Sabatini's

[Hapinowagain2]

Approximately how long is the dinner in Sabatini's?

[spongerob]

You should plan on at least 2 hours, more like 2-1/2.

[Flyer]

Our friends went while we were on the Grand last week and they spent a little over two hours. On the night they went there were not too many people. I expect if it is crowded you could count on up to three hours.

 

We didn't go so I can't tell you first hand.

[argosy]

Our time in Sabatini's was about 2 and a half hours.

[StarskysmyMINI-Suite]

We were in Sabatini's for three hours and it was not a busy night. IMHO, it was not worth it...at some point, you just want it to be over. Please don't get me wrong, the food is good, but honestly I would rather do the Painted Desert Steakhouse. Just make sure to read the menu before you make your reservations...11 of the 22 dishes served were seafood.

[WeBeGone]

It took 4 of us 3 hours and we loved it. We were offered foods we'd never tried before and appreciated the excellent service. Think of it more of an adventure than a meal and you'll have fun and be really full too.

[Lynda90]

We were in Sabatini's for three hours and it was not a busy night. IMHO, it was not worth it...at some point, you just want it to be over. Please don't get me wrong, the food is good, but honestly I would rather do the Painted Desert Steakhouse. Just make sure to read the menu before you make your reservations...11 of the 22 dishes served were seafood.

I completely agree with your assessment. Definitely not worth it! We were extremely disappointed.

[bhopal21]

I certainly appreciate good food and excellent service; but there is no way I am going to sit in ANY restaurant for two and a half to three hours for a meal.

 

Mike :p

[argosy]

We loved it! It is not something you'd want to do more than once on a 7 day cruise (or even longer) but once is GREAT.

 

We took some friends' advice and simply resisted the urge to eat every course they brought. The waiter encouraged us in a fun way, but we held firm. We certainly tasted everything!

 

Don't think of it as just dinner. Think of it as a unique experience on its own.

[sun&sea]

Like seafood? I did not know what to get, so she said she would bring me a combo plate! Now that's seafood! Lobster, crab, shrimp, scallops, and fish in the middle. Yum! It was not busy at all. We went at 7:30 on a Thursday night on the Golden (Explorer itinerary).

 

Janet

[hstrybuf]

Personally, we loved Sabatini's on the Grand! Service was excellent as was the food. Sure, it takes 2-3 hours, but it was all worth it!

[roe2ship]

About 2 1/2 hours. We loved it on the Caribbean Princess. You will be very sluggish after this meal.

[SeaTrixie]

Our dinner at Sabbatini's on the Sapphire didn't seem to take any longer than than our meals in the International dining room.

 

I didn't think the antipasti was that great, but maybe that's because we live close to all the wonderful Italian restaurants in SF's North Beach. The lobster was cooked to perfection so that made the whole thing worth it IMO.

 

One heads up, tho. We ordered wine nightly in the $30. range. At Sabattini's we were urged to order wine in the $70. range. My husband felt like he was getting a real sales pitch.

[Druke I]

We ate in Sabatini's on Golden's trans-Atlantic, 9-02, on a not particularly busy evening, and it took us about 2.5 hours.

 

Although we thought the food very good, there was much too much for our rather small appetites. Both my wife and I were brought up under the "clean plate" method, and felt guilty not trying to stuff it all in. Had my late mother been with us, she might have finally agreed to "box it up and send it to starving childen", my childhood suggestion that ofen resulted in a "thick ear" from my father for insolence.

 

I doubt very much that I would again venture to Sabatini's for a meal, but Sterling Steakhouse is another matter altogether.

[tom-n-jules]

We did the brunch, not dinner, and it was the same (roughly) 2.5 hours others have quoted. There was a group of 4 of us.

 

Have to say we felt it was *more than* worth it!! DW doesn't care for seafood aside from crab/lobster/shrimp (only sometimes) and still found plenty to love. If you love Italian food, no reason why you couldn't find enough variety to love here.

 

For those who didn't like it/didn't feel it was worth it, I would guess they didn't/couldn't research it (either by choice or not) by consulting these or other message boards first, and probably had very different expectations of the meal from what they got.

 

Most everything I've read has been a very accurate characterization of Sabatini's: LOOOOONG, leisurely meal of an astonishing amount and array of amazingly prepared food and terrific service, where you can just kick back and enjoy sharing the experiece with great people!!

 

Of course, this basically describes every dinner for us on our cruises. :D

[pkdof]

We spent less than 2 hours in Sabatini's for our group of 6. We thought the food was great and the service was even better. This was on Diamond. We went the first night.

[taxatty]

We spent less than 2 hours in Sabatini's for our group of 6. We thought the food was great and the service was even better. This was on Diamond. We went the first night.

We had the same experience on the Diamond--excellent food, but as noted above, really for seafood lovers.

 

Les

[JettaGirl]

I am wanting to go to Sabatini's on my Star cruise sailing 1/2/05. I am, by far, the pickiest eater in the world. i HATE seafood. no fruits, vegetables, or anything healthy. I am a 20 year old college student and all i eat is steak, chicken, ramen noddles, mac and cheeze.. etc.

 

You think I can find anything I like here!?! ANyone happen to have a copy of the menu?!

Thanks for any advice you can give me!

[hstrybuf]

Check under menus on Cruise Clues. They have some from Sabatini's.

[terry55]

I'm a "Princess Rookie"...we'll be on the Star next spring and will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary during the cruise. We were thinking of making a reservation at Sabatini's for one of the formal nights. We will be a family of 4 (17 and 13 yr. olds). Any opinions/comments on how the restaurant would appeal to teenagers?? They loved the formal dinners on our 3 HAL cruises, but haven't seen any posts on teens having dinner at Sabatini's. Would it be a better idea to save this for a "dinner for two"? Thanks!!:) :)

[Lynda90]

I am wanting to go to Sabatini's on my Star cruise sailing 1/2/05. I am, by far, the pickiest eater in the world. i HATE seafood. no fruits, vegetables, or anything healthy. I am a 20 year old college student and all i eat is steak, chicken, ramen noddles, mac and cheeze.. etc.

 

You think I can find anything I like here!?! ANyone happen to have a copy of the menu?!

Thanks for any advice you can give me!

If you don't eat seafood, you probably will not find much to your liking at Sabatini's. There is some pasta and also some odd types of cold meats. I am not a fussy eater at all and did not manage to find much I liked. The lobster was delicious--but there again is the seafood you don't like. There was a little pasta, but not much. They had a spaghetti with muscles and clams in it or something like that. The minnestrone (excuse sp) soup was very good.

 

We had a 17 year old girl (daughter of one of our group) with us. She did not like the food choices, but enjoyed the experience which we all did. Very good wait staff.

[JettaGirl]

lyndabaker,

 

thank you for your response. I know that there are 2 specialty restaurants on the Star. Sabatini's and Sterlings? I think thats what it is called. What kind of food is Sterlings? Does anyone know if i will like this one??

 

Thanks agian!

[B&Hs_Canterbury]

Sterlings is a steak house...should be right up your alley. Take it from one steak eater to another....Sabatinis is not your cup of tea. Me and my gf went on the Grand recently....u get lots of tiny items......and basically u feel like you are being teased. And some of the teasing is just plain bad.....mussles...anchovies....marinated mushrooms...... Go to sterling you can get anything from a big porterhouse to prime rib.....chicken and what not. Save 5 dollars and go to sterling.

[kendon]

Our family of four including two teenage boys loved Sabatini's and are asking to back. Yes, it's 2 1/2 hours, but it goes quick. Eating a wonderful meal is a great social experience, and how nice to sit still for a couple of hours for a change! Do it, it's quite nice and the service is wonderful. Please tip these waiters, they are so grateful for it.

[tom-n-jules]

I am wanting to go to Sabatini's on my Star cruise sailing 1/2/05. I am, by far, the pickiest eater in the world. i HATE seafood. no fruits, vegetables, or anything healthy. I am a 20 year old college student and all i eat is steak, chicken, ramen noddles, mac and cheeze.. etc.

 

You think I can find anything I like here!?! ANyone happen to have a copy of the menu?!

Thanks for any advice you can give me!

Jetta - if you read my post above, you'll see I specifically address the seafood issue.