Post-cruise Review of Reflection November 6 sailing, “Isn’t It Time?”

[WeBcruisingMN]

5 hours ago, pooh/tigger said:

Thanks for the wonderful reviews. We sail on her in Feb. 

 

Did they mention why they changed the itinerary and excluded Dominican Republic? 

Our original itinerary never included Dominican Republic.

 

We were previously scheduled for Key West and Grand Cayman; however, they were not accepting ships yet, so Celebrity subbed in Belize and Roatan (we found out maybe a month before the cruise departed). My understanding is that both Key West and GC are now accepting ships, so we were just a few weeks early for their opening-up. 

 

Thanks for reading my review. I hope you have a WONDERFUL cruise on the Reflection in February!

[RealDeal]

Two questions: Were they offering deals on specialty dining onboard, and does LCG still allow you to make your own pizza? 

[WeBcruisingMN]

8 minutes ago, RealDeal said:

Were they offering deals on specialty dining onboard

Actually not sure if they were offering deals…there certainly weren’t the strolling/ trolling crew that used to approach you in bars or stand outside Oceanview seeking to fill-up the specialties with enticing deals. We saw none of that.

 

We booked the Murano evening online while still at home, then just booked the Lawn Club Grill and The Porch full price on the app while onboard. We didn’t try to get a deal, we had so much OBC this time… maybe others can lend some advice or experience in this area?

11 minutes ago, RealDeal said:

does LCG still allow you to make your own pizza?

I think that possibility was on the menu, but we didn’t see anyone doing that (of the approximately six tables that were active during the time we dined. The menu did state that you could add any salad bar topping to your pizza, but to my thinking- that would’ve just meant peppers, maybe arugula, mushrooms, etc and we didn’t really want any of the salad bar toppings added.

[RealDeal]

1 minute ago, WeBcruisingMN said:

Actually not sure if they were offering deals…there certainly weren’t the strolling/ trolling crew that used to approach you in bars or stand outside Oceanview seeking to fill-up the specialties with enticing deals. We saw none of that.

 

We booked the Murano evening online while still at home, then just booked the Lawn Club Grill and The Porch full price on the app while onboard. We didn’t try to get a deal, we had so much OBC this time… maybe others can lend some advice or experience in this area?

I think that possibility was on the menu, but we didn’t see anyone doing that (of the approximately six tables that were active during the time we dined. The menu did state that you could add any salad bar topping to your pizza, but to my thinking- that would’ve just meant peppers, maybe arugula, mushrooms, etc and we didn’t really want any of the salad bar toppings added.

Thanks!

[BridgeMates]

5 hours ago, RealDeal said:

Two questions: Were they offering deals on specialty dining onboard, and does LCG still allow you to make your own pizza? 

On the second part of our B2B (Nov 13), Murano's offered 3 nights SD for $99.  We took it!

You might check with the Maitre D in the restaurants you're interested in; ask them to notify you if/when there are any specials.

[D C]

1 hour ago, BridgeMates said:

On the second part of our B2B (Nov 13), Murano's offered 3 nights SD for $99.  We took it!

You might check with the Maitre D in the restaurants you're interested in; ask them to notify you if/when there are any specials.

That's a nice deal! 

When, where, and how did you come across that offer? 

[BridgeMates]

9 hours ago, D C said:

That's a nice deal! 

When, where, and how did you come across that offer? 

We were in Murano's on the first part of our B2B (Nov 6).  

Lovely waitress (Natalie from Ukraine) asked if we'd be interested.

Couldn't pass it up.

 

[pooh/tigger]

21 hours ago, D C said:

It wasn't ever a scheduled port for the sailing on 06-Nov, which was a Western.   Maybe you're thinking the following week?

Apologies.

 

I wasn't aware Reflection was doing both. 

[pooh/tigger]

19 hours ago, WeBcruisingMN said:

Our original itinerary never included Dominican Republic.

 

We were previously scheduled for Key West and Grand Cayman; however, they were not accepting ships yet, so Celebrity subbed in Belize and Roatan (we found out maybe a month before the cruise departed). My understanding is that both Key West and GC are now accepting ships, so we were just a few weeks early for their opening-up. 

 

Thanks for reading my review. I hope you have a WONDERFUL cruise on the Reflection in February!

Thank you. 

 

Really enjoy reading your reviews. 

[RealDeal]

22 hours ago, BridgeMates said:

On the second part of our B2B (Nov 13), Murano's offered 3 nights SD for $99.  We took it!

You might check with the Maitre D in the restaurants you're interested in; ask them to notify you if/when there are any specials.

OK, thx

[jg51]

On 11/28/2021 at 9:05 PM, WeBcruisingMN said:

My husband and I sailed on the November 6 Reflection, and I had promised to do a post-cruise review. Sorry for the delay, we stayed-on in FL for six days following disembarkation, which then morphed into Thanksgiving-prep and celebrations….but this cruise was TOO SPECIAL to skip reviewing.  💯⭐️ ...

 

.

Hello, Sharon.

You were assisting us (greatly) on our thread about the Reflection's Cellar Masters venue, but we think that you are no longer viewing that thread ... so we came here to your own fine thread to ask you a follow-up question.  [We are copying it verbatim from our thread, so you needn't go over there, unless you want to.]  Here goes ...

.

Thanks, WeBcruisingMN, for taking the trouble to figure out what-was-what with those photos.  Your explanation, your praise for Vincent, and your cautions (regarding potential, undesirable substitutions) will be helpful, as we hope to enjoy wines in both Cellar Masters and the MDR.

 

Yet another question just surfaced, although we realize that you may not be able to answer it:

 

There are some wines on each list that are not on the other list.  Should we understand that they are available only in the one venue, but not the other?  Another way of asking this is ...

 

Would an MDR sommelier (Vincent or a colleague) be permitted to go to CM for a glass of wine that is not on the MDR list?  Conversely, would the CM's sommelier (Nelson or a colleague) be permitted to obtain a glass of wine from the MDR's list -- for example, on a day when we intend to dine in a specialty restaurant?

.

We hope that you will be returning to this thread of yours, so that we can discuss this just a wee bit more.  Thank you.

.

[WeBcruisingMN]

@jg51Good evening! Sorry for the delay, we have our adult daughter and her boyfriend visiting for the weekend, plus a full day of holiday baking…and I haven’t even looked at CC for the past 24-36 hours! 
 

I love how kindly you inquire and want to be well-equipped and informed to fully experience your best possibilities for your cruise ahead. 👍🏻
 

I wish I could say it was always consistent in re sommeliers and their ability or cooperation level to obtain your desired wine. We have found it depends. Our Vincent (MDR) was very accommodating and seemed to have our best interest in mind, though the wines he suggested were always produced without any extra requests on our part (we are not actually sure where he obtained them from).

 

We had a sub-par experience in Lawn Club Grill in re wine; they really didn’t have many Cabs (for instance, even though they serve a lot of steaks for entree choices), and when my husband asked if they could get a different Cab than what was exactly on their menu- Nope, what is on our menu is what you can order. In fact, the Lawn Club Grill did not have a sommelier when we asked for one.
 

In contrast, when we dined at The Porch, we asked about getting a nice glass of the Opulence Chardonnay ($1.00+$0.20gratuity upcharge) even though it wasn’t on their menu, the waiter said, “Sure. I will go wherever I need to -on the ship - to get that wine for you!”

 

So, I hope you get good service and extra effort by the sommeliers to have an outstanding wine with all of your meals….hapoy to help with any more questions or encouragement 😊

 

Sharon

[jg51]

10 hours ago, WeBcruisingMN said:

@jg51Good evening! Sorry for the delay, we have our adult daughter and her boyfriend visiting for the weekend, plus a full day of holiday baking…and I haven’t even looked at CC for the past 24-36 hours! 
 

I love how kindly you inquire and want to be well-equipped and informed to fully experience your best possibilities for your cruise ahead. 👍🏻
 

I wish I could say it was always consistent in re sommeliers and their ability or cooperation level to obtain your desired wine. We have found it depends. Our Vincent (MDR) was very accommodating and seemed to have our best interest in mind, though the wines he suggested were always produced without any extra requests on our part (we are not actually sure where he obtained them from).

 

We had a sub-par experience in Lawn Club Grill in re wine; they really didn’t have many Cabs (for instance, even though they serve a lot of steaks for entree choices), and when my husband asked if they could get a different Cab than what was exactly on their menu- Nope, what is on our menu is what you can order. In fact, the Lawn Club Grill did not have a sommelier when we asked for one.
 

In contrast, when we dined at The Porch, we asked about getting a nice glass of the Opulence Chardonnay ($1.00+$0.20gratuity upcharge) even though it wasn’t on their menu, the waiter said, “Sure. I will go wherever I need to -on the ship - to get that wine for you!”

 

So, I hope you get good service and extra effort by the sommeliers to have an outstanding wine with all of your meals….hapoy to help with any more questions or encouragement 😊

 

Sharon

.

Thanks very much, Sharon, for patiently explaining the facts to us. 

 

We were sorry to read of your experience at the Lawn Club Grill.  Our guess is that the waiter (there) was under pressure to remain on-site, did not know where to find the desired Cabernet, and/or feared losing a lot of time by having to travel many decks to obtain it.  [He/she could have consulted a supervisor or the Food and Beverage Manager for rapid assistance.]  Perhaps the waiter at The Porch was more experienced (or under less pressure), so he/she acted more wisely on your behalf.  I agree with your sentiment that the LCG ought to have an especially broad wine list, given their menu and the high price that diners are paying there.

 

Thanks again!

[39august]

Has LCG price gone up or is it still $45 pp, please?  And The Porch is $30  pp? Seafood Tower for two additional $15?

[WeBcruisingMN]

@39augustyes, LCG is still $45/person and the price for The Porch (at least for lunch) was $30/person and if you choose to order it- the one seafood tower that feeds two people is $15. See Post #16 on this thread 😊

[Covepointcruiser]

Great review from passengers not sailing in a high level suite.   We agree with you about the Murano restaurant.    We have always found in stuffy and pretentious with just a couple of decent tables for two.   Some of the food is good but it is too rich to appreciate more than one course.   If you are a big eater it may suit you but neither of us are used to eating that much food.

 

 

 

[canderson]

31 minutes ago, Covepointcruiser said:

We agree with you about the Murano restaurant.    We have always found in stuffy and pretentious...

 

In what way?  A bit of old fashioned fine dining service is pretentious?

I guess if you weren't ever exposed to it growing up, it might appear so, but???