a table nearby.  The ossobuco was also delightful and something that isn't on every menu so it was a great change of pace.

filetto di manzo rustico - filet mignon, roasted garlic potato puree, brocolini, barolo sauce

ossobuco alla piemontese - braised veal ossocbuco, soft polenta, green beans

I don't know how we did it, but we also got dessert and specialty drinks and it was again just delightful. The cannoli were the perfect little small bites of sweet to round out the meal.  You pretty much had to roll us out of here, but the restaurant didn't rush us at all and let us take our time letting the food settle before making our way out.  This restaurant is such a gem and we loved our meal here!

Specialty coffee and hot chocolate

What is your favorite Italian restaurant on Royal Caribbean Cruise Line? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! 

Maci Schau

Maci is an avid foodie and loves trying out new restaurants and seasonal food offerings in the parks.  You can email Maci at maci@kingdomkonsultant.com.