Are the specialty restaurants getting crowded?

[new2cruising2006]

Now with the UDP and the free dining promos I was wondering if it is difficult to get reservations at the specialty restaurants and they are becoming overcrowded. Just wondering if I should choose that option when I book.

[TheDougOut]

My experience on the BA last August.... the specialty restaurants were booked solid other than the fringe early/late times. There was very little availability by late afternoon on boarding day.

 

During the cruise I never saw more than 2/3 of tables full at any given time in any specialty restaurant. We'd show up to some of our ressies at prime times only to find a restaurant half full.

 

I suspect there was some type of manipulation going on. We could only get teppanyaki reservations for after 9pm. I checked in at the podium around 8, and was told we could be seated immediately. The place was a ghost town.

Edited November 12, 2015 by TheDougOut
Pre-coffee typo

[TheDougOut]

Should have mentioned... don't let possible reservation issues prevent you from getting SDP. We could get plenty of reservations in advance. If you can't get a time you want, I suggest getting the first available and try showing up at the desired time to check in.

[hypercafe]

We were on the Gem last month. I made some reservations the first day and moved one around during the trip and had no trouble. We eat early, 6 0r 6:30 however the rooms were not packed, as others have said maybe half to 2/3 full.

Edited November 12, 2015 by hypercafe

[punkincc]

My experience on the BA last August.... the specialty restaurants were booked solid other than the fringe early/late times. There was very little availability by late afternoon on boarding day.

 

During the cruise I never saw more than 2/3 of tables full at any given time in any specialty restaurant. We'd show up to some of our ressies at prime times only to find a restaurant half full.

 

I suspect there was some type of manipulation going on. We could only get teppanyaki reservations for after 9pm. I checked in at the podium around 8, and was told we could be seated immediately. The place was a ghost town.

 

If "manipulation" is the fact that they do not book these venues solid, but hold out a percentage of tables for people who do not like to make reservations or pre plan, then yes, there is manipulation. Not very Freestyle if every restaurant were totally sold out for the week on day 1 or even pre cruise.

 

Teppanyaki may be the exception as there is a very limited number of seatings available on each evening. Other than that, there's a good chance you can be seated at any other restaurant with no reservation just by walking up.

[newmexicoNita]

We were on the Gem last month. I made some reservations the first day and moved one around during the trip and had no trouble. We eat early, 6 0r 6:30 however the rooms were not packed, as others have said maybe half to 2/3 full.

 

wow, we were on the Jewel a few weeks ago and it the only restaurant that wasn't full by 6:30 or so was the Italian restaurant. Le Bistro was completely full by 7pm both nights we ate there and so was Cagney's. And Modernos was pretty full as well.

 

OP, if you want to dine by 6pm or after about 8pm you should be ok. And yes, they do hold a few tables back for people who just walk up and want to eat, but don't count on this by anymeans. Of course for Le Bistro they have normally, for many years been pretty full most of the time after about 6:30pm.

[TheDougOut]

If "manipulation" is the fact that they do not book these venues solid, but hold out a percentage of tables for people who do not like to make reservations or pre plan, then yes, there is manipulation. Not very Freestyle if every restaurant were totally sold out for the week on day 1 or even pre cruise.

 

Teppanyaki may be the exception as there is a very limited number of seatings available on each evening. Other than that, there's a good chance you can be seated at any other restaurant with no reservation just by walking up.

 

I honestly didn't know that. I was under the impression that if there was no reservation availability at a restaurant then there wasn't availability at all. I've likely even misinterpreted the interactive displays... thinking the "red" icon meant no availability. I'm laughing at myself, because what you say makes sense and I have no idea where my previous beliefs originated from.

 

You mention Teppanyaki is the possible exception. When we were seated at 8pm, with reservations for after 9, there were only 2 tables (15 and 15) occupied in the other room, with every other table in the venue empty. It was eerily quiet, which was a surprise when we were told there was no availability for the earlier time we wanted.

 

Thanks for the info!

[mking8288]

To put it differently, it's not available to book due NOT to fully booked, rather it's a staffing issue - not necessary occupancy limits, but capacity restrictions. Sat thru dinner in LeBistro numerous times when the place is barely 2/3 full while we ate dinner, typically lasting 1.5+ hours.

 

Not enough having servers & assistants around. :eek: Had seen walk-ups with no reservations, tried to get seated pointing to the empty tables while talking to the host/ess - and turned away to go elsewhere.

 

Those that are staying in Haven used to be have very solid success in getting a table, but - lately, not even a sure thing as some reported here on CC so YMMV. If sailing on a ship with iConcierge, use that immediately upon boarding to check on all specialty availability instead of standing in line - be flexible, grab those 5:30 or 9:00 or 9:30 pm slots if open, or else, join the buffet & MDR crowds. :D

[snoozcroozr]

I presume most of the people got the booze package so they will be passed out in the MDR or buffet instead of the specialty restaurants.

 

As for being able to get tables as walk ups. When I booked the specialty restaurants online, I was able to only get tables after 8pm. I was wondering if I can walk up earlier, and if I can get a table, cancel my reservation for the later time right there on the spot without penalty. From their reservation fine print, if I am a no show or cancel less than 24hr ahead of time, I will be charged for the reservation.

[NLH Arizona]

wow, we were on the Jewel a few weeks ago and it the only restaurant that wasn't full by 6:30 or so was the Italian restaurant. Le Bistro was completely full by 7pm both nights we ate there and so was Cagney's. And Modernos was pretty full as well.

 

OP, if you want to dine by 6pm or after about 8pm you should be ok. And yes, they do hold a few tables back for people who just walk up and want to eat, but don't count on this by anymeans. Of course for Le Bistro they have normally, for many years been pretty full most of the time after about 6:30pm.

Even last November, the restaurants, sans La Cucina (think that might change when the new menus are released, which look really good), were pretty much booked during prime dining times. If you wanted to eat at 9:00, it was always wide open.

[Va. Plumber]

I suspect some of what is going on is called restaurant management.

 

Have you ever gone to a land-based restaurant and seen empty tables while you stood waiting? They were probably trying to avoid over-loading the wait-staff and the kitchen.

 

I( am sure none of you have seen reviews here with complaints about slow service and amount of time dinner took.

[FranknBeans]

I suspect some of what is going on is called restaurant management.

 

Have you ever gone to a land-based restaurant and seen empty tables while you stood waiting? They were probably trying to avoid over-loading the wait-staff and the kitchen.

 

I( am sure none of you have seen reviews here with complaints about slow service and amount of time dinner took.

 

We have seen the half full scenario on many many cruises long before the dining pkgs were ever offered and always wondered why we could not get the time slot we wanted. We have only ever eaten in the specialty dining venues since cruising with NCL.

[drvalo]

I presume most of the people got the booze package so they will be passed out in the MDR or buffet instead of the specialty restaurants.

 

As for being able to get tables as walk ups. When I booked the specialty restaurants online, I was able to only get tables after 8pm. I was wondering if I can walk up earlier, and if I can get a table, cancel my reservation for the later time right there on the spot without penalty. From their reservation fine print, if I am a no show or cancel less than 24hr ahead of time, I will be charged for the reservation.

 

I was able to make a reservation at my "undesired" later time and walked up at the time I wanted and got a table. I just let the maître d know about my later reservation...no problem. In fact, the reservations person on the ship (Epic) suggested I do that. YMMV

[snoozcroozr]

thanks drvalo, I was hoping we can do that (reply with quote doesn't seem to be working).

 

I also have placed a SDP reservation as kind of a bookmarker so that I can upgrade that for Oceans Blue once I get on board (since they only take CC if I prebook that). I think that probably require cancellation and re-booking due fees involved.

[Moby0215]

On the breakaway this past September, had no trouble making a reservation the day of for Moderno and Teppanyaki. I'm guessing the cruises where people are saying that the reservations are booked solid are the real busy booked solid cruises. So it would depend on if the cruise you are on is at full capacity.

 

 

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[drvalo]

thanks drvalo, I was hoping we can do that (reply with quote doesn't seem to be working).

 

I also have placed a SDP reservation as kind of a bookmarker so that I can upgrade that for Oceans Blue once I get on board (since they only take CC if I prebook that). I think that probably require cancellation and re-booking due fees involved.

 

yeah, if you change restaurants, that probably would trigger the fee if you don't cancel in time. But who knows really? You will just have to figure it out when you get on board. At least you have a reservation for something!

Edited November 12, 2015 by drvalo

[BirdTravels]

So,,,, whether you book a table at 5:30, 6:00, or 6:30, the restaurant has to hold that table open for you from opening. Some percentage of tables are for people showing up later or people that are quick and left.

 

 

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[dshefter]

Was able to book all of our specialty restaurants online for our January Gem sailing out of NYC without an issue. Only issue was I could only book teppanyaki for 4 instead of 3. I will just cancel the one spot when we board the ship. Otherwise, reserved Cagneys for two nights and Moderno for one night for the three of us.

[NLH Arizona]

So,,,, whether you book a table at 5:30, 6:00, or 6:30, the restaurant has to hold that table open for you from opening. Some percentage of tables are for people showing up later or people that are quick and left.

 

 

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You reported on a different thread that you can only get 1 starter, 1 entree and 1 dessert with the SDP, is it the case. You reported this prior to Cagney's opening for dinner, so inquiring minds want to know what the real deal is.

 

Your post: Quote: Originally Posted by BirdTravels View Post

So I am on the Escape right now and you are WRONG. SDP provides a single app, entree, dessert. Not like the old UDP.

 

In fact, if you choose inexpensive items, the SDP can cost more than buying a la carte.

[cliffd64]

Just off the Star... booked two Cagney's visits in advance, and for all the others, there were no difficulties in getting reservations once on board. As soon as you know what day you want to go I would book quickly.

[jackparts]

We had the udp but lost it due to T/A. We have it agian since Nov 2 but it is probably the newer version. Do we still get to go from one specialty to another if we want without a charge?

[SuiteCruiser]

Last March, I was staying in the Haven and I couldn't get reservations on the first day for the week, even using the Concierge. All we could get was 5:30 or 6:00 or 9:00.

 

We asked him to let us know if there were any other openings that came up and there were none.

 

Restaurants were 1/2 empty then too. Very frustrating.

Edited November 13, 2015 by SuiteCruiser

[BirdTravels]

We had the udp but lost it due to T/A. We have it agian since Nov 2 but it is probably the newer version. Do we still get to go from one specialty to another if we want without a charge?

 

If you are on the new SDP, each stop counts against the total number of meals you purchased. If you go to 3 restaurants in one day, counts as 3 meals against your total of 7

[punkincc]

We had the udp but lost it due to T/A. We have it agian since Nov 2 but it is probably the newer version. Do we still get to go from one specialty to another if we want without a charge?

 

If you have the UDP, then yes you can, all 7 nights for as many visits as you wish. If it is the SDP, then it will be for a set number of "meals". If you have a 5 night plan and you visit two in one night, you will use 2 of your 5 meals. I would check with your TA to see what plan you have and for how many nights.

 

As far as the booking/walk up debate, we have booked our SDP dinners for the Escape, half at 6:00 and half at 8:00 with no problem. This is the first time we have had a package. We always mostly just did the walk ups with an occassional 'day of' reservation here and there. We have never walked up to a restaurant and been denied seating. Ever. We have waited a few minutes, but we are on vacation, so no hurry.

[NLH Arizona]

If you are on the new SDP, each stop counts against the total number of meals you purchased. If you go to 3 restaurants in one day, counts as 3 meals against your total of 7

You said before that at Cagney's you can only get a starter, an entree and a dessert. Is this correct or not?