Dining question... Buffet or Dining room, which nights to go for Buffet?

[KeepCalmBearOn]

On 11/8/2019 at 3:44 PM, Go-Bucks! said:

Right now I'm having dinner in the buffet on the Regal...it's formal night and I'm having filet mignon with glazed carrots and a salad. The filet is delicious! No need to spend 2 hrs in a dining room.

 

Onside kick leading by 50 points? Have you no shame sir? 😁

[Lady Arwen]

4 minutes ago, scottca075 said:

 

To each his own. For dinner my response would be ALWAYS (almost). I HATE getting dressed for dinner (which includes even putting long pants on), HATE waiting for courses and I like to get what I want, when I want, and the amount I like. The only times I might deviate are a steak one night or getting pizza/burger from the pool side pizza/burger place. When I do put on a coat, etc and eat at the MDR it is to please SWMBO.

To me, this just seems so ordinary.  No effort at all, just fill the plate, scarf it down, wear whatever you been wearing all day.  Of course if this is what floats your boat (pun intended) then have at it.  Not for us.

[MissP22]

6 minutes ago, Lady Arwen said:

To me, this just seems so ordinary.  No effort at all, just fill the plate, scarf it down, wear whatever you been wearing all day.  Of course if this is what floats your boat (pun intended) then have at it.  Not for us.

It's all what you make of it.

There no need to rush the meal. We always bring some with with us at the buffet & take our time, which is usually around a hour or less. If we had gone to the DR it would have taken 1 1/2 hours at the minimum with most of that time just waiting for the next course.

[Kansas Gal]

13 minutes ago, Lady Arwen said:

To me, this just seems so ordinary.  No effort at all, just fill the plate, scarf it down, wear whatever you been wearing all day.  Of course if this is what floats your boat (pun intended) then have at it.  Not for us.

We usually eat at the buffet, if what we have been wearing all day is still clean and comfortable, why not wear it?  And we never "scarf down" our food. If that makes us "so ordinary" in the eyes of elitists, I really don't care.

[keithm]

42 minutes ago, PoohUnderstands said:

Well, again, that is why there are many ways to eat on a cruise ship.  Well, then give me a name for another buffet chain and I will use that one!  Grin.  A buffet, is a buffet, is a buffet; and I just do not like them, I guess.

 

Pooh

Never been to the Bellagio buffet in Las Vegas? Or any of the big casinos? Buffets like Tavern on the square are pretty plain. We used to go to Sunday brunch at the Taj in Boston(hotel is now closed for remodel)It was about $85PP. High price for sure, but what you got was incredible. Same with Café Fleuri at the Langham Boston(closed for remodel, too) That & the views were grand. It's the old adage: You get what you pay for. The Royal class ships have in my opinion, the most varied buffet at sea. It gets crowded, but there is plenty of space to move around.

[BarbinMich]

On 11/7/2019 at 11:54 AM, USCcruisecrazy said:

Pretty much just utilize the Buffet for breakfast and lunch (on sea days)...but I would guess that the buffet is mostly the same choices every night, with a few exceptions.  I know some folks go there on Formal Nights to avoid dressing up and I think I've read those nights usually have some better choices.  One thing for sure...can't go wrong wherever you eat!!

We have eaten most of our dinners in the buffet and most like the theme nights (esp. Bavarian).  It's very uncrowded at dinner time and therefore quiet.  We partly do this because there are so many after-dinner activities, shows, etc. and we'd rather do those than spend an hour+ at dinner in the dining room.

[KeepCalmBearOn]

4 hours ago, Lady Arwen said:

To me, this just seems so ordinary.  No effort at all, just fill the plate, scarf it down, wear whatever you been wearing all day.  Of course if this is what floats your boat (pun intended) then have at it.  Not for us.

 

Everyone has their own "ordinary". I wear a suit 5 days a week, sometimes more. I travel on business100 days a year minimum, which means I am eating out in restaurants those nights, usually entertaining clients, plus all the eating out I do with clients locally. Eating in the MDR isn't special, especially not compared to the places I take clients; not even the "specialty" restaurants are special. Maybe if I lived some place without great restaurants the MDR would seem more special, but it just isn't.

[USCcruisecrazy]

8 hours ago, BarbinMich said:

We have eaten most of our dinners in the buffet and most like the theme nights (esp. Bavarian).  It's very uncrowded at dinner time and therefore quiet.  We partly do this because there are so many after-dinner activities, shows, etc. and we'd rather do those than spend an hour+ at dinner in the dining room.

That sounds like a pretty solid plan.  We like the MDR, though, because we like to relax and have an extended dinner with good conversation and a nice bottle of wine.

[AZ Ocean Lover]

We tend to eat most nights in the MDR, one in a specialty restaurant but recently we’ve enjoyed the buffet for an evening or two.  We don’t plan which nights we go, it’s usually just a spur of the moment decision based on how tired or relaxed we are.

[getting older slowly]

I wondered what this  ""Golden Corral""" had to google it....... ohhhhhhh    ( All You Can Eat ??? at a buffet !!!! )

 

All one can say is thank heavens  a cruise ship.......      has a selection of places to acquire food........

 

So everybody should be able to find somewhere they like to eat

 

and to answer the question   Buffet or Dining room ?.... please yourself ... it is totally up to you...

 

whatever floats your ship....

 

Cheers and enjoy your cruise

 

Don

 

[jimlouisesophie]

On 11/9/2019 at 1:20 PM, MrSchwump said:

Everyone is different and one of the best things about a cruise is the abundance of choices. For us, the MDR just takes too long.  It’s hard to take in the show in the theater if you dedicate 2 hours to dinner.

We’re very happy with the selection and quality of food in the buffet. Lots more bread and salad choices and a variety of entrees and sides. You can be in and out in 30 to 45 minutes, leaving lots of time for other evening activities. Plus you don’t have to get dressed up. Wearing a jacket and tie or a suit in the Caribbean just doesn’t seem right!

Totally agree

[BarbinMich]

Another consideration that I don't think has been mentioned:  if one chooses "Anytime Dining," there may/will be a wait for a table for 2, which we prefer.  Not so much for any other table that opens up.

[debsjc]

How long does dinner take in the MDR on a table for 2? (not waiting for a table, but actually eating/waiting for the next course) Anything more than 90 mins really doesn't suit us, we like to be doing other things. 

[Steelers36]

On 11/7/2019 at 2:35 PM, geoherb said:

And if you know you will be eating dinner in the buffet, Crown Grill, and Sabatini's on your cruise, please don't book traditional dining. 

OR... request early seating in the mid-ship DR that has ATD later.  Advise waiter as a courtesy when not coming and the host(ess) can seat ATD folks at "your" table when you are not there.  If missing most of the nights for sure then I agree - book ATD and not TD.

 

[SiliconCruiser]

On 11/7/2019 at 8:29 AM, PRINCESS Sweet Pea said:

It has been a while since we cruised, and I am thinking of breaking with the usual and trying the variety in the Buffet, instead of always the dining room.  We will also do Crown Grill and maybe Sabatini's too.  We will be on a seven day Caribbean.  So, I think the nightly menus will be the usual menus.    I like to be seated and waited on, but also love to try the different variety of things on a good buffet too.  Which nights would be best for the Buffet, and not the favorites for the dining room?   I know people have different favorites, but I wanted to get some ideas!

Quite honestly, I think i depends upon the ship.  Our most recent cruise was on the Regal, our first experience on a Royal class ship.  It was the first and only time that I felt that the buffet measured up to the level of the dining rooms for dinner.  For breakfast, they're all decent and it would appear that the dining rooms are serving the same menu as the buffet, except in smaller quantities.  For lunch, it is kind of a toss-up and you should decide by reviewing the posted menus for the dining room to see if anything appeals to you that might not be served in the buffet.  In the Grand (or sub-Grand) class ships, there is seldom anything palatable in the buffet for dinner, and it is even worse in the Panamax ships, and I would highly recommend the dining rooms, based upon my experience.

[Bugalugsnz]

Just mentioning in case not noted elsewhere, on the Emerald they post the MDR menu on the wall on the way into Horizon Court, as well as outside the MDRs. On the way to the buffet for breakfast you can take a look without having to go past a MDR at all. Not sure if they do that on all ships.

[MissP22]

10 hours ago, debsjc said:

How long does dinner take in the MDR on a table for 2? (not waiting for a table, but actually eating/waiting for the next course) Anything more than 90 mins really doesn't suit us, we like to be doing other things. 

90 minutes is a long time & it really doesn't usually take that long, but of course it all depends how many courses you order. If you order 3 appetizers each, soup, salad & main course plus 2 desserts with coffee/tea it will take them longer to serve. 

You can alway ask your waiter to speed the service up a bit which helps.

Tables for 2 generally do get finished quicker than larger tables because of all the chatting which slows everything down. 

[JF - retired RRT]

6 hours ago, Bugalugsnz said:

Just mentioning in case not noted elsewhere, on the Emerald they post the MDR menu on the wall on the way into Horizon Court, as well as outside the MDRs. On the way to the buffet for breakfast you can take a look without having to go past a MDR at all. Not sure if they do that on all ships.

They do (at least on the ships I've been on...12?).

[KeepCalmBearOn]

One last thought for the OP. The Princess Patter lists the "theme" of the night (German, Italian, Asian, etc) and that might effect which nights you'd like to go as well.

[MissP22]

6 minutes ago, scottca075 said:

One last thought for the OP. The Princess Patter lists the "theme" of the night (German, Italian, Asian, etc) and that might effect which nights you'd like to go as well.

It's not a detailed as I would like but at least they've begun to let people know in advance what the theme will be at the buffet. 

[NavyVeteran]

On 11/8/2019 at 10:42 AM, PoohUnderstands said:

This is, of course, my own opinion, worth just that(grin), but my answer to the question is NEVER.  There are so many other options that would put the buffet last on my list.  The only time I used is when my hubby was quarantined on our Baltic cruise for a couple of days due to flu outbreak and I ate there to make it quick and take something back to him.  I mean it is like going to the "Golden Corral" for dinner.  

 

Pooh

 

This is one reason I do not eat at the buffet. There are too many people handling the serving utensils and spreading germs.

 

When my wife was quarantined, the ship's doctor told me not to eat at the buffet to avoid the possibility of spreading germs. Although I was not quarantined (as long as I did not have any symptoms), he asked me to eat only at places where I was served - so that I would not handle utensils that other passengers would also be handling. This seemed like a very reasonable precaution to me.

 

When your cabinmate is quarantined, you don't have to go to the buffet to get something for him or her. You can order from room service. If you are quarantined, you have access to the full dining room menu during meal times (not just the room service menu) - just like the people in a full suite. My wife was not able to take advantage of this when she was quarantined - the last thing she wanted was to eat anything.

[SavvyCruiser01]

I appreciate a nice dinner with plate service in the MDR, but I tend to cruise with my VERY picky (appetite-wise) mom. So any time there's something on the MDR menu that she'll somewhat happily eat, those are the nights that we go there. She tends to have more luck with the variety at the buffet, so for the most part we end up eating there. It's a compromise 🙂 

[Gwendy]

It’s a cruise, a break from your normal life.  Do what you want, if you are happy with the buffet, good for you, others can choose what they want.  Each to their own.  On longer cruises over 25 days I do MDR, buffet, speciality restaurants, roomservice, pizza, terrace grill.  Whatever takes my fancy on that night,  

Thats why cruise ships offer a variety of dining options, we are all different.  Either way you won’t starve.

[Auspexian]

We ate at buffet couple of times on late return. I noticed that some entrees in the big dinning room also served

in the buffet. So they do rotate daily.

 

J

[jangor]

We never eat at the buffet the first day, as it tends to be more crowded as people get to know the ship.  We only do one of the formal nights, so we eat at the buffet, which is really great on the Royal class ships, on the other formal nights(s), so that we can dress down.  Other than those caveats, we eat at the MDR or Alfredos or a specialty restaurant.  Since every day on a ship is different (port days, excursions, sea days, various events), we tend to make our dining decisions based on what fits us best on that day.