Gastropub

[CYNSport]

Thanks for posting the menu! Looking forward to seeing the Gastropub on our next cruise.

[wallie5446]

[quote name='BrendaJ']Sorry, forgot to check back on this thread.

I'm afraid I'm not that picky about wine (especially after at least two glasses at dinner). In the Gastropub, our basic package seems to cover whatever grape variety I happened to ask for each evening, although I couldn't say what brands were served.

No complaints from me, in any case.[/quote]

Wonderful! The wife will be happy to know she wont have to leave to find a glass of wine while I am working my way thru the beer selection!

Thanks again Brenda!

[chamima]

Hi Wallie
How's the cruise going?
Update on the wine, please. :o

[wallie5446]

[quote name='chamima']Hi Wallie
How's the cruise going?
Update on the wine, please. :o[/QUOTE]

Just back Karen.

I will go into detail this week end. The choices were very disappointing.:(
EW

[CHEZMARYLOU]

[quote name='wallie5446']Just back Karen.

I will go into detail this week end. The choices were very disappointing.:(
EW[/QUOTE]

Hope you had a good cruise despite the disappointing wine choices. We are wine drinkers and always frequent Cellar Masters. I'm disappointed that the wine choices are disappointing. At least our next 2 cruises are on M class ships that should still have CM. Looking forward to more info.

Mary Lou

[Seabourn Pearls]

My opinion - and that's all it is -- is this concept is a bust. First, the name is pretentious. The menu is not especially approachable and the price points are ridiculous. I can see the sticker shock from an inebriated guest who gets his final bill a few days later with an $85 charge for truffle oil fries, a burger and grilled local sausages from the Pub (BTW, when floating around the Caribbean what constitutes a local sausage?). If I'm going to blow extra money on food I'm probably going to Murano.

I have to agree with an earlier poster about a tapas bar. If the wife and I could sit down for a surcharge of $10 each and find a dish of olives, some serrano ham, some nice cheeses, some spiced nuts and a variety of pintxos served in an appealing and authentic way then you've got my attention. I don't believe most or even many passengers will opt for an ala carte menu at those prices. It's like paying for content on the internet. Until what's available for free is unappealing there's no incentive to open one's wallet.

Gasto Pub is destined for the Celebrity scrap heap of failed experiments. Again, it's just my not-especially humble opinion and, like a rectum, everybody has one.

[groryjm]

[quote name='Seabourn Pearls']My opinion - and that's all it is -- is this concept is a bust. First, the name is pretentious. The menu is not especially approachable and the price points are ridiculous. I can see the sticker shock from an inebriated guest who gets his final bill a few days later with an $85 charge for truffle oil fries, a burger and grilled local sausages from the Pub [/QUOTE]

not sure where $85 comes from:eek: The burger is $8, the sausage n mash is $5 and the extra fries is $3. So at about $8 a head for a meal it doesn't sound too outrageous. :confused: or am missing somethig?

[Christine Frances]

[quote name='Seabourn Pearls']My opinion - and that's all it is -- is this concept is a bust. First, the name is pretentious. The menu is not especially approachable and the price points are ridiculous. I can see the sticker shock from an inebriated guest who gets his final bill a few days later with an $85 charge for truffle oil fries, a burger and grilled local sausages from the Pub (BTW, when floating around the Caribbean what constitutes a local sausage?). If I'm going to blow extra money on food I'm probably going to Murano.

I have to agree with an earlier poster about a tapas bar. If the wife and I could sit down for a surcharge of $10 each and find a dish of olives, some serrano ham, some nice cheeses, some spiced nuts and a variety of pintxos served in an appealing and authentic way then you've got my attention. I don't believe most or even many passengers will opt for an ala carte menu at those prices. It's like paying for content on the internet. Until what's available for free is unappealing there's no incentive to open one's wallet.

Gasto Pub is destined for the Celebrity scrap heap of failed experiments. Again, it's just my not-especially humble opinion and, like a rectum, everybody has one.[/QUOTE]

Yes we all have an opinion:) We loved the Gastrobar! I think we must have had the smokey cheese soup 3 times there for lunch as it was so good. We have never eaten in Bistro on 5 (no ambiance and crepes are not our thing) so a $6 lunch in the pub works better than $7 worth of crepes lol. We also would pop in for a beer and read/relax/chat in the comfortable chairs. I don't look at it mainly as a food venue but as a craft beer pub and with a great selection and with three draught beers on tap we really enjoyed this venue. Fun on game nights as well:D

[wallie5446]

We too loved the concept. Spent many afternoons there playing card's while they were closed, then chatting with friends and meeting new ones, after they opened.

Were the beer selections as good as what was in Michaels, sadly, no it was not. Nor was the wine selection, ( at least for us ) yet a few friends thought it a lot better than what was offered at other bars. ( The overall "wine by the glass" has become very limited through out the ship, hard push to buy a bottle )

The beer and food paring sessions sold out every time they were held. It was packed to the walls on Sat & all day Sunday when college and NFL games were on. We would have to get our drinks and bring them in as they did not open till 4:00, then had Sunday Funday where all beer was half price till 6:00pm.

The burger was wonderful as was the truffle grilled cheese, but at $10-$12 each, hard to justify the cost.

The staff was hard to get engaged. One on his first contract never smiled, a real sourpuss. [B](( our MDR Waiter has been with X since 1982, and said the 'New Age' of workers is changing, and not for the better )) [/B]

So after spending the summer reading every thread and comment I could find about the GastroBar, we liked it, but found ourselves drifting back across the way to the Martini Bar that was always very high energy on our sailing.

EW

[TommyD3]

[quote name='wallie5446']We too loved the concept. Spent many afternoons there playing card's while they were closed, then chatting with friends and meeting new ones, after they opened.

Were the beer selections as good as what was in Michaels, sadly, no it was not. Nor was the wine selection, ( at least for us ) yet a few friends thought it a lot better than what was offered at other bars. ( The overall "wine by the glass" has become very limited through out the ship, hard push to buy a bottle )

The beer and food paring sessions sold out every time they were held. It was packed to the walls on Sat & all day Sunday when college and NFL games were on. We would have to get our drinks and bring them in as they did not open till 4:00, then had Sunday Funday where all beer was half price till 6:00pm.

The burger was wonderful as was the truffle grilled cheese, but at $10-$12 each, hard to justify the cost.

The staff was hard to get engaged. One on his first contract never smiled, a real sourpuss. [B](( our MDR Waiter has been with X since 1982, and said the 'New Age' of workers is changing, and not for the better )) [/B]

So after spending the summer reading every thread and comment I could find about the GastroBar, we liked it, but found ourselves drifting back across the way to the Martini Bar that was always very high energy on our sailing.

EW[/QUOTE]

Was the Gastropub open at lunch time?

Thanks.

[Christine Frances]

Was the Gastropub open at lunch time?

 

Thanks.

 

On the TA it was open at noon on sea days. Have no idea when it opened on port days because we were in port:D:D

[chamima]

Oh Wallie, I'm so sorry!

I was also looking forward to it but will just lower my expectations.

I'm also NOT happy to hear that the wine by the glass selections were poor.

I hope they at least still have the (overpriced) Catena Malbec that was my go-to wine last year .

Looks like we'll be either in the Martini or Molecular Bars.

Such problems, eh? ;)

Edited November 22, 2014 by chamima

[Mparis184]

All the cruise lines are finding innovative ways to make extra money per passenger on cruises. I am the frugal traveler and am happy to eat in the dining rooms that are complimentary. Does anyone else feel the way I do?

 

Marion

[Christine Frances]

We are frugal at home. When we travel/cruise we don't go stupid but we don't deprive ourselves either.:) We almost always eat dinner in the MDR but only because we are quite happy with the food. We have no problem with the odd Specialty rest (Love the Lawn Club Grill), and as I posted above, the occasional $6 lunch in the Gastrobar. But our decisions aren't made primarily because of cost but from what we want to enjoy/experience on our travels. We will usually take a taxi rather than a public bus in ports etc for example because the convenience out weight's the cost (for us). Everyone travels differently:D

[wallie5446]

All the cruise lines are finding innovative ways to make extra money per passenger on cruises. I am the frugal traveler and am happy to eat in the dining rooms that are complimentary. Does anyone else feel the way I do?

 

Marion

This is normally us too. This last cruise we dinned in the MDR 6 evenings, and speciality 5, 2 Murano, 2 Tuscan, 1 Silk Harvest. The least favorite meal was in the MDR on the 2nd formal night. The lobster was ok, at best, but not bad.

EW

[wallie5446]

Was the Gastropub open at lunch time?

 

Thanks.

 

On sea days it opened at 12:00 noon, and on port days it was 4:00pm.

[ehfl]

I couldn't disagree more......lol

 

We love Cellar Masters as it is and it was our favorite venue on our Solstice cruise - dark and gloomy to one = warm, relaxed and inviting to another.

 

We went every night before dinner and usually finished up our evening there in the early hours. Loved the atmosphere, selection of wines, and excellent service from the sommelier. She knew us by name after day 2 and offered us many wines not included on the premium package at no extra charge ;)

 

I am pleased that Cellar Masters will still be the same on our next cruise in Dec - and will enjoy it even more so as it may well be the last time if the Gastrobar goes fleet wide, as I suspect it will. RIP Cellar Masters

 

It would be sad if they got rid of Cellar Masters completely. It was our favorite place to hang out. They had a great selection of wines by the glass that changed every night. Looking at the Gastrobar wine list is very disappointing, although the food looks interesting.

 

I hope they find room to keep Cellar Masters, even if it is in a smaller space. Celebrity is the only cruise line on the Wine Spectator list, and Cellar masters really helped distinguish Celebrity from some other mainstream lines. Maybe they could even move the Enomatic machines to the Gastrobar or some other venue so that you would still have a good selection of wines to try.

[cle-guy]

Maybe they could even move the Enomatic machines to the Gastrobar or some other venue so that you would still have a good selection of wines to try.

 

The Enomatics have already started phasing off the ships, even though only Equinox has been changed over so far. My last Bermuda cruse most, (maybe all but the single center island one?) were empty. They started reducing them in January of this year. I think Connie has them gone altogether, but not positive on that.

 

I always loved the idea of the Enomatics, but just never got around to getting the special card I had to carry. If they worked on Seapass, they may have done very well with that program - even if they were excluded from drink packages as room service also is.

 

I kind of think wine has seen its day in our culture, and beers and bourbons are now gaining popularity, at least this is how it's been with my group of friends and colleagues.

[wallie5446]

Well just to see if it gets better with age:eek:, not really, but we did go ahead and rebook on the Equinox for Nov 2015!:D So we can see if folks are just as rowdy when the Cowboys are on the tellie in the GastroBar as they were for the Packers last week.

[chamima]

Well just to see if it gets better with age:eek:, not really, but we did go ahead and rebook on the Equinox for Nov 2015!:D So we can see if folks are just as rowdy when the Cowboys are on the tellie in the GastroBar as they were for the Packers last week.

 

Wallie

I thought we were going to be on board for Super Bowl but I just checked and we board the day after.

I would expect THAT will be a rowdy day in there!

(I think we'll be on a plane )

[Cruising89143]

Yes we all have an opinion:) We loved the Gastrobar! I think we must have had the smokey cheese soup 3 times there for lunch as it was so good. We have never eaten in Bistro on 5 (no ambiance and crepes are not our thing) so a $6 lunch in the pub works better than $7 worth of crepes lol. We also would pop in for a beer and read/relax/chat in the comfortable chairs. I don't look at it mainly as a food venue but as a craft beer pub and with a great selection and with three draught beers on tap we really enjoyed this venue. Fun on game nights as well:D

 

I agree. We really enjoyed it and price was not an issue. Glad to the Eclpise is up next for the addition of this venue.

[CHEZMARYLOU]

I kind of think wine has seen its day in our culture, and beers and bourbons are now gaining popularity, at least this is how it's been with my group of friends and colleagues.

 

Our friends are still and will probably remain wine drinkers, even though they might have an occasional beer or bourbon. Me, I'll stick with my wine and will be sad to see a lesser offering on Celebrity.

 

Mary Lou

[ECCruise]

All the cruise lines are finding innovative ways to make extra money per passenger on cruises. I am the frugal traveler and am happy to eat in the dining rooms that are complimentary. Does anyone else feel the way I do?

 

Marion

 

Gotta agree.

 

Not that we haven't dined in specialties on occasion but just got off 14 days on Eclipse and just no way we could justify $100 for 2 of us in Murano or $90 in Qsine or Tuscan. Have dined in all 3 but see no justification for those prices, amplified by leaving a very good meal in the MDR uneaten. And comparing the prices onboard to what is available on land is just silly. No restaurant we know of charges $2000-$10000 for admission.

[wallie5446]

Gotta agree.

 

Not that we haven't dined in specialties on occasion but just got off 14 days on Eclipse and just no way we could justify $100 for 2 of us in Murano or $90 in Qsine or Tuscan. Have dined in all 3 but see no justification for those prices, amplified by leaving a very good meal in the MDR uneaten. And comparing the prices onboard to what is available on land is just silly. No restaurant we know of charges $2000-$10000 for admission.

Correct, but I don't know of any land based Resturant that includes 3-4000 miles of transportation, lodging, 2 additional meals, with unlimited snacks daily, along with movies, musicians, comedy, song and dance acts.

 

I could go on, but this thread is about the GastroPub, Thanks.

EW

Edited November 25, 2014 by wallie5446

[wallie5446]

Our friends are still and will probably remain wine drinkers, even though they might have an occasional beer or bourbon. Me, I'll stick with my wine and will be sad to see a lesser offering on Celebrity.

 

Mary Lou

 

Mary Lou, the by the bottle offerings were wonderful! I guess we have become tainted by the packages. Before, we would always get a wine pkg and explore the list for that one bottle to splurge on each cruise. The drink pkg has made this ole guy a tad tight fisted:D I am afraid;)

EW