Speciality dining struggle

REALLY struggling with choosing my meals...Currently have Cirque, Teppanyaki, Modereno and Le Bistro for the last night. I am worried that Teppanyaki will be a disappointment if it's similar to the ones here at home, or is the entertainment really worth it? Am I missing out if I don't go to Cagney's? Should I trade Le Bistro for Cagney's? Oh my...so conflicted!!!!

REALLY struggling with choosing my meals...Currently have Cirque, Teppanyaki, Modereno and Le Bistro for the last night. I am worried that Teppanyaki will be a disappointment if it's similar to the ones here at home, or is the entertainment really worth it? Am I missing out if I don't go to Cagney's? Should I trade Le Bistro for Cagney's? Oh my...so conflicted!!!!

If you have a Teppanyaki type restaurant at home why go to the one on the ship? I don't think the entertainment will be as good as they can't do fire tricks on board.

You can get a steak at either Cagney's or Le Bistro, so its kind of a wash, I'd stick with Le Bistro its fancier.

Not sure I'd do Moderno either, we have that type restaurant here and I love them, I think I'd be disappointed on board. These are MY opinions. :p

Good points. Thank you!

REALLY struggling with choosing my meals...Currently have Cirque, Teppanyaki, Modereno and Le Bistro for the last night. I am worried that Teppanyaki will be a disappointment if it's similar to the ones here at home, or is the entertainment really worth it? Am I missing out if I don't go to Cagney's? Should I trade Le Bistro for Cagney's? Oh my...so conflicted!!!!

Cirque-Can't help you with that. It depends on how much you value a show over food.

Teppanyaki-Meh. I get why some people like it. I find it generally bland and the show doesn't excite me.

Moderno-If you've never been to a Brazilian churascaria (sp?), it's a good opportunity to try it.

LeBistro-Delicious option. I don't think you'll regret it.

Cagney's-Also delicious. If you, or someone in your party, really values a big hunk of steak, they'll be happier here than LeBistro. But they won't necessarily DISLIKE Le Bistro.

Given that I've been to land based restaurants like all of these, it comes down to taste and mood for me. My preferences, given your options, would go:

LeBistro

Cagney's

Moderno

Cirque

Teppanyaki

We did Teppanyaki on the ship after having done it many times at home. We were pleasantly surprised by some of the new tricks/jokes they came up with.

Teppanyaki is nice on the ship but if you can do it at home and not too concerned about seeing it again then skip it.

Don't miss Le Bistro. Trust me on this, the food and service are amazing. Cagney's is great, too. Going to try Ocean Blue on my next cruise. La Cucina has an improved menu. Moderno and Teppanyaki - meh. Just my opinion.

Thank you all!!! Change made and nice to know when you call, they have more time availability than you see on line, whoo who!!! Replaced Teppanyaki with Cagney.

Which ship? You mentioned Cirque, but are you going on Epic or Breakaway?

Personally, I think Teppanyaki pales when compared to Beni Hana, but I still enjoy Teppanyaki--I just set my expectations accordingly.

I'd go to Cagney's before Teppanyaki or Moderno. I've been to Moderno only once, and the meat was dry, the waiter was rude, and the salad bar is over-rated, IMO. My experience has been that Cagney's has better food and service.

Cirque is about the show not the food. Personally, I really enjoyed it.

Le Bistro is my favorite--I've eaten there a few times and enjoyed it every time.

It all comes down to personal preferences and experiences. Some people rave about Moderno, but it's likely I'll never go back. Some think Le Bistro is over-rated, but I think it's great. It's very subjective.

Have fun!

Great...I feel really good about my decision now....thank you all!! LrgePizza...we will be on the Breakaway.

Great...I feel really good about my decision now....thank you all!! LrgePizza...we will be on the Breakaway.

Okay. The set up of Le Bistro on that ship (like on Getaway and Escape) sucks. We won't eat there again. It's like a tiny closet, and you are jammed in so tightly that you can eat off your neighbor's plate without even leaning over. Also, there are no windows to the ocean. If ambience is important, it sucks. That said, the food is good.

Teppanyaki has the best lobster on the ship. If you like lobster, eat there. (They also have my favorite rice of any Teppanyaki restaurant I've ever visited). Cagney's lobster is small, cold, and boring. Le Bistro's is flooded with a nasty thick cream sauce that hides the taste.

Moderno is muh. Every Brazilian steakhouse we've been to on land (which is a lot) is better. We don't bother with this one any more.

People say La Cucina has improved with the introduction of the new menu. I haven't tried it.

My favs in order:

Cagney's

Teppanyaki

Le Bistro

Moderno

We dined at Teppanyaki on our family cruise in Feb 2016 on the Escape, it was awesome, great food, my 8 & 6 year old grand kids thought it was the bomb. I would go back with no worries!!

If you enjoy Japanese Steakhouses at home, you'll enjoy it on the ship. I don't believe they offer the "yummy yummy" sauce that our East Coast places do, tho!

Was on Breakaway for the fourth time in March, and I have to agree with the people who dislike Le Bistro. The food was bad...no just okay but actually not good at all. I had the duck, and even the waiter told me it was processed and pounded into a square. I should have listened. Don't remember what DH had, but he hated it too. (It may actually been the steak, but not sure). Also the service was not good. The waiter was actually passing us things over a small dividing wall fence thing instead of coming around to the table and placing it there. Before this trip, we had liked Le Bistro, but since they changed menus in most restaurants, added to O'sheehan's offerings and went with the ala carte in some restaurants, the specialty restaurants seem to have suffered. We also did not like La Cuchina's food. It was worse than MDR food.

We have decided on our next trip, if specialty dining is a perk, we will be eating all our specialty meals in Cagney's. The menu change thing made Cagney's even better than it had been in the past. Even if you choose to stick with Le bistro, find a way to do Cagney's. You won't regret it. If they have the Tomahawk steak....wow.

Was on Breakaway for the fourth time in March, and I have to agree with the people who dislike Le Bistro. The food was bad...no just okay but actually not good at all. I had the duck, and even the waiter told me it was processed and pounded into a square. I should have listened. Don't remember what DH had, but he hated it too. (It may actually been the steak, but not sure). Also the service was not good. The waiter was actually passing us things over a small dividing wall fence thing instead of coming around to the table and placing it there. Before this trip, we had liked Le Bistro, but since they changed menus in most restaurants, added to O'sheehan's offerings and went with the ala carte in some restaurants, the specialty restaurants seem to have suffered. We also did not like La Cuchina's food. It was worse than MDR food.

 

We have decided on our next trip, if specialty dining is a perk, we will be eating all our specialty meals in Cagney's. The menu change thing made Cagney's even better than it had been in the past. Even if you choose to stick with Le bistro, find a way to do Cagney's. You won't regret it. If they have the Tomahawk steak....wow.

Wow, that sounds terrible. I wonder if it's a Breakaway thing. I've eaten at LeBistro on the Epic since the change, and it is still my favorite of the specialties. I'll be visiting LeBistro on the Pearl next month so I hope the issues you had are specific to that ship!

Can't stand La Cucina--I couldn't eat more than a couple bites of my entree there.

I've eaten at The LeBistro twice in the past with the last time being March of this year on Jade. We also ate at Cagney's and Teppanyaki's on our March Cruise. We found them all to be wonderful with excellent food and service. Oddly and unexpectedly our favorite food was to be had at Teppanyaki's. I guess I sort of imagined it would be something like Shoguns Japanese Steakhouse in Oklahoma but the food was so much better. Some other ladies at our table suggested everybody get the added garlic butter on the food and we all did. I think that's what really made it fantastic. So my advice is be sure Teppanyaki's is at least one of your choices on your dining package and get the added butter!

OOHHH you guys are killing me!!!!! I am more confused than ever now :)

I'll agree with others that I love Cagneys. Never had a bad meal there. The Baked Potato Soup alone is worth going there.

Now, I'll differ in that I've had some great meals at LaCuchina. Maybe I've been lucky? But, it's my other "always eat at".

I enjoyed Moderno; however, since I'm solo, I avoid it now as it isn't quite as much fun. It can be a bit salty though.

I've never much cared for LeBistro (it was always "OK" - maybe it's the food sits too "heavy" for me, personally) and with the changed menu, definitely off the radar.

The struggle is real.

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wow, I am shocked to hear people say the food at Le Bistro isn't good, certainly to read someone say it is actually BAD! We haven't eaten on the Breakaway or Getaway so can't judge, but we have eaten in Le Bistros on all other ships and loved it. We did get bad service about a year ago on the Jewel. Otherwise always happy. Yes, a few ships, like the Dawn it wasn't an special as on other ships.

Le Bistro is our favorite, followed by Modernos. We have eaten at Brazilian steak house on land: Modernos matches up in our opinion. Teppanaki's isn't as impressive as Benihana's but still worth it. I have eaten there on 2 ships: hubby never, so we are trying it on our Nov. cruise. Cagney's is great for steak, otherwise it is just OK in my opinion, worth a visit for sure. La Cucina, never been crazy over it, but certainly it isn't bad. We will give it a shot this time as well. We have a 3 dinner package plus 2 dinners based on platinum status.

OOHHH you guys are killing me!!!!! I am more confused than ever now :)

Food is subjective. What I like others may not and vice versa. You're really just going to have to make a decision and go with it. Not everyone will think it's the right decision, but it doesn't matter since you're the one who'll be doing the eating! :D

All the more reason to book another cruise to try them all I say :)

wow, I am shocked to hear people say the food at Le Bistro isn't good, certainly to read someone say it is actually BAD! We haven't eaten on the Breakaway or Getaway so can't judge, but we have eaten in Le Bistros on all other ships and loved it. We did get bad service about a year ago on the Jewel. Otherwise always happy. Yes, a few ships, like the Dawn it wasn't an special as on other ships.

I used to love Le Bistro, but on my last cruise on the Breakaway, I did not like the changes to the menu. The muscles were terrible compared to the way they used to be.

I'll add that it definitely makes a difference WHICH ship you are on. My first time in Le Bistro was on the Breakaway and I was like "meh" (I had Coq au Vin) and decided I never needed to go back. Fast forward to my next Gem cruise and I begrudgingly went to Le Bistro because my friend wanted to and hadn't tried it. LOVED LOVED IT. It became (and still is) my fave specialty on the Gem.

Back to the Breakaway - LOVE Cagneys - always a great meal. Same with Cagneys on the Gem. Can't go wrong with this one.

HATED Moderno on Breakaway - the salad bar was ok but the meat was inedible to me and everyone at our table (salty, chewy and just plain bad.) Cross that one off my list! But hold on....was on the Gem recently and decided to stop in to Moderno just for salad. Their salad bar was AMAZING on the Gem. It just was so much better than the Breakaway! I even went back another day! Didn't eat the meat at the Gem either time, so can't weigh in there.

La Cucina is fine on both Gem and Breakaway - but may be a little better on the Breakaway. Either has great crusty Italian bread. (miss those flavored oils!!)

Have fun finding YOUR favorites & have a great cruise! :)