Dinning Packages and Indian Food

[100cruisesorbust]

We love speciality dining and were wondering if you can get packages at a reduced rate?  Also little off topic we heard we can get Indian food in the main dinning room on most princess - how do you end up getting that?

[karatemom2]

Princess doesn’t offer dining packages like NCL. There are some dining benefits in the Plus package which includes two casual dining meals and the Premier package which includes two specialty meals. 
 

There are usually a couple of Indian dishes offered in the MDR at lunch and dinner at sometime during the cruise. Also, Indian dishes can usually be found often in the buffet. 
 

If you mention to your server your preference for Indian food, they may be aware of special dishes available that they might bring to you. 

[capriccio]

23 minutes ago, karatemom2 said:

If you mention to your server your preference for Indian food, they may be aware of special dishes available that they might bring to you. 

We (me, DH, my sister and BIL, and a brother and SIL) were on a 28 day Australian cruise last April.  i had requested the same table every night and we were delighted to discover that our waiter was from India where my sister had spent a summer a decade ago traveling on a Fulbright teaching scholarship.  He was even more delighted to find that out.  The first night he explained that the chef was from India too and from that night on for at least half the dinners he would bring an off menu extra Indian dish to share.  If he didn't have an Indian one he would bring something else.  He even got ill with Covid for 5 days and the head waiter (who was not from India) for our section carried on the tradition.  All this was totally unexpected and greatly appreciated.  We made sure he and his assistant (from South Africa) were thanked profusely each time and deservedly tipped well at the end of the cruise.

[reedprincess]

There are no dining packages on Princess. And specialty dining is generally less to much less expensive than Celebrity, NCL, etc .

The Premier Cruise Package includes 2 specialty dinners per sailing..

 

Indian food is available on request in the MDR. Ask your wait staff or maitre'd . And some dishes generally available daily in buffet 

[mtnesterz]

 

1 hour ago, 100cruisesorbust said:

Also little off topic we heard we can get Indian food in the main dinning room on most princess - how do you end up getting that?

My information is not current. Yes, you used to be able to order off menu for the following night and we have ordered Indian. Nowadays, with anytime dining, different table each night and different waiter, I'm not sure how this would work. Ask your MDR waiter if you can place an order for the next night, but you'd need to be in the same waiter's section. Ordering off menu may be a victim of progress.

Edited April 3 by mtnesterz

[SCX22]

I'd be very careful of making a special order of Indian food in the MDR.  We made befriended an Indian couple on the Enchanted Princess in November of last year.  They made a few requests for Indian food a few nights--nothing in particular, just Indian.  What was brought out to them every single time was the Indian food in the buffet, which was plated so it would look presentable for the MDR.  After they caught on, they stopped the requests for Indian food.

[canadjineh]

If you are 'lucky' enough to have to pre-order meals the day before due to, in my case, celiac disease, you could ask the chef to make you up almost whatever you wish.  Once I have been a few days into a cruise and knew they could feed me safely, I would give the chef free rein some nights, just suggesting the protein and see what he came up with.  I've had some really amazing dishes that way, although the Princess MDR menu is the dullest of all the cruise lines we've tried.  Mainly boring 'white bread' choices that pretend to be some other cuisine.

[skynight]

No dining packages. You pay the posted cost plus 18%. For example Sabatini's will cost you $35 + 18% = $41.30 per person. A casual meal will cost $14.99 + 18% = $17.69.

You can book specialty dining in advance with payment charged to your credit card at the time of booking, or wait to make reservations once on board. From what I have seen casual meals are walk in. The Premier fare includes two specialty dining meals and unlimited casual meals. Unlimited is a little misleading since there are only a few casual restaurants on every ship. Full suite passengers have the benefit of a specialty dining meal at no extra cost on boarding day. Plus fare passengers receive 2 casual meals.

  

[Senga]

You can request Indian food from your dining room Manager the day before.  I asked for Chicken Marsala and was shocked when Chicken Masala was delivered!  That missing R made a world of difference!  😱

[JimmyVWine]

16 hours ago, SCX22 said:

I'd be very careful of making a special order of Indian food in the MDR.  We made befriended an Indian couple on the Enchanted Princess in November of last year.  They made a few requests for Indian food a few nights--nothing in particular, just Indian.  What was brought out to them every single time was the Indian food in the buffet, which was plated so it would look presentable for the MDR.  After they caught on, they stopped the requests for Indian food.

I was reading through this thread thinking along the same lines and then landed on your post.  This makes the most sense.  The MDR galleys are not set up at all for one-off special orders.  It just isn't the way the brigade operates.  I can't even imagine what it would look like for a cook to step out of line to assemble special ingredients, pans, utensils and burner space.  I assume that the special food comes from the crew mess or the buffet.  I suppose it could be made to order in the buffet galley where all the ingredients are present and accounted for.  But more likely it is ladled out of an already existing hotel pan.