Crab Legs in Pinnacle or MDR?

[coconutmama]

I'm sailing next week to Alaska with my family and two young boys (4 and 8). They desperately want to eat crab at a "fancy restaurant" and so do I. Yum! I've sailed with other cruise lines and crab has usually been served in the main dining room one night. I can not seem to remember if Holland America was one of them. Is crab served in the MDR? I know it's in the Pinnacle Grill. Is it worth going to the Pinnacle Grill for if it is also served in the MDR? We're sailing on ms Amsterdam if that makes any difference.

 

We're from the PNW and recently relocated to the Midwest. We used to eat lots of seafood and crab....not so much now living in corn country. Counting down till we can eat all the yummy Alaskan seafood!

 

Thank you in advance.

[OlsSalt]

On our recent Alaska cruise, a special very large seafood platter was offered in the MDR for I believe a $25 surcharge per person. It included a variety of sea food, not just crab legs. It came with great ceremony. I suspect one platter would be plenty for two young children (actually all four of you from the look of it) but don't know if you can get a child's portion or if all persons at the same table need to order this.

 

Be sure to ask about this to consider it as an option for "fine dining" crab legs as compared to the more expensive full dinner version at the Pinnacle. We saw one table order it twice so they must have enjoyed it. It is included on the written menu and gives you more detail about what seafood is included in this special platter.

 

If your cruise goes to Icy Straight Point, that is a "Crab Pot" place to get a more casual crab leg option. We were too early for dungenes crab, but it might be in season now. Otherwise you will most likely get the larger but less flavorful king crab.

[Homosassa]

On our fourteen night Rotterdam cruise to the Caribbean, crab legs were one of the choices (no upcharge) on one of the Gala (or whatever they call it) nights.

 

Keep in mind that even if you are sailing in waters with plentiful fresh seafood, the seafood on board will be frozen and sourced from whatever supplier HAL has a contract with.

 

Because we don't care from what passses as lobster and crab on cruise ships, our head waiter who was a young recent graduate from a college in the Netherlands, was asking those of us who didn't order the lobster on the first Gala night why we didn't as he was curious. We told him frozen spiny lobster tails just couldn't compare to a fresh North Atlantic lobster.

 

He told us the lobster tails served that night was from a species off the coast of New Zealand. The crab legs were from a source in the Philippines.

[kacurl]

On our cruise to Alaska last year we stopped in Juneau and ate at Tracy's Crab Shack . Very touristy but was the best crab legs I ever had. one night we ate in the Pinnacle Grill and I had the crab legs I just didn't think they were that great, but the rib eye was fantastic. I know what you mean about the lobster. I live on Cape Cod and I'm having Lobster on the 4th of July:p !!!!!!!:p

[AD5ZA]

My wife had crab legs in the Pinnacle Grill on the Rotterdam TA in April. Some of the best she had ever eaten in her humble opinion. They were split and more than she could eat. There was a stack of legs on a large plate 6-8" high. Never had them in the MDR that I can remember but had them on the Lido Buffet several times while on a GWC.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[RandyinDEN]

Go to Tracy's in Juneau. You won't be disappointed.

[KirkNC]

On our cruise to Alaska last year we stopped in Juneau and ate at Tracy's Crab Shack . Very touristy but was the best crab legs I ever had. one night we ate in the Pinnacle Grill and I had the crab legs I just didn't think they were that great, but the rib eye was fantastic. I know what you mean about the lobster. I live on Cape Cod and I'm having Lobster on the 4th of July:p !!!!!!!:p

 

We ate at Tracey’s as well and the crab was quite good.

[Bretty]

If you don’t mind forgoing the fancy restaurant experience then Tracey’s in Juneau certainly offers good crab, pricey, but then it always is and it’s a treat. It was delicious crab and the chowder was good too. Crab cakes were “meh”.

 

The only issue with Tracey’s is the wait. It’s only about 15-20 minutes from ordering, but the lines to get to place your order are long, we went in May so it was early season and the total wait time from joining the line to getting food was an hour, in the rain.

 

Tracey’s has a good system going re getting a table if only everyone stuck to it. The rule is you can’t take a table until you’ve ordered, and by the time you’ve ordered there will be a place available. They enforce it but not strictly, we frequently saw groups, especially outdoors, grab a table and send someone to join the line, and the rather stern woman policing the line denied it was happening.

 

I think there was crab or lobster on the MDR one night, for a charge which I didn’t expect in the MDR. (There was also surf & turf one night, it was okay, nothing special). We ate twice at the Pinnacle, and whilst I would normally order crab when available, I stuck to steak as it was rather awesome the first night. I did see the crab legs come to another table, looked like a good stack.

[coconutmama]

Thank you for the replies everyone! We stopped at Tracy's four years ago and IT WAS DIVINE. I quickly realized it is a must in Juneau. We will definitely be back there again, but I don't think there's a thing as too much crab...yum!

[rotjeknor]

I had crablegs in toe PC onboard the Rotterdam last april, huge platter !

But they were also on the menu in the MDR on our Zuiderdam cruise in february 18 and Prinsendam august 17, only about half as much as in the Pinnacle Grill. But tasty all the same.

[Herfnerd]

Another vote for Tracy's in Juneau. Extremely casual and not cheap but very good - I think your kids might get a kick out of being served King Crab legs as big as their arm.

[wales4ever]

Not on the konningsdam last week in the main dining room.

[coconutmama]

Not on the konningsdam last week in the main dining room.

 

That's good to know. Thank you!

[dee2673]

I’ve never seen crab legs on the MDR on any of our 4 cruises. I’ve had them in the PG. no better or worse than anywhere else. I just like crab and never had a bad one. It was almost more than I could eat !

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[ithaca gal]

If the boys order crab in the PG, I highly recommend that they order ONE serving and split it and have a SECOND order served a bit later. There are so many crab legs that they will get cold before you can get to all of them.

 

When a friend and I dine in the PG, one of us orders steak and the other orders crab legs. Then we split the dinners.