Emerald Princess-what food is free and when?

first time on Princess, what food is free and when? I know on Carnival the Italian restaurant if free but not at dinner and the room service is free but has pay options. Any help would be greatly appreciated and if you have pics of menus please post them or let me know where I can see them.

Thanks

Janet

Here's a listing of all dining venues on Princess, their hours, and if and when any charges apply:

http://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/food-and-dining/dining-options.pdf

The ship specific page for Emerald Princess also has separate lists of Included Dining and Specialty Dining:

http://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/ships/ep-emerald-princess/

Lots of helpful info and answers can be found on the Princess website--which I know is untrue of many other lines. I'm sure others will provide their own lists, but these come straight from the ship.

The Princess website shows dining options for all ships and specialty restaurants have a fee between $25 to $39 & room service is free except for a $3 delivery charge for pizzas in an effort to reduce wastefulness.

http://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/food-and-dining/dining-options.pdf

http://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/food-and-dining/whats-included/

EDIT: I see that fishywood types faster than me. ;)

first time on Princess, what food is free and when? I know on Carnival the Italian restaurant if free but not at dinner and the room service is free but has pay options. Any help would be greatly appreciated and if you have pics of menus please post them or let me know where I can see them.

Thanks

Janet

Technically nothing is free as you paid for the cruise. A better question might be, what is included? As noted the MDR for multiple meals a day, the horizon court, pizza and burgers on the pool deck are all included. One of our favorites , on most but not all ships , is the IC (international cafe). It is open 24 hours. Has a variety of sweets and cereals as well as Princess play on an egg Macmuffin in the AM and then mid morning switches over to sandwiches, salads and desserts for the rest of the day. Also the spot to find cookies, the DW's obsession. Right next to the coffee spot, I highly recommend a coffee card. Do not know your ship but the Royal and Regal also have an Alfredo's with cooked to order pizza, salads and desserts. We have never starved, doubt you will either.

Emerald Princess:

No charge dining

DR's breakfast and dinner each day and lunch on sea days and boarding day (noon to 1:30)

International Cafe - Open 24/7

Pub Lunch @ the Wheelhouse Bar on certain sea days

Trident Grill, Pizza, Soft Ice Cream by the lido deck pools - open 11am until late evening

Horizon Ct/Cafe Caribe buffets - open 5 or 6am until late evening, never closes during that time.

Room Service 24 hour, except a full pizza had a $3 charge. There is a limited menu unless you are in a full suite.

Full suite passengers only have a special breakfast available to them in the Crown Grill.

Full Suite and Club Class mini suites have special Club Class dining in one of the MDR's.

Extra Charge Dining:

Crown Grill $29/pp

SHARE by Curtis Stone $39/pp

Crab Shack, held some evenings in a closed off buffet seating area $29/pp

Dining Experiences

Chef's Table - just under $100/pp

Ultimate Balcony Dining $100/two for Dinner and $45/two for Breakfast

Gastropub @ the Wheelhouse Bar $12/pp I think, maybe $19 but I think the price was reduced.

On the daily Patter, all dining venues, location and time of operation are printed at the back page.

Thanks everyone, we are late night eaters so were looking to see what all was available. Looks like we will have plenty to choose from all day and night.

Technically nothing is free as you paid for the cruise. A better question might be, what is included? As noted the MDR for multiple meals a day, the horizon court, pizza and burgers on the pool deck are all included. One of our favorites , on most but not all ships , is the IC (international cafe). It is open 24 hours. Has a variety of sweets and cereals as well as Princess play on an egg Macmuffin in the AM and then mid morning switches over to sandwiches, salads and desserts for the rest of the day. Also the spot to find cookies, the DW's obsession. Right next to the coffee spot, I highly recommend a coffee card. Do not know your ship but the Royal and Regal also have an Alfredo's with cooked to order pizza, salads and desserts. We have never starved, doubt you will either.

Totally agree with this post. Food is part of the cruise fare.There are many venues that offer the included meals and snacks. There are several

Specialty restaurants on Princess that charge a fee for dinner,but you can enjoy dinner in one of the main dining rooms or at the buffet.without an extra charge.

I see that you have taken many Carnival cruises.

I think you will find the quality of food on Princess is a step above Carnival,as are many other features of a Princess cruise.

Just a bit of clarification. There is no Alfredo's on Emerald Princess. There is no Sabatini's on Emerald Princess. That is the venue that (on some select ships) offers Alfredo's pizza at lunch without there being an actual Alfredo's venue. I'm bummed about it (cruising 28 days on Emerald Princess this coming October) but there it is. Nope, nope, nope to Alfredo's pizza.

Note: Even though there are about a bazillion (OK, exaggeration on my part) posts saying that the pizza on Princess that is served on Lido deck is "the best pizza at sea" that, to me, means that all pizza at sea sucks hard which I don't actually think is the case.

Alfredo's actually has good pizza. Cafe Corniche on Sea Princess had good pizza. I've only had pizza on a few other Princess ships: Crowne Princess (sucked), Star Princess - twice (sucked), Coral Princess (sucked less but...), Island Princess (sucked), Grand Princess - on Lido deck, not in Alfredo's - sucked).ON Grand Princess the pizza in Alfredo's was fine. I don't know what people are using as their reference point for pizza. I really, really, really don't get it.

Yes, I am kind of a "lone voice" here but my wife and my son actually agree with me although they think the pizza is "very slightly" better than I find it to be.

Carnival has many more casual (included in the fare) dining options beyond the usual pizza/hot dogs&burgers -- Princess has better pizza, Carnival has better(Guy's) burgers FWIW.

For one who may be used to the many (included in the fare)cooked-to-order and/or themed stations on Carnival - ie. Mongolian Grill, Italian(Pasta Bar), Burrito Bar, Deli, Blue Iguana Cantina, Seaside BBQ, Tandoor, Chopsticks etc., Princess doesn't have many different choices for casual (included in the fare) cooked-to-order eats. Pizza, Hamburgers, Hot-dogs and the few offerings in the I.C.(International Cafe) - Good for (grill-pressed on site)Paninis and tasty cold side-dish salads -- are about it on Princess. On occasion, Princess might also provide something like a 'make your own Miso or Japanese noodle soup' bar set-up, but cook-to-order stations like these are often a once-a-cruise type offering.

Where Princess makes up for this is in the Horizon Court buffet. There are many more choices here that are available all day, as well as themed ethnic evenings(like Italian night, German night, Mexican night etc.). The salad bar is pretty well stocked, and one can usually find something available in the HC to satiate the desire for an afternoon snack or late-night craving. If only comparing the buffet stations alone by themselves, Princess beats Carnival in this dept. in both variety, overall quality and hours.

The MDRs are a wash in my honest opinion. Neither present fine dining, some so-so meals, some good meals, but almost never great meals on either line. We've had a few dishes on Princess that were pretty bland and tasteless to the point that you won't often hear me rave about Princess as being noticeably better than any other mainstream line that we've sailed w/ the exception of NCL - but that's not really a benchmark to be proud of.

Many like to make the claim that Princess is noticeably better than Carnival in the food offerings dept. I don't agree with this. They both do things a bit different than each other. In some areas, one edges out the other and vice-versa. Overall the total Princess cruising experience is indeed a little nicer than Carnival, however Carnival is a better overall value than Princess.

 

Alfredo's actually has good pizza. Cafe Corniche on Sea Princess had good pizza. I've only had pizza on a few other Princess ships: Crowne Princess (sucked), Star Princess - twice (sucked), Coral Princess (sucked less but...), Island Princess (sucked), Grand Princess - on Lido deck, not in Alfredo's - sucked).ON Grand Princess the pizza in Alfredo's was fine. I don't know what people are using as their reference point for pizza. I really, really, really don't get it.

 

Yes, I am kind of a "lone voice" here but my wife and my son actually agree with me although they think the pizza is "very slightly" better than I find it to be.

Princess (Lido)pizza has gone way downhill from what it it was just a few years ago. It used to be like a decent NY-style slice, but I think they've cheapened on ingredients and the quality has suffered as a result -- Not the only corner(s) Princess has been cutting in recent years.;)

That stated, I have had some comparable(to Prego's) pizza on Carnival's cook-to-order station. SEE: Nothing to write home about, but will satisfy the craving for a slice or two. Either are best when fresh out of the oven and the cook hasn't undercooked them.

The pizza on HAL and NCL was bad -- Real bad, not even edible. Think Frozen/TV Dinner Domino's/Pizza Hut cardboard crust/rubber cheese quality.

Alfredo's is surely in a league of its own (at sea_ as probably the closest to brick-fired Italian-style pizza. Very similar to the places near home that try to emulate their version by using PDO imported ingredients and attempting to adhere to the pizza Napoletana specifications.

 

That stated, I have had some comparable(to Prego's) pizza on Carnival's cook-to-order station. SEE: Nothing to write home about, but will satisfy the craving for a slice or two. Either are best when fresh out of the oven and the cook hasn't undercooked them.

 

My experience on a Carnival ship last year where the Carnival cook-to-order pizza on the Lido deck was their new thin crust Pizza is that was the best Pizza at sea I have ever had.

Again, it was their thin crust Pizza.

Never had a pizza on any cruise that I'd go out of my way for

Ahhh the great pizza debate! Pizza is in the eye of (or the mouth) of the pizza holder!

I personally love the Pizza on Princess but that's just me!

Never had a pizza on any cruise that I'd go out of my way for

At least on Princess.:D

You guys are making me all sad. I was hoping Pizza would be my easy to grab thing on the Emerald! :P

You guys are making me all sad. I was hoping Pizza would be my easy to grab thing on the Emerald! :P

It is. Just grab a slice. They always have margarita and pepperoni and a special each day. Don't listen to all the pizza critics that post here. If you like the pizza then it's great pizza, if you don't then it isn't great pizza. I think it is good, the greatest, no, the worst, also no.

It is. Just grab a slice. They always have margarita and pepperoni and a special each day. Don't listen to all the pizza critics that post here. If you like the pizza then it's great pizza, if you don't then it isn't great pizza. I think it is good, the greatest, no, the worst, also no.

Eh, I just wont go in with high expectations! Just a pizza craving! hahahahaha

You'll enjoy International Cafe which is always open with very tasty food at no additional cost. :D

The MDRs are a wash in my honest opinion.

What are MDRs?

You'll enjoy International Cafe which is always open with very tasty food at no additional cost. :D

It's OK the just a quick snack but just doesn't replace real food for me. ;)

Don't despair about the Pizza on Princess. I really enjoy the pizza on Lido. Believe me, you haven't had baaaaad pizza until you have had what Celebrity calls pizza (ugh, what a travesty)/ Princess pizza satisfies my need for a slice or two a day, and some of their daily special ones happen to be among my all time favs, like their 50th anniversary pizza. So while you won't have an Alfredo's, the pizza on Lido is wonderful IMHO. It might also be where the Belgium waffles (for free) are in the morning.

The MDRs are a wash in my honest opinion.

 

 

 

What are MDRs?

Main Dining Rooms

Tom

Ahhh the great pizza debate! Pizza is in the eye of (or the mouth) of the pizza holder!

 

I personally love the Pizza on Princess but that's just me!

I'm hitting the like button on this one too. The Pizza in Alfredo's is soooooooo good. :D

Tony

I'm hitting the like button on this one too. The Pizza in Alfredo's is soooooooo good. :D

 

Tony

And even better in Alfredo's on the Royal & Regal which in addition to pizza had a full course Italian meal. :D