Lido vs MDR

[NoWhiners]

Hi All-

 

This is sort of weird because we have cruised several times with HAL but don't get this one thing--any help would be appreciated!

 

I have read that you can get the same food that is available in the MDR at the Lido BUT we walked thru the Lido after dinner in MDR, while they were still serving dinner on Lido, and didn't see the MDR choices.

 

what is the secret to doing this? Did we miss something? I did see a guy at a cash register looking thing when we walked thru--do you order with this person?

 

I feel completely dumb for having to ask but we are going to panama canal in April 2011 with a fairly large group and we might want to use Lido a few times depending on excursions.

 

Thanks in advance for your info

No Whiners

[Jemima]

Lido dinner entrees are handled two ways. On some ships the entrees are displayed, you place an order (man with the "cash register" looking machine) and the entree is delivered to your table. Oh other ships the entree items are available at the entree station or section, you ask for the entree and sides you wish, that is handed to you and you take it to your table. The ships seem to be moving towards the second method.

With both systems, you pick up the other items (appitizers, soup, salad, breads, dessert) yourself. You don't need to get all these things at the same time. I suggest you pick up one or two courses and then return for the next course.

[Appygirl]

Lido dinner entrees are handled two ways. On some ships the entrees are displayed, you place an order (man with the "cash register" looking machine) and the entree is delivered to your table. Oh other ships the entree items are available at the entree station or section, you ask for the entree and sides you wish, that is handed to you and you take it to your table. The ships seem to be moving towards the second method.

With both systems, you pick up the other items (appitizers, soup, salad, breads, dessert) yourself. You don't need to get all these things at the same time. I suggest you pick up one or two courses and then return for the next course.

 

I was on the Zuiderdam and 2 men who appeared to be in their 30's were in front of me and taking forever to make a decision. I don't believe they spoke English, or not well. But even still, the entrees were in the display case. They could point at whatever looked good to eat. I realized the man in front of me had a plate of food but he hadn't reached the server yet. I looked back at the display case and a plate from the display was missing! The server didn't say a word, just let the man take the plate of food and find a table. Hmm. I wonder how that meal tasted.

[KAYEF]

Lots of "good things" about having dinner in LIDO..........especially if you've been on shore all day................What I like is being able to "mix and match" on the entree course...........like if the meat/fish you want has asparagus you can get it with the broccoli from a different "display"........

whereas in MDR that's not easy to do.

My daughter, just back from a hard hike, had three or four of the fruit appetizers............you just take what you want.........and then she got several cooked veggies, no meat.............

Beware.............seeing all those desserts on display can be disastrous!;)

[Assateague Island Princes]

There are usually one or two entrees being served in the MDR that they don't have in the Lido. If that is the case, we just have room service and order what we want from Room Service from the MDR menu (I think you must order either a half hour or an hour after the MDR opens - even if you want it delivered later). Best of both worlds. We prefer the Lido for our meals, and usually only eat in the MDR once or twice on a cruise, if that, and then only on Smart Casual night. Just our preference because we aren't into dressing up after a long day in port.

[RuthC]

I have read that you can get the same food that is available in the MDR at the Lido BUT we walked thru the Lido after dinner in MDR, while they were still serving dinner on Lido, and didn't see the MDR choices.

Check at the very beginning of the lido line. There should be a menu posted. Gives you a nice overview so you can take or skip as you go down the line.

[RuthC]

................What I like is being able to "mix and match" on the entree course...........like if the meat/fish you want has asparagus you can get it with the broccoli from a different "display"........

whereas in MDR that's not easy to do.

:confused: I find it very easy to do. I order the meat/potato/vegetable combination I want from the various selections offered, and it appears on my plate that way.

[NoWhiners]

Thanks to all for the comments/help. Now I feel better prepared for our next cruise. Only 53 weeks!! I am thinking of telling everyone in our group we should skip formal nights on this cruise. We have always done them in MDR and dressed for it, but I think on this cruise we may try something different. An occasional quiet night in our room sounds nice too!

 

I love being able to ask questions here and get back useful info!!

 

Thanks again

Mary Lynn

[Kween Karen]

As I have stated before, I never thought I would eat dinner in the Lido. I found that it worked great for me on port days so that I could enjoy the sail away parties and eat dinner a bit later. After MANY MANY days of eating......it was refreshing to just choose what I wanted and this usually ended up being less that I would have eaten in the dining room.

[Ontariotrekker]

Book the Canaletto for formal night. You can dress smart casual and still get the dining room feel.

[Gunther1]

I LOVE your handle

[NoWhiners]

Gunther

 

Thanks--got it from a microbrewery! They made the best (bottled) raspberry beer ever. Sort of sums up my approach!

 

ML

[Typhoon1]

The MDR is the place to dine. I am on vacation, I don't want to be serving myself dinner.

[Stevesan]

I don't know if this is fleet wide, but I enjoyed a "new" evening dinner service in Maasdam's Lido last year.

A steward was at the end of the line to take entree orders which were delivered to table.

The entree is prepared to order, and hasn't been sitting in a steam tray or under a warming lamp.

That makes a huge difference in end product quality. :)

 

Hopefully, that's been implemented throughout the fleet.

[RuthC]

I don't know if this is fleet wide, but I enjoyed a "new" evening dinner service in Maasdam's Lido last year.

A steward was at the end of the line to take entree orders which were delivered to table.

The entree is prepared to order, and hasn't been sitting in a steam tray or under a warming lamp.

Based on my experience last fall, and several other fairly recent reports here, that procedure has been changed. It seems to be back to picking up everything from the line.

[Stevesan]

Based on my experience last fall, and several other fairly recent reports here, that procedure has been changed. It seems to be back to picking up everything from the line.

 

That's too bad. The freshly prepared entree, accompanied by the elevated service level, may have had the effect of emptying too many MDR seats. :p

[RuthC]

That's too bad. The freshly prepared entree, accompanied by the elevated service level, may have had the effect of emptying too many MDR seats. :p

I don't know that HAL would change a procedure based on that.

It could be something more simple, like not having enough staff to provide table service in the Lido. It may or may not be true that staff levels have decreased, but passenger levels have increased on many ships, making the ratio of staff to passengers less favorable. Stewards have just been stretched too thin to provide all the services desired.

[Ontariotrekker]

The MDR is the place to dine. I am on vacation, I don't want to be serving myself dinner.

It's not only about serving yourself in the Lido. Since there are no trays ---I'm sorry for opening up that can of worms again - we found that we were always getting up and down to get our food, or milk or rolls or something. We felt that we were'nt really eating together:(

[Taxguy77]

Gunther

 

Thanks--got it from a microbrewery! They made the best (bottled) raspberry beer ever. Sort of sums up my approach!

 

ML

 

NoWhiners = love it !:D

Raspberry beer = got to try it before I make a decision! LONG before!

[Taxguy77]

If they have abandonded serving the main dish as ordered, they have put a HUGE dent in DW and my preference for the Lido.:eek:

(In the MDR we, of course got 'anytime' dining,) where the waiter didn't give a dam (Spelled differently) about you, and the noise level was high to unacceptable; we suffered through through 3 meals, 2 with CC group and one alone:eek:

 

The Lido offered: choice of tables, always window, choice of food, and the best bar waiter on board!!

[stopher]

What is the Canaletto? This will be a second cruise and I feel really lost. The first was to Alaska and we were only on board for 3 days. This will be through the Panama Canal and we will be on board 16 days.

[NMLady]

What is the Canaletto? This will be a second cruise and I feel really lost. The first was to Alaska and we were only on board for 3 days. This will be through the Panama Canal and we will be on board 16 days.

 

On some of the HAL ships it is an Italian eating area near the Lido, no extra charge.

If you use the Search function here on CC you will find several threads about it.

[Kween Karen]

The Canaletto is an area of the Lido that is set up as an Italian restaurant. I ate there 4 or 5 times on my last long cruise. It is very nice. The service is excellent, It is quiet and the food is good. It is a fine place to eat at least once.