DH and I went to Palo for the first time on the Dream this week. We were really looking forward to the exclusive dining experience. We read so many wonderful things about the atmosphere, the food, and the service. We were greatly disappointed. The atmosphere was nice. Our dining time was at 8:00pm, so it was dark outside and made a nice dimly-lit ambiance. However, the food and service were lacking. Our server was not very attentive, and I spent most of my meal without a drink. He always seemed rushed and we didn't see him very much. We only saw him at one other table, so I don't think he was overbooked. The food, we found, was equal to the food we had in the MDR. We each ordered the beef tenderloin. It was good, but again, we didn't find it any more tasty or tender than the beef we had in the MDR. It was nice to go there once, but we will never do it again. Has anyone else had this same experience, or feel that Palo is overrated? I'm just curious if anyone else feels the same.
We've dined at Palo on both classic ships and the Dream. The Dream was probably our least favorite experience. Our theory is that since it is the only premium dining experience on the classic ships, it gets a lot more attention/resources. On the other hand, on the Dream class ships, Remy is the premium experience. The Palo on the Disney Dream does not nearly have the same amount of character for dining as the classic ships. Of course, this is just a theory as we've only dined at Palo on the Dream class ships once. I also think that your experience is also colored by the service. When we've had great service, we tend to enjoy the dinner more.