New Dining option: Manfredi's on Viking's Longships

Just returned from the Rhine Getaway. Same on our ship, no dinner buffet offered, just the restaurant or Manfredi's. I didn't eat there, but everyone that I heard really enjoyed it.

Just returned from the Rhine Getaway. Same on our ship, no dinner buffet offered, just the restaurant or Manfredi's. I didn't eat there, but everyone that I heard really enjoyed it.

I could be mistaken but I don’t think there ever was a dinner buffet. What they had on the Aquavit Terrace was a limited menu - steak, chicken, maybe a fish, but not a buffet.

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Manfredi’s

What is Manfredi’s?

It’s an evening dining option in the Aquavit Lounge. It replaces previous years open-to-all casual evening dining.

Do you have to book?

Seating is limited, usually 16 and can be extended to 24 if more than 16 book. You can book with reception or the Maitre D’, or just turn up and hope there are spare places. (On the first night of my cruise there were only two diners, on the last night when I had booked to eat, 20 places were set and there were 18 diners. (Four tables of 4, two tables of 2, placed in glassed area of lounge.)

But on my friend’s tour which ran the day after, their Manfredi’s was always fully booked and they never got a place.

What is the menu?

The menu can be seen any time in both the Aquavit lounge and it, along with all the daily menus, is on your TV. The menu was a 6 course set menu that doesn’t change. See menu below.

How does it work?

There’s a chef who prepares and plates the food at the Aquavit counter, and a waiter who brings the plates to each diner and pours drinks.

Three courses are cold, the spaghetti is pre-cooked and the chef heats it in a frying pan. The breaded chicken in tomato sauce was delicious, but I’d have preferred it to come with vegetables

What about the wine?

Manfredi’s has its own wine separate from the main dining room. It was supposed to be an Italian white and red (Chianti) but these wines hadn’t been delivered according to the Maitre D’ so we were served a German Riesling and a German red blend. As we were in Budapest I asked for and got a Hungarian red.

What about special requests?

I don’t eat cheese and each of the 6 dishes had cheese. The Maitre D’ promised it wouldn’t be a problem and I got the dishes without, and a different dessert from Tiramisu.

Menus and details may change. I experienced Manfredi’s on Viking Var Danube Waltz cruise (Passau>Budapest) 13-20 April 2018

I have a photo but can't see how to post it here.

Antipasti all Toscana

parmesan chunks, bresaola, marinated and grilled eggplant, zuchini, scallion

Panzanella Estiva

aparagus, cucumber, white beans, fresh herb vinaigrette, mozzarella & roasted garlic croutons

La Zuppe

Pasta e Fagiola

pasta and bean soup with Parmiguiano Reggiano

Un Po di Pasta

Spaghetti all Carbonara

smoked Pancetta, creamy Parmigiano Reggiano

Secondo Piatta

Parmigiana de Pollo

lightly breaded chicken breast; tomato sauce & mozzarella

Dolce

Tiramisu Classico

Just back from the Viking Danube Waltz on the Aegir. I was one of the sad folks was not able to try Manifred's as it was booked up for the entire cruise. I really would have preferred to have the more casual dinner buffet available. In one instance DH and I were so tired from our long day of touring and exploring that we wanted to just grab a quick bite and go to our cabins. Unfortunately, we had to go to the main dining room and wait for a full dinner service.

Just back from the Viking Danube Waltz on the Aegir. I was one of the sad folks was not able to try Manifred's as it was booked up for the entire cruise....

Do you have any sense of how quickly it was booked up?

Is this a situation where people are dashing to reception on arrival to make reservations or is it getting booked up over the first couple of days... ?

I have to say that I am not a great fan of cruise-lines providing a 'special' dining location that cannot accommodate all guests who want to use it at least once during a cruise...

I'm not sure how fast it booked up, but it wasn't on the first day or two. We tried later in the week, day 4 I think and were told it was booked the rest of the cruise. During the first evening's welcome aboard talk the passengers were told about the change and how to sign up. Unfortunately due to flight delays we missed the talk and were unaware of the reservation system. It was not published anywhere in the newsletter. All the daily newsletter said was the hours of operation, not that reservations were required or that it was different than what was listed in the brochure when we booked the cruise.

As a matter of fact, on Viking Kara on the Rhine, the Manfredi's allotment was certainly 20 diners. I can confirm that this is the number that the staff announced on day one, and I can further confirm there were 20 diners the evening that we ate there. This was the late March sailing.

From the department of the purely anecdotal, I don't think there was "high demand" for dining at Mafredi's. Also anecdotally, I never heard another guest mention their intention to eat there, nor their displeasure that there was not space. If I am recalling correctly, the other evening that I poked my head in, there seemed to be an un occupied table, but perhaps the diners had not yet arrived.

I would absolutely eat in that "venue" again if the opportunity arrises in the future..

I hope Manfredi’s is not on our Rhine cruise in September. The Aquavit Terrace sounds like a more appealing option. That said, I hope they feature foods from the regions through which we are traveling. I think that would enhance the trip. We can get good Italian food in our home town (or even at home). I hope they re-think this.

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Here is Cruise Critic's article about this:

Viking Brings Manfredi's Restaurant to River Cruise Ships

https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=8581

I am sure Manfredi’s is excellent but as repeat Viking River customers we hate to lose the option to grab a quick meal after a long day of touring when you just don’t feel like an extended dinner in the dining room. It would be nice if there were other options available, but as I am reading the CC article and other comments that is not an option. Just slightly disappointed to see this change for our upcoming July Paris to the Swiss Alps cruise.

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As we prepare for our first river cruise on Magni in September, we are disappointed to read that there may not be the Aquavit Terrace, as we had planned to eat there most nights. Our predicament, as we see it in the MDR, is that we try to eat healthy, don't drink, and only order a main course for dinner. If what I heard is correct, we will have to sit at the dinning table with others, waiting for them to finish their appetizers and salads, until we would be served our main course. This is hardly ideal. I am not criticizing others, as we have chosen to eat as we do. It is just that one of the reasons we chose Viking was so we could eat dinner at the Aquavit. Does anyone who has been on Viking river have any suggestions of how to make our dinner "work"for us if there is no Aquavit? Thank you.

One evening, when we were especially tired and did not have the energy to socialize we came to the dining room about 10 - 15 min. after everyone else and found a vacant table. Of course the kind folks nearby invited us to join them, but we said thank you but because they had already ordered we did not want to slow down their dinner. You could do that and only order an entree and then not wait for dessert. That might speed it up a bit, but if you did that every evening you might miss out on meeting some very wonderful people.

Also, I understand that Manfrid's is only in test, maybe they will discontinue if cruisers give them the feedback. We certainly included our concern in the post cruise survey.

We tried it and enjoyed it. Talked to others who said they enjoyed it as well. Seems like 16 seats were available on the Alruna last week. They did not do it on the "German" night.

Is it on any of the Duro ships yet?

I am sure Manfredi’s is excellent but as repeat Viking River customers we hate to lose the option to grab a quick meal after a long day of touring when you just don’t feel like an extended dinner in the dining room. It would be nice if there were other options available, but as I am reading the CC article and other comments that is not an option. Just slightly disappointed to see this change for our upcoming July Paris to the Swiss Alps cruise.

 

 

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Ditto, best spot on the ship, IMHO. I enjoyed the set-up the way they had it.

As a long time ocean cruiser and someone who is about go on our first Viking river cruise I am not happy about the idea of Manfredi's. When I booked our cruise I was pleased that there was a lighter and ala carte dining option to the MDR. I've let Viking know about my displeasure. If you Viking River cruisers are not happy about the loss of the Aquavit Terrace/Cafe for the evening meal you should let Viking know about your displeasure.

As a long time ocean cruiser and someone who is about go on our first Viking river cruise I am not happy about the idea of Manfredi's. When I booked our cruise I was pleased that there was a lighter and ala carte dining option to the MDR. I've let Viking know about my displeasure. If you Viking River cruisers are not happy about the loss of the Aquavit Terrace/Cafe for the evening meal you should let Viking know about your displeasure.

Whom did you notify?

I sent an email to Viking customer service and received a reply telling me to call the toll free number (which is for sales/reservations) and that they can discuss dining options. The person who received my email missed the point.

Whom did you notify?

 

I sent an email to Viking customer service and received a reply telling me to call the toll free number (which is for sales/reservations) and that they can discuss dining options. The person who received my email missed the point.

I sent an email to tellus@vikingcruises.com and received a similar reply, totally missed the point suggesting we could still eat in the main dining room...duh. They did however say they were “gathering feedback about this change”.

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We had lunch and breakfast on the Aquavit Terrace, but we really enjoyed the meals in the Restaurant. I thought it was nice and relaxing, sitting there chatting with others about the days excursions and ones coming up.

We always tried to get a table in the same section so we would have the same wait staff. They get to know what you like very quickly. The meal is only 3 courses - not a huge meal. They are very good at helping you get something you will enjoy. It’s not like you’re sitting there just waiting for the next course. You’re chatting and looking out the window. The time passes very quickly. No one would notice or comment if you only have the entree if that’s all you want.

Never occurred to us to eat dinner anywhere else. We most likely will not be eating in Manfredi’s on our river cruise either.

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I sent an email to tellus@vikingcruises.com and received a similar reply, totally missed the point suggesting we could still eat in the main dining room...duh. They did however say they were “gathering feedback about this change”.

 

 

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One of the nicest dinners ever was on the Aquavit. Informal and fun. Love Manfredi's on Ocean but this is Manfredi's in name only. It's different and more limited. I think it is some home office marketing exec reacting to the fact that Uniworld, etc. tout multiple "special" dining venues on river and Viking did not have such. Loved Viking's totally relaxing and last minute ability to sit and dine wherever without the bother of reservations. No more, unless they fix this.

I've found it a typical technique of Viking home office to be deliberately obtuse and totally redirect my issue into something it wasn't.

One of the nicest dinners ever was on the Aquavit. Informal and fun. Love Manfredi's on Ocean but this is Manfredi's in name only. It's different and more limited. I think it is some home office marketing exec reacting to the fact that Uniworld, etc. tout multiple "special" dining venues on river and Viking did not have such. Loved Viking's totally relaxing and last minute ability to sit and dine wherever without the bother of reservations. No more, unless they fix this.

 

 

 

I've found it a typical technique of Viking home office to be deliberately obtuse and totally redirect my issue into something it wasn't.

Totally agree.

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We just returned from the Danube Waltz. After reading about this option here, I emailed the ship ahead of time and they were happy to book us. We really enjoyed the experience.

We just returned from the Danube Waltz. After reading about this option here, I emailed the ship ahead of time and they were happy to book us. We really enjoyed the experience.

I think the problem is not the addition of the Manfredi's option, but that it comes at the loss of the Aquavit dining option in the evening. The Restaurant is a great place to spend an hour or two dining with new friends, and I am sure the new Manfredi's is too. There are times, after an all day excursion perhaps, when you might want just to get a quick bite and call it a day. The Aquavit Terrace was perfect for that.

(y)(y)(y)