Horizon Court at night for Dinner - what have we missed?

Never been in there after about 4 or 5 pm for a quick snack to take out by the pool...

 

have seen them setting up tablecloths and putting glasses/silverware on tables

 

Are there themed nights and how do you find out about them without actually going?

 

If we don't go the mdr or CG, etc - we just usually hit up Vines for a couple of tapas and/or go to IC...

 

Thanks

Never been in there after about 4 or 5 pm for a quick snack to take out by the pool...

 

have seen them setting up tablecloths and putting glasses/silverware on tables

 

Are there themed nights and how do you find out about them without actually going?

 

If we don't go the mdr or CG, etc - we just usually hit up Vines for a couple of tapas and/or go to IC...

 

Thanks

Yes, Horizon Court has themed buffet nights, and they're listed in the Patter each time they happen. Some themes include Mongolian. BBQ, German, Italian, etc. Right in the back of the Patter where dining options are listed.

There's also regular buffet stuff, carving station, salad bar, etc.

We eat in the MDR a fair amount of nights, especially on Royal or Regal, as often we just can't be bothered with the 1.5-2 hour dining experience in the MDR...

 

There's also the Crab Shack in the Horizon Court on select nights, where they'll close off a section of seating and set up for that specifically. You have to ask the DINE line which nights those are, best to make a reservation, it is a pay specialty dining option.

 

Another casual dining option if you're skipping the MDR is Trident Grill. After 6pm they add some items including orange chicken breast, chili, wings, pulled pork, etc. Worth a look!

 

Enjoy.

I've not seen them put tablecloths etc on other than one ship we went on where they sectioned off an area which became the Crab Shack. If the Horizon Court has a specific food night (eg seafood, Mexican night) they usually mention that in the Patter.

 

Edit - ReedP, you just beat me to it.

I have seen somewhat of a theme night in the Horizon Court. It was a German food evening as I remember. I also believe I have seen Italian food as a theme. I do not recall any notice of a theme night other than entering the Horizon Court and checking the posted menu or what is being served on the buffet. It may vary from one ship to another.

I have seen somewhat of a theme night in the Horizon Court. It was a German food evening as I remember. I also believe I have seen Italian food as a theme. I do not recall any notice of a theme night other than entering the Horizon Court and checking the posted menu or what is being served on the buffet. It may vary from one ship to another.

It’s always posted in the patter

It’s always posted in the patter

Not always. It does depend on the ship. This last fall I was on the Island (twice), the Caribbean, the Emerald (twice), the Crown (twice), and the Grand. I checked the Patter every day because I'd rather avoid Italian and Bavarian nights. Not all of the ships had it listed in the Patter. They had the themes, just not listed in the Patter.

Not always. It does depend on the ship. This last fall I was on the Island (twice), the Caribbean, the Emerald (twice), the Crown (twice), and the Grand. I checked the Patter every day because I'd rather avoid Italian and Bavarian nights. Not all of the ships had it listed in the Patter. They had the themes, just not listed in the Patter.

After my post I checked the excellent live from the Royal that is running at the moment, the posted patters on that thread do show the themes so I have no idea why they would not advertised.

The Regal & Royal always seem to list the Horizon themes - the older ships sometimes do.

We've been so impressed with the selection & quality of food prep on the Royal that most night (except formal) we tend to eat there.

It turns a 1 1/2 to 2 hour dinner into a comfortable 45 to 60 minute dine time without missing anything except the service. :)

We always choose Anytime Dinning and most nights review the MDR menu then stroll up to the Lido to check what is offered there , then decide where to have dinner.

One Princess cruise the MDR menu did not appeal to us most nights (as well as many other guests ) and we had dinner in the Horizon Ct more than the MDR (as did those many other guests).

A Couple of Points -

 

It is the ED's responsibility to compose and print the patter. Not all ED's include theme nights in Horizon Court - however a word to the CD or the ED, like what happened on the Island last October - usually results in it occurring. Princess should make it a fleet wide requirement so that dining decisions can be made earlier in the day.

 

There are also theme lunches that also should be printed in the patter - like Mexican Buffet, Sushi, etc.

 

Special theme nights are dependent on the ship and the capabilities. For example the Island has an "Action Station", at the end of the line, with a dedicated flat top, set aside for special theme nights like Mongolian BBQ, or Stir Fry. On Italian related theme nights they roll out the inductive cook top and use saute pans to finalize the fresh pasta selection.

 

In the MDR, the head chef does not have any flexibility except for minor tweaking of the recipes of the menus. In the HC, the chef has a LOT of flexibility and there is where you will see a large variety of different foods and tastes. Especially Indian and Asian main courses along with our favorites, the cold salads. No two chef's HC menus are the same.

 

We have eschewed the MDR for the most part over the past 3-4 years because of the larger variety of tastes and menus in the HC. Yes, you do have to deal with the fact that it is a buffet, but we feel that is more than compensated for by the potential for some really tasty food. Not to mention the quicker service, the always available fresh salad bar, and quite frankly, if I go to the MDR, I'm going to eat the whole basket of bread myself!

After my post I checked the excellent live from the Royal that is running at the moment, the posted patters on that thread do show the themes so I have no idea why they would not advertised.

While we ate in the Horizon Court every night on our December Royal Princess cruise, we found that the themes were not advertised in the Patter. However if on the Royal Princess the line farthest aft is the one with the themed items typically. This area, however, was reserved for the Crab Shack on the nights that was offered.

 

We love the Bavarian night, which we have seen on every ship for quite a while.

 

I've not seen them put tablecloths etc on other than one ship we went on where they sectioned off an area which became the Crab Shack. If the Horizon Court has a specific food night (eg seafood, Mexican night) they usually mention that in the Patter.

In years past the Café Caribe area on Emerald and Crown Princess had tablecloths and silverware on formal nights. We also experience this in the past in the Horizon Court on occasion.

 

Alas, unfortunately Princess has stopped the excellent evening dining service for Café Caribe on those ships which had this venue. We really miss that.

On our last Regal Cruise we had a large family group cruising with us. After a couple of nights we decided it was more convenient for us to go to dinner in the Horizon Court (unless it was a night we had arranged a specialty dinner)

We would dine on the back of the ship. We had a wonderful view, nice open air weather, and great conversation. The waiters were great, attended to our wine needs, arranged tables to accommodate us and we all had a great time.

Nice thing is that you could try a variety of food choices at your own pace (more often than not some of the choices are the same as what is being served in the MDR).

 

It's nice to experience the service in the MDR but for this particular cruise this option worked great for our needs and the wait staff were friendly and assured we were having a great time.

Edited January 23, 2018 by tdeyette
corrected typo