Teens in Specialty Restaurants

[HermmyGranger]

Anyone take their teens (particularly if they're picky) to any of the specialty restaurants? I'm just wondering if they offer anything that's not on the menu for those with "special" tastes? I'm not that worried because my son can get food elsewhere if he doesn't like it and we have a free dinner so it won't cost me a mint, but I just wondered.

[kazu]

They have had a kids menu when i’ve been on board.  Things like fries, chicken fingers, etc.  It might appeal to a teen - not sure.  had the pleasure of dining with a family on on cruise in the PG and the “kids” very much enjoyed the meal.

One thing to consider - the PG lunch - bets they will love the hamburger.
 

[jkrislc]

I've been taking my son to the specialty restaurants since he was 6; he's now 15. He's always found something to enjoy. I also find the waitstaff will bend over backwards to accommodate. In addition, most "exotic" dishes can be prepared in a fairly plain manner in needed/requested.

[cruzin4us]

This reminds me of my kids (ages 7 & 9 at the time) back in the late 1980's

 

Before our cruise I laid the ground rules and acting like a little lady and gentleman at the dinner table.  I explained you will be served food you may or may not like but you WILL try everything (without being asked) and if you don't like it you don't have to eat it.   I was not going to spend my cruise saying "eat it, try it, how do you know you won't like it unless you try it and on and on".   If they couldn't abide by this strict rule then we wouldn't cruise.   Of course they said they would....HA

Now on to formal night and the escargot..... We were seated in the main dining room my seven year old son decked out in his tux being served escargot (in the shell mind you).   His face went pale and he looked at his sister.   I quietly suggested they try the sauce with a piece of bread first.....son still watching daughter without saying a word.   My DH tasted it and kept dunking her bread in the garlic butter sauce.   I then saw her take an escargot and try it (then looking at my son I thought he was literally going to throw up).    My daughter then ate a 2nd one and a 3rd.    Now poor son knew he was being watched by the whole table.....he carefully takes the smallest bite and decides it's not so bad and he finishes them all.   Then he asks me politely if it would be ok if he ordered some more......and after those the ordered another plate.    

But back to your question:   there is plenty of the stuff on the menu that kids would eat.....who doesn't like bacon? and steak?   Check out the menu and run it by them first and see if there is anything they like.   As long as they don't get antsy easily they should find something to eat.    Pinnacle Grill is good. 

 

[soundman99]

13 hours ago, cruzin4us said:

Before our cruise I laid the ground rules and acting like a little lady and gentleman at the dinner table.  I explained you will be served food you may or may not like but you WILL try everything (without being asked) and if you don't like it you don't have to eat it.   I was not going to spend my cruise saying "eat it, try it, how do you know you won't like it unless you try it and on and on".   If they couldn't abide by this strict rule then we wouldn't cruise.   Of course they said they would....HA

 

I'm going through the same thing now, taking our kids, 9, 11 and 14 on the K-Dam here in about a month. Last time we went on a cruise with them, it was on Carnival which was great fun but no Holland America. I'm excited to show them this side of cruising too and we have been discussing what it is going to be like.  I think there might also be a nicer restaurant or two in store for us over the next few weeks to "practice".  Honestly, I'm just trying to make sure that the whole dining room isn't staring at ME if they're acting up... (I think we'll be fine).

 

@HermmyGranger: good luck with the kids on the cruise and have fun!

[brennanavery]

We just returned this past Sunday from our cruise on the Rotterdam with our 16 year old son. We had dinner one night at the Pinnacle Grill. He is not a huge steak fan. He decided to order the salmon. He never had salmon before. I figured he could always get something later if he didn’t like it. He ate it all. He has always used cruising to try different foods. Now we did get our night of specialty dining as one of the perks when I booked our cruise, so there was not the worry of spending extra on something that he wouldn’t like. If I knew that he for sure would have not enjoyed the speciality dining experience, I would have given him the option to go with us or not. There were many options that he was happy with (Lido, DiveIn and NY Pizza) that if he really didn’t want to eat speciality he could have been happy with. I know that the staff will try to accommodate too. There was one evening that I didn’t see anything appealing on the appetizer menu in the main dining room. I was just going to skip it that night. Our waiter asked if he could get me anything else. He insisted. I finally said a Caesar salad and it was not a problem. So I don’t think it would be a problem to accommodate a picky eater. 

[ClippyJoe]

We took our children cruising when they were young. Don't even worry. There will be something they will like on the menu. They still talk about the great food they had while dining with us. And one was a picky eater too. The wait staff are lovely and helpful. Sit back, relax and enjoy your time with your children.

 

[Live4cruises]

We have had the privilege of seeing some AMAZING children in the PG.

[GulfShoresCruiser]

Makes no difference if it is the MDR or a speciality restaurant.  Teens will do fine and it is great experience for them later when it is time for the "interview lunch" with all the forks, spoons, choices, courses......And much better to practice on a ship than in an expensive land based restaurant!

 

(Always enjoyed the family dinner in the MDR with no check to pay afterwards and no worries about the clean plate club!)

 

Ours grew up in the MDR and we did have a great meal once in Tamarind when they were in their teens.

 

Take them everywhere, IMO. 

[HermmyGranger]

4 hours ago, soundman99 said:

I'm going through the same thing now, taking our kids, 9, 11 and 14 on the K-Dam here in about a month. Last time we went on a cruise with them, it was on Carnival which was great fun but no Holland America. I'm excited to show them this side of cruising too and we have been discussing what it is going to be like.  I think there might also be a nicer restaurant or two in store for us over the next few weeks to "practice".  Honestly, I'm just trying to make sure that the whole dining room isn't staring at ME if they're acting up... (I think we'll be fine).

 

@HermmyGranger: good luck with the kids on the cruise and have fun!

Thanks. Fortunately he's in high school, so I'm not really worried about how he'll behave, but more about whether he'll eat anything or not. He's not very adventurous and he makes it worse by being a vegetarian (he does not like the idea of eating meat) and he has food allergies. I just thought it might be nice to expose him to a more upscale experience. I'll keep my fingers crossed. He has promised to try new foods, but we'll see what happens in reality.

[oceanmom]

Our older than a teen daughter is vegetarian and has traveled with us on several cruises. HAL has options for vegetarians and we found the specialty places--PG and Tamarind always had vegetarian choices or could adapt for our vegetarian.

Edited March 2, 2022 by oceanmom

[jkrislc]

2 hours ago, HermmyGranger said:

He's not very adventurous and he makes it worse by being a vegetarian (he does not like the idea of eating meat) and he has food allergies.

We have an allergy issue in our family and we actually find the specialty restaurants to be easier to enjoy since everything is cooked to order, so there's no need to preorder like in the main dining room. They can also accommodate vegetarian and vegan preferences. However, it might be worth checking in with the restaurant the day before just in case.

[GulfShoresCruiser]

Goodness....lots of eating issues with teens.

 

Funny how we made it thru the 1970's and never heard of anyone having any eating issues.  Does all this coordinate with the advent of participation trophies and chicken tenders?

 

Our kids learned to love all different foods and cruising played a role in the introduction.  Take them and let them figure out the menu themselves.  And only order from the menu....nothing customized for anybody.  They will benefit later, IMO. 

 

 

[lupaglupa]

We took our son on his first cruise (the Maasdam) at age 10. We never told him there was a separate kids menu in the dining room. He ordered off the regular menu and tried a lot of interesting foods. This past cruise we went to Tamarind - he was in heaven. But we eat a wide variety of food at home and never make him a separate meal. He likes burgers and fries as much as any teen and eats an amazing number of frozen burritos. But when given a menu that doesn't include kids menu type foods, he always finds something and nearly always enjoys it. 

[GulfShoresCruiser]

We give the cruise lines credit for our son's learning to enjoy eating fish.......Agree, no children's menu when at sea.....Also, let them tell the waiter what they want from the menu.

[whogo]

On 3/2/2022 at 5:48 PM, GulfShoresCruiser said:

Funny how we made it thru the 1970's and never heard of anyone having any eating issues.  Does all this coordinate with the advent of participation trophies and chicken tenders?

 

Your "we" does not include me. I did not make it through the 1960's without hearing of eating issues. I had a classmate who could not handle dairy foods and a kid down the street could not eat wheat or much else.

[AFNavigator]

On 3/2/2022 at 5:48 PM, GulfShoresCruiser said:

Our kids learned to love all different foods and cruising played a role in the introduction.  Take them and let them figure out the menu themselves.  And only order from the menu....nothing customized for anybody.  They will benefit later, IMO. 

We get the same thing in our Boy Scout troop.  We get the new ones whose parents say their boy won't eat much anything except mac & cheese and hot dogs.  After just a few campouts where the boys set the menu (we don't let them do basic burgers or dogs) and do all the prep and cooking, and their food choice eyes are opened.  Their parents ask how we got little Jimmy to eat something he never would have touched before.  We say it's all about participation, choice and experimentation (and a little peer pressure). 

[PACD_JG]

Tell me you're a bad parent without telling me you're a bad parent...

 

j/k - maybe.