Solstice MDR quality and experience

[macruisefan]

Hi all,

 

Haven't been on Celebrity in a couple of years (last time was on Century out of Miami). Have done RCI several times since then and I have watched the steady decline of the quality in the MDR to the point that I pretty much only eat in the specialty restaurants.

 

Can someone give me a comparison of the MDR quality on Celebrity and RCI these days?

 

Thanks!

[nancyg96]

Hi---from little old me, I think the food in the MDR on Celebrity is so much better than on RCI. Granted I've only beein on one RCI, but we wound up eating in speciality restaurants most nights. I've been on Solstice and Eclipse, and the only time we went to a specialty restaurant is one night at Qsine with our roll call group. ( I would not go back to Qsine, but that's another thread). I love the atmosphere in the MDR, and the food was always good.

[4774Papa]

Hi---from little old me, I think the food in the MDR on Celebrity is so much better than on RCI. Granted I've only beein on one RCI, but we wound up eating in speciality restaurants most nights. I've been on Solstice and Eclipse, and the only time we went to a specialty restaurant is one night at Qsine with our roll call group. ( I would not go back to Qsine, but that's another thread). I love the atmosphere in the MDR, and the food was always good.

The food at the MDR on Infinity was always great.

[badmre]

We think that the food is marginally better, but the service and attention is substantially better. Celebrity waiters seem to care about the food and quality to a much greater degree. They present and serve with style and care. RCI waiters get your order and bring it. They put it down and take it away.

 

Just my impressions

[bighairtexan]

I agree 100% w/ everything nancyg96 said. About both the MDR atmosphere, food and also about Qsine.

[Nukesailor]

Based on our experience with Solstice and Equinox in 2010 and Jewel of the Seas in 2011, we think Celebrity has come down a bit and RCI has improved. The food was actually about the same and is more likely to vary with the particular chef on the ship. We noticed that in both the Solstice and Equinox the MDR tables are extemely crowded. The waitstaff had difficulties getting to some people. Distances between tables for 2 were 4 inches (measured). On Solstice, not once did any waiter offer fresh pepper; in fact, there wasn't a peppermill in the dining room. Tables on the Jewel were spaced much farther apart.

 

Art

[nancyg96]

I agree 100% w/ everything nancyg96 said. About both the MDR atmosphere, food and also about Qsine.

Hi--thanks for agreeing with me :p I should also mention that I don't have an interest in Aqua class because I do love the atmosphere of the MDR SO much! If I were in Blu, I would feel like I was missing out on one of the great experiences of being on such a beautiful ship.

[mitttocs]

Just off Celebrity Solstice 8 days ago. We had dinner in the dining room 6 nights out of 7, and on a scale of 1-10, I would rate the variety of the menu about a 7, the quality of the food about an 8, and the service we received from the waitstaff in the dining room about a 9. The one night we ate at Tuscan Grille, while everything was good, it was honestly no better than what we were getting in the dining room, in my opinion.

 

As to how crowded the dining room was, it was only the two of us at our table for four every night. While the tables themselves are a bit close together which could present a problem if the room was very crowded, we chose the 8:30 seating which we understand to be quite a bit less crowded than the earlier seating.

 

My experience in the MDR on this Solstice cruise was that the food was consistently much better than the Summit cruise I took three years ago.

[Pushkin]

We usually sale Celebrity Solstice class, but were recently on RCL Freedom of the Seas. While I must prefer Celebrity in general, I was pleasantly surprised by the food and especially the service on the FOS. Waiters/service on the FOS was possibly the best we have ever had. Even though we were on a 7-day, waiters really seemed to know you and expressed interest in your day. The food was good/average, certainly as good as most restaurants in out neck of the woods.