As You Wish Dining - Opinions, Comments and Discussions

[yancycruiser]

Ruth, I don't suppose you know where I can view a copy of HAL's Daily Program?

[RuthC]

[quote name='yancycruiser']Ruth, I don't suppose you know where I can view a copy of HAL's Daily Program?[/quote]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=royalblue]Sorry, no. :( Even if you were to find one on-line, it might not be too much help anymore. I understand the format has changed dramatically. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[Cruisin Suzin]

Have you tried the anytime dining, and can you just show up and they will seat you..I would not want to be seated at a table say of 6 people who where half way through their dinner. Or will they just seat the two of us together all the time..it would be nice to be with a bit of a group. once in a while....just a little confused by all of this..

Thanking you in advance..

[RuthC]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=royalblue]You have some choices. You can call for a reservation, withing certain time periods. Reservations are taken for the early and later time frames, but not for the peak periods. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#4169e1]Or, you can just arrive when you wish. Ask for the table size you want. If you want a small table you may have to wait. If you want a larger table, people will be seated there within a few minutes time. You will not be joining people who have started on their meal, nor will others be joining you later. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[Cruisin Suzin]

Well then I think that might work fine for me, to just show up and say a table for 6 please, and wait a few minutes for others to join...Can I just show up at any of the restaurants? The Pinnacle Grill, Manhattan Dining Room? The lido restaurant ? I suppose the restaurants that you pay extra for would have set times am I correct..


Thanks Ruth... Edited March 13, 2010 by Cruisin Suzin

[RuthC]

[quote name='Cruisin Suzin']Can I just show up at any of the restaurants? [/quote]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=royalblue]Open seating applies to the main dining room, which is usually named either the Rotterdam Dining Room or the Vista Dining Room. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#4169e1][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#4169e1]The Pinnacle is an extra charge restaurant and requires reservations. On some ships there's also a Tamarind or a Canaletto Restaurant, for which you should also make reservations. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#4169e1]The Lido is the casual buffet dining venue. That's totally open, come when you want, seating. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[GeriatricNurse]

[quote name='yancycruiser']Ruth, I don't suppose you know where I can view a copy of HAL's Daily Program?[/quote]



[B][I][FONT=Arial][SIZE=4]yancycruiser, I'm not Ruth, but I have a copy of the "new and improved" HAL Daily Program, dated February 16, 2010, from the ms Westerdam, on which I recently completed a 14-Day Caribbean Cruise. I had brought this copy home with me for a souvenir, but I would be willing to mail it to you for you to have as I have decided not to keep it and was going to dispose of it in my [COLOR=blue]Blue Box [/COLOR][COLOR=black]for recycling purposes! Let me know!:)[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/I][/B] Edited March 13, 2010 by GeriatricNurse

[yancycruiser]

Geriatric Nurse,

Thank you for the offer. I think I will just wait and be surprised when I get on board.

Best regards,

Don

[Roz]

Cruisin Suzin,

You will be asked if you're willing to share a table. If so, you'll be seated with others who came into the DR around the same time. I was on a 10-day cruise where I had open seating, and we were all served our courses at the same time. I was never seated with people who were on their entrees when I was just ordering my appetizer.

Open seating was very easy. Reading all the posts about it makes it sound like it's a hugely difficult and complicated process, which I did not find to be the case.

Roz

[2cruisecats]

We (or should I say I?) love As You Wish Dining. In the fall of 2008 we did a B2B Med cruise with a couple we met on a pre-tour for an Antarctic cruise a few years before. On that first cruise, because of assigned seating and times, we were unable to dine together in the main dining room though we met a few times in the Grill. The Med cruise was great. We could go off on our separate tours, come back and regroup and get a table for 4. Minimal wait. Most days, if we were still on board while booking was available, we managed to book our preferred time. If we (or they) were off on a night on the town, we could get a table for two, or join others and share shore experiences, etc. And, you never had to rush back to meet your dining time! Next trip to Europe in the fall, we're doing "AYWD" again. If we dine alone, fine. If we meet new friends, even better. And the real nice thing about AYWD … if you have dinner with someone you really don’t like, you never need see them for dinner again! The downside, you don't get to know your servers, nor they you & your favourite goodies.

[RuthC]

[quote name='2cruisecats']Next trip to Europe in the fall, we're doing "AYWD" again. [/quote]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#4169e1][I]Everyone[/I] does AYWD. Unless you skip dinner, there's no way to avoid it. :rolleyes: [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#4169e1]Some do it at open seating, while others do it at fixed. And sometimes people go to the Lido, Pinnacle, or have room service or go to another alternate restaurant. Every way is as they wish. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[cruzingmissy]

I was thrilled to see that HAL is offering this popular dining option. My husband and I have sailed with Princess many times primarily because of the flexible dining arrangements. We do like to eat early, and we do enjoy having the same wait staff. What we don't like is to be forced to eat with the same people each night because we have had some bad experiences in the past. On our cruise to Alaska we met a lovely couple on our first night, they were seated at the table next to us, and we arranged to eat together for the remainder of the cruise. We reserved a table each morning and were able to have the same waitstaff each night. I am expecting that having flexibility will be very important on a Mediterranean cruise because it will be difficult to always be ready by 5:45, and 8 PM is too late for me on a regular basis. We'll see how it goes. Edited March 16, 2010 by cruzingmissy

[DedeM]

Well, I can't read all the previous pages but the last two were helpful.

In the past my mom preferred 2-top early dining. We always bicker about early because I can't get ready fast enough and I like to have a drink in the cabin and sit out on the balcony blah blah blah...

This time we booked our cruise kind of last minute and got open seating. So I have two questions please:

1. Who gets the tip at the end of the sailing, whoever you get as servers that night? I bet the servers don't love this too much. They're unlikely to receive extra. (sorry to bring up the dreaded "T" word)

2. If we show up for dinner around 7:00 will that mean a long wait? (southern carribbean Westerdam 3/28 sailing)

I don't understand why Princess lines had such a hard time with long waits with open seating. Why wouldn't all the cruiselines have problems?

Thanks :)

[hammybee]

[quote name='DedeM']

1. Who gets the tip at the end of the sailing, whoever you get as servers that night? I bet the servers don't love this too much. They're unlikely to receive extra. (sorry to bring up the dreaded "T" word)

2. If we show up for dinner around 7:00 will that mean a long wait? (southern carribbean Westerdam 3/28 sailing)

I don't understand why Princess lines had such a hard time with long waits with open seating. Why wouldn't all the cruiselines have problems?

Thanks :)[/quote]

1) Tips are pooled and allocated according to a plan approved by the employees. This protects them from those passengers who did not bother to tip. No doubt some like it and some do not, no different than any compensation system, anywhere. Wait staff are routinely rotated into and out of fixed versus open seating.

2) Showing for dinner at 7:00 and being seated right away dependent on how many other passengers on your cruise also want to dine at 7:00. There is no way to predict this.

I do not think Princess has any more issues with seating diners than any other cruise line. It all depends on the variable of when the majority choose to dine on any given cruise.

I recently noticed that Crystal will soon be offering open seating too. It's eveidence that enough passengers prefer to choose when to dine and with whom.

[DedeM]

Thanks for your reply, Hammybee :)

[rescueranger]

My question is if you have fixed seating time for dinner can you, on occasion, decide to forgo the fixed seating time and show up at the MDR or the Lido for AYWD instead.

[Mary Ellen]

[quote name='rescueranger']My question is if you have fixed seating time for dinner can you, on occasion, decide to forgo the fixed seating time and show up at the MDR or the Lido for AYWD instead.[/QUOTE][SIZE="3"]Welcome to the CC! Since fixed seating IS part of AYWD, yes, you will have AYWD anyplace you choose to dine on HAL. However, you can [B]not[/B] switch back and forth between fixed and open seating. If you've been lucky enough to get [I]your wish[/I] of fixed seating, on any night you [I]can[/I] opt to dine in the Lido, any specialty restaurants, room service... You just can't decide to go to the MDR open seating for one night only.[/SIZE] Edited March 30, 2010 by Mary Ellen

[jtl513]

[quote name='Mary Ellen'][SIZE=3]However, you can [B]not[/B] switch back and forth between fixed and open seating.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]You just can't decide to go to the MDR open seating for one night only.[/SIZE][/quote][SIZE=3]That's always been my understanding too, yet one person on my Roll Call said this:[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][quote name='mtnmusic']We have not found that to be true on either Eurodam or Amsterdam. Open dining is open dining. Those times we were late for early dining because of the timing of a shore excursion we simply went downstairs and requested a table. No problem.[/quote][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]I suppose if the ships use the Upper tables that haven't been occupied after 15 minutes for Open people (as we have), then letting Fixed people eat downstairs wouldn't put any extra burden on the staff there.[/SIZE] Edited April 2, 2010 by jtl513

[Mary Ellen]

[SIZE="3"]HAL's always made exceptions because of shore ex timing, even before open seating was an option. I would expect the MDR to accommodate pax who miss their seating due to this. I would NOT expect them to allow pax to bounce back and forth between fixed and open due to whims. Maybe as HAL gets a better feel for pax needs/wants this [I]may[/I] change, but I haven't heard of that yet.[/SIZE]

[fud2468]

Hi,
I've waded through part of the dining threads, but do not have a clear picture yet. Prior experience has been only with Princess and Celebrity.
We are elderly and think HAL would suit us well, but would like the option of the type of buffet that Princess has.
My question is, is there a dining option that would allow us to take all meals buffet-style at any time we want?--within reason, that is, i.e. between 8AM and 8PM.
Thank you,
Ray Mac

[fridayeyes]

Hi,

I've waded through part of the dining threads, but do not have a clear picture yet. Prior experience has been only with Princess and Celebrity.

We are elderly and think HAL would suit us well, but would like the option of the type of buffet that Princess has.

My question is, is there a dining option that would allow us to take all meals buffet-style at any time we want?--within reason, that is, i.e. between 8AM and 8PM.

Thank you,

Ray Mac

 

Yes. The Lido buffet will be open and available for anytime dining, no reservations needed.

 

As You Wish dining refers to open seating in the main dining room only.

Edited April 7, 2010 by fridayeyes

[Mary Ellen]

As You Wish dining refers to open seating in the main dining room only.

No, As You Wish dining includes ALL dining onboard the ship. This includes the Lido (buffet as you mentioned) along with open and fixed seating in the MDR, room service, any specialty restaurants, the grill by the pool....

 

Do you think ONLY those who eat in the open seating in the MDR are dining 'as they wish'? HAL doesn't.

[fridayeyes]

No, As You Wish dining includes ALL dining onboard the ship. This includes the Lido (buffet as you mentioned) along with open and fixed seating in the MDR, room service, any specialty restaurants, the grill by the pool....

 

Do you think ONLY those who eat in the open seating in the MDR are dining 'as they wish'? HAL doesn't.

 

The poster I am answering wants to know if there is a 'come when you want' buffet. This would be the Lido Buffet.

 

Yes, HAL presents a variety of options, including the Lido, the MDR, the Pinnacle, burgers at the pool, etc. and presents them as part of the As You Wish concept. However, the big change that came with the introduction of As You Wish was open seating in the MDR - which is commonly referred to as As You Wish onboard. In particular, if you ask someone where to go for As You Wish seating, they direct you to the MDR. Hours and procedures for the other venues remained the same.

 

The quoted post is coming off as rather snarky to me. Perhaps this was not her intent?

 

So allow me to re-phrase for the sake of fud 2468:

 

There is open seating on one level of the main dining room. For buffet dining as you describe, the Lido is what you're looking for.

Edited April 7, 2010 by fridayeyes

[Mary Ellen]

The poster I am answering wants to know if there is a 'come when you want' buffet. This would be the Lido Buffet.

This is absolutely correct. I was just clarifying that "As You Wish dining refers to open seating in the main dining room only" [my bold] is not correct.

 

Once again, as the HAL site states:

As You Wish® dining

 

From a festive five-course affair to a quick, casual dinner for two, our As You Wish® dining lets you choose the venues and style that suit you.

 

The elegant main Dining Room

 

* Luxurious Dining Room, graced with fine art and antiques

* Sophisticated Rosenthal china and crisp white table linens

* Five-course menus with offerings from classic preparations regionally inspired cuisine to vegetarian options

* Your choice of traditional pre-set seating and dining times or a flexible open schedule

 

 

The Pinnacle Grill experience

 

* Intimate dining featuring Sterling Silver Beef® and fresh seafood

* Luxurious appointments including Bvlgari® china, Riedel® stemware and Frette® linens

* Extensive wine list featuring many selections rated “Excellent” by Wine Spectator

 

 

Other delightful ways to dine

 

* Fresh, cooked-to-order specialties in the Lido Restaurant for breakfast and lunch

* Made-to-order dinner entrees and tableside waiter service in the Lido Restaurant for dinner

* Complimentary 24-hour in-room dining

* The Terrace Grill on deck

* Late-night snack; Chocolate Dessert Extravaganza

* Explorations Café featuring pastries and espresso drinks

* Daily Afternoon Tea service, elevated to Royal Dutch High Tea once per cruise

 

 

A master staff and crew

 

* Enhanced menu design under the direction of Master Chef Rudi Sodamin

* Executive chefs inducted into the prestigious Confrerie de la Chaine des Rotisseurs, an international food and wine society

 

 

Signature touches

 

* Ice cream bar featuring complimentary treats

* Hot hors d’oeuvres during cocktail hour.

 

HAL does need to update their website though (we've all heard that before;) ). There hasn't been "tableside waiter service in the Lido Restaurant for dinner" for sometime now. It is all buffet as fud 2468 wants. Also, the "Hot hors d’oeuvres during cocktail hour" have been gone for a while too. :rolleyes:

[fud2468]

Thank you for the detailed replies. We're glad to hear we can get what we want.

I will now search to find a HAL cruise for us!

Ray Mac