EPIC, Survive on complimentary MDR food

We have just booked our first ever NCL cruise on the Epic, 11 nights from Barcelona in Feb, is it posible to eat reasonably just by useing thier complimentary dining venues or will it be totally necessary to fork out for the pay for resturaunts.

This will be our first experienced of this type of free style cruising.

We have two other cruises booked for 2016 so this one on the Epic is just a nice winter break and the price was right.

(Any info would be very much appreciated)

Regards

The MDR can get a little repetitive, but they are supposed to be bringing out new menus this month. There is also the complementary Chinese style restaurant. I suppose you could try just sticking to the MDR...but I would recommend at least trying a couple of the speciality restaurants. My favourite is Le Bistro.

Of course you can eat in the MDR and survive. There's no NEED to spend extra for specialty dining. It is there if you want it; usually a nicer ambiance and better service comes with it, but the MDR is perfectly acceptable for most people. In fact, I think MDR breakfast and lunch is the best on the ship, and dinners quite good.

The free restaurants are the Manhattan Room, Taste, O'Sheehans, Shanghais and the buffet. I liked Manhattan and Taste. O'Sheehans was ok. Buffet was ok especially if you stick to the made to order items. You can totally just do the complementary restaurants. if you want to splurge one night, Modernos was our favorite.

You will more than "survive" with all the free dining options. No need to forage for grubs and berries.

You will have different opinions from different people as to the quality and service in the MDRs and other complimentary venues. Some will say they only eat in specialties and some will say they only eat in complimentary venues and some will do both. I know that's not very helpful lol. I have found the food and service to be just fine in all of the complimentary restaurants. Every once in a while I will go to Cagneys or Teppanyaki or Moderno but that's just if I want a special/different meal. Overall I think you will be fine sticking to the complimentary venues.

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We actually only ate in the main dining room and the buffet in May when we did the Rome/Rome cruise. We were worn out from days of touring and sightseeing that we just grabbed a bite and a few glasses of wine and crashed.

You will more than "survive" with all the free dining options. No need to forage for grubs and berries.

LOL!

Actually, you can do well in the MDRs and Buffets. We liked the food in O'Sheehans for "Pub grub" fare if we were having fun there and got hungry.

We also enjoyed going to Shanghai's.

So, unles you're curious about the "for fee" restaurants (which are quite good, BTW), you won't go hungry in the "no fee" places.

Even a 2 weeks+ cruise of eating just in the MDR, buffet & OSH is fine - there's always something different on daily rotation in the MDR and the buffet - and the chef's selection of the day at OSH.

Lunch is a bit more challenging in the MDR with the fixed daily menu (years ago, it varied but ... no more, like other lines) - as even the "fine" (extra/surcharged) dining options are mostly closed for luncheon (with exceptions, of course - usually on long sea days) - where going to/combined with going to the buffet is sometimes a good idea.

Key is to vary your routines, check the posted menu ahead of time - get creative especially at the buffet, i.e. seafood newburg (or similar items, when offered) over rice (usually available) instead of pasta - do some creative mix-n-match when items are being repeated & beginning to seem boring to you.

We will be on a 10 nighter in March on the Epic. Our third Epic cruise. We will use the MDR's around 4 nights. Chinese (now free) X 2. O'Sheeghans X 1 Garden Cafe X 2 and probably 1 visit to Cagneys. Absolutely you can 'survive' on free food.

In over 20 cruises (on a variety of cruise lines, including NCL), I think we've only eaten in specialty venues half a dozen times, tops.

We often look at the menues for the specialty places and think, hmmm, maybe tonight...but then we check out the menu for the MDR and find more than enough enticing options that we want there.

We've survived quite well.

Plenty to choose from when dining the complimentary restaurants...

I will be doing the specialty ones this time only due to the fact I have the UDP as one of my two perks..So why not ...It costs me nothing...

:eek: March can't get here soon enough...

We have always "survived" just fine eating in the complimentary venues and we like them quite a bit. We never felt a need or desire to pay more.

However, 11 nights is a long cruise. We find that no matter where we eat by the last few days of the cruise we are just not that hungry anymore at all. So, don't let that make you think the food is getting bad towards the end of the cruise. The worst, I think, is breakfast. I also hear lots of folks say they get so tired of breakfast and nothing ever changes, but honestly, how many different breakfast items exist? I do believe they have them all!!!!!.

Anyway, my point is, with any cruise that long or longer food just starts to feel repetitive even if it is not. Even the pay restaurants will not change that cruise ship experience. As others suggested, mix it up yourself. Fortunately, there are a number of restaurants from which you can choose. Even your favorite seems not so much when you are just satiated from it.

We have always "survived" just fine eating in the complimentary venues and we like them quite a bit. We never felt a need or desire to pay more.

 

However, 11 nights is a long cruise. We find that no matter where we eat by the last few days of the cruise we are just not that hungry anymore at all. So, don't let that make you think the food is getting bad towards the end of the cruise. The worst, I think, is breakfast. I also hear lots of folks say they get so tired of breakfast and nothing ever changes, but honestly, how many different breakfast items exist? I do believe they have them all!!!!!.

 

Anyway, my point is, with any cruise that long or longer food just starts to feel repetitive even if it is not. Even the pay restaurants will not change that cruise ship experience. As others suggested, mix it up yourself. Fortunately, there are a number of restaurants from which you can choose. Even your favorite seems not so much when you are just satiated from it.

Thanks drvalo

and everyone else for your helpfull comments and advice on complimentary eating places, it seems that we will survive quite well after all.!!.

We quite like to see shows after the evening meal.

What is the system for booking seats for a show and in general how would that work out time wise when eating in a complimentary MDR venue ?

We have just booked our first ever NCL cruise on the Epic, 11 nights from Barcelona in Feb, is it posible to eat reasonably just by useing thier complimentary dining venues or will it be totally necessary to fork out for the pay for resturaunts.

This will be our first experienced of this type of free style cruising.

We have two other cruises booked for 2016 so this one on the Epic is just a nice winter break and the price was right.

(Any info would be very much appreciated)

 

Regards

Yes, it is possible, depending on whether you are a foodie or not, but for me, I would want to try at least one specialty dining room just for the pure enjoyment. Remember there was a time when cruise ships only offered one dining room and no buffet. We did just fine.

We have not yet sailed the Epic but after having been on the Pearl this fall (first NCL cruise in 10 years) I was extremely impressed with the quality of the food in the MDR's (better than Carnival or RCCL and blew Princess away). The menu items were perhaps slightly less elegant but the preparation and presentation were way better and the service was excellent. Even in the buffet (which I generally loathe on any line) the dishes were fresh, flavorful and kept appropriately hot or cold. Best buffet food I've had in years. Breakfast and lunch in O'Sheehan's was more than adequate as well; maybe not outstanding but the table service was a nice change from the buffet, hamburger grill and pizza stand.

It is impossible to only "survive" if you eat in the MDRs, especially if you eat all three meals a day there. :D Not only will you "survive" but you will add the compulsory 1lb a day to your weight!! :) Not as bad as eating in the buffet, 2lb a day is compulsory there. :)

Seriously, we eat most meals in the MDRs but also go "Chinese" and "American" for changes or when the MDRs are closed. We have never only "survived" and have to have a serious weight loss regime when we get home!! :D

Last time we used the specialty restaurants as we are Platinum and the visits were free!! Very nice, especially when free, but not necessary to "survive".

Mike

Pom by Birth; Retired Coin Collecting Kiwi by Choice

We have done it both ways and survived both times. The answer to the question is really for you to answer. We have always found the MDR more than above average on NCL, yet there is a big BUT too. As seasoned cruisers there were certain things we expected yet they were unavailable unless you went to one of the specialties. Things we found in the MDR on other lines were only in the specialties on NCL.

Every year the cruise lines change their MDR menus, things are added and removed so its hard to compare lines at any point in time. My advice is look at the specialty menu items and if that's the food you want and expect on a cruise you will certainly be disappointed if you eat only in the MDR.

You will definatley survive, however, with some pretty good food in the MDR.

I've only ever paid to see cirque on 1 cruise, the rest have all been complimentary - I love the range in the buffet, and always find multiple dishes on the MDR menu. O'sheehans is great late night... you will survive.

I've just come from the EPIC and I can most assuredly tell you YES you can survive (and thrive) on the MDR, especially if you plan on going on excursions daily.... (many of which eliminate your ability to sit down for breakfast and lunch) and it is quite nice to be able to refuel immediately (without the need for a reservation) when returning from a full day excursion (and being ravenous after a full day exploring pompeii and vesuvius)

We had both the UDP and UBP, and because of that, I did make it a point to eat as the specialty restaurants, and I can honestly say that my most favorite meal was at TASTE (they had an amazing Chateaubriand, which in my opinion was even better than my filet at Cagney's).

If you were considering any "specialty" dining, than I would encourage you to try the Cirque dinner show, as the meal was quite enjoyable and the show was entertaining.

The food in the complimentary restaurants was very good. You don't have to go to the specialty restaurants in order to eat well.

We quite like to see shows after the evening meal.

What is the system for booking seats for a show and in general how would that work out time wise when eating in a complimentary MDR venue ?

Shows - this was the thing I liked the least about the Epic. The shows were just fabulous, but because the venues are small you have to make reservations for the most part. The shows repeat several times (and at different times -early and late) over the cruise, but there will be evenings when there is really no new show to see.

The good thing about freestyle and complimentary eating is that you can easily work your eating around the show times. We did pay and go to Cirque. We also reserved one show pre-cruise, but then changed the time once on board because it conflicted with something else we wanted to do. We did it early in the week and it was easy to do. With 11 days, I am sure if there is something you want to see, you will be able to get a reservation. If you want to pre-book you can do that through the website on your MyNCL page or by calling NCL 90 days prior to your cruise. Otherwise there is a box office in the theatre area where you can make reservations, you can call them, or your can book on I-concierge app once on board.

On the evenings when there was no show to see, we went to Howl at the Moon or went to listen to music somewhere. They also had some silly game shows (you can participate) in the atrium most evenings.

But if you love that cruise rhythm of daily activities, dinner and a show, then you may be a little bit disappointed some evenings.

Thanks drvalo and everyone else for your helpfull comments and advice on complimentary eating places, it seems that we will survive quite well after all.!!.

 

We quite like to see shows after the evening meal. What is the system for booking seats for a show and in general how would that work out time wise when eating in a complimentary MDR venue ?

We were on the Epic last week. You will more than survive on the MDR and other complimentary food onboard the Epic. No need to spend any money on Specialty Restaurants. The only possible exception is the Cirque Dreams dinner show, which was great fun.

There are two Broadway shows on the Epic. Priscilla Queen of the Desert the Musical and Burn the Floor. Both will show 2-3 times during your cruise. Both will have early and late shows (7:30ish and 9:30ish). If you don't mind an early dinner (5:00 or 5:30), then there is ample time for a leisurely dinner and go to the show. You can book seats online for both shows before your cruise. Seating is first-come-first-serve, so after dinner, move smartly to the theater.

Onboard, you will also be able to book seats at one of the comedy shows. They show on various nights of the cruise in Headliners club. Earlier shows are more family oriented. Later shows and late shows are adult oriented.

We were on the Epic last week. You will more than survive on the MDR and other complimentary food onboard the Epic. No need to spend any money on Specialty Restaurants. The only possible exception is the Cirque Dreams dinner show, which was great fun.

 

There are two Broadway shows on the Epic. Priscilla Queen of the Desert the Musical and Burn the Floor. Both will show 2-3 times during your cruise. Both will have early and late shows (7:30ish and 9:30ish). If you don't mind an early dinner (5:00 or 5:30), then there is ample time for a leisurely dinner and go to the show. You can book seats online for both shows before your cruise. Seating is first-come-first-serve, so after dinner, move smartly to the theater.

 

Onboard, you will also be able to book seats at one of the comedy shows. They show on various nights of the cruise in Headliners club. Earlier shows are more family oriented. Later shows and late shows are adult oriented.

We will be on Epic over Christmas. Decided to book Cagneys for Xmas eve and cirque on Xmas night. Also going to le bistro. Mainly so we won't overeat and I read great reviews

Which show did you like better- burn or princess?