First time on Silversea, need advice, please

[chelseabelsea]

Hello, all,

my husband and I are looking forward to our Silversea cruise May 22; we have sailed many, many times, however, never on Silversea. I have noted with interest discussions regarding dress code, and I absolutely do not mind bringing my gown for formal night! Having said that, I would appreciate gentle guidance on evening wear, specifically, should I expect to see a lot of sequins and jewels on non-formal nights? Cocktail dresses?

If we are dining at The Grill, will I be out of place if I am wearing a LBD and high heels? I like to dress for evening, however I don’t want to be totally out of place, even in the casual venues. I thank you in advance for any wisdom you can bestow upon me!

 

[Tothesunset]

You can never dress too well on Silversea. You will find a wide range of interpretations of the dress code that loosely fit within the spirit of the code. Go wild, you deserve it! 

[Daveywavey70]

Seconded TTS, Silversea is one of the few places where you would struggle to feel overdressed. It’s the kind of atmosphere where people quietly appreciate the effort made with a quiet nod or an appreciative smile. Knock yourself out Chelseabelsea and show them how it’s done. That said the Grill is the least dressy venue of all, often inhabited by many style refugees that consider a fleece and a baseball cap to be suitable evening wear. 

[Observer]

11 minutes ago, Daveywavey70 said:

 That said the Grill is the least dressy venue of all, often inhabited by many style refugees that consider a fleece and a baseball cap to be suitable evening wear. 

 

Agreed.  I have supped at The Grill on formal nights.  I always dress casual (which is the minimal required dress) and feel rather sorry for people who I assume are new to Silversea who arrive in heels, gowns, tuxes, etc.  Of course, they may have come to The Grill from the Captain's Welcome Reception or Venetian party, where formal wear would be not only appropriate but really expected.  One would not want to attend these events in polo shirts, etc.

[chrism23]

Hi, Chelseabelsea.  A couple of comments.  First. the Grill on Silversea ships is an outside venue on the pool deck or the deck just above.  It is Very casual.  It is also do it yourself, they bring hot rocks with slices of beef, shrimp etc and you do the cooking.  I personally hate the Grill.  On 7 cruises I have done it twice, once was fun, we were in very rough seas in the Caribbean, the ship was rolling like hell, the water from the pool was shooting 8-10 feet in the air, and drenching everyone on the pool deck tables.  Other than that, I simply am not cooking my own food.  I am on vacation.

 

Other than echoing TotheSunset above, you cannot overdress on a Silversea ship.  I personally love formal nights, I have all the gear but its a rare occasion to dress up.  I always schedule La Dame for the first formal night. ( A question for the men doing the June 22 Norway cruise-Since its summer is anyone bringing a white tux jacket instead of black?).  For Men, sportcoats are required in the Restaurant.  So the environment is a little dressy, most women dress in cocktail party chic.  The reception desk at the Restaurant has a supply of blue blazers if the man does not want to run back to his cabin.  They do enforce this.  Again I like this, it creates a refined sophisticated atmosphere.  For me, a Silversea non-expedition cruise is an excuse to pull out all my fancy cruise clothes and dress up.  I think a lot of regular Silversea cruisers do this too.  Some cruises feel like floating fashion shows.  So go for it,  be creative and have fun with what your are wearing.  

 

 

[Tothesunset]

1 hour ago, chrism23 said:

(A question for the men doing the June 22 Norway cruise-Since its summer is anyone bringing a white tux jacket instead of black?)...

The following quote is from Tothesunset and not chrism23 as advertised! 

Quote

Traditionally, for the British at least, a white dinner jacket would only be worn in the tropics. I notice that this convention is not acknowledged nowadays so I guess white is now suitable at any latitude. 

 

Edited May 12, 2019 by Tothesunset

[Observer]

4 hours ago, chrism23 said:

Hi, Chelseabelsea.  A couple of comments.  First. the Grill on Silversea ships is an outside venue on the pool deck or the deck just above.  It is Very casual.  It is also do it yourself, they bring hot rocks with slices of beef, shrimp etc and you do the cooking.  I personally hate the Grill.  ... I simply am not cooking my own food.  I am on vacation.

 

 

 

I believe that it is the case on all ships with The Grill that one is *not* required to cook one's own food on hot rocks.  I ask for my main course to be cooked by the staff on the small pool deck grill (the same one that prepares meals at lunchtime), and there has never been so much as an eyebrow raised.  I know I am not alone in having my steak/fish/chops cooked for me,.

[Stumblefoot]

Observer is correct.  You do not have to cook your meal at The Grill if you so choose.

[Silver Spectre]

2 hours ago, Observer said:

 

I believe that it is the case on all ships with The Grill that one is *not* required to cook one's own food on hot rocks.  I ask for my main course to be cooked by the staff on the small pool deck grill (the same one that prepares meals at lunchtime), and there has never been so much as an eyebrow raised.  I know I am not alone in having my steak/fish/chops cooked for me,.

Correct.

[chrism23]

Sorry to have gotten this wrong.   I hadn't seen anyone do it before.  I will keep the option in mind for the future.  Having dinner outside on the pool decks would be a nice option. 

[jpalbny]

41 minutes ago, chrism23 said:

I will keep the option in mind for the future.  Having dinner outside on the pool decks would be a nice option. 

 

It's really a nice venue. While we personally really enjoy the option to cook our own steak, and I am really happy that they offer this fun dining venue to do this in, it's great that SS offers the option to cook it for you if you want. 

 

But OP, the LBD might smell like smoke and/or hot oil if you wear it there. Chris and I dress casually. No jacket required, unless you want one for warmth. It saves on the dry cleaning bill.

 

This picture illustrates both the casual dress code, and the amount of smoke that you can encounter in this venue. Hopefully it helps with your decisions.

 

 

 

[Lois R]

1 hour ago, jpalbny said:

 

It's really a nice venue. While we personally really enjoy the option to cook our own steak, and I am really happy that they offer this fun dining venue to do this in, it's great that SS offers the option to cook it for you if you want. 

 

But OP, the LBD might smell like smoke and/or hot oil if you wear it there. Chris and I dress casually. No jacket required, unless you want one for warmth. It saves on the dry cleaning bill.

 

This picture illustrates both the casual dress code, and the amount of smoke that you can encounter in this venue. Hopefully it helps with your decisions.

 

 

 

What a nice looking couple......and I agree, you can cook if you want or they can do it for you.

[chelseabelsea]

Wow, my warmest thanks to all of you for your responses!

I loved the picture- and had a good laugh at the thought of yes, perhaps a smoke filled LBD with hot oil spills isn’t *quite* the look I was going for 😂

I’m relieved to know they can cook my steak for me! Again, I thank all of you for sharing your wisdom....

[spinnaker2]

And just to add more info about the Grill, now on the Spirit there are rollable clear plastic windscreens that attach to glass windscreens and there are overhead heaters. I am not sure that the Muse has the plastic windscreens, but they do have the heaters.  All of this makes dining at the Grill doable in all kinds of weather.

I would not wear the LBD for the reasons JP said, the smoke will be absorbed by your attire.Bibs are provided, so no oil splatters on your clothing.

I also ask for my food to be cooked by the staff. 

Below please find a photo taken of the Grill in the daytime and although it was raining, the plastic wind screens were up. But it will give you an idea.This was taken in Monaco this past April 23. BTW the Grill has a different menu during the day.

 

 

 

 

[rosepark]

Chelseabelsea, I echo the recommendation not to go too formal at the Grill, they do supply large napkins for those of us who can't get out of geriatric dribbling mode, but the smoke can be all pervasive. I don't mind doing my own cooking, just as long as I don't have to do my own washing up.

For informal nights, lace is useful - definitely not casual but not full blown formal dinner attire - silk is good too and always make sure you jangle your jewellery.

Hope you enjoy yourself and people will be far more interested in chatting with you than commenting adversely on what you are wearing.

Rp

[megavfm]

I'd be surprised if it was just a Shadow thing, but we just got off several days ago and the bibs supplied at the Grill have certainly improved in terms of coverage compared to that in JPAlbany's photo (nice couple shot JPA, we've gone incognito!); the bib now was more like an apron. It certainly helps with any splatter, but I usually just pushed the hot stone towards the centre of the table. I can also confirm that we were given the choice of DIY (which I preferred, as I could get my steak to my liking and I might just add at this juncture that the meat onboard was impressively tender) or having the chef cook for us.

Edited May 16, 2019 by megavfm

[jpalbny]

I do think it's fleetwide. My pic is from 2014. In 2017 on Explorer, they resembled the ones in your picture. The 2014 model was eerily reminiscent of a visit to the dentist...

[Emtbsam]

The bib clips can double as a hat tether when you are walking on deck in the wind.

[lionsfan99]

On 5/12/2019 at 7:18 AM, chrism23 said:

Hi, Chelseabelsea.  A couple of comments.  First. the Grill on Silversea ships is an outside venue on the pool deck or the deck just above.  It is Very casual.  It is also do it yourself, they bring hot rocks with slices of beef, shrimp etc and you do the cooking.  I personally hate the Grill.  On 7 cruises I have done it twice, once was fun, we were in very rough seas in the Caribbean, the ship was rolling like hell, the water from the pool was shooting 8-10 feet in the air, and drenching everyone on the pool deck tables.  Other than that, I simply am not cooking my own food.  I am on vacation.

 

Other than echoing TotheSunset above, you cannot overdress on a Silversea ship.  I personally love formal nights, I have all the gear but its a rare occasion to dress up.  I always schedule La Dame for the first formal night. ( A question for the men doing the June 22 Norway cruise-Since its summer is anyone bringing a white tux jacket instead of black?).  For Men, sportcoats are required in the Restaurant.  So the environment is a little dressy, most women dress in cocktail party chic.  The reception desk at the Restaurant has a supply of blue blazers if the man does not want to run back to his cabin.  They do enforce this.  Again I like this, it creates a refined sophisticated atmosphere.  For me, a Silversea non-expedition cruise is an excuse to pull out all my fancy cruise clothes and dress up.  I think a lot of regular Silversea cruisers do this too.  Some cruises feel like floating fashion shows.  So go for it,  be creative and have fun with what your are wearing.  

 

 

Hi there - why do you prefer La Dame on a formal night?  Any particular reason?  Thanks:)

[SWFLAOK]

While I'm not the OP,  I would rather go to La Dame on a formal night, but for the opposite reason as chrism23. There are very few tables, and those that dine there seemed to be less likely to want to dress to excess (and to impress). We dress to the minimum for formal night, and felt very comfortable there. And we love the food at La Dame. In the Restaurant, there were quite a few people dressed at the high end of the dress code (tux and gown) on formal nights, and we'll never be doing tux and gown on a cruise. We have no room for that in our luggage.

I agree with chrism23 about the Grill. We hated the Grill. On our first formal night, my brother (on the same cruise in a separate cabin) wanted to try it so we could dress more casually. It was windy, and smoke was blowing everywhere from the food cooking on the hot rocks. I actually ordered something that I didn't have to cook, but the smoke was still unbearable. None of it tasted very good. We cancelled our second reservation the next morning. They didn't ask why. I don't know why they keep the hot rocks. It's not what I expect on a luxury cruise.

[chrism23]

Just a little update.  On our last trip, on the Silverwind, as is my custom, I booked La Dame twice.  I cancelled the second reservation and as a Silversea regular I won't be doing a La Dame again.  Not that its bad.  The La Dame's on the Silversea fleet are all small, intimate, plush with superb service.  But, the menus are really not that different than what appears in the Restaurant (MDR) in days after.  For example, a caviar plate, with your own little jar of caviar (very cool) was on the MDR menu a couple of days after La Dame.  Same with Foie Gras, lobster, etc.  The portions in La Dame are larger, they do offer a souffle (recommended) for desert, but there is not a big difference.  One trick, and I really don't want to reveal this but most Silversea regulars know this, if there is an entree or app in the MDR you really want, simply order 2.  We did this with King Crab legs in Alaska, one portion was clearly not enough.  Haven't tried to order 3 yet, if they do King Crab again I just may.  Cheers.  

[brimary]

We did the same on our recent Wind Cruise.As usual we made four reservations but after first visit cancelled the rest.Poor quality,poor service,hot dishes served cold on cold plates,complained to Maitre d immediate refund and profuse apologies.Never again !!