Queen Anne Grills Terrace access

[alc13]

1 minute ago, exlondoner said:

I don’t mind the close tables. I find it easy not to engage if feeling antisocial, but most of the time it is nice to chat. Of course one could be unlucky and end up next to someone who smelt or had a very loud voice, but it hasn’t happened so far

My trouble is that I start chatting at the first encounter and then can't find a way to disengage politely...  

[exlondoner]

3 minutes ago, alc13 said:

My trouble is that I start chatting at the first encounter and then can't find a way to disengage politely...  

It’s particularly easy at breakfast when nobody in their right mind feels chatty. A brief Good Morning, and that’s it. But I’ve never had a problem at other times.

[Planning to cruise]

We just go with the flow on close tables, sometimes getting chatty, sometimes it is only polite exchanges.

 

Once we did have an issue.  In PG on QV with tables side by side.  Nothing wrong with the other pair, perfectly nice people but DH in particular didnt care for the mans frequent topic of conversation.  Too medical, especially as at the time DH had seen enough of medical establishments for a while.  We didnt want to move, we had a great window table.  After a few days we realised that they were always in the dining room almost as soon as it opened.  We deliberately went a little later, which suited us and were able to say something on the lines  of hello, have you had a good day, oh dear I see you are leaving, never mind we ll see you again.  It worked and we ate in peace.   

 

In PG since Covid the tables have been more angled, still close if you want to engage but are not face to face if you want to be less sociable.   

[Planning to cruise]

1 hour ago, buchanan101 said:

I'd be happy in any Cunarder - they are, as you say, a bit different and I like all the styles. 

 

I haven't tried any other lines, and they won't all be the horrid monsters with climbing walls, surfing machines, dodgems. Those'd all be fine in isolation without the 5999 other passengers that go with those ships. But some of the styling and colours - they just aren't proper "ships". 

 

How do you cancel cruises - do you make use of the free one off deposit transfers, or are you not UK based?

 

We would never go on the "horrid monsters".  There are smaller ships, more itinerary based with less entertainment.  They will not be to everyones taste but we find we can mix that with Cunard happily.  

 

Cancelling.  We have only done so once, not wishing to repeat QA as our next cruise on her was a longer one.  We knew that unless we transferred the deposit to another Cunard booking of the same or higher value we would lose it.  I might have been willing to cut our losses but DH was not prepared to lose the cash!  Whilst still on board we looked at other Cunard cruises of at least equal cost and decided to transfer to another longer one on QM2.  We went to the future cruise office and asked them to make the change.  They said they could not do so, were unable to do the paperwork.  Dont ask me why.  Although the person was pleasant and polite we had the impression that they were more interested in making new sales.  We contacted our agent on return home who immediately organised the change to a different cruise and ship in a cabin of our choice without fuss.    

 

I am UK based.

[NE John]

1 hour ago, King Amo said:

Can you imagine the fume if Cunard had decided to sit two tops side by side on the banquettes, rather than being face to face? You solve one problem by creating an even bigger one. 

 

Banquette seating is something that has come back into fashion in recent years in high end restaurants, and I suspect this is why the interior designers went for it here. It makes an empty restaurant appear more cosy and inviting (and, to add another new word that many on here will hate, Instagrammable). They cope very nicely with maximising space in awkward areas, and given the less than ideal QG floorplate, I can see why they would have fitted the bill here. I'd be interested to know if the feedback on them is universally bad, as this place is certainly not a representative sample. If it is, I can see them working on alternatives as we speak and ripping them out at the first opportunity, as it is never that difficult to do. Getting sufficient capacity and circulation space will be challenging though, as that area should never have been a restaurant (at least front of house) in my mind. 

The idea of interior decorators making high-end restaurants cozier via banquets is all good, however so few restaurants provide tableside service, like Grills in Cunard, and that narrow corridor looks very difficult for waiters and M’ds to cook and flambe. Maybe the designers never knew Cunard is big putting on a show with tableside prep? 

[buchanan101]

38 minutes ago, NE John said:

The idea of interior decorators making high-end restaurants cozier via banquets is all good, however so few restaurants provide tableside service, like Grills in Cunard, and that narrow corridor looks very difficult for waiters and M’ds to cook and flambe. Maybe the designers never knew Cunard is big putting on a show with tableside prep? 

The service in PG on QA was ridiculous. Almost too good if that was possible. 

[exlondoner]

39 minutes ago, NE John said:

The idea of interior decorators making high-end restaurants cozier via banquets is all good, however so few restaurants provide tableside service, like Grills in Cunard, and that narrow corridor looks very difficult for waiters and M’ds to cook and flambe. Maybe the designers never knew Cunard is big putting on a show with tableside prep? 

Banquettes are not cosy. Compared to almost any chair, they are simply uncomfortable.

[NE John]

44 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

Banquettes are not cosy. Compared to almost any chair, they are simply uncomfortable.

After four back surgeries, I agree wholeheartedly! I’d be squirming around all meal. 

[rog747]

Steering back on Topic....lol

Is there anyone in Grills on-board QA now can report back to us that all is well on the Terrace and that service is good ? 

Is she still in cold waters?

[Petulia]

19 hours ago, exlondoner said:

Banquettes are not cosy. Compared to almost any chair, they are simply uncomfortable.

My other half would agree with you. We’d had ‘elevenses’ in the lounge and saw a member of staff inside the empty QG restaurant and asked if we could have a quick looksee. It is indeed a very elegant room and I mentioned there had been some comment about the banquettes…so he tried one. 
 

Uncomfortable and creaky was his opinion. Meanwhile I should say we found the Princess Grill seating quite comfortable.

[King Amo]

22 hours ago, NE John said:

The idea of interior decorators making high-end restaurants cozier via banquets is all good, however so few restaurants provide tableside service, like Grills in Cunard, and that narrow corridor looks very difficult for waiters and M’ds to cook and flambe. Maybe the designers never knew Cunard is big putting on a show with tableside prep? 

The issue is with the narrow corridor though - the space is totally unsuitable for the restaurant. The banquette actually leads to there being more circulation space for that number of tables, as guests slide in, rather than having the room to pull a chair back. 

 

Also seems I have to clarify that I never said a banquette was cozy. I said it makes an empty restaurant appear more cosy. I made no comment on the comfort of the seat. 

[Victoria2]

We have spent a month in the QG restaurant on Annie and banquettes aside [ not having sat in one], our prior thoughts have been dispelled and we thought the restaurant light and airy.

 

Don't knock/try and change it [it won't happen] until you've tried it.

 

 

[exlondoner]

13 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

We have spent a month in the QG restaurant on Annie and banquettes aside [ not having sat in one], our prior thoughts have been dispelled and we thought the restaurant light and airy.

 

Don't knock/try and change it [it won't happen] until you've tried it.

 

 

I bet they take those banquettes away at some point in the next ten years.

[Victoria2]

18 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

I bet they take those banquettes away at some point in the next ten years.

Possibly on a refit but that won't be for a long time.

[s.s.France]

They removed the banquette seating in QM2´s Grills in the remastering, but brought it back on Queen Anne. No lesson learned?

[BigMac1953]

33 minutes ago, s.s.France said:

They removed the banquette seating in QM2´s Grills in the remastering, but brought it back on Queen Anne. No lesson learned?

 

QV originally had them too! Nobody wanted to be seated there.

[exlondoner]

35 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

 

QV originally had them too! Nobody wanted to be seated there.

The QA banquettes are particularly uncomfortable, because they go all the way up. Usually they stop at about shoulder level giving you a chance to lean back a bit, but you are stuck very upright on QA. It must be purely for looks.

[exlondoner]

1 hour ago, s.s.France said:

They removed the banquette seating in QM2´s Grills in the remastering, but brought it back on Queen Anne. No lesson learned?

Clearly not. Such is the human condition.

[WantedOnVoyage]

I got "stuck" with the banquette seat on QM2 in Queen's Grill when it was all original (and in my opinion, much nicer looking, too) and it was perfectly comfortable and yes, for the reasons "exlonderer" suggests (good grief we agree!). What is on QA even looks otherwise. Like the seats in Second Class "slam door" South London carriage stock c. 1968. 

 

When an interior designer is left with a corridor by the architect to fashion into a restaurant with trolley service, "the up against the wall" concept is hard to avoid.  Odder still, conceived for what should be the premier dining space in a vessel.

[3rdGenCunarder]

4 hours ago, exlondoner said:

The QA banquettes are particularly uncomfortable, because they go all the way up. Usually they stop at about shoulder level giving you a chance to lean back a bit, but you are stuck very upright on QA. It must be purely for looks.

 

At one end, it looks like the high backs hide a waiter station. 

[Victoria2]

28 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

At one end, it looks like the high backs hide a waiter station. 

Waiter stations aren't hidden as such, just more discreetly placed than say in QV's QG restaurant and and I don't know if you walked the length of the restaurant when you were in QG but it isn't as 'confined' as some seem to want to describe it.

 

[3rdGenCunarder]

8 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

Waiter stations aren't hidden as such, just more discreetly placed than say in QV's QG restaurant and and I don't know if you walked the length of the restaurant when you were in QG but it isn't as 'confined' as some seem to want to describe it.

 

 

The high backs look odd in front of an open space rather than a wall.

[Victoria2]

The high backs saves banging heads on the back wall I suppose 

[Victoria2]

The opposite view 

[exlondoner]

2 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

The opposite view 

I assume that was on a later voyage than the one we shared. It looks as if the tables are quite differently arranged, apart from by the immovable banquettes.

Edited September 6 by exlondoner