Fix Anytime Dining

[SadieN]

One way Princess differs from some other cruise lines (such as CCL and RCCL) is that Princess has a limit of how many people can sign up for traditional dining at each seating and if that limit is reached, others will be "forced" into anytime even if they do not want it.

 

The other cruise lines mentioned have a limit on how many people are assigned to anytime and, if that limit is reached, others will be "forced" into traditional.

 

On one CCL cruise this year there were a number of very unhappy passengers who wanted anytime but were assigned to late traditional.

 

Carnival rarely, if ever, allows TD diners into the ATD MDR. At the hostess stand you'll be asked for your cabin or folio number. Your number is entered into the computer. Any special requests are printed out and given to your wait staff.

Edited September 26, 2016 by SadieN

[shredie]

I agree with you. But, apparently, there are posters here who stand

outside the anytime dining rooms and inspect the cruise cards of the

passengers entering, so that they can post here about the problem.

 

Haha! :D

[DougandEric]

We usually eat about 7:30 so we just go to the TD/ATD dining room at 7:30 or later and have not had to wait more than a couple of minutes ever. On the Royal, the ATD dining room was handing out beepers and we were told at least 30 minutes. We went to the other dining room and got right in.

 

 

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[moki'smommy]

The bottom line is that the "problem" will be fixed only if Princess decides to view it as a problem. I can cite multiple issues on multiple cruise lines that could be fixed easily IF the cruise line decided to fix them. As long as the line doesn't feel it is an issue, or at least not one worthy of the effort and risk of offending come passengers, it will not be fixed.

[GRAYTech]

I agree with you. But, apparently, there are posters here who stand outside the anytime dining rooms and inspect the cruise cards of the passengers entering, so that they can post here about the problem.

 

So some of the passengers really do know more than the rest of us...

[GRAYTech]

Yes. That is the solution. Every ship should have a total MDR capacity of 3,800-4,200 so that if everyone decides to eat at the same time, there will be space for all. Of course, if normal eating patterns prevail and people naturally stagger out their preferred dining times, the MDRs will be 2/3rds empty. But that's OK. The cruise line shouldn't worry too much about dedicating that much open space to a non-revenue producing black hole....

 

Not to mention potentially doubling the kitchen facilities, chefs and wait staff to accommodate everyone at the same time.

[jdeanski]

So some of the passengers really do know more than the rest of us...

 

In my business I deal with the general public and believe me there are those types!

[GRAYTech]

I try to go through life as a problem solver and was honestly just trying to be helpful.

[floridalover5623]

How is allowing reservations making the playing field uneven when everyone has the option of making a reservation....just like a land based restaurant??

 

They only give out a certain number of reservations each day and then tell the people to just show up at the door for seating.

 

The whole reservation thing slows down the dining room anyway. It holds up a table while people are standing at the door wanting to eat. I really believe that it should be done away with altogether. Let people line up at the door when they're ready to be seated. That's what they do with tender tickets so why not with seating in the DR.

[PoohUnderstands]

Just got off the Ruby on the 18th from a 7 day Alaska cruise and the Anytime Dining was anything but. What was so amusing was the first time we used it (on the third day of our cruise as we ate elsewhere first two days), the first thing the matre d' asked me was did I have a reservation?!!!!!!!! Since I am new to all this stuff, I told him I was Anytime and therefore hadn't made a reservation. He then told me that there was no availability(???) and this was at 7:10pm, for the rest of the night? He then sent me upstairs to the traditional dining room that became an anytime at 7:30...... was very confusing to me! I then asked him in all seriousness, that then from what I was being told, that there was no such thing as Anytime Dining and he kinda smiled and nodded his head. So we ate in speciality dining except for one other night and that was kinda reserved in that they were cooking our salmon that we had caught on a tour.

 

All in all I take this out of the whole experience. Do traditional if you can stand eating at 5:30 as there are no more 6PM dinners as far as I can tell, or call as soon as you get on board and make reservations for the time you want for each night of Anytime dining!!!!!!!!!! Or just eat in speciality dining as much as you can!

 

Pooh

[JimmyVWine]

They only give out a certain number of reservations each day and then tell the people to just show up at the door for seating.

 

The whole reservation thing slows down the dining room anyway. It holds up a table while people are standing at the door wanting to eat. I really believe that it should be done away with altogether. Let people line up at the door when they're ready to be seated. That's what they do with tender tickets so why not with seating in the DR.

 

In some ways it is more complicated than that, and in other ways it is more simple. You will note that they do not allow reservations in the middle of a service. At least, I have never seen that happen. So if they offer a reservation time at, say, 5:30, this doesn't slow anything down (as long as the person arrives on time), as the table to which the people with the reservation will be shown will be unoccupied. The Head Waiter could either walk a group from the single file line to that table, or he could walk the group that made the reservation. From the restaurant's perspective, it matters not one bit. An empty table is now a full table. Nothing has been slowed down. The group at the front of the line might not like the fact that they have been passed over, but a person in that group could have been one of the people to get a reservation had they called in the morning. They haven't been "cheated". Only outmaneuvered. Besides. At 5:30, the group that got "passed over" is probably going to be seated almost immediately (or at least as fast as the staff can reasonably show people to tables.) So there is little sympathy to be had for people who show up at 5:30. They are going to get seated pretty quickly.

 

The same thing happens when a group makes a reservation for around 7:30. What is so special about this time? The restaurant knows from experience that a good number of tables will be ready for their second flight of diners by then. The people who were seated between 5:30 and 6:00 will have finished their meal, and enough time will have passed such that the servers can clear and reset that table. So assume that the table became ready for occupancy at 7:20 and is reserved for a 7:30 arrival. To the extent that anything has been slowed down, it is only that one table to the tune of 10 minutes. And if the people who reserved the table check in at the podium 5 minutes early, they will be shown to their table and the "slow down" is only 5 minutes. Again, the Head Waiter could have pulled someone from the line to sit at that table at 7:20, or given it to the group who reserved it upon their arrival at 7:25 or 7:30. From the restaurant's perspective, there is no difference. From a numbers perspective, a table went from occupied to cleaned to occupied again with almost no down time with Swiss precision. The only person to whom this matters is the person who watches the people with the reservation glide by them. But this is a "diner issue" and not a "restaurant issue". Someone asked earlier "Why doesn't the cruise line fix the problem?" Because from their perspective, there isn't a problem. Tables are being turned over at almost complete efficiency, and whatever inefficiency might exist is largely invisible to them.

 

As long as reservations are only allocated during the times when tables would logically be turning over, there is very little to no inefficiency. Now, if the restaurant were to start holding tables for 6:15 arrivals where the table sits unused from 5:15-6:15, then yes, this would be horribly inefficient. But they don't do that. At least, I've never seen it done.

 

So while it might be the case that land-based restaurants that allow for reservations at every conceivable hour are operating inefficiently**, this is not the case when reservations are only allowed at set intervals that coincide with the natural arrival and departure times of guests.

 

**Restaurants allow for this inefficiency because their kitchens cannot keep pace with a full restaurant. Most restaurants only want to be no more than half full upon opening, working their way up to higher capacity as the evening progresses. But even then, they never want a full restaurant where everyone is on the same course at the same time. They couldn't keep up with the orders. They need a certain percentage to be on apps and another percentage to be on mains, and another percentage to be on desserts and another percentage to be mulling around over coffee or after dinner drinks. A cruise ship galley can handle a bigger load, so they don't mind if most of the MDR fills up all at once. In the "real world", this would be a problem.

[XBGuy]

I love these "What's Wrong with ATD" threads.

 

If the problem is that TD diners are using the ATD dining rooms, then Mrs. XBGuy and I must be part of the solution.

 

We always select ATD. We stopped eating in the dining rooms in 2012.

 

On our upcoming California Coastal Cruise, our dining plans will, probably, look something like this:

 

• Saturday, Embarkation -- Share
   
  
• Sunday, At Sea -- UBD (It's our 40th Wedding Anniversary. :))
   
  
• Monday, San Francisco -- We'll probably have a very nice lunch or dinner at La Mar, an outstanding Peruvian Restaurant next to the Ferry Building. If we lunch there, we won't need much for dinner--room service will do.
   
  
• Tuesday, At Sea -- Probably, Crown Grill.
   
  
• Wednesday, Santa Barbara -- We've never tried the Salty Dog. This might be a good opportunity to do so.
   
  
• Thursday, San Diego -- We're planning to meet my brother and his wife for lunch. So, again, I won't need much for dinner. A couple glasses of wine and some Tapas/Sushi at Vines might do it.
   
  
• Friday, Ensenada -- If Share was as good as I expect it to be, we'll, probably, do it again. If not, a second visit to Crown Grill or Salty Dog may be up.
  

 

In addition to Salty Dog, we've never tried the Crab Shack. Since that is not an everyday thing, it is difficult to plan for it. If it works out for us, that would certainly be an option for us some night.

 

My wife absolutely loves Room Service. So, I know we will be doing that at least one evening. Believe it or not, she will get excited about ordering a Tuna Sandwich with French Fries if she knows that it will be delivered and she can eat it sitting on the bed. :)

 

And, I confess, I lied above. On our cruise last April we ate in the dining room for the first time in years--and we did it twice. On embarcation, we had lunch. Normally, we go to the Trident Grill, order a hambuger with fries, grab a table and watch people scurry by. Just for something different, I suggested we try the dining room. All the cool people on Cruise Critic insist that going to the dining room for lunch on embarcation day is just the berries. Sadly, our experience, pretty much, confirmed several things we dislike about the dining room.

 

We asked for a two-top. No problem we were seated at a two-top. Then another couple was seated at the next table.

 

As has been stated many times here on Cruise Critic, the two-tops in the dining rooms are pretty close. This new couple insisted on engaging us, regaling us with their stories about:

 

• Their grandkids. Even when we explained that we were DINKs, they could not take the hint.
  
• Why sailing on Holland American is so awful.
  
• How they have optimized the disembarcation by beating the crowd and walking off the ship so that they can get to their car and be home by about 9:00 am.
  

 

We just don't care, folks.

 

Now, to go along with this, Mrs. XBGuy ordered a vegie-burger for lunch. She took one bite, decided it was just awful and ignored the rest. I have to say that the waitress tried very hard to bring her something else, but that would mean that we would have to sit there longer. We, honestly, wanted to limit our time with our neighbors.

 

Mrs. XBGuy did not go hungry, after the muster drill we made ourselves comfortable on our balcony, opened a bottle of sparking wine that we'd brought and noshed on the cheese platter that I had pre-ordered.

 

We also had our first ever Chef's Table experience on that cruise. In that program, of course, you do, eventually, make your way to the dining room for a tableside-prepared meal. While the meal was certainly wonderful, that experience was, again, degraded by tablemates. There seemed to be an unfortunate competition over who had been on the most exclusive cruise or who had visited the best restaurant. Pretty tedious.

 

So, again, let me reach around to pat myself on the back for being part of the solution.

[paul929207]

If they are going to accept reservations, they should only allow someone to reserve a time or a table, not both. Tables can be left empty for an hour or more waiting until the group's time arrives. If they must have a specific table, then they should have to wait for it to come available.

[IECalCruiser]

If they are going to accept reservations, they should only allow someone to reserve a time or a table, not both. Tables can be left empty for an hour or more waiting until the group's time arrives. If they must have a specific table, then they should have to wait for it to come available.

In our experience reservations can only be made for the first half hour after the DR opens or after 7:30/8:00, even when in a full suite with " preferred Anytime Dining reservations." They also release the reservation within 10-15 minutes of the reserved time. I have no problem with this. We will do this when it is just the two of us and we want the same waitstaff but only eat in the DR about half of the time. With just the two of us we are out of the DR in a little over an hour and that two top in ATD can be turned three times or maybe even four times compared to two times in TD. When with a larger group in ATD we have often seen the two tops turn twice before we left.

 

As others have posted, Princess ATD is "anytime" other than 6:00 to 7:30 when you will most probably need to wait for a while.

 

 

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[shredie]

XBGuy: that room service tuna sandwich is pretty good, and the DR vegeburger is easily the worst thing I ever ate. Mrs.XB has the right idea. :D

[Alaskan Joe]

My wife and I have only 87 days left until we take our first Princess cruise:). After reading this thread I think what I will do is go undercover, yes you heard me right "undercover". We have and always do TD early seating, I think after dinner this time we will head to the AD and try to get a seat for 2 just to see if they will seat me although I have not signed up for AD:eek:. Oh wait we could stand there and talk out loud to each other saying, "Wow I can't believe we signed up for TD and came to AD anyways and we are next to be seated":eek:......LoL Before anyone blast me on here I am KIDDING about saying that, I would be too scared to do that as fellow guest may give me the death stare or worst yet, throw me over board.

[Hlitner]

If they are going to accept reservations, they should only allow someone to reserve a time or a table, not both. Tables can be left empty for an hour or more waiting until the group's time arrives. If they must have a specific table, then they should have to wait for it to come available.

 

We have watched passengers, who had reserved both a time a specific table/waiter.....rant when they were told they had to wait. They did not want to hear the explanation (that earlier diners were taking their time) and also did not want to accept another table. So these folks could not be satisfied no matter what.... and we thought (at the time) that the ship would have to keep that table empty (all the time) to accommodate these folks. Personally, we would like to see reservations totally eliminated from Select (Anytime) Dining. You just show-up when you please and get seated when they have room. If you want to wait an hour for a 2-top...then fine. If you are willing to share a large table...then fine. If you have a group of 8 who wants their own table...then fine.

 

We have a friend who is a Dining Room Manager on another cruise line and he doesn't have anything good to say about reservations and open dining schemes.

 

Hank

[cruzsnooze]

If NCL can run there freestyle dining so efficiently so can Princess IF they want to.

[pablo222]

My wife and I have only 87 days left until we take our first Princess cruise:). After reading this thread I think what I will do is go undercover, yes you heard me right "undercover". We have and always do TD early seating, I think after dinner this time we will head to the AD and try to get a seat for 2 just to see if they will seat me although I have not signed up for AD:eek:.

 

If anyone at the door asks to see your cruise card,

ask to see their laminex -- just to make sure they

are an actual employee, and not a cruise critic spy.

[Loonbeam]

NCL has the advantage of onboard tech (as does RCCL) that Princess has chosen not to implement, plus with no traditional dining there is no need to attempt to balance the two groups, which lets them use space more effectively....

 

If NCL can run there freestyle dining so efficiently so can Princess IF they want to.

[Bruin Steve]

NCL has the advantage of onboard tech (as does RCCL) that Princess has chosen not to implement, plus with no traditional dining there is no need to attempt to balance the two groups, which lets them use space more effectively....

 

Better to compare Princess to Celebrity--which, similarly, has both anytime and traditional--and manages it very effectively with very few waits...But also checks ID at the door and turns away diners with traditional assignments from the anytime section.

[PrincessLuver]

Better to compare Princess to Celebrity--which, similarly, has both anytime and traditional--and manages it very effectively with very few waits...But also checks ID at the door and turns away diners with traditional assignments from the anytime section.

 

I wish they would do this too and then I think the problem would be fixed!!!

[2pbears]

We were on the Ruby with the OP (3 day cruise) and on the four day cruise following. We found that if we showed up at the Da Vinci dining room (TD until 7:30) between 7:30 and 8:00 we could ask for a table for two and be seated immediately. HOWEVER, there was one evening when we arrived shortly before 8:00 and were told that the wait for a table for two would be more than one hour :eek: It just so happened that on that particular evening the dining room was exceptionally busy (as can often happen at restaurants on land). We reluctantly shared a table for six. I say reluctantly not because we object to socializing with others but because we find that the meal takes so much longer with six to eight people than it does with two people. Please don't flame me or express condolences that DH and I cannot allow ourselves to relax and enjoy a leisurely meal as that is not the case. In this particular instance the dinner lasted 2-1/2 hours as one of the diners sent her steak back to the dining room and had to wait for another to be delivered and the waiter sent two of the Curtis Stone dishes back to the kitchen because she didn't like the way they looked. DH and I usually order only two courses but we sat through the four courses that were ordered by our table mates. No shows or entertainment that evening folks.

 

That said, this was one evening only, where for some unknown reason a large number of diners showed up at the dining room at the same time. It happens. In fact the same thing happened with the tenders for Catalina. When we arrived at the staging area there were over 500 passengers waiting to tender ashore. Everyone had decided to go ashore at approximately the same time. It took about an hour and a half to get onto a tender even though Princess put additional boats into service to handle the rush. These things happen and, like the dining room issues, they just have to be dealt with.

 

I will go on record as saying that I DO feel that Princess should check room cards at the door to ATD. Make your choice--ATD or TD-- and live with it. I also have no objections to reservations for ATD. We have rarely done this as we usually are able to figure out a system for getting a table for two without waiting (it's all a matter of timing) but if we felt it was necessary we would not hesitate to make reservations.

[pablo222]

Everyone had decided to go ashore at approximately the same time.

 

Wow, those traditional diners are crashing the tenders, too!

[GRAYTech]

Wow, those traditional diners are crashing the tenders, too!

 

Ahh Ha! I think I might be finally starting to understand how Princess works...