Luminae

[canderson]

17 minutes ago, Treasure Hunter said:

Can you order off the MDR menu in Luminae?

Absolutely as long as you're on M or S class, and you're on S class, so yes, they will bring you both MDR and Luminae menus every night if you ask.

 

On the Edge ships, the galleys are at opposite ends of the ship, so they do not accommodate that request.

[canderson]

19 minutes ago, Treasure Hunter said:

What's in the Retreat food wise that's normal?

Separate question, separate answer.  "Normal" is in the eye of the beholder, I guess.  We did not find the Luminae menu to be particularly exotic. 

 

Again, the MDR menu has items that can be ordered every night and they seem to avoid overlap between item types between the MDR and Luminae menus on a given night anyway, so on an M or S class ship, you should have many options each night in Luminae, and should certainly be able to find something that appeals to you.

[wrk2cruise]

As others have said the descriptions on the Luminae menus sound very fancy and some of the ingredients listed I've never heard of.  The food is really not that fancy.  Talk with your waiter they will steer you in the right direction or possibly make an alternate suggestion.  They are going to make sure you are happy.

[Treasure Hunter]

I love everyone on Cruise Critic. Thank you so much ( I was anxious) especially at the price for suites.

[bEwAbG]

I find it best to ignore the verbiage on the menu and focus on the underlying dish (do you want meat, fish, etc.?).  Then, as already suggested, talk to your waiter and ask for their recommendations for the evening.  They have a pretty good idea of what is popular and what is not on any given menu.  It's an excellent restaurant.  

[bigbenboys]

Some photos from Luminae.

[groryjm]

24 minutes ago, bigbenboys said:

Some photos from Luminae.

Love the chocolate bomb😎 but it only seems to apear on cruises of 9 days or more😒

 

[groryjm]

The Luminae Chocolate Bomb in October

 

 

 

[Moby Jones]

23 hours ago, Treasure Hunter said:

I love everyone on Cruise Critic. Thank you so much ( I was anxious) especially at the price for suites.

Book a suite and find out for yourself. I'm sure if you tell them exactly what YOU want that you'll have a great time. Do it and come back and tell us all what you think. :) 

[kwokpot]

Luminae Dinner from the 12/11-20 Apex sailing. Here's the photo of the alleged 'Ribeye Steak'.

[George C]

1 hour ago, Moby Jones said:

Book a suite and find out for yourself. I'm sure if you tell them exactly what YOU want that you'll have a great time. Do it and come back and tell us all what you think. 🙂

The only problem with suite is you never want to book anything else, my first cruise on Celebrity we got a free upgrade to corner aft sky suite , we booked suites ever since . Celebrity and MSc yacht club have the best suite perks.

[Moby Jones]

14 minutes ago, George C said:

The only problem with suite is you never want to book anything else, my first cruise on Celebrity we got a free upgrade to corner aft sky suite , we booked suites ever since . Celebrity and MSc yacht club have the best suite perks.

I'm happy to sail on several lines so am not too badly affected. No offence to anyone but the  MDR does appear pretty lame and boring after getting used to Luminae (I await posts from people who apparently dislike the place now.... lol). 

[CruiseNYC]

We're just off the Millennium and we would agree that service is really what sets Luminae apart from MDR.   We were usually handed all 3 menus (Luminae, MDR and Blu) so there was plenty from which to choose).

We did have lunch one afternoon in Metropolitan and when the waiter reached straight across the table in front my husband to grab something, we decided that Luminae was our happy place.

The other thing about ordering at Luminae is that if you would like to have an appetizer as a main course, they'll adjust portion size for you.

[DaKahuna]

Just now, CruiseNYC said:

 

The other thing about ordering at Luminae is that if you would like to have an appetizer as a main course, they'll adjust portion size for you.

 

 And the Children's menu has some excellent choices -- especially the petite filet ! 

 

 

[DCPIV]

2 hours ago, kwokpot said:

Luminae Dinner from the 12/11-20 Apex sailing. Here's the photo of the alleged 'Ribeye Steak'.

 

Yep.  That's the abomination.  They also had "lamb chops" that night that were the same construction.  Little, homogenous, circular meat things with no bones on a plate.  Those are the only two things I've ever seen in Luminae that I simply did not care for.  Other than that, everything was either fantastic or fixed very quickly.

 

On that night, I ended up reordering and getting the lamb chops from Blu.  They were maginificent!

[kwokpot]

23 minutes ago, CruiseNYC said:

The other thing about ordering at Luminae is that if you would like to have an appetizer as a main course, they'll adjust portion size for you.

Unfortunately one evening on my Apex cruise that didn't happen. I actually REQUESTED that the Scallop entree be plated as a second appetizer. Instead of honoring my request they brought out my first starter and then brought out two entrees, the lobster and scallops fully plated separately. In the scheme of things nothing terrible to get upset about and I think in the servers mind he was doing me a favor by giving me more food, but that's not what I wanted and it really was a simple request. Sitting at a table for two it made for a crowded main course.

[LGW59]

27 minutes ago, kwokpot said:

Unfortunately one evening on my Apex cruise that didn't happen. I actually REQUESTED that the Scallop entree be plated as a second appetizer. Instead of honoring my request they brought out my first starter and then brought out two entrees, the lobster and scallops fully plated separately. In the scheme of things nothing terrible to get upset about and I think in the servers mind he was doing me a favor by giving me more food, but that's not what I wanted and it really was a simple request. Sitting at a table for two it made for a crowded main course.

so in the scheme of things, you were upset about it, otherwise why comment on here about it.

[kwokpot]

5 minutes ago, LGW59 said:

so in the scheme of things, you were upset about it, otherwise why comment on here about it.

I haven't made a separate post about my first time experience in Retreat class but I had an amazing cruise and overall the service and product on the Apex was topnotch. There's always room for improvement and the ignored request for replating an entree as an appetizer is one of those things that could and should have been done.  

[DCPIV]

5 minutes ago, kwokpot said:

I haven't made a separate post about my first time experience in Retreat class but I had an amazing cruise and overall the service and product on the Apex was topnotch. There's always room for improvement and the ignored request for replating an entree as an appetizer is one of those things that could and should have been done.  

 

It's no secret or surprise that cruise ship servers tend to think that "if a little is good, then a lot is better," and that's one of the reasons we love them. 

 

I agree with you that things should have happened in the manner that you requested and that it's nothing to get upset about.

[canderson]

 

55 minutes ago, kwokpot said:

Unfortunately one evening on my Apex cruise that didn't happen. I actually REQUESTED that the Scallop entree be plated as a second appetizer. Instead of honoring my request they brought out my first starter and then brought out two entrees, the lobster and scallops fully plated separately. 

Have never had something like that happen in Luminae, but in past times, weve found this approach to be SOP in the MDR to avoid the extra time/work to bring the meal plated as requested.  I used to ask for extra rack of lamb, and they would inevitably bring two fully plated meals.

Edited December 30, 2021 by canderson

[DCPIV]

2 minutes ago, canderson said:

 

Have never had something like that happen in Luminae, but in past times, weve found this approach to be SOP in the MDR to avoid the extra time/work to bring the meal plated as requested.  I used to ask for extra rack of lamb, and they would inevitably bring two fully plated meals.

 

I've had that sort of thing happen plenty of times, too.  It's just a matter of how the system works.  The waiters and the galley don't really talk to each other these days, and the ordering system is limited in what it can do.  

 

If I don't want two full meals in front of me, I just move what I want from one plate to the other and then ask to have the auxiliary plate taken away.  It's a waste, but it's a waste that already happened and that I can do nothing more about.

[M&Msmom]

I didn’t know that on Edge class ships, you couldn’t order from the MDR menu in Luminea. I have to say I’m disappointed at the lack of that option.what are the room service options for suite guests? Does Luminea have a classic menu each night like the MDR?  

[canderson]

8 minutes ago, DCPIV said:

 

I've had that sort of thing happen plenty of times, too.  It's just a matter of how the system works.  The waiters and the galley don't really talk to each other these days, and the ordering system is limited in what it can do. 

Yet somehow (with what the earlier poster noted as an exception), it's something the Luminae waiters can find a way to accomplish.

[LGW59]

8 minutes ago, M&Msmom said:

I didn’t know that on Edge class ships, you couldn’t order from the MDR menu in Luminea. I have to say I’m disappointed at the lack of that option.what are the room service options for suite guests? Does Luminea have a classic menu each night like the MDR?  

My feeling on this is, if I go to a local restaurant for dinner, I am going to order from their menu.  I'd never ask, hey thanks for having me me, BUT can I please order the XXXX from the restaurant next door.  I know on M and S class ships they allow it, but am glad they do not on on E.  If one wants the menu from MDR just go there.

[DCPIV]

3 minutes ago, LGW59 said:

If one wants the menu from MDR just go there.

 

But Luminae is the MDR for suites.  The whole idea behind it is to give Retreat guests an MDR experience (i.e., you and the servers get to know each other) but in an environment that's a notch up in service and selection.  It's not just about the menu, but one of the major draws of Luminae on M and S ships is the ability to order from other assigned dining rooms without having to go somewhere other than Luminae.

 

If you were in a suite and showed up at the MDR, I'm sure they would do their best to accommodate you as they do in Blu, but it's not your assigned dining room.  It's someone else's, and you're now taking up their bandwidth.  It's not like you can book it in the way you can a specialty restaurant.

 

Also, what's the problem with mixing and matching?  I might not want the MDR menu, but I might want something from it.  There have been a number of times in Luminae where I ordered an appetizer from one menu and an entree from another (and maybe a dessert from another still), especially after the first cruise in Luminae.  I've had tablemates who did the same.  Not to mention how that tablemate has been my wife on occasion.  It was rather nice that we could both have the selections we wanted without having to split up or go nomadic.  

 

At least they expanded the E-class Luminae menus to include "classic" offerings.  Still, it's a downgrade from what you get in Luminae on other ships.  That's one of my problems with the E-class ships.  The "ship within a ship" concept is done in a manner that limits options more than expand them.