Evening chic / At Sea /Specialty Restaurants

[emsachs]

Hi all,

New to Celbrity and just booked our Reflection cruise to Eastern Med in September and had a question regarding "at sea" nights. On HAL/Princess, at sea nights were usually "formal nights" and had a great menu in the MDR. (Lobster tail, etc...). How does this work on Celebrity? I am getting the feeling that "specialty restaurants" are the way to go. Is this a good option for "at sea" nights or would we be missing MDR that night?

We are definitely "in" for a couple specialty nights and booked in 1b verandah so would like to make a reservation or 2 now. If we book now and a discount is offered would we get back the difference?

Any info and insight helps.....

Thanks

[dkjretired]

Hi all,

New to Celbrity and just booked our Reflection cruise to Eastern Med in September and had a question regarding "at sea" nights. On HAL/Princess, at sea nights were usually "formal nights" and had a great menu in the MDR. (Lobster tail, etc...). How does this work on Celebrity? I am getting the feeling that "specialty restaurants" are the way to go. Is this a good option for "at sea" nights or would we be missing MDR that night?

We are definitely "in" for a couple specialty nights and booked in 1b verandah so would like to make a reservation or 2 now. If we book now and a discount is offered would we get back the difference?

Any info and insight helps.....

Thanks

 

All specialty restaurants on Celebrity are "smart casual" every night of the cruise. "Evening chic" does not apply at all in the Specialties. With that being said you are free to wear anything above smart casual.

 

 

Celebrity used to try and have the formal nights on at sea days but also very often has them on port days depending on the circumstances.

 

I would try the MDR, my own opinion is they are not worth it anymore, prices too high for what you get. Also, menus don't change.

Edited January 14, 2016 by dkjretired

[north29]

We are not "true" foodies however prefer quality over quantity, and have tried the specialty restaurants on many ships both RC and X. Yes, they can be a great change from the MDR depending on the cruise i.e. big families/groups etc. In our opinion they are not really worth the extra expense, for they have been hit or miss with service and quality of food.

I suggest you give one a try, and build your own opinion, since no one knows your taste or what you expect from the Specialty restaurants.

PS you might be able to bargain at leasts a 20% discount on them.

[ClaudiaB]

Well here's a different opinion: We like them. We will usually go to each one during a cruise, just because we feel it's part of the overall cruise experience. The service will be better and you can more easily receive custom off-menu items. I know you can get discounts for them, either by staff offering or by asking. There's a thread on this page about that very thing. Sometimes we've gotten groups together from our Roll Call and had a great time eating in Tuscan or Qsine.

 

We haven't eaten in the MDR in many cruises (we book suites or Aqua and eat in Blu or Luminae or the specialties) but they didn't seem that special on formal nights. We always booked specialty restaurants on those evenings because they seem more special anyway.

 

I think a mix of MDR (whatever your assigned main dining room is) and the other restaurants makes for a more interesting cruise and we always budget that in. We usually get a lot of on board credit from our TA and from booking on a cruise, so that's what we use to pay for it.

[upwarduk]

We have never tried a Speciality resteraunt ( my husband says the MDR is special enough) but have noticed that tables are set up when you embark and discounts are offered ( usually 20%)

Many people wait until embarkation to book, as they use OBC and this cannot be used when pre booking via the Internet.

On our last cruise, the Maitre 'D came around in the MDR trying to get us to book, about half way through the cruise. Even bigger discounts were offered.

 

I am Lactose Intolerant, the waiter was very attentive and took my order for the next night every evening. I'm not sure if I would get similar service in a Speciality resteraunt, as I have seen menus and consider there to be very little choice for me.

 

More help here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2300140

Edited January 14, 2016 by upwarduk

[SuiteTraveler]

I think the MDR menus are better on At Sea nights. Of the specialty restaurants, we liked QSine better than Murano, but QSine is a LOT of food and it is better to go with at least 4 people, if not 6. Even so, there are so many foods in QSine, and you can't try them all in one go.

 

Murano, I found the recipes a bit dated and overly fussy - like something from the early 1990's. I'm a chef and my husband and I are foodies and to our amusement, we had a waiter who kept explaining not only the food, but how to eat the food - as in eat this first and this second and this third. I generally believe that if you must give your diners instructions on what order to eat the items in a single course, then the dish needs to be reconstructed and plated more logically so that the diner will naturally eat it in the "right" order. Otherwise, let the diner decide how they will eat the course. The waiter's consistent instructions throughout the meal, had both my husband and I laughing behind his back. It was very over the top and hard to keep a straight face at times. The sommelier was much, much better, very knowledgeable and gave excellent service throughout the meal. The restaurant was lovely.