Questions about La Reserve

[Leejnd4]

I just read about this special wine-pairing night on the Oceania page, and I'm intrigued! We'll be on Riviera, so I'm assuming that means we'll have at least one of these.

 

I have a few questions:

 

I see there are three menus...does everyone at the table have to get the same menu? Or do we each get to pick the menu we want? I did a similar wine-pairing dinner on Crystal called "The Vintage Room", which was truly exquisite...but they only offer one menu. We're hoping we don't all have to choose the same menu - my friend and I looked at the La Reserve menus online, and she likes the Discovery menu while I like the Connoisseurs menu.

 

How about prices? I did a search and found a few threads about it in here, and it seems the prices are somewhere in the neighborhood of $90 for Discovery & Odyssey menu and $160 for the Connoisseur menu...is this correct? Anyone got current pricing?

 

How about pouring? Do they just give you one glass with each course? Or is it like the Vintage Room on Crystal, where your glass never seems to empty until they wisk it away for the next course? Not that I fear NOT getting enough wine, what with SEVEN courses...but if I taste one that really knocks it out of the park for me, I'd like to know I can ask for a refill. ;)

 

I would love to hear feedback on your La Reserve experience! Did you consider it worth the price? The wines mostly look to be high-quality selections...although as a Californian (and an owner of a vineyard in Temecula) I'd love to see California wines better represented on there. But there are some nice Italian wines, and a couple intriguing wines from Spain, and certainly the menus SOUND fabulous! What did y'all think?

[Travelcat2]

Everyone has the same menu in Le Reserve -- they serve different menus on different nights. You can book Le Reserve in advance and select the menu you wish. We have dined there twice (two different cruises) and prefer the Connoisseurs menu to the other menu (although we only dined there in November, I cannot recall the name of the "other" menu -- it was new and the cost was around $110/person). Le Reserve is not necessarily open every night -- it depends upon reservations, etc.

 

While you are not limited to one taste of wine, it has not been our experience that you can have as much as you want of any one wine. We have had our wine glasses topped up.

 

I'm sure that you will receive more detailed information from others that are more familiar with Oceania than we are. We felt that Le Reserve was worth every penny. It was a lovely evening -- great food, wine and other guests to share the tables with.

[Mura]

I agree with TravelCat in terms of preferring the Connoisseur menu. It's more expensive but definitely worth it.

 

No, you can't pick and choose. You book La Reserve for one menu on the night it is offered. Sometimes it is offered more than once. SOME have said that if you can get up a group of people (not necessarily 24 people which is the max) that the ship will schedule a night for you. My guess would be that you need a minimum of 8 to do so.

 

We haven't tried that but if we were on a cruise with a group it would be worth a shot.

 

We haven't been able to try the new menu and since it is not listed as being available for our April cruise (Lima-NY) we probably will have to wait. We don't want to repeat the two menus that will be available on that cruise.

 

BUT ... the menus we have tried were well worth the money. And Connoisseur is well worth the extra $$$.

 

Mura

[Jancruz]

IMHO you cant go wrong with any menu..I have had them all a few times and all were outstanding..Wine is not freeflowing but believe me there is more than enough and wonderful wines..I suggest you book before you get on the ship as most of the nights fill quickly since there are only a few nights during a cruise La Reserve is open..

Have a wonderful evening!

Jancruz1

[Leejnd4]

Thanks for the info! So if I understand you correctly...if I want to try the connoisseur menu, but Sandy wants another menu, we'll end up on different nights? Hmmm.

 

We're definitely going to do it tho! We'll just have to agree on a menu if we want to do it together, I guess.

 

We just got our deposit receipt and booking number, so I added or cruise to my Oceania account, and I can see now where and how to book La Reserve. I will reserve it as soon as we are able to.

[YoHoHo]

There are three tables of eight. By the end of the evening the conversations at each are filled with anecdotes and stories. We have thoroughly enjoyed La Reserve.

 

We've not had the Connoisseur menu and both preferred the one other than the short rib. That said, I would not hesitate to repeat.

[PaulMCO]

Also what is offered can vary. During our Xmas/New Year cruise they only offered the Connoisseur menu for New Year's eve and day.

[LHT28]

We just got our deposit receipt and booking number, so I added or cruise to my Oceania account, and I can see now where and how to book La Reserve. I will reserve it as soon as we are able to.

 

You can book it as soon as you can decide what menu you want to do

no need to wait like the specialty restaurants

[StanandJim]

Thanks for the info! So if I understand you correctly...if I want to try the connoisseur menu, but Sandy wants another menu, we'll end up on different nights? Hmmm.

 

We're definitely going to do it tho! We'll just have to agree on a menu if we want to do it together, I guess.

 

We just got our deposit receipt and booking number, so I added or cruise to my Oceania account, and I can see now where and how to book La Reserve. I will reserve it as soon as we are able to.

 

Others have made reference to this, but as a reinforcement, please do not assume that all three of the La Reserve Menus will be offered during every cruise.

 

Unlike the other restaurants, La Reserve is not open for business on every evening and there are nights where that space is dark.

[Leejnd4]

You can book it as soon as you can decide what menu you want to do

no need to wait like the specialty restaurants

 

Good to know! I'll book as soon as we decide. I might just have to drag Sandy along to the Connoisseurs...the wines on there sound awesome.

 

Others have made reference to this, but as a reinforcement, please do not assume that all three of the La Reserve Menus will be offered during every cruise.

 

Unlike the other restaurants, La Reserve is not open for business on every evening and there are nights where that space is dark.

 

Our cruise is still quite a ways away, so I don't know if they've identified which nights they will have what...but I'll call when we get a little closer and ensure that we get signed up.

 

Thanks everyone! I remember the Vintage Room on Crystal as one of the highlights of our Baltics cruise. It was all people who truly appreciate a fine dining (and drinking ;) ) experience, and were filled with fascinating stories of their life and travels. I'm sure La Reserve will be similar.

[Jancruz]

Good to know! I'll book as soon as we decide. I might just have to drag Sandy along to the Connoisseurs...the wines on there sound awesome.

 

 

 

Our cruise is still quite a ways away, so I don't know if they've identified which nights they will have what...but I'll call when we get a little closer and ensure that we get signed up.

 

Thanks everyone! I remember the Vintage Room on Crystal as one of the highlights of our Baltics cruise. It was all people who truly appreciate a fine dining (and drinking ;) ) experience, and were filled with fascinating stories of their life and travels. I'm sure La Reserve will be similar.

 

You will love it..BTW we are almost neighbors, I am in Oxnard and our daughter lives off of Lynn Road..in TO

Jancruz1

[Leejnd4]

You will love it..BTW we are almost neighbors, I am in Oxnard and our daughter lives off of Lynn Road..in TO

Jancruz1

 

OMG! I live off Lynn Rd in TO -- in Lynn Ranch! So your daughter and I are really neighbors!

 

And we keep our sailboat in Oxnard, at Channel Islands Harbor. My husband and I both work at Amgen. Small world! :)

[Flatbush Flyer]

 

How about pouring? Do they just give you one glass with each course? Or is it like the Vintage Room on Crystal, where your glass never seems to empty until they wisk it away for the next course? Not that I fear NOT getting enough wine, what with SEVEN courses...but if I taste one that really knocks it out of the park for me, I'd like to know I can ask for a refill. ;)

 

This is one of the reasons why we skip LaReserve. I've never found "wine pairing events" to really do justice to the finer aspects of any given wine.

And, even though we live in the midst of NorCal's wine country, where "winemaker dinners" are plentiful, we still prefer to keep wine tasting separate from food and to only do several samplings in any given time period throughout a tasting day.

 

Don't misunderstand me. This is not a comment about the quality or value of LaReserve. Rather, I'm talking about understanding and appreciating wine.

 

At the same time, I must admit that itinerary also comes into play for us in choosing where, or even whether, to eat on the ship. If the port is known for food excellence, we'll do some research and identify a restaurant at which to dine out.

[Leejnd4]

This is one of the reasons why we skip LaReserve. I've never found "wine pairing events" to really do justice to the finer aspects of any given wine.

And, even though we live in the midst of NorCal's wine country, where "winemaker dinners" are plentiful, we still prefer to keep wine tasting separate from food and to only do several samplings in any given time period throughout a tasting day.

 

Don't misunderstand me. This is not a comment about the quality or value of LaReserve. Rather, I'm talking about understanding and appreciating wine.

 

At the same time, I must admit that itinerary also comes into play for us in choosing where, or even whether, to eat on the ship. If the port is known for food excellence, we'll do some research and identify a restaurant at which to dine out.

 

I don't think we're going to be eating any dinners in port. This is a Caribbean cruise. ;) I'm really doing this cruise for the scuba diving! I don't think I'll find anything at the ports that will equal the food on the ship.

 

I personally find that pairing wines with the right foods brings out the best in both. :) I love winemakers dinners -- we're growers (we have 5 acres of Zinfandel grapes in Temecula) so we get a lot of invites, although with our busy lives we just don't get to attend very many. We're still working stiffs, so it's hard to find the time to get to them. Which is one reason why I'm excited to learn they offer one on our cruise.

[Flatbush Flyer]

I don't think we're going to be eating any dinners in port. This is a Caribbean cruise. ;) I'm really doing this cruise for the scuba diving! I don't think I'll find anything at the ports that will equal the food on the ship.

 

 

 

I personally find that pairing wines with the right foods brings out the best in both. :) I love winemakers dinners -- we're growers (we have 5 acres of Zinfandel grapes in Temecula) so we get a lot of invites, although with our busy lives we just don't get to attend very many. We're still working stiffs, so it's hard to find the time to get to them. Which is one reason why I'm excited to learn they offer one on our cruise.

 

 

Temecula? Why not head to Polynesia or Fiji or elsewhere in the left ocean instead of Caribbean?

[Leejnd4]

Temecula? Why not head to Polynesia or Fiji or elsewhere in the left ocean instead of Caribbean?

 

We did Bali a couple months ago, and French Polynesia the year before. I'm looking for warm water diving...and I haven't been diving in the Caribbean for quite a few years. So this year it's the Caribbean. :D

Edited February 25, 2015 by Leejnd4