Rudi’s is going away

[dfish]

7 minutes ago, crystalspin said:

Odd that your list is unspecified, but Rudi's is never complimentary. And now may not even be on the ship! 

I've never had a list on my booking confirmation.  I get the message that a restaurant is eligible for the HIA when I go to book it.  If it isn't eligible, you won't get that option.  On my upcoming cruise one Tamarind meal and one Pinnacle Grill meal was eligible.  I couldn't book two Tamarind or two Pinnacle Grill dinners.  The IT team got that part worked out.  Now, if they would concentrate on the rest of the website?

[oakridger]

 

 

21 hours ago, bundtkate said:

Ours actually shows no such limitations. We did book pretty early (hence the elite beverage package which was an early booking bonus) so maybe that gives you more options with the HIA dining too?

 

Interesting.  Mine that I showed was the early booking bonus also. On all six of my post pandemic cruises I have gotten the HIA package and they all listed the restaurants.  I suppose it doesn't really make a difference if you are still restricted to certain ones when making your reservations as @dfish explains below.

 

8 hours ago, dfish said:

I've never had a list on my booking confirmation.  I get the message that a restaurant is eligible for the HIA when I go to book it.  If it isn't eligible, you won't get that option.  On my upcoming cruise one Tamarind meal and one Pinnacle Grill meal was eligible.  I couldn't book two Tamarind or two Pinnacle Grill dinners.  

 

~Nancy

[POA1]

8 hours ago, crystalspin said:

Odd that your list is unspecified, but Rudi's is never complimentary. And now may not even be on the ship! 

Correct. Sel de Mer has never been part of the HIA restaurant choices. Given the high take rate on Have It All, I'd expect relatively few people in Rudi's. It's always been a "paid" choice. Color me sceptical that Rudi's is going away.

[kazu]

7 hours ago, POA1 said:

Color me sceptical that Rudi's is going away.

 

I wish I could share your skepticism.  HAL took it off all the non Pinnacle Class ships.  IME, it was sold out on the ships I was on every time and very popular.  Seemed strange to remove it to me and I wonder now if it was the beginning of the move to cease?

[St Pete Cruiser]

My source says Rudi's will stay on Pinnacle class at least until 2025. Morimoto to share Tamarind area, probably bumping the bar area on the starboard side. 

[VMax1700]

17 minutes ago, St Pete Cruiser said:

My source says Rudi's will stay on Pinnacle class at least until 2025. Morimoto to share Tamarind area, probably bumping the bar area on the starboard side. 

 

Just checked our 14 day NSDM cruise in April/May 2024 and it currently shows every night available for both Pinnacle Grill and Sel de Mer, however Tamarind has two nights 'greyed out', so I am thinking Indonesian Rijsttafel on one and Morimoto on other.

[POA1]

1 hour ago, VMax1700 said:

 

Just checked our 14 day NSDM cruise in April/May 2024 and it currently shows every night available for both Pinnacle Grill and Sel de Mer, however Tamarind has two nights 'greyed out', so I am thinking Indonesian Rijsttafel on one and Morimoto on other.

Our March / April has some unavailable Tamarind and a full slate of Rudi's.

 

To me, the PR pix of Morimoto standalone on the Nieuw Amsterdam looked more like it was where the sushi was.

[Haljo1935]

4 hours ago, kazu said:

 

I wish I could share your skepticism.  HAL took it off all the non Pinnacle Class ships.  IME, it was sold out on the ships I was on every time and very popular....

 

12 hours ago, POA1 said:

...Color me sceptical that Rudi's is going away.

Mostly empty every night on current NS cruise.

[Despegue]

They have completely lost the plot at HAL! That menu is so boring I fell asleep reading it and it has no real distinction compared to Tamarind, which has a much better menu by the way. 
Poor Poor HAL.

 

Rudi’s could be replaced by a Dutch/ Flemish restaurant with modern European cuisine,  designed by Jonnie Boer or Sergio Herman, both 3-Michelin Star Dutch chefs. 
The Dutch/ Flemish area has the best Mussels and Lobster in the World ( yes, I dare say that even to my friends from Maine 😜), we have fantastic cheeses, amazing vegetables not grown elsewhere, like our white asparagus, witloof, ... and our chocolate... 
And if they really need to but another Asian option, be more original please than this Morimoto crap. Create a  Dim Sum bar, or have a true “Indonesian” Rijsttafel with another more authentic Indonesian menu as option. ( Rijsttafel is a Dutch invention really, you will not find it in Indonesia, although some dishes are resemble) .

And let us not forget the delightful Indian food. No, not greasy curries ( although I adore them too), but Kerala food for example.... So many options, such a bad choice.
 

Edited December 6, 2023 by Despegue

[JennysUncle]

3 hours ago, POA1 said:

To me, the PR pix of Morimoto standalone on the Nieuw Amsterdam looked more like it was where the sushi was.

Some publicity pictures -- it doesn't look like the bar area.  Maybe it's Nami Sushi that is being replaced, not Rudi's.

[electro]

this is the morimoto halibut ordered from the dinning room on Rotterdam last week. $25 up charge.

If they didn't put $30 of saffron on top to be thrown away, maybe they wouldn't need to charge an extra $25.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

Looks to me like the port side area of Tamarind is becoming Morimoto, while the remaining space will stay Tamarind.  I agree that there is too much overlap for the Morimoto menu to stand out as a "special" offering that would be worth more than Tamarind, especially with it's limited choices.

 

Here's where I think Morimoto will go (yellow highlights)

[taxmantoo]

All these rumors, innuendos, conjectures and opinions seem pretty "fishy" to me 🤣 Will just wait and see.

[bundtkate]

4 hours ago, Despegue said:

Create a  Dim Sum bar

I was on an MSC ship that had a bar called the Dim Sum bar, but sadly did not serve dim sum. Apparently it did when the ship was sailing in Asia, but they ditched it without ditching the name when they moved the ship to Europe. They also still showed a hot pot restaurant on the deck plan which had been transformed into a sushi restaurant. Total bummer as I adore hot pot and very much agree that more varied Asian cuisine would be welcome.

[bundtkate]

18 hours ago, oakridger said:

I suppose it doesn't really make a difference if you are still restricted to certain ones when making your reservations

Technically the truth, though I would be moderately miffed they got my hopes up. As I said, we'd likely be happy with Tamarind, but Rudi's is more up our alley. Maybe Rudi's will be added to HIA when they add the new shiny Morimoto restaurant? A girl can hope, right?

[kazu]

3 hours ago, bundtkate said:

Maybe Rudi's will be added to HIA when they add the new shiny Morimoto restaurant? A girl can hope, right?

 

Or dream 😉. I would far rather go to Rudi’s than the Pinnacle Grill and would even pay the difference.

 

The shiny new restaurant is bound to be surcharge - guaranteed.  Based on my Morimoto experience on board, I won’t be there.

 

Bring back the Cellar Master dinners.

[boze9999]

46 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

Or dream 😉. I would far rather go to Rudi’s than the Pinnacle Grill and would even pay the difference.

 

The shiny new restaurant is bound to be surcharge - guaranteed.  Based on my Morimoto experience on board, I won’t be there.

 

Bring back the Cellar Master dinners.

@Kazu The Cellar Master Dinners and the "Gala" special red carpet dinners were the BEST of the BEST!

 

[bundtkate]

1 hour ago, kazu said:

Or dream 😉

I mean, I'm not ready to give Rudi's dream status yet, but if I am lucky enough to give it a try, I'll report back. 😜

Also, Cellar Masters sounds amazing. We've always loved the wine tastings on cruises. I suppose wine buffs may not think much of them (I've certainly seen other lines critiqued harshly), but we don't know any better so we enjoy them anyway!

Edited December 7, 2023 by bundtkate

[Blackduck59]

@bundtkate I'm with you on the wine thing. My only thought is "does it taste good to ME", that should be the only criteria.

[ksmaxey]

On the Nieuw Statendam now.  Rudi's has few tables occupied every time we have walked by.  Cellar Master dinner was scheduled in the Canaletto.  No way we are paying 95+ pp  eat in the Lido.  (realizing the food is quite different but the atmosphere is not.) 

I spoke with the F&B manager about it because we love the cellar master dinner, just not in the lido space.  HIA has the pinnacle way too booked to host there.  I asked about Rudi's and he said that the licensing has significant restrictions and they cannot do a pop up in that space.

[Toofarfromthesea]

14 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

@bundtkate I'm with you on the wine thing. My only thought is "does it taste good to ME", that should be the only criteria.

 

I always say that I am blessed with a dull palate.  I can enjoy a $9 bottle of Chianti as much as a $30 bottle.

[VMax1700]

37 minutes ago, Toofarfromthesea said:

 

I always say that I am blessed with a dull palate.  I can enjoy a $9 bottle of Chianti as much as a $30 bottle.

Probably same wine, different mark-up 😁

[taxmantoo]

1 hour ago, Toofarfromthesea said:

 

I always say that I am blessed with a dull palate.  I can enjoy a $9 bottle of Chianti as much as a $30 bottle.

Enjoying a bottle of wine has nothing to do with its price.  As a certified sommelier, I can enjoy a $9 bottle as well as a $30 bottle, as well as a $100 bottle.  I get enjoyment out of all of them for what they are.  But allow me to let you in on a secret, the $100 bottle will be a much better wine every time. 🙂

 

[sailingdutchy]

23 hours ago, taxmantoo said:

All these rumors, innuendos, conjectures and opinions seem pretty "fishy" to me 🤣 Will just wait and see.

 

Best post I have read so far besides reading the supposedly actual menu that was posted here .

All this guessing and second guessing what is going to happen with Rudi Sodamin  where he is going and about his restaurant . Let's be patient , wait and experience also first after the Morimoto Restairant actually opens up , not while they are testing some items from his menu , after that I love to read all peoples opinions ! 

We have always enjoyed the specialty restaurants and as far as my opinion goes about up charges have you had specialty dining in the larger cities of your country like New York , San Francisco , Vancouver or Toronto ? Where they always fantastic and how much was the bill ? I have and quite often it is higher than the total daily cost on a cruise and I am not just talking of a cruise in an  inside cabin .

 

Edited December 7, 2023 by sailingdutchy

[Toofarfromthesea]

12 hours ago, taxmantoo said:

Enjoying a bottle of wine has nothing to do with its price.  As a certified sommelier, I can enjoy a $9 bottle as well as a $30 bottle, as well as a $100 bottle.  I get enjoyment out of all of them for what they are.  But allow me to let you in on a secret, the $100 bottle will be a much better wine every time. 🙂

 

 

It's not better to me if I enjoy the $9 bottle just as much.