Review of MDR on the Millenium

[poolwife]

We just got off the Millenium this last Friday, June 29 embarking on June 22. We loved the food in the MDR. We had traditional, early seating. We had the most wonderful waiter ever, Jesus, Table #311 on deck 4. Our meats were always cooked to our liking and we didn't have any complaints about the food. We didn't try the fish but my friend did and didn't have any complaints about it, in fact, she liked her dish. There are times that I don't feel like eating meat (due to personal intestinal issues), which was how I was our first night. I ordered the Prime Rib dinner without the prime rib, so I could just have the potatoes and veggies. He asked if I was vegetarian and I said "no". I just didn't want meat this evening. Well, instead of just bringing me what I ordered he brought me a full plate of a variety of vegetables. I was so impressed how he took the initiative and brought me such a nice dish. Jesus, from the Philipines always made sure I had plenty of veggies every night. He was very attentive and assertive.

 

When we first arrived on the ship, I went to the Rendezvous Lounge to talk to the dining room people to see if we could get a table change to perhaps a window table if it became available. Well, I made that request before dinner. We had a table for 4 (4 in our party) and at that dinner found out what a great and attentive waiter we had. So the next day, when we got a card in our room saying that we got moved and now had a window table, we were all disappointed because we didn't want to lose Jesus for a waiter. I was told to go down to the dining room at 5:10 pm and see if there was anything that could be done because the asst. maitre'd would be there then. Well, I talked to him and told him why we liked Jesus so much and he said he would see what he could do and give him 15 minutes and he would call me. Well, he did it and we got to keep our table. That was so great. Of course, I tipped him when we went down for dinner. I appreciated keeping Jesus so much that I didn't care that we weren't by the window.

 

Other cruises, we have been on, so many times dinner dragged out 2 - 2 1/2 hours. Jesus and his assistant, Michael, were on the ball and most of the time we were done in 1 1/2 hours. Sure was nice!

 

Maybe some of our positive experience was because of Jesus, but the food was all good. No complaints about it at all.

 

One other nice thing was that the dessert menu had our favorite dessert, Creme Brulee, as a regular available every night for dessert. I think my husband had one every night that we were there. After eating the big meal, creme brulee is delicious and light. Of course, I still had to have cherries jubilee on the night it was served.

 

One night returning to the ship from a port, we weren't dressed "smart casual" and running late so we didn't think we should go down to the dining room so we went to the buffet. The buffet on the "Millenium" (IMO only) is not that great at dinner time or lunch. They do have a made to order pasta station which was good though. Just not a good variety of hot dishes. I had gotten in line and ordered my pasta and my husband comes up and says he didn't see anything he wanted and was going down to the dining room. We told him that he was too late. It was about 6:45 or 6:50 but he said he was going anyway. When I finished my pasta, I went down and joined him for his creme brulee. Yes, we weren't dressed "smart casual" having just dashed in from the day, but Jesus kindly served my dh anyway and always with a smile. My dh ordered this seafood pasta dish that he just loved and raved about which had large scallops, clams, etc. They must have the dishes pretty available in the kitchen because it didn't take very long for his dinner. He was done eating when I got down there to join him for dessert. When I got there, Jesus, was so nice and asked why the other 3 of us didn't come and I told him and he said we should have come anyways. What a great waiter.

 

Didn't eat in the Olympic restaurant. We really enjoyed Bistro on 5 and their Italian crepe to which we added strawberries. Was yummmmyyy! Wish I could have one right now. As much as Qsine gets rave reviews, we tried it on our last night and then were sorry we did. It just wasn't our thing.

 

One thing my husband would have loved, which had nothing to do with the MDR is that he wished somewhere on the ship even in the specialty restaurants that they would offer crab legs. Well, after talking even to the "higher ups", they told him all the decisions come down from corporate and are the same for all of the ships. He was just hoping while sailing in Alaska, he could get crab legs on the ship even if he had to pay extra for them.

 

Anyway, we had a really positive experience in the MDR. Hope this helps for those thinking they have to spend money to eat in the specialty dining options.

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[tallcva3344]

We just got off the Millenium

One thing my husband would have loved, which had nothing to do with the MDR is that he wished somewhere on the ship even in the specialty restaurants that they would offer crab legs. Well, after talking even to the "higher ups", they told him all the decisions come down from corporate and are the same for all of the ships. He was just hoping while sailing in Alaska, he could get crab legs on the ship even if he had to pay extra for them.

 

Anyway, we had a really positive experience in the MDR. Hope this helps for those thinking they have to spend money to eat in the specialty dining options.

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Great review, it is very helpful. We cruise B2B 8/10/12 H

[poolwife]

I would love to do a B2B to Alaska some day. We always end up doing land with the cruise. We did a 8 day land pre-cruise this time. I am in the process of getting together a review of it all in case anyone is interested in independent land touring of the Kenai Peninsula also.,

 

A lady I spoke to while we were sailing up to Hubbard Glacier was on a B2B having been on the previous cruise and she loved it. She didn't have to change rooms either. She said we got closer to Hubbard Glacier than the previous week due to too much ice in the water.

 

It was a great trip. Just write this thread so people would know you don't have to spend the extra money to have some great meals. You can find them right in the MDR.

[Christine Frances]

We totally agree with your review of the new menus in the MDR. We were on Infinity for 29 days and other than a wonderful meal in Qsine (booked it out of curiosity) the 10 of us in our group enjoyed every meal we had. We also had Early Traditional and the service was excellent, the food came hot and in a timely fashion. We had no reason to book any other Specialty restaurants.

[CruisinNole]

Poolwife - We were on the same cruise and had a terrific time. It was our first time on the Millennium and agree with you about the main dining room. Our waiter, Lewis, was great. We had one night that our beef entree was a little tough so the next night, he made sure that our filet mignon we ordered cut like butter.

 

We did a four day land tour first. It was truly a perfect cruise. The weather was gorgeous!

[d4m]

What a great, upbeat review! I can relate to you wanting to keep your first waiter as a similar situation happened to us. Scheduled to dine with a table of 8, we found ourselves with only 2 others. However, our waiter and assistant waiter were beyond terrific and we made the decision to stick with that table to keep our original wait staff. I can't imagine ever getting better service or having more sincere and personable waiters as those two were!

 

Would also love to do a B2B Alaska some day too. Bucket list #1.

 

Thanks!

[poolwife]

Christine Frances: We booked "Qsine" out of curiosity also and then wondered we succumed (sp) to peer pressure. We did meet people who ate in there twice they liked it so much. But, for us, for what you pay, we couldn't possibly eat all they brought. It was fun to do once, but we won't spend the money on it again.

 

CruisinNole: Yes, we sure were all fortunate to have such great weather. I did feel bad for all those in Ketchikan that might have booked flights over Misty Fjords, though, as I imagined they were cancelled. And all the rain on our day through the Inside Passage certainly didn't make it as beautiful a passage as we have had on previous cruises through there. But, all in all, it was a great cruise. We got pretty close to Hubbard glacier also. Do you remember how close they said we got?

 

Did you go to the production shows in the theater? We thought they were terrific. All that energy and to remember all the songs and steps in their dances for 3 completely different shows. Amazing! They were outstanding.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

Glad you had such a great cruise! I really think that having a great waiter in the MDR makes a cruise super special.

[Christine Frances]

I think our trip to Qsine was so much fun because there was 10 of us:) We did have to stop them serving before we got to the end of what we ordered though:D I was worried about waste but they prepare each course separately so it was no problem - I think we were in there over 3 hrs tho:eek:

[CruisinNole]

CruisinNole: Yes, we sure were all fortunate to have such great weather. I did feel bad for all those in Ketchikan that might have booked flights over Misty Fjords, though, as I imagined they were cancelled. And all the rain on our day through the Inside Passage certainly didn't make it as beautiful a passage as we have had on previous cruises through there. But, all in all, it was a great cruise. We got pretty close to Hubbard glacier also. Do you remember how close they said we got?

 

Did you go to the production shows in the theater? We thought they were terrific. All that energy and to remember all the songs and steps in their dances for 3 completely different shows. Amazing! They were outstanding.

 

Fortunately, we booked a boat excursion to the Misty Fjords and although misty (of course!) most of the trip to the fjords, it cleared up just as we entered so we got some great pictures. We also saw lots of Orcas on the trip back. It was a terrific excursion.

 

We also thought the production shows were great. We were very impressed with both the ship and the crew. Everyone was so friendly.

[Phxazzcruisers]

We have to agree with you 100%. Our last two cruises were on the Millennium and we absolutely loved the food in the MDR. The staff on Celebrity and Azamara are the best!!!

Combine great food with excellent service and you can't miss !!!

Thanks for the thorough review

[poolwife]

Phxazzcruisers: Just noticed you were on the Millenium pre-refurbishment and post-refurbishment.

 

Other than adding the venues for them to make more money on, did you see any great improvements? We didn't notice any ourselves. In fact, right after we walked on the ship, my dh visited a public restroom and came out complaining about its condition. Not the cleanliness but since the ship just got out of dry dock, why was their missing tile and rust? Also, would have been nice to have a new mattress.

 

There were a few things like that, but certainly did not detract from the nice cruise that we had with great service.

[Phxazzcruisers]

Phxazzcruisers: Just noticed you were on the Millenium pre-refurbishment and post-refurbishment.

 

Other than adding the venues for them to make more money on, did you see any great improvements? We didn't notice any ourselves. In fact, right after we walked on the ship, my dh visited a public restroom and came out complaining about its condition. Not the cleanliness but since the ship just got out of dry dock, why was their missing tile and rust? Also, would have been nice to have a new mattress.

 

There were a few things like that, but certainly did not detract from the nice cruise that we had with great service.

 

It was very interesting. We had the penthouse on both cruises, once on port and once on starboard and notice very little in improvements in the rooms. The mattress was not new, I did not really notice if the bedding was new or not. Some of the living room furniture was replaced, but not with brand new furniture. I believe the short time they spent in dry dock was to build out the additional Aqua Class Rooms and add the different venues.

I agree that the fact that tey did not get to the entire ship did not in any way detract from our cruise experience. The food and service, as always, was exceptional

[Northern Aurora]

I've found some of the comments regarding Qsine interesting. While so many other passenger rave about it we find it a little too gimick-y for our taste. The food is wonderful, but it is just too over the top for your tastes.

[bogeycruiser]

It's really good to hear such good reviews of the main dining room on the Millennium. We're taking our first Celebrity cruise on the Millennium and have chosen "Celebrity Select Dining". Does anyone feel that we may not find the service as good as it would be with traditional dining?

[poolwife]

Personally, I like traditional dining because the waiter gets to know you and you get to know them. They know your likes and dislikes. Like they got know that I liked lemon and lots of ice with my water every night and it got so I didn't even have to remind them.

 

We did have "anytime" dining on one cruise and it worked out fine. We asked to have the same waiter, table and time every night and they gave it to us. Don't know how it works on Celebrity, but if you get "select" give it a try. We had good service that time, I believe, because of having the same waiters, etc. I really feel that makes a big difference.

 

Obviously, it meant a lot to me that is why I wanted to keep my same waiter after being offered the window table as I mentioned in my first post.

 

Dining is all a personal preference.

[Christine Frances]

It's really good to hear such good reviews of the main dining room on the Millennium. We're taking our first Celebrity cruise on the Millennium and have chosen "Celebrity Select Dining". Does anyone feel that we may not find the service as good as it would be with traditional dining?

 

We much prefer traditional dining because we don't like the hubub going on around us while we eat - people coming and going constantly, tables being cleared and turned over for the next diner. just way too much stuff going on. With traditional, it seems more calm and quiet with just the waiters moving around the tables. On our one experience with Select we had good service so I wouldn't be concerned. You will have a most wonderful cruise on the beautiful Millie:D

[tallcva3344]

We much prefer traditional dining because we don't like the hubub going on around us while we eat - people coming and going constantly, tables being cleared and turned over for the next diner. just way too much stuff going on. With traditional, it seems more calm and quiet with just the waiters moving around the tables. On our one experience with Select we had good service so I wouldn't be concerned. You will have a most wonderful cruise on the beautiful Millie:D

 

I am looking forward to comparing to RCCL menu. We have almost memorized the RCCL menu. 12 cruises in the last 18 months. I am assuming the food is a better quality on the ML.

 

We always try to stay away from service tables where they clang the plates. We change tables about 50% of our cruises. Our common excuse to the table mates is "We just met some friends we did not know were on the ship and they invited us to their table" H

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[Lysingers]

Christine Frances: We booked "Qsine" out of curiosity also and then wondered we succumed (sp) to peer pressure. We did meet people who ate in there twice they liked it so much. But, for us, for what you pay, we couldn't possibly eat all they brought. It was fun to do once, but we won't spend the money on it again.

 

We will be on Celebrity Summit in August, and are debating whether to try Qsine or not. I have read about it, but still cannot quite grasp how it works. Do you actually get much food to eat for $40 per person? We are fairly big eaters in my family, so I'm kind of fearful that "little tasting samples" of several different things to share between 4 people just won't cut it. Several people have said that they get too full there, but my concern is just the opposite. Can someone who's eaten there enlighten me?

[Ma Bell]

Christine Frances: We booked "Qsine" out of curiosity also and then wondered we succumed (sp) to peer pressure. We did meet people who ate in there twice they liked it so much. But, for us, for what you pay, we couldn't possibly eat all they brought. It was fun to do once, but we won't spend the money on it again.

 

We will be on Celebrity Summit in August, and are debating whether to try Qsine or not. I have read about it, but still cannot quite grasp how it works. Do you actually get much food to eat for $40 per person? We are fairly big eaters in my family, so I'm kind of fearful that "little tasting samples" of several different things to share between 4 people just won't cut it. Several people have said that they get too full there, but my concern is just the opposite. Can someone who's eaten there enlighten me?

 

You will get more food in Qsine than any other place on the ship.

[Christine Frances]

We will be on Celebrity Summit in August, and are debating whether to try Qsine or not. I have read about it, but still cannot quite grasp how it works. Do you actually get much food to eat for $40 per person? We are fairly big eaters in my family, so I'm kind of fearful that "little tasting samples" of several different things to share between 4 people just won't cut it. Several people have said that they get too full there, but my concern is just the opposite. Can someone who's eaten there enlighten me?[/i]

 

Believe me:D They will keep on bringing food as long as you sit there!! You will NOT go away hungry!! And it is soooo much fun and great service! Qsine seems to work the best with larger groups so you get a chance to sample more of the menu options.

[cruiseacecat]

Christine Frances: We booked "Qsine" out of curiosity also and then wondered we succumed (sp) to peer pressure. We did meet people who ate in there twice they liked it so much. But, for us, for what you pay, we couldn't possibly eat all they brought. It was fun to do once, but we won't spend the money on it again.

 

We will be on Celebrity Summit in August, and are debating whether to try Qsine or not. I have read about it, but still cannot quite grasp how it works. Do you actually get much food to eat for $40 per person? We are fairly big eaters in my family, so I'm kind of fearful that "little tasting samples" of several different things to share between 4 people just won't cut it. Several people have said that they get too full there, but my concern is just the opposite. Can someone who's eaten there enlighten me?

I am just recently off Summit where I dined twice at Qsine. You will NOT leave the table hungry. I was so full the first time I practically rolled to my room. :eek: The second time, I paced myself and actually ate a reasonable amount. The food is, imo, just wonderful, especially if you like ethnic food. My favorite is the Persian kebob. The waiters are very helpful and are happy to make recommendations. Hope you will try it, it really is a nice change from the mdr.

 

Anne

[poolwife]

They told us to view Qsine as an International Culinary tour. We understood better then. I don't think it is worth it per person for someone who is a light eater. My friend certainly didn't get her money's worth. Probably would be more fun with a large group. There were 4 of us. Yes, it is all you can eat. The food will keep coming if you want it to. Some things we loved like the lamb and the filet mignon, but others not so much.

 

Being I haven't travelled the world and tasted a lot of other foods, overall the MDR was more our style.

 

Don't miss trying Bistro on 5 and get the "Italian" crepe and have them add strawberries to it. Super yummy! It is all you can eat for a $5.00 cover charge. One time we went in there and all of us only got the Italian crepe each and she only charged us one cover charge per couple cause we didn't eat much. That was very nice of them.

[Phxazzcruisers]

Christine Frances: We booked "Qsine" out of curiosity also and then wondered we succumed (sp) to peer pressure. We did meet people who ate in there twice they liked it so much. But, for us, for what you pay, we couldn't possibly eat all they brought. It was fun to do once, but we won't spend the money on it again.

 

We will be on Celebrity Summit in August, and are debating whether to try Qsine or not. I have read about it, but still cannot quite grasp how it works. Do you actually get much food to eat for $40 per person? We are fairly big eaters in my family, so I'm kind of fearful that "little tasting samples" of several different things to share between 4 people just won't cut it. Several people have said that they get too full there, but my concern is just the opposite. Can someone who's eaten there enlighten me?

 

I have to agree with previous postings. It is almost impossible to go away hungry. The food will keep coming as long as you care to eat it. It is a wonderful dining experience