vespertino

Thanks everyone! Looks like the scales tip toward X although R is still a good contender. Since I've only tried the specialty dining on X and I have a rough idea of what to expect, I wanted to check with those who had tried both especially since it has been many years since my last cruise.

@sperkins921

Constellation was my first X cruise as well, and it was that particular ship that won me over to cruising. I still liked my RCCL cruise and had a great time- which was my first- but the Constellation is what enamored me. At some point I'll need to do another cruise on the Connie, but she's in Europe right now.

Thanks for all the feedback everyone! I also re-posted this in the Royal forum and I've gotten similar opinions and suggestions on both threads: while Royal isn't bad by any means the needle is swinging in favor for Celebrity for quality/consistency in non-MDR venues. It's also a better fit in terms of ambiance, while I liked the M class back in the day I'm leaning towards S class for the extra dining options. Our schedules are up in the air for the next few months but we're hoping to be able to commit to a winter holiday cruise.

You'll have much wider variety foe specialty dining on Oasis class vs any Celebrity ship.

The Murano on Celebrity is very similar to what Normandy and SS United States used to be. A few different dishes but the same upscale elegant dining. There, favorites include Dover Sole, filleted tabeleside, steak Diane (off menu and have to be a regular visitor to Murano), beef Wellington and the bison.

Q-sine is a great concept on Celebrity, norhing like it on Oasis class, or any RCI ship really. Best done woth at least 4 people though to be AZ le to experience may different small plates.

We LOVE Solarium Bistro on Oasis and eat there twice a cruise - simply lovely, and nothing to compare on other RCI ships or Celebrity.

Not a fan of Tuscan Grill on Celebrity - we found Giovanni's better overall, but norhing extra special.

Bug fan of 150 Central Park, but it's relatively similar to Murano, for upscale gourmet.

Celebrity doesn't have a steakhouse like RCIs Chops, so norhing to compare across lines there.

Sabor on Oasis is excellent, and nothing like it on Celebrity ships. RCI offers Izumi with either a la carte or the hibachi table - norhing like the hibachi on Celebrity either, bit their Silk is very good, only on Solstice and Equinox..

And so on...You'll have more options and variety on Oasis class, but depends on which ship for specifics, ie Jamie's Italian, Solarium Bistro, etc - within the class there are different offerings - just as on Celebrity.

Overall, to be honest, not a fan of Celebrity recently. Sailed again on Eclipse March/April this past spring after a hiatus and found them just as lacking in overall personality. Service and Food were good, but there was serious lack of entertainment, especially after 10pm at night, and most daytime activites involved a fee. Specialty dining was great, we ate at Murano twice and Q-sine twice, skipped Tuscan Grill and Bistro on 5 - minimal appeal for us.

Both are good choices - but between Oasis class and Celebrity at all - Oasis wins hand down for us. More variety in food, more variety in entertainment, livelier atmosphere, etc... Depends on what you're looking for in overall cruise experience..

Thank you! That was extremely helpful info. I am incredibly attracted to the variety on RCCL's oasis class, but would rather have better food overall even if it means less choices. I had read/heard/noticed that RCCL was stepping up the specialty dining, and wanted to investigate a little to see if it rivaled Celebrity. It does sound like there are some places that can, but I'm worried about consistency.

I plan on bringing my DH on this cruise and it was very difficult getting him to agree to going in the first place (it will be his first cruise). We're both sticklers when it comes to food quality, but he's not very forgiving to errors and can get very grumpy over imperfections. We don't really care much for entertainment. I suppose we're looking for relaxation, a more romantic setting, and good food.

For those who have cruised frequently on both Celebrity and Royal, I'd like to know which you feel had the better specialty dining in terms of food quality and consistency. It's been a long time since, but I loved the Ocean Liners and Normandy on X and am very sad to hear they have since been replaced.

I'm currently debating between a future cruise on X or RCI (probably Oasis class), and the plan is to avoid the MDR and go for specialty dining each night. We're looking at Eastern or Western Carib cruses.

What were the hits? Misses? Pleasant surprises? I'd also like to hear some feedback on whether the dry-aged steaks offered at some of the on-board restaurants for an extra chrage are comparable to those at some high-end steakhouses on land.

Thanks for any info! This is going to be a tough decision.

@TlcOhio:

Many thanks for the food porn! I went and followed the link to your complete review. And while it probably won't factor into my decision I must admit that it's good to know Celebrity has some very handsome waiters :)

Such a shame! We had many a great dinner there, mostly in United States with cruising friends and friends we just met on our cruises. Loved the quiet, elegant atmosphere. Loved the service and conversations. Food for us was always very good.

 

Can only hope replacements are as good.

I'm disappointed also, while I understand change is the nature of things, I can't help feeling remorse over losing something good that probably didn't need to be replaced. I'm glad I bought the book with the recipes for the five spice encrusted venison tenderloin and the mushroom capuccinos.

I would consider an Oasis class ship in a suite. The suite experience on those ships is something very special. You have your own lounge area and own restaurant (which is very nice, if a bit limited on menu). The dedicated sun deck (with plenty of shade) is a lovely spot. Choose a time when schools are not on a break, although the OA ships, more than any others, have a way of keeping the kids well out of the way as there are so many activities and dedicated areas for them.

 

For fine dining try 150 Central Park and Chef's Table. As fans of Japanese food you will probably like Izumi and Sabor (Mexican) is a great casual restaurant.

Thank you for the info on the Oasis suits.

I've seen a lot of very poor reviews for Chef's Table and Izumi that have me a bit concerned, and while some of that may have been ship inconsistency that's not something I'd like to risk if I can avoid it. I'm also trying to find more reviews for Sushi on 5 (on X). Accommodations being great on both lines if we go with a suite or similar, it's the quality of the specialty restaurants that would tip scale for us, even in the face of limited choice. The reviews for 150 Central seemed a bit better and more consistently positive.

Are there not other deciding factors than speciality dining? General ship ambience? The number of kids on board etc?

We'd prefer to be around fewer kids, not that all are bad, but the few ill behaved ones are like nails on a chalkboard to an overworked couple with sparse vacation time looking for relaxation. I know RCCL has more families and young children, but with all the kids activities on board I also realize both do a reasonably good job separating the kids into play areas where they can be kids and not interrupt the other passengers.

We don't like to subathe or swim in pools, though I do like to snorkel. I'm more of a spa person and pale as a sheet (10 minutes in the sun and I burn).

Firstly, you do not say which RC and X ships you are considering and it does make a difference. We did enjoy the Allure specialities (although one of our worst general cruise experiences) but have found other RC venues such as Chops just OK. On Celebrity we do love the S class options (not exactly the same on every ship). As the M class slowly phase out the 'liners' restaurants in my mind that is a reduction in choice....

 

Can I suggest you look at the cost of Celebrity Suites? If you go for an entry SS you will get access to Luminae, the suite restaurant and Michael's Club. Upgrade to a RS or PH and you have unlimited speciality dining included also. If you are planning on not using the MDR this may make suite costs more affordable.

 

i suggest you look for some reviews of Luminae, many posted with pictures, to see if it may suit you (available M and S class). If not check exactly which RC and X ships you are comparing....

We're looking at Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises, so for X that would be the ships out of Miami and Ft. Lauderdale (Silhouette, Reflection, Eclipse, Equinox, Summit). As for RCCL/RCI there's more ports ships to choose from, too many to list here. It's relatively easy for us to fly to any port in Florida, Galveston is closest but not the most direct. We'd consider other cruises in Europe and Alaska if we weren't so limited for time.

Thank you for suggesting the suites, and I think someone else mentioned the aqua class also, I hadn't thought of those. I will check it out.

In our experience....Celebrity.

 

But it is really down to personal preferences and the specific cruise that one happens to be on. Food can vary greatly from one sailing to another on the same ship/same cruise line.

I can offer some info on what we tend to like/don't like, if it would help with the feedback on which line might be a better match for us. We love almost everything, lived in NYC for decades and have an adventurous and experienced palate. We prefer quality over quantity, and can be a bit picky. We're not fans of Italian because it's difficult to find authentic Italian restaurants, and we're not big pasta eaters to being with. I have a pet peeve for fusion done poorly, and not a fan of "Americanized" renditions of international dishes. Our top five cuisines would be: Japanese, French, Korean, New American and Thai.

We love the food in the MDR on X don't know how you can skip eating there, but to each his own.

 

My new favorite restaurant is on RCCL, Sabor's (high end Mexican) The Tiger shrimp dish is to die for and top it off with the dessert sampler that is absolutely divine, yes! If you're talking Oasis class ships RCCL is a cut above IMHO. You can't beat Park 150 in Central Park on the Oasis class ships, unless you put it up against Murano's, equally good.;)

 

I do think RCCL's steak house has gone downhill, but it's honestly a toss up. For the Wow factor, I think I'd take someone to RCCL Oasis, Allure or Harmony. JMHO.

 

We can't wait to get on board Solstice in 30 days and tackle Tuscany's filet!

I liked the MDR on X, but I was so impressed with Normandy and Ocean Liners I enjoyed the food more and felt it was well worth the extra splurge. I'm also a fan of afternoon tea, and the champagne afternoon tea on the Ocean Liners was in my top 3 (The mandarin in LV has first place). Also, DH and I really prefer to dine alone on this cruise, we want some peaceful romantic time for the two of us, not to mention we're introverted and don't like being forced to socialize. We''re more than willing to pay the upcharge for specialty dining provided the quality is better.

I'd like to hear more about your experiences with the steakhouses in RRCL (and X if they have it). We really love top-quality dry aged steaks and have dined at some great places on land (Craftsteak, Prime, Del Friscos's Double Eagle, Peter Lugers, etc.. ), we were wondering how the steakhouse restaurants on X and RCCL compare, I've noticed some restaurants on the ships are offering dry aged steaks (for additional charge) and am glad to see it but I'm curious about their quality.

It's good to know that RCCL is stepping it up with their newer/larger ships. I read some reviews that have me a bit worried about consistency. DH and I don't have much time to vacation together, so we'd like to minimize the risk of having a mixed or so-so food experience.

DH is considering going on his first cruise with me and I'm a bit torn between Celebrity and RCI. We don't plan on eating at the MDR at all and plan to have every meal at a specialty dining venue.

I've only cruised once on RCI but didn't try the specialty dining. However, on Celebrity I did and I have fond memories of Normandy and Ocean Liners but that was many years ago and I don't know if it's realistic for me to expect the same experience.

All cruise lines have been adding a lot of specialty dining options, and I was wondering how RCI's specialty dining compared to Celebrity's. Has anyone here dined at both RCI and X's specialty restaurants and have some opinions on the food quality?

Greetings fellow foodies!

It's been a very long time since I cruised on Royal and Celebrity. but I'm considering an Xmas cruise on Royal with my spouse (who is a very picky eater and somewhat reluctant to try a cruise). I was hoping to hear feedback from those who have experience with specialty dining on both Royal and Celebrity and can tell me how they differ and if there is a quality difference.

In the past I enjoyed the specialty dining on Celebrity and found it was well worth the extra charge. I was so pleased with the Normandie and the Ocean Liner's restaurant that I found myself booking those instead of going to the MDR- I especially enjoyed the afternoon tea! My only real complaints stem from their occasional inability to serve cold-red rare meat, specifically beef and duck- I know this has to do with food safety issues on ships, they'd rather be safe than sorry but I'm willing to take the risk even if they are not. Occasionally the induction stoves in the kitchens limit technique to a degree (creme brulees tend to suffer most from that). I had not tried the specialty dining on the one cruise I had on Royal.

I'd like to stick with specialty dining over the MDR if we pull the trigger for an Xmas cruise on Royal, are there any ships that are better than others? Are there consistency problems with the food served or are the chef's dead-on nearly every time?

How is Izumi for sushi and ramen? Most of the trip reports I've seen that mention Izumi's hibachi experience but almost never mention what the sushi/sashimi and ramen are like. I love authentic ramen and used to live a couple blocks from Ippudo in NYC. I'm very experienced with authentic Japanese cuisine in general, not just sushi. I wouldn't expect the sushi to be anything like Yasuda or Masa, but is it better than crummy supermarket sushi? I saw it mentioned once that Izumi had an omakase available- has anyone had this that can report?

How does the steakhouse experience in Royal differ from good steakhouses on land- examples would be Craftsteak, and Del Frisco's Double Eagle. How good is the dry aged beef? It is on par with good steakhouses on land, or less so? As I've had issues in the past with getting things rare, is it difficult to get dry aged steaks cooked rare?

I would love to hear about any specialty restaurant on Royal where you felt the food was exceptional- where did you eat and what did you get?

Any info would be great! Thanks very much :D

Recommendations incoming!!!

Celebrity Summit Normandie & Celebrity Constellation Ocean Liners:

Creamy Maine Lobster Bisque

Wild Forest Mushroom Capuccino

Sweetbreads

Smoked Salmon & Peekytoe Crab Parfait

Escalope of Foie Gras

5 Spice Crusted Venison Loin

Scallops and Lobster

Grand Marnier Soufflé

Crepe Ballon Rouge

Also, the afternoon tea at Ocean Liners was fantastic.

The two restaurants have similar menus, there are some differences but I don't remember which of these dishes I had where.

If one comes from a coastal place with good lobster available, there are very few cruise dining venues that are going to get it "right" in the MDR on lobstah night. I'd say most of my lobster experiences in the MDR were "MEH!", so-so, but not great. However I found the specialty dining restaurants did have real Maine lobster (lobstaH!) and prepared it properly... So I opt for that if I'm in the mood for a scrumptious, Atlantic sea cockroach instead of going to the MDR.

Excellent thread! I'm not vegetarian but I often get annoyed when menus are too focused on meat being the accent of the meal. There's so much wonderful flavors in vegetables, eggs, and dairy that it's a shame when a menu doesn't take advantage of highlighting that. Sometimes I'm not in the mood for meat but would prefer something else, thank you for listing cruise lines and on-board restaurants where chefs flex a bit more creativity with veg, legumes and dairy.

Hello! That ain't pizza.

Amen!

You know what else gets to me? Pouring ranch dressing on pizza/and or dipping the pizza crust in it. - sacrilegious I tell ya! If you need gravy/dressing/alien junk on your pizza, then you need to go out into the world and find better pizza! Shenanigans like that in my neighborhood would rouse Frankie and "Knuckles" from their far corner booth in pizza shop to break your fingers and then toss you to the curb.

95% of the food items other people hate I absolutely love :eek: I will eat almost anything... Almost.

Don't like:

Jicima

Raw clams

Beef Liver/Pork Liver (even though I do like organ meats, I can't stomach those)

Just shows how person food is.

 

I think Princess is streets ahead of Celebrity.

 

It may just be that they adapt to Australian tastes better.

Yes, it depends on a lot of things. I've never cruised Princess so naturally I wouldn't know what the food is like there. I've only cruised on RCCL and Celebrity and found Celebrity to be MUCH better than RCCL; I used the specialty dining restaurants often (at least 3-4 nights out of the cruse instead of the MDR) on Celeb and found them to be excellent and well worth the extra charge- way better than the MDR if you're looking for higher-quality leaning more towards a fine-dining experience.

How are the specialty dining restaurants on Princess? I'd love to hear about them! :) There is a Princess ship with a great itinerary for Japan that I'd love to go on, so if you had more info on how the buffet, MDR and specialty restaurants differ on Celeb vs. Princess that would be great.

Hi there All!

I'm a Foodie, and a FATTIE and wondering what would you guys recommend, and your likes a dislikes when it comes to eating on a ship .... I like good food, but i'm not a food snob! I can enjoy a good burger or pizza, as well as Filet Mignon and Escargot!

Here's my experiences ....

First of all, I'm not an avid cruiser - but would love to be! ... I've been on the Destiny, Breeze, Glory, and the Norwegian Epic

Food on the Carnival ships were ok .. MDR was nice .... buffets were well, Buffets! The Steakhouse was Superb!!

Food on the Epic was EPIC FAIL - in my opinion - except for the specialty restaurants and the bacon at breakfast!

Being a Weight Loss surgery Patient, I'm not at all about Quantity! Carnival has really pissed me off a bit on the last few occasions, and thought that I would try a different line - even though I'm still on a Carnival kinda budget ....

I had read review on MSC's Food and it's either a love it or hate it type of deal.

Thinking about a cruise on Celebrity in Late Oct....

So, to bring all of this to a close, What line would you experienced guys recommend?? Tips? secrets? ...

Thanks!

If you've had bariatric surgery I'd encourage you to use the wonderful variety of foods available on board as a resource remain compliant to the diet your surgeon has instructed you to follow during your aftercare. I have a close relative who has had bariatric surgery and while the aftercare diets differ according to the type of surgery one has received, I do know that items like pizza, fries and sugary desserts universally off-limits (or severely restricted) no matter what barbaric procedure was performed. On the bright side, there's so much variety on cruise ships that will be incredibly easy to avoid any prohibited (sugary/carby) foods, picking escargot over a plate of fries is easy. There TONS of wonderful, high-quality choices. And on quality vs. quantity I'd cast my vote in for Celebrity. You can also call ahead if you have special dining needs, with enough advance notice I believe they can arrange specially prepared meals for you at the MDR if you have any serious allergies or dietary constraints.

Celebrity's MDR is better than RCCL, and their specialty restaurants were excellent wherever I went. Meal sizes for the MDR and specialty restaurants tend to be large (you can ask for them to give you smaller portions or opt for appetizers instead of a main course- I can't see how they'd say no to that), but a ship with a restaurant or two with tapas-style food might be a good way for you to get variety in without the portions being too large. The buffet had a lot of good options for breakfast if you want variety, I always saw salmon Benedict and congee (along with great and exotic toppings) available. It also seemed like the buffet was a good place to control quanity, if you only wanted a single salmon egg Benedict (or egg florentine with spinach) you could serve yourself one from the hot food section rather than being served two, by default, at the MDR breakfast, etc.

A caveat: it's been a long time since my last celebrity cruise, and I have heard that dining quality has gone down across the board for buffets and MDR no matter which cruise line you're on. I always saw one sugar free or fresh fruit desserts available on the MDR menu, while I never ordered them myself it was nice to know the option was there.

Enjoy your cruise!

I am traveling sans husband. He is a downer to me on vacations in general and momma needs to be taken care of too. So I am leaving him at home while I cruise. I asked him to meet me for the weekend at the cruise port city for an overnight. That is about all we can handle.

 

I am an introvert. I like being around people, but will choose my kindle first if given a choice. My energy drops like an anchor at times, so making a plan is exciting--until I actually have to do it. Cruising lets me say yeah or nay in the moment without feeling like I am missing anything. The book The Introvert Advantage helps me feel secure about why I prefer to vacation this way. When I did family traveling, I enjoyed exploring on my own and then having a set time to sit and chat with my family (6:00 reserved seating).

 

My husband does not like that I want to vacation alone. He does not get it, but with all the time given to get used to it he is working to accept it. We have an "us" trip locally we are doing for Valentines. So I reassure him I love him and then grin secretly for a vacation away and solo.

 

 

You might also be interested in Susan Cain (her book: "Quiet: the power of introverts"), also saw her lecture at the GLS a couple years ago, I highly recommended for fellow introverts.

I sailed alone on HAL once. 14 nights, not one passenger said hello. Several did not want me at their tables. I have always remembered what to me was a very poor experience.I am a Senior female. I gathered that some of these cruise ladies thought I was after their husbands. So if you want to be left alone give HAL a try, Staff had same attitude.

I've been considering HAL recently, and your post came to mind. I'm really sorry that this happened to you. It irks me that these women haven't stopped to consider that solo/single travelers are paying far more per person just to participate in the cruise and probably have more than enough money of their own where they're not interested in other people's sugar daddies.

I'm somewhat concerned about going solo on HAL being in my late 30's, while I want to be left alone it would trouble me if (when I did feel like being social) I was treated rudely by other people on the ship, especially in the MDR. My experiences on Celebrity and RCL with my MDR table mates were always great, I found everyone to be friendly and interesting with a good sense of humor, I didn't get the impression that the wives felt threatened by me, but it may have been that I was traveling with my mother. When when asked if I was single I'd always let them know I was married but hubs doesn't enjoy cruising (which is true). Bad manners from insecure women would certainly bother me if I experienced that on a future trip.

We have been very loyal Celebrity Cruisers, but the food and service cutbacks that we experienced on our recently ended Eclipse Christmas cruise has me searching for alternatives like the Konigsdam when it comes on line. I know nothing stays the same in life and that applies to cruising as well and I can accept that, but don't tell or try to sell me on Celebrity becoming an even more "premiere high end" mass market line, when the product is so obviously being cheapened at the same time that daily cruise rates are increasing significantly.

Would you be willing to elaborate on the food and service cutbacks, it has been a few years since I cruised and I'm wondering what may have changed or soured over the last couple of years.

I've only been on RCL and Celebrity ships so far but was considering a solo cruise on HAL, but I'm somewhat reluctant to pull the trigger since I've always been pleased with Celebrity. I don't gravitate towards entertainment venues, not much a party person here just seeking good dining and relaxation. I really enjoyed the food on Celebrity and the friendly service, I would go to specialty dining half of the nights and always found them to be worth the money in terms of quality (although I found the portions to be far too large). I loved the coffee/tea/soda drink package, I'm not much of a booze drinker but I loved going to the on-board cafe, getting a high-quality tea or cappuccino coffee and nibble on the complimentary tea-sized sandwiches while listening to a little quartet performance. The show entertainment in the theater were much better than I would have ever expected, but it's not something I personally enjoy and I don't seek it out. However your post about the downgrading/cutbacks of the food and service certainly grabs my curiosity since I'd consider that to be essential to my ideal cruise experience.

I wanted to add one more thing: the snorkel/beach lounge excursions I've been on trended towards the "beginner" and "light-to-moderate" physical activity level. The tour operators for those shore excursions seem to make sure the little beach cove is well protected and sheltered, but perhaps at the expense of seeing some of the better reefs/sea life. Ones that are more snorkel or diving intense might not have as much of a "beach lounge" option but I haven't done much research into that as I'm a weak swimmer and stick to the easy ones :) But I really enjoy them and there's always seems to be enough coral reefs in the shallow areas to attract tropical fish and sea life without having to swim very far or deep.

Are you looking to relax on the beach or do some snorkeling tour activities?

I didn't know which islands you were going to so I looked up your ship's itinerary:

Bridgetown, Barbados

Scarborough, Tobago

St. George's, Grenada

Kingstown, St Vincent

Roseau, Dominica

Philipsburg, St. Maarten

Basseterre, St Kitts

Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos

Road Town, Tortola

St John's, Antigua

Castries, St. Lucia

Bridgetown, Barbados

Out of these I've only been to St. Maarten and took a bus to Marigot for some shopping and I didn't go to the beach. It seemed safe although the French side seemed to have better infrastructure when I visited (roads maintained, public spaces tidy, buildings well kept, etc).

If you're hoping to do some snorkeling along with beach lounging I would suggest going on a ship tour. Most of the snorkel tours I've been on will dock on a smaller beach and protected from big waves farther away from the touristy or high traffic areas so there's privacy, calm waters, and few strangers crossing your path. There is usually an option to relax on the beach instead of snorkel, and the may also have floating foam noodles for staying afloat if you want to lounge in the water. The exact details would be in the tour information.

If the goal is to relax on the beach for a while to soak in the sun, the tours visiting multiple beaches might not be a great fit. But if you don't use a tour, you're somewhat at the mercy of the islands infrastructure and their public transportation if the beaches aren't within close distance of the port.

Others may be able to chime in on their experiences on those islands and offer up more details.