Carnival's Total Choice Dining - Cruising's Most Comprehensive Dining Program

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Wonder what they plan to add to Freedom???

 

http://www.carnival.com/CMS/Articles/dining_virtual2.aspx

Carnival's Total Choice Dining - Cruising's Most Comprehensive Dining Program

 

 

 

 

7/15/05

 

 

 

MIAMI – With the widest variety of formal and casual options at sea – everything from sushi bars and New York-style delis to 24-hour pizzerias and upscale “steakhouse-style” supper clubs – along with enhanced service standards and four convenient dinner seatings, Carnival’s Total Choice Dining(SM) is cruising’s most comprehensive dining program.

 

Guest options will be further broadened based on plans for even more choice on the new Carnival Freedom scheduled to enter service in February 2007, while recently compiled statistical data suggests that guests are taking advantage of the many dining choices Carnival offers on a large scale basis.

 

“There is such a huge range of choice when it comes to dining on Carnival, and choosing from among the various options each day, according to individual moods and schedules, couldn’t be easier,” said Bob Dickinson, Carnival president. “Plus, the most important feature of Carnival’s Total Choice Dining is that it retains one of the single-most treasured aspects of the cruise experience – the ability for each guest to develop a relationship and rapport with the same wait staff every day in the formal restaurants, if the guest so chooses,” he added.

 

Current Carnival’s Total Choice Dining offerings include:

 

Available on every “Fun Ship”:

 

- Elegant, full-service breakfast, lunch and dinner in formal restaurants

 

- Alternative Lido casual restaurants for breakfast, lunch and dinner at no additional charge

 

- Lido specialty stations serving made-to-order selections such as omelettes, eggs, fajitas, chicken Caesar salad, pasta and stir fry

 

- Elaborate salad bars in Lido restaurants featuring approximately 35 different items

 

- Lido meat-carving station

 

- Lido dessert bar

 

- 24-hour pizzeria

 

- 24-hour stateroom service (complimentary, of course)

 

- Patisseries offering specialty coffees and sweets

 

- New York-style delis featuring a variety of sandwiches and traditional side dishes

 

- Sushi bars serving authentic Asian delicacies

 

- 24-hour free frozen yogurt and ice cream service

 

- Cookie turndown service for kids

 

- Nightly midnight buffets, including a grand gala buffet on every voyage

 

Specialty dining areas serving Asian cuisine are also available on all Destiny-, Spirit- and Conquest-class ships.

 

Following the tremendous success of “steakhouse-style” supper clubs introduced on Carnival’s Spirit- and Conquest-class ships which feature a diverse menu that includes U.S.D.A. prime beef and other gourmet cuisine, the company’s two new ships on order will house their own “reservations-only” alternative restaurant offering upscale cuisine in intimate, elegant surroundings.

 

Additional complimentary dining options planned for new ships include dedicated specialty areas featuring rotisserie roasted meats, fish and chips and other seafoods, and ice cream parlors, lavish daily dessert bars, and “Nation of the Day” specialty cuisine in the Lido alternative dining areas.

 

Four Seatings and Team Service Implementation

 

Dinner service in the formal restaurants under the four-seating system provides guests the opportunity to choose from among seating times starting at 5:45 p.m.; 6:15 p.m.; 8 p.m.; and 8:30 p.m. At the same time, the fleetwide Team Service system increases the number of wait staff serving each table while the Seaview Bistro casual alternative dinner service now features an enhanced menu selection and occasional full table service provided by wait staff.

 

“Response to these changes has been tremendous with positive feedback focused extensively on excellent service and cuisine quality, improved guest flow throughout the vessel during the dinner period, and general guest satisfaction relative to assigned dining times,” said Dickinson.

 

Statistical Data Supporting Popularity of Casual Alternatives; Camaraderie of Main Dining Rooms Remains Top Choice for Dinner

 

Recent statistical analyses conducted by Carnival suggest guest volume at Lido Deck/casual restaurants for breakfast and lunch is running between approximately 60-70 percent on a daily basis. Meanwhile, Carnival’s 24-hour complimentary pizzerias are serving between 500-800 pizzas per day per ship depending on vessel size.

 

Approximately 25 percent of the cruise line’s guests on average are using the Seaview Bistro casual dinner service at some point during a voyage with volume increasing heavily on days ships are in a port of call.

 

“In addition to greater demands for choice among today’s discerning vacationer, the wide popularity of our casual dining alternatives is largely a reflection of the tremendous upgrades and enhancements we have incorporated into our overall dining experience,” said Dickinson.

 

“The extraordinary level of positive guest feedback on the quality of cuisine and breadth of dining choice available on ‘Today’s Carnival’ has been most gratifying,” he added.