Reflection 14 Night in Dec Aqua Class - Should we try any Specialty Restaurants

Hi,

We have only sailed on Celebrity once before in Dec 2016 on Eclipse and we ate in main dining rooms and thought the food was good.

This time we are in Aqua class so will dine in Blu. They have some promotions in the cruise planner. Is there any of the specialty restaurants you recommend that we should not miss?

Thanks

Since you are on a 14 day cruise, I would suggest trying the specialty restaurants at least twice. We have tried all them all. Murano and Tuscan were our favorites. Qsine’s menu is meant for sharing. Going with a group, I think is a must and a fun experience.

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For a 14 night cruise, I would definitely go to different restaurants to break things up.

Our favorites in order for dinner are:

1) Lawn Club Grill

2) Murano

3) Tuscan Grille

Lunch or dinner

* Our friends love the porch and the seafood tower

We don't eat in the MDR anymore, just Luminae, Blu and specialty restaurants. It works for us.:)

I would choose 1. Lawn Grill, 2. Murano

Since you are on a 14 day cruise, I would suggest trying the specialty restaurants at least twice. We have tried all them all. Murano and Tuscan were our favorites. Qsine’s menu is meant for sharing. Going with a group, I think is a must and a fun experience.

 

 

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On Reflection Qsine is petite chef we did not fancy the menu, for me Murano's 1st, Lawn club 2nd we did go to Tuscan on our recent cruise but this was the 2nd time I have been disappointed so personally would not try again. We ended up with four meals in Murano.

OTH, so many people swear by Blu (I'm not one of them) you might want to check upon boarding to see if there is a special deal in Murano on the first night. If there is, grab it. Then eat in Blu for a few nights, after which you should be able to determine if a return to a specialty restaurant is warranted. Personally, I would sign up for more nights in specialty restaurants but why spend money needlessly, if Blu suits?

We like Murano #1! As Blu patrons we were offered 50% off the first night last year on Reflection, so of course it was a no brainer. We really enjoyed Blu and were happy there. Lawn Club Grille is also good. Tuscan to us is just meh.

Murano half price offers are available to all whether AQ or otherwise, but ONLY when offered. Since they already offer 30% off via your cruise planner these onboard discounted rates are becoming less frequent.

Lawn Club Grille for al fresco dining and Murano for fine dining.

Murano half price offers are available to all whether AQ or otherwise, but ONLY when offered. Since they already offer 30% off via your cruise planner these onboard discounted rates are becoming less frequent.

Jody, you're right about discount offers to Murano being offered to everyone the first night, the discount offered is usually 20-30% the first night. We were offered that (30%) before they realized we were Aqua class on our cruise on Reflection last December. When they saw our card while making the reservation on embarkation day we were told because we were Aqua class the discount would be 50% (which we gladly accepted!). OTOH the year before during the same time frame on Eclipse there were no discounts at all offered on board for specialty dining (it wasn't a holiday cruise). I guess we'll see what happens this December together since we're on the same cruise. Won't be long.:D

Jody, you're right about discount offers to Murano being offered to everyone the first night, the discount offered is usually 20-30% the first night. We were offered that (30%) before they realized we were Aqua class on our cruise on Reflection last December. When they saw our card while making the reservation on embarkation day we were told because we were Aqua class the discount would be 50% (which we gladly accepted!). OTOH the year before during the same time frame on Eclipse there were no discounts at all offered on board for specialty dining (it wasn't a holiday cruise). I guess we'll see what happens this December together since we're on the same cruise. Won't be long.:D

I am considering a 3 meal package. Is it better to purchase ahead of time?

I am considering a 3 meal package. Is it better to purchase ahead of time?

I would definitely book online pre cruise before they remove the option. Both the 3 and 4 night pkgs are the most popular and are known to sell out quickly.

I am considering a 3 meal package. Is it better to purchase ahead of time?

If you are particular about the dates, times or venues book ahead. Although there are times on board where you can do as well or even better, there have been cruises (only a few) where there were no discounts available or where dining times available in the specialty that interested us were either very early or very late.

Booking a dining package ahead will not allow you to reserve time, date or venue - that has to be done when you get aboard.

During the online booking process you are required to state 1st or 2nd night for the first meal although this is meaningless as when aboard you are require to re confirm your 1st request and complete your other requests which will be subject to availability.

The only way to reserve day, time and venue is by purchasing the single option not a package.

Our experiences are with Blu and the MDR. We have enjoyed them both and only done specialty dining when we were offered deals onboard while we had OBC to use up. The specialty restaurants are nice but for us they are not worth the full cover charge. With OBC and a discount they can be fun. One note, if you are on a cruise that only stops in EU ports you are better off booking before you board because it seems that Celebrity is required to collect the EU VAT if your ship does not stop in a non-EU port. Depending on your departure port that tax can be as much as 22%.

If you purchase the three dinner package can you repeat restaurants if you choose? IIRC years ago you could dine in each restaurant only once per package.

Reflection now offers Le Petit Chef in Q’sine. It was good fun!

The Lawn Grill is really a relaxing place to enjoy an outside meal. Freshly cooked kebabs were our favourites.

Tuscan Grill is nice when you book as you are leaving a port and can enjoy the fantastic views.

Murano’s continues to be our favourite....make sure you choose at least one item to be prepared tableside.

The Porch offers another relaxing dining venue. We dined there at lunch and really enjoyed the seafood tower with a glass of Sangria.

On choosing where to dine remember at present only Reflection and Silhouette have a Lawn Grill and Porch, you can experience Tuscan and Le Petit Chef fleetwide. Murano’s is only on S class....Depending on any future cruise plans you may decide to enjoy ones you may not have the opportunity to enjoy next cruise....

If I was only doing three and had not experienced any before I would go for variety choosing Murano’s, Lawn Grill and Le Petit Chef....

Hope you have a really fantastic cruise!

We did a 16-night in Blu on Solstice earlier this year. They offered special 3-course luncheons in both Murano and Tuscan Grill for a reasonable cost. Although it was a limited menu, we had a couple of apps and main course dishes in each. I think the regular menu is overpriced and would not go if we are dining in Blu unless we had a lot of extra OBC to spend.

If you purchase the three dinner package can you repeat restaurants if you choose? IIRC years ago you could dine in each restaurant only once per package.

You can now eat in 1, 2, or 3 restaurants of your choice. We'd choose Murano, Murano, Murano...but that's just us.

Hi,

 

We have only sailed on Celebrity once before in Dec 2016 on Eclipse and we ate in main dining rooms and thought the food was good.

 

This time we are in Aqua class so will dine in Blu. They have some promotions in the cruise planner. Is there any of the specialty restaurants you recommend that we should not miss?

 

Thanks

Murano, as other folks have said, can be really enjoyable. I would add that for me Murano's appetizers, soups and salads are generally more appealing than their entrees and I never have a problem ordering a mix of those with one upsized to be an entree-- I am especially fond of doing that with their mushroom/truffle risotto.

Also, you're likely to find Tuscan Grilll and Murano each open 1 day for lunch. Last week Murano was $25 for lunch, with a somewhat smaller menu. I managed to "make do" :-) with heirloom tomato buffalo mozzarella salad, risotto ( NOT the evening variety) and lobster tail.

Lawn Club Grille for al fresco dining and Murano for fine dining.

We'll be doing a B2B on the Silhouette and as we've never eaten in the Lawn Club, I booked us there for the first night of the first cruise. I was tempted to do the same for the first night of the second cruise, but I am concerned DW might not care for it. When the ship is underway, is the LC breezy? She has indicated an interest in Le Petit Chef which is a real surprise since to me it sounds so cartoonish and limiting. Or should I play it safe and stick with Murano on the second trip?

We'll be doing a B2B on the Silhouette and as we've never eaten in the Lawn Club, I booked us there for the first night of the first cruise. I was tempted to do the same for the first night of the second cruise, but I am concerned DW might not care for it. When the ship is underway, is the LC breezy? She has indicated an interest in Le Petit Chef which is a real surprise since to me it sounds so cartoonish and limiting. Or should I play it safe and stick with Murano on the second trip?

IMHO you can never go wrong with Murano. If that's what you decide, we'll probably see you there since we're on the same cruise!

Thanks for all the great tips. Since we are on board for 14 nights I do want to try a few specialty restaurants. Now just undecided if I should get a package ahead of time.

Thanks for all the great tips. Since we are on board for 14 nights I do want to try a few specialty restaurants. Now just undecided if I should get a package ahead of time.

If you enjoy a ‘haggle’ and you are happy to dine at a range of times and you do not care about specific days then you may save a few $ by waiting until you are on board. There is a pattern to nights being busy/quiet in the speciality restaurants. The times and days the best offers are for can be quite restrictive....

Personally, before we had our speciality dining included with our room we would be happy with the pre cruise package discount.

We prefer to board with a plan in mind. For example, Murano’s....quite a long meal so we wouldn’t want it on a port day where we were tired after an excursion nor would we want it too late. Tuscan is so nice to enjoy as you sail from a port, Lawn Club we would want to enjoy at sea so no good if you are overnighting in a port....We would board, see what we had been allocated first/second night then go and see the M’D and book exactly what we wanted at the times we wanted. All sorted and arranged....

We have been on cruises where there seemed to be discounts freely available at whatever time and day you want and on others where some restaurants (Murano’s in particular) were fully booked after the third day...

If you are a ‘go with the flow’ type of person who doesn’t like to plan ahead too much then bargaining on board is for you....If you are more of a ‘planner’ then the package will suit you better.

We loved our dining on Reflection, service and food were both excellent, have a great cruise!