Epic Specialty Dining

[marysb]

I keep hearing so many negative things about the Epic, but the itinerary is great, so we booked it in March. Would love to hear some positives.    Could I hear about some of the specialty restaurants and which ones are your favourites?

[IronRobi]

Most of the complaints you'll see around the Epic are because of the weird bathroom layout. There's not much privacy there which is fine if you're a couple... but if you're sailing with parents or friends or any combination other than a couple.... it can be a little awkward.

 

The Epic has pretty much all the same restaurants as most of the fleet, so you'll get lots of personal opinions on which are favorites and I bet they all get named at least once.

 

I'm a huge Cagneys fan, but I did have issues with the cook on my steaks each of the 3 visits I went while on board. It got to the point where I didn't even have to ask to send it back because they'd check the temperature right at the table and seeing my medium rare steak was cooked to 155. They'd just apologize and leave with it. The chef looked embarrassed but the MaitreD was extremely rude and even tried arguing that even if the temperature was in the medium well to well range that it could still be medium rare. Because of his attitude I wrote a letter of complaint and NCL made it right.

 

The only other time I've ran into continuous cook issues was on a carnival ship and the MaitreD gave the most incredible service I've ever gotten anywhere. To the point where he would personally deliver or check in on my order every single night regardless of which restaurant we were in. I also wrote a letter here but to express how incredible his service was. I know his superior complimented him for it because he found me on the ship to thank me and comped a meal in the steak house and a bottle of wine on our final night to express his gratitude. Night and day difference in service.

[marysb]

Thanks for the info.  We have a two specialty dinner package.  I think Cagney will probably be one ( we are pretty flexible with a med. rare steak)  
 

It’s been about 13 years since we cruised on NCL, so was wondering how the dining package worked with the a la carte menus- is there a $ limit that’s included? All I could find was that only one main was included and you would pay for 2nd main. Appetizers? Desserts?

[nonchalant_muse]

On 11/6/2022 at 5:42 AM, marysb said:

Thanks for the info.  We have a two specialty dinner package.  I think Cagney will probably be one ( we are pretty flexible with a med. rare steak)  
 

It’s been about 13 years since we cruised on NCL, so was wondering how the dining package worked with the a la carte menus- is there a $ limit that’s included? All I could find was that only one main was included and you would pay for 2nd main. Appetizers? Desserts?

 

Using the SDP at an a la carte restaurant, you may choose 1 entree (included) and as many appetizers/desserts as you like. I've heard that, at times, the server will inform you that it is 1 appetizer, 1 soup or salad, 1 entree, and 1 dessert, but this is officially not the case and you will not be billed for ordering more than one appetizer/dessert. 

 

Only exception to the above are special upgraded items (i.e. lobster thermidor, crab cakes, lobster tail surf n' turf) which carry an additional upcharge when using SDP, but these items are clearly marked on the menu. (Upcharge ranges anywhere from $5-30, depending on the item)

[Twocoasts]

We were on the Epic in May and thought it was fine. Not as upscale as Oceania (but also not as pricey). We enjoyed Cagney's, Le Bistro and Moderno. Le Bistro was our favorite. We never left the table hungry!

[nferr]

I had a five night specialty dining package on Epic and did Cagney's twice, LeBistro twice and Moderna once. I think I liked Le Bistro best but enjoyed them all.

[jkbec101]

I agree with the other opinion regarding Cagney's, my wife and I both sent our steaks back.  The quality of the meat seemed to be really low.  Now, my wife was on the Spirit in July and absolutely loved Cagney's, we were on the Epic in September 2022.

 

We were also in the Haven and the service was very hit or miss.  

 

We both really liked La Cucina, the food was the best on the ship as was the service.  

 

Tappan was just ok, they overcooked the fried rice.

[eileeshb]

I did teppanyaki twice on epic, both time the chef was *very* heavy handed with the soy sauce on the rice even when on the second time 2 of us at the table said we wanted low sodium. Got really nice Singapore noodles at Shanghai (free venue).  
on the first cruise it was a western med itinerary so very port intensive and I mostly just ate at the garden cafe and great outdoors for convenience.  The second one was southern Caribbean so similarly port intensive but more limited hours in port. That one I was in a studio cabin so joined with the other solos for dinner in MDR most nights. 
 

I would say compared to the breakaway/getaway/escape the Epic is a little weird I kept going the wrong direction for the buffet v spice. The cabins outside of haven are also a wee bit worn and in need of a refresh. I highly recommend the matador whiskey cocktail from maltings and the music on board was good in any venue I came across it. 

[BirdTravels]

On 11/5/2022 at 8:46 PM, marysb said:

I keep hearing so many negative things about the Epic, but the itinerary is great, so we booked it in March. Would love to hear some positives.    Could I hear about some of the specialty restaurants and which ones are your favorites?

We have sailed on the Epic 7 times and would do it again in a heartbeat. We really don't have anything really bad to say about the ship. It was NCL's first Megaship and they went overboard (good) with many of the ship's features. 

 

wrt Specialty Restaurants, the menu and the "recipes" are the same fleetwide. Is there a potential to get a bad cook, sure. But it's like saying "we got an undercooked steak at Hy's Steakhouse in Toronto, therefore Hy's will always undercook steaks every night for every meal at every Hy's restaurant around the world". Take those kinds of comments for what they are worth. 

 

Monderno. Wonderful salad bar in a Brazilian churrascaria. We love the experience (and we are meat eaters). We have a good time. 

 

Wasabi. While other's may do it for dinner, we would only have sushi for lunch on a sea day. We enjoy our sushi and it is a great place to have lunch.

 

La Cucina. Good Italian food. Nothing bad, but nothing great. I will always order the Osso Bucco which is tender and well prepared. 

 

Cagney's. This is the most popular restaurant on the ship. For us, it is just o.k. Cagney's is not on the top of our dining list on any ship. But steakhouses are great places to eat. 

 

Le Bistro. Our favorite restaurant. Good French food. Some shy away because it is the most formal of the restaurants on board (gents need to wear trousers - jeans o.k.). 

 

Teppanyaki. Our second favorite restaurant. We love the show and love a good Japanese steakhouse. 

 

 

[Maleficent's Dad]

The Epic has the best thermal spa if that interests you.  It is amazing!

We dined at Cagney’s, Le Bistro, La Cucina, and Teppanyaki - zero complaints!

Our itinerary was port intensive, but we enjoyed H2O a lot when aboard.

 

@BirdTravels is spot on.  Enjoy tour cruise!

[phillygwm]

On 11/5/2022 at 8:46 PM, marysb said:

I keep hearing so many negative things about the Epic, but the itinerary is great, so we booked it in March. Would love to hear some positives.    Could I hear about some of the specialty restaurants and which ones are your favourites?

I really enjoyed La Cucina on the Epic both times I sailed her.  The odd thing is I DON'T like La Cucina on pretty much any other ship.  Moderno isn't on any of the newer ships, so I always go there on the older ones.  And Le Bistro seems to universally have the best service on every ship.

 

Cagney's used to be the best restaurant on every ship.  I've found that is no longer always the case but it can be worth a visit as well.   Teppanyaki is Teppanyaki;  A bit "schticky" for my taste but the food is good.

[marysb]

On 11/7/2022 at 4:52 PM, nonchalant_muse said:

 

Using the SDP at an a la carte restaurant, you may choose 1 entree (included) and as many appetizers/desserts as you like. I've heard that, at times, the server will inform you that it is 1 appetizer, 1 soup or salad, 1 entree, and 1 dessert, but this is officially not the case and you will not be billed for ordering more than one appetizer/dessert. 

 

Only exception to the above are special upgraded items (i.e. lobster thermidor, crab cakes, lobster tail surf n' turf) which carry an additional upcharge when using SDP, but these items are clearly marked on the menu. (Upcharge ranges anywhere from $5-30, depending on the item)

Thank you, this is a very clear answer to the confusion of SDP worth $49 at an a la carte restaurant. I’m guessing the dollar amount for an a la carte restaurant is for charging the tip. 

[DCGuy64]

14 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

wrt Specialty Restaurants, the menu and the "recipes" are the same fleetwide. Is there a potential to get a bad cook, sure. But it's like saying "we got an undercooked steak at Hy's Steakhouse in Toronto, therefore Hy's will always undercook steaks every night for every meal at every Hy's restaurant around the world". Take those kinds of comments for what they are worth. 

Well said. These boards are rife with over generalizations a la "we had a bad time on such-and-such ship so we know everyone else will hate it, too" or "dinner was bad at that restaurant so we'll never go back and no one else should, either." Why are people not content to confine their judgments to just their experience and not require everyone else to get on the bandwagon? Probably more of the social media echo chamber, I suspect.

[marysb]

Thanks everyone for your opinions on each of the restaurants- it was very helpful.  Even if opinions vary, I could get a general feel for them.