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Odyssey Chicago Boat Cruise Review


Odyssey Chicago Boat Cruise Review



@DapperProfessional

I had the opportunity this past weekend to attend a dinner cruise aboard the Odyssey in Chicago that left from Navy Pier. My girlfriend and I took advantage of a chance to dress up and head out on the water before the weather gets too cold! Our best picture of the night was before we even got on the boat!

Summary:

Worth the cost = NO

Ambiance = 5/5

Service = 4/5

Food = 3/5

Drinks = 3/5

Dancing friendly = 1/5

DETAILS:

Worth the Cost

There is no chance I would pay $150.00 per ticket for this experience. I think there is potential if the food was incredible, but I would much prefer a fine dining restaurant. I think my opinion is biased since I live in Chicago. If you are visiting the city and you are willing to spend the money on the views, then go for it! Alternatively, you could just pay to go up the Hancock Tower and save your money for food on something else. Or I would recommend an architecture tour if you wanted to get our on the water. Feel free to reach out if you are considering a trip to Chicago and I'm happy to help!

Ambiance

The ambiance is hard to top since you’re literally cruising around Lake Michigan and getting one of the best possible views of Chicago. The boat itself is very nice and has a great layout. There is a wide-open rooftop deck that gives you the opportunity to get the best views of Chicago at any point during your meal. The server encouraged us to leave during the dinner to take in the views.

Service

Our service was exceptional during our dining experience. I did read some reviews that were really harsh on the service, so I think this is entirely dependent on who is waiting on you (just as it is at any restaurant). The one point that I want to mention is that management was clearly visible during the serving of the food. I saw several individuals helping the servers with the food as it came out. I was impressed with the level of service.

Food

We went 1/2 on our meals. My girlfriend had a great meal and my meal wasn't good at all. She ordered the crab cakes and I ordered the beef short rib. Maybe it was a bad night for the beef short rib, but I wouldn't recommend it at all. I wouldn't recommend going on this dining cruise for the food that's for sure.

Drinks

Overall I thought the cocktails were just okay. We purchased a drink package prior to the cruise which provided 4 drinks for $40.00 total ($10.00 per drink). On the menu, the price of the premium cocktails is around $15.00 per drink. So the drink ticket is worth it if you are going to be drinking cocktails and you would like to have two.

Dancing Friendly

Well, there is definitely potential here for a nice evening of dancing, but the DJ did a terrible job bringing people to the dance floor. There were a handful of couples that were dancing here and there, but overall it wasn't a dancing friendly environment.




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