What are your preferences for specialty dining choices throughout the cruise?

[Daghis]

I'm going on my first NCL cruise on Getaway this fall. I've purchased the Ultimate Dining Package for both of us and am now browsing the restaurants and considering the entertainment schedules, trying to figure out which restaurants I'd like to reserve when. I'd rather have everything reserved in advance so I won't have to worry about it later.

 

The first night is easy: Illusionarium. Although, there was a suggestion to dine also in another specialty restaurant, so I'd be able to pick and choose from both menus. I'm going to worry about that later, figuring I'll just have the dinner at the show, at least for now.

 

So, it's an open-ended question that I have. With so many choices, do any of you have any sort of preferences about which restaurants you prefer at the beginning or end of the cruise? Perhaps somewhere that you like to dine on the boardwalk during sail away from St. Maarten?

 

One thing I was considering is that given the fantastic reviews of Le Bistro, I might want to choose that both early and later in the cruise.

[Johnny Bananas]

Dining is so subjective but this is what I did on my most recent cruise based on previous trials of the other specialty restaurants:

 

Teppanyaki

Moderno

LeBistro

Cagneys

Teppanyaki

Moderno

LeBistro

[sdmike]

What kind of food do you like?

 

The top restaurants tend to be:

 

Le Bistro

Cagneys

Moderno (if you love meat)

Teppanyaki (limited seating makes it the one sold out the most)

 

The chinese and italian offerings are pretty mainstream. Good, but the others are more unique and popular.

[Daghis]

Dining is so subjective but this is what I did on my most recent cruise based on previous trials of the other specialty restaurants:

 

Teppanyaki

Moderno

LeBistro

Cagneys

Teppanyaki

Moderno

LeBistro

 

Interesting, so you skipped La Cucina entirely. Otherwise, your lineup looks quite appetizing. I think my stomach just rumbled a bit. :)

 

What kind of food do you like?

 

The top restaurants tend to be:

 

Le Bistro

Cagneys

Moderno (if you love meat)

Teppanyaki (limited seating makes it the one sold out the most)

 

The chinese and italian offerings are pretty mainstream. Good, but the others are more unique and popular.

I think I want to try each of the dinner restaurants at least once, so that takes care of six out of seven nights (including Illusionarium on the first night) with one repeat. For other restaurants like the regular dining rooms, buffet, and other pay restaurants like Wasabi or Shanghai's are open for lunch, so we could visit them then without taking a dinner spot away from something else.

 

Your list of top restaurants are the ones I would probably focus on. I don't know whether I'd skip La Cucina entirely, but I'd be inclined to repeat Le Bistro or maybe Teppanyaki. Moderno would also be tempting, but I'll be dining at Samba Grill on Allure of the Seas the next week, so I should avoid too many meat comas during the two weeks of cruising. :)

[Johnny Bananas]

Have eaten at LaCucina twice was disappointed both times....

[LrgPizza]

Check what time sunset is at Nassau, and if the timing works, try to sit somewhere on the waterfront for sail away. Sunset was way too late for any of our other sail always.

 

Le Bistro on the Getaway is like eating in a closet, so book that when there isn't a view to be missed. It has no windows.

Edited July 8, 2014 by LrgPizza

[Daghis]

Have eaten at LaCucina twice was disappointed both times....

I keep seeing negative opinions about La Cucina. On the good side, even if we skip Italian here during this cruise, we've got Giovanni's Table the next week.

 

Check what time sunset is at Nassau, and if the timing works, try to sit somewhere on the waterfront for sail away. Sunset was way too late for any of our other sail always.

 

Ooh, I hadn't even thought about that. It looks like sunset is right around sail away (6:54 PM, sailing at 7:00 PM). Thanks for this tip!

 

Le Bistro on the Getaway is like eating in a closet, so book that when there isn't a view to be missed. It has no windows.

 

Yeah, I'm definitely keeping Le Bistro in mind for non-view days.

[wasiii]

On my first NCL cruise on the Star, there were many complaints about LA Cucina, but that happened to be the best meal/service on the ship for us.

 

Our favorites are:

 

Le Bistro

La Cucina

Cagney's

O'Sheehan's

 

The Wasabi Sushi was OK.

We have not tried Teppanyaki, Moderno or Shanghai's Noodle Bar yet, maybe this time. Ocean Blue (too much) and Raw Bar (not interested).

 

wasiii

 

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[graphicguy]

Boy...hard to say what my favorite would be. Cagney's was probably the best steak I had on any ship, on any cruise line.

 

My wife couldn't get enough Shanghai Noodle Bar. She just loved how fresh everything was. Plus, it was teh least expensive "for charge" dining venue on the ship.

 

Moderno...for their salad bar alone was outstanding.

 

LaCucina was really good.

 

I personally loved Wasabi Sushi Bar.

 

Everything except Ocean Blue was great. Ocean Blue was disappointing on a bunch of levels. It was the only extra charge restaurant that we thought about asking for our money back. Service was good. Food? Not so much...EXCEPT for their flourless chocolate cake, which my wife loved. She went there on some evenings just to order the cake (which they allowed her to pay for a la carte).

[Daghis]

On my first NCL cruise on the Star, there were many complaints about LA Cucina, but that happened to be the best meal/service on the ship for us.

 

That's good to hear. I'm glad that there have been some positive experiences with La Cucina.

 

Moderno...for their salad bar alone was outstanding.

 

I've read this sentiment before and I'm a bit surprised given that Brazilian steakhouses are usually places where people advise skipping the salad bar so as not to get filled up before the main course meats.

 

Did I also read that Moderno is open for lunch, but just their salad bar? Is that true? I don't see it listed in the dailies, but I thought I had seen that somewhere.

[UPNYGuy]

If you go to LaCucina, DO NOT order the steak. I did it just to try it. It was easily the worst steak I have ever had. A little research uncovered most of the complaints about LaCucina revolved around the steak. We had the UDP, so it really didn't bother me that much.

 

If you want steak, go to Cagney's.

 

 

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[Daghis]

If you go to LaCucina, DO NOT order the steak. I did it just to try it. It was easily the worst steak I have ever had. A little research uncovered most of the complaints about LaCucina revolved around the steak. We had the UDP, so it really didn't bother me that much.

 

If you want steak, go to Cagney's.

Thank you very much for that tip. I just looked at the La Cucina menu from Gambee's review and I'm probably more inclined to try a pasta entrée.

 

I would expect better meats at Cagney's and Moderno.

[Hikini]

Our favorites in order:

 

1A: Moderno

1B: Le Bistro (That's how hard it is to make up my mind about which I like best.)

2: Cagney's

[Daghis]

Our favorites in order:

 

1A: Moderno

1B: Le Bistro (That's how hard it is to make up my mind about which I like best.)

2: Cagney's

 

 

I'm getting the idea that I probably can't go wrong with any of these three! :)

[UPNYGuy]

We honestly liked ALL the restaurants. DW said the escargot at le bistro was the best she has ever had, land or sea.

 

 

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[wvfrogg]

Have eaten at LaCucina twice was disappointed both times....

 

I always eat at LaCucina, and get the same thing every time -- the seared salmon and white beans. It is wonderful. I've never tried the pasta dishes, although once I did have the osso bucco and it was also very good.

:)