Specialty Restaurant...... Which should I choose?

Hi, Trying to make a dining decision. I'm getting the meal plan for four specialty restaurants. I would like to dine at Cagney's, Le Bistro and Moderno. What would your fourth restaurant choice be or would you repeat one of the restaurants listed above (is so, why?). Thanks in advance for your input. [emoji41]

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Hi, Trying to make a dining decision. I'm getting the meal plan for four specialty restaurants. I would like to dine at Cagney's, Le Bistro and Moderno. What would your fourth restaurant choice be or would you repeat one of the restaurants listed above (is so, why?). Thanks in advance for your input. [emoji41]

 

 

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It depends on your preferences.

I would go to La Cucina for the 4th choice because I like their Osso Buco.

My husband would repeat Le Bistro because he loves their escargot and their 4-mushroom soup.

You'll get others who say Cagneys for steak.

I would do La cucina because the pasta is really really good. They also have a really good steak with gorgonzola on it. My favorite restaurant of them all.

Which ship are you on as some have options that others don't

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Sorry, the Escape. I'm almost at my 90 day mark and this is my first cruise [emoji568]. Excited!!!!

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Teppanyaki! Consistently good food, and fun.

I'd say in order of preference:

1) LeBistro twice. Best choice of appetizers out of all the restaurants.

2) Cagney's if you like steaks and they have decent appetizer selection, but not great

3) Teppenyaki if you like Japanese steakhouses. Great food, great show, nothing really to not like

Just MHO but I would avoid La Cucina. Tried a variety of apps and entrees there and none of them even remotely appealed to me. Waste of SDP choice IHMO of course!

Do Cagney's twice and skip Moderno. It is 1000% better. More variety, better meat, and just better in general. Unless you like to eat raw meat off a skewer, I suggest you change.

I cannot give advice for Le Bistro or Teppanyaki, but La Cucina was pretty good.

Having cruised on Getaway and Epic, and in 3 weeks the Escape, this question is easy. Cagney's is easily the best NCL restaurant; we always dine twice at Cagney's. As an ex-NYer, LaCucina is like eating at Olive Garden or Macaroni Grille. LeBistro has a couple excellent dishes and is a good. choice if you like French food. Teppanyaki is entertaining and decent food, but nothing special. We go there because my wife likes the experience. Moderno gives you plenty to eat but the salad bar is probably better than the meat selections. Cagney's is a beef eaters delight though they have changed over the past couple years; the ribeye on the Getaway was much better than on Epic. Other than Cagney's and LeBistro, you get about the same quality as in the MDR, which is good but not great. Make sure you go to O'Sheehans, the Irish pub, on one of their two prime rib nights; it's not considered a premium restaurant but is very good and included in the regular meal plan. It's also a great place for lunch away from the buffet.

I would probably choose Le Bistro again, the Coq au Vin is amazing. Cagney's is a very close second

On the included restaurants - definitely try O'Sheehans, the Thai chili wings are wonderful. I think I eat them every day of a cruise. Thai chili wings and a rebellious fish make a wonderful bedtime snack.

NMLady - Osso Buco YUM!

Jgallagh1944 - LOL [emoji23]!

I'm rethinking Moderno. The only reason I wanted to go was because I have never been to that type of restaurant. It wouldn't be cost effective at home since I don't eat that much meat. Raw meat on a stick is not appealing.

Considering Teppanyaki. Are the vegetables pretty much all you can eat?

Possibly go to Cagney's twice. Love good steakhouse.

O'Sheehans and Food Republic are a must.

What's your favorite breakfast spot? I'm a omelette kind of girl.

Also trying to figure out what time to make the reservations (all but one will be on a sea day) in order to make the shows afterwards. Thinking 6:30. Is that too late?

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I've been to several Brazilian Steakhouses like Modernos. The trick is not to fill up on salad and to pace yourself. When taking the meats, take just a little at first till you discover which cuts of meat you prefer. Then, enjoy the cuts that suit your tastes. Teppanyaki is more than just veggies; there's chicken, steak, and shrimp. If you have never eaten in a Japanese restaurant, give it a try. The food is good and most people enjoy the experience. Cagney's is a very good steakhouse and the atmosphere is that of an expensive, big city steakhouse. Definitely worth your time. I like the buffet for breakfast; omelette and fresh cooked egg station is great. You also have choice of breakfast meats, cereals, fruits, and breads. You serve yourself and get your food quickly. The MDR for breakfast has limited menu and service is often slow. I like to get started in the morning and the buffet gets you in and out quickly if that's what you like. When reserving specialty restaurants, schedule at least two hours between dinner and show reservations or NCL will not let you make both reservations. We like early dinners and going to the late shows. 6:30 for dinner is fine if you're going to the late show. Specialty reservations on sea days work great because there's no rush to hurry back to ship on port days to shower and make early dinner.

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Hi, I have eaten at almost every type of restaurant except Brazilian steak house. I just couldn't justify the $70 price tag. I don't eat that much meat. I have been to this type of Japanese restaurant. I will probably eat a little rice some meat and a lot of veggies. Just making sure it's unlimited. I love good steak houses. Is it comparable to Ruth's Chris? Good to know they have an omelette station.

If a show starts at 9:00, what time would you arrive?

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Hi, I have eaten at almost every type of restaurant except Brazilian steak house. I just couldn't justify the $70 price tag. I don't eat that much meat. I have been to this type of Japanese restaurant. I will probably eat a little rice some meat and a lot of veggies. Just making sure it's unlimited. I love good steak houses. Is it comparable to Ruth's Chris? Good to know they have an omelette station.

No restaurant on any ship even comes close to Ruth's Chris, but Cagney's is still pretty good.

As a side note, if you have the dining package, every restaurant is pretty much "unlimited". I'm not sure about entrees, but you could go to Cagney's (or any specialty restaurant included in the package), order all the appetizers, all the sides, and all the desserts, and still not get charged a dime more.

100% in agreement with Cagneys and LeBistro. Avoid Moderno as the salad bar and desserts outclassed the meat which is a shame. Also, if during lunch or on nights you don't want to use your STR, we found Food Republic to be excellent and a must do at least once. In addition, I strongly recommend getting a table outside at Bayamo as it's great and only doesn't get much attention because it's not really on the SDP. O'Sheehans has bar food and the prime rib nights but it complements those other restaurants but I wouldn't choose it over them. Hope this helps

In order of preference:

1. Cagneys - very good steak and other items

2. Moderno - excellent food, and lots of it. I suggest not filling up on the salad bar, sample the various meats in small portions and then get more of the meats you really enjoy. You can't go wrong here

3. La Cucina - very good italian food and they also serve up an excellent italian styled steak. You can sample the pasta as a first course and have your main entree as the second course

4 - tie. le Bistro - French cuisine - only a couple of dishes hear have appealed to me - very overrated IMO

4 - tie. Teppanaki - if you enjoy some show with your dinner this may be a better choice than le Bistro. So for the 4th choice, I would decide what is more appealing and what you can't get at home

Do not go to anyone twice and skip one because someone else doesn't like them. Opinions on food are all over the board. I love Moderno and the Brazilian style steakhouse food it serves - some do not. They do NOT serve raw meat on a stick - don't be fooled by one person's negative opinion. If you have never been to a Brazilian style steakhouse, by all means go - you will love it

Not a reason you should ignore one restaurant because someone else did.

Try 4 different ones this cruise - then go from there in the future

On the Escape, we used our SDP at Pinchos Tapas bar and went down the menu ordering most dishes.

I am surprised no one has mentioned Bayamo. We ate there when we were on the Escape in February and it was wonderful. Everything from the appetizers through to the desert. My beef was so tender I could cut it with a fork.

Hi, Trying to make a dining decision. I'm getting the meal plan for four specialty restaurants. I would like to dine at Cagney's, Le Bistro and Moderno. What would your fourth restaurant choice be or would you repeat one of the restaurants listed above (is so, why?). Thanks in advance for your input. [emoji41]

 

 

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I hope you have a great time. Being a planner by nature (apparently), I enjoy choosing the specialty restaurants with days and times almost as much as going to them. I've only been on the Escape once and didn't go to Bayamo, Pincho Tapas Bar, Food Republic or Margaritaville. We dined at Cagney's, Teppanyaki, Moderno and LeBistro on board the Escape. All of my dining experiences there were excellent. I have only been on a BIG ship like the Escape once and the crowds are not my favorite. But that wasn't an issue with dining at the specialty restaurants.

Based on my overall experience (and tastes) on NCL ships, my picks in order are Cagney's, LeBistro (I like escargot), Teppanyaki (the social experience and "show" really adds to the good food), Moderno and La Cucina. I have never had a bad meal on any of the ships and only a bad service experience once when high level officers were dining next to us and must have overwhelmed the service staff. That is only one time out of 30+ specialty dining experiences and it wasn't on the Escape.

Enjoy your cruise!

On the Escape, I found I enjoyed La Cucina the most (OK, after Margaritaville for lunch - that was a great place). I thought their Osso Bucco was excellent and enjoyed the Beef Carpaccio for the starter. Enjoyed it enough that I switched reservations around to get in there an extra time.

LaCucina is not "real" italian IMO. Teppanyaki is great and fun, but no different than a land hibachi. LeBistro used to be my fave, but too many menu changes. our choices are always Cagneys and Moderno. that siad, we only eat at them wtih our platinum vouchers, we no longer opt to pay for tehm.

I'd easily go to Bayamo (which is an extra upcharge if using a dining package). I found the food there amazing. If not that, I'd probably do Cagney's or Le Bistro a second time.

I have NOT loved La Cucina in the past, but many of the thumbs up on this thread seem to be for the Escape's La Cucina. Therefore, I might try it again on our next cruise.

Oh, and someone asked about breakfast and omelets. You can get one pretty much anywhere on ship, with standard choice of toppings (meats, cheese, mushrooms, onions, peppers, etc.). I think you can also get smoked salmon as an option. The lines tend to be long at the omelet stations in the buffet. O'Sheehans makes it the same way, and it's usually much less busy. Same with MDR. Depends on if you want to pick assorted sides, or are okay with the standard options of hashbrowns and toast as your side in the sit down restaurants, or if you want to pick other things from the buffet.

I'm rethinking Moderno. The only reason I wanted to go was because I have never been to that type of restaurant. It wouldn't be cost effective at home since I don't eat that much meat. Raw meat on a stick is not appealing.

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My first and only cruise with Norwegian was on the Epic. My wife and I tried Le Bistro, Cagney's (twice), Moderno, La Cucina and Teppanyaki's. We loved them all so much that we booked not one but two more cruises with NCL. However, if I was left to choose just 3, it would be Cagney's, Le Bistro and La Cucina for me but I don't think you can go wrong with any of the choices. :) Also, we loved O'Sheehans, it was where we ate when we first boarded the ship and several other days for lunch. Main dining room for dinner was OK but loved it for breakfast & lunch. I couldn't tell you much about the buffet as I do not like eating in any buffet. If you are sailing on the Epic, the Cirque Dreams Dinner show should not be missed as well. Oops, almost forgot, on some days we had lunch in the Chinese Restaurant and liked that too.