Silk Road Sushi Bar

[Keith1010]

On our most recent voyage on the Crystal Symphony we sat at the Sushi Bar at Silk Road for the very first time on either ship. We very much enjoyed the experience. We enjoyed trying some new items, watching the Sushi Chefs prepare the Sushi which to us is a work of art, and also we had a very nice conversation with a fellow passenger who we had not met before.

I was wondering how many of you have sat at one of the Silk Road Sush Bars and what your experience was like?

Keith

[solomon]

Good morning, hope your workout went well, mine did.

I sat at the Sushi Bar twice on our last cruise. Once by myself and once with Lee Ann. I let the guys know that we Southerners aren't exactly experts on sushi but I was ready and willing to learn, and man, they went to town preparing everything they could think of and they seemed to really enjoy "breaking me in" to sushi.

I have no idea what I had. Some of it looked pretty, some of it looked down right scarry, but all of it tasted fan-tas-tic.

Lee Ann, on the other hand, couldn't handle it, which was fine with me. That just gave me more to enjoy.

[ricki]

We love the Sushi Bar, Keith, and have made it our dinner more than once instead of dining on something rich in the dining room. Seiji on Symphony is a master and his assistants are great, too. There's always a lot of laughter accompanying the sushi and it's been a nice opportunity to meet other guests we have not met before.

Ricki

[KarenLA]

I love sushi and coming from LA we have an abundance of wonderful places to choose from and I was anxious to try Silk Road. On my first two Cruises traveling solo I ate at the sushi bar a couple of times. The sushi chefs were warm and friendly and took great care...I told them what I didn't like (don't like gooey) and they prepared some wonderful dishes and some new things on on the menu and asked me to come back on formal night to show off my "prom dress". And yes each time I met charming people to chat with. I have also been known to sneak into the bar for just one or two dishes..an appetizer if you will to tide me over until late seating. I highly recommend it for solo travelers. Eating at the tables and eating at the bar are just two totally different experiences. I ate at a table when a group invited me to join them and it was a wonderful meal. You tend to get more from the kitchen then...the cod is to die for...

That being said on my last trip on Serenity from Venice to Istanbul with my new Crystalized campanion Casey each time we went to Silk Road we ate at the sushi bar..that the real sushi experience and by the way you can almost always walk in with reservations and get a seat at the sushi bar. (oh and my adversion to gooey was dispelled when the chef said the sea urchin was great tonight...I had never tried it...yum)

[macbest]

I'm a newbe to Crystal with my first cruise on Crystal next year. Is the sushi bar open for lunch or just dinner. Having sushi at lunch has always been very enjoyable for me.

[Keith1010]

Originally Posted by macbest

I'm a newbe to Crystal with my first cruise on Crystal next year. Is the sushi bar open for lunch or just dinner. Having sushi at lunch has always been very enjoyable for me.

Macbest, the two specialty restaurants are only open for just dinner and that includes the sushi bar.

The seating at the Sushi bar is on a first come basis. On some sailings it is very easy to get a seat and other times it is more difficult. It just depends on the mix of the passengers and the number of passengers on the sailing.

Keith

[nancygp]

Sushi is available at other dining venues for lunch on certains days. There will some sushi at the Asian buffet as well as the Gala Buffet. I also believe that sushi is offered occasionally at lunchtime in the Lido.

Nancy

[paws10]

We sat at the sushi bar on both ships (once while the Serenity visited SF). While both experience were wonderful, I think the scale tipped in favor of the Symphony. Perhaps it was because the Serenity was at the end of the WC and they didn't replenish all the food.
We were fortunate to sample the preparations from both executive chefs on the Symphony in 11/08. Since my daughter lived in Japan a year, she spoke Japanese and ordered all kinds of things. We had an omakase dinner prepared for us and I must confess that it was one of the best meals of my life and I don't usually eat anything not cooked. The thin sliced (raw) wagyu beef was to die for. I'm ordering a double of that in a couple of months! Our family loves sushi. I think they could eat every night in Silk Road! It sets the standard by which we judge all other places.

[shoshona2]

Hi Keith,

We live in L.A. and eat wonderful sushi every Friday night. So, we tried the sushi bar on the Serenity and loved it. We look forward to another cruise in the future so we can eat dinner there every night.

Sheila

[martinsfo]

We were only on the Symphony for 7 days, so we did not have time to try the Sushi Bar. As we live in the Bay Area, great sushi is very easy to come by. I wanted to try Nobu's cuisine as it is highly regarded in the culinary world.

[CalTom]

One of our most delightful meals during our excursions on Crystal was at the Sushi Bar on the Serenity. Dressed in tux and ready for a formal night in the Dining Room we took a sudden diversion and headed for the Sushi Bar and sat there for nearly two hours having an extraordinary meal, accompanied by a most refreshing sake. The quality was exceptional and sitting there in formal wear made it all that more special.

[kitty9]

What would be the reasons behind not opening one or the other specialty restaurant for lunch? With a limited lunch menu for simple things, I think alternating opening one of the restaurants for lunch on sea days would be a great idea. Anyone else think so?

[FlyerTalker]

Originally Posted by kitty9

What would be the reasons behind not opening one or the other specialty restaurant for lunch? With a limited lunch menu for simple things, I think alternating opening one of the restaurants for lunch on sea days would be a great idea. Anyone else think so?

Take a good look at the badges of the staff working the line in the Lido at lunch. You will see that most are waiters in Silk or Prego - their evening job. Ditto with the headwaiters who supervise in the Lido at breakfast and lunch.

So, to start with....you have a staffing issue.

[Suite Travels]

I agree staffing would be a problem. So many of these fine men and women work different venues including the Captain's receptions and Crystal Society receptions.