Arvia Dining - Expectations vs Reality

Chrish2 · January 23, 2023

Before sailing on Arvia I posted what mix of dining we expected to use onboard. I thought it would be interesting to compare with what we actually did

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Breakfast or Lunch in 6th Street Diner is appealing and we *might* also try it one evening.

We had breakfast once, lunch twice and evening meal once (last night). We really enjoyed the 6th Street Diner. Food was always hot.

Limelight Club Club is booked for one evening just to try it.

We booked this for one evening meal before the first port call. We ended up moving the booking as the artist was ill. We felt the main meal was very good (did not appear to be either menu a or menu b).

We probably will give Epicurean a miss this time (no special event in the family).

Did not dine at Epicurean. Noted that it appeared fully booked all cruise.

My impression (without seeing it first hand) is Keel and Cow is a glorified wetherspoons so the up charging don't appeal to me.

Did not dine. Did not appeal to anyone in our party.

Green & Co we might try for lunch one day.

We dined for lunch once. Interesting menu.

Sindhu tends to be when on promotion but I don't think they do that on the a la carte mode on Iona/Arvia

We dined for one evening meal. If cruising again we probably would give a miss as we did not enjoy the a la carte mode.

Beach House with the increased costs is no longer good value so probably a miss.

We dined for one evening meal. Food was nice but menu is all over the place. If cruising again we probably would give a miss.

Olive Grove is the only alternative to the MDR we may consider for 3 or so nights but not for formal nights

Olive Grove was a let down. We dinned here for two evening meals (one on menu A and one on menu B). Food was ok-ish but did not live up to word of mouth from Iona. Service was not great (one of the meals took 2 hours with staff clearly stretched).

Unless something unexpected happens we don't plan to go to horizons or quays for evening meal

As per plans we only dined at breakfast/lunch at quays. Horizons we mostly stayed away from other to pick up a afternoon treat and one breakfast.

----

All in all the 6 of the 15 evening meals was eaten outside the MDR which was broadly inline with the expected 5 from planned.

Meridian (MDR) was our main dining venue for evening meal. We tried Zenith (MDR) for one night just to see it however we felt we waited longer for the table and the venue was not for us. In the Meridian (MDR) we had one meal that could have been warmer, one which service was far too "express" and one menu we felt was boring.

Wait times: For Limelight, Green & Co, Sindhu and Beach House we booked in advance. For the remainder for evening meal we would meet in a bar, order a drink and once arrived request a table via the My Holiday "app" (table for 5, no sharing). Sometimes the table would be ready as we finished our drink in which case we finished our drink, hit the "im on my way" button and walk down the left hand side to be seen to our table right away. Once or twice if it arrived too quick we gave up our table and rejoined to get a table when we was ready. On formal nights we had to re-order drinks when waiting but we never waited more than two drinks.

We felt the app worked well for us. I'm not sure I would want to wait in the real queue, then possibly take a pager, order a round and then be called at a random point. With the app been two way you are in control of when you join, from where in the ship you join and if you accept the time you have been allocated.

The only grumble is number of people in the queue is not a good indicator of wait time. E.g. we thought the night we went to 6th Street diner we would be called right away (2 people waiting) but it was much longer wait than most visits to Meridian (MDR) with 30+ people waiting.

It would seem some venues need a little bit more bedding in but this is understandable for a brand new ship. There are some personal preferences we would prefer P&O to change however we understand some will have the opposite preference and we are happy to "work around them".

Interestedcruisefan · January 23, 2023

45 minutes ago, Chrish2 said:

Before sailing on Arvia I posted what mix of dining we expected to use onboard. I thought it would be interesting to compare with what we actually did

-----

Breakfast or Lunch in 6th Street Diner is appealing and we *might* also try it one evening.

We had breakfast once, lunch twice and evening meal once (last night). We really enjoyed the 6th Street Diner. Food was always hot.

Limelight Club Club is booked for one evening just to try it.

We booked this for one evening meal before the first port call. We ended up moving the booking as the artist was ill. We felt the main meal was very good (did not appear to be either menu a or menu b).

We probably will give Epicurean a miss this time (no special event in the family).

Did not dine at Epicurean. Noted that it appeared fully booked all cruise.

My impression (without seeing it first hand) is Keel and Cow is a glorified wetherspoons so the up charging don't appeal to me.

Did not dine. Did not appeal to anyone in our party.

Green & Co we might try for lunch one day.

We dined for lunch once. Interesting menu.

Sindhu tends to be when on promotion but I don't think they do that on the a la carte mode on Iona/Arvia

We dined for one evening meal. If cruising again we probably would give a miss as we did not enjoy the a la carte mode.

Beach House with the increased costs is no longer good value so probably a miss.

We dined for one evening meal. Food was nice but menu is all over the place. If cruising again we probably would give a miss.

Olive Grove is the only alternative to the MDR we may consider for 3 or so nights but not for formal nights

Olive Grove was a let down. We dinned here for two evening meals (one on menu A and one on menu B). Food was ok-ish but did not live up to word of mouth from Iona. Service was not great (one of the meals took 2 hours with staff clearly stretched).

Unless something unexpected happens we don't plan to go to horizons or quays for evening meal

As per plans we only dined at breakfast/lunch at quays. Horizons we mostly stayed away from other to pick up a afternoon treat and one breakfast.

----

All in all the 6 of the 15 evening meals was eaten outside the MDR which was broadly inline with the expected 5 from planned.

Meridian (MDR) was our main dining venue for evening meal. We tried Zenith (MDR) for one night just to see it however we felt we waited longer for the table and the venue was not for us. In the Meridian (MDR) we had one meal that could have been warmer, one which service was far too "express" and one menu we felt was boring.

Wait times: For Limelight, Green & Co, Sindhu and Beach House we booked in advance. For the remainder for evening meal we would meet in a bar, order a drink and once arrived request a table via the My Holiday "app" (table for 5, no sharing). Sometimes the table would be ready as we finished our drink in which case we finished our drink, hit the "im on my way" button and walk down the left hand side to be seen to our table right away. Once or twice if it arrived too quick we gave up our table and rejoined to get a table when we was ready. On formal nights we had to re-order drinks when waiting but we never waited more than two drinks.

We felt the app worked well for us. I'm not sure I would want to wait in the real queue, then possibly take a pager, order a round and then be called at a random point. With the app been two way you are in control of when you join, from where in the ship you join and if you accept the time you have been allocated.

The only grumble is number of people in the queue is not a good indicator of wait time. E.g. we thought the night we went to 6th Street diner we would be called right away (2 people waiting) but it was much longer wait than most visits to Meridian (MDR) with 30+ people waiting.

It would seem some venues need a little bit more bedding in but this is understandable for a brand new ship. There are some personal preferences we would prefer P&O to change however we understand some will have the opposite preference and we are happy to "work around them".

Very helpful and informative

Thanks

Denarius · January 23, 2023

2 hours ago, Chrish2 said:

Before sailing on Arvia I posted what mix of dining we expected to use onboard. I thought it would be interesting to compare with what we actually did

-----

Breakfast or Lunch in 6th Street Diner is appealing and we *might* also try it one evening.

We had breakfast once, lunch twice and evening meal once (last night). We really enjoyed the 6th Street Diner. Food was always hot.

Limelight Club Club is booked for one evening just to try it.

We booked this for one evening meal before the first port call. We ended up moving the booking as the artist was ill. We felt the main meal was very good (did not appear to be either menu a or menu b).

We probably will give Epicurean a miss this time (no special event in the family).

Did not dine at Epicurean. Noted that it appeared fully booked all cruise.

My impression (without seeing it first hand) is Keel and Cow is a glorified wetherspoons so the up charging don't appeal to me.

Did not dine. Did not appeal to anyone in our party.

Green & Co we might try for lunch one day.

We dined for lunch once. Interesting menu.

Sindhu tends to be when on promotion but I don't think they do that on the a la carte mode on Iona/Arvia

We dined for one evening meal. If cruising again we probably would give a miss as we did not enjoy the a la carte mode.

Beach House with the increased costs is no longer good value so probably a miss.

We dined for one evening meal. Food was nice but menu is all over the place. If cruising again we probably would give a miss.

Olive Grove is the only alternative to the MDR we may consider for 3 or so nights but not for formal nights

Olive Grove was a let down. We dinned here for two evening meals (one on menu A and one on menu B). Food was ok-ish but did not live up to word of mouth from Iona. Service was not great (one of the meals took 2 hours with staff clearly stretched).

Unless something unexpected happens we don't plan to go to horizons or quays for evening meal

As per plans we only dined at breakfast/lunch at quays. Horizons we mostly stayed away from other to pick up a afternoon treat and one breakfast.

----

All in all the 6 of the 15 evening meals was eaten outside the MDR which was broadly inline with the expected 5 from planned.

Meridian (MDR) was our main dining venue for evening meal. We tried Zenith (MDR) for one night just to see it however we felt we waited longer for the table and the venue was not for us. In the Meridian (MDR) we had one meal that could have been warmer, one which service was far too "express" and one menu we felt was boring.

Wait times: For Limelight, Green & Co, Sindhu and Beach House we booked in advance. For the remainder for evening meal we would meet in a bar, order a drink and once arrived request a table via the My Holiday "app" (table for 5, no sharing). Sometimes the table would be ready as we finished our drink in which case we finished our drink, hit the "im on my way" button and walk down the left hand side to be seen to our table right away. Once or twice if it arrived too quick we gave up our table and rejoined to get a table when we was ready. On formal nights we had to re-order drinks when waiting but we never waited more than two drinks.

We felt the app worked well for us. I'm not sure I would want to wait in the real queue, then possibly take a pager, order a round and then be called at a random point. With the app been two way you are in control of when you join, from where in the ship you join and if you accept the time you have been allocated.

The only grumble is number of people in the queue is not a good indicator of wait time. E.g. we thought the night we went to 6th Street diner we would be called right away (2 people waiting) but it was much longer wait than most visits to Meridian (MDR) with 30+ people waiting.

It would seem some venues need a little bit more bedding in but this is understandable for a brand new ship. There are some personal preferences we would prefer P&O to change however we understand some will have the opposite preference and we are happy to "work around them".

Very informative, thank you. Just a couple of observations.

Sindhu was also operating in an a la carte mode on Azura when I sailed on her last September. So it may be doing so on all ships, not just Iona and Arvia. Doing a quick tot up, it appeared to me that if you had a three couse meal as used to be provided on table d'hote it would cost you more than it used to. But you had the option of having just one or two courses, which would cost you less!

Epicurian was also fully booked for my Azura cruise and did not appear in Horizon. I was told this was because of advance bookings made prior to the cruise, with many passengers making multiple bookings.

TigerB · January 24, 2023

16 hours ago, Chrish2 said:

For us (two couples):

MDR

Before we boarded I booked a table for four in Zenith for every evening at 18:30. I later cancelled for those evenings we had booked a speciality restaurant.

Once onboard, I used My Holiday to book a table for four for breakfast at 08:15 each morning, again in Zenith.

On the first night we were sat in a section that was difficult to access for my wife in her wheelchair. On the first morning we were sat on a table not far from a window. On the second evening we were sat on table 735, it was easier for my wife and the waiters were great. We decided we would like them for the remainder of the cruise. The next morning I spoke with the restaurant host, Claudette (she was lovely), and we were allocated the same table for breakfast and dinner every day.

We had breakfast in Zenith every day except one, and dinner, including the formal nights, every day except four. Overall, the quality of food and choice was good to very good, except for perhaps about three days when choices we made didn't match our expectations. Every day, the service was excellent apart from the first formal night where the delivery of food was slower, due to how busy it was.

On the first few mornings there were breakfast items missing, including cereals, juices and decaffeinated tea. It was my understanding that there were pallets of food that had not been unloaded due to staff being deployed to other areas. By day 3 it was sorted but, unless you pre-ordered it, smoked salmon was not available at breakfast for the entire cruise; instead they offered grilled salmon.

Folk will know that the same menu is offered in both the MDRs onboard; the differences I noted were that the Meridian appeared to be slightly larger and the tables did not have tablecloths, apart from the formal nights.

Epicurean

This is always a must for us so, before we boarded I booked a table for the 9th and the 19th. That was £24 each, less the Peninsular discount, making it £22.80 each. If booked onboard it would have been £30.

Both meals were excellent and the service was second to none. In other posts it was mentioned that standards had dropped in Epicurean; not so when we dined there. We had menu A the first week and menu B the second.

At the time of eating, they were still not preparing the Crêpe Suzette at the table. We had two excuses for this when we were on Britannia last September; one was Covid, and the other was due to that pesky H&S. This time, the excuse was that there was no butane.

Sindhu

Again, always a must for us but my sister and brother-in-law weren't sure if it would hit the mark for them. Consequently, I booked for just one night initially, the 11th. The pre-boarding price was £10 each, less the Peninsular discount, making a pre-payment total of £38 for the four of us.

On the afternoon of our booking the other two cried off, so it was just me and my wife. We enjoyed an excellent meal of two courses each, plus a dessert for me, and a drink each. Don't be scared about asking for extra sides or breads; I never am!🐽 The service was excellent.

A few years ago you paid a set price, I think it was £15, for three courses; if you didn't have three courses there would be no discount. Now that it is à la carte, it costs more if you book onboard. However, you can make savings if you pre-book; you receive 20% discount on all food items. So, we paid £38 for a booking of four; only two of us turned up, but as we had pre-paid, we still had an allowance of £40 to be deducted from the bill. After the 20% discount for all food, and then the £40 allowance, for a very good meal of five courses between the two of us, and a drink each, just £1.25 was charged against our OBC.

The only downside is that on the Arvia they don't serve complimentary coffee after the meal; it is Costa coffee that they fetch it from the ice cream bar just around the corner. I don't know what the situation is on Britannia now; it was complimentary last September, but the nearest Costa concession on that ship is a good distance from Sindhu.

Green & Co.

My brother-in-law is a full-on carnivore, so he and, by extension, my sister didn't bother with this. My wife and I ate here once, having pre-booked before boarding. The upfront fee was £10 each, less the Peninsular discount, making a pre-payment total of £19 for the two of us.

We ate at lunchtime on our first Sunday and, although we pre-booked, we could have just walked in as it was so quiet. Apart from the sushi served from Mizuhana, which is in the same restaurant, everything on the menu is vegan. They also have vegan beers, wines and cocktails.

Our waiter promised us a taste experience like no other, and she was not wrong. We shared a large starter, and had a main each; I had a cocktail at the end. We enjoyed a very nourishing meal, perfectly prepared and presented like works of art; it was, to paraphrase Brian Potter, "the future, I've tasted it".

As with Sindhu, if you book before boarding, all food items are 20% off.

Green & Co. is a new concept for P&O and I really hope it takes off, but it was quiet almost all the time. I hope they don't bin it in the future; we would have eaten at least a couple more times at lunchtime on this cruise, but it didn't fit in with our schedule. We are on the Arvia next year for the end of season repositioning cruise, just the two of us, and we will certainly eat in there more frequently, providing it has not closed before then.

Glass House

We have all enjoyed this previously when on Britannia, so it was on our list. We weren't able to book before boarding.

On the evening we decided to go, my sister and brother-in-law came to our cabin as normal for pre-dinner drinks; I then joined the virtual queue, with three ahead of us. After twenty-five minutes there was no change to the queue, so we went to sit near the restaurant, thinking that we may get called any second. We sat for a further ten minutes, still with three in the queue ahead of us, and the restaurant area empty apart from two couples eating. We then perused the menu, and I asked the host if it was the dinner or lunch menu; he said it was the dinner menu. It was very limited to say the least; not at all like the choice we had when on Britannia. So, we sacked it off and went to the Olive Grove.

Olive Grove

We were unable to book this before boarding, but intended to try it once onboard. We looked at the menu for the first week and it looked good, albeit not much choice; there was though something across all courses that each of us fancied.

As it happens, it was busy all the time with only sharing tables available at the time we wanted to eat. We could have booked a table for four at 17:30, but that was too early for us. After walking away from the Glass House disappointed, we decided to see if we could get in; after all, we had already given up our table in Zenith. The virtual queue was not due to open until 18:30, but I approached the desk at 18:25, and was given a buzzer. We sat in Anderson's, expecting to be waiting at least thirty minutes before being called back. We had only just started our drinks when it went off.

Unfortunately, menu B was now in operation, so the dishes we had been salivating over were no longer available. The choices were very poor, with very little choice for the two pescatarians at the table, me and my sister; the only fish dish starter had chorizo in it, and the only main fish dish was deep fried baby squid, mussels, prawns, and smelts.

The service wasn't up to much either; I think we had been spoiled by the dynamic duo in Zenith. We all agreed that it was a poor experience, and we would only go again if the other menu was on. With just the two menus and limited choices, I cannot fathom out why folk would want to eat here three or four times.

6th Street Diner

We were, before Covid, frequent visitors to the US and were keen to see how this place compared; it was, from what I had heard, supposed to be like the genuine article, not an English restaurant serving up food like you get in Murica. Our go-to restaurant for breakfast when over there was Cracker Barrel, so I know what to expect when I ask for eggs, or French toast, or from-scratch pancakes.

It doesn't open until 10:00, so we made a reservation for that time, after seeing the queues on previous mornings. When we arrived the was no system as per the MDRs, left side for bookings, right side for walk-ins; there was just one queue and it was a bit of a free-for-all.

Once in, I asked for a table by the window and, despite seeing my wife in a wheelchair, the restaurant host allocated us a booth. We were then shown to another table that was more suitable.

Now, the food; it was served quickly and was hot, but was it like the genuine article? NO! The pancakes were the pre-made ones you get in the MDR, and the hash was essential small roast potatoes; not at all like the hash made with home-style potatoes we are used to in CB. The eggs are served sunny-side up as standard. I asked for mine over-medium which, over the pond are always consistent if you ask for them that way: hard white, runny yolk, and turned once. The ones I was served up were hard white and hard yolk.

I must say though, the service was very quick, but it was a little disconcerting and awkward hearing the waiters trying to be American, with all the patter too! "Have a great day, y'awll"

The Quays

We didn't have any particular expectations before we boarded, but were keen to try it.

Hook, Line and Vinegar: Nice enough, but don't expect it to be like your local chippy. The haddock is pre-battered and frozen, but cooks up nice enough. The chips are chunky but frozen; it was busy all day so I would have thought they could have made chips from fresh taties. They were sometimes refried too. The mushy peas were nice, but the curry sauce was watery.

Fusion: There was always a choice of three dishes, with the bottom one being vegan. Whenever we had something from here, the quality was consistently good.

Roast: The large Yorkshire puddings are not made fresh, and I think it would be difficult to do so; they are your Aunt Bessie type, but nice enough. They do different roasts for the carnivores, and have a selection of veg: carrots, roast potatoes, cauliflower cheese and peas, I think. Be aware though if you don't eat meat; the gravy on offer for you to serve yourself from, is not vegetarian; you can ask though for vegetarian gravy. The next menu item was generally a Yorkshire pudding wrap with a meat item and veg in it. Every day, they serve a vegan wrap, which were always good.

One lunchtime I couldn't decide what to have, so I got a big Yorkie and filled it with my fish and chips. Now that is classy cuisine!

Just around the corner from the serveries are chillers with salads and desserts in; so if you just wanted something like that you could just get it from there, without heading up to Horizon and fighting through the masses.

Taste 360

This is on deck 16 at the forward end of the sky dome. It wasn't necessarily on our to-do list, just somewhere we would visit once or twice for a veggie burger or pizza slice.

It was very popular and, on sea days, there was always a long queue to order burgers. It was on those days that I skipped the queue to grab a few slices of pizza (all ready to go), some fries, and go back to our cabin for us both to eat on the balcony. On the quiet port days, when there wasn't a queue, we would get veggie burgers.

The veggie burgers were good as were the pizza slices; they always had Margherita pizza on, and sometimes Funghi too. Additionally, they had a serve-yourself hot dish on; paella or fish curry, for example. They also have GF pizza and burger buns available. That said, I didn't witness anyone ordering them, so could not see if there was a risk of cross-contamination.

Horizon

I'm not a big fan of the buffet; it's often like a cattle market and certainly would not like to go there for breakfast. Call me old fashioned but, when on a cruise I liked to be served breakfast at a table; a much more relaxing experience.

We only attended Horizon occasionally and, when we did, only had a little to eat. On Arvia there certainly wasn't a much choice for pescatarians as we had encountered previously on Britannia; well, not when we attended.

I just don't know how some folk can go an entire cruise and only try the buffet.

We loved the afternoon tea when it was served in the MDR and, when we were on Britannia last September, and found the free one to be only in Horizon, we tried it once and once only. Never again!

Beach House

We did intend to eat in Beach House, at least once.

As it turned out, we didn't bother; the menu choices were much the same as in September and the price had increased to £9.50.

We didn't eat anywhere else on this cruise.

As with Chrish2, using and booking through My Holiday whilst on board was a breeze; there were a few times when it wouldn't load up immediately, but I think that was a cookies problem on my phone, rather than the application; a quick reboot would do the trick. It worked first time, every time on my tablet.

The only time I saw a long queue for any restaurant was on the first formal night at Zenith. When I went to the toilet near the end of our meal it was level with the opening to the stairs and lifts, and when we left the restaurant at 20:30 it had reached the first shop. On both occasions there was no distinction between the booked or walk-in queues, it was a mass of grumpy folk in their evening gowns and dinner suits. Now, after the supposed, and over-hyped by the press, events of Christmas Day, I would have thought that more folk would have pre-booked, either before they got on the ship or as soon as they could log onto My Holiday. To try a walk-in in at the MDRs after 19:00 on a formal night is asking for trouble.

Dress codes:

Apart from the first night, where some folk hadn't yet received their cases, the dress codes were well observed in the MDRs for the first week, particularly on the formal night. In the second week, and especially after we had visited our first Caribbean island, dress became more casual and, while some still wore smart trousers and nice frocks (mostly women), there were some that wore shorts, t-shirts, and flip flops. I'm not a 'dress code snob', but if there is a particular dress code for a part of the ship, you should at least make an effort. On our evening in Sindhu, although not a formal night, everyone was well turned out. Then, in walks a couple who are dressed appropriately, with a young lad aged late teens or early twenties, wearing scruffy trainers, high cut shorts and a slogan t-shirt. Heads turned!

I must though applaud the restaurant host on the second formal night; a woman in a beautiful dress had really made the effort, whereas her male companion wore loafers, no socks, slacks and an open neck shirt. He was told to change into more appropriate attire. She didn't half give him what-for; I heard a "I told you so", as I passed.

Edited January 24, 2023 by TigerB

Interestedcruisefan · January 24, 2023

1 hour ago, TigerB said:

For us (two couples):

MDR

Before we boarded I booked a table for four in Zenith for every evening at 18:30. I later cancelled for those evenings we had booked a speciality restaurant.

Once onboard, I used My Holiday to book a table for four for breakfast at 08:15 each morning, again in Zenith.

On the first night we were sat in a section that was difficult to access for my wife in her wheelchair. On the first morning we were sat on a table not far from a window. On the second evening we were sat on table 735, it was easier for my wife and the waiters were great. We decided we would like them for the remainder of the cruise. The next morning I spoke with the restaurant host, Claudette (she was lovely), and we were allocated the same table for breakfast and dinner every day.

We had breakfast in Zenith every day except one, and dinner, including the formal nights, every day except four. Overall, the quality of food and choice was good to very good, except for perhaps about three days when choices we made didn't match our expectations. Every day, the service was excellent apart from the first formal night where the delivery of food was slower, due to how busy it was.

On the first few mornings there were breakfast items missing, including cereals, juices and decaffeinated tea. It was my understanding that there were pallets of food that had not been unloaded due to staff being deployed to other areas. By day 3 it was sorted but, unless you pre-ordered it, smoked salmon was not available at breakfast for the entire cruise; instead they offered grilled salmon.

Folk will know that the same menu is offered in both the MDRs onboard; the differences I noted were that the Meridian appeared to be slightly larger and the tables did not have tablecloths, apart from the formal nights.

Epicurean

This is always a must for us so, before we boarded I booked a table for the 9th and the 19th. That was £24 each, less the Peninsular discount, making it £22.80 each. If booked onboard it would have been £30.

Both meals were excellent and the service was second to none. In other posts it was mentioned that standards had dropped in Epicurean; not so when we dined there. We had menu A the first week and menu B the second.

At the time of eating, they were still not preparing the Crêpe Suzette at the table. We had two excuses for this when we were on Britannia last September; one was Covid, and the other was due to that pesky H&S. This time, the excuse was that there was no butane.

Sindhu

Again, always a must for us but my sister and brother-in-law weren't sure if it would hit the mark for them. Consequently, I booked for just one night initially, the 11th. The pre-boarding price was £10 each, less the Peninsular discount, making a pre-payment total of £38 for the four of us.

On the afternoon of our booking the other two cried off, so it was just me and my wife. We enjoyed an excellent meal of two courses each, plus a dessert for me, and a drink each. Don't be scared about asking for extra sides or breads; I never am!🐽 The service was excellent.

A few years ago you paid a set price, I think it was £15, for three courses; if you didn't have three courses there would be no discount. Now that it is à la carte, it costs more if you book onboard. However, you can make savings if you pre-book; you receive 20% discount on all food items. So, we paid £38 for a booking of four; only two of us turned up, but as we had pre-paid, we still had an allowance of £40 to be deducted from the bill. After the 20% discount for all food, and then the £40 allowance, for a very good meal of five courses between the two of us, and a drink each, just £1.25 was charged against our OBC.

The only downside is that on the Arvia they don't serve complimentary coffee after the meal; it is Costa coffee that they fetch it from the ice cream bar just around the corner. I don't know what the situation is on Britannia now; it was complimentary last September, but the nearest Costa concession on that ship is a good distance from Sindhu.

Green & Co.

My brother-in-law is a full-on carnivore, so he and, by extension, my sister didn't bother with this. My wife and I ate here once, having pre-booked before boarding. The upfront fee was £10 each, less the Peninsular discount, making a pre-payment total of £19 for the two of us.

We ate at lunchtime on our first Sunday and, although we pre-booked, we could have just walked in as it was so quiet. Apart from the sushi served from Mizuhana, which is in the same restaurant, everything on the menu is vegan. They also have vegan beers, wines and cocktails.

Our waiter promised us a taste experience like no other, and she was not wrong. We shared a large starter, and had a main each; I had a cocktail at the end. We enjoyed a very nourishing meal, perfectly prepared and presented like works of art; it was, to paraphrase Brian Potter, "the future, I've tasted it".

As with Sindhu, if you book before boarding, all food items are 20% off.

Green & Co. is a new concept for P&O and I really hope it takes off, but it was quiet almost all the time. I hope they don't bin it in the future; we would have eaten at least a couple more times at lunchtime on this cruise, but it didn't fit in with our schedule. We are on the Arvia next year for the end of season repositioning cruise, just the two of us, and we will certainly eat in there more frequently, providing it has not closed before then.

Glass House

We have all enjoyed this previously when on Britannia, so it was on our list. We weren't able to book before boarding.

On the evening we decided to go, my sister and brother-in-law came to our cabin as normal for pre-dinner drinks; I then joined the virtual queue, with three ahead of us. After twenty-five minutes there was no change to the queue, so we went to sit near the restaurant, thinking that we may get called any second. We sat for a further ten minutes, still with three in the queue ahead of us, and the restaurant area empty apart from two couples eating. We then perused the menu, and I asked the host if it was the dinner or lunch menu; he said it was the dinner menu. It was very limited to say the least; not at all like the choice we had when on Britannia. So, we sacked it off and went to the Olive Grove.

Olive Grove

We were unable to book this before boarding, but intended to try it once onboard. We looked at the menu for the first week and it looked good, albeit not much choice; there was though something across all courses that each of us fancied.

As it happens, it was busy all the time with only sharing tables available at the time we wanted to eat. We could have booked a table for four at 17:30, but that was too early for us. After walking away from the Glass House disappointed, we decided to see if we could get in; after all, we had already given up our table in Zenith. The virtual queue was not due to open until 18:30, but I approached the desk at 18:25, and was given a buzzer. We sat in Anderson's, expecting to be waiting at least thirty minutes before being called back. We had only just started our drinks when it went off.

Unfortunately, menu B was now in operation, so the dishes we had been salivating over were no longer available. The choices were very poor, with very little choice for the two pescatarians at the table, me and my sister; the only fish dish starter had chorizo in it, and the only main fish dish was deep fried baby squid, mussels, prawns, and smelts.

The service wasn't up to much either; I think we had been spoiled by the dynamic duo in Zenith. We all agreed that it was a poor experience, and we would only go again if the other menu was on. With just the two menus and limited choices, I cannot fathom out why folk would want to eat here three or four times.

6th Street Diner

We were, before Covid, frequent visitors to the US and were keen to see how this place compared; it was, from what I had heard, supposed to be like the genuine article, not an English restaurant serving up food like you get in Murica. Our go-to restaurant for breakfast when over there was Cracker Barrel, so I know what to expect when I ask for eggs, or French toast, or from-scratch pancakes.

It doesn't open until 10:00, so we made a reservation for that time, after seeing the queues on previous mornings. When we arrived the was no system as per the MDRs, left side for bookings, right side for walk-ins; there was just one queue and it was a bit of a free-for-all.

Once in, I asked for a table by the window and, despite seeing my wife in a wheelchair, the restaurant host allocated us a booth. We were then shown to another table that was more suitable.

Now, the food; it was served quickly and was hot, but was it like the genuine article? NO! The pancakes were the pre-made ones you get in the MDR, and the hash was essential small roast potatoes; not at all like the hash made with home-style potatoes we are used to in CB. The eggs are served sunny-side up as standard. I asked for mine over-medium which, over the pond are always consistent if you ask for them that way: hard white, runny yolk, and turned once. The ones I was served up were hard white and hard yolk.

I must say though, the service was very quick, but it was a little disconcerting and awkward hearing the waiters trying to be American, with all the patter too! "Have a great day, y'awll"

The Quays

We didn't have any particular expectations before we boarded, but were keen to try it.

Hook, Line and Vinegar: Nice enough, but don't expect it to be like your local chippy. The haddock is pre-battered and frozen, but cooks up nice enough. The chips are chunky but frozen; it was busy all day so I would have thought they could have made chips from fresh taties. They were sometimes refried too. The mushy peas were nice, but the curry sauce was watery.

Fusion: There was always a choice of three dishes, with the bottom one being vegan. Whenever we had something from here, the quality was consistently good.

Roast: The large Yorkshire puddings are not made fresh, and I think it would be difficult to do so; they are your Aunt Bessie type, but nice enough. They do different roasts for the carnivores, and have a selection of veg: carrots, roast potatoes, cauliflower cheese and peas, I think. Be aware though if you don't eat meat; the gravy on offer for you to serve yourself from, is not vegetarian; you can ask though for vegetarian gravy. The next menu item was generally a Yorkshire pudding wrap with a meat item and veg in it. Every day, they serve a vegan wrap, which were always good.

One lunchtime I couldn't decide what to have, so I got a big Yorkie and filled it with my fish and chips. Now that is classy cuisine!

Just around the corner from the serveries are chillers with salads and desserts in; so if you just wanted something like that you could just get it from there, without heading up to Horizon and fighting through the masses.

Taste 360

This is on deck 16 at the forward end of the sky dome. It wasn't necessarily on our to-do list, just somewhere we would visit once or twice for a veggie burger or pizza slice.

It was very popular and, on sea days, there was always a long queue to order burgers. It was on those days that I skipped the queue to grab a few slices of pizza (all ready to go), some fries, and go back to our cabin for us both to eat on the balcony. On the quiet port days, when there wasn't a queue, we would get veggie burgers.

The veggie burgers were good as were the pizza slices; they always had Margherita pizza on, and sometimes Funghi too. Additionally, they had a serve-yourself hot dish on; paella or fish curry, for example. They also have GF pizza and burger buns available. That said, I didn't witness anyone ordering them, so could not see if there was a risk of cross-contamination.

Horizon

I'm not a big fan of the buffet; it's often like a cattle market and certainly would not like to go there for breakfast. Call me old fashioned but, when on a cruise I liked to be served breakfast at a table; a much more relaxing experience.

We only attended Horizon occasionally and, when we did, only had a little to eat. On Arvia there certainly wasn't a much choice for pescatarians as we had encountered previously on Britannia; well, not when we attended.

I just don't know how some folk can go an entire cruise and only try the buffet.

We loved the afternoon tea when it was served in the MDR and, when we were on Britannia last September, and found the free one to be only in Horizon, we tried it once and once only. Never again!

Beach House

We did intend to eat in Beach House, at least once.

As it turned out, we didn't bother; the menu choices were much the same as in September and the price had increased to £9.50.

We didn't eat anywhere else on this cruise.

As with Chrish2, using and booking through My Holiday whilst on board was a breeze; there were a few times when it wouldn't load up immediately, but I think that was a cookies problem on my phone, rather than the application; a quick reboot would do the trick. It worked first time, every time on my tablet.

The only time I saw a long queue for any restaurant was on the first formal night at Zenith. When I went to the toilet near the end of our meal it was level with the opening to the stairs and lifts, and when we left the restaurant at 20:30 it had reached the first shop. On both occasions there was no distinction between the booked or walk-in queues, it was a mass of grumpy folk in their evening gowns and dinner suits. Now, after the supposed, and over-hyped by the press, events of Christmas Day, I would have thought that more folk would have pre-booked, either before they got on the ship or as soon as they could log onto My Holiday. To try a walk-in in at the MDRs after 19:00 on a formal night is asking for trouble.

Dress codes:

Apart from the first night, where some folk hadn't yet received their cases, the dress codes were well observed in the MDRs for the first week, particularly on the formal night. In the second week, and especially after we had visited our first Caribbean island, dress became more casual and, while some still wore smart trousers and nice frocks (mostly women), there were some that wore shorts, t-shirts, and flip flops. I'm not a 'dress code snob', but if there is a particular dress code for a part of the ship, you should at least make an effort. On our evening in Sindhu, although not a formal night, everyone was well turned out. Then, in walks a couple who are dressed appropriately, with a young lad aged late teens or early twenties, wearing scruffy trainers, high cut shorts and a slogan t-shirt. Heads turned!

I must though applaud the restaurant host on the second formal night; a woman in a beautiful dress had really made the effort, whereas her male companion wore loafers, no socks, slacks and an open neck shirt. He was told to change into more appropriate attire. She didn't half give him what-for; I heard a "I told you so", as I passed.

Superb review. Thank you

Chrish2 · January 24, 2023

7 hours ago, TigerB said:

Now that it is à la carte, it costs more if you book onboard. However, you can make savings if you pre-book; you receive 20% discount on all food items.

We was unaware of this pre booking discount for the a la carte venues. Thanks for mentioning it. I will looks more closely next time.

TigerB · January 24, 2023

3 minutes ago, Chrish2 said:

We was unaware of this pre booking discount for the a la carte venues. Thanks for mentioning it. I will looks more closely next time.

As were we.

We didn't get a bill from Green & Co., and when a very small amount was charged against our OBC I thought they had made a mistake.

It was only when we checked in at Sindhu the next day that the host, Love Joy, explained the discount for pre-booking.

Certainly, in the future we will pre-book all our speciality restaurants and save the OBC for booze and the shops.

Selbourne · January 24, 2023

16 hours ago, TigerB said:

For us (two couples):

MDR

Before we boarded I booked a table for four in Zenith for every evening at 18:30. I later cancelled for those evenings we had booked a speciality restaurant.

Once onboard, I used My Holiday to book a table for four for breakfast at 08:15 each morning, again in Zenith.

On the first night we were sat in a section that was difficult to access for my wife in her wheelchair. On the first morning we were sat on a table not far from a window. On the second evening we were sat on table 735, it was easier for my wife and the waiters were great. We decided we would like them for the remainder of the cruise. The next morning I spoke with the restaurant host, Claudette (she was lovely), and we were allocated the same table for breakfast and dinner every day.

We had breakfast in Zenith every day except one, and dinner, including the formal nights, every day except four. Overall, the quality of food and choice was good to very good, except for perhaps about three days when choices we made didn't match our expectations. Every day, the service was excellent apart from the first formal night where the delivery of food was slower, due to how busy it was.

On the first few mornings there were breakfast items missing, including cereals, juices and decaffeinated tea. It was my understanding that there were pallets of food that had not been unloaded due to staff being deployed to other areas. By day 3 it was sorted but, unless you pre-ordered it, smoked salmon was not available at breakfast for the entire cruise; instead they offered grilled salmon.

Folk will know that the same menu is offered in both the MDRs onboard; the differences I noted were that the Meridian appeared to be slightly larger and the tables did not have tablecloths, apart from the formal nights.

Epicurean

This is always a must for us so, before we boarded I booked a table for the 9th and the 19th. That was £24 each, less the Peninsular discount, making it £22.80 each. If booked onboard it would have been £30.

Both meals were excellent and the service was second to none. In other posts it was mentioned that standards had dropped in Epicurean; not so when we dined there. We had menu A the first week and menu B the second.

At the time of eating, they were still not preparing the Crêpe Suzette at the table. We had two excuses for this when we were on Britannia last September; one was Covid, and the other was due to that pesky H&S. This time, the excuse was that there was no butane.

Sindhu

Again, always a must for us but my sister and brother-in-law weren't sure if it would hit the mark for them. Consequently, I booked for just one night initially, the 11th. The pre-boarding price was £10 each, less the Peninsular discount, making a pre-payment total of £38 for the four of us.

On the afternoon of our booking the other two cried off, so it was just me and my wife. We enjoyed an excellent meal of two courses each, plus a dessert for me, and a drink each. Don't be scared about asking for extra sides or breads; I never am!🐽 The service was excellent.

A few years ago you paid a set price, I think it was £15, for three courses; if you didn't have three courses there would be no discount. Now that it is à la carte, it costs more if you book onboard. However, you can make savings if you pre-book; you receive 20% discount on all food items. So, we paid £38 for a booking of four; only two of us turned up, but as we had pre-paid, we still had an allowance of £40 to be deducted from the bill. After the 20% discount for all food, and then the £40 allowance, for a very good meal of five courses between the two of us, and a drink each, just £1.25 was charged against our OBC.

The only downside is that on the Arvia they don't serve complimentary coffee after the meal; it is Costa coffee that they fetch it from the ice cream bar just around the corner. I don't know what the situation is on Britannia now; it was complimentary last September, but the nearest Costa concession on that ship is a good distance from Sindhu.

Green & Co.

My brother-in-law is a full-on carnivore, so he and, by extension, my sister didn't bother with this. My wife and I ate here once, having pre-booked before boarding. The upfront fee was £10 each, less the Peninsular discount, making a pre-payment total of £19 for the two of us.

We ate at lunchtime on our first Sunday and, although we pre-booked, we could have just walked in as it was so quiet. Apart from the sushi served from Mizuhana, which is in the same restaurant, everything on the menu is vegan. They also have vegan beers, wines and cocktails.

Our waiter promised us a taste experience like no other, and she was not wrong. We shared a large starter, and had a main each; I had a cocktail at the end. We enjoyed a very nourishing meal, perfectly prepared and presented like works of art; it was, to paraphrase Brian Potter, "the future, I've tasted it".

As with Sindhu, if you book before boarding, all food items are 20% off.

Green & Co. is a new concept for P&O and I really hope it takes off, but it was quiet almost all the time. I hope they don't bin it in the future; we would have eaten at least a couple more times at lunchtime on this cruise, but it didn't fit in with our schedule. We are on the Arvia next year for the end of season repositioning cruise, just the two of us, and we will certainly eat in there more frequently, providing it has not closed before then.

Glass House

We have all enjoyed this previously when on Britannia, so it was on our list. We weren't able to book before boarding.

On the evening we decided to go, my sister and brother-in-law came to our cabin as normal for pre-dinner drinks; I then joined the virtual queue, with three ahead of us. After twenty-five minutes there was no change to the queue, so we went to sit near the restaurant, thinking that we may get called any second. We sat for a further ten minutes, still with three in the queue ahead of us, and the restaurant area empty apart from two couples eating. We then perused the menu, and I asked the host if it was the dinner or lunch menu; he said it was the dinner menu. It was very limited to say the least; not at all like the choice we had when on Britannia. So, we sacked it off and went to the Olive Grove.

Olive Grove

We were unable to book this before boarding, but intended to try it once onboard. We looked at the menu for the first week and it looked good, albeit not much choice; there was though something across all courses that each of us fancied.

As it happens, it was busy all the time with only sharing tables available at the time we wanted to eat. We could have booked a table for four at 17:30, but that was too early for us. After walking away from the Glass House disappointed, we decided to see if we could get in; after all, we had already given up our table in Zenith. The virtual queue was not due to open until 18:30, but I approached the desk at 18:25, and was given a buzzer. We sat in Anderson's, expecting to be waiting at least thirty minutes before being called back. We had only just started our drinks when it went off.

Unfortunately, menu B was now in operation, so the dishes we had been salivating over were no longer available. The choices were very poor, with very little choice for the two pescatarians at the table, me and my sister; the only fish dish starter had chorizo in it, and the only main fish dish was deep fried baby squid, mussels, prawns, and smelts.

The service wasn't up to much either; I think we had been spoiled by the dynamic duo in Zenith. We all agreed that it was a poor experience, and we would only go again if the other menu was on. With just the two menus and limited choices, I cannot fathom out why folk would want to eat here three or four times.

6th Street Diner

We were, before Covid, frequent visitors to the US and were keen to see how this place compared; it was, from what I had heard, supposed to be like the genuine article, not an English restaurant serving up food like you get in Murica. Our go-to restaurant for breakfast when over there was Cracker Barrel, so I know what to expect when I ask for eggs, or French toast, or from-scratch pancakes.

It doesn't open until 10:00, so we made a reservation for that time, after seeing the queues on previous mornings. When we arrived the was no system as per the MDRs, left side for bookings, right side for walk-ins; there was just one queue and it was a bit of a free-for-all.

Once in, I asked for a table by the window and, despite seeing my wife in a wheelchair, the restaurant host allocated us a booth. We were then shown to another table that was more suitable.

Now, the food; it was served quickly and was hot, but was it like the genuine article? NO! The pancakes were the pre-made ones you get in the MDR, and the hash was essential small roast potatoes; not at all like the hash made with home-style potatoes we are used to in CB. The eggs are served sunny-side up as standard. I asked for mine over-medium which, over the pond are always consistent if you ask for them that way: hard white, runny yolk, and turned once. The ones I was served up were hard white and hard yolk.

I must say though, the service was very quick, but it was a little disconcerting and awkward hearing the waiters trying to be American, with all the patter too! "Have a great day, y'awll"

The Quays

We didn't have any particular expectations before we boarded, but were keen to try it.

Hook, Line and Vinegar: Nice enough, but don't expect it to be like your local chippy. The haddock is pre-battered and frozen, but cooks up nice enough. The chips are chunky but frozen; it was busy all day so I would have thought they could have made chips from fresh taties. They were sometimes refried too. The mushy peas were nice, but the curry sauce was watery.

Fusion: There was always a choice of three dishes, with the bottom one being vegan. Whenever we had something from here, the quality was consistently good.

Roast: The large Yorkshire puddings are not made fresh, and I think it would be difficult to do so; they are your Aunt Bessie type, but nice enough. They do different roasts for the carnivores, and have a selection of veg: carrots, roast potatoes, cauliflower cheese and peas, I think. Be aware though if you don't eat meat; the gravy on offer for you to serve yourself from, is not vegetarian; you can ask though for vegetarian gravy. The next menu item was generally a Yorkshire pudding wrap with a meat item and veg in it. Every day, they serve a vegan wrap, which were always good.

One lunchtime I couldn't decide what to have, so I got a big Yorkie and filled it with my fish and chips. Now that is classy cuisine!

Just around the corner from the serveries are chillers with salads and desserts in; so if you just wanted something like that you could just get it from there, without heading up to Horizon and fighting through the masses.

Taste 360

This is on deck 16 at the forward end of the sky dome. It wasn't necessarily on our to-do list, just somewhere we would visit once or twice for a veggie burger or pizza slice.

It was very popular and, on sea days, there was always a long queue to order burgers. It was on those days that I skipped the queue to grab a few slices of pizza (all ready to go), some fries, and go back to our cabin for us both to eat on the balcony. On the quiet port days, when there wasn't a queue, we would get veggie burgers.

The veggie burgers were good as were the pizza slices; they always had Margherita pizza on, and sometimes Funghi too. Additionally, they had a serve-yourself hot dish on; paella or fish curry, for example. They also have GF pizza and burger buns available. That said, I didn't witness anyone ordering them, so could not see if there was a risk of cross-contamination.

Horizon

I'm not a big fan of the buffet; it's often like a cattle market and certainly would not like to go there for breakfast. Call me old fashioned but, when on a cruise I liked to be served breakfast at a table; a much more relaxing experience.

We only attended Horizon occasionally and, when we did, only had a little to eat. On Arvia there certainly wasn't a much choice for pescatarians as we had encountered previously on Britannia; well, not when we attended.

I just don't know how some folk can go an entire cruise and only try the buffet.

We loved the afternoon tea when it was served in the MDR and, when we were on Britannia last September, and found the free one to be only in Horizon, we tried it once and once only. Never again!

Beach House

We did intend to eat in Beach House, at least once.

As it turned out, we didn't bother; the menu choices were much the same as in September and the price had increased to £9.50.

We didn't eat anywhere else on this cruise.

As with Chrish2, using and booking through My Holiday whilst on board was a breeze; there were a few times when it wouldn't load up immediately, but I think that was a cookies problem on my phone, rather than the application; a quick reboot would do the trick. It worked first time, every time on my tablet.

The only time I saw a long queue for any restaurant was on the first formal night at Zenith. When I went to the toilet near the end of our meal it was level with the opening to the stairs and lifts, and when we left the restaurant at 20:30 it had reached the first shop. On both occasions there was no distinction between the booked or walk-in queues, it was a mass of grumpy folk in their evening gowns and dinner suits. Now, after the supposed, and over-hyped by the press, events of Christmas Day, I would have thought that more folk would have pre-booked, either before they got on the ship or as soon as they could log onto My Holiday. To try a walk-in in at the MDRs after 19:00 on a formal night is asking for trouble.

Dress codes:

Apart from the first night, where some folk hadn't yet received their cases, the dress codes were well observed in the MDRs for the first week, particularly on the formal night. In the second week, and especially after we had visited our first Caribbean island, dress became more casual and, while some still wore smart trousers and nice frocks (mostly women), there were some that wore shorts, t-shirts, and flip flops. I'm not a 'dress code snob', but if there is a particular dress code for a part of the ship, you should at least make an effort. On our evening in Sindhu, although not a formal night, everyone was well turned out. Then, in walks a couple who are dressed appropriately, with a young lad aged late teens or early twenties, wearing scruffy trainers, high cut shorts and a slogan t-shirt. Heads turned!

I must though applaud the restaurant host on the second formal night; a woman in a beautiful dress had really made the effort, whereas her male companion wore loafers, no socks, slacks and an open neck shirt. He was told to change into more appropriate attire. She didn't half give him what-for; I heard a "I told you so", as I passed.

A brilliantly written and highly informative review. Thank you for doing it. We haven’t cruised since the introduction of the booking app, but have two P&O cruises booked for this year (inc one on Iona) and I am a bit confused about the MDR arrangements. Perhaps you could clarify?

I knew that MDRs on Iona and Arvia are Freedom Dining only and I was under the impression that you join a virtual queue each night as and when you want to dine. However, you mention that you booked tables for dinner for every night before the cruise. I had no idea that it was possible to book the MDR prior to even joining the cruise. I also assumed that you had to book each evening as it came, and had no idea that you could pre-book every night in one go. Were these things unique for that cruise or are they a standard thing now? Also, I didn’t realise that you had to pre book a table for breakfast rather than just turn up. Is that another new thing on all cruises and does the same apply to lunch in the MDR? Several reviews seem to mention long waits and yet when they get to the MDR there are loads of empty tables. It strikes me that this will be as a result of this new approach, as people will block book and then change their plans, but many won’t cancel MDR tables as you did. Perhaps I’m missing something?

I was also interested to read that your wife uses a wheelchair as mine does also. I’ve seen screen shots of the booking app and I think there’s an option to select if you have a wheelchair user. My worry about that is that you always end up with poor tables in high flow areas, which we hate. My wife’s wheelchair is a bit narrower than most and we can easily get to most tables. Any tips or reassurance based upon your experiences would be most welcome.

TigerB · January 24, 2023

2 hours ago, Selbourne said:

A brilliantly written and highly informative review. Thank you for doing it. We haven’t cruised since the introduction of the booking app, but have two P&O cruises booked for this year (inc one on Iona) and I am a bit confused about the MDR arrangements. Perhaps you could clarify?

I knew that MDRs on Iona and Arvia are Freedom Dining only and I was under the impression that you join a virtual queue each night as and when you want to dine. However, you mention that you booked tables for dinner for every night before the cruise. I had no idea that it was possible to book the MDR prior to even joining the cruise. I also assumed that you had to book each evening as it came, and had no idea that you could pre-book every night in one go. Were these things unique for that cruise or are they a standard thing now? Also, I didn’t realise that you had to pre book a table for breakfast rather than just turn up. Is that another new thing on all cruises and does the same apply to lunch in the MDR? Several reviews seem to mention long waits and yet when they get to the MDR there are loads of empty tables. It strikes me that this will be as a result of this new approach, as people will block book and then change their plans, but many won’t cancel MDR tables as you did. Perhaps I’m missing something?

I was also interested to read that your wife uses a wheelchair as mine does also. I’ve seen screen shots of the booking app and I think there’s an option to select if you have a wheelchair user. My worry about that is that you always end up with poor tables in high flow areas, which we hate. My wife’s wheelchair is a bit narrower than most and we can easily get to most tables. Any tips or reassurance based upon your experiences would be most welcome.

Hi Selbourne,

Our cruise sailed on 6th January. I've just checked my emails to establish when we made bookings.

On 24th December, through the Cruise Planner, I booked the following:

- Dinner in Zenith for four, including a wheelchair at 18:30 for every night of our cruise, except the 20th

On 28th December, through the Cruise Planner, I booked the following:

- All the shows that were listed for the Headliners; my sister did the same for her and her husband.

- Dinner for four, including a wheelchair at 18:45 on the 19th in Epicurean. My sister did the same for the 9th.

- Dinner for four, including a wheelchair at 19:00 on the 11th in Sindhu

- Lunch for two, including a wheelchair at 12:45 on the 8th in Green & Co.

It was on that day I cancelled the reservations at Zenith for the evenings we had booked the speciality restaurants.

To be fair, if the option was there to book other speciality restaurants, then we may have done so. There was an option to book 6th Street Diner, but only for dinner; we wanted to try it for breakfast first.

I would have liked the option to book Olive Grove before we sailed, but that was not an option. Once on board, it was busy every night. In retrospect, it didn't really matter as we didn't enjoy our meal there.

On 5th January, just after checking into our PI in Southampton, I saw that bookings had opened up for Zenith on the 20th, so I made a reservation for the four of us for 18:30.

Yes, I was surprised that we could book so far ahead for the MDR; we couldn't do so for Britannia last September.

The options though were just for dinner; you could select how many guests, if there is a wheelchair, and if you wanted a private or shared table.

You don't have to pre-book a table for breakfast, you can just do a walk-in. I only found out about that on our third day when I was flicking through My Holiday. By then, we had already decided upon our preferred table, and wanted to keep the same table for breakfast also, for the rest of the cruise. So, I booked through My Holiday for 08:15 every day up to the 19th, except for the day I had booked 6th Street Diner. It was only later in the cruise when the 20th became available for breakfast.

I must say that Claudette at the Zenith was fantastic; after just a couple of days she recognised us as we approached the desk and thereafter I didn't even have to give our cabin numbers; she welcomed us with a smile and said table 735 was ready for us. Also, after our third day, the bookings on My Holiday were all populated with our table number.

The option to book for breakfast on our last day, the 21st, never appeared on My Holiday. I just asked Claudette the day before and she booked our table there and then.

I have to be honest when I say that, on the first formal night when there was a long queue of folk who had just turned up or joined the virtual queue a little earlier, I felt a little smug that I was the early bird. Folk will say that the booking system and My Holiday was a shambles; not so, in my opinion. It was easy to use and the option to book at early as 24th December was open to everyone.

Right, wheelchairs.....

My wife is a full-time electric wheelchair user and remains in it to dine; the one she uses to travel in is 62cm wide. On the first night, we were shown to a table in the first section of Zenith, just as you enter from the left side of the host's desk. She was able to get between two tables and position herself at our table. That was fine as there was nobody else at nearby tables. When we finished though, there was someone behind her, so she found it a little difficult to manoeuvre her chair.

On the second night we were shown to table 735, which was near to our waiters' station and on what you may refer to as a thoroughfare. That said, there was at least eight feet between the back of my wife's chair and the table behind her. Also, it wasn't a particularly heavy flow area. The best thing about it was that she could just wheel straight to the table and position herself at it, instead of edging back and forth.

If you prefer to sit away from the heavy traffic then there are plenty of options, and if your wife's chair is narrower that mine, then she shouldn't have a problem. If you are taken to a table that isn't suitable just tell them, we do.

In every other restaurant we had no problems whatsoever with getting a table that suited my wife's needs. The only exception was in 6th Street Diner when the host wasn't really paying attention and allocated us a booth. When we got to the booth I simply told our escort that it was no good and walked towards a more suitable table. Believe me, nobody would dare tell us we couldn't sit there.

I don't think your wife will have any problems; the crew are very disability aware. That cannot be said about some other passengers. Don't get me started on lifts!🙄

I also don't think you will have any problems with bookings if you was aware of them opening up on your Cruise Planner and get in early.

As for the My Holiday function, just embrace it. If you have two devices, just load it onto both so you have one to jump straight onto if the other crashes.

Finally, a small negative...

Although you can book for multiple guests for dining reservations, you can only book the entertainment venues for those in your cabin. As we were travelling with others, we would have liked the option of being able to link our cabins so one party or the other group could book for everyone. Hopefully, they may tweak it in the future to be able to do that.

Good luck 🤞🙂

Edited January 24, 2023 by TigerB

Interestedcruisefan · January 25, 2023

Brilliant information once again

Selbourne · January 25, 2023

9 hours ago, TigerB said:

Hi Selbourne,

Our cruise sailed on 6th January. I've just checked my emails to establish when we made bookings.

On 24th December, through the Cruise Planner, I booked the following:

- Dinner in Zenith for four, including a wheelchair at 18:30 for every night of our cruise, except the 20th

On 28th December, through the Cruise Planner, I booked the following:

- All the shows that were listed for the Headliners; my sister did the same for her and her husband.

- Dinner for four, including a wheelchair at 18:45 on the 19th in Epicurean. My sister did the same for the 9th.

- Dinner for four, including a wheelchair at 19:00 on the 11th in Sindhu

- Lunch for two, including a wheelchair at 12:45 on the 8th in Green & Co.

It was on that day I cancelled the reservations at Zenith for the evenings we had booked the speciality restaurants.

To be fair, if the option was there to book other speciality restaurants, then we may have done so. There was an option to book 6th Street Diner, but only for dinner; we wanted to try it for breakfast first.

I would have liked the option to book Olive Grove before we sailed, but that was not an option. Once on board, it was busy every night. In retrospect, it didn't really matter as we didn't enjoy our meal there.

On 5th January, just after checking into our PI in Southampton, I saw that bookings had opened up for Zenith on the 20th, so I made a reservation for the four of us for 18:30.

Yes, I was surprised that we could book so far ahead for the MDR; we couldn't do so for Britannia last September.

The options though were just for dinner; you could select how many guests, if there is a wheelchair, and if you wanted a private or shared table.

You don't have to pre-book a table for breakfast, you can just do a walk-in. I only found out about that on our third day when I was flicking through My Holiday. By then, we had already decided upon our preferred table, and wanted to keep the same table for breakfast also, for the rest of the cruise. So, I booked through My Holiday for 08:15 every day up to the 19th, except for the day I had booked 6th Street Diner. It was only later in the cruise when the 20th became available for breakfast.

I must say that Claudette at the Zenith was fantastic; after just a couple of days she recognised us as we approached the desk and thereafter I didn't even have to give our cabin numbers; she welcomed us with a smile and said table 735 was ready for us. Also, after our third day, the bookings on My Holiday were all populated with our table number.

The option to book for breakfast on our last day, the 21st, never appeared on My Holiday. I just asked Claudette the day before and she booked our table there and then.

I have to be honest when I say that, on the first formal night when there was a long queue of folk who had just turned up or joined the virtual queue a little earlier, I felt a little smug that I was the early bird. Folk will say that the booking system and My Holiday was a shambles; not so, in my opinion. It was easy to use and the option to book at early as 24th December was open to everyone.

Right, wheelchairs.....

My wife is a full-time electric wheelchair user and remains in it to dine; the one she uses to travel in is 62cm wide. On the first night, we were shown to a table in the first section of Zenith, just as you enter from the left side of the host's desk. She was able to get between two tables and position herself at our table. That was fine as there was nobody else at nearby tables. When we finished though, there was someone behind her, so she found it a little difficult to manoeuvre her chair.

On the second night we were shown to table 735, which was near to our waiters' station and on what you may refer to as a thoroughfare. That said, there was at least eight feet between the back of my wife's chair and the table behind her. Also, it wasn't a particularly heavy flow area. The best thing about it was that she could just wheel straight to the table and position herself at it, instead of edging back and forth.

If you prefer to sit away from the heavy traffic then there are plenty of options, and if your wife's chair is narrower that mine, then she shouldn't have a problem. If you are taken to a table that isn't suitable just tell them, we do.

In every other restaurant we had no problems whatsoever with getting a table that suited my wife's needs. The only exception was in 6th Street Diner when the host wasn't really paying attention and allocated us a booth. When we got to the booth I simply told our escort that it was no good and walked towards a more suitable table. Believe me, nobody would dare tell us we couldn't sit there.

I don't think your wife will have any problems; the crew are very disability aware. That cannot be said about some other passengers. Don't get me started on lifts!🙄

I also don't think you will have any problems with bookings if you was aware of them opening up on your Cruise Planner and get in early.

As for the My Holiday function, just embrace it. If you have two devices, just load it onto both so you have one to jump straight onto if the other crashes.

Finally, a small negative...

Although you can book for multiple guests for dining reservations, you can only book the entertainment venues for those in your cabin. As we were travelling with others, we would have liked the option of being able to link our cabins so one party or the other group could book for everyone. Hopefully, they may tweak it in the future to be able to do that.

Good luck 🤞🙂

Thanks again. That’s incredibly helpful. I had absolutely no idea that you could pre book the MDR for the entire cruise before you even sail. Whilst I can see that being useful and reassuring, I can also see it as being the cause of many of the MDR problems that are being reported, as any people will inevitably change their plans during the cruise (dining time or choice of restaurant) yet not cancel their original bookings as you did.

It completely explains why people are waiting a long time for a table, only to find the restaurant half empty when they eventually get in! I’m staggered that this hasn’t been debated at length on this forum, especially as there’s a tendency to debate at considerable length matters that have far less impact on the cruise experience! I really feel that P&O will need to review this. We have never experienced the long queues or delays that people are reporting, but neither has there ever been the ability to block book tables before. I can’t help but feel that the two issues are directly related. However, now that I know that you can pre-book the MDR I will do as you did and then cancel if we change our plans (assuming that the same system will be in operation on Iona in August).

Eglesbrech · January 25, 2023

10 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Thanks again. That’s incredibly helpful. I had absolutely no idea that you could pre book the MDR for the entire cruise before you even sail. Whilst I can see that being useful and reassuring, I can also see it as being the cause of many of the MDR problems that are being reported, as any people will inevitably change their plans during the cruise (dining time or choice of restaurant) yet not cancel their original bookings as you did.

It completely explains why people are waiting a long time for a table, only to find the restaurant half empty when they eventually get in! I’m staggered that this hasn’t been debated at length on this forum, especially as there’s a tendency to debate at considerable length matters that have far less impact on the cruise experience! I really feel that P&O will need to review this. We have never experienced the long queues or delays that people are reporting, but neither has there ever been the ability to block book tables before. I can’t help but feel that the two issues are directly related. However, now that I know that you can pre-book the MDR I will do as you did and then cancel if we change our plans (assuming that the same system will be in operation on Iona in August).

The MDR is not open for pre booking on my forthcoming Iona cruise so it may have changed already. Screen shot below.

The only dining that is pre bookable before embarkation (on this cruise at least) is the more expensive speciality restaurants and the chefs table. Olive Grove and the Beach House are not bookable as yet either.

I don’t know if this is particular to one cruise, as there have been some IT issues, or if it is what it is.

It would make sense to not allow block bookings if it is indeed causing lengthy queues and empty tables. Even if they allow a 15 minute hold on booked tables which are not cancelled / not used that could add up to many hours of empty table resource over a mealtime. Meantime others wait out in a corridor.

It also creates a two tier holiday with those who were lucky enough to get a pre bookings having a great experience like Tiger B and those who didn’t waiting in queues. We can’t all get in early so by definition some will be left with a wait yet we all paid for the same cruise experience.

It also works against those who are less IT literate. If the only way to use the system effectively is to have a device and know how to use it that should be made clear as part of the booking process.

I agree I’m surprised there has not been more discussion around this subject. I’ll report back on my own experience in due course.

Coral Restaurant

Included

Take a seat at Coral Restaurant and settle into a sparkling atmosphere. The perfect spot to get together and enjoy bubbly conversation along with delicious food. Join us for breakfast, lunch and dinner to savour your choice of modern...

NO BOOKING NEEDED

Gettingwarmer · January 25, 2023

10 hours ago, TigerB said:

- Dinner in Zenith for four, including a wheelchair at 18:30 for every night of our cruise, except the 20th

40 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Thanks again. That’s incredibly helpful. I had absolutely no idea that you could pre book the MDR for the entire cruise before you even sail. Whilst I can see that being useful and reassuring, I can also see it as being the cause of many of the MDR problems that are being reported, as any people will inevitably change their plans during the cruise (dining time or choice of restaurant) yet not cancel their original bookings as you did.

It completely explains why people are waiting a long time for a table, only to find the restaurant half empty when they eventually get in! I’m staggered that this hasn’t been debated at length on this forum, especially as there’s a tendency to debate at considerable length matters that have far less impact on the cruise experience! I really feel that P&O will need to review this. We have never experienced the long queues or delays that people are reporting, but neither has there ever been the ability to block book tables before. I can’t help but feel that the two issues are directly related. However, now that I know that you can pre-book the MDR I will do as you did and then cancel if we change our plans (assuming that the same system will be in operation on Iona in August).

Can you confirm which times you can book. Is it only early times. If so this would not cause so many problems. It is wrong if people don’t cancel but I would assume they use the 15 minute rule as per the “app”.

Megabear2 · January 25, 2023

21 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

The MDR is not open for pre booking on my forthcoming Iona cruise so it may have changed already. Screen shot below.

The only dining that is pre bookable before embarkation (on this cruise at least) is the more expensive speciality restaurants and the chefs table. Olive Grove and the Beach House are not bookable as yet either.

I don’t know if this is particular to one cruise, as there have been some IT issues, or if it is what it is.

It would make sense to not allow block bookings if it is indeed causing lengthy queues and empty tables. Even if they allow a 15 minute hold on booked tables which are not cancelled / not used that could add up to many hours of empty table resource over a mealtime. Meantime others wait out in a corridor.

It also creates a two tier holiday with those who were lucky enough to get a pre bookings having a great experience like Tiger B and those who didn’t waiting in queues. We can’t all get in early so by definition some will be left with a wait yet we all paid for the same cruise experience.

It also works against those who are less IT literate. If the only way to use the system effectively is to have a device and know how to use it that should be made clear as part of the booking process.

I agree I’m surprised there has not been more discussion around this subject. I’ll report back on my own experience in due course.

Coral Restaurant

Included

Take a seat at Coral Restaurant and settle into a sparkling atmosphere. The perfect spot to get together and enjoy bubbly conversation along with delicious food. Join us for breakfast, lunch and dinner to savour your choice of modern...

NO BOOKING NEEDED

Which date are you sailing please? Is it within the 3 week window TigerB mentioned. On Britannia at Christmas we were able to block book dinner in Oriental or Peninsular freedom dining restaurants apart from Christmas day. It wasn't via the app but done at the restaurant desk on the first night - same table 6.30 every night and breakfast 7.30 every morning. Those seated around us had done very much the same.

Interestingly one morning a couple were directed to the window seat next to ours having reserved on the app but the waiter came and moved them after they were seated stating it was already reserved.

Eglesbrech · January 25, 2023

1 minute ago, Megabear2 said:

Which date are you sailing please? Is it within the 3 week window TigerB mentioned. On Britannia at Christmas we were able to block book dinner in Oriental or Peninsular freedom dining restaurants apart from Christmas day. It wasn't via the app but done at the restaurant desk on the first night - same table 6.30 every night and breakfast 7.30 every morning. Those seated around us had done very much the same.

Interestingly one morning a couple were directed to the window seat next to ours having reserved on the app but the waiter came and moved them after they were seated stating it was already reserved.

Yes it’s imminent. I copied the message above this morning from the screen and it’s been like that the whole time.

I have been checking it twice a day every day as bookings have come out in dribs and drabs. Some dining opened, then some entertainment, then the Limelight. An activity opened up which we booked and it was gone from the screen altogether the next day.

The live music has a book now tab but nothing when you open it.

Selbourne · January 25, 2023

2 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Which date are you sailing please? Is it within the 3 week window TigerB mentioned. On Britannia at Christmas we were able to block book dinner in Oriental or Peninsular freedom dining restaurants apart from Christmas day. It wasn't via the app but done at the restaurant desk on the first night - same table 6.30 every night and breakfast 7.30 every morning. Those seated around us had done very much the same.

Interestingly one morning a couple were directed to the window seat next to ours having reserved on the app but the waiter came and moved them after they were seated stating it was already reserved.

Interesting and further confirms my concerns. People making block bookings at the restaurant desk and the staff having to work around ‘reserved’ tables, along with the issues that Eglesbrech raised, all result in a much slower and less efficient process than the first come, first served process that has worked so well for decades!

Eglesbrech · January 25, 2023

Just now, Selbourne said:

Interesting and further confirms my concerns. People making block bookings at the restaurant desk and the staff having to work around ‘reserved’ tables, along with the issues that Eglesbrech raised, all result in a much slower and less efficient process than the first come, first served process that has worked so well for decades!

Selbourne, perhaps it would be worth exploring this on another thread. As it was your concept I’ll leave it to you to start it off and chip in.

Fionboard · January 25, 2023

2 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Interesting and further confirms my concerns. People making block bookings at the restaurant desk and the staff having to work around ‘reserved’ tables, along with the issues that Eglesbrech raised, all result in a much slower and less efficient process than the first come, first served process that has worked so well for decades!

Yes, block booking same table, same time every night is basically same as fixed dining!

TigerB · January 25, 2023

12 minutes ago, Gettingwarmer said:

Can you confirm which times you can book. Is it only early times. If so this would not cause so many problems. It is wrong if people don’t cancel but I would assume they use the 15 minute rule as per the “app”.

It was back in December and I have slept since then but, to the best of my recollection, it was the early times, between 17:00 and 19:00. I didn't really pay much attention as 18:30 is always our preferred time to eat, so that was the time I was looking for.

I'm not sure if it was a trial for Arvia or just our cruise, to see if it could be rolled out across the fleet, or to try an alleviate the problems from the first cruise. That said, pre-booking was available as early as 24th December, which was before the problems of Christmas Day.

I agree that it may cause problems if folk are selfish and book but don't cancel. However, the restaurant hosts along with the head waiters do have the ability to cancel bookings so, if a party were a 'no show' for a couple of nights running, they could cancel the rest of their bookings.

To be clear, there was only a lengthy queue on the first formal night, and I don't think it was caused by 'no shows' and tables being left empty due to that. The Zenith was heaving by about 19:30 and the only tables that I could see as being empty were those that hadn't been cleared after folk had finished and left, because there wasn't enough staff. I could see a couple of head waiters, a host and who appeared to be the restaurant manager in discussion near to us. Then, within ten minutes or so, there was an influx of staff from other restaurants who set about clearing dirty tables and then helping the waiters.

Megabear2 · January 25, 2023

10 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Interesting and further confirms my concerns. People making block bookings at the restaurant desk and the staff having to work around ‘reserved’ tables, along with the issues that Eglesbrech raised, all result in a much slower and less efficient process than the first come, first served process that has worked so well for decades!

The bookings were apparently allowed for early dining, I think 6.30 was the last one allowed. The app doesn't work on our phones - something to do with the security settings we were told. For medical reasons we have to eat earlier than most so have always availed ourselves of booking on arrival if we aren't on club dining - in this case we were automatically put on freedom as the ship was full and two restaurants were handed over to freedom.

There were queues at breakfast time when we were leaving but never any between 7.00 and 7.30. Again as we eat early we never saw any queues for dinner or heard anyone complaining about them. Britannia was full, if there had been problems I'm sure we would have heard. However there are three dining rooms for 3,200 guests so the volume would presumably be far less pressurised than on Iona or Arvia. There are of course very few alternatives on her as well.

Edited January 25, 2023 by Megabear2

yorkshirephil · January 25, 2023

10 minutes ago, Fionboard said:

Yes, block booking same table, same time every night is basically same as fixed dining!

Which actually indicates that some people still prefer a fixed dining time, you see it, I see it, probably other people here see it, now it is just a case of P&O seeing it, and maybe acting on it.

Megabear2 · January 25, 2023

2 minutes ago, yorkshirephil said:

Which actually indicates that some people still prefer a fixed dining time, you see it, I see it, probably other people here see it, now it is just a case of P&O seeing it, and maybe acting on it.

I'm not sure what tye answer is on the two bigger ships. When we've booked a saver fare on Britannia or Azura 9 times out of 10 we've been given freedom. As a result our setting in My P&O are set by them as our preference is that- we actually don't mind it. Our difficulties arise if we are given 8.30pm club dining as it won't work for medical reasons. We have had major trouble changing from that on both Azura and Britannia as they were pretty strict on the no change for saver fares, to the point where a few years ago we did not eat one meal in MDR on Azura as they refused point blank to let us change.

An awful lot of the bookings at Christmas and on Arvia/Iona are savers due to the ludicrous select -v- saver difference so I'm assuming a more flexible approach will be in place.

Fionboard · January 25, 2023

Yes, it is easy to change from first to second sitting but not the other way round as first seems to be busier usually.

Eglesbrech · January 25, 2023

13 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

I'm not sure what tye answer is on the two bigger ships. When we've booked a saver fare on Britannia or Azura 9 times out of 10 we've been given freedom. As a result our setting in My P&O are set by them as our preference is that- we actually don't mind it. Our difficulties arise if we are given 8.30pm club dining as it won't work for medical reasons. We have had major trouble changing from that on both Azura and Britannia as they were pretty strict on the no change for saver fares, to the point where a few years ago we did not eat one meal in MDR on Azura as they refused point blank to let us change.

An awful lot of the bookings at Christmas and on Arvia/Iona are savers due to the ludicrous select -v- saver difference so I'm assuming a more flexible approach will be in place.

On Fred Olsen if a saver fare is booked they will let the person change the dining seating but charge for it. £2 pppn last time I heard anyone mention it.

Perhaps that’s an option (availability allowing) as the perks for select booking are becoming fewer and the differential higher.

Megabear2 · January 25, 2023

10 minutes ago, Fionboard said:

Yes, it is easy to change from first to second sitting but not the other way round as first seems to be busier usually.

It appears that given a forced fixed time the majority choose 6.30 to allow them to enjoy the events around the ship without having very late nights. It's not much fun to go to bed at midnight to leave on a tour at 8.00am where you meet at 7.30!

As a regular Cunard traveller I'm very pleased they're introducing another option.

Arvia Dining - Expectations vs Reality

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