I'm on the MSC Seashore right now on the 5/19-5/26 itinerary. This isn't going to be a comprehensive review because I think most of the other recent ones are pretty accurate - yes there's a lot of European passengers, yes they sometimes have a different definition of waiting in line than American pax, service is hit or miss, some of the staff might come off as rude by American standards but it's not any different than what I've experienced in Europe, on the other hand our waiter in the MDR is basically running around for 90 minutes straight every night at dinner and still giving near-perfect service. I'm going to try and hit the areas where either my experience differed from others or I just couldn't find a lot of reviews from other people.
Ice Cream
Starting with what is obviously the most important question (lol), what about the ice cream?? I'm excited to share that at least on our cruise soft serve was always available (for free) in the buffet during lunch and dinner meal times (I think usually 12-4p and 6-9:30p?). It's served by an MSC staff member so there's usually a decent line but it moves somewhat quickly; there's also soft serve machines at some of the bars. I haven't seen anyone ask for one so I'm not sure if/when they're available.
Food Allergies
There's a couple people in my travel party with food allergies (gluten). Overall they've had a positive experience. There's packaged GF breads available in the buffet, and some of the items are marked. If you're especially worried about cross-contamination you can order from one of the head waiters in the buffet and they can bring you a dish prepared in an allergy-safe kitchen.
Our MDR experience has also been good. Unlike some other people, we haven't been given a GF menu; instead, the head waiter just told us most of the items on the normal menu can be prepared gluten-free so they place their order with him while the rest of the table orders from our normal waiter and their food usually comes out within 5-10 minutes of everyone else. The notable exception has been fried/breaded food which usually can't be made gluten-free; on the other hand, they were able to order the Lobster Bisque which I'm told is usually difficult to find GF. Dessert is also a little limited; most of the desserts have a cake base so your options are usually a GF cake (so far every night it's been standard yellow cake but the frosting has been a different flavor) or a legitimately very good macadamia ice cream.
There was a small hiccup on the first night where our waiter couldn't find the head waiter and incorrectly said something could be made GF when it couldn't; but the head waiter came over within 5-10 minutes to correct the mistake. I don't think the food would have ever made it to the table but their food was especially delayed that night (probably 15-20 minutes after the rest of the table).
Buffet/MDR
If you can't tell yet there's a theme for what I was most concerned about lol our family isn't very picky with food but still prefers ours to taste good haha I'd say for the most part the food on MSC ranges from average to very good. This is obviously anecdotal but we've noticed the better food tends to be what you'd expect from an Italian line (pizza, pasta, seafood) with our worst meals being more American foods like the prime rib, hamburgers, etc.
Even this isn't totally consistent though as on elegant night I wasn't a fan of the lobster or filet (I'm not even sure I was served a filet, it was either really poor quality or a different cut), but on a previous night my dad ordered the strip steak that is on the menu every night and we agreed it was one of the best cooked and seasoned steaks we've had outside of a true steakhouse.
The good news is even if the MDR meal wasn't great (like mine on two nights) I don't think you're going to go hungry. The buffet also ranges in how good it is but the pizza, fruit, cheese, and salad, are all consistently very good quality and almost always available.
Miscellaneous
As other people have said, your boarding time doesn't matter. Our party had a mix of boarding times (12:30 and 2:30) and I think we all boarded around 1:30 with no issues lol
We accidentally brought a couple bottles of soda onboard and again no issues. I imagine if this is abused or you're trying to bring an entire pack they're going to be more strict, but I wish I would have brought a can or two of Celsius since it isn't available on board.
If anyone has any questions I'll try to check this thread once a day or so 🙂 This community was super helpful for us planning this trip so thanks to everyone who's left much more detailed reviews than this haha
