Speciality Restaurants - are we the only ones who feel like this?

[Project_gal]

This question is for those who eat frequently in the speciality restaurants. We have noticed an increasing number of people who do this and we would like to know if it is just us or has the menu in Murano/Ocean Liners/Olympic/SS United States/Normandie become stale? We much prefer the ambiance in these restaurants over that in the Tuscan Grille [whoes menu we really enjoy] but find ourselves not wanting to order anything on the menu once we are there.

 

I know that they have changed the menu over the years but, when we look back at previous years main courses, it really has not materially changed. The menu has just been tweeked round the edges - different name, different sauce, different presentation. When they add something new, like venison, it is treated in just the same way as everything else. The one thing that seems to have changed is vegetables which have been reduced in both flavour and quantity. Virtually every main course is now a slab of protein with a token garnish. The other courses lack imagination as well.

 

I know that, when you eat in the restaurants a great deal, they will offer to prepare something off the menu but there are two issues with this. 1. What they offer is really just a slightly different presentation of the same. [The exception to this is Fernado's Stroganoff - where is he now?] 2. With staffing severely reduced, these items are offered much less often.

 

I know that there are people who only treat themselves to one speciality dining meal per cruise and look forward to particluar items. That is often the reason given for not changing the menu.

 

This is not a frivolous question. We have never been to a show on board and a leisurely evening meal is one of the reasons we enjoy a cruise. We have albums full of photograps of food and menus. We started to think that it was just us but we still enjoy our pre-cruise, post-cruise and between-cruise restaurant meals. It has made us question if we should still be cruising.

 

So, is it just us or do others feel the same?

[excitedofharpenden]

Hi Sue. I've become disenchanted with Murano and the like over recent cruises. I just feel they are more about the "show" and less about the quality. I'm someone who always tries to remain positive and in the hope it will be better this time have been open minded. I've been disappointed on the last five visits.

 

In analysis I'm not sure if it's me becoming bored with them (I know you have said that on your cruises you go the Specialty Restaurants pretty much every night) or whether I just prefer the variety of the main dining room. The food there has been very good on my last few cruises. What I really don't like about the Specialties now though is the attitude of the staff. On many occasions it just appears a bit arrogant, like "aren't we great?" rather than "I hope you enjoy your evening, how can we help?". Once you add in the extras they are pretty expensive now too.

 

Phil

[robsmom]

We were disappointed in Murana on our recent cruise. I agree that the menu was just not that interesting or varied to me. I thought in the past that there had been a surf and turf course (I could be confused) and in my head was looking forward to this choice. I can't even tell you what I had for my entree, it was that uneventful. DH had the Murano lobster and thought it was good but not great. A good example of being all about the presentation, as they cook it table side. I did still love the chocolate soufflé.

[gizmodog]

The first time I tried Murano on the Equinox all of us at our table of 4 were extremely disappointed in the food, from first course to desert. We thought it was a fluke so the next trip on Equinox we tried it again…..same thing…..we will not spend our money on Murano again. That being said, we have never been disappointed in the food or service at the Tuscan Grill, we do not go every night though. Once or twice per cruise.

[uktog]

Hi Sue. I've become disenchanted with Murano and the like over recent cruises. I just feel they are more about the "show" and less about the quality.".....What I really don't like about the Specialties now though is the attitude of the staff. On many occasions it just appears a bit arrogant, like "aren't we great?" rather than "I hope you enjoy your evening, how can we help?". Once you add in the extras they are pretty expensive now too.

 

Phil

 

Spot on Phil, I also have got bored with the food, it's not that innovative. A meal in the MDR on Azamara is ten times better than Murano. Tuscan has the best food but even that's getting "Samey" and of course in Summit it's not an option

[Gordoncruickshank]

I think I tend to agree that the special has disappeared in the last couple of visits. While Murano's food is generally good, e staff to tend to be more than a shade pretentious and the menu is now fairly boring. I don't know how many times we have had the turbot and the Dover sole. Had lobster once which was fine bit found the staff cooking it rather offputting.

 

We also find that we struggle toe at the bigger,portions hat these restaurants provide. 10 years ago it wasn't an issue and I could happily eat as big a slab of protein as I could get. Now I try and avoid that really full feeling as does my wife.

 

Qsine is ok but it isn't my favourite mainly due to the volume. Tuscan is actually good stay away from the meat, not that the meat is bad, just too much after all the lovely antipasto.

 

Before we cruise we always sit down to see if we want to do any of the speciality restaurant packages and invariably decide not to. You usually get a better deal on the day outside the buffet.

 

We usually book AQ as the food potion size suits us better.

[Gordoncruickshank]

 

This is not a frivolous question. We have never been to a show on board and a leisurely evening meal is one of the reasons we enjoy a cruise. We have albums full of photograps of food and menus. We started to think that it was just us but we still enjoy our pre-cruise, post-cruise and between-cruise restaurant meals. It has made us question if we should still be cruising.

 

 

This is exactly why we cruise. We usually don't start an evening meal until 8.30 and can often be in the last few in the restaurant. After that the last thing I want to do is go to a show hat haas been playing on each of our Celebrity cruises.

 

Cruise lines want to encourage us to be repeat cruises with their loyalty programs but seem to forget that we repeat several times a year and need to mix up the entertainment for it to entertain their regulars. I suspect that we would still find a quiet bar somewhere for an equally quiet drink if they did something about that.

[keesar]

I think you are really paying for the service and atmosphere in Murano. As for the menu, it is a limited menu and repeat visits can take some of the excitement away. When we go there now, we know what is on the menu before we walk in. So I ask if they have any evening specials. We have been pleasantly surprised with the evening specials. We always have a great evening there. And we do go to the show afterwards!

[DebbieMacG]

We don't go to Murano anymore either, haven't for a few cruises. The first time was great the second not at all, the third not do haven't been back. Still enjoying Tuscan Grille. Haven't been back to Qsine in a while but may go again next cruise :)

[Alsmez]

We just finished our second cruise with Celebrity - first one on Equinox in 2011, this one on Reflection. We enjoyed Murano on the first cruise but were disappointed to see that the menu on this cruise is simply a reduced version of what we were offered in 2011, along with a couple of items that they borrowed from the 2011 MDR menu (pork belly, anyone?). They've reduced it from three courses to two (though I would assume you can request a third course if you want) and raised the price precipitously. Given these changes, we weren't tempted to return, though we might have if the menu had been revamped.

[Cruise a holic]

This question is for those who eat frequently in the speciality restaurants. We have noticed an increasing number of people who do this and we would like to know if it is just us or has the menu in Murano/Ocean Liners/Olympic/SS United States/Normandie become stale? We much prefer the ambiance in these restaurants over that in the Tuscan Grille [whoes menu we really enjoy] but find ourselves not wanting to order anything on the menu once we are there.

 

I know that they have changed the menu over the years but, when we look back at previous years main courses, it really has not materially changed. The menu has just been tweeked round the edges - different name, different sauce, different presentation. When they add something new, like venison, it is treated in just the same way as everything else. The one thing that seems to have changed is vegetables which have been reduced in both flavour and quantity. Virtually every main course is now a slab of protein with a token garnish. The other courses lack imagination as well.

 

I know that, when you eat in the restaurants a great deal, they will offer to prepare something off the menu but there are two issues with this. 1. What they offer is really just a slightly different presentation of the same. [The exception to this is Fernado's Stroganoff - where is he now?] 2. With staffing severely reduced, these items are offered much less often.

 

I know that there are people who only treat themselves to one speciality dining meal per cruise and look forward to particluar items. That is often the reason given for not changing the menu.

 

This is not a frivolous question. We have never been to a show on board and a leisurely evening meal is one of the reasons we enjoy a cruise. We have albums full of photograps of food and menus. We started to think that it was just us but we still enjoy our pre-cruise, post-cruise and between-cruise restaurant meals. It has made us question if we should still be cruising.

 

So, is it just us or do others feel the same?

 

Hello Sue,

As of our last few cruises, we now only eat in Specialty restaurants on the S class ships. We enjoy the ambiance and the quality and presentation of the food. We do order specially prepared dishes and the staff willingly prepares them for us at all of the specialty dining venues. The two newest ships, the Reflection and the Silhouette have additional restaurants so dining in them is more diverse.

 

We have found that blu is now very tired as the menues seem to be the same, and no longer opt for Aqua Class. With the lower Concierge class rates, we spend the savings on the unlimited specialty dining package.

 

We also do not always see the shows, so we enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of the speciality restaurants. The main dining room is crowded and the service isn't what it used to be, nor is the food.

 

Enjoy your cruises. Hope to see you on board soon.

Edited January 26, 2014 by Cruise a holic

[h20cruzer]

I agree, on our last cruise we purchases the 5 dinners, 3 Murano 2 tuscan grill on the Connie TA. Even though Murano was not full, it appeared as the staff was over worked, not sure what they were doing but not as at tentative as in the past. 2 nights ok 3rd night no, we made arrangements to eat in the Tuscan grill. Now to the the paperwork changed was a mess, Tuscan wanted to make sure they got the credit and not Murano, which is understandable, however they made a mess of our bill, and we had to made three separate calls to straighten it out. There were 3 of us all on different accounts and they did 3 different things to mess up each of our accounts. 3 calls each, it should have been a no brainer. Not sure I would buy the 5 pack again, but I do enjoy the space in the specialty restaurants.

One thing that annoyed me was we wanted the 5 pack but wanted to use onboard credit, when I call Celebrity I was told that you could only purchase the 5 pack prior to the cruise and not on the ship. So we took our chances and guess what we could get it on the ship, before we even boarded we were able to purchase.

Norma

[simon stingray]

I would also agree that the menu is not the most exciting.

 

Whilst we enjoyed Murano on Silhouette, we found our experience in Ocean Liners on Constellation and SS United States on Infinity far better. The Quality of both the food and service was fantastic on the M class ships.

 

On our last 10 night cruise we dined in SS United States on 2 evenings and would have booked additional nights if the menu was improved/changed.

 

We tried Qsine once on Silhouette and really didn't enjoy the experience. We felt that it was just poor quality food presented in a fancy way.

[Denny01]

Realize we all look for variety, but you are talking about going to the same 1 or 2 restaurants over and over again, and talking about something as subjective as dining.

 

There are many who complain their favorites are no longer served, or the restaurants serve all these 'weird' sauced-up dishes instead of the basics. If they change the sauces and the presentation, that is what most restaurants do when they say they change their menus.

 

Myself, we go to a specialty restaurant on cruise usually once per cruise so I guess I'm not in the position the OP is describing which is a consistent, nightly specialty diner. I find the MDR fare to be quite fine for me and enjoy stepping out once in a while.

 

By the way, the Connie doesn't have the Murano it has the Ocean Liners and Tuscan, plus the Bistro, one of my favorites.

 

The MDR rotates through 7 varying menus with a few standards every night plus (I think) 14 varying menus for longer cruises. There is variety there.

 

Now that I passed on my subjective opinion, understand completely if you dine almost exclusively at the few specialty restaurants cruise after cruise, it would get boring.

 

Always other options, but Celebrity might catch on and vary them more to keep the specialty stalwarts happy and coming back more, and making more money! But of course we will then have thread after thread complaining someone's favorite entree has been discontinued and that is the only reason they cruised so they want a full refund because their cruise was ruined.

 

Den

[SusieV]

We definitely miss the days where you could get offmenu items, but we were told it simply isn't possible anymore the way it used to be. We also miss the over the top service and live music at Murano.

 

That being said... we still find the ambiance, service, and food in the specialty restaurants much better than in the MDR (at least on the S class), so we will likely continue to purchase the Ultimate Specialty package most of the time.

[X-elite]

Project_gal, you raise some very good points! We also enjoy the specialty restaurants, but the menus would seem limited if you went every night on an unlimited specialty dining package. For us, depending on the length of the cruise, a three- or five-night specialty dining package to cover formal nights and an extra dinner or two is the best choice for us (need to balance out the huge dinners with some lighter dinners also such as sushi or a salad in the buffet!).

 

We've definitely noticed some "cost downs" in the specialty restaurants through the years. It is still great to order your favorites though when you return on board! We were surprised by the short-cut in presentation and actually poor taste of one dish last time. Here was "Potato-Laced French Turbot" last time:

 

 

No comparison to in the past:

 

[north29]

We did the three specialty dining package on the Eclipse. IOHO, in which experience is limited, mainly to RC. Morano, we did the Chateaubriand and found it good but not as good as other, we have enjoyed. Service was lacking and eventually had to flag the sommelier down to pay for wine, after approximately 2.5 hours I was tired of setting. Tuscan, service was not special, good at first then fell apart we actually skipped desert flagged some one down to pay for wine. This was after sitting 15 minutes without water, wine or coffee.with menus in hand. My wife's fish was waaaaaayyyyyy over cooked no one came back to check until too late to wait for another preparation. My lobster, fettuccine, I expected chunks of lobster, after several people raved about it,NOT, just tiny pieces.

As mentioned above, the staff looked over taxed with work.

Now Qzine, was spectacular in food and especially service. However one must be careful not to eat/order too much they were helpful with this. We really enjoyed the variety of cultural dining samples( for lack of a better word) of course we love exotic dining experiences.

To pay the up charge, foe specially dining,

one thing X should at least include a complimentary non alcoholic coffee with the dinner. I guess that might be a pet peeve of mine, but to charge 2-3 for a espresso is tacky, but I guess all cruise lines do this.

Edited January 26, 2014 by north29

[Project_gal]

Realize we all look for variety, but you are talking about going to the same 1 or 2 restaurants over and over again, and talking about something as subjective as dining.

 

There are many who complain their favorites are no longer served, or the restaurants serve all these 'weird' sauced-up dishes instead of the basics. If they change the sauces and the presentation, that is what most restaurants do when they say they change their menus.

 

Myself, we go to a specialty restaurant on cruise usually once per cruise so I guess I'm not in the position the OP is describing which is a consistent, nightly specialty diner. I find the MDR fare to be quite fine for me and enjoy stepping out once in a while.

 

By the way, the Connie doesn't have the Murano it has the Ocean Liners and Tuscan, plus the Bistro, one of my favorites.

 

The MDR rotates through 7 varying menus with a few standards every night plus (I think) 14 varying menus for longer cruises. There is variety there.

 

Now that I passed on my subjective opinion, understand completely if you dine almost exclusively at the few specialty restaurants cruise after cruise, it would get boring.

 

Always other options, but Celebrity might catch on and vary them more to keep the specialty stalwarts happy and coming back more, and making more money! But of course we will then have thread after thread complaining someone's favorite entree has been discontinued and that is the only reason they cruised so they want a full refund because their cruise was ruined.

 

Den

 

Den

 

I appreciate your opinion. Quite frankly, I expected more people to disagree with me and, probably, flame me. It has been reassuring to learn that we are not just being too pickly.

 

I agree that there would be more variety if we ate in the MDR. It was, after all, the MDR that hooked us on cruising in the first place. We especially enjoyed the opportunity to get to know a group of people who shared our table. What we do not enjoy is the lack of space, the reducing level of service each cruise and the noise levels. I accept that the noise issue is probably a function of our increasing year rather than anything else but we dislike having to shout our conversations on our rare visits to the MDR.

 

In the speciality restaurants we are allowed more space and the restaurants are quieter - although it can get noisy in the Tuscan Grille. Unlike many posters, despite the severe reduction in staffing in Murano [and equivalents], we have not experienced a reduced level of service. OK they no longer escort ladies to the restrooms but I, personally, am thankful for that. We still receive excellent service.

 

It is impossible to please all of the people all of the time. The requirements of those who dine once per cruise will always be different to those who eat there all the time but Speciality Dining is an important revenue stream for Celebrity as much for the wines they sell there as the surcharge for the food. We can get a very good meal in the USA for the surcharge paid in Murano which has increased from $30 to $45 in the relatively short time that we have been cruising on Celebrity whilst the staffing levels have at least halved. As we are not alone in our opinions, perhaps we should expect a little more.

[Brad1185]

We gave up all speciality restaurants. The cost is too much compared to what you get. The food quality and menu offerings were downgraded after the last fee hike.

 

On my TA last April I have never seen the speciality restaurants so empty throughout a cruise.

[Gracie115]

The first time I tried Murano on the Equinox all of us at our table of 4 were extremely disappointed in the food, from first course to desert. We thought it was a fluke so the next trip on Equinox we tried it again…..same thing…..we will not spend our money on Murano again. That being said, we have never been disappointed in the food or service at the Tuscan Grill, we do not go every night though. Once or twice per cruise.

 

This is how we feel too. I think the OP is correct that menus haven't changed much at all over the years but I think the term "Specialty Restaurant" indicates the cruiseline's idea that it's not a restaurant meant for "every" night dining, not that they would turn you down but its limited menu is not meant for daily dining. We cruise in AQ and love the menus in Blu and they do offer variety and we can easily stretch a meal there to a few hours, just tell the servers to slow down. A night or at most two in Tuscan Grill is all the Spec. Dining we do these days....

[ECCruise]

Honestly, even though the menus have become a bit hackneyed, the value for us left long ago when the prices nearly doubled over the years. $90 for a meal may not be too exorbitant when compared to a good shore side restaurant, but when we dine shore side we don't pay an admission charge of $2000-$20000 (cruise fare, depending on itinerary) and we don't leave a pretty decent dinner at the door (the MDR meal included with the fare).

 

Still, as long as people keep paying the price--whether it is individual pricing or "packages" neither the quality or the price will change.

[bgrieve]

Food quality has gone down, and the price has gotten out of hand. We are done with it. It is no longer worth it. I believe Celebrity has over priced their specialty restaurants.

[rjrpar]

Food quality has gone down, and the price has gotten out of hand. We are done with it. It is no longer worth it. I believe Celebrity has over priced their specialty restaurants.

 

Agree 100%. The decreasing quality is most annoying.

[20pluscruises]

Agree 100%. The decreasing quality is most annoying.

 

I couldn't agree more! If the quality was the same as when Murano first opened...we would have made reservations on every cruise AND would have ordered the same items. I still remember the foie gras and goat cheese souffle in the birds nest...both would just melt in your mouth. The lobster use to be in a light tarragon sauce...and now it's chives...:(

 

One the many things we really looked foward to enjoying on the ship and so disappointed it has changed.

 

We did try the Tuscan and the filet was excellent.

Edited January 27, 2014 by 20pluscruises

[hulamoon]

Interesting topic. I was thinking we were cruising too frequently, and that is why it seemed less compelling.

 

Murano is nice, loved the old goat cheese soufflé, but it's preparation is different now. Somehow the main courses are the ones that don't seem to work for me.

 

We have been blessed with good service at Tuscan. It is a rich experience though and could not imagine going more than once a week.

 

Qzine does not seem to have great food to me, just novel food. Had one poor service and food experience at the Asian resturant and haven't been back.

 

I think if I wasn't onboard so often, I would be less picky about it.