Luminae on Summit

[Eburg]

Going on the charter cruise on Summit this Saturday and trying to decide whether to buy the 5 night dining charter package which includes Luminae dining. Is the food worth it. I've read disappointing review on Tuscan so I'm more interested in using the package at Luminae.

[bigreckster]

We were on the Jan. cruise aboard Summit from San Juan and ate all our dinners in Luminae except one night at Tuscan Grill. We do this cruise every year and had eaten every night in Normandie on past cruises...the best experience ever! Well, Tuscan Grill is certainly not Normandie and was a disappointment. Food was okay, service marginal and the wine service lacking. We loved Luminae with it's varied menu, wonderful wine selctions from Ingrid, our sommelier and would recommend it highly.

[Gonzo70]

We had a very positive experience at Luminae in early December of '16 on Summit. Dined there five nights; one night each at Tuscan and Qsine and much preferred Luminae over Tuscan and Qsine. Nice ambiance, very good service and solid cuisine. Not on par with an upscale land restaurant (very hard to do for a cruise ship since the menu is a "corporate" menu being copied by the on-board chef rather than playing to the strength of the chef in-house and utilizing local and seasonal ingredients - the menu also often relies too much on sauces rather than having the star ingredient shine). That said we found Luminae to be a large step up from the main dining room across the board (ambiance, service and food quality) and a small step up from the other specialty venues. We did miss Normandie as have greatly enjoyed Normandie's sister restaurants on other Celebrity ships; was very sad at the decision to change Normandie to the vastly inferior Tuscan Grille rather than to modernize Normandie.

[JMG]

Last year on Summit we tried to get a reservation at Tuscan but they only had a few tables for 2 so we were out of luck. When we looked at the menu...it did not appear to be close to what we enjoyed at the Normandie.

 

We tried Quisine. A lot depends on the waiter. Our waiter preferred to bring us his choices instead of what we selected. It was good but we saw other tables getting some of the things we selected and I felt like we really missed something that might have been great. So, last time we do Quisine.

 

This time on Summit...we will stick to Luminae and spend our $$$ at the spa on massages!

 

It is so sad that they chose to remove the Normadie on the Summit and replace it with Tuscan Grill. The lobster served at the Normadie (and Muranos) was fabulous. Unfortunately, Summit does not have Muranos and when we dined at Muranos on Silly...they gave us seats in an area where the wall was adjacent to the band at the bar. We ended up cancelling our reservations the rest of the week based on that pounding to the beat "loud" seating area.

 

We are not demanding passengers..but we do like good food and a quiet atmosphere while we are dining.

[PostcardJar]

Luminae is the best option by far. We were on for the Holiday cruise from Christmas to New Year and we had a wonderful experience. We've also dined in Luminae on Eclipse and Equinox...and it is head and shoulders above other venues.

 

And the person who mentioned Ingrid is 100% correct...she is the best sommelier we've had on 5 cruises. We quit even trying to pick wine...we just told her what we'd ordered and she brought the best thing.

[Fish Lover]

Are the menus the same in the MDR, BLU and Luminae during charter cruises?

[PostcardJar]

We've never done a charter cruise, so I have no idea what the menu is.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Eburg]

Thanks everyone. Decided to book the 5 night package as it will be a great opportunity to dine in Luminae.

[marycruz]

We were on the Jan. cruise aboard Summit from San Juan and ate all our dinners in Luminae except one night at Tuscan Grill. We do this cruise every year and had eaten every night in Normandie on past cruises...the best experience ever! Well, Tuscan Grill is certainly not Normandie and was a disappointment. Food was okay, service marginal and the wine service lacking. We loved Luminae with it's varied menu, wonderful wine selctions from Ingrid, our sommelier and would recommend it highly.

 

I thought the Luminae was only for suite guests? Did they open it up like the other specialty restaurants on all the ships?

[Gonzo70]

I thought the Luminae was only for suite guests? Did they open it up like the other specialty restaurants on all the ships?

 

The OP is on a charter; on charters oftentimes there are some different policies in place than would be on a normal cruise. Luminae on non-chartered cruises is still suites only (though suite passengers may bring guests for a fee on a space available basis).

[marycruz]

The OP is on a charter; on charters oftentimes there are some different policies in place than would be on a normal cruise. Luminae on non-chartered cruises is still suites only (though suite passengers may bring guests for a fee on a space available basis).

 

Thanks - that makes sense then.

[cruiserone]

OK reading the posts I was surprised that there was a package deal for the ship. I was wondering if passenger was in a suite. I guess the whole ship is chartered and they relax the rules for them. Not aware of that.

 

By the way we love Luminae and Normandie and would highly recommend eating in either one. Never a bad meal in either.

 

Happy Sailing!

[Eburg]

Yes this was my understanding that it's a special offered to non suite guests as it's a full ship charter for the Blue Notes at Sea cruise. I've been on Summit before and dined in Normandie and wish it was still there! Not sure if we'll try Tuscan on Summit although I really enjoyed it on Reflection. Will probably just take advantage of being able to dine in Luminae.