What do you think of the new Prima class dinner menu?

[2 Fun Guys]

I would LOVE a mac and cheese entree. Nothing fancy, plain old homemade mac and cheese!

[ontheweb]

11 hours ago, 2 Fun Guys said:

I would LOVE a mac and cheese entree. Nothing fancy, plain old homemade mac and cheese!

Our first NCL cruise was in 2006 NY to Bermuda, and there was someone all over the NCL boards complaining about mac and cheese being on the menu given what they were spending for the cruise. As they say, different strokes for different folks.

[herbanrenewal]

NCL as a whole has a terrific program for dealing with special needs dietary restrictions. I have serious kidney disease, and each cruise I've been on since post-covid restrictions has been able to accommodate my needs. A good friend is strictly vegan because of a protein metabolism problem. Both of us have been able to get delicious meals. I make talking to the special needs matre'd my first thing as soon as i board (usually can find them wherever they are doing specialty restaurant bookings).  Every day at dinner i can put in my diet from the menus for the next day.

I loved the Prima menus - very easy to figure out what is possible for the chefs to prep for me.

[Liljo22]

I have not said on the Prima but I like the look of the new menu.  On the old menu, there was a bunch of entrees that didn't interest me at all.   Every entree on the new menu is something I would order if I was eating out.  Well maybe on the veal but I would give it a try on the ship since its free.  I also like that they give you a bunch of side options instead of just what every is listed in the entree.  The build your own pasta is a great idea also.  I am sad that there is no prime rib though.  

[CruizinSusan70]

We were on the 11 day repo cruise from Galveston to Miami on 10/31.  Ate at Hudson's 3 nights for dinner and another 3 days for lunch.  We used 4 specialty dinners, another 3 dinners in the Indulge Food Hall and a late dinner one night at the Local.

The beef Wellington was done a perfect rare.  The chicken rotisserie was surprisingly good and was also available at lunch.  It consisted of dark and white pieces and the white was primarily a boneless breast with skin on and a frenched bone. Other highlights were the NE clam chowder, the honey creme brulee and the bread pudding with whiskey caramel sauce.

Would have no problem ordering seven different entrees if needed, but the wellington with carrots was so good, it would be consumed on multiple nights 

[curlstravel]

We sailed on the prima Oct 31 to Aruba etc I Don’t know the occupancy of the ship but I believe it was close to full occupancy.  It did not seem crowded because the swimming pools etc. are spaced out so everyone is not in the same area at one time.  The entertainment on the ship was beyond excellent!  Donna summers was just like going to a Broadway show in New York. It was so good.  The noise boys was a great show too my husband and I both enjoyed it very much as well as the group that sang the Elton John songs.  We did go to Price is right. It was a-lot of fun similar to the real show. Comedy was in both locations depending on the night. I did not see any games in the atrium but they have music every night. They had a lot of games going on during the day in the rooms that are used for music like Syd Norman or the improv room.  We loved the ship and can’t wait to book another cruise on the prima Or viva.  We did not have a room in Haven we had a balcony room which was very nice and roomy.

[pilgrimage]

5 minutes ago, curlstravel said:

We sailed on the prima Oct 31 to Aruba etc I Don’t know the occupancy of the ship but I believe it was close to full occupancy.  It did not seem crowded because the swimming pools etc. are spaced out so everyone is not in the same area at one time.  The entertainment on the ship was beyond excellent!  Donna summers was just like going to a Broadway show in New York. It was so good.  The noise boys was a great show too my husband and I both enjoyed it very much as well as the group that sang the Elton John songs.  We did go to Price is right. It was a-lot of fun similar to the real show. Comedy was in both locations depending on the night. I did not see any games in the atrium but they have music every night. They had a lot of games going on during the day in the rooms that are used for music like Syd Norman or the improv room.  We loved the ship and can’t wait to book another cruise on the prima Or viva.  We did not have a room in Haven we had a balcony room which was very nice and roomy.

 

We asked one of the staff in Indulge, and they said there were 2200 passengers, so not a full ship.  Maybe because it was a longer cruise, harder to get time off with kids.  There were not a lot of kids on the ship (less than I expected anyway).  If that's the case, I would not want to try and go to Indulge with a full ship.

[laudergayle]

22 minutes ago, curlstravel said:

We sailed on the prima Oct 31 to Aruba etc I Don’t know the occupancy of the ship but I believe it was close to full occupancy.  It did not seem crowded because the swimming pools etc. are spaced out so everyone is not in the same area at one time.  The entertainment on the ship was beyond excellent!  Donna summers was just like going to a Broadway show in New York. It was so good.  The noise boys was a great show too my husband and I both enjoyed it very much as well as the group that sang the Elton John songs.  We did go to Price is right. It was a-lot of fun similar to the real show. Comedy was in both locations depending on the night. I did not see any games in the atrium but they have music every night. They had a lot of games going on during the day in the rooms that are used for music like Syd Norman or the improv room.  We loved the ship and can’t wait to book another cruise on the prima Or viva.  We did not have a room in Haven we had a balcony room which was very nice and roomy.

Thank you for your review.  I realize it was off topic.  I’ve seen so many negative reviews on space and entertainment so I really appreciate your very positive review.  

[curlstravel]

31 minutes ago, pilgrimage said:

 

We asked one of the staff in Indulge, and they said there were 2200 passengers, so not a full ship.  Maybe because it was a longer cruise, harder to get time off with kids.  There were not a lot of kids on the ship (less than I expected anyway).  If that's the case, I would not want to try and go to Indulge with a full ship.

The secret to indulge is to go 10 min before it opens to get a good table

[pilgrimage]

36 minutes ago, curlstravel said:

The secret to indulge is to go 10 min before it opens to get a good table

 

Sure, but to me, one of the supposed benefits of venues like Indulge, The Local and the buffet is not having to be a slave to a schedule.  I want to go on *my* schedule - I'M ON VACATION!  🙂  I know - dream on.

[Sand and Seas]

1 hour ago, curlstravel said:

The secret to indulge is to go 10 min before it opens to get a good table

We went to Indulge (Oct 31st 11 day cruise) for several lunches and didn't have too much trouble finding a table an hour or so after it opened.   The staff was very quick to clean the tables between guests so we would just wait a minute or two to get a table.  All of the food comes out so quick that lunch never took too long.  

Edited November 15, 2022 by Sand and Seas

[CruizinSusan70]

7 hours ago, pilgrimage said:

If that's the case, I would not want to try and go to Indulge with a full ship.

Thought that the pickings were better as the day went along.  Dinner raised the bar substantially compared to lunch, in our opinion.  At dinnertime, we went three times and never had a problem getting a table.  Lunchtime in Hudson's was great on sea days.

[pilgrimage]

38 minutes ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

Thought that the pickings were better as the day went along.  Dinner raised the bar substantially compared to lunch, in our opinion.  At dinnertime, we went three times and never had a problem getting a table.  Lunchtime in Hudson's was great on sea days.

 

Agree on both.  Also, The Local was a great choice for dinner (and an ice cream sundae!) to get an outdoor table at sunset:

 

 

 

Hudson's was a great lunch choice, since you could really appreciate the expansive view during the daytime.  When we boarded, Indulge was jam-packed, but Hudson's was almost empty.  Some great items on the lunch menu, too - Thai Beef Salad, Caesar Salad, Smashburger, Grilled Mahi, Roast Chicken, Creme Brulee, Cheesecake

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 16, 2022 by pilgrimage

[Sand and Seas]

Now I wished we had made it to Hudson's for lunch.  That beautiful room with the expansive windows must have been quite a sight at lunch (and wasted somewhat at dinner.)

 

The Local had some delicious soups (different each day) and salads.  Really loved those Hot Fudge Sundaes!   Would hate to admit here how many of them we enjoyed during the 11 day cruise😋

 

[kapcruiser]

6 hours ago, Sand and Seas said:

Now I wished we had made it to Hudson's for lunch.  That beautiful room with the expansive windows must have been quite a sight at lunch (and wasted somewhat at dinner.)

 

The Local had some delicious soups (different each day) and salads.  Really loved those Hot Fudge Sundaes!   Would hate to admit here how many of them we enjoyed during the 11 day cruise😋

 

Was there a charge for the sundaes?

[debenson0723]

1 hour ago, kapcruiser said:

Was there a charge for the sundaes?

No.

[pilgrimage]

4 hours ago, kapcruiser said:

Was there a charge for the sundaes?

 

No charge - everything at The Local is complimentary.

[Sand and Seas]

4 hours ago, kapcruiser said:

Was there a charge for the sundaes?

Those beautiful hot fudge sundaes were on the Local's menu and no charge. 

I wonder if they will be added to the Local on other ships?

[CruizinSusan70]

On 11/16/2022 at 10:26 AM, Sand and Seas said:

Those beautiful hot fudge sundaes were on the Local's menu and no charge. 

I wonder if they will be added to the Local on other ships?

Hope so, will find out in January on the Encore.  If not, will enjoy them on our B2B on the Prima at the end of February.

[Cheesegirl23]

I was also on the Oct 31 sailing and really enjoyed the new menu items.  The braised beef short rib is listed as made with Guinness,  which made me wary as I don't like beer,  but it was AMAZING and didn't taste like beer at all! I had it 3 times lol.  The honey cream brulee us especially delicious if you ask for some raspberries with it 😉

[Sigyn]

On 9/27/2022 at 8:20 PM, Sailing12Away said:

I'm in the camp of preferring this new menu. When pre-booking specialty dining it was always a guess based on port times, then scrambling after seeing show times conflicting on some days, or seeing hubby's favorite paella being offered and needing to switch so he could get that. This fixed menu is more to my liking and makes planning easier for me. 

 

For folks that want a completely different menu every night on a 10+ day cruise, I'd love to see what your typical at home meal plan looks like. Guess we're just boring people who have no issue with repeating a burger, pasta, or protein of your choice dish within a 2 week period.

We don't sail on the Prima until Dec. 23, but I like the idea of a fixed menu with more choices. This way, I don't worry that our specialty dining will mean that we miss a favorite item in the MDR, etc. Plus, it sounds like there are plenty of options in the MDR even with a fixed menu. We've only sailed Carnival in the past, but with fewer items, there were always a few odd ones that didn't appeal, and the basics were VERY basic. I know the food is a better quality on NCL, which is one of the (many) reasons we switched. We are foodies, and we are fine with the fixed menu, supplemented by three nights in the specialty restaurants during our 7-night cruise. I've looked at the menus posted online and they seem quite acceptable. 

[Tigeroy]

Hi

How late is dinner served in the MDR on Prima?  

[brigand13]

1 hour ago, Tigeroy said:

Hi

How late is dinner served in the MDR on Prima?  

 

I think the posted end time was 9:30 pm, but they don't just kick you out once it hits that time.  And the service remains exceptional even if you're one of the later diners (ask me how I know 😉).  

My take was that the menu was excellent.  We ate in the MDRs three or 4 times on the 11 night cruise and there were STILL several items I'd have liked to try. but one can only eat so much before they have to bring out the luggage dolly to get you back to your room.  😛  Oh well, guess I'll just have to book another cruise on Prima....  darn.... 

[fandangocruiser]

On 9/26/2022 at 7:12 AM, meanone111 said:

I was on the Prima recently. We tried Cagney's, Palomar, Nama Sushi, Hudson's, The Local, Indulge Food Hall and many times at the Surfside buffet. The food at Hudson's is quite good, but I wasn't too excited for the fixed dinning menu, as it got kind of boring to see the same items again each day. Local was ok, nothing too memorable with the typical bar type food and Indulge was ok too, but felt the portions was kind of small and tasted just average. I think NCL should consider changing menus for Hudson's and The Commodore Room because it seems kind of disappointing to be on this nice ship only for non-haven guests to see the same menu every day in the main dinning room. 

 

[fandangocruiser]

On 9/26/2022 at 7:12 AM, meanone111 said:

I was on the Prima recently. We tried Cagney's, Palomar, Nama Sushi, Hudson's, The Local, Indulge Food Hall and many times at the Surfside buffet. The food at Hudson's is quite good, but I wasn't too excited for the fixed dinning menu, as it got kind of boring to see the same items again each day. Local was ok, nothing too memorable with the typical bar type food and Indulge was ok too, but felt the portions was kind of small and tasted just average. I think NCL should consider changing menus for Hudson's and The Commodore Room because it seems kind of disappointing to be on this nice ship only for non-haven guests to see the same menu every day in the main dinning room. 

My wife and I got in the habit of going by the MDR during the day to decide if we wanted to go there or Locals, Asian, of buffet.  With the fixed menu, we'll already know the choices and not need to check each day.