Dining in Blu-specialty restaurants necessary

[sweetp09]

We are in AQ on Reflection and will be dining in Blu for dinner. We are trying to budget extras on our cruise. We enjoy a nice meal but the specialty restaurants add up fast and wonder if they are worth it. We have never sailed Celebrity (I have only sailed Disney and DH has never cruised) so they would all be new to us. I love seafood and would enjoy to have lobster, shrimp and scallops when I can. We also enjoy escargot, but are not sure if that is available in Blu (or anywhere else). Qsine looks like a fun experience, but it sounds like from all I have read that the food is mediocre and you are paying for experience, which would be fun, but is it worth the price? We love a great steak (tenderloin) so Tuscan Grille (though are not big on Italian food so not sure if it would still be worth it) and Lawn club look fantastic. We are celebrating our anniversary on the cruise and I have heard Murano is romantic. All that being said what advice can you give? Would Blu be what we are looking for or should we still go to some specialty dining and which would you suggest for us?

[Bod]

We have sailed on al teh solstice class ships, always in AQ class so here my opinion.

 

Love the lawn club/grill on refelection and would definatley do it again they do great steak & seafood so I would definatley do that one.

 

As for the others this my preference:

 

Tuscan, Murano and the Qsine but as we normally dine in Blu we only do one of the spevilaity resturants for a special occassion.

 

But here are a couple of tips, on the first night you can usually book at speciality resturant for 50% of the normal price if you are in Blue.

 

Also look out over the duration of the cruise for other simular offers as if the take up in low then they do the 50% thing quite regulalry.

 

Whatever you do enjoy :)

[wallie5446]

We were on Reflection last Nov in a standard C2, so no Blu. To have access to Blu would be the only reason to book Aqua. Which is why we booked a 1A veranda on our next cruise. We loved the Lawn Club and Murano was simply wonderful, but to skip Blu when booked in Aqua to go, well, that would be double spending our $$. Friends have raved about Tuscan and yes, Quizne.

 

Pick one, go and enjoy, but Blu is why you book AQ.

[shoelover536]

If they are offering the first night discount (this is often offered to AQ passengers to take pressure off first night in Blu), book Murano as a special meal for your anniverary (or Tuscan if this is your preference). If they don't offer the discount, no harm, no fowl, enjoy your week of Blu!

 

Also, escargot is available in Blu and the MDR on the everyday menu. It used to be that this was an MDR thing only and those in Blu had to request it, but recent reports are that certain MDR everyday items (escargot, classic Caesar, onion soup, shrimp cocktail, dessrts) are available to Blu too. Enjoy!

Edited February 10, 2014 by shoelover536

[ghstudio]

I would definitely wait for discounts offered on board. Actually, don't be shy about asking the specialty restaurant folks if they would give you a discount during the cruise. I've been know to comment that the meal is worth $30 but not $45 with a smile...and I've always been offered that rate (maybe I'm just lucky).

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

I would wait until you get on board and see how you like Blu. I think you will find it's very good. If you want to try one specialty restaurant, I would look for a significant discount as others have mentioned. The meals in the specialty restaurants are good, but they are not worth the $45/pp that Celebrity is currently charging.

 

Enjoy your cruise and your celebration!

[Duanerice1]

As others have said, wait until you are on board. And don't miss the first night in Blu, other than the lobster on formal night we think that is by far the best menu of the week. We don't go to Blu for the better food really, it is more the atmosphere.

 

We've been to Murano and it was great but once was enough. Can't see spending an additional $80 for the Lawn Club. Special occasion sure but not for a normal night. Can you tell we are not foodies. I cannot remember the last time we spent $80 for dinner. OK Vegas in December but that was a special meal :)

 

enjoy,

Duane .

[stipmom]

Just off the Reflection. On the first night they offered 50% off to those dining in Blu.

 

 

If you have a reason to want all the specialty restaurants you might want to consider a regular balcny and with the money you save buy a specialty restaurant package. That is our plan for the next cruise. It was our second time in Aqua and Blu seemed better on the Silhouette than on the Reflection

[Sun&Sand52]

It was our second time in Aqua and Blu seemed better on the Silhouette than on the Reflection

 

Just curious stipmom, what was it this time on the Reflection that you did not like about Blu? I am curious as we are considering going AQ again, but this time on the Reflection. Was it the menu? I have heard that the seats are closer together than other S-class ships, but not sure it that is actually true....

[BosoxI]

Just off the Reflection. On the first night they offered 50% off to those dining in Blu.

 

 

If you have a reason to want all the specialty restaurants you might want to consider a regular balcny and with the money you save buy a specialty restaurant package. That is our plan for the next cruise. It was our second time in Aqua and Blu seemed better on the Silhouette than on the Reflection

 

This is excellent advice. The first night Blu patrons on the Silhouette were offered 50% off in at least Murano. Well worth it, as Murano is actually worth the $45 fee but why pay it if a discount is available? Getting a veranda and eating in specialty restaurants is a good idea unless Aqua is on a huge discount. But the food in the MDR our just completed Silhouette cruise was very good by my standards ( which are pretty demanding, I am told). The soups were watery but tasty, and this was the weakest point of the meals.

[Nanny2Trey]

We are in AQ on Reflection and will be dining in Blu for dinner. We are trying to budget extras on our cruise. We enjoy a nice meal but the specialty restaurants add up fast and wonder if they are worth it. We have never sailed Celebrity (I have only sailed Disney and DH has never cruised) so they would all be new to us. I love seafood and would enjoy to have lobster, shrimp and scallops when I can. We also enjoy escargot, but are not sure if that is available in Blu (or anywhere else). Qsine looks like a fun experience, but it sounds like from all I have read that the food is mediocre and you are paying for experience, which would be fun, but is it worth the price? We love a great steak (tenderloin) so Tuscan Grille (though are not big on Italian food so not sure if it would still be worth it) and Lawn club look fantastic. We are celebrating our anniversary on the cruise and I have heard Murano is romantic. All that being said what advice can you give? Would Blu be what we are looking for or should we still go to some specialty dining and which would you suggest for us?

 

We just got off Constellation and were in Blu. Escargot was available every night. The filet we had in Blu was excellent. You could get salmon every night and others said it was good. I don't like salmon. We were only on a 5 night cruise so we did not have lobster or scallops. There was a fish dish every night and others said they were good. Again, I don't care much for fish. Our favorite specialty restaurant is Tuscan Grill on any of the ships. Qsine is fun but I was not impressed with the food. Probably won't go there again.

 

Linda

[Chunky2219]

It all depends on where you sit on the line between "my favourite is cheese on toast" and "I want fillet mignon every night".

 

The food in Blu is miles better than MDR and you could spend an entire cruise there without feeling cheated. At the other end of the scale, I absolutely love good food but couldn't dine in Murano for 14 nights - it would drive me nuts.

 

As others suggest, I'd recommend looking for the deals on board and seeing what takes your fancy. For me, Tuscan Grill, Silk Harvest and Murano, in that order.

 

 

.

[Redtravel]

I cruise often. I have dined at most of the specialty restaurants. Most are good. Are they worth paying $45pp extra? No. On my last 2 cruises, we did not eat in any specialty restaurant. We ate dinner in the MDR. The food was excellent. The service was excellent. The menu selections were very good. We did not feel as though we had missed anything. We met people who did buy into Murano. Their opinion was the same as ours. Do not feel that you are missing anything if you skip the specialties. MDR is great. BLU is also good.

[Gracie115]

As all others have said wait till you sail and look for the deals.....we LOVE Tuscan Grill, yes it's "Italian" but mostly about steaks & seafoods, not pasta(though that is there too).

 

You are right on about Qsine, quirky presentation but food not worth the $$...with a group probably a fun night though.

 

Blu is wonderful and you can get escargot every night if you want and there is always fish & steaks available. If I was watching my pennies I would be very happy just staying in Blu every night....it is a great venue. HAVE FUN!!:)

[Michidoeme]

In my view, it is not worth to pay extra for specialty restaurants if you can eat in Blu.

 

Sometimes you can get special price (2 for 1 or 30 % off) if they are not very busy during cruise. Murano and Tuscan Grill are not bad, but do not live up to expectations compared to very good restaurants in Europe (or US).

[ILgirl]

We have been on Summit twice and Constellation once, all in Aqua Class/Blu. While the food can be somewhat unusual sometimes, it is always good. The service is top notch, we always feel special, the atmosphere can't be beat and perhaps the thing I like most is that I never leave Blu feeling "stuffed." Always plenty of food, mind you, but it seems lighter and doesn't put me into a food coma likeI am after several courses in the MDR. Oh.....I know....I don't have to eat all of the courses offered in the MDR (our sailings have been on Princess) but I am weak! :) We have never tried a specialty restaurant. Last month on Constellation the discount was only 20% off the first night. Will be on our "S" class in November so will hope for the 50% so we can try a specialty restaurant once.

[jjm34957]

I would eat in Blu first, then decide. We had great experience in Blu on Infinity and Constellation. We felt we were eating in a specialty restaurant every night. The experience on the Solstice was not as good and a specialty restaurant would have been nice. If you receive excellent food and service, skip the specialty restaurants. If you are on a longer cruise you might try a specialty or even the buffet just for a little change of pace.

[jgreenwo17]

I am in Blu for the first time as well. I will seek out the specialty restaurants for lunch if and when they open up. I think a scouting mission at a specialty for lunch is a happy compromise.

[darcofuq]

I think you will find it's very good.

[BosoxI]

We'll be in Aqua in a couple weeks and again on a TA in April. We have no intention to eat in a specialty restaurant because of access to Blu. But I doubt most people could find a restaurant in their home town where they could dine as well as in Murano for $45. With a discount it's especially attractive, but Blu makes the extra expense unnecessary for us.