Specialty Dining- Appropriate Length of Dinner Times

[darkprayer]

Hi everyone,

 

I have a question for those that have eaten a lot at the specialty dinning options.

 

We are sailing on the Epic in December. We have pre-booked all dinning with our UDP at 6pm, because of the shows.

 

Should I be expecting 2 to 3 hours at these establishments, like we had on the Pearl to Alaska last September?

 

When we were on the Pearl, we bought the special 3 night package. Every night we were at the specialty dinners for at least 2 hours. WAY longer then the MDR.

Out of the 3 nights we special dined, we walked out of 2 before desert, because it was getting so late and we had to get the kid's from the Splash Academy before they closed (10:30). Yes, we booked later dinners so me and the hub could dine alone those nights. Usually at 8pm, maybe this was the problem? Dining so late.

 

The 2 that we walked out of was Cagney's and La Cucina. Cagney's caught us leaving and had desert delivered to the room and apologized. Sadly, they decided to deliver it at almost midnight and that didn't improve the bad experience!

 

I would appreciate any input.

 

Is this the norm even thought the website says hour and a half?

We're we eating to late?

Or should I expect more time since the Epic is so large!

 

 

Thank you!

[Mack704]

My suggestion would be to tell them you need to limit your time there. If they new ahead of time you had to be at the splash academy, or anywhere else for that matter. (A show time, for example), they would hustle up and shorten your dinner time, I would think.

 

Harvey

[darkprayer]

My suggestion would be to tell them you need to limit your time there. If they new ahead of time you had to be at the splash academy, or anywhere else for that matter. (A show time, for example), they would hustle up and shorten your dinner time, I would think.

 

Harvey

 

They actually knew. They always had some excuse for why it was taking so long. Short on servers, short on cooks. Place is full, we are trying.....ect.

 

So, is it the norm to keep you there for a long time? Have you had better success at telling you them that you are in a hurry cause I sure haven't!

[Hikini]

We just came off the Jewel 6 days ago and dined in specialty restaurants 4 different nights. We were not rushed, nor did our dining times drag on. I would say one hour to one hour 15 minutes was probably a good average. We could have stayed much longer if we'd have wanted to, of course.

 

Our experience on all NCL ships where we have gone to the specialty restaurants is that the service is very good and if we're in there for longer than 90 minutes, it is due to us talking and relaxing a lot.

[TrumpyNor]

We have always the majority of our dinners in a specialty restaurant, and it usually takes 1,5 hours in total, if it takes longer, then it has been our choice (wanting to finish the wine or something to that nature).

 

So if you plan on using 2 hours you should be fine - it will probably be quicker than that. :)

[roger001]

We figure about 1 1/2 hrs without hurrying. Last cruise we told the staff we needed to hurry because of a show later. We were out in 45 minutes.

[mypleasure]

We usually stay for 2 hours but that is because we want to and don't have to be anywhere. I think if I wanted to get out quickly to meet another deadline I would be hustling the staff, calling the ships Restaurant Manager, Food and Beverage Manager and maybe the Hotel Director. All of those people would want to know your problem and would do something about it.

[rednose83]

We had UDP on BA in May. We ate at Specialties every night at six and always had plenty of time to make the shows. I don't think it ever took longer than an hour....I don't have patience for that and would have noticed.

[quillwercruisers]

Our dining experiences at the specialties have never been a bad experience. We have never had to wait that long for dinner to be finished. Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience. :(

 

I would say that experience should not be the norm.

[LrgPizza]

We were generally out in right around an hour, or 90 minutes at the most. Cagney's took 2 hours, but that was because of a really bad server.

[dexddd]

Our experience (other than Teppanyaki) is they are very inconsistent in both service and food quality. Generally allowing 2 hours you should be safe.

[Vyhanek]

I think you've been really lucky to have eaten in the main dining rooms and been out in less than 2 hours!

 

My experience from 16 NCL cruises is that it is incredibly rare to get out of the main dining room for dinner in under 2 hours. If you want to make the shows, you'd have a better shot in the specialty dining.

[darkprayer]

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and your advice!!!