Specialty restaurant upcharges

[jwh]

Considering Silversea (am a Crystal refugee) and thought I had read somewhere that there was an charge for some of the specialty restaurants.  Is this right?  Sorry, I can't see it on their website but am not yet fully familiar with their site.  Are we able to have any visits free and then pay for additional visits.  I am looking at Muse in particular at the moment.  What other charges- apart from the non included shore ex, shops, casino, spa etc, are there that are not part of the all inclusive fare.   Appreciate your advice.  

[Stickman1990]

Yes - fellow Crystal refugee here too - but we’re booked on Silversea before the “troubles”

 

$60 per person at the French Restaurant - La Dame and the Japanese restaurant at night (free for lunch sushi) - Kaiseki

 

The rest are included 

 

Sorry no free first visit for us here….

[Observer]

The Japanese restaurant has a $40 up charge at dinner only. There is no up charge at lunch. I think these charges are largely to control patronage. They are wonderful restaurants and would be overrun if they were a free good.

[Stickman1990]

9 minutes ago, Observer said:

The Japanese restaurant has a $40 up charge at dinner only.

Yes - sorry about that - I knew the $60 for La Dame and had forgotten Kaiseki was only $40 per person at night. Interesting how they have different prices for each of these two specialty restaurants 

 

I’m sure hoping Kaiseki can match Nobu’s Umi Uma - but that’s going to be really tough for it to do so

Edited February 8, 2022 by Stickman1990

[Daveywavey70]

43 minutes ago, Stickman1990 said:

Yes - sorry about that - I knew the $60 for La Dame and had forgotten Kaiseki was only $40 per person at night. Interesting how they have different prices for each of these two specialty restaurants 

 

I’m sure hoping Kaiseki can match Nobu’s Umi Uma - but that’s going to be really tough for it to do so

Kaiseki is similar to Umi Uma but with nowhere near the choice. The Sushi/sashimi is much more limited. The Omakase in Kaiseki is absolutely superb, especially if you’re lucky enough to have the privilege of having Joseph cook for you on the Teppanyaki. The one huge difference you’ll miss is Prego. La Terraza is a vast noisy hall with decent food and intermittent service whereas Prego is a top notch intimate fine dining venue/theatre. The carpaccio service is something to behold and the incredible mushroom soup is a memory that will haunt me for years to come. The best bit about la Terraza is the ability to eat out on deck in fine weather. You might find this video helpful Mr Sticks. 
 

 

[bitob]

Another Crystal refugee about to take second cruise on Moon later this month.

You do not have to eat in any of the restaurants with upcharges to eat well.

There are plenty of free venues.

We loved La Terrazza for dinner.  Thought it was as good as or better than Prego. NO service issues at all.

As for noise, there were only 300 on our first sailing so never crowded.

[Gourmet Gal]

8 hours ago, Stickman1990 said:

Yes - sorry about that - I knew the $60 for La Dame and had forgotten Kaiseki was only $40 per person at night. Interesting how they have different prices for each of these two specialty restaurants 

 

I’m sure hoping Kaiseki can match Nobu’s Umi Uma - but that’s going to be really tough for it to do so

Shouldn’t be too hard to top Nobu.  Sorry, Nobu is just a chain now and the concept is not very unique anymore.  On my last Japan trip our Nobu dinner was our only bad meal in almost 3 weeks.   I wouldn’t expect Kaiseki to be a knock-off of Nobu so keep in mind it will be different.

[bitob]

My advice to all those Crystal refugees moving to Silversea

 

Don't compare.

 

Enjoy Silversea for what it is.  There is plenty of "good" on Silversea.  Going backwards will not add to the enjoyment of  your cruise.  You can savor your wonderful crystal memories but the fat lady has sung.

[Unibok]

When my daughter and I sailed on the Muse in 2019, the Kaiseki upcharge was well worth it, and we would have very happily returned if we'd been able to -- but it was booked solid for the rest of the voyage (ship at full capacity in Alaska).

 

Although I do appreciate a fine meal at La Dame, our Kaiseki experience has remained in my memory with more potency. So much so that I've booked Seishin 3 times on my upcoming Spirit trips (the name difference is only because Seishin = Spirit, as far as I can tell). I am eagerly awaiting those meals. 

 

As for the rest, I concur with other posters who have lauded La Terrazza's more intimate dinners (in contrast to the busier the breakfast/lunch buffet), and I'll put in a plug for the simplicity of a fresh salad, good wine, and wood-fired pizza in the open air at Spaccanopoli. That was a surprise favorite of ours on the Muse, particularly during sailaways and Inside Passage/cruising days.

[ronrick1943]

9 hours ago, bitob said:

My advice to all those Crystal refugees moving to Silversea

 

Don't compare.

 

Enjoy Silversea for what it is.  There is plenty of "good" on Silversea.  Going backwards will not add to the enjoyment of  your cruise.  You can savor your wonderful crystal memories but the fat lady has sung.

I agree, why compare just enjoy what Silversea has to offer——you like it or you don’t, that well tell all you need to know.  This will be are first cruise on Silversea —coming from Regent.

[Catlover54]

IMHO, as food is subjective, Kaiseki (at least on Moon) is well-worth the upcharge -- it is not just special food, but it includes special Japanese alcoholic beverages.  It was as good as Umi Uma. 

 

La Dame -- not so much.

 

But people have different tastes.

 

In any event, since Covid, ships are typically less than half full, so you can get in without problem and get good service at specialty restaurants and non-specialty. .  La Terraza service last month was stellar, and it was relatively quiet, due to low clientele  -- the best I have ever seen (compared with multiple pre-Covid SS cruises). 

 

If you go on Moon (or later, Dawn), be sure and try SALT -- that was our favorite venue, very innovative.

[Host Jazzbeau]

As I recall, specialty restaurants on Crystal were only free the first time per cruise, so the Silversea charges shouldn't seem that earth-shattering.

[Daveywavey70]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

As I recall, specialty restaurants on Crystal were only free the first time per cruise, so the Silversea charges shouldn't seem that earth-shattering.

Unless you’re lucky enough to get a free bump into a Seabreeze then you can eat anywhere FOC. I Understand completely the upcharge on SS, the specialities are much smaller and need to be capacity controlled.

 

Unibok, I agree completely about Kaiseki/Seishin/. We ate there 3 times on both our 7&10 nights Spirit/Muse on SS and the food was incredible.

 

personally, I’m not a lover of MDRs on any ship. It’s not so much the quality of the food although it does tend to be a little lacking in the wow department, it’s more the ambience. I’d much rather pay a few dollars more to feel like I’m dining in an intimate restaurant rather than a dining hall that reminds me of my school. Each to their own I Suppose. 

[Stumblefoot]

9 minutes ago, Daveywavey70 said:

I’m not a lover of MDRs... 

On non-excursion days, we like the slow and leisurely pace of the MDR in order to get out of the craziness that Terrazza can be at breakfast.  Plus, I can always find ZQT there for morning laughs.  Good medicine! 😃

 

We also like the MDR on formal nights as we enjoy seeing the crowd dressed to the nines. 

[Stickman1990]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

As I recall, specialty restaurants on Crystal were only free the first time per cruise, so the Silversea charges shouldn't seem that earth-shattering.

It’s complicated - including multiple visits if the cruise was over 15 days (I think that was the number) and unlimited specialty restaurants included without additional charge (subject to availability) if you were in a penthouse or had over 50 cruises

 

If you didn’t meet that criteria it was $30 pp for additional reservations 

 

Look on a luxury cruise no one should be too worried about additional costs of this amount - but there’s something nice about actual all inclusive pricing/packaging 

[Daveywavey70]

10 minutes ago, Stumblefoot said:

On non-excursion days, we like the slow and leisurely pace of the MDR in order to get out of the craziness that Terrazza can be at breakfast.  Plus, I can always find ZQT there for morning laughs.  Good medicine! 😃

 

We also like the MDR on formal nights as we enjoy seeing the crowd dressed to the nines. 

IMO La dame is the best place to see people in their finery on formal night following the Captains reception in Dolce Vita ( as long as you have a bathroom with working lights and a shower that doesn’t pack in at 5.45). I’m just not a lover of dining in vast spaces, it instantly takes me back to the vast oak panelled refectory of my very old fashioned school serving overcooked beef and tapioca for pudding. Imagine hogwarts with geriatric caterers that would never dare risk anything be undercooked. 

[Silver Spectre]

We have had some excellent meals in La Dame over the years, however we have also had one or two that were pretty bad, including the most recent one on the Moon. Sat down at 8:30, managed to leave at 11:45, and as that was during a recent cruise the restaurant was limited to 50% capacity. Poor service, hot food served lukewarm, under and over cooked lamb cutlets on the same plate, a cheese course that came without any blue, and the claim that there was none available on the ship, that is except for the Stilton, Dolcelatte and Roquefort available in La Terrazza for lunch every day. Against that we had a great meal in La Dame on the Shadow in September.

[bitob]

15 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

As I recall, specialty restaurants on Crystal were only free the first time per cruise, so the Silversea charges shouldn't seem that earth-shattering.

If you were in a suite on Crystal no charge ever.

[Silver Spectre]

57 minutes ago, bitob said:

If you were in a suite on Crystal no charge ever.

No offence intended @bitob, but maybe never ever again.

[bitob]

1 minute ago, Silver Spectre said:

No offence intended @bitob, but maybe never ever again.

Non Offense taken.  I know never again. I'm not delusional.  LOL

Just stating the policy re unlimited specialties for suite guests.

[pke-atlanta]

Will be sailing on the Spirit in July and trying to understand the upcharges.  What I'm seeing for La Terrazza in the evenings references "a la carte".  Normally I understand "a la carte" to mean "pay per item ordered".  Is that the case with La Terrazza in the evening?  Last time we sailed with Silversea, La Terrazza was our favorite restaurant, but I don't recall there being an upcharge (granted, it's been a few years).  Is Silversea now charging in La Terrazza?

 

Also, is La Dame the current equivalent of what formerly was Le Champagne?  Or are they completely different?  The only bad meal we had on the Shadow was at Le Champagne, and that is not an experience I want to pay for again.  I wouldn't even do it again as a "no charge" restaurant (and at the time, it was the ONLY restaurant with a surcharge on the Shadow).  I'm hoping that La Dame is not a repeat.

[jpalbny]

5 minutes ago, pke-atlanta said:

Is Silversea now charging in La Terrazza?

 

No upcharge. You order from the menu, thus it's "a la carte" dining. Order as many or as few courses as you would like.

 

5 minutes ago, pke-atlanta said:

Also, is La Dame the current equivalent of what formerly was Le Champagne?

 

Pretty much. The menu is fixed and they don't do rotating menus like LC used to. Still an upcharge. If you don't like it then you can find good food elsewhere for no upcharge.

 

We were just on Spirit in November. I did a detailed review with lots of information about the restaurants included. We liked the food very much. Link to the review is in my signature.

[ronrick1943]

In some suites you get a one time dinner at n/c in LA Dame.

[Stumblefoot]

4 hours ago, ronrick1943 said:

In some suites you get a one time dinner at n/c in LA Dame.

Really? Which ones?

[MBP&O2/O]

La Dame is one thar puzzles me.

They claim it is 'intimate', and indeed I have never seen more that six tables - usually less - in use at any one time. Why therefore, do they cram so many tables into the room to the point where you have to turn sideways to squeeze between them???

The atmosphere and ambience I found to be fine, but personally I found the food to be indifferent at best. All things considered, were I to sail with Silversea again - which is unlikely - I would not dine there.