Apex Luminae ?

[pmcue]

Can you still order off main dining menu in Luminae.  This was easy to do in past as kitchens were attached but now seems they are far away.  Also, does the retreat lounge have an actual bar you can sit at?

[kwokpot]

21 minutes ago, pmcue said:

Can you still order off main dining menu in Luminae.  This was easy to do in past as kitchens were attached but now seems they are far away.  Also, does the retreat lounge have an actual bar you can sit at?

No and No. The Retreat Lounge has a Bar that you can STAND at, but there's no counter overhand and no stools. It's location doesn't lend itself to seating since it's located along a hallway to the restrooms. Whatsmore, the bar functions more like a service bar and TBH I don't see why anyone would want to stand and lean there for any longer than watching your drink being made when there's comfortable chairs six feet away.

Edited January 31, 2023 by kwokpot

[kwokpot]

A screenshot of the bar at the Retreat Lounge on the Apex

[jalves]

Good info above.  Just to add that while you can't get MDR food in Luminae, there is always a few items available off-menu.  Appetizers, Main Course, dessert too.

[kwokpot]

The 44.11 mins. mark is where he tours the Retreat Lounge. 

Edited January 31, 2023 by kwokpot

[pmcue]

This is disappointing on both fronts.  We loved having drinks at the bar and then heading to dinner and my wife is Pescaterian and Luminae menu is quite limited in and of itself. 

[tabby50894]

We found the various MDR's to be a good alternative to Luminae's limited menu on the Apex. Check the menu ahead of time and pick your restaurant. We had outstanding service in the Cosmopolitan, but this was a year ago when the ship was not at capacity.

[kwokpot]

29 minutes ago, pmcue said:

This is disappointing on both fronts.  We loved having drinks at the bar and then heading to dinner and my wife is Pescaterian and Luminae menu is quite limited in and of itself. 

What you should do is on embarkation speak with the Maitre De at Luminae and discuss your wife's dietary concerns and see if and how they can accommodate her. If they seem unwilling then as others have suggested you can always dine in Blu and the other Mdrs on the nights where the menu isn't suitable.

With regards to pre-dinner drinks, the Retreat Lounge is a very inviting space with couches, chairs and banquets as seating areas. There's servers who will take your drink orders and bring you your requested drinks. Then there's the snack mini buffet which will have cheese and assorted snacks where you can have a nice aperitivo before dinner. 

[Ben100014]

They have a few MDR staples such as the french onion soup, steak, salmon, etc that you can order off-menu, but they cannot accommodate MDR orders as the galleys are on opposite sides of the ship.

[Gracie115]

1 hour ago, kwokpot said:

 

With regards to pre-dinner drinks, the Retreat Lounge is a very inviting space with couches, chairs and banquets as seating areas. There's servers who will take your drink orders and bring you your requested drinks. Then there's the snack mini buffet which will have cheese and assorted snacks where you can have a nice aperitivo before dinner. 

 

The snacks are nice but we found service quite lacking in the Retreat Lounge.  Most of the time we went to the bar to get our drinks before dinner.  There were far too many days when there was no other server than the bartender and he was trying his best to take care of everyone.   While it's a beautiful area we prefer the lounge on the "S" class. 

[jelayne]

58 minutes ago, Gracie115 said:

 

The snacks are nice but we found service quite lacking in the Retreat Lounge.  Most of the time we went to the bar to get our drinks before dinner.  There were far too many days when there was no other server than the bartender and he was trying his best to take care of everyone.   While it's a beautiful area we prefer the lounge on the "S" class. 

That interesting.  It may vary by ship.  We have found Service in the Retreat Lounge on E class better than on S class.  We had the one bartender no servers on S Class ship  except from 5-7 where there was a bartender & a server more often than on E Class.  

[Gracie115]

7 hours ago, jelayne said:

That interesting.  It may vary by ship.  We have found Service in the Retreat Lounge on E class better than on S class.  We had the one bartender no servers on S Class ship  except from 5-7 where there was a bartender & a server more often than on E Class.  

Agree it may vary by ship.  My experience on S class ships is from our sailings from 2015 to 2020 all on S class ships and in every case the service in the Retreat(then Michael's) was excellent.  We loved it.  

 

We have only experienced the Retreat lounge on the E class once, the Apex TA last fall.  It's a lovely area but as I said the bartender, Johnson, was left to handle the room most of the times we were there.  We will be trying it again on the TA this April.

[Cruise a holic]

14 hours ago, pmcue said:

Can you still order off main dining menu in Luminae.  This was easy to do in past as kitchens were attached but now seems they are far away.  Also, does the retreat lounge have an actual bar you can sit at?

Off the apex in January- we dined in specialty restaurants for many dinners as we were on the ship for two weeks- the  suite Lounge is wonderful- they offer a variety of snacks during the day and the bar is excellent- they will bring you drinks.  You can also go upstairs at the retreat sun deck and they also have a wonderful bar and service for light lunch and drinks.  Will be on the ship again in March!

 

Edited February 1, 2023 by Cruise a holic

[kwokpot]

2 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

Off the apex in January- we dined in specialty restaurants for many dinners as we were on the ship for two weeks- the  suite Lounge is wonderful- they offer a variety of snacks during the day and the bar is excellent- they will bring you drinks.  You can also go upstairs at the retreat sun deck and they also have a wonderful bar and service for light lunch and drinks.  Will be on the ship again in March!

 

Yes, I should have mentioned the Retreat Sundeck Bar as an alternative to the the Lounge. I don't remember their hours though and whether they're open evenings duplicating the indoor lounge. 

[Cruise a holic]

4 minutes ago, kwokpot said:

Yes, I should have mentioned the Retreat Sundeck Bar as an alternative to the the Lounge. I don't remember their hours though and whether they're open evenings duplicating the indoor lounge. 

Do not recall.  But I think the continental lounge breakfast is 7-7:30  The restaurant luminae,  opens at 8:00 typically.  Since we never went to the lounge late at night, not sure when they closed.  But of course free room service for suite guests 24/7,   

Edited February 1, 2023 by Cruise a holic

[pmcue]

1 hour ago, kwokpot said:

Yes, I should have mentioned the Retreat Sundeck Bar as an alternative to the the Lounge. I don't remember their hours though and whether they're open evenings duplicating the indoor lounge. 

Looked on App and shows open til 8:00 PM and since we are in a Loft right there, may be a good place for drink b4 dinner (if we ever leave the room for drinks:) )

[jalves]

21 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

 

The snacks are nice but we found service quite lacking in the Retreat Lounge.  Most of the time we went to the bar to get our drinks before dinner.  There were far too many days when there was no other server than the bartender and he was trying his best to take care of everyone.   While it's a beautiful area we prefer the lounge on the "S" class. 

Interesting.  Our experience on the Apex in mid-January was totally different.  We had people coming by regularly to see if we needed drinks/refills.  

[Gracie115]

14 minutes ago, jalves said:

Interesting.  Our experience on the Apex in mid-January was totally different.  We had people coming by regularly to see if we needed drinks/refills.  

 

Hopefully that's what we will find when we board Apex April 22 for the Eastbound TA.

[81Zoomie]

23 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

 

The snacks are nice but we found service quite lacking in the Retreat Lounge.  Most of the time we went to the bar to get our drinks before dinner.  There were far too many days when there was no other server than the bartender and he was trying his best to take care of everyone.   While it's a beautiful area we prefer the lounge on the "S" class. 

Couldn’t agree more.  We found the Retreat Lounge on the Apex to be rather sterile.  The retreat hosts never engaged us, and the “bar” is more like a serving station.  It was a much different feel than on the M and S class.  However, the views out the floor to ceiling windows and the outside table areas were very inviting.