dinning the first night

[BruceMuzz]

I always skip the dinning - too much spelling involved - and go straight into the dining.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Are shorts allowed in the dining room on the first night in case your luggage hasn't reached the cabin?

 

Most likely your luggage will be there by 6-ish or even earlier. I find the dining room to cold for shorts.

 

my husband asked what we are going to do for dinner the first night...(he thinks I have all the answers) hahah

what do others do? buffet, room service? or somthing fancy?

 

Here's what happens (will tell you about traditional as that is my experience, and hopefully will continue to be my experience):

 

At the appointed time (6 or whatever), you will probably arrive to find a long line for the dining room as each party is personally escorted to their table. We usually wait for five minutes after that (hubby hates waiting in lines) and usually the line is very short. Have your cabin card handy as it'll be checked for your table number.

 

When you are seated, the waiter will take your napkin and place it on your lap and hand you the menu. You can also start greeting your tablemates as they arrive. Sometimes you'll find that everyone will sit in the same seats each night, some will try to mix it up so they can sit closer to each person at least once during the cruise.

 

The waiter will ask you for your order...you can go down each course (except for dessert as that order is taken after dinner). You can skip a course if you want...no one will force you to even have the entree if you don't feel like eating one. There are "always available" items such as green salad, herbed chicken, noodles alfredo. Often the waiter will make recommendations. You can ask for variations (I don't like salad dressing so I always ask for lemon slices...any extras I don't use I'll put one in my water glass and pass the plate down to others at the table).

 

If you want wine or another drink, you can tell your waiter (you'll need to present your cabin card).

 

If you know you'll eating someplace else the next night (Sabinitinis, the Horizon Court, etc.), it's polite to let your tablemates and waitstaff know so they won't wait for you. If you don't make it (happened to us once on our 15-day cruise) due to unforeseen circumstances, don't worry.

 

The dress code will be listed on the Daily Patters. It applies to the traditional and anytime dining rooms. On some cruises, there will be a preview inserted in your first day's Patters that will list what the dress code will be for each night for your entire cruise.