Is Q Texas Smokehouse THAT bad?

[kona_wahine]

I haven’t read one good thing about Q. We are new to NCL, traveling to Alaska in May and made reservations but thinking to cancel them.  Does anyone like Q? Do they have anything edible? 

[melodyesch]

We don’t blow a specialty dining credit on it, but my DH likes the baked potato covered in BBQ.  We will just go and pay out of pocket for something different.  But it’s NEVER crowded.

[CozGurl]

Don't they have live music every night? I'd think that would be some kind of draw. 

[davencl]

I didn't care much for the BBQ.  Music was OK.  Probably wouldn't use a dining credit again for it.

[WAHMto5]

We must be the odd balls as we enjoy it.  I wouldn’t say that it is the best bbq we have ever had, but everything we had was very good.  We also enjoy the live music and smoked peach margaritas. The banana pudding is delicious!!  

[The Traveling Man]

Simple answer, yes, the food is that bad.  The music is nice, so you might try to go there just for after-dinner drinks and the entertainment.  Real barbeque has to be slow cooked over a low-temperature wood fire for hours, usually 10 to 12 hours, to reach perfection.  Q restaurant cooks their meat at high temperature for maybe an hour or two over electric heat.  It simply is not the same thing.

[M4RK]

25 minutes ago, WAHMto5 said:

We must be the odd balls as we enjoy it.  I wouldn’t say that it is the best bbq we have ever had, but everything we had was very good.  We also enjoy the live music and smoked peach margaritas. The banana pudding is delicious!!  

Our experience was the same. We loved it. After all the poor reviews we were not sure we were going to try it. But it was great, and we would do it again.

 

[M4RK]

1 hour ago, melodyesch said:

We don’t blow a specialty dining credit on it, but my DH likes the baked potato covered in BBQ.  We will just go and pay out of pocket for something different.  But it’s NEVER crowded.

I think the "credit" is what creates the impression that it was not good. Before NCL used dining credits and every restaurant had a flat rate the restaurants were always full. If you were charged $35 a person for Cagney's but $10 for Q, the reviews would be much different. Q is not Cagney's, but they both require the same "dining credit".

 

[ysolde]

Meh.  The food is heavy and the portions are large.  If you are into BBQ, it may be worth a try, but I would not put it in the same category as the other specialty dining options.

[swmichigan cruiser]

23 minutes ago, M4RK said:

I think the "credit" is what creates the impression that it was not good. Before NCL used dining credits and every restaurant had a flat rate the restaurants were always full. If you were charged $35 a person for Cagney's but $10 for Q, the reviews would be much different. Q is not Cagney's, but they both require the same "dining credit".

 

I agree with you but because of our Latitudes perks we have to make a choice between Q and Los Lobos for a dinner for two. I personally like Q more than Los Lobos but I am sure others prefer Los Lobos over Q. But I really prefer the other specialty restaurants over both.

[FlGoodShips]

We love the Q!   Food was great and so was the music. Agree with another post...banana pudding is to die for....Delish!!!

[hallux]

I wouldn't say the food was horrible.  As noted - the portions can be larger than expected, especially considering the price they're charging.  The price is where the "sticking point" is - for what they charge you get MUCH better value using a dining credit in another venue.

[ceilidh1]

I was about to pose a similar question, so will just tag on to this one...We have one more dining credit to use on Bliss - already booked for Cagneys and Teppanyaki (our faves). We don't want seafood and have no interest in French. We love Food Republic but usually pay a-la-carte for that one...SO - toss up between Q, Los Lobos, American Diner. I'm leaning toward Q as I'm not the biggest fan of Mexican and American Diner is just bog standard American stuff. Lol. I can't say that I have ever had real BBQ, so not likely to be comparing anything in that sense - is the food at Q at least decent?

[Bonobochick]

I didn't think it was good. I was pretty disappointed when I went to Qs on the Bliss a few years ago. 

 

The live music was fine / good but otherwise... meh.

[udivegirl]

The first time I ate there was with a friend on the Joy and it wasn't good at all.  The second time was with my husband and he really wanted BBQ, so I decided to try it again and it was wonderful.  That was on the Encore last September.   

[Red-Sol]

Some of the Barbecue Entrees weren't anything special...BUT we thought that the Brisket there was very good!

[debenson0723]

As others have mentioned, I won't use a dining credit to go there but will go just to get the Smoky Peach Margarita, an app or two and the banana pudding.  The entrée portions are just too large for me.

[drumming cruisers]

We like it Pork Ribs are good. The sides that come with the meal not so good, but lots of other sides to order. I love the salad, 

Edited March 29, 2022 by drumming cruisers

[FlGoodShips]

54 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

I was about to pose a similar question, so will just tag on to this one...We have one more dining credit to use on Bliss - already booked for Cagneys and Teppanyaki (our faves). We don't want seafood and have no interest in French. We love Food Republic but usually pay a-la-carte for that one...SO - toss up between Q, Los Lobos, American Diner. I'm leaning toward Q as I'm not the biggest fan of Mexican and American Diner is just bog standard American stuff. Lol. I can't say that I have ever had real BBQ, so not likely to be comparing anything in that sense - is the food at Q at least decent?

I would use last dining credit in Q.

American Diner, no. We really loike it. Go later in evening when music starts. So much fun.

[BirdTravels]

5 hours ago, kona_wahine said:

I haven’t read one good thing about Q. We are new to NCL, traveling to Alaska in May and made reservations but thinking to cancel them.  Does anyone like Q? Do they have anything edible? 

Nope. It is pretty bad. we would go in after service for a beverage and some music (maybe even pay for some munchies, but not a meal). 

[kona_wahine]

Thank you for all the replies. We’ve already made reservations for Cagney’s and Teppanyaki to use our dining credit and was going to pay for Q so think we will just pass. 

[kona_wahine]

Which now leads me to another question…..can I cancel it online or on the app? I don’t see that option. 

[complawyer]

if you cant, just cancel as soon as you get onboard the ship. you should have no problem

[Gingerclerg]

Food is good but we found the music so loud it ruined the experience.  For the record we did not enjoy Ocean Blue but the Mexican restaurant Los Lobos was excellent and inexpensive for upcharge.  I would not waste a dining credit on any of them.  

[Just Jo]

12 hours ago, ceilidh1 said:

... and have no interest in French....

- is the food at Q at least decent?

 

We've only tried Q once on Encore and it was disappointing (the meat was very dry and sides were bland).  We did like the atmosphere and music though, for something different.

 

Have you ever tried Le Bistro?  DH doesn't like anything French (eye roll) and yet we agree we have always had excellent food and probably the best service of all the specialty restaurants at Le Bistro on several different ships.  You can get "non-French" food there also.  Try it - you might like it!