Retreat guests - name one non-Luminae restaurant you would visit during your voyage

[mybichon]

I am just off the Apex and my first Celebrity cruise. The best steak I had was the first night filet mignon in Luminae. Totally disappointed in the steak at the Fine Cut Steakhouse. Definitely not worth the money. I would recommend Eden. The lobster casserole was excellent, as well as the appetizer and dessert.

[Team Stag]

Fleetwide - it's Murano.  We love Raw on Five but that slots in as a lunch stop (multiple times during the cruise).  We have not tried it for dinner.

 

E Class - it's probably Eden.  We have been there 3 times; 2 were excellent but most recent it had slipped and was disappointing.  We did not care for the steakhouse or le petit chef on E Class.  We were also underwhelmed with Le Voyage.  Maybe it was a bad night (or our seating) but we were highly disappointed and in no rush to return.

S Class - it's Murano then followed by Le Petit Chef based on the show (we like some menus; don't care for others).  LPC works better on S Class due to the venue space vs where it is in E-Class ships.  I will go with my other half to Tuscan but don't love it.

 

We have never tried outside top deck restaurants that do bbq, flat breads etc.  The idea of getting wind blown while eating is not appealing to us.  But we did have lunch at the Lawn Club grill on the Reflection and the burger was fantastic.

[DaKahuna]

 I have to agree with the majority.  If we are not eating in Luminae for dinner then Murano would be our first choice.  We've only sailed E-class once and did not eat dinner outside of Luminae on that cruise. 

 

I have had some good meals in Tuscan Grill but the better experiences have been in Murano. 

 

[JDPCruisers]

1 hour ago, mybichon said:

I am just off the Apex and my first Celebrity cruise. The best steak I had was the first night filet mignon in Luminae. Totally disappointed in the steak at the Fine Cut Steakhouse. Definitely not worth the money. I would recommend Eden. The lobster casserole was excellent, as well as the appetizer and dessert.

Curious as this was your first X cruise, and if not your very first cruise, how did it compare overall with other lines you've cruised on? 

[mybichon]

1 hour ago, JDPCruisers said:

Curious as this was your first X cruise, and if not your very first cruise, how did it compare overall with other lines you've cruised on? 

This was my eighteenth cruise overall. I have cruised Royal Caribbean, Princess, and Carnival previously. It had been five years since my last cruise so I was expecting some changes since Covid happened. Some of the best food we have had on a cruise has been on Carnival. On this cruise I found portions to be small, extra charges, a lot of repetition in the menus, and overworked staff. I guess that is just a sign of the times now. We loved the Apex but missed some of the more fun things we had on different lines. More singing and dancing, well attended deck parties, steel drum band, more activities on board and interaction with the entertainment crew. Each cruise line definitely has its own vibe. I definitely like sailing on a newer ship but look for traditional balconies, passenger count and price of course. 

[wineoclock]

We always do at least 2 or 3 specialities even when eating in Luminae. It’s good but nice to change it up a bit. 
 

LPC once done not again - food was dreadful. 
 

S class Murano is our preferred choice if only one. 

 

E class If I had to pick one either Eden or DB depending on type of food I fancied. 
 

 

[aml3679]

Tuscan

[Jim_Iain]

On 11/28/2023 at 2:40 AM, richczarnecki said:

I hear great things about Luminae but it might be nice to venture out one night to another restaurant.  What one restaurant would you pick if you were to cheat on Luminae for a night?  🙂

You need to specify ship.  Ships have different options.   e.g. Edge class don't have the Specialty Murano and some of the M class don't either.

 

I would say Murano if you enjoy French Style old school dining.    Tuscan if into Mediterranean.

 

On Edge -  Eden - Fusion fresh meals.  

[terrydtx]

After multiple disappointments with Celebrity specialty restaurants, the only one we would book now is Eden.  On the Apex in September, we had a terrible experience with the Roof Top Grill and it was so bad we refused the offered comped meal another night by the manager. Our view is we pay a hefty premium to cruise in a suite and we should stay with Luminae for our meals. We have 22 nights on the Edge Retreat in January and do not have any specialty restaurants booked.

[DaKahuna]

4 hours ago, terrydtx said:

After multiple disappointments with Celebrity specialty restaurants, the only one we would book now is Eden.  On the Apex in September, we had a terrible experience with the Roof Top Grill and it was so bad we refused the offered comped meal another night by the manager. Our view is we pay a hefty premium to cruise in a suite and we should stay with Luminae for our meals. We have 22 nights on the Edge Retreat in January and do not have any specialty restaurants booked.

 

 So what do you do on non E-class ships since they do not have an Eden to choose from?  

[terrydtx]

2 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 So what do you do on non E-class ships since they do not have an Eden to choose from?  

Stay with Luminae 100%

[Texed]

On 11/28/2023 at 9:12 AM, Team Stag said:

We have never tried outside top deck restaurants that do bbq, flat breads etc.  The idea of getting wind blown while eating is not appealing to us.  But we did have lunch at the Lawn Club grill on the Reflection and the burger was fantastic.

Well, to me it worth my hair getting blown to have a Lawn Club Grill rib-eye.  😋 

[talljules1]

On a 7-night on Silhouette we'd likely visit Murano x2 and Sushi on 5 x2 (and perhaps a third time for Taj X) and use Luminae for the rest.

 

On Beyond - really didn't rate Luminae AND it was hard to make use of our 7 night dining package, despite trying to book everything as soon as we boarded, and only got to use our 7th night on the very last night, by camping outside Lawnclub grill and begging for a table when it opened. Le Voyage was good (we did the menu with the paired wines and enjoyed that). Never got to try Eden (and disappointed about that). Raw on 5 was good (but they hardly had any oysters and we were only allowed to order a half dozen). Didn't think the steakhouse was good at all - food nothing special, service very inattentive. Overall, really quite unimpressed by the dining on that sailing (and not a glass of sauvignon blanc to be had anywhere). That sailing is the only time we have struggled to use a dining package. Really wouldnt rush back to the Beyond.

 

For Infinity we will make a lot of use of Sushi on 5, some use of Tuscan, and zero use of Le Petit Chef - it's really not our thing so I expect we will spend more time in Luminae.

[TeeRick]

On 11/27/2023 at 2:17 PM, mahasamatman said:

Depending on the menu that night, I might pick Blu.

A suite guest might not get access to Blu, depending on availability.

[hcat]

On 11/29/2023 at 4:38 PM, terrydtx said:

Stay with Luminae 100%

 We could not take much more than a few nights  of Luminae on BEYOND...dark restaurant, ( other than the "select" area up  front)  It was noisy, tables too close,  very small squishy shrimp, odd menus, slow service other than sommelier and , doled out bread.. It was not impressive!

 

We loved BLU  and Raw on 5..which is not just sushi! Res needed!

 

Everyone's tastes varies but I rec trying other venues..may be happily surprised!

[CruiseRQA]

On 11/28/2023 at 9:32 AM, mybichon said:

I am just off the Apex and my first Celebrity cruise. The best steak I had was the first night filet mignon in Luminae. Totally disappointed in the steak at the Fine Cut Steakhouse. Definitely not worth the money. I would recommend Eden. The lobster casserole was excellent, as well as the appetizer and dessert.

Agree with this.   The steaks at Fine Cut do not measure up to a good steakhouse like Ruth's Chris or The Palm.   Eden is terrific.