CruiserByHeart Posted July 21, 2017 #1 Share Posted July 21, 2017 We love Select Dining and enjoy splurging one in a while going to the specialty restaurants... but for our upcoming 15 night cruise we're wondering if the buffet may be a valid option for dinner on a few nights? Is the ambiance more relaxed with a majority of your fellow passengers in the dining rooms on decks below? Is the choice of food (almost) as varied add for lunch? Ate there still cooking stations for cooked-to- order items? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CYNSport Posted July 21, 2017 #2 Share Posted July 21, 2017 Hello. We have occasionally had dinner in the Ocean View Cafe when coming back late from an excursion or just looking for a change. Always a wide variety of items (less than lunch, which is reasonable given how few pax eat dinner there). The last time we were on board (last May) there were cooked to order items. Ambiance (probably too strong a word) is more relaxed in the sense that there are fewer people there. Happy cruising! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandtrap328 Posted July 21, 2017 #3 Share Posted July 21, 2017 The Oceanview is a great option for the main dining room. We always check the dinner menu for the dining room and sometimes nothing looks worth eating. We will then go to the Oceanview. The buffet is not crowded. I particularly enjoy a filet of grilled snapper with a veggie and baked potato. The steaks, pork chops, and fish are all custom grilled. We then take our dinners to the tables outside, get a drink from the bar, and enjoy dining with an expansive view from the back of the ship. We will do this a few times during a two week cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleckle Posted July 21, 2017 #4 Share Posted July 21, 2017 On every cruise there comes the evening when we are simply not in the mood for yet another long, drawn out dinner. That is when we head to the buffet. It is never crowded at dinner time. There is no waiting in line. You have your choice of tables. There is no concern about the dress code for the evening. Whatever you are already wearing (within reason) is fine. The ship's officers and entertainers are often seen dining there. Yes, you can get cooked to order steaks, chicken, fish, pork chops, sometimes lamb chops, as well as the usual stir fry and pasta and pizza. In nice weather, we like to take our meal outside to dine at a table on the open deck at the back of the buffet. It was a lot more convenient to do back when Celebrity used to provide trays, but the fresh sea breezes, stars above and moonglow on the water still make it worthwhile, despite now needing to keep running back and forth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare shipshape sam Posted July 22, 2017 #5 Share Posted July 22, 2017 We seem to always eat one dinner in OVC on 2 week cruises. Typically not enough time on a 7 day cruise with 1-2 speciality dinning dinners. We have found the selection is somewhat limited, but that is us. We are typically tired and just want some food and want it quick. Can't wait till they start adding fee based options/upgrades. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casper106 Posted July 22, 2017 #6 Share Posted July 22, 2017 We love the Oceanview for dinner. Lots of choice as others have stated and you can eat outdoors at the back. And they have custom made dessert crepes. We actually prefer it to the MDR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserByHeart Posted July 22, 2017 Author #7 Share Posted July 22, 2017 Yummy! You've all got me convinced that we've got to try the OV for dinner at least once 😀 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocobakerchica Posted July 22, 2017 #8 Share Posted July 22, 2017 Yummy! You've all got me convinced that we've got to try the OV for dinner at least once 😀 Yes, you definitely have to try the buffet at least once for dinner during your cruise. I had dinner for the first time in the OV cafe last year, it was really nice and relaxing(and a nice change of pace), and I wondered why we hadn't done it sooner. The lighting is soft and pleasing in the dining area(s), the view is spectacular(either indoors or outside on the deck) there are definitely less people up there, and there's a really great selection to choose from; grilled meats/fish to order, some tasty Indian(the night I was there)entrees, pasta made to order, pizza, salad/veggies and some carved meats. I'll be on a 15 night soon as well, and the buffet will definitely be a dinner option for us on a couple nights Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sailingkidswine Posted July 22, 2017 #9 Share Posted July 22, 2017 On a 7 night...this looks like a good change of pace, but not sure I can get DH to "risk" skipping the MDR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare hcat Posted July 22, 2017 #10 Share Posted July 22, 2017 Always nice to take one night as a time out...stay late at the pool, dinner at the buffet....sit on the balcony...movie in the room...breaks up the pace a bit... Food choices and quality are much better than lunch... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Cruise Raider Posted July 23, 2017 #11 Share Posted July 23, 2017 We love going to the OV cafe a couple of times during a cruise ...especially if we are traveling without others that we know, in which case, we usually meet up at the MDR. They have some unique items up there. On a Caribbean cruise, they had coconut water in a coconut with a straw, on another cruise, they had a ceviche station with shrimp and scallops, amongst other types of fish. I love the Asian stir fry station and the pasta station ... and the salad bar. We've never been disappointed, that's for sure. But if you find yourself not liking the buffet, did you know that anything on the dinner menu from the MDR is available as room service during normal dining hours? Well, I hope they still do that now that I mentioned it. We were so grungy and rather tired one day after being out in the islands all day. They brought our dinner to our stateroom .... what a wonderful treat!! We showered but just put on our lounging clothes and had a fabulous dinner while out on our balcony. Priceless!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Cruise Junky Posted July 23, 2017 #12 Share Posted July 23, 2017 I loved the stir fry station for dinner. Absolutely a good choice for a change of pace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ask4Jay Posted July 23, 2017 #13 Share Posted July 23, 2017 We are NCL cruisers, usually T/As and we love the buffet, especially their Wok Station. Find a table far away from the food, bring our own cloth place mats and have us a nice dinner. Sane thing for breakfast. Where else can you get just one piece of crisp bacon? Don't want a whole rasher. Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silvery Seas Cruiser Posted July 23, 2017 #14 Share Posted July 23, 2017 We are outliers in regard to the OVC. We eat there most nights, no longer having any desire to eat in the MDR. If we want a change from the MDR, we try a Premium restaurant. What we like about the OVC at night is that it is quiet, peaceful and not very crowded, certainly nothing like a sea day lunch there when it can be a real challenge to find a table and get close to certain popular food areas. We go to the OVC when we want, leave when we want, eat what we want and sit where we want. In a way, it is the true "Select" dining. Very few passengers want to do what we do but there do seem to be a few regulars at the nightly OVC on most cruises. It certainly is worthwhile to check it out once or twice a cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
easyboy Posted July 23, 2017 #15 Share Posted July 23, 2017 The Oceanview is a great option for the main dining room. We always check the dinner menu for the dining room and sometimes nothing looks worth eating. We will then go to the Oceanview. Just like the way we do. Also nice to have a different ambience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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