A little late to the party…my thoughts on Mardi Gras! Lotsa pix! The Great, the Good, and the slightly annoying

[geonurse]

Deck 8 aft tree

[geonurse]

Heroes Lounge

[geonurse]

Havana Bar

[geonurse]

Emerils area

[geonurse]

Center stage 

[geonurse]

Center stage . Always impressive.

[geonurse]

Even pig and anchor all decked out♥️

[geonurse]

Dinner at Rudi Sea Grill was a mixed bag

[geonurse]

Crab rosette bonus starter

[geonurse]

Cioppiano appetizer was fantastic ❣️

[geonurse]

Scallop app was also wonderful.

[geonurse]

Crab stuffed lobster tail very good ( there were two, but I gave one to DH because his surf and turf was SO tiny

[geonurse]

Black and White bread pudding excellent.

What we didn’t care for about Rudi was the ambiance. It was noisy and crowded and the tables were all too close together. The venue size did not support the amount of diners and it just didn’t leave us feeling like it was specialty dining. The free dining venues of Chibang and Cucina were more enjoyable and felt more special. Weird.

[aml3679]

Following 

[Momma1980]

6 hours ago, geonurse said:

Black and White bread pudding excellent.

What we didn’t care for about Rudi was the ambiance. It was noisy and crowded and the tables were all too close together. The venue size did not support the amount of diners and it just didn’t leave us feeling like it was specialty dining. The free dining venues of Chibang and Cucina were more enjoyable and felt more special. Weird.

I agree. The tables for two are smashed together so tightly that you have to turn sideways to move between them. Took away all the ambience for us. Couldn’t relax and enjoy the food when we were worried about bumping elbows with the strangers at the next table!

[hfdad]

What are the breakfast options for the days in port. Many of the excursions leave before 0800.

[CajunOyster]

On 12/19/2022 at 2:23 PM, geonurse said:

Wow- no, we sailed to San Juan, Amber cove and grand Turk dec 2-10♥️

We were parked right next to y'all in San Juan that week.  The Spirit looked like a row boat next to MG.

Edited December 29, 2022 by CajunOyster

[geonurse]

On 12/28/2022 at 6:28 PM, hfdad said:

What are the breakfast options for the days in port. Many of the excursions leave before 0800.

We didn’t have to depart the ship before 9 am on any of our port days so I’m sorry I can’t answer that! 

[geonurse]

We really loved Cucina del Capitano on this ship❣️ We have never eaten there for dinner on any of our other cruises ( lunch a couple times, but never dinner) but this week we had dinner there twice. 
The service and atmosphere here were both excellent.

[geonurse]

….and the food was delicious…this is arancini appetizer.

[geonurse]

Pistachio Farfalle so good!

[geonurse]

Farro salad and a pic to show how big this Cucina is- this was just one little corner of the restaurant…it was huge!

[geonurse]

This was my lunch at Cucina on one of the sea days. Pasta with Alfredo sauce and all the veggies….it was very very good and I wish I had ordered a full order …this was a half order

[geonurse]

My dessert at Cucina. Tiramisu ♥️ DH had chocolate melting cake this night ( and  every night) since they even offered main dining room entrees and desserts at the specialty restaurants - loved this option

[Pellaz]

11 hours ago, geonurse said:

We really loved Cucina del Capitano on this ship❣️ We have never eaten there for dinner on any of our other cruises ( lunch a couple times, but never dinner) but this week we had dinner there twice. 
The service and atmosphere here were both excellent.

 

Same story with us.  We had never tried Cucina for dinner before because, well, it costs extra and we never felt the need.  Tried it on the Mardi Gras and we liked the food, service and atmosphere so much that, like you, we returned again for dinner.     (Of course, we went there for complimentary pasta-bowl lunch as well.)  

My friend John was born in Italy and was pleasantly surprised by the cuisine, which is high praise from him.