Specialty Restaurants Question

[Detroit Donna]

We are cruising on NCL for the first time and I'm wondering if I should bother with the specialty restaurants. Are they worth it? Is the food served in the Main Dining Rooms not as desirable as the specialty restaurants?

 

Thanks in advance for any information or insight you can provide. :)

[valleyvillage]

Play it by ear once you get on board. Folks have cruised eating every meal in the MDR, every meal in a specialty restaurant, and every combo in between!

When you sail in a suite you have breakfast and lunch in Cagneys and some nights you don't even feel like dinner!

Have a great cruise.

[Pokeraddict]

I agree with the above but for us we work in the service industry so the specialty restaurants are a real treat for us.

 

You do get more attention from the maitr'd to the wait staff and you get a bigger selection in both entree's, appetizers and definitely better desserts, plus you can have more than one appetizer and dessert if you care to.

 

We only eat at buffet for breakfast and lunch because we don't want to waste time but for dinner we are in no rush. We also don't care for the mdr's because we eat early, we've often found that the food is cooked so early in the day that by the time you get it it's overcooked.

We've never had problems getting reservations the morning of, if anything we've had to move the time by 15 min but even that has been rare.

 

It's the main reason we've cruised so much with NCL. If we had to eat at buffet or line up for mdr's night after night we wouldn't be cruising.

[aces389]

I generally look at the menu in the MDR and If there is something that I like, i go there. If nothing appeals to me I make a reservation in one of the speciality restaurants. Enjoy:)

[chiapet]

I think the answer to your question really depends on the person ... since everyone expects and enjoys different things :)

 

We've cruised quite a bit on NCL ... but where we dine on each NCL sailing is always different. Although we spend most of our time in the MDRs ... where we think the food is fine ... we do like to splurge for Le Bistro, Cagney's and Moderno ... which are our favorites :p

 

So ... if the small upcharge is not an issue for you ... and you'd like a little *more* ... I would definitely give it a try ;)

 

P.S. I also find that most of the specialty restaurants have a more *intimate* feel to them ... so DH and I can go without the kiddies ... and enjoy a meal to *ourselves* :rolleyes:

[marelind]

I generally look at the menu in the MDR and If there is something that I like, i go there. If nothing appeals to me I make a reservation in one of the speciality restaurants. Enjoy:)

 

Ditto, plus we look at the MDR as good food, but the specialty restaurants are a step above in quality, service and ambiance.

[Denlin]

I've always enjoyed the MFRC, but we also enjoy the specialty restaurants. We love Le Bistro for a nice romantic meal and we both love Teppanyaki, but live in an area where it isn't offered. And this year we also want to try Moderno because we've never been to a Brazilian steakhouse...we can't wait. Regardless of where you decide to eat, I'm sure you'll find something you enjoy. Bon appetite!

[reefgirl]

We always eat in the specialty restaurants. We never even tried the MDR. I would be perfectly willing to eat there, but my husband refuses. I can't get him to eat in the buffet, either. I tried the buffet on our last cruise and I really liked it. Something happens to my husband when he goes on vacation, apparently. The rest of the year he can be found eating soup, cold, straight out of the can. With Ritz crackers. While standing over the kitchen sink.

[dna529]

We've only cruised with NCL once, but we preferred a mixture of the MDR and the specialty restaurants. If the menu in the MDR did not appeal to us, we would go to an inexpensive specialty restaurant. The Italian one on the Sun was very good!

[khia213]

We hit most Cagney's for the Chateaubriand, and Le Bistro for the French cuisine. We're anxious to try the new Brazilian steakhouse. As others have said, the quality of the service is better. Whether the food is, is subject to personal taste.

[LV0110]

We usually splurge on one specialty restaurant per cruise. The food has always been exceptional but we don't need exceptional every night. Even when we have a suite we only eat at Cagney's a few times. Like Denlin and khia213 said, we are looking forward to trying Moderno Churrascaria on our next cruise.

[Detroit Donna]

Thanks so much everyone! I like the idea to go look at the menu and then decide from there.

[Detroit Donna]

You do get more attention from the maitr'd to the wait staff and you get a bigger selection in both entree's, appetizers and definitely better desserts, plus you can have more than one appetizer and dessert if you care to.

 

Are you saying that in the MDR you can't order more than one appetizer or dessert? :confused:

[Detroit Donna]

We always eat in the specialty restaurants. We never even tried the MDR. I would be perfectly willing to eat there, but my husband refuses. I can't get him to eat in the buffet, either. I tried the buffet on our last cruise and I really liked it. Something happens to my husband when he goes on vacation, apparently. The rest of the year he can be found eating soup, cold, straight out of the can. With Ritz crackers. While standing over the kitchen sink.

 

That's hilarious!! :D

[peg013]

Are you saying that in the MDR you can't order more than one appetizer or dessert? :confused:

 

You can order 4 of everything if you'd like...no limits except on the entrees in the specialty restaurants. Anything goes in any other venue.:D