MDR Do they really refuse entry?

[Elevatorman]

How much leeway does the Maître d give you for that 6 pm seating. Can you still be seated at 6:15, how about 6:30. Any info greatly appreciated. This is our first time not booking "anytime dining", in a long time.

[spookwife]

yes they can ESPECIALLY with early seating. 10 minutes is pushing it. more than that and you really screw things up for everyone. if you are the only ones at your table and you let your wait staff know up front that you will be late, they may be able to accommodate you. or you could skip a course.

 

they do need to get ready for the next seating...

[ghstudio]

Officially: The doors close 15 minutes after the starting time of the meal.

 

As with most things celebrity, the enforcement is up to the celebrity MDR staff on your cruise. So answers here of "I had no problem", "don't worry about it" are nice war stories, but you may find that you are turned away on your specific cruise based on the written policy.

[Jane2357]

I have no clue about the cut off time but I will say being late is a great way to not make friends of your table mates. The waitstaff will not want to start the table service without everyone because it screws up the timing. I've sat there seething while being made to wait for those not on time. This is why we love select.

[A Sixth?]

How much leeway does the Maître d give you for that 6 pm seating. Can you still be seated at 6:15, how about 6:30. Any info greatly appreciated. This is our first time not booking "anytime dining", in a long time.

 

Was anytime (select or what ever it's called) not available to you?

[Elevatorman]

yes they can ESPECIALLY with early seating. 10 minutes is pushing it. more than that and you really screw things up for everyone. if you are the only ones at your table and you let your wait staff know up front that you will be late, they may be able to accommodate you. or you could skip a course.

 

they do need to get ready for the next seating...

 

We would be a table for 2. I would not be inconsiderate to others diners. Just trying to be aware, especially when we are in port for the day.

[WestLakeGirl]

There is always a fifteen minute leeway and if you tell the server the day before you can probably get away with a little longer, especially if you don't order every course. But you will find the doors shut at some point around then30 minute mark. Perhaps that would be a good night to pre book a specialty, or go to Bistro on Fiver

[dkjretired]

We would be a table for 2. I would not be inconsiderate to others diners. Just trying to be aware, especially when we are in port for the day.

 

Table's for 2 are limited so don't count on it.

[SC_Floaters]

If the Maître d gives you an extra 15 to 30 minutes to the scheduled dining time then the Captain should give eveyone an extra 15 to 30 minutes to board after scheduled ship's departure time. That also means the Shows scheduled to start at 7PM can start anytime between 7 and 7:30... When there are thousands of cruisers onboard, I'll bet there are scheduled times for a good reason...

 

Can you imagine the Main Dining Room operating like the Buffet at the top of the ship...

 

Sorry for the rude response but after 25 years in the Armed Forces, if you weren't early, you were late..

 

Dennis

 

Edited May 7, 2014 by SC_Floaters

[celebritydave]

We would be a table for 2. I would not be inconsiderate to others diners. Just trying to be aware, especially when we are in port for the day.

 

Why not change to late seating??

 

Dave

[cruisestitch]

Don't make too big a deal of this -- remember that this is a new Cruise Critic poster --

 

Lots of people maximize their time in port and don't like to be rushed to dress for dinner.

 

As was stated, there are options for nights when you are in port late -- you can go to the buffet, you can go to Bistro on Five, you can even order from the MDR menu as room service!

 

If you see now a day where you think you might be late for dinner, you could also book a specialty restaurant for that night.

 

As for getting a table for two, yes, you can request one but that doesn't mean that you will be given a table for two. There are only so many of them in the MDR, so it is possible that when you arrive on the ship, you'll find that you have been assigned a table for four or six. If that happens, adjust your plans accordingly.

 

The night before the long port day, simply say "we may be running a few minutes late tomorrow night -- please everyone, go ahead and order and we will catch up as quickly as we can" or "we have decided not to eat at this table tomorrow night and so please don't wait for us".

[We're The Groupnors]

We would be a table for 2. I would not be inconsiderate to others diners. Just trying to be aware, especially when we are in port for the day.

 

It would still be inconsiderate to other diners, as well as the staff if you were late. The staff are doing their runs to the kitchen for each course for multiple tables, not just your table for two. So while the other tables may not have to wait to order, they will likely have to wait to get their first course.

[CRUZBUDS]

It would still be inconsiderate to other diners' date=' as well as the staff if you were late. The staff are doing their runs to the kitchen for each course for multiple tables, not just your table for two. So while the other tables may not have to wait to order, they will likely have to wait to get their first course.[/quote']

 

Absolutely -- it will mess up the service of all of the tables in the waiter's section. We've had it happen to us. We had a table for two and there was a table for three that was always late -- 15 minutes to 20 minutes every night. It pissed us off that their dessert came at the same time as ours. Our service was just stretched out to accommodate the late start.

 

They were totally clueless and had no idea how things work on a cruise ship :mad:

[sergeant655]

On Infinity the Cutoff time in the Celebrity today was 15 min and in the services guide in the cabin was listed as 30 min. There was a Family with a annoying kid that was consistently 15 to 30 min late and they always let them in. On Eclipse they follow the same guidelines. There i found the if ou were late it would hold up the rest os your fellow table mates as the waiter would not take anybody orders untill everyone was there. Infinity would take orders based on what order people arrived in

[CRUZBUDS]

In the "Good Old Days" they would close the fire doors after 15 minutes --- and there was little else to eat in those days. :)

[Tiggertastic]

Better to move to select

[hcat]

We would be a table for 2. I would not be inconsiderate to others diners. Just trying to be aware, especially when we are in port for the day.

 

You do not have to go to the MDR every night if your port stops will run late...

As mentioned, if you get back too late for your seating time, why not try the buffet, room service or Bistro on 5 ? Or if you know ahead of time you'll be late, perhaps this would be a good night to try a specialty restaurant reserved for a later time. If you can let your maitre d know ahead it will be appreciated...they run on a tight schedule ..,..

 

on one of European cruises, they let folks know they could come whenever their excursions returned b/c if uncertainty w/local traffic....this was before my time dining..

Edited May 7, 2014 by hcat

[Presto2]

Have never booked set dining, but if we did it would be simple:

 

Turn up on time and if you know you can't for any reason let your table companions know / waiter know the day before so that everyone isn't waiting for you.

 

Keeping people waiting or being inconsiderate for others is bad manners whether you are on land or sea.

 

I am not sure if the cruise line enforce the time limit, but I think it would be the right thing to do to consider others.

 

Not sure if this makes sense :)

[cruiser77]

On our last cruise a couple at a table next to ours came every evening 45 minutes to an hour late for dinner, nobody ever said anything. Though the waiters seemed frustrated first but then got used to it, I guess they did not say anything to not to loose their tips...:rolleyes:

This was early dinning.

[cynbar]

Please don't think you can just come in late, traditional dining is based on a system where everyone is on about the same schedule. It is frustrating for everyone else to have diners just waltz in late. Not everyone wants to conform to this nowadays, but that is why there are options on cruise ships. If you don't think you will be able to arrive at the set time on some nights, make other dining arrangements. The buffet is available, you can order the MDR in your cabin from room service during regular dinner hours, or there are always the specialty restaurants. It would be different if no alternatives were available, but it really is rude to disrupt the traditional dining ambiance for those who want this style of dining.

[davekathy]

Another reason why we always request a table for two in the MDR for early traditional dining.

[upwarduk]

On our last cruise a couple at a table next to ours came every evening 45 minutes to an hour late for dinner, nobody ever said anything. Though the waiters seemed frustrated first but then got used to it, I guess they did not say anything to not to loose their tips...:rolleyes:

This was early dinning.

 

Sometimes, the MDR is used for seating those on Select, if their area is full!

I saw it happen when a group didn't arrive 30 mins after the assigned time for early sitting.

[Elevatorman]

Thank you for your responses. The only reason I did not choose Select Dining this time is because I wanted to see if the service was better in the MDR. And late seating is just not for us. Just too late. Last cruise we were on the Silhouette in March and noticed many couples racing off the Martini Bar to get to dinner on time. Again just want to be aware.

[wallie5446]

How much leeway does the Maître d give you for that 6 pm seating. Can you still be seated at 6:15, how about 6:30. Any info greatly appreciated. This is our first time not booking "anytime dining", in a long time.

 

We would be a table for 2. I would not be inconsiderate to others diners. Just trying to be aware, especially when we are in port for the day.

 

Again, why would fixed seating be any different from select? They are both in the MDR. This is our first time I guess this is why some feel the need to make curt comments since you already know what is expected, and this cruise will be no different.

Edited May 8, 2014 by wallie5446

[ghstudio]

Again, why would fixed seating be any different from select? They are both in the MDR. This is our first time I guess this is why some feel the need to make curt comments since you already know what is expected, and this cruise will be no different.

 

They are both in the MDR, but they are separate areas with separate entrances and different waiters/etc.