Meals on RS Tours

Allowing people to choose something else would lead to everybody changing things. I can't see that working.
I occasionally skip a group dinner, and I think that's preferable.

Yeah, to be fair to everyone, you'd need to decide in advance so as to let the kitchen know not to include you in their 'headcount'. So I wonder if 'option 2' (opt out and go elsewhere) could be adapted to option 1; tell the tour guide you are opting out of the meal, so as not to waste a meal, but then make your own reservation at the same restaurant ... and sit with the group!

Sometimes "opting out" really isn't a possibility. If the group is eating at a farm in the middle of nowhere, you are going to be eating at that farm in the middle of nowhere. Honestly, the farm meals have never been bad, but there have been some restaurant ones that have. The hardest ones for me are the ones with no choice. There is a set menu and you either eat it or you don't. Not even a choice of mains.

Overall, I would have to say that the meals have been fine with a few exceptions. Probably the biggest challenge for me is that they tend to be later at night than I can usually eat or seem to drag on forever. It is a tricky balance between enjoying group dynamics and really wishing I could eat when I wanted to.

I was disappointed in the fondue meal in Switzerland. I had been looking forward to it - never having had fondue before - but cheese-covered bread and potatoes and pickled vegetables, though tasty, was not very filling after a day of hiking in the mountains.

I highly doubt the company is going to start offering multiple options for people to opt out or choose different menu items for group meals, out of fairness to the restaurant which would have the added burden of timing the kitchen to get all the meals to the table at the same time. Plus, the company has to consider affordability of their tours so you're never, ever going to dine in a Michelin starred restaurant. But you do you - opt out of group meals if you want. If the food aspect of your travels is more important to you, a My Way tour might be a better option and you'd have full control of your choices, or consider a different tour company.

And FWIW, I don't think it's fair to lump every single group meal on 1500 RS tours each year into the category of "not good" overall. I love food and have been on 5 RS tours and while not every group meal has been memorable, I can think of only a couple that were below average on my personal scale and several that were outstanding to the point of being memorable 20 years later. Yes there have been recent concerns about tour meals on a specific tour, but that can happen on any tour from any company.

I am not a tour type person and I am surprised to learn you don't get to choose what to eat at some RS tours.
I understand if you are in a remote area like the farm mentioned above, then you are stuck in eating at the designated place. But they should have some options whin what it's offered. Or at least offer the tour with only a few meals included, and give a suggestion of restaurants for the non-paid days.

I joined a small Portuguese tour group last year to travel throughout Morocco (because it was the safest way for me to travel solo). The tour included 9 nights and 3 of those had dinner included, all were at hotels or restaurants next to a hotel with buffet style meal so there were options for vegetarians, for example. Some people in the group organized to meet and eat together. A couple skipped it and went to a different restaurant when in Fes. At the Sahara we were all stuck with what was offered but it included a varied of family style meals that were brought to the table.

I was disappointed in the fondue meal in Switzerland. I had been looking forward to it - never having had fondue before - but cheese-covered bread and potatoes and pickled vegetables, though tasty, was not very filling after a day of hiking in the mountains.

We've eaten just about every cuisine across the globe, and love just about everything (Thai, Japanese, German, Italian, Filipino ...) but we'd never had Fondue and like you, we looked forward to it. I couldn't believe how 'lacking' it was! It wasn't 'bad' because 'bad' implies a bad taste; it was just 'nothing'! I mean, the cheese was ok ... I like cheese as a snack, or an appetizer, but an entire meal of melted cheese, with nothing other than bread and potatoes, just left us wanting for more! Thank God there were pickles involved! I think the bread was part of the problem too; I suspect they cut up dozens of loaves of bread ahead of time, so by the time they were served, they were dried out. A crusty, fresh piece of bread just might have made all the difference.

And then of course there was the double-dipping. I'm not a hygiene freak, but people were dipping their forks into the cheese, then putting the fork in their mouth ...

I honestly thought it was an appetizer; I was waiting for the main course to arrive and then they served dessert!

We did, however, enjoy the 'Best Of Switzerland' tour the most, and would do it again in a heartbeat. We did, in fact, book another RS visit to Switzerland 3 months later - Germany, Austria, Switzerland - and it too was great (with Switzerland again being by far the best part - Murren!).

@CL:

And FWIW, I don't think it's fair to lump every single group meal on 1500 RS tours each year into the category of "not good" overall.

I did say "This isn't a universal observation, of course - some meals are great!"

For us, the majority of meals have been 'OK'. Some 'great'. Some 'not good'. I'm suggesting ways they might be able to address the 'not good' aspect.

To expand a little, most breakfasts are 'great' - good selection, good quality, and usually possible to get an espresso-based coffee, which is important to me. Most lunches are 'pretty good' also - typical options. It's only the dinners that are an issue, and only some of the time. I just wish there were ways to address the dinners.

@Joy

I am not a tour type person and I am surprised to learn you don't get to choose what to eat at some RS tours.
I understand if you are in a remote area like the farm mentioned above, then you are stuck in eating at the designated place. But they should have some options whin what it's offered. Or at least offer the tour with only a few meals included, and give a suggestion of restaurants for the non-paid days.

There is almost always a choice - often it is 'chicken or fish', with a third alternative for vegetarians. I don't recall ever being presented with a single option (other than the Fondue). And often it is 'not bad', sometimes 'quite good'. But having a wider choice is what I'm really looking for. For example, we were in Munich on an RS tour, in one of the really famous, amazing 'beer halls'. The choice was 'chicken or fish'. The chicken was as good as chicken gets - nicely done - but ... this was Munich, and the restaurant was serving 'pigs knuckle', and all manner of tasty-sounding sausages. How can you eat chicken when Pigs knuckle and sausages are on offer!

RS typically arranges for 50% of the evening meals to be 'group outings' - roughly every other night. And on the 'free' night, you are free to choose, and of course the guide will make good recommendations. We've always thoroughly enjoyed our 'free nights' (and that's why we've opted out of some of the 'group meals').

I've been on 9 Rick tours. I am not a foodie, but I am a vegetarian who will occasionally eat fish. Meals have never been a problem for me. I remember a couple of them in France that were fantastic. My favorite tour for the food we had was the Republic of Ireland where eating establishments are required to offer a vegetarian option. I loved not having to be 'odd (wo)man out' and have something just for me on the menu. I also love the picnics which sometimes occur on Rick tours, but I do then have to ask to be sure what things are made of.

RS typically arranges for 50% of the evening meals to be 'group outings' - roughly every other night. And on the 'free' night, you are free to choose, and of course the guide will make good recommendations

Chris: thanks for explaining. As you can see, I have never joined a RS tour 😅. I also would appreciate options.

@Laurie Beth:

My favorite tour for the food we had was the Republic of Ireland where eating establishments are required to offer a vegetarian option.

This piqued my interest! Can you elaborate on this? I just did a quick Google search and can find no such requirement. Can you provide a reference? Of course, with the increase in the number of people choosing a vegetarian lifestyle, it makes sense to have something on the menu out of pure business sense, so as to attract groups where 'some' members are vegetarian, but I can find no reference to a legal requirement.

During my search, I did find this via Google's AI (not guaranteed accurate!!!!):

Portugal made history by becoming the only country in the world to legally mandate vegan and vegetarian meals in public institutions (such as schools, universities, hospitals, and prisons)

So - if you are ever arrested, let's hope it's in Portugal!

After 14 RS tours, I can only think of a handful of group meals that were disappointing. I consider myself a foodie, and have eaten at fairly high-end restaurants when not on tour.

If food is important, I suggest you avoid RoadScholar. The ratio of good to disappointing is not in your favor.

Five tours for us. Many times, for the group meal, we've been given menu options on the coach as we are headed to the destination, and asked our choices so they can notify the restaurant ahead of time. And then sometimes it's a buffet with multiple offerings. I think RS' main criteria for choosing restaurants is location and trying to stay with small mom & pop operations. Regional dishes are emphasized. If you want to skip, I'd discuss with the tour leader before arriving so they can adjust their numbers.

@stan:

Many times, for the group meal, we've been given menu options on the coach as we are headed to the destination, and asked our choices so they can notify the restaurant ahead of time. And then sometimes it's a buffet with multiple offerings.

Getting the advanced selection question is a great option, and in most cases, we've really enjoyed those meals. Ironically, and this is just 'luck of the draw', we've only had one 'buffet' style evening meal and it was terrible; the selection was fine, but it was clearly laid out well in advance and not one item was hot! Buffet style breakfasts are usually great.

@CL:

And FWIW, I don't think it's fair to lump every single group meal on
1500 RS tours each year into the category of "not good" overall.

I did say "This isn't a universal observation, of course - some meals
are great!"

Fair point, unfortunately I missed that in the rest of the description about your disappointment with dinners, apologies. I stand by my comments though. Dinner is not the only meal included on a RS tour, but it's the one most often available to do your own thing. Each person must evaluate group meals on their own preference matrix, and that includes people with special dietary requirements that can't always be met in a group situation (see other recent forum posts on that topic).

We just finished the Rick Steves 21-day Best of Europe Tour last week. In Switzerland, the tour's group dinner in Lauterbrunnen NO LONGER includes FONDUE. The RS company listened to feedback from prior tours. Now if you want fondue you'll have to get it during one of the "your-on-your own meals". (Our group dinner had a delicious braut sausage, cheesy spaetzle, a green leafy side salad, and vanilla & strawberry ice cream with whipped cream.)

At a few of our other group meals, we had a choice between a couple of main dishes, sides, and desserts (our tour guide asked us in advance for our choices so she could let the restaurant know). Yes, there was a lot of bread, cheese, sausage, potatoes, pasta and tiramisu on the BOE tour. Hey, that's what the locals love to eat! We expected to be served regional cuisine at our group meals and that's what we got to experience. Some of the meals were really delicious. Others were like home-cooking. Some of the Auto Travel stops (reststops) had cafes that served a variety of tasty hot and cold dishes (wish we had those in the US). Note that vegetarians and people who can't have carbs or cheese are going to have difficulties eating in a lot of European towns.

When we were out for our "on-our-own meals", we realized that a lot of restaurants in the historic touristy areas ALL served the SAME traditional regional dishes. A lot of restaurants are small family-run operations, and they don't have a huge menu like some American chain restaurants have, where there is something for all tastes and diets. So, when we wanted to eat non-traditional foods, we had to search online and be prepared to leave the touristy areas, or visit a local grocery store for things like hummus or pre-packaged salads. We noticed that some of the larger cities had restaurants serving other types of cuisines, and we took advantage of them so we wouldn't get burned out by the regional cuisines. In Salzberg we found a "fast casual" restaurant (similar to Qdoba and Cafe Zupas) serving protein bowls, so we had grilled chicken, quinoa, veggies and greens. In Florence we had roasted chicken and fries at the indoor food "diner" market (our guide mentioned this market). In Rome we got food from a Chinese take-out place not far from our hotel. In Lauterbrunnen we got salads from the small grocery store. In the Cinque Terre ... well, we didn't find any non-traditional cafes and ended up having seafood pasta and pizza!

Your RS tour guide will know that morning (or maybe even the day before) what all the dishes will be at each group meal. That info can help you decide if you want to go somewhere else.

We're not extroverted people, but during our group meals we enjoyed talking to other tour members about their past and future travels. We picked up some good tips about places we'd like to visit someday. We enjoyed the mix of meals as a group and meals on our own. The one downside for us on this trip ... we don't like tiramisu and it was served twice at group dinners and also on our flights to and from Europe! We laughed about it whenever it was served (and managed to eat only the cream)!

Yep life is too short. Unfortunate that you didn’t find the communal meals to your liking. Did other members of the group feel the same? Maybe RS tours aren’t for you.

Personally, I feel like if you start down the slippery slope... we'd like to be a part of the group tour and what you've organized, and join the group meals, but instead we'd like to be provided a separate menu option at the group dinner...then the next person says, we find that the rooms for this group aren't assigned top tier, so we'd like the best room in the hotel, of course we'll pay for it...Now multiply that by 28 people with the same "we are the exception" expectation. It just doesn't really work with the tour ethos.

If you really object to the meals, but like everything else about the tours, then consider opting out of the meals and go out for dinner independently. (Obviously, there are group lunches as you travel from one location to the next, so that's not always possible.)

Of the 10 Rick Steves tours I've been on I've never seen anyone order off the menu at a group meal. I'm Vegetarian and so I'm always a bit worried about what I'll be given but often I've had a dish others are envious of!

I was on an OAT-Overseas Adventure Travel tour last year and one person on the tour ordered from a menu for most of the group meals, she just didn't like the options we had and the tour guide was fine with it. She just paid at the end. However, on an OAT tour the maximum number of people is 16 and not 28 which seems to be the new normal on Rick Steves tours, making it easier for the kitchen.

Maybe ask the tour guide at the introduction meeting and if they are not OK with it then make arrangements to eat elsewhere. (In my opinion). Group meals although enjoyable to be with everyone can have a downside with the quality of meals.

The vegetarian/vegan meals at the group dinners have always been very good and I second a previous poster that the veggie meals are often the envy of the rest of the group. If you're a meat eater, you can always sample the delights of the region on your own time (where they will generally be a better experience than what you would get at a group dinner anyways) and make a fun little food tour out of it. If you're concerned about meat dishes and open to the vegetarian options for the group meals (generally every other night) then give signing up as a vegetarian or vegan your consideration. I eat meat about once a month at home, and a small portion when I do, and so I opt for veggie tour meals. I still get to enjoy all of the delicious meats and cheeses but on my own terms and my own time.

@Claudia

Yep life is too short. Unfortunate that you didn’t find the communal meals to your liking. Did other members of the group feel the same? Maybe RS tours aren’t for you.

As I said - "... Guides are exceptional, hotels usually pretty good, drivers good, itinerary good, travel-mates good, etc. ..." I simply observed that "... the meals are the weak point", and I was exploring options to address that one weakness. I'm wait-listed on several RS tours and actively looking at more RS tours.

@ Happy Campter

We just finished the Rick Steves 21-day Best of Europe Tour last week. In Switzerland, the tour's group dinner in Lauterbrunnen NO LONGER includes FONDUE. The RS company listened to feedback from prior tours. Now if you want fondue you'll have to get it during one of the "your-on-your own meals".

That's rather funny; there must have been quite a bit of negative feedback for that to occur! Ironically, I think they SHOULD serve local specialties, and even though we didn't like the Fondue, I accept that it is an iconic Swiss dish and that's why, when we were next in Switzerland on another RS tour, we just politely told the guide we'd be eating elsewhere that night! We stayed in Murren (twice), not Lauterbrunnen, and there was a fantastic restaurant across from the train station. We ate there two nights in a row it was so good!

I think when you sign up for a tour, you also give up some choice, including meals. I can’t imagine the company or guide trying to please all tastes. It also would seem difficult for a restaurant to have some tour members eating with the group and others ordering off menu. It seems likely that restaurants give them a ‘group’ rate based on a certain number of meals with limited choice. How would the restaurants give a cost ahead of time not knowing which tour members would order ‘off the menu’?
We’ve been on a few Rick Steves tours, and most meals have been good or excellent, but maybe that’s just my taste. Usually it gives me a chance to eat at places we wouldn’t normally. I’ve had a guide accommodate my dislike (not allergy) for seafood by arranging a substitute entree and I appreciated that (but I didn’t expect or require it).

We are currently on the Best of Germany, our 13th tour. Our guide is very much into food and our group meals have been excellent, not so much on many of our previous tours. There is always the option of backing out of the group dinners or activities, etc. In my opinion, it’s complicated enough for the guides with 28 individuals. If you don’t like what’s going to be served (and you are told before hand) opt out but please don’t be one of those tour members that expects to be treated differently from the rest of the group! RS tours are not for everyone!

Happy Camper, not to hijack the thread but I have signed up for next spring’s BOE21 tour. I hope you have time to post a review-I’m excited and have already started researching for activities to do in our free time.

We have taken seven RS tours over the years and I only remember one group tour meal that I didn’t care for. I agree with a previous poster about the vegan/vegetarian option. I have done that on two tours in Italy (Southern Italy and Sicily) and my meals were fantastic and better than what everyone else was eating. If you go vegan/vegetarian you can satisfy any meat cravings when dining on your own.

I think the meals have been great. I've been on 5 tours and never had a problem with meals.

There have been a few meals that were like a big spread of different foods and I like those the most, because you can try many things and go back for the things you like best. But I clearly remember some meals that I really liked:

BOI: dinner in Florence, agriturismo in Umbria
South Italy: Mozzarella farm lunch, dinner in Naples
Sicily: several meals were fantastic
Eastern France: I really liked the fondue in Chamonix, and the lunch in Beaune was great.
Probably the least memorable tour, food-wise, was the Village Italy tour. (Maybe because I expected it to be really good?)

Maybe it's because I was in Italy and France? We'll see how it holds up. Going on Best of Ireland next month!

By the way, two things:

1. In Naples one group dinner included a dish that was pasta and potatoes. That sounds terrible (and redundant) and yet it was really great, one of the more memorable (and delicious!) things I ate. Getting to try something like that is one of the things that makes me appreciate the tours.

2. My husband is vegetarian - and furthermore, doesn't like eggs - and he has been completely accomodated on every trip.

I used to like high-end restaurants, but as I have gotten older I tend to avoid "tweezer food" and prefer "rustic" or "comfort" food. I'd much rather have Boeuf Bourguignon than a michelin star meal.

One last thought: if you have a meal that doesn't excite you, there's nobody stopping you from getting some gelato after dinner! I know on some tours you might be in a remote location, but it seems like the vast majority of places you stay have many options within walking distance.

Just wanted to provide my perspective.

I have loved most of the meals included in our tours, and very rarely been disappointed. Been on Greece, GAS, BOEE now BOCE, and Sicily. Most of them you do get choices. And, I've already paid for it so I'm eating it. We are of the working parents set, and aren't going to pay twice. We absolutely LOVED the fondue in Switzerland (we eat fondue at home) and went out for the meal on our own a different night for fondue as well and it was delicious!! Perfect cheesiness with fabulous wine! There should not have been double dipping, that is an unspoken rule of eating fondue. That being said, you do you. If there is a meal here or there you don't want just let your guide know, but my guess is the restaurant won't be able to handle a lot of changes and getting things to the table at the same time.

Chris, I researched this and I was misinformed. It is NOT the law in the Republic of Ireland to offer a plant-based option. However, I found almost 20% of the population prefer to eat a plant-based diet, so it has become a smart thing for restaurants to do. I do remember on the tour, all our group meals included an option for folks like me. Thanks for questioning my statement. I didn't question it when I was told, just enjoyed my meals.

We've been on 5 tours and we've been pleased with our group dining experiences. I can't recall a meal that was real clunker-- though the fondue in Switzerland was a tad cheesy for my tastes!

I would give the dining experiences a solid 5 on a 1 to 5 scale (but the food was often not the best part for us.)

I think your question highlights a whole range of issues with group travel that center around the notion of having to compromise some autonomy for a group adventure. As we age or just change, some compromises are indeed more vexing at times. Still, you gotta take the good with the bad... or maybe you don't! There is a lot to recommend non-group travel.

For us, RS tours are still magic. But it understandable that some of tradeoffs are not for everyone or for every trip.

Happy travels!

We have been on 9 RS tours and getting ready for number 10 in August. I am probably one of the pickiest eaters on every tour but I keep it to myself because I am the problem, not the restaurant or the tour guides. I also don’t like to eat at six or seven at night but again my problem not anyone else’s. We have had some delicious group dinners and some not the best. If it is something I don’t care for I just say I am not that hungry and eat more bread or drink more wine. My husband usually likes everything and will end up eating all or part of what I don’t like so not really wasting the food. I do try everything (well not haggis) because you never know it might be good. I think the guides and restaurants do a fine job of trying to feed an eclectic group of travelers.

On our most recent RS tour (Village Italy, May 2024) we were amazed by how good the group meals were. Additionally, our guide Patricia always pointed out the best and the not so great restaurants on our orientation walks (favorite phrase — “cheap as cheese, wouldn’t recommend it”) and helped get some of us advance reservations at places likely to fill up. I think she made it a point of emphasis to ensure we ate good food. The only disappointing meal on the entire tour was at Lake Orta, and there weren’t many restaurants to choose from there. The tour no longer concludes at Lake Orta, which I think was a good itinerary change

Anytime Patricia is your tour guide you’ll be steered correctly. After 9 tours she is still hands down the VERY best RS guide. We should take Village Italy tour someday just so we could possibly get her again.

You said ordering a-la-carte would mean "you get to eat a better meal of your choosing." Keep in mind that's not a given. You might get a dish that is more your preference, but the quality may be no better, could even be worse, and you pay for the privilege. I've eaten in plenty of restaurants where the dish I chose was only so-so, and my husband's was stellar, or vice versa.

We are currently on the RS Best of Germany, our 13th tour. The group meals have all been excellent (which is truly unusual) but then our tour guide Barbara is a foodie and loves great food. RS tours are not for everyone, what to expect on these tours is well spelled out. If they do not meet your expectations then there are other types of tours available.

I guess I’ll edit this to describe our group dinners… the first night in Hamburg was a white fish in mustard sauce with roasted yellow potatoes (excellent) . Our next group dinner was in Bacharach, the hotel owner prepared breast of chicken, potatoes and vegetables which felt more like a home cooked meal. In Munich our group dinner was the large German veal and beef meatballs with potatoes and large glasses of beer (wonderful after a hot day of traveling). In Erfurt we had a choice between fish and goulash, I chose the goulash which came with a potato dumpling (excellent and we went back for dinner the next night with our buddies). In Berlin for our last dinner we had a choice of fish or pork medallions. I chose the pork medallions with a bearnaise sauce and roasted potatoes (excellent). Except for the home style night in Bacharach, all our dinner arrived at time it took for people to carry them out to our tables.

A couple of posters here have mentioned that their guides were foodies; does anyone know how much influence the guide has on restaurant selection for the group meals? Obviously, picking a restaurant to serve 28 people is not something you can do on a whim, and the budget is presumably tightly controlled. So how much flexibility does one think the guide has? I know many RS guides have been with RS tours for years, and probably have good influence with the 'back office folks'.

does anyone know how much influence the guide has on restaurant
selection for the group meals?

That's a good question to ask your next RS guide. Years ago my Italy guide told us she had a budget for tickets and meals and "extras" but I have no idea if that is still true or what level of choices she had for restaurants. Plus, I am not sure how any guide (foodie or not) would feel about a tour member lobbying to eat at a specific place, if that is what you're getting at. They already have enough on their plate managing logistics for 28 people plus themselves and the driver. And before you get your hopes up thinking you might be able to find the perfect foodie guide, the RS office will not tell you who the guide is for any specific tour date. They do not want people to "shop" for guides out of fairness to all of their guides and tour takers.

@CL:

Plus, I am not sure how any guide (foodie or not) would feel about a tour member lobbying to eat at a specific place, if that is what you're getting at.

Not in the slightest; I was just curious about how much influence they have over restaurant selection - I like to think through these planning issues for the heck of it. The way I can imagine it working is, a guide in the field might make a suggestion to 'head office' for a future visit, and then the head office would contact the restaurant to discuss availability, headcount, cost, etc. It's one thing to seat 28 people in a big restaurant, but some of the places on our tours have been pretty small; there's no way (in my mind) that the decision is made 'on the fly'. I can also imagine that the cost at some restaurants is significantly higher than at other restaurants, and the task of the planners is to meet some overall budget, not a budget per night.

And before you get your hopes up thinking you might be able to find the perfect foodie guide, the RS office will not tell you who the guide is for any specific tour date. They do not want people to "shop" for guides out of fairness to all of their guides and tour takers.

On my first tour, the guide was so amazing that I thought - 'I want to tour with him again', but then on my second tour, the guide was equally amazing and I realized that if there's one thing RS tours gets right, it is guide choice!

Our guide on my recent Basque Country tour (Agustin) indicated that he had a great deal of influence on where we ate. He was from San Sebastian and still lives there. He knows the Basque Country inside out, has been leading tours for years, and I think has many friends in the restaurant business.

I believe that RSE depends on their tour leaders to make recommendations and do research on new places in their free time. A couple of times our guide asked us for impressions on places to check out that we visited on our free time. Their primary goal is location - places near the tour hotels - so they need to have multiple options in any particular place. And yes, I expect that the guides and restauranteurs get to know each other after a time, and they learn what the RS tourists expect. So sometimes you'll see cold tap water, bread, etc., thats not normally part of local meals. Easier for them to offer free wine or water than to take 28 orders.

Our guide in Sicily, May 2025, was a "last minute fill-in" due to a family emergency for the original guide. In explaining why "Claire" was now "Jaime" he also gave us some insight on what control a tour manager has over things like the daily schedule of events, and also the restaurants for the group meals. Basically they have a budget for the whole tour to spend on group meals and extras, and they can be creative about it. Every group meal we had was fantastic on that trip, except the only exception to that was the last meal, at restaurant in Catania - made famous by Stanley Tucci in the Sicily episode of his tv show. So of course we all wanted to go to that restaraunt, and would have been disapointed if we didn't. The meal wasn't bad by any standard but it also wasn't "OHMYGODTHISISSOGOOD" said with a mouthful of pasta by Stanley himself-Good. Jaime also hosted the group on 2 different nights (when we were having dinner on our own) for "Rooftop Apertivo" at the hotel bar in Taormina and one other place. Additionally, Jaime managed to add in a couple of cafe lunches - nothing fancy but good and filling food for mid-day meal. He is a foodie and has a knack for describing food before a meal to really get your mouth watering. And he had great suggestions for restaurants to visit on our own. THose were "extra" group meals and a nice addition to the tour and beats all 28 of us running around in a 40 minute window to find a place to eat and get back to the bus on time! I got the sense that the guides probably experiment with new places from time to time and definitely share info with each other about places that worked well - and that did not.
I appreciate the comments about Fondue Night, as we are going to be in Chamonix in October during our Eastern France tour w/ RS, and I know that is described as a group meal there. We will probably opt out of that !

I may not be remembering this correctly, but I watched the annual tour introductions that Rick does every year right before the next years tours are released, and I'm pretty sure that they said they'd heard the feedback about the fondue and wouldn't be doing it anymore.

Food is definitely a weak point.(we have been on 10 tours) . We just got back from Switzerland, and out of the included meals only 2 were good, and one of the 2 was a picnic and I don’t think even counted as a group meals. We have opted out of group meals (of course letting the guide know in advance, that is just common sense) and feel it is a good choice for us. We actually are thinking about our next tour maybe opting out of all of most of them. On our Southern France tour, on the first night we went to a restaurant we had been to the night before (not knowing it would be the group dinner) and it was excellent, sat outside on the patio and it was lovely, group dinner crammed inside a dark room with yucky overcooked food. Even when the food is good the dinner drags on so long. It’s not uncommon to be at dinner 2-3 hours and that is a long time sitting often in a cramped setting.

In my experience, Swiss food overall is not to die for !

In my experience, overall, Swiss food is not to die for!

Oh, Pat... dear Pat... I heartily disagree about one particular Swiss food item... the Swiss BUTTER! Oh, my. The butter. Slather it on anything and everything you can. Eat it on a spoon. On a fork. On a spork.
Best. Butta. Evah!

As rlm97405 mentioned, I'm wondering how much the disappointing meal experience is due to Restaurants trying to cope with 28 meals, all delivered at once. Not what most do in their normal, in that part of the World.

May I add another “Oh, Pat?” It really depends on who is preparing the dish. A few years ago in Appenzel in a small family run restaurant we had Elk Goulash and a chocolate mousse with fresh whip cream both dishes were to die for.

And to the OP, on the last day of our last tour, I asked the guide who picks out the restaurants for the group dinners. She said that the guides all give their recommendations but the home office makes the final decisions.

Either the group meals are now a lot better, or I’ve just been fortunate to pick tours that have better food. My two most recent RS tours:

2023 Adriatic tour - all meals were excellent, and our guide, Miriam, gave excellent restaurant recommendations at each city during the walking tours as we arrived.

2026 Prague/Budapest tour - all meals were exceptional, plus Andrea had reservations for a mid-morning paid coffee break for us each day at fancy cafes

2027 Best of Portugal - hoping for great meals! I just signed up for this one. : )

I had great meals in Italy, the Ven-Fl-Rome tour. And I remember one that was so-so in the Best of Paris tour. Don't remember the others in the Paris tour.

Jean we absolutely loved the food in Portugal, both the group dinners and meals on our own. This was back in 2014 tho, unsure if it’s stayed great but every time I think of our trip there, I remember “Yumm”! My advice if you’re an adventurous eater in Portugal is “Try the goat!” So tender and great tasting.

@Luv2Travel, happy to hear your positive experience from the RS Portugal tour that’s stuck with you! : )

You might want to consider a myway tour. The only meal included on these tours is breakfast. We enjoyed being able to find our own places to eat!

There was s a lot more differences than just food on the my way tours. I prefer just to skip out on group dinners from time to time especially if you are somewhere where there are good options.

I just returned from a My Way Alpine Tour, and the only meals included were the excellent breakfasts at our hotel. Without exception, they were abundant and delicious!

Our wonderful guide arranged for an optional group dinner in our hotel in Füssen, which we chose to do. The menu was simplified just a bit-lots of options, and we each paid our own bill at the end. Maybe 2/3 of our group decided to do this dinner, and we enjoyed the conversations together. So that was a nice option for those interested.

Laurie