Dining in Blu

[KandMB]

Maybe that’s what was happening on our cruise…..

[Loracpin2]

50 minutes ago, KandMB said:

Maybe that’s what was happening on our cruise…..

If you're referring to post # 25, our experience happened 9 years ago on as S-Class ship. 

[Cdncruisecpl]

I'll chime in from a Reflection cruise.  Ate in Blu all but two nights when we did other specialty restaurants. Never a wait for a table (once we had to wait while the people in front of us got seated).  It was never crowded and lots of tables were available.  And we entered every night between 6-8 pm.
 

One night we went to the MDR after as two people weren't happy with their meal and that was where the wait with the pager was.  But no big deal.  Went to the Martini Bar and ordered a drink.  As the four drinks were delivered, the pager went.

[HS2BS]

We usually cruise in Aqua(when an accessible cabin is available), and on our Reflection cruise 1/8/23 we had multiple nights when there was waits of 5 - 15 minutes. Which wouldn’t be a problem if Celebrity would provide acceptable seating in the large foyer outside Blu, Tuscan, and Petite Chef. On S class ships there is a large incline to return to the Ensemble Lounge to wait, and another empty room before Ensemble. As we cruise frequently(80+ cruise) accessibility has become a main concern, and Blu provides ample space and maneuverability for my wife’s wheelchair.

As for the food, the menu has become stale and limited., and here quality has declined most recently. Next month(and again in August)we are on the Summit in Aqua(only one accessible cabin in Aqua between A1 & A2), and will see if there is an improvement!

 

Hal

 

[Bruin Steve]

We were in Aqua the second 12 night cruise in a B2B just prior to the pandemic.  We typically show up for dinner at 7:00...never had a wait, but also never got a window table (not sure we cared)...but always in the same area--about the third or fourth row from the window.  My wife wsn't thrilled with Blu and missed the waiters we had on our first non-Aqua leg...so, when we got to the last night, we actually went back and ate in the MDR...

 

For our transatlantic Rio-Lisbon cruise on infinity coming up in three weeks, we recently had the opportunity to move up to an A1 Aqua...My wife was hesitant but has decided to give it another try.  If there is a great benefit here, it's that the ship currently appears to be half-empty with 61 Aqua cabins and a handful of Aqua Sky Suites still available.  I am hoping that means we won't have any problems getting seated at Blu...and, since on M-Class, Blu is adjacent to the MDR, it will be easy for me to also order off the regular MDR menu when I want...correct?

[highway180]

Yes, usually that is the case on M-class ships

[KandMB]

Yes, we always had both Blu and Main menus and ordered off both. However if we went to the main dining room (in desperation when we couldn’t get a table) they wouldn’t let us order off Blu despite the Maitre’d of Blu telling us we could. 

[boxkite]

KandMB, sorry to hear about your experience in Blu.

 

If you sail on a Celebrity S Class ship in the future, consider giving Aqua and Blu another chance.

 

We have sailed 3 times in the past 12 months on S Class ships and never had to wait more than 5 minutes for a table in Blu, which we go to around 5:30 every night.

[conquesodor]

We've done Blu twice, 2019 on Eclipse and 2022 on Equinox. Our experience was fantastic both times and I agree with others that say Blu is the #1 reason to book Aqua Class. I can't speak to what Blu is like on M class, but in the past if we ran into a long line at the MDR, we usually figured out what times to avoid and worked around it. Talking to the maitre d' usually helps, particularly if you've had a bad experience. If the food in Blu is not to your liking, than you might as well book a less expensive class cabin.

[mitz18]

On 3/19/2023 at 3:58 PM, keesar said:

I had spoken with the maitre d'  and mentioned that this group should have been placed in the rear of the restaurant rather than having a prime dining location reserved, especially when only 6 ut of the 10 were there at the reservation time.  Although there were no reservations, he said it was being made available for this group.  I mentioned his name in my review.  And guess what, he was in charge of Blu on our next cruise on a different ship!  He remembered me...

It's possible the group of 10 was a convention of sorts or a group of TA's on a "research trip".  We've never had a serious wait time in Blu and have always had good meals.  Of course since covid, we have seen service issues on all ships, not just X

[keesar]

1 hour ago, mitz18 said:

It's possible the group of 10 was a convention of sorts or a group of TA's on a "research trip".  We've never had a serious wait time in Blu and have always had good meals.  Of course since covid, we have seen service issues on all ships, not just X

 

Good point.  One night, all the Specialty Restaurants were closed for a group onboard.  The group had reserved all of them for the evening.  

[hobgoblin]

We  have sailed Aqua class a number of times and most recently on Beyond .

Our latest experience on Beyond in the Blu Restaurant did not go down well.

The dining room design and location looks like its been an after thought ,seems smaller and more cramped, the staff weren't too happy and there seemed a bit of an atmosphere in there, the curtains were always closed and it seemed quite dull(previous ships Blu Restaurants had nice bright windows with views) and the menu doesn't seem to have changed very much over 10 years Ive been sailing on Celebrity in this venue .

We did casually mention to one of the staff in one of the other restaurants on Beyond our disappointment at the experience in Blu and the Maitre de came looking for us one night in another restaurant and confronted us  in front of all the other guests .

I understand he is trying to get some feed back but I didn't think this was the best way of doing this ,I never went back to Blu after that .

 

[Funky Fusion FoodsJ]

2 hours ago, hobgoblin said:

We  have sailed Aqua class a number of times and most recently on Beyond .

Our latest experience on Beyond in the Blu Restaurant did not go down well.

The dining room design and location looks like its been an after thought ,seems smaller and more cramped, the staff weren't too happy and there seemed a bit of an atmosphere in there, the curtains were always closed and it seemed quite dull(previous ships Blu Restaurants had nice bright windows with views) and the menu doesn't seem to have changed very much over 10 years Ive been sailing on Celebrity in this venue .

We did casually mention to one of the staff in one of the other restaurants on Beyond our disappointment at the experience in Blu and the Maitre de came looking for us one night in another restaurant and confronted us  in front of all the other guests .

I understand he is trying to get some feed back but I didn't think this was the best way of doing this ,I nev"er went back to Blu after that .

 

What do you mean "confronted" you?

[NutsAboutGolf]

2 hours ago, hobgoblin said:

We  have sailed Aqua class a number of times and most recently on Beyond .

Our latest experience on Beyond in the Blu Restaurant did not go down well.

The dining room design and location looks like its been an after thought ,seems smaller and more cramped, the staff weren't too happy and there seemed a bit of an atmosphere in there, the curtains were always closed and it seemed quite dull(previous ships Blu Restaurants had nice bright windows with views) and the menu doesn't seem to have changed very much over 10 years Ive been sailing on Celebrity in this venue .

We did casually mention to one of the staff in one of the other restaurants on Beyond our disappointment at the experience in Blu and the Maitre de came looking for us one night in another restaurant and confronted us  in front of all the other guests .

I understand he is trying to get some feed back but I didn't think this was the best way of doing this ,I never went back to Blu after that .

 

They just want to do everything they can to prevent receiving a negative survey.  The M’D doesn’t have much to do with the restaurant location/layout or the menu

[Bruin Steve]

I have had issues with service in one dining venue or another a couple of times in the past...and mentioned it to guest services.   And, that evening, we have been visited at dinner by the Maitre d'.  But I wouldn't ever characterize it as "confronted".  Both times they dropped by to make sure they understood our issues, asked if there was anything they could do, assured us that the issues would be addressed if they could...and have given us something as a token--either a bottle of wine or a free meal in a specialty restaurant...both of which outweighed the issue at hand.and greatly appreciated.  We've usually taken the opportunity to thank the Maitre d', vent a little but also commend those crew members from whom we have had excellent service.  I have no problem at all with the visit by the Maitre d'.  I think they really try hard to keep the customer happy.

Edited March 26, 2023 by Bruin Steve

[hobgoblin]

By confronted us I mean the Blu manager came specifically  to another restaurant and up to our table in the middle of our dinner to find out why we didn't like his restaurant .

This was embarrassing and ruined a perfect evening and as I said we never went back to Blu as a result.

This could have been handled differently as  the initial comment which was a casual and informal  chat to another member of staff was not malicious or a formal complaint in any way .

 

[NutsAboutGolf]

3 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

I have had issues with service in one dining venue or another a couple of times in the past...and mentioned it to guest services.   And, that evening, we have been visited at dinner by the Maitre d'.  But I wouldn't ever characterize it as "confronted".  Both times they dropped by to make sure they understood our issues, asked if there was anything they could do, assured us that the issues would be addressed if they could...and have given us something as a token--either a bottle of wine or a free meal in a specialty restaurant...both of which outweighed the issue at hand.and greatly appreciated.  We've usually taken the opportunity to thank the Maitre d', vent a little but also commend those crew members from whom we have had excellent service.  I have no problem at all with the visit by the Maitre d'.  I think they really try hard to keep the customer happy.

I agree they do a great job of making guests happy.  Yet I do get a chuckle out of their ironic solution to a Blu restaurant issue by offering a free dinner in another restaurant 

[Bill Miller]

1 hour ago, hobgoblin said:

By confronted us I mean the Blu manager came specifically  to another restaurant and up to our table in the middle of our dinner to find out why we didn't like his restaurant .

This is unprofessional and wrong. It suggests that the manager is out of control and certainly out of line. Maybe he's been working his contract for too long and is getting toasty. If I were captain, he'd walk the plank.

Customers are not paying Celebrity rates to be treated poorly by rude Maitre d's. 

[Peteymil]

On 3/19/2023 at 11:02 AM, keesar said:

We usually do not have any such experiences. We are pleased with Blu.   However, on Solstice, they reserved a group of tables for 10 cruisers which started from the windows.  These 5 tables were empty until around 6:45 pm when the individuals  began to show.  Most nights, there were about 6 out of the 10 dining there.    We were told they were "reserved".  

 

That would infuriate me if I wanted to eat when those tables were empty. I would definitely go to guest services if that happened to speak to the proper person if the maître d' could not help me.