Teppanyaki, Moderno or La Cucina

[cruiser1961]

8 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

We always go, as a couple, exactly the opposite of you. We hope for no interaction with others. We've always been paired with other couples, never a big group. And, thankfully, other than a cursory hello, we all slide into conversation with our beloved and don't have awkward group conversation. I do apply the liquor as liberally as possible before and during dinner, in case a strident talker decides to announce their presence. I've been so grateful to not have this....I'm probably setting myself up for disappointment next time I'm in Teppanyaki/Hasuki. 

Thanks for your response, and for your perspective.  I get it.  Hubby and I are quite comfortable with each other, yet he would like more social interaction than I.  Of all of the dining options, Teppanyaki could be the most social, yet that is often not the case. 

 

We do the cursory hello, where are you from, and determine if others are interested in further discussions.  If not, we don’t pursue it.  We then talk to each other, which is also fine.

[Scubadoc]

I feel like I unleashed the beast with this post 😂 but I am enjoying it. I love hearing everyone’s different opinions. Isn’t it amazing that we get to do this thing called cruising with all of these options. Very grateful and can’t wait.  

[smillerholmes]

On 7/7/2024 at 11:49 PM, complawyer said:

much like the edsel, this choice has gone by the wayside.

 

 

It's been a long time since I've seen anyone noting the loss of the Edsel...

 

signed a car girl from Michigan 😁

[complawyer]

where in michigan, i grew up in detroit

[azappraiser]

We'd always been fans of "teppanyaki" style restaurants, so, we were excited to see one on the Pearl when we sailed NCL for the first time in 2011.  We were not prepared for the Fried Garlic with rice.  I would guess the ratio was close to 50/50.  Totally unpalatable, hardly anyone ate it.  The rest of the meal was top notch, so we chalked it up as an anomaly.

 

We then sailed on the Gem, and decided to give Teppanyaki another try... same deal as before with the fried rice, although this time, there was far more garlic than rice.  We passed on the rice, as did nearly everyone at the table, once again.

 

We still eat at land-based Teppanyaki restaurants, but no more on a cruise.  

 

[ColeThornton]

7 minutes ago, azappraiser said:

We'd always been fans of "teppanyaki" style restaurants, so, we were excited to see one on the Pearl when we sailed NCL for the first time in 2011.  We were not prepared for the Fried Garlic with rice.  I would guess the ratio was close to 50/50.  Totally unpalatable, hardly anyone ate it.  The rest of the meal was top notch, so we chalked it up as an anomaly.

 

We then sailed on the Gem, and decided to give Teppanyaki another try... same deal as before with the fried rice, although this time, there was far more garlic than rice.  We passed on the rice, as did nearly everyone at the table, once again.

 

We still eat at land-based Teppanyaki restaurants, but no more on a cruise.  

 

 

 

You can ask for the rice to be just cooked plain and they will accommodate.

[meglet]

Anyone tried the udon there?

[azappraiser]

1 minute ago, ColeThornton said:

 

 

You can ask for the rice to be just cooked plain and they will accommodate.

 

While that is certainly an option, we choose to use our specialty dining credits elsewhere.

[smillerholmes]

43 minutes ago, complawyer said:

where in michigan, i grew up in detroit

Ann Arbor

[cruiseny4life]

17 minutes ago, meglet said:

Anyone tried the udon there?

My husband has a few times, which means I sneak a bite! 

 

It's always been good. Noodles are well cooked. They have enough resistance, but aren't chewy, burned, or under cooked. They're always prepared with a little sauce - I'm not cultured enough to know what - and served last. The portion is a nice size - I'd say if you eat only udon (no rice), then you might be a wee bit hungry, but my husband and I are porkers. Anyway, it's a nice option to have alongside the rice, veggies, and whatever main you order. 

 

As for saltiness, we always ask for a little bit of soy so we can get an appropriate amount of salt as the rice/udon never has enough flavor to satisfy us! 

[The Traveling Man]

1 hour ago, azappraiser said:

We'd always been fans of "teppanyaki" style restaurants, so, we were excited to see one on the Pearl when we sailed NCL for the first time in 2011.  We were not prepared for the Fried Garlic with rice.  I would guess the ratio was close to 50/50.  Totally unpalatable, hardly anyone ate it.  The rest of the meal was top notch, so we chalked it up as an anomaly.

 

We still eat at land-based Teppanyaki restaurants, but no more on a cruise.  

 

I also prefer little to no garlic, so when they come around at the beginning of the meal to take drink orders, I ask for no garlic with my food.  The chef then sets aside a portion of the rice and prepares mine first, without garlic.  He then adds garlic (and perhaps other seasonings) and prepares the rest of the rice for everyone else.

[Sand and Seas]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

My husband has a few times, which means I sneak a bite! 

 

It's always been good. Noodles are well cooked. They have enough resistance, but aren't chewy, burned, or under cooked. They're always prepared with a little sauce - I'm not cultured enough to know what - and served last. The portion is a nice size - I'd say if you eat only udon (no rice), then you might be a wee bit hungry, but my husband and I are porkers. Anyway, it's a nice option to have alongside the rice, veggies, and whatever main you order. 

 

As for saltiness, we always ask for a little bit of soy so we can get an appropriate amount of salt as the rice/udon never has enough flavor to satisfy us! 

I love the way you think!

I'm going to try the Udon noodles....but I will be trying some of hubby's fried rice😋

[schmoopie17]

It's a bit of a bummer to hear that Moderno is now so bad. We're cruising in September with cruise virgins and they really want to eat at Moderno, so I made a reservation for four. They'd probably not be happy if I changed it to two and we bugged out and went someplace else. However, Moderno is the only specialty restaurant where we've never gone to, so we'll probably just bite the bullet (as well as the tough meat).

[Distinctive-Destinations]

6 hours ago, meglet said:

Anyone tried the udon there?

I have. It tastes good to me. My wife usually gets rice, so we can take a bite of each. I prefer the udon, she prefers the rice.

 

Then again, it seems easier to complain about everything on here lately, so maybe I should have done that….

[RenoDuck]

On 7/8/2024 at 2:22 PM, The Traveling Man said:

I agree with you, Mike.  While the seafood in Teppanyaki is still very good, the "show" is a "been there, done that" experience for us.  The salad bar in Moderno is still a real winner, but the meat offerings are no longer very appealing.  Many are either bland or overcooked.  La Cucina can be hit or miss, but we usually are able to find something appealing.  In fact, the best steak I ever had on an NCL ship was in La Cucina on the Epic a couple of years ago.

 

James

This!  On the Star the second half of May this year, the shrimp in Teppanyaki was very good.  Steak was overcooked, tough and too big of pieces (no knife provided) made for awkward chewing.  Moderno, bloody or overcooked.  If you like your meat med or med rare, good luck.  The best steak I had was the filet at La Cucina.

[9tee2Sea]

In my opinion, the only two specialty restaurants that I alway go to are: Modern and Le Bistro.

Cagney's has been disappointing the last three times, I make pretty good Italian, so La Cucina is out. Teppenayki is too loud for me.  

[stellarose33]

have two speciality dinings . hubby and are both pescatarians.  help

[ColeThornton]

55 minutes ago, stellarose33 said:

have two speciality dinings . hubby and are both pescatarians.  help

 

 

Which ship?

[schmoopie17]

3 hours ago, stellarose33 said:

hubby and are both pescatarians.  help

Here's a tip...look both ways before crossing.

Oh, wait...I thought you said pedestrians.

Never mind...

[Asawi]

Add me to the list of people that love the food but would prefer to not have the show in Teppanyaki. First time it was fun. After that, not so much. Food is really nice though!

 

[Distinctive-Destinations]

4 hours ago, stellarose33 said:

have two speciality dinings . hubby and are both pescatarians.  help

Ocean Blue seems like the obvious choice if your ship (like the Joy) has one. 
 

Le Bistro has a Dover sole dish.

[The Traveling Man]

6 hours ago, stellarose33 said:

have two speciality dinings . hubby and are both pescatarians.  help

Le Bistro has several seafood items on the menu.  We really like the Dover sole.  I think they may have dropped the scallops appetizer recently, though.  If you're willing to pay the surcharge, the lobster Thermidor is quite nice.

 

In Cagney's, my wife usually selects the grilled fisherman's platter.  I also have tried it a few times and it's quite good.  They sometimes char the shrimp and scallops a bit too much for my taste, but overall I would recommend it.

 

 

[complawyer]

goes to show ya how everyone has differing tastes. Getting bored with the fillet, i tried the fisherman's platter at cagney's. the absolute WORST. couldnt gag any of it down to save my life

but then again, i have also posted that on  our last cruise on the star this past april, the food was consistently the worst we've ever had on any ncl cruise/ship. 30 in all, so maybe it was just par for this course

 

Never, ever will i order that again

[TheBeardedCruiser]

On 7/7/2024 at 7:45 PM, DorothyB said:

I've actually considered bringing my Kindle to read during the "show" and meal . . . 

Please don't do that! The chefs work so hard to entertain the passengers. You would probably really hurt their feelings! There are so many restaurants with great food, where the chef is hidden in the back...

(That's just my two cents.)

[DorothyB]

29 minutes ago, TheBeardedCruiser said:

Please don't do that! The chefs work so hard to entertain the passengers. You would probably really hurt their feelings! There are so many restaurants with great food, where the chef is hidden in the back...

(That's just my two cents.)

That is what I keep deciding, but it is still tempting 🙂