Dining Other Than Main Dining Room

[OldtimerBill]

Hi All,

 

I plan to post this same message in the Princess and Celebrity forums.

 

My wife and I just returned from a cruise on which we took our daughter and two teenage grandkids. We ate our evening meals in the main dining room and came away every night stuffed. We even tried splitting an entrée but that didn't help too much.

 

I am wondering how your non-main dining room experiences have been on Holland America. I think we would be fine eating at the buffets, etc. and want to compare our options on these 3 lines.

 

Thanks for any advice.

 

Bill in Woodstock, Georgia, USA

[quilty964]

We ate at the buffet every evening while on the Rotterdam earlier this month.  Lots of choices, all good.  (I gained 5#)  I guess i should have skipped all of the yummy desserts every night!  And the yummy burgers and fries at the Dive In.  And the yummy Rueben Sandwich at the New York Deli!  

 

[cruzin4us]

I prefer the buffet on HAL vs Princess.  There is a lot more options on Princess, but their buffet is so big and spread out and I don't feel the food is as good.   HAL's is smaller but I like their food and their selection.

 

[jkrislc]

HAL offers a lot of the same dishes in the buffet as in the MDR. In addition, they have a few prepared to order stations that make their buffet superior to Princess. While I like Princess and sailed them just a couple of months ago, I haven't been a huge fan of their buffets and the buffet on the Majestic Princess wasn't very good.

[cruzn single]

I just returned from a two-week cruise on the Zuiderdam.  I ate in the MDR every night except two.  Those two were speciality dining venues.  I never left the dining room "stuffed".  The portions of the appetizer, main, and dessert were not that big.  There was only one evening that I ordered two appetizers and I still didn't feel that I had overeaten.  I did not gain an ounce.

 

Personally, for me, the Lido in the evening just doesn't do it!

[Cruising-along]

We alternate between MDR, Lido, and specialty dining.  The only times we have left feeling "stuffed" was when we ate in the Pinnacle or Canaletto.  

[Kay S]

The HAL buffet always has a good selection, and they serve you so you don't take too much.  (Eyes bigger than stomach syndrome.)  The MDR portions are about the same as Princess, in my opinon.

[syesmar]

DH prefers the Lido most nights to the MDR. It has worked fine for us for years (though I haven’t sailed since 2019). I’d take a photo of the day’s menu at breakfast so we could make our choice (and in 2019 would check the menu through the intranet service, I believe menus are available on the App now). Like others said, there’s usually a couple dishes in the Lido that are also offered in the MDR, plus an array of other choices, as well as Asian and Italian fare. Our favorite restaurant  is Tamarind, for those ships that have one. The Grand Dutch Cafe on the newest ships is really good, too!

Edited February 26, 2022 by syesmar

[VMax1700]

We eat in the Lido most night on recent cruises.  For Gala night we would tend to go to mdr, but have no problem eating in Lido on gala night too.  We always dress for dinner no matter where it is.  We have found that because so many cruisers ignore the Lido for dinner, that the staff have time to talk much more than during the day or in mdr.

Also, if you are in a rush for some reason, then Lido is good.

[BobbiSox]

I prefer the Lido for dinner because in my opinion, the MDR takes far too long between courses. I like trying more than one offering and I have that option in the Lido. I can have more than one selection in the MDR, but each one is brought out separately, one after the other. When I like something, I can have as much of it as I want in the Lido with no wait.  All the dining venues where the meal is served in courses are going to take about an hour. I find this is standard on all of the damn ships. I have sailed 25 years with HAL and a 5*-Mariner so I've tried a lot of dining options. Lido works best for me.

[Aquahound]

23 hours ago, OldtimerBill said:

 

I plan to post this same message in the Princess and Celebrity forums.

 

 

HAL's newer ships have pretty good specialty restaurants.  I'm a big fan of Tamarind.  Between the 3 lines you mentioned, I'd rank HAL #2 behind Celebrity.  

 

Regarding the buffet, I don't think any line can touch the buffet on Princess' newest ships.  

[WisRiver]

We are 4* Mariners.  We mainly go to the MDR because they serve dinner after 8 PM.  We like late dining, but the Lido is supposed to close at 8 PM and buffet starts to wind down at about 7:30 PM.  We like the Tamarind and Pinnacle, but over time have been disappointed with the Canaletto.  The New York Deli and Pizza (not available on all ships) is a good alternative to the Lido.   We have sailed on Celebrity,  and found them no better or worse than HAL.

[Roz]

I've found the portions on HAL to be small to average, and have never left stuffed.  I usually order a soup, salad, or appetizer, and an entree, and then a dessert.   Do Princess and Celebrity serve large portions, or are you just petite eaters?

[albingirl]

We use the specialty restaurants alot, since sometimes I just want a quiet table and the MDR can be noisy.  In the Canaletto, I order the half portions which works out well for me.  We loved that restaurant on the NS. Superb staff.

[lcand1923]

I’m a solo traveller, so tend to use the buffets on all cruise lines.  I find the Lido buffet an excellent place for all meals, including dinner.  I, personally, think the buffet on HAL is better than the ones on the Celebrity and Princess lines, but that could be because I like salads.  I found them very lacking at the buffets on Celebrity and Princess.  I’ve also been very pleased with the alternate dining options on HAL.  The Dive-In and New York Deli are great.  The Pinnacle and Canaletto dining venues tend to vary a bit per ship.  I cannot say I’ve ever had a bad meal at either, but can say I’ve had meals that I were not worth the upcharge.  

 

 

[FlaMariner]

We tend to favor the Lido for breakfast and lunch (with a visit to the pizza and dive in thrown in also) and then every evening in the MDR. 

 

In the MDR, we do enjoy the same table, same waiters, same time and we enjoy taking advantage of five courses....appetizer, soup, salad, entree, dessert....And we are well fed.

 

Dinner in lido would only be if we were late re-boarding because of the port call and could not make our standing time.   That is rare. 

 

We've tried all the speciality restaurants thru the years but we just do not get it.  We don't see the value.  Just our opinion.  We pay for food with our fare and we are not interested in paying for food yet again.  

 

...And the great meals prepared by Holland America Line is a major reason why they are our #1 choice for cruising!

 

 

 

 

[Btimmer]

In the last 5 months, we've been on HAL cruise ships for two months of them.  We ate in the MDR 3 times (generally gala nights), around 20 nights in the specialty restaurants, once at the Dive In, and the rest in the LIDO.  We really like our meals in the LIDO as it really helps control portion size and avoid breaded and starchy items.  The Asian stop is a personal favorite.  Pre-covid, the service was just too slow in the MDR to make the early Main Stage show, and that drove us to the LIDO.  Post pause in operations, the MDR is much faster because of reduced passenger counts.  But the die has been cast for us and the LIDO is the winner for us.

[rkacruiser]

8 hours ago, Aquahound said:

Regarding the buffet, I don't think any line can touch the buffet on Princess' newest ships.  

 

Only on the Royal Princess have I experienced their newest buffet concept.  Agree.  The selections are overwhelming; the organization of those selections was terrible.  I always make a walk through of whatever ship's buffet before I begin grazing.  Line #:  oh, that stuff looks so good.  Line ##:  oh, that stuff looks so good, etc.  I finish my grazing and, now, I can't remember where the stuff that I liked was!  One morning, I put my book/journal on a table to "save" my seat and started the grazing.  The darn restaurant is so large that I had trouble finding my table. 

 

Just my experience and if yours differs, OK by me.   

[cruzin4us]

On 2/25/2022 at 9:15 AM, jkrislc said:

HAL offers a lot of the same dishes in the buffet as in the MDR. In addition, they have a few prepared to order stations that make their buffet superior to Princess. While I like Princess and sailed them just a couple of months ago, I haven't been a huge fan of their buffets and the buffet on the Majestic Princess wasn't very good.

I have to agree about the Majestic Princess buffet.   It was SOOOO spread out and I thought the food was almost like a cafeteria buffet.   Some of the plates were set up visually pleasing, but the food lacked flavor.    Other than that, I loved the Majestic Princess!

[ScoutDiver]

I have been on just a few cruises.  1 Greek Island Cruise in 1983, An American Hawaii Cruise in 1994, and A HAL cruise on the Statendam in Alaska.   The last two were a solo traveler.

 

On the American Hawaii cruise, I was to sit the same night with a group of 7 others.  Same seat.   I got annoyed because I did not enjoy some of the individuals that I was forced to dine with.  They thought that they knew all Texans 🤯

 

The Statendam was different in that I was traveling with a singles group.  I sometimes ate with people with the group.  I sometimes ate alone.  I was in a vista suite(solo).  I never had an issue  getting served in the MDR even when members of the group had trouble getting a group seating.

 

The MDR would take longer.   The Lido was more convenient for being able to refill drinks, getting salads made to order,  with maybe just a protein, etc

 

The Lido at busy times had one major draw back as a Solo.  If I got up to get more tea, desert, etc, peple would try to steal the table, even when leaving a jacket or something else on the chair.   They would try to have the table cleared even though they knew your coming back.  

 

I was on the Stadendam when she helped some passengers on a troubled true boat in Glacier Bay.  The Statendam had 100 guests for a few extra hours.  A couple of those guests tried to have my tabled cleared when I got up to refill tea.  They knew it.  I got back and the HAL service gave the other guests an evil eye.  My jacket was on the chair and a cap on the table.  

 

I liked Lido, but in the MDR, I did not have to worry about going to the restroom.

[oakridger]

@ScoutDiverI mostly travel solo also.  I made these cards for my last Oosterdam cruise and the waitstaff in the Lido and at the bars loved them!  No one took my seat after that! (I don't know how to make the photo smaller)

 

~Nancy

 

Edited February 28, 2022 by oakridger
fixed

[BobbiSox]

I have brought signs from home too! I have had trouble keeping passengers out of my Lanai deck chairs. Two chairs are part of the lanai 'package' and they are there for my use when I stay in a lanai. I made signs at home that stated "For LANAI Passengers ONLY" and attached one to each of 'my' two chairs. Even then, I found myself having to explain the situation to passengers who were not happy about it. But the signs did help some. 

[rkacruiser]

10 hours ago, BobbiSox said:

I have brought signs from home too! I have had trouble keeping passengers out of my Lanai deck chairs. Two chairs are part of the lanai 'package' and they are there for my use when I stay in a lanai. I made signs at home that stated "For LANAI Passengers ONLY" and attached one to each of 'my' two chairs. Even then, I found myself having to explain the situation to passengers who were not happy about it. But the signs did help some. 

 

The decision to make these cabins for Lanai guests only (and their "exclusive space") ranks among the poorest of the decisions that past HAL management has made.  Why should a guest have to "explain the situation" to other guests who don't understand what this is all about?  Is this is an example of "Signature of Excellence" service for either of the parties?  

 

 

 

 

[jeh10641]

On 2/25/2022 at 8:16 AM, OldtimerBill said:

Hi All,

 

I plan to post this same message in the Princess and Celebrity forums.

 

My wife and I just returned from a cruise on which we took our daughter and two teenage grandkids. We ate our evening meals in the main dining room and came away every night stuffed. We even tried splitting an entrée but that didn't help too much.

 

I am wondering how your non-main dining room experiences have been on Holland America. I think we would be fine eating at the buffets, etc. and want to compare our options on these 3 lines.

 

Thanks for any advice.

 

Bill in Woodstock, Georgia, USA

Here is my food review for the Rotterdam (12/01/21):

 

FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD

     The food quality and quantity were up to, and maybe even better than, HAL’s standards. The variety may have been a little less but it was understandable under the COVID supply chain shortages.

     We ate every breakfast in the LIDO Buffet. The bagels were very good (only had two, diet concerns) with lox and cream cheese. The made to order omelets were terrific. Asked for and received sour cream to which I added a banana. The staff behind the counters and the servers at the tables were friendly and efficient. Outstanding staff in the LIDO Buffet included Genesis, Nadia, Ayuk, Meredith, Luki, Azani and especially Rini. If you see them, say “hi” for us.

     We ate dinner in the Main Dining Room for all but four dinners. Most often, we sat at table 80 with our two cousins and usually two strangers. Megan (male) was our table captain and the servers were Ali and Andhika. Hazel was the hostess every night at the entrance (lower level) and made sure we had the same table even though we had open seating. There were about 4 or 5 items every night that cost extra. They included jumbo shrimp, lobster and filet steak. The main courses changed daily, not 100%, but more than enough that we could pick and choose something different each time. There was a sugar free dessert each night. Vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free meals were present at all food venues.

     Our first specialty dinner took place at Canaletto where we celebrated my wife’s birthday. The food was excellent and plentiful. They made a special dessert for my wife’s celebration that we could all share. We had dined at previous Canaletto’s.  It is located in an area that is part of the LIDO Buffet but was separate. It had many windows to see out of when it was light enough (Deck 9). The night we were there at 7 PM, maybe 20% of the tables were occupied. The staff were smiling and professionally top notch. It felt as if we were at an Italian trattoria in Florence. We were there in 2016 preceding our HAL cruise on the Oosterdam. Give yourself 90 minutes to enjoy the experience fully. Staff members to remember were Ana and Maria. RECOMMENDED.

     Tamarind was our second “night out”. This was new to us as a venue. It is an Asian fusion specialty restaurant that included a bar (really good pina coladas, our first of the trip) and Nami Sushi Bar. It overlooks the stern of the ship on Deck 12. Staff members we want single out are Maria (again), Azani and Ayuk (again). The main courses were great. The five side dishes were included for the whole table (four of us). Again, it takes 90 minutes to two hours to fully enjoy it. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

     Another new to us venue was Rudi’s Sel De Mare (on Deck 2), the brainchild of restaurateur Rudi Sodamin. It is basically a French bistro with an emphasis on seafood. However, I had steak tartare for my main course (ordered two appetizers) and my wife had a 12-ounce Maine lobster tail that was the best. (I went to college in Maine and ate a lot of lobster.) We celebrated the birthday of one of my cousins. They made him a special dessert to celebrate it. The hostess at the door was Genesis (LIDO). They treated us royally. Budget at least two hours for the best experience. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

     Our final extravaganza dining spot was The Pinnacle Grill on deck 2. It too had windows for when it is light enough to see out. This is primarily a steakhouse but other options are available. We had dined previously at Pinnacle Grills but this was far and away the best. My steak was done to perfection – tasty, tender. Impeccable service added to the two-hour experience. Our server was Boris who was friendly and efficient. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

     Just to reiterate, all dining venues had vegan, vegetarian and gluten free options. One of my cousins is gluten free and she was happy with her choices. The servers and the kitchens were able to make many of the meals gluten free even if not listed as such. Because of my experience with specialty restaurants on previous cruises, I felt they had not been worth the extra expense.  These four dining experiences changed my attitude. They were off-the-wall awesome.

     We did have lunch twice at Dive-In Burgers and once at New York Pizza and Deli. The former offered hamburgers and Nathan’s Hot Dogs. I loved the burgers wrapped in lettuce (no buns for me) with cheese, bacon and frizzled onions. My wife enjoyed the Nathan Hot Dogs (no bun for her either). The fries were pretty good as well. The pizza my wife ate had very little cheese or pepperoni so she ordered four slices to get enough to eat. She scraped the toppings off the crust, which was NOT a New York pizza crust at all. I tried the Reuben (no bread) which also failed miserably in taste, quality and quantity. DIVE IN is RECOMMENDED. NY PIZZA and DELI is NOT RECOMMENDED.

     The other days, we had lunch in the LIDO BUFFET. I had salads every day and the toppings were very tasty and varied.  My wife also had some salads and some noodle dishes from the Asian section. She, too, loved her food. We did not have any desserts for lunch. One day I did have a chocolate chip cookie from the GRAND DUTCH CAFÉ. It was one of the best ever. Both venues are HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

     We are not alcohol drinkers so we did not test any of the bars’ alcoholic beverages except for a couple of pina coladas that were excellent. My wife did have coffee, tea or soft drinks on numerous occasions from the bars. The service was timely and friendly.

[GTVCRUISER]

I just got back Sunday from my cruise on the ms Koningsdan , I always it at the Buffet