Lido lovers...

[PathfinderEss]

To me the Lido serves a purpose, for breakfast and lunch its great but dinner not so much. I have tried it but I'd rather eat in the MDR.

[Windsailer]

With all the folks preferring the MDR there's lots more room in the Lido for us diehards. But I do like the Pinnacle Grill and Canaletto on occasion. On reflection, I do like what HawaiiDan said about fawning servers. Some might like it but I find it unprofessional and cloying.

[efoote01]

I would love to skip the 2hr ordeal as we are fast eaters & have an 8yr old who would rather be doing something else than waiting for dinner.

 

For those of you who eat dinner regularly in the Lido do they have all the dishes that they serve in the MDR in the Lido? Or is it only a select few? Same question for the soups & desserts?

 

TY

[Assateague Island Princes]

The Lido has almost all of the dishes the MDR has - but not all. If there is something specific on the MDR menu that is not on the Lido - you can order it from room service - a great benefit for a rambunctious child or in our case, tired folks who just want some down time with a great meal!

[babyher]

Well looks like we are in the minority here, Hawaiidan! I'm a Lido girl - go ahead everyone, bash at will. Ever since our first Alaska cruise on the Oosterdam in 2006 where we ate in the MDR only two nites out of 7, its been Lido for us. Now realize we've only ever cruised to Alaska - two 7 day trips on the Oosterdam, and two 14 day trips on the Amsterdam - but even so, each trip since the first we'd eat in the MDR the first night, after that, it was Lido (or room service or Canaletto) for us. I like being able to see the food being prepared, I enjoy picking and choosing what I get on that plate, and no, doesn't bother me in the least to be "served." Have never, ever had a problem finding a clean table to eat, and as Hawaiidan says, the folks are so much more relaxed and fun to enjoy a meal with. On such a port intensive cruise as Alaska, after our very active and adventerous excursions in every single port, the last thing I want to do is get dressed for dinner - even smart casual is too much work, thanx very much. I prefer to eat a liesurely meal at the Lido (without taking 2 to 2 1/2 hours of my valuable time in the MDR) so I can be out on deck scanning the sea for whales, enjoying the crisp clean air, amazing scenery, and majestic mountains that make up the Great Land. So go ahead, flame away - low rent here, I suppose;).

 

 

Add me to the Lido list too :)

 

Our last cruise we ate every meal on Lido except one dinner at the specialty restaurant . Before we left we had decided to skip the formal nights and leave those clothes at home, and just do the casual nights , but as it turned out we enjoyed it so much we ate dinner every night there with the exception of one night in the specialty restaurant .

 

We had our DD 17 at the time and her friend with us , and they were just not up to a 2 hour dinner. Most nights the would just have a salad or soup . they just aren't big eaters You know teenage girls , God forbid they balloon to a size 2 *LOL* They met up with a nice group of kids and they would either hang out with them or eat with us and then meet up with them.

 

The food was very good , and we met a lot of nice folks there too. And it was just very nice and relaxing.

[iceleven]

We cruise to relax on the ship and explore the ports. We enjoy good food, in fact my husband likens himself a bit of a "foodie" but after cruising with HAL and experiencing up to 2-1/2 hour dining we did decide to try the Lido for dinner and were surprised at the selection and service.

 

No, it's not the same as having someone wait on me but I really don't care if I have to carry my own tray. I am not above that. At least I can pick exactly what I want (knowing exactly what it looks like) and if I am not happy with it, I can go back and select something else without having to bother a waiter and holding up service for others at my table in in the MDR.

 

I might add that on sea days, we prefer to have breakfast and lunch in the MDR.

 

There are always plenty of seating by the windows and depending on the time of the year, often a beautiful sunset can be shared. Sure, we do enjoy the MDR and the company of our table mates from time to time but vacations deserve flexibility and HAL's Lido is a very good option, it not preference.

 

Powdered noses and stuffy shirts don't add to our vacation experience. ;)

[Taxguy77]

On the Noordam cruise we just finished, service in the MDR was so bad that we stopped going after the second night. I just can't handle two hour dinners, and an hour to get a drink. I was not happy about going to the Lido until I saw and tasted the food. It was delicious, we always had a great window table to ourselves, and it was relaxed. And, the bar service was much better!

 

Agree 100%

Bar service was the same man that we had in the afternoon on the pool deck. If we came in separately. he would guide us to our spouse, and always had our favorite beer on his tray. If people he had seen us with in the afternoon were already seated, he would tell us, so we could choose to sit with them or alone. AND we always had a window table!

Just a whole lot better than the indifference in the MDR!

 

I don't think cruiselines get the fact that repeat cruisers like SERVICE, not rock climbing.

[Taxguy77]

We just discovered this interesting bit of info on our past HAL cruise - it seemed everything on the MDR menu was also being served in the Lido (we were late coming back from a landtour). We also didnt know they put out table clothes and napkins during the evening hours there obviously we dont frequent the Lido area at night....It is a great alternative but we still prefer the MDR when possible.

 

But HAL, in it's role as LORD, determined we would not have fixed seating! Downstairs is :eek:

[Taxguy77]

I've eaten in the Lido after returning from some 13-hour shore excursions after 7:00, or when I have to get up for a shore excursion at 4:30 tomorrow. It was fine for those times.

But when it comes to dinner on a cruise ship, I prefer to "dine" rather than "eat". I want to be waited on, served properly, and enjoy my table companions. I don't want to work for it.

 

I certainly agree.

We will probably not cruise again, and a big factor in that decision is the poor dining on board HAL, Azmara, NCL.

[Taxguy77]

Bingo

If I wanted to carry my own plate and not bother dressing for dinner, I might just as well stay home.

 

That said - There was one evening on our European cruise a few years back where we were all just too worn out from a long day ashore to get dressed and go down for dinner...

...and Room Service was most capable in delivering several plates of entrees & desserts that we all shared and passed around the suite.

 

Not having a suite and hating to eat in bed, the Lido on HAL is very good. I would prefer fixed dining, but HAL said no.

[CondoDiva]

My vote is LIDO!! We always ate in the MDR but the long drawn out dinners are sometimes too much.......

 

the best part of the lido, we always get a table by the window:)

[Taxguy77]

I agree with you (and with Ruth). Part of a vacation for me is not being the server. I love the convenience of the Lido for breakfast and a salad-based lunch. But for dining I prefer the MDR. We haven't always had great waiters, but never so bad that they drove us to the Lido.

 

However, it is nice to know it's there if you return late and tired from a shore excursion. We have used a Lido once or twice in those circumstances.

 

I agree with you. On =X= we had a waiter and assit. that made me wish I owned some restaurants, I would have hired them and got their papers for them! But HAL said 2nd floor, really a bagainen besement mentality.:(

[patrick65]

A few years back we were assigned non fixed dining which was not our choice so on the first evening of the cruise we chose to eat the Lido food. We did not eat in the Lido but ate at the tables outside and behind the Lido. That evening they had prime rim and baked potato and a nice salad plus what else we wanted. We really enjoyed out meal it but as a rule, we like our evening meal fixed seating MDR. We enjoy visiting with new friends.

[foodgirl]

We eat dinner in the lido most nights. We will do Pinnacle and Tamarind one night each and lido the rest of the time. DH would not sit through a long dinner and as I am in fine restaurants all the time for my profession having a long dinner is not big deal to me. I am glad there are choices for all of us. That's why we like cruising we can make it what we want!!

[Sea42]

On the few cruises we've been on we've done a mix of all the options. Just like we wouldn't get dressed up every night to go out to dinner at home, we don't want to do that on vacation either. For us, sea days are much more conducive to enjoying dressing up and socializing. On port days we usually enjoy very active days and just want a casual dinner either in our cabin or in the lido.

 

I do have to say that on our one and only HAL cruise (Nieuw Amsterdam) we found that unlike breakfast and lunch the Lido was much quieter than the MDR at dinner time. We never had to "look" for a table and enjoyed much more timely beverage service than in the MDR. And unlike the MDR our hot food was always hot and our cold food was always cold. Unfortunately, that was not always the case in the MDR.

[azrose]

There's a dining room on the ship ? :D big fan of lido too....I am not much of a foodie type person and the selection is just fine for me...even lobster! Plus, taking the 2 hours whew....although one of my cruises, we had a great bunch of tablemates and ate in the dining room every night....so, it does vary...but, i generally prefer the lido:p

[Richie2pies]

I eat most meals in the Lido. I have never been to the MDR, even when I was upsold to the penthouse. I don't need a 2 hour dinner and not ever having to be dressed up is my idea of a nice vacation. I guess that's why they make vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry; everyone likes something different.

[Copper10-8]

The Lido has almost all of the dishes the MDR has - but not all. If there is something specific on the MDR menu that is not on the Lido - you can order it from room service - a great benefit for a rambunctious child or in our case, tired folks who just want some down time with a great meal!

 

You're right! The Lido usually has four out of the six entrees served in the MDR that evening. Count me in as a Lido fan; I have dinner there every night except for a formal night or two, a PG and/or a Canaletto:cool:

[JamesEM]

Recently DW and I sailed on the Noordam for a 11 day cruise, after the first night in the MDR we never went back. We really enjoyed the Lido, food was hoter, was not as noisy, the staff was much nicer, and I could go back for 2nds.

[tip]

Service is one thing but fawning is another. I am comfortable enough with myself that I don't need to be served. I have had enough of that in my professional life , enought to last a lifetime. I am not ashamed to carry my plate either. ;)

 

Points well taken!

[Assateague Island Princes]

Wow - nice surprise to wake up this morning and see all these Lido supporters joining Hawaiidan and I!:D So maybe I'm not "low rent" after all???:) See you folks in the Lido - save me a window seat, would ya?

[RuthC]

I hope that all of you who eat in the Lido more than the dining room are choosing open seating under the As You Wish plan.

Since you're not going to the dining room anyway, it would be a shame if you were to choose fixed seating and deprive others of a scarce table there.

[sail7seas]

I hope that all of you who eat in the Lido more than the dining room are choosing open seating under the As You Wish plan.

Since you're not going to the dining room anyway, it would be a shame if you were to choose fixed seating and deprive others of a scarce table there.

 

 

Very good point, Ruth.

It wouldn't be good to know you are not going to dine in the MDR but you reserve a traditional dining table. As Ruth says, there are people who want those tables and cannot get one because some cruises there simply are not enough.

 

[Assateague Island Princes]

We have ALWAYS chosen the Anytime Dining option since the very first cruise - even before I knew we'd prefer the Lido over the MDR, so not an issue for me. I think most folks are sensible enough to realize that they shouldn't opt for a specific dining time they have no intention of using....or atleast I would hope so.

[rafinmd]

I don't really feel a need to "be served" but I really do enjoy dinner in the MDR. Getting together with the same group of people each evening does tend to be a highlight of my day and it's rare that I'll have dinner anywhere else. I'm sure someday I'll comb back late from a shore excursion and head for the lido but can't remember it actually happening yet. On most of my river cruises though the dining room is a buffet and I still enjoy getting together at the table with others.

 

I'm completely opposite for breakfast and lunch. I actually tend to "snack" my way through those meals, especially breakfast, getting one item at a time at hour or so intervals.

 

Roy