Buffet ?

[kingsrx]

I know on previous cruises I have been on (not with Celebrity) the buffet takes on themes for certain times.

 

1. Do they do this on celebrity?

 

2. Is it for lunch or just for dinner?

 

3. What kind of themes could I expect for a Meditterenean Cruise?

 

4. What does the buffet generally have on it? Breakfast? Lunch and Dinner?

 

5. Are there any times on the buffet that we shouldn't miss or is it overall a better experience in the dining room?

 

6. What about healthier fare? For someone that wants to pretend to stay on weight watchers for some of the cruise?;)

 

Thanks in advance for answering any or all of my questions.

[ilovhywd]

On the Millennium, we had breakfast and lunch at the buffet because there were so many more choices than the dining room. Plus, we could eat outdoors and enjoy the great weather.

 

There are different stations, not just one long cafeteria line. There are always stations for pizza, pasta (made to order!), deli, and ice cream. The other stations change daily. Some of the themes included Italian, Chinese, Indonesian, and Mexican. If you didn't want the specialty foods, one station always had a basic chicken, fish, and beef dish. The shrimp were especially good. You could always have a caesar salad, and sometimes there was a Greek or other different salad.

 

If someone wanted a hamburger or hot dog, they could get it by the pool and bring it to the table in the buffet.

 

The waiters are great in clearing off the empty plates quickly and cleaning the tables so that you can always find a table for 2, 4, 6 or more people.

 

If a weight watcher is careful, there are many healthy selections on the buffet.

 

The breakfast buffet did not change much and had everything you could possibly think of. Omelets were made to order with whatever filling you wanted. Waffles were made at the deli station at the far back of the ship. There was French toast, bagels and lox, every cereal, and lots of fruit. Not to mention the danish, muffins, and pastries.

 

We thought Celebrity's buffets were excellent!

[dkjretired]

on any of Celebrity's ships. They have informal dinners in the buffet area but they are off a menu. The only themed buffets used to be when they had midnight buffets everynight but they have been eliminated over the years. They only have a couple now including the grand buffet. Again, to emphasize, there is no dinner buffet fleetwide on Celebrity.

[kingsrx]

Thanks for clearing that up!

 

That makes it easier actually, this is a big family cruise (about 12 people) so we are all supposed to do dinner together. Since the buffets are only at night and not during dinner I won't miss ANYTHING!!! And we have main seating (grandfather is a diabetic so he needs to eat early!), so I might even be able to grab a nibble for the Midnight Extravaganza...:)

[Longboysfan]

Thanks for clearing that up!

 

That makes it easier actually, this is a big family cruise (about 12 people) so we are all supposed to do dinner together. Since the buffets are only at night and not during dinner I won't miss ANYTHING!!! And we have main seating (grandfather is a diabetic so he needs to eat early!), so I might even be able to grab a nibble for the Midnight Extravaganza...:)

 

Or

make an after dinner Sushi stop.

[hajekfam]

Thanks for clearing that up!

 

That makes it easier actually, this is a big family cruise (about 12 people) so we are all supposed to do dinner together. Since the buffets are only at night and not during dinner I won't miss ANYTHING!!! And we have main seating (grandfather is a diabetic so he needs to eat early!), so I might even be able to grab a nibble for the Midnight Extravaganza...:)

Celebrity has done away with midnight buffets except for two buffets on a 7 day cruise - the Grand Buffet held on the last formal night and another one held mid-week. The other buffet can be fruit and sherbert or tex-mex held poolside, chocolate in the Cova cafe, or tapas in one of the lounges for example. On other nights, Celebrity has gourmet bites - small appetizer and pastries passed around the lounges and casino by waiters. Really nice as the food comes to you and you don't have to stop your evening activities.

Having early dinner, you might not be able to make the sushi bar as it closes around 9 or so. But don't worry - if you are hungry around 10, there is pizza available and there is always room service.

We have late dinner and order a fruit and cheese plate from room service to have while dressing for dinner, especially when we have had full day tours.

[shofer]

After a 14 days cruise, I'm afraid I found the buffets boring. I think it was probably too much of a good thing.

 

For breakfast, they had 4 buffet lines going and someone on each side making omelets and eggs to order. In the back by the casual dining area, there were waffles and pancakes available 8-10 am. This caused quite a backlog as there was only one waffle maker and people did not want to wait.

 

For lunch there was a specialty buffet on the port side on sea days and a station to ‘make your own sandwich’ in the casual dining area. They actually made it for you according to your directions. They also had French fries which were quite good. The specialty buffets were ok but the only one that looked appealing was the American with fried chicken and corn on the cob.

 

Their themed lunch buffets were not very ethnic (authentic). I had tacos on the Mexican buffet that were just meat & tomato sauce. No taste at all. With all the ethnicities on board that ship, you think someone could make real tasting tacos. The Chinese buffet was said to be good but I never got to it.

 

Also on each side was a pasta station which got a good work-out. From Noon to 10 pm there was pizza on the far starboard side. You could design your own pizza but they always had some kind already made up for you to try. It was ok, but the crust was lacking in taste.

 

The Spa Café by the Thalassotherapy pool was very good for light choices for breakfast and lunch. As usual, the pool grill had hotdogs, hamburgers and a specialty choice of those each day. They did have the best pickles I have ever eaten. Since we were changing time going and coming, people were constantly adjusting to the new time but the ship stuck to their schedule and by 11 am only one buffet line was open for breakfast and it was usually quite crowded as was the omelet station. Forget about the waffles, it closed at 10 am, too bad for the passengers who slept late.