Dawn 7/6-7/13/08 Review Part II

[jdarch]

Once Again, the Official Disclaimer:

- This reviewer has previously sailed on Celebrity and Azamara; this may/may not color the following comments.

- The opinions expressed are largely those of this reviewer alone. The reviewer’s DW (who frequently made comments on the cruise such as, “Honey, relax!”, “I’m on vacation!”, “I’m in Bermuda, I don’t care!”, may/may not agree with these opinions; this may/may not color the following comments.

- The reviewer himself was also on VACATION, in BERMUDA, and enjoys Pina Coladas and the occasional well-made manhattan; this also may/may not color the following comments.

 

Dawn Restaurants: I apologize for the bandwidth I’m gobbling here, but as dining is such a big part of the cruise experience, I went into some detail.

Previous to this cruise, we found reviews of Freestyle dining on the Dawn pretty much all over the map regardless of venue and taste; so we went on our Dawn cruise with an open mind. In general, we found most of the dining experience was good >> very good. (I did feel that Celebrity’s menu and food was better; now, now - see disclaimer). Also, I like to think we have some credentials in the field: my wife works for a major seafood restaurant, and I bartended regularly in a “tourist-oriented” restaurant. That said, although we enjoyed most of our meals, you’ll read at some points we had to invoke the, “We’re on vacation…” mantra...

My hesitation has less to do with the quality of the various restaurants, than what appears to be a recurring staff problem common to most of them. It's hard to explain clearly, and I tried to come up with a better descriptor...all I can come up with is “Overwhelmed.” Whether a training issue, a problem with the kitchens, or something more complex, something just seemed OFF. The experienced servers still came off as competent and friendly, but the rest appeared lost in the melee. Nothing insurrmountable if you're patient, but either way, the visible result might be slow service, luke-warm food, or a question mark on an expensive meal. You decide.

 

Garden Café: What to say about those dreaded buffets? How can it be that they have no trays? Sorry. But really, what’s up with that? Come on NCL. We did find the Garden’s layout a little odd, but once you know the drill it’s manageable. It was, however, a madhouse at breakfast on our first day at sea. Tables and chairs were at a premium and viciously defended. I found a deuce in the corner by the window piled with dishes; we cleaned it off ourselves, and while I held off the unseated hordes with a salad fork, DW got our coffee cups there to hold our spot. Then we went through the line on the port side (duplicated on the starboard side?). The forward buffet was a breakfastic cornucopia: cereals, fruits, prepared eggs, French Toast, pancakes, weird items I didn’t investigate, and all the cuts of breakfast pork I am not supposed to eat.

It was also packed. Line out the door. Think lemmings to the sea.

As I’ve found food temperatures to be an issue at breakfast buffets, I headed aft to the relatively empty line of action stations that I saw on our way in. A smaller version of the forward buffet, but you could get fresh waffles, and fresh-made egg/omelettes. Great. If you are low-maintenance, breakfast here is highly recommended. Suggest you get there by 9:30 am though. If you want a calmer start to your day, get up early and go to the Venetian.

At lunch, there was a mix of semi-warm international chicken/pork/rice dishes, a sandwich station with oddly-colored meats, a pasta station my DW loved, and the customary salad, cheeses, fruit, carvery, and pizza. Nice, but despite all the options, no lunch items I could really get excited over. It’s just me, but I preferred the burgers and chicken by the pool. We never had dinner at the Garden, so I can’t comment on that.

 

Cagney’s: Probably the best-reviewed of the specialty venues ($20 pp), Cagney’s is up top on Deck 13. We made there both our first night and our last night at sea. Incidentally, we found the Dinner Reservation system to be well organized and not restrictive at all. Maybe we were just lucky, but we were able to change and shift reservations very easily.

We’ll start with our last night first. We sat port-side forward in what appears to be an extension of the main restaurant (technically part of Star Bar); no matter: spectacular views all around. A great time. Tasty giant shrimp cocktail, and possibly the most tender Filet Mignon I’ve ever eaten (a little rare initially, but that’s just caution on their part). DW is not a big beef fan, but thoroughly enjoyed the salad wedge, special chicken w/sauce dish, and Au gratin potatoes both nights.

Our first night’s experience was just a little flawed. The hostess placed us in a station where the server already had two large parties. Our server, Orville, was very friendly - if a bit stressed with the amount of people he had; he greeted us, took our drink order, and said, “I apologize we are so busy - Are you in a hurry?…” Hm. But no worries, we’re on vacation - No problem! Orville looked relieved, said “Thank you,” and high-fived me. You have to love that. That said, we had no problems with the timing of the meal. Another waiter (Nash?) was moved from the back room and was also wonderful. The two men worked as a team, and things in our station went smoothly. I ordered the shrimp cocktail and Alaskan King Crab. Giant Shrimp cocktail as noted was delicious. The King Crab came out soon after – maybe too soon. It was cold. Not that luke-warm that crab can get so quickly, but just plain cold. Okay. Maybe I’m just out of touch. I asked DW (who works in a seafood restaurant) if King Crab legs were ever served cold. She assured me that was unlikely. Orville came back to check on us and quickly replaced it with a pile of steaming Crab legs. Now that’s more like it. Had a wonderful time, and by the end of the meal, our server invited us to come visit him in Costa Rica. Highly recommended.

 

Aqua: The menu appealed to both of us in the “Freestyle” restaurants on Monday, so we went to Aqua for Night 2. At 6:00 pm, we had a 30-minute wait, so we went to Pearly Kings Pub (a nice little hide-away) for the meantime. Aqua is a pretty spot with lots of window seating. DW had tortellini and I had broiled lobster tail, both were good-size portions and very tasty A couple who sat nearby seemed to have some problem (with their table location?), but were promptly attended to by the staff and seemed happy.

One gripe. Looking quickly at the “Always Available” menu, I saw, “shrimp cocktail.” Yes, yes: it’s not Cagney’s, and the wording on the menu does say, “Baby Shrimp Cocktail”. But a tablespoon of those miniature shrimp that are sold in little jars at the A&P served on lettuce?? Are you guys kidding? I’ve raised Sea Monkeys that were bigger. Why bother? I was looking around for Candid Camera or Ashton Kutcher. Okay, okay ,“You’re on vacation…” Alright, I'll give it 75%.

 

Salsa’s: One of the better reviewed of the “free” restaurants, so we made reservations there next night (Tuesday) and again on Friday. It’s a beautiful spot up a deck from the lobby and surrounds the Atrium, and you can hear the guitar trio playing just below – a variety of things from complex Spanish guitar pieces to classics…to surfing music? Something about hearing “Wipeout” Flamenco style confuses the hell out of me, but I digress.

Tuesday night, Salsa’s was busy, but we were seated promptly in lovely seats on the port side. Of course, ordered margaritas; perhaps a little pre-mixed for my tastes, but still very good; our waiter was prompt, very professional and attentive. We ordered the two-person Il Popo which is chicken, beef, peppers, and (1) cherry tomato arranged on a tined metal post, and is served with sauces and soft tortillas on the side – sort of a vertical fajita if you will. It was a little on the lukewarm side, but we still enjoyed it. As an aside, we noted that the amount of sauces (guacamole, sour cream, salsa, refried beans) was barely enough to accompany the meal. Hm. Waste not, want not, I guess. But good times.

By Friday, the Aqua/Venetian menus were looking a little old, so we headed back to Salsa’s again. We were seated at 6:30 pm…but where? Did we change ships? It was like a Vuja’ De episode of the Twilight Zone: everything was exactly the reverse of our previous visit. We sat on the starboard side. There were very few people there. Other than the hostess, no staff were visible. About 10 minutes on, a server appeared with a pitcher and, while staring off out the window, mumbled a long rant that ended with “…water?” DW and I looked at each other, took a chance, and said, “Yes?” That gave us ice water. Yay! Another 10 minutes or so later, our waitress appeared and greeted us as if we had just magically appeared in front of her. In order to get our meal before Pier 92, we ordered drinks, apps, and dinner all at once, and hoped for the best. She wrote it all down and sloowly walked off, disappearing with my magic Dawn Card. I mean disappear. Immeasurable minutes later, our drinks appeared (it took two trips for two drinks?). Anyway, we’re on vacation. So far so good. However, over in the corner, I could now see our waitress with two big trays of appetizers and salads, sloowly shuffling her order slips. (“Hope that’s not our appetizers sitting there…”) Then she shrugged, left, and sloowly returned with yet another tray and again shuffled through her slips. By now, tables seated long before us looked around with concern. Providentially, the Assistant Maitre D’ appeared and apparently whispered something inspirational to her, as she immediately found whatever slip she was looking for, and all the trays were sorted out; oh, and yes, those were my nachos, now somewhat north of warm. I would like to say our fajitas appeared soon after… But they did appear, and as they were brought by yet another server, at least they were still hot. Again, the dollops of each sauce didn’t quite make it through the meal… By this time my glass was long empty, and I only wanted my magic Dawn card back, but now two servers were waving dessert menus. As a longer stay promised more thon I could handle, we headed out. A 50/50 on this one folks.

 

Venetian: Thursday’s menu looked even better than Tuesday’s so why not try the other main restaurant? Twilight Zone Part Two might be one reason why not. Well, maybe not quite as bad as all that, but not great either.

First off, we were seated promptly – nice view overlooking the Naval Dockyard and ocean beyond. We ordered turkey dinner and baked flounder, which were both very good (this time, I did pass on the Sea Monkey Cocktail). Unfortunately, our waiter and his assistant were having a very visible dispute at the wait station two tables from us. The assistant was by far the more personable of the two, and chatted with each table, but something he was doing/not doing made our server absolutely furious. I managed to remind him mid-way I had ordered a bottle of wine, which I think embarrassed him further. He practically fought with the other waiter over who would pour it. Apparently word got to the management, who responded by sending in a more mature server to smooth things over in the section. These things happen, but I was a little surprised to see this in the main dining room. Even so, give this one an 80% too

 

Impressions: Our Wednesday night reservation. Nicely decorated, and good service. Perhaps a somewhat limited menu of Italian/Mediterranean selections, but our meals were very good. My fried calamari cooked just right, but was served without the tentacles, which I like, and…mayonnaise? Odd, but oh well. I asked for some marinara instead, and that was just fine. We both ordered chicken parm, but our server asked if I might not like to try the Lobster ravioli instead. Hm, okay, yes, ,I’ll try it. Little did I know that meant I would get both dinners. But both were good. And both were very filling. Dessert was Tiramisu which served flat on a plate. Again, an odd serving choice, but it was tasty, and I managed to struggle through.

 

Sorry I went on at such length, but I thought lots of dining details might help. Any questions, please ask.

Yes and other, more concise, info will follow.

[ChiSquare8]

Hi All!

 

I am also a fellow Celebrity cruiser alittle concerned about the food on NCL (upcoming 7/27 sailing)! I was on the Dream many years ago and extremely disappointed with the food. I think it was the only cruise I actually did not gain a pound but the reggae band was awsome!

 

What was on the menu in the main dining rooms for Friday evening (second "formal" evening) ? Do they have Baked Alaska? Is the menu worth skipping a specialty restaurant? Could you compare the desserts to Celebrity?

 

Did you eat breakfast or lunch in the dining rooms?

 

Was there tropical night (fruit buffet)?

 

Were the shrimp really that huge???????

 

On the positive note, I am looking for to the variety of restaurants on the Dawn, I do not mind paying a surcharge if the food is more upscale!

 

Melissa

[Cosmopolitan]

Jdarch ~

 

A pleasure to read your informative, well-balanced review of the restaurants:)

[jdarch]

Hi All!

 

I am also a fellow Celebrity cruiser alittle concerned about the food on NCL (upcoming 7/27 sailing)! I was on the Dream many years ago and extremely disappointed with the food. I think it was the only cruise I actually did not gain a pound but the reggae band was awsome!

 

What was on the menu in the main dining rooms for Friday evening (second "formal" evening) ? Do they have Baked Alaska? Is the menu worth skipping a specialty restaurant? Could you compare the desserts to Celebrity?

 

Did you eat breakfast or lunch in the dining rooms?

 

Was there tropical night (fruit buffet)?

 

Were the shrimp really that huge???????

 

On the positive note, I am looking for to the variety of restaurants on the Dawn, I do not mind paying a surcharge if the food is more upscale!

 

Melissa

 

Melissa, all I can say is keep an open mind and don't compare - NCL is a very different experience than Celebrity, and in some respects much more varied.

 

What was on the menu in the main dining rooms for Friday evening (second "formal" evening) ? Do they have Baked Alaska? Is the menu worth skipping a specialty restaurant? Could you compare the desserts to Celebrity?

I don't recall the menu (or the attire) being drastically different on "Formal Nights". If you look around on these pages you will find menus. The desserts were very tasty but I don't recall Baked Alaska.

 

Did you eat breakfast or lunch in the dining rooms?

The only Dining Room that serves anyone breakfast is the Venetian - we never seemed to be able to get there early enough. And lunch always looked better by the pool. I didn't mention earlier, the best kept secret is the Blue Lagoon, the small "Fast Food" area. It isn't advertised, but they serve breakfast to order. And it was excellent.

 

Was there tropical night (fruit buffet)?

Hmm, we didnt catch everything, but no specific Tropical Buffet I recall

 

Were the shrimp really that huge???????

Yes the Giant Shrimp were very large and excellent. As I mentioned, the "giant" size were as large, as the "baby" size was tiny. Don't bother with shrimp cocktail outside of Cagney's.

 

On the positive note, I am looking for to the variety of restaurants on the Dawn, I do not mind paying a surcharge if the food is more upscale!

I would do as we did: make reservations in the Specialty restaurants that appeal to you. But check out the daily menus, if the main restaurant menus appeal to you, just switch your ressies around.

[natduv]

Great review on the Dawn food and resturants. Will be going Oct 6. Thanks for the heads up on the buffet for breakfast. I will be eating that in the dining room.

[greywillow]

Garden Café: What to say about those dreaded buffets? How can it be that they have no trays? Sorry. But really, what’s up with that?

Sorry to say this, but you've blown any credibility you have tried to muster for yourself as a restaurant critic with this giant faux pas. Let me say it clearly for you: No classy buffet restaurant has trays. I'll repeat it in case you missed it: No classy buffet restaurant has trays.

Celebrity doesn't even offer a dinner buffet. "Sorry. But really, what's up with that?"

[DMH15]

I enjoyed your reviews so far. Great descriptive criteria.

[jdarch]

Sorry to say this, but you've blown any credibility you have tried to muster for yourself as a restaurant critic with this giant faux pas. Let me say it clearly for you: No classy buffet restaurant has trays. I'll repeat it in case you missed it: No classy buffet restaurant has trays.

 

Celebrity doesn't even offer a dinner buffet. "Sorry. But really, what's up with that?"

I don't understand your tone here, or why you seem so offended. I'm not trying to muster "credibility" as a restaurant critic," or anything else for that matter. I'm merely posting a review of our experience on the Dawn. I don't recall any reviewer on CC forums finding the Garden Cafe particularly, "classy"; it's a buffet plain and simple. Several posters have said it would handy if they did have trays, particularly in a very busy area on moving ship.

And Im not sure what Celebrity having a dinner buffet has to do with any of this.

[48Travel]

a wonderful balanced thoughtful review. thank you.

quick question - your review mentioned that you ordered a bottle of wine. How expansive is the wine list? What is the price range?We are looking for a chardonnay or pinot grigio that is on the less expensive side. But, if NCL prices are over $25/bottle for basic stuff, maybe it is worth it to pay the corkage fee and bring our own, esepcially since a friend of mine found us a decent pinot for less than $5 a bottle.

 

thanks!

[peg013]

Great review on the Dawn food and resturants. Will be going Oct 6. Thanks for the heads up on the buffet for breakfast. I will be eating that in the dining room.

 

Are you sure you are not going Oct 5, 2008 on the Dawn to Bermuda? If you are, join our rollcall!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=650127

[jdarch]

a wonderful balanced thoughtful review. thank you.

quick question - your review mentioned that you ordered a bottle of wine. How expansive is the wine list? What is the price range?We are looking for a chardonnay or pinot grigio that is on the less expensive side. But, if NCL prices are over $25/bottle for basic stuff, maybe it is worth it to pay the corkage fee and bring our own, esepcially since a friend of mine found us a decent pinot for less than $5 a bottle.

 

thanks!

I'm not a huge wine connoisseur, but I'm familiar with many of the more popular US/Aussie chardonnays; nothing that rang a big bell was on the Dawn's list except for the Jordan which seemed a little pricey. (They did have a wine tasting which might have offered some alternatives, but I missed it). Basically, the lower end wines started at $35/bottle and up. I ended up trying a glass of relatively inexpensive Aussie white and purchased a bottle. One convenience was they will save any leftovers in the cellar for your next dinner (don't know if this applies to personal bottles). Unless you like experimenting, I'd say if you have a wine you really really favor, pay the corkage fee and enjoy!

[markf]

on another thread the tray issue was discussed--but the author of this thread is correct--not having trays is ridiculous--and to the person that says no classy restaurant has trays--the response has to be a classy restaurant or classy buffet has full waiter service to serve drinks-

NCL wake up and bring the trays back-we are on vacation not in high school

[ChiSquare8]

Thank you so much for your detailed review and answring my questions pertaining to the Dawn.

 

I do not understand why people get so upset on "all" (Princess is alittle more easy going) of these boards about their respective cruise line?

 

I love Celebrity Cruises and been on about twenty five cruises with them but I can also find flaws with them! If "we" want to grow as individuals or as corporations we must listen to constructive criticisms.

 

Keep the reviews coming and continue to point out positives and negatives. We can all learn from your experiences. For example, I now know not to book a specialty restaurant on Thurday evening since you mentioned they serve turkey the in main dining rooms!

 

Thanks Again!

[cvasto]

Excellent review! Looking forward to my cruise even more with all this new info. Thanks!

[andychris]

Thanks for the review- I do have a quick question. I just read that as of 7/1 salsa is costing $10, you mentioned that it is free. Have you heard of an increase??

I hope this is incorrect information and it is still free.

Thaanks

[michigan tim]

Great review! Everyone should model your vacation mode mindset. Trays vs no trays in a buffet? PUUHLEEZ! :confused:

[jdarch]

We were on the July 6th sailing and Salsa's had no extra charge:)

[reenicruiser]

Why isn't this information clearly available on NCL's website, it's like they hide so many details. You shouldn't have to get this information from their customers, they should be providing it.

 

Thanks for the detailed restaurant posts; please don't let the irritated tray hater ruin your day.

[Salt air hair]

Sorry to say this, but you've blown any credibility you have tried to muster for yourself as a restaurant critic with this giant faux pas. Let me say it clearly for you: No classy buffet restaurant has trays. I'll repeat it in case you missed it: No classy buffet restaurant has trays.

 

Celebrity doesn't even offer a dinner buffet. "Sorry. But really, what's up with that?"

 

 

Since when has ANY Buffet been considered CLASSY!!! Gassy maybe, Classy.......NEVER!!!!