Dining on Azamara

[kcscrapper]

I'm interested in your views and opinions as to dining on Azamara.

How do you "rate" the food - not service but the taste and quality of the food -- in the MDR and in other included dining venues?

 

I've found that the quality of the food, across a number of ships and cruise lines, has generally diminished with the advent of "premium" dining. I view premium dining as a way for the cruise lines to increase revenues in two ways: 1) attach themselves to the Pax wallet and 2) lower what is offered in non-premium dining. Earlier in our cruising experience, before "alternative" dining, the MDR was an experience that offered really very good food, well prepared and presented -- certainly as good as we could obtain at home in an "up scale" restaurant. With the advent of extra cost dining, we found the quality of food in the MDR appreciably lowered -- acceptable (with the glaring exception of Carnival - most of which, in our opinion doesn't even meet acceptable standards) but less quality than what can be had at any eat-in, franchise restaurant in my area (eg: Chilis, Olive Garden, Boston Market, Applebee's, Red Lobster).

 

I totally understand that much of the dining part of cruising is really individual tastes and expectations. But I'd still like to hear the views of this community of "regulars" - and ostensibly fans, to the Azamara line

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[Spursgirl]

I think posters will report varying degrees of satisfaction with Azamara food because as you say this is a very subjective topic.

 

My opinion for what it's worth is that the food in the MDR is good whereas when I first started cruising with Azamara in 2008 it was excellent and very beautifully presented. I have rarely been served a meal I really didn't like but in common with other cruise lines have been offered an alternative without being made to feel uncomfortable.

 

I really like the food in both speciality restaurants and sometimes the ambience is just what I'm craving after a busy day ashore.

 

Many of my friends rate The Patio highly but I'm not a fan of either the food or service which can be spotty. Just my view.

 

I know others will have different thoughts

[Grandma Cruising]

We have found the food in Discoveries(MDR) to vary from cruise to cruise. On our first couple of cruises with Azamara 4 & 5 years ago we thought the food was wonderful, then we had a cruise where we felt it had lost its ‘wow’ factor. However on our last couple of cruises in Oct/Nov 2017 and January 2018 we felt it was back to the quality we remembered from our first cruise. In fact in January we had some dishes (often lamb) that I would class as outstanding. We certainly feel that the food is better than in any ‘franchise’ restaurant we’ve ever eaten in, with some dishes being as good as our local Michelin starred restaurant.

 

Like spursgirl we love the speciality restaurants, especially Prime C. We have never tried the Patio.

 

 

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[excitedofharpenden]

I don’t have an issue with the MDR where I find the taste and quality very good. In fact I’d say the more recent menus have improved it. I enjoy both Prime C and Aqualina, but would give the nod to Aqualina.

 

I’m not familiar with the restaurant chain names you’ve given as an example so can’t give you a comparative view. As you say, food is subjective, but overall I really enjoy the choices available, including the themed buffet evenings. Tables are properly set for dinner in Windows Cafe and it has a nice ambience.

 

Phil

[TravelBugM]

We enjoy the food in Discoveries, The Patio and Windows very much. Although we have dined at both Aqualina and Prime C in the past, on our past few cruises have felt no need to spend the extra $$$ as the food in the included restaurants is wondeful.

 

We will peruse the menus in the morning and then decide where to dine that evening. We may have drinks and a few nibbles at the Sunset Bar, then later head to The Patio or down to Discoveries for dinner. Breakfast and lunch at Windows is always great - a huge selection. And AZ does amazing soups.

 

Seriously..... we are not prepping, cooking, dishing up, cleaning up..... everything tastes better!!!

[Pavovsky]

I thought the food was of a very good quality. Service and specifically speed of service (too quick) was just ok. But if the price was right we would definitely sail Azamara again.

 

 

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Edited March 10, 2018 by Pavovsky

[Bloodaxe]

I agree with Spursgirl that the MDR food although still good is not what it once was.

I have some experience of the U.S. chains mentioned in the original post (some years ago now) and would say that Azamara main dining room is comparable and the specialities superior.

Edited March 10, 2018 by Bloodaxe

[travelberlin]

I think posters will report varying degrees of satisfaction with Azamara food because as you say this is a very subjective topic.

 

My opinion for what it's worth is that the food in the MDR is good whereas when I first started cruising with Azamara in 2008 it was excellent and very beautifully presented. I have rarely been served a meal I really didn't like but in common with other cruise lines have been offered an alternative without being made to feel uncomfortable.

 

I really like the food in both speciality restaurants and sometimes the ambience is just what I'm craving after a busy day ashore.

 

Many of my friends rate The Patio highly but I'm not a fan of either the food or service which can be spotty. Just my view.

 

I know others will have different thoughts

I agree with this post with the exception that I do like the Patio.

Ivi

[nordski]

I agree with Spursgirl that the MDR food although still good is not what it once was.

I have some experience of the U.S. chains mentioned in the original post (some years ago now) and would say that Azamara main dining room is comparable and the specialities superior.

 

In our view the MDR would be clearly superior in quality to the chains listed.

[tazza_0712]

It’s decent. You’ll enjoy it.

 

 

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[pickypicky]

As to OP's question of comparison of Azamara MDR and the local US chains (I have eaten at each of them at one time or another), there is no comparison. I would say that food quality and presentation is far superior on Azamara. However, on our last cruise, which was very port intensive, we had dinner more often than not at Windows Cafe. We were in a suite, so were entitled to multiple reservations at the specialty restaurants, but on this particular cruise, we just preferred to relax after a long day ashore.

I am a person who enjoys dressing up for dinner, and we have, in the past, preferred dining every night at the same table and establishing a relationship with our waiters.This cruise was just different and I didn't regret forgoing that relationship in lieu of a more relaxed meal on the Sunset Deck on many nights (and the bartenders had our preferred libations ready within minutes or our being seated!). Kudos to Azamara for providing venues for every taste and mood. I look forward to dressing up for the dining room again soon!

[kcscrapper]

Thank you to everyone for your kind and informative responses. I appreciate your attention to my inquiry!

[TravelBugM]

As to OP's question of comparison of Azamara MDR and the local US chains (I have eaten at each of them at one time or another), there is no comparison.

 

Completely agree with this assessment.