Pushing Specialty Restaurants?

[highway180]

41 minutes ago, mayleeman said:

 

You obviously don't have the feature turned on that might show you how wrong you are about cruises taken and planned by @mahasamatman. He knows whereof he speaks.

this was in reference to his comment on Specialty restaurants being a step down from the MDR, I beg to disagree. Our last sailing it was difficult to get a reservation, Even for the specialty lunch in Tuscan @ $75/person, which our group thoroughly enjoyed.

 

I should've been more specific. My appologies.

[highway180]

2 hours ago, hcat said:

Cracks me up when newbies tell others to move on.. Cruise Critic neg comments from those with Experience have improved things for everyone more than once!

i may be considered a newbie to cruise critic, but not to cruising., and certainly not new to Celebrity.

cheers!

[hankandteri]

29 minutes ago, highway180 said:

i may be considered a newbie to cruise critic, but not to cruising., and certainly not new to Celebrity.

cheers!

Didn’t you say on Post 15 that you were leaving this thread so those of us who are not as pleased as you are with the unannounced cutbacks could voice our concerns in peace?

[deliver42]

They've been pushing specialty restaurants since before covid. Nothing new. All you have to say is no thanks.

[horseymike]

14 hours ago, highway180 said:

And many more are tired of the complaining 

 

concentrate on the positive, this board has turned so negative that I rarely post. 
it used to be a great place for newbies to learn the ins and outs, answers to their questions and alerts on new deals or online sales. Unfortunately it has turned into a bastion of negativity.  
 

enjoy your dismay with Celebrity 

I will focus on the positive and comment no longer on this thread. 
 

I will take your advise and skip 99% of the threads here. 
 

cheers

 

The message board is called CRUISE CRITIC. In case you forgot.

I will complain or compliment as I wish . 

Cheers 🍻

[karmamule]

5 hours ago, wineoclock said:

I don’t see it as complaining just stating things as people perceive them to be.

 

I’d rather know what to expect before I board.  

 

I can then adjust my expectations accordingly and not be disappointed when I get on board.

 

I can concentrate on finding the positives as i’ll already know the negatives and therefore won’t be upset or annoyed by them. 

 

This perfectly sums up why I'm on cruisecritic despite the amount of "complaining" posts. It helps me set expectations for what I'll be experiencing and reduce the chances I get disappointed. Forewarned is forearmed and I'm more likely to come away feeling "that was better than I thought it would be!" which is a much more enjoyable feeling than the reverse.

 

In any case I know I will have a marvelous cruise regardless because, well, even the worst cruise is infinitely better than the weekly work grind. 

 

 

[LMHSRN]

15 hours ago, highway180 said:

You obviously don’t cruise celebrity that often.  

I gladly paid the up charge for Murano

 

Murano speciality lunch, Tuscan, Tuscan speciality lunch all on a recent Trip on the Solstice in Alaska.  Have to say ALL venues were over the top in service, food quality, and quantity.  I include the MDR as well in that statement. We were a family of 5.  We usually only sail Aq. We had sunset veranda’s.  Awesome trip all around.  

 

Quit whining 

 

life is short 

 

enjoy or don’t sail Celebrity

  
 

ships are sailing full for a reason 

 

cheers

. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How pompus of you to call us "whining" about what we were sold and then have changed without notice or compensation.  It's folks like you that make this kind of thing possible for the cruise lines to get away with.

 

Oh well, I'll just go spend extra money (pay twice for meals) and go to Muranos or Tuscan.  Not everyone can afford the extra cost.  For a lot of us, this cruise was planned, saved for and highly anticipated for what was advertised and the changes are just plain WRONG!

[LMHSRN]

14 hours ago, highway180 said:

And many more are tired of the complaining 

 

concentrate on the positive, this board has turned so negative that I rarely post. 
it used to be a great place for newbies to learn the ins and outs, answers to their questions and alerts on new deals or online sales. Unfortunately it has turned into a bastion of negativity.  
 

enjoy your dismay with Celebrity 

I will focus on the positive and comment no longer on this thread. 
 

I will take your advise and skip 99% of the threads here. 
 

cheers

 

Oh thank God!  Bye now.

[Ex-Airbalancer]

4 hours ago, hcat said:

PS 

We will NEVER pay extra for anything in the  MDR (a Royalized concept we find offensive) On Royal they also hawked  non food items (like a cookbook and wine aerator) in  Specialty Venues while we had dessert....Very gauche!

My wife feels differently 

our last couple of times in Tucson were not good 

she rather pay $20 to get a steak in MDR than $70 going to Tucson 

[bigbenboys]

19 hours ago, highway180 said:

You obviously don’t cruise celebrity that often.  

I gladly paid the up charge for Murano

 

Murano speciality lunch, Tuscan, Tuscan speciality lunch all on a recent Trip on the Solstice in Alaska.  Have to say ALL venues were over the top in service, food quality, and quantity.  I include the MDR as well in that statement. We were a family of 5.  We usually only sail Aq. We had sunset veranda’s.  Awesome trip all around.  

 

Quit whining 

 

life is short 

 

enjoy or don’t sail Celebrity

  
 

ships are sailing full for a reason 

 

cheers

. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Murano has only one main dish that I will eat. That is the Chateaubriand. I booked Murano for next month. I see some menus that dont offer Chateaubriand they have Les Petits Filets. I did check Eclipse current sailing and they list Chateaubriand. In the past I really did not want to eat in any specialty restaurant as I felt Luminae was very good. Last Sept the best main dish I had in Luminae was from the MDR. It was Prime Rib. 

[highway180]

1 minute ago, bigbenboys said:

Murano has only one main dish that I will eat. That is the Chateaubriand. I booked Murano for next month. I see some menus that dont offer Chateaubriand they have Les Petits Filets. I did check Eclipse current sailing and they list Chateaubriand. In the past I really did not want to eat in any specialty restaurant as I felt Luminae was very good. Last Sept the best main dish I had in Luminae was from the MDR. It was Prime Rib. 

We actually did the specialty lunch on Murano, the last day of the cruise. It was a seafood heavy menu, but was very good. My granddaughter loved the hot dog and pasta they made up especially for her....she is 5.

 

Cheers

[hcat]

4 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

My wife feels differently 

our last couple of times in Tucson were not good 

she rather pay $20 to get a steak in MDR than $70 going to Tucson 

Sorry to hear that..How sad we have reached this point

 

Tuscan was once a great choice..wake views at sunset  Less formal than Murano, wonderful appetizers,  perfect pasta, loved the meatballs, excellent cuts of  beef.. Always left satisfied..no room for dessert!

 

[jelayne]

4 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

My wife feels differently 

our last couple of times in Tucson were not good 

she rather pay $20 to get a steak in MDR than $70 going to Tucson 

I agree with her about Tuscan we have had more so so or plain bad meals there.  We no longer even try.  Murano we love.

Edited August 21, 2023 by jelayne

[NutsAboutGolf]

Now that the dust has settled...

 

The challenge with specialties is it can be difficult to obtain dinner reservations before 830pm; the real kicker is when you approach the host stand at 6pm, see it only half full and they no reservations tonight (they apparently hold some for suite guests)

[Oceangoer2]

14 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

Now that the dust has settled...

 

The challenge with specialties is it can be difficult to obtain dinner reservations before 830pm; the real kicker is when you approach the host stand at 6pm, see it only half full and they no reservations tonight (they apparently hold some for suite guests)

We had the opposite experience.  6pm reservation, arrived 5 min. early, all tables but one were in use by those who had arrived at 5:30pm WITHOUT reservations.  We were told the line up started before 5:30 and it was so busy out into the Ensemble Lounge they opened the restaurant (Murano).  We were not happy that our time wasn't honoured with a good choice of tables...however...we survived...😁.  Food is excellent but getting a little too pricey so the poster who mentioned the MDR filet as being an option has a good point.

Edited August 21, 2023 by Oceangoer2

[Oceangoer2]

16 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

Now that the dust has settled...

 

The challenge with specialties is it can be difficult to obtain dinner reservations before 830pm; the real kicker is when you approach the host stand at 6pm, see it only half full and they no reservations tonight (they apparently hold some for suite guests)

We book our reservation as soon as we have our sailing confirmed in order to have our preferred time.  This week I was checking the website for another rez and as you say, late only available in all specialty restaurants.  Onboard you may have a chance with the times they keep open which are not showing online.

Edited August 21, 2023 by Oceangoer2

[Luvcrusn]

31 minutes ago, jelayne said:

I agree with her about Tuscan we have had more so so or plain bad meals there.  We no longer even try.  Murano we love.

Could not agree more! We've eliminated Tuscan from our to-do list permanently. We decided it's neither a true Italian, nor a true steakhouse restaurant and is more like a mid-level chain restaurant with very inflated pricing for the quality. On M- class we skip specialty dining altogether. The only time we dine in Tuscan is the elite breakfast occasionally for the quiet and the view.

Edited August 21, 2023 by Luvcrusn

[Luvcrusn]

1 hour ago, Oceangoer2 said:

We book our reservation as soon as we have our sailing confirmed in order to have our preferred time.  This week I was checking the website for another rez and as you say, late only available in all specialty restaurants.  Onboard you may have a chance with the times they keep open which are not showing online.

I think they also keep some early times open for those who have purchased dining packages as well. We have purchased those and cannot make reservations until we board. We go to a specialty restaurant as soon as we board on embarkation day and haven't had an issue with getting the times we want.

[bigbenboys]

3 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

Now that the dust has settled...

 

The challenge with specialties is it can be difficult to obtain dinner reservations before 830pm; the real kicker is when you approach the host stand at 6pm, see it only half full and they no reservations tonight (they apparently hold some for suite guests)

I did just made reservations for Murano for our cruise next month. Their are 4 of us in different classes of cabins. When I tried to make the reservation and pay with OBC. I could only book the 2 of us for Murano. So I tried to book 2 reservation around the same time. Then handle when onboard. I could only book 8:30 pm for my MIL, in a non suite. If I book us sailing in a CS I could book 6:30 pm. I called Celebrity's Retreat number. I now have a table of 4 for 6:30 pm.😳

[Luvcrusn]

On 8/20/2023 at 7:01 PM, highway180 said:

And many more are tired of the complaining 

 

concentrate on the positive, this board has turned so negative that I rarely post. 
it used to be a great place for newbies to learn the ins and outs, answers to their questions and alerts on new deals or online sales. Unfortunately it has turned into a bastion of negativity.  
 

enjoy your dismay with Celebrity 

I will focus on the positive and comment no longer on this thread. 
 

I will take your advise and skip 99% of the threads here. 
 

cheers

 

Some cruisers are positive that the current experience is less than what X has led them to expect on board and want to share that. It is fact to them and they are sharing that info. Those posts are no less valid than posts praising their time on board and are equally helpful to readers. I for one have been accused of cheerleading and whining. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.