Royal Caribbean has a new signature dining experience on Utopia of the Seas that offers the highest quality Japanese food you'll find on any of its ships.
Izumi Omakase is the third offering of Japanese cuisine by the cruise line, and it's the creation of Izumi Master Chef Travis Kamiyama. He's been responsible for all the Izumi menus since the restaurant's inception.
There are two seatings per evening in a cozy room tucked between the sushi and hibachi sides of the restaurant.
As someone that dines at Izumi on nearly every sailing I go on, I was curious how different the food would be at Omakase and what exactly the experience entails.
The cost is $129.99 per guest, and it's an eight course meal that includes food and alcohol pairings. If you have the Unlimited Dining Package, there is a $59.99 surcharge.
The restaurant is in the middle of a revamped Izumi
On Utopia of the Seas you'll find Izumi in a brand new location, taking up residency in the middle of the Central Park neighborhood.
In fact, it's the largest Izumi Royal Caribbean has built to date, and includes a traditional sushi restaurant, hibachi tables, and now the Omakase option.
Most of the seating is inside the restaurant, but there are a few sushi tables outside too.
A table for six is an intimate dining experience
The Omakase table is a communal dining experience, where six people are seated together across a rather large wood table.
Similar to Chef's Table, you'll be seated with other passengers you may not know. Where you sit exactly is up to you, as there's no assigned seating.
Your host guides you through the meal
There are two people chiefly responsible for your meal, but the host is who you narrates the experience and explains everything.
Speaking both Japanese and English, each step of the meal is introduced with details of which ingredients are included and what to look for within the dish or drink.
Eight courses of food and drink
The menu has eight courses, and each comes with a drink pairing.
Just like any Royal Caribbean restaurant, they can accommodate dietary restrictions or special needs. As someone who does not eat shellfish, they were able to provide me alternatives for those dishes. Another guest at my table did not drink alcohol, and was served mocktails instead.
According to Royal Caribbean, omakase private dining experience is not recommended for children and there is no kids pricing.
I was initially worried eight courses would be too much food, but each of the offerings was petite and I think just the right amount of food.
My eight course meal started off with a soup
The ichi course begins with a miso lobster bisque soup that comes with lobster meat and caviar.
Since I don't eat shellfish, my alternate soup was a mushroom soup.
A welcome glass of wine was served chilled with the soup. This would be the only non-sake drink we'd have during the meal, although the host was adamant you could request other beverages at any point.
Sakura carpaccio was next
Our first batch of raw fish came with the ni course, and this was the first opportunity to taste the higher quality sushi.
Four pieces of sushi-grade fish were plated, and these were "meatier" cuts that tasted better than the sashimi I would usually get at Izumi.
With this course, we were also served our first cup of sake. Sake is a rice wine, and each course had a different sake pairing to try.
Nigiri sushi was the most familiar course
I think if you imagine what sushi is, then a nigiri roll is probably what you think of.
For the san course, we were served three nigiri rolls along with the sake.
An oyster course followed that was "must-try"
At the shi course, guests were given a single oyster that came with a spicy ponzu sauce.
My tablemates commented the oyster was fantastic and implored the others who were hesitant to eat an oyster to give it a try.
My alternative was a spoonful of diced sashimi served in a spoon. I think they wanted me to have the same sensation of being able to eat an oyster in that manner.
A tuna ball was a fun twist on sushi
For the go course, I can best describe this as a nigiri tuna roll rolled up into a ball.
I had never seen this before, but it was akin to a bite-sized sushi roll and certainly made it easier to enjoy the flavors together.
The miso broiled cod was so flavorful
The best thing I ate during the omakase meal might have been during the roku course when I was served the miso broiled black cod.
I never would have imagined how good this tasted, and it was the dish I really wanted to get the recipe so I could make it at home.
This was an extremely tender piece of fish that had a miso glaze on it, and it was my favorite flavor of the evening.
The wagyu beef was a surprise hit
The last course before dessert was the wagyu beef served with pepper and I really liked this more than I thought I would.
Just like the cod, I enjoyed the flavor more than I expected probably because I did not account for the nikiri glaze.
A dessert to wrap it all up
The final course was a chocolate matcha served with a sorbet.
I generally don't eat many desserts on a cruise ship, but it was a sweet way to end the meal.
The whole dining experience took two hours
Our meal began at 6pm and we walked out of the restaurant a little after 8pm, just before the 8:30pm omakase meal was scheduled to begin.
Given this is a chef-driven meal, you have to expect it won't be an "in and out" type meal. I don't think it felt unnecessary long. In fact, I thought the courses came in quick succession without major gaps at a reasonable pace.
My favorite dish was the miso broiled cod, followed by the "tuna ball". There was was nothing I didn't like, and maybe the dessert was the only course I didn't care for.
The service was impeccable
I didn't know much of what to expect from an omakase meal, but I assumed the service would be excellent, and I was correct.
Our host was attentive and she made an effort to ensure everyone had everything they needed. Unlike a normal meal where a waiter has a few tables to attend to, she was focused only on us.
Omakase is the perfect meal for Japanese food fans
As someone that loves sushi, I walked away from my first omakase meal very satisfied and I thought it was the perfect meal for someone like me that really enjoys Japanese food.
Unlike hibachi or sushi, the higher price tag makes it more of a luxury to sample now and then. I'd love to try this with a group of friends, perhaps on a group cruise.
I think given the fact we had sake pairings and the notably higher quality food, it was well-worth the cost. The caveat is you should be someone that loves sushi and is open to trying new things. The food isn't that adventurous and didn't delve into the types of sushi that I think scare a lot of people away, such as octopus or caviar.
Overall, I thought Izumi omakase was better than I expected and it's the kind of meal worth trying as a special event.
