We’ve recently returned home from a fun-filled week hanging out with in Mexico with our friends, the Beards. I originally met them 7 years ago at The Grand Palladium when they were a family of four. They are from England, I’m American. In those 7 years their kids have gotten older, their family is now a party of 5, and I’ve gotten married. We had a fun reunion! I introduced them to hubby, they introduced me to their newest family member Alfie Bear, and it was wonderful to see how their two older kids, Jasmine and Harvey, have grown up and matured.
We got to catch up on some of the stories that we’ve each accumulated in the interim years. Hubby and Beard Dad, Matt, hit it off as I had predicted. They are like 2 peas in a pod with different accents. Mum Beard, Emma, told me the story of how she found out she was expecting Alfie Bear. Jasmine talked a lot about boys, like any teenage girl does. And Harvey shot me in an incredible game of pool. He’s pretty good, too!
We got to eat, drink, and be merry together. We went snorkeling and hung at the pool together. We fed fish and went to see baby sea turtles hatching on the beach.
We had cocktails in the lobby and watched some of the dance shows. We got to discuss the differences between our countries and make fun of each other’s accents.
I would be remiss if I failed to mention we also got to spend a little time with Emma’s parents, brother, and his girlfriend who were on the trip with them. Although, by the end of our time there, we were lucky enough to join in celebrating with them after Emma’s brother John proposed to girlfriend Robyn. We wish them all the best!
But as all good things come to an end, our 1-week vacay ended a week before their 2-week holiday and it was time to again bid adieu.
We said our goodbyes and promised to meet again here, there, or on another vacay. We’ve returned home and re-entered the grind of daily life.
Here’s my dilemma. We’re putting together a care package to send across the pond. We have some personal requests for specific items like a Hooters T-Shirt 
Grand Palladium, Riviera Maya Dining
Ha! We got off the plane in Cancun, Mexico and what were we greeted by at the airport? Margaritaville! If you’ve read any of my earlier posts Margaritaville Island or Smoky Mountain Getaway you’ll know that hubby and I are HUGE fans. I’m still wanting to get my hands on that frozen concoction maker! Maybe Santa will bring me one for Christmas.
Anyhoo, we actually bypassed Margaritaville this time. I would have had to order a frozen concoction or a beer and I didn’t think that was a wise idea since I hadn’t eaten anything yet that day and we still had an hour commute to the resort. I didn’t want to be that passenger to stop our bus because I had to use the restroom.
We arrived at the resort in time for late lunch. We headed over to one of the buffet restaurants where I had the most delish cream of asparagus soup and some chicken wings. During the next couple of days we determined that the buffet restaurants seemed to repeat the same items for each meal. They didn’t really knock our socks off with a ton of seafood and we found what worked best for breakfast and lunch. However, some of the displays were really neat to look at.
We decided that the a la carte restaurants had the best dinners at the resort. Two of them–Sumtuori, the teppanyaki grill restaurant and the Fish & Rice Resturant were the only ones that required reservations. The rest were first come-first serve.
Here’s my quick rundown in case you are headed to the Grand Palladium in Riviera Maya:
Sumtuori (Teppanyaki grill)–the food was pretty good, but I think our chef was pretty new. He didn’t say a word throughout the show (in Spanish or English and our table was made up of both), and a number of our orders were mixed up. So, we didn’t really get the “show” but his cooking skills were good!
Chang Thai (Thai)–this restaurant was incredible and delicious! I started with the chicken soup and then had chicken for my entrée as well. The interior of the restaurant was very unique in décor as well.
Ribs & More (Ribs/Steaks)–my food was awesome! I had a rib-eye (cooked perfectly to order) and baked potato. I do think the food seemed even better because of the company we were with, the Beards.
Portofino (Mediterranean/Italian)–this was my favorite dinner at the a la carte restaurants. I had salad and lasagna that was incredible!
La Adelita (Mexican)–I had the steak fajitas, which were very good. I loved the plates and décor of the restaurant and the menus were especially gorgeous!
Lola (Spanish tapas)–last but not least, the Spanish restaurant was good, but I had expected more of the Brazilian steakhouse. We had a lot of tapas (the salad bar was mostly tapas and our entrees were tapas) that were very yummo. Beyond that, the décor was beautiful and there was live entertainment which made the dinner very romantic.
I do have to mention some additional food and beverage options that added to the gastro experience at the Palladium. The beverage options were not only endless, but they were always presented beautifully, even when we ordered drinks to go, which were served in plastic cups.
And, one late afternoon, we had the “Chocolate Bar”. One of the indoor bars actually set up a display of nothing but chocolate. There were chocolate drinks, a chocolate fountain, white chocolate, milk chocolate, chocolate cupcakes and many other goodies. Some of the goodies were also decorated with artisan chocolates which were my favorites. I really just wanted to take all the chocolate decorations off the desserts for myself.
So, if you are headed to the Grand Palladium, I would definitely recommend you eat at the a la carte restaurants, you will not have a bad meal at any of them. Be sure to try the unique selections and seek out the chocolate bar. You won’t regret it!
