Dining question

[OttawaJohn]

2 hours ago, jelayne said:

Don’t stress over this.  You may find something in your cabin with info on what dining room and time.  If not just go to one and ask.  It really works quite well and they are pretty flexible.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Agreed.  It's a cruise, I'm sure there's lots of food to go around 🙂  And we are in Aqua so we can try Blu this time.

[markeb]

19 minutes ago, OttawaJohn said:

Agreed.  It's a cruise, I'm sure there's lots of food to go around 🙂  And we are in Aqua so we can try Blu this time.

 

If you're in Aqua, Blue IS your assigned dining room. Just go to Blu when you're ready for dinner. You generally CAN go to the MCR, but your dining room is Blu.

[jelayne]

If you had said your were in Aqua initially this would have been easier.  As @markeb said in Aqua Blu is your assigned dining room.  Blu does not take reservations ( reason you couldn’t make reservations)

it is anytime dining so just go when you are ready.  If you want to go at the same time every night you can if you want to go at different times that’s ok also. 
 

You may have a card in your room on the 1st day with a suggested time to show up that night but you don’t have to go at that time if it isn’t right for you.  That is just a way to try and spread out the folks so there isn’t back up.

 

[OttawaJohn]

Thanks all.

 

I didn't mention Blu as, from what I had read, it had it's own menu separate from the MDR's and we wanted to try a variety of stuff.  Our basic plan was just to look at the menu's each day to decide where we would go.

[Mariettte]

Off the Edge on May 1st. We had a set dining time of 7.30 in Cyprus (card in room on embarkation to tell us) but never had a problem dining at any other time, in any restaurant.

[NutsAboutGolf]

9 minutes ago, OttawaJohn said:

Thanks all.

 

I didn't mention Blu as, from what I had read, it had it's own menu separate from the MDR's and we wanted to try a variety of stuff.  Our basic plan was just to look at the menu's each day to decide where we would go.

 

Our most recent E-Class sailing was a year ago on the Beyond so things may have changed.  Was AQ and in Blu, they would allow you to order the MDR classics but not the MDR non-classics

[OttawaJohn]

4 minutes ago, Mariettte said:

Off the Edge on May 1st. We had a set dining time of 7.30 in Cyprus (card in room on embarkation to tell us) but never had a problem dining at any other time, in any restaurant.

Thanks!

[markeb]

15 minutes ago, OttawaJohn said:

Thanks all.

 

I didn't mention Blu as, from what I had read, it had it's own menu separate from the MDR's and we wanted to try a variety of stuff.  Our basic plan was just to look at the menu's each day to decide where we would go.

Why did you book Aqua? That’s not a criticism but a question. People have different reasons. Persian Gardens and extra Captain’s Club points are in there. But the biggest advantage to Aqua for most is Blu. Blu is a big part of the cost of Aqua. 
 

As I said, you generally will be seated at any dining room, but they are going to tell you the first (2-3?) nights that your dining room is Blu. Before the open seating model they almost certainly would have sent you to Blu. You wouldn’t have had a seat in the MDR. 

[OttawaJohn]

48 minutes ago, markeb said:

Why did you book Aqua? That’s not a criticism but a question. People have different reasons. Persian Gardens and extra Captain’s Club points are in there. But the biggest advantage to Aqua for most is Blu. Blu is a big part of the cost of Aqua.

 

 

We didn't plan to book it.  We generally don't pay the extra for things like that or the Haven on NCL.  The expense is just beyond our normal budget limits.

 

However, our previous (only other) experience with Celebrity had a lot of issues, so our TA worked with them to get us a free upgrade basically to help entice us back to try them again.  

 

Our TA loves Blu and can't recommend it enough to us, but we like variety, so are looking at the other dining rooms as well.

 

[SkiPro62]

Apex March 2024

[OttawaJohn]

14 hours ago, SkiPro62 said:

Apex March 2024

Thanks!

[ScottC4746]

22 hours ago, OttawaJohn said:

Very cool, thanks!  May be a bit of a wait since we prefer a private table,

We sailed on Solstice and no issue getting a two top.  We were usually quickly seated in about 5 minutes or so around 6 PM.

Now that they seem to be taking one two story dining room and breaking it up into four distinct dining themes on most ships, not sure.  We will find out on the Edge in 16 days.

[ScottC4746]

14 hours ago, SkiPro62 said:

Apex March 2024

That's cool.  Is that a digital sign?

[SeeSun&Sea]

OP, you might enjoy trying fixed time dining. It's pleasant to walk up to your table to find your bottles of wine already set out -- or chilled beer glasses or a fresh hot pot of decaf with mugs ready. If you like to have fresh veggies&dip with or instead of bread, it's there. If you want a special dish the next night, it's available. If you'd like to have extra napkins, no ice in your water or 2 bottles of sparkling water served in goblets, an extra wide seat, a cushion because you're short ... no problem.

 

Open dining is like going to a restaurant. Fixed dining is like having a butler. Variety is the spice of life. Enjoy your cruise!

[OttawaJohn]

27 minutes ago, SeeSun&Sea said:

OP, you might enjoy trying fixed time dining. It's pleasant to walk up to your table to find your bottles of wine already set out -- or chilled beer glasses or a fresh hot pot of decaf with mugs ready. If you like to have fresh veggies&dip with or instead of bread, it's there. If you want a special dish the next night, it's available. If you'd like to have extra napkins, no ice in your water or 2 bottles of sparkling water served in goblets, an extra wide seat, a cushion because you're short ... no problem.

 

Open dining is like going to a restaurant. Fixed dining is like having a butler. Variety is the spice of life. Enjoy your cruise!

 

One way or another, I'm sure we'll enjoy it 🙂

 

Our journey on dining has been funny.

 

Our very first cruise, we're still not sure how it happened, but we thought all sit down dining was extra cost.  It was halfway through our 2nd cruise before we realized the MDR was free 🙂

 

Even then, more often then not, we tended to eat in the buffet a lot, to the point we were annoyed when we sailed on Disney that the buffet wasn't really setup well to accommodate how we liked to eat!

 

Then, after the pandemic when we started to sail again, not sure why, we just shifted.  Now, we do sit down dining all three meals, and just hit the buffet for a light snack and that's it.

[PTC DAWG]

FYI the menu in Blu changes daily…

 

And don’t forget they serve a nice sit down breakfast. 

Edited May 15 by PTC DAWG

[markeb]

I don't think you'll have a fixed time dining option. Sounding like a broken record, but your dining room is Blu in Aqua. Blu doesn't offer fixed dining; it's always a walk up and be seated system. The other dining rooms are technically space available for you. It doesn't sound like recent passengers have had issues being seated in the MDR, but it's not your actual dining room. If you show up there the first night, they're probably going to point you to Blu.

 

And as just stated, the Blu menu changes every night.

[ScottC4746]

44 minutes ago, SeeSun&Sea said:

OP, you might enjoy trying fixed time dining. It's pleasant to walk up to your table to find your bottles of wine already set out -- or chilled beer glasses or a fresh hot pot of decaf with mugs ready. If you like to have fresh veggies&dip with or instead of bread, it's there. If you want a special dish the next night, it's available. If you'd like to have extra napkins, no ice in your water or 2 bottles of sparkling water served in goblets, an extra wide seat, a cushion because you're short ... no problem.

 

Open dining is like going to a restaurant. Fixed dining is like having a butler. Variety is the spice of life. Enjoy your cruise!

We did open dining on Solstice always arriving around 6 PM and always got the same wonderful waiter with our same wonderful two top by the railing overlooking the lower dining room on the solstice.  In fact, our waiter loved us so much that he kept an eye out for us and when he saw us he was practically tripping over himself to get to the hostess station to make sure he got us.  One night he even kept saying his table number over and over running to grab to menus and seating us himself.  We may try 6 PM fixed on our next cruise.  With open dining it wasn't until the second or third night we got paired up with our favorite.  While fixed is also at 6 PM, this way we don't get stuck with a bad waiter.