Not doing formal night...where to eat?

[packercruising]

I get what you are saying, but a long sleeved dress shirt with no tie or jacket is not formal attire according to the answer book. It seems to be somewhere in between smart casual and formal. That makes it very confusing. My suggestion is to ask the Maitre'd once on board as it seems that each ship is enforcing a different policy.

 

I don't even own a long sleeve dress shirt. Why is a short sleeve dress shirt not appropriate?

[espo56]

I'm so sorry you went through this. We felt bad for you and I even told my wife that I didn't understand why you were being denied entry. The answer book is definitely NOT clear as indicated by the various posts here. I was just lucky that I had brought the long sleeved dress shirt or I would have been denied access too. I really hope you had a good cruise other than this incident.

 

Thank you for your kindness. We did have a great cruise and although we were annoyed that night we got over it quickly. It was a great cruise overall.:)

[WeBeGone]

I am always interested in these "dress" threads because the experiences are always so varied. We were on the same cruise as mjkbaok and espo56. We usually "dress" for formal nights but for this particular cruise, my husband did NOT bring his tux, and I did NOT bring heels or a formal gown. We just didn't feel like it. Both formal nights we were seated in the DaVinci dining room. He had on a short sleeved Tommy Bahama shirt and dockers, I was in sandals and a "regular" dress. We know what the "answer book" says, we know what we usually do, but we also felt that we looked fine, even though not formal. If the head waiter had a problem with how we were dressed, he would have/could have turned us away and we would have understood.

[NthernLgts]

There are always a lot of opinions on this topic for the reasons we all know about. Without getting into any of that what has been said time and time again on these threads is what is said in the cruise answer book isnt always what you will find onboard. Enforcement is spotty and varies. Think of formal night dress code much as you would going to a true formal restaurant. Each one typically has a slightly different expectation. You likely will get in wearing almost whatever you choose, but there is a definate chance you will not. It is a roll of the dice. If youre not prepared to go formal just do like the boy scouts and be prepared. As has been stated here, a call onboard in advance to clarify goes a long way.

[hubofhockey]

I get what you are saying, but a long sleeved dress shirt with no tie or jacket is not formal attire according to the answer book. It seems to be somewhere in between smart casual and formal. That makes it very confusing. My suggestion is to ask the Maitre'd once on board as it seems that each ship is enforcing a different policy.

 

I agree with you 100%. It appears as if the Maitre Ds have their own arbitrary policies. I am going to carry on a sports jacket and I'll bring long sleeve shirts in any case. I hope not to use the jacket unless we decide on doing the second formal night. The first is my daughter's birthday and we will be at the Crown Grill.

[mjkbaok]

I don't even own a long sleeve dress shirt. Why is a short sleeve dress shirt not appropriate?

 

 

I wish I had the answer to that question. All I know is what the Maitre'd on the Ruby told me. This whole thing is confusing because each ship is run different and because the answer book isn't specific enough.

[rcacace]

I don't even own a long sleeve dress shirt. Why is a short sleeve dress shirt not appropriate?

 

When I was entering the dr one formal evening carrying my jacket (That's all I own are short sleeve Golf shirts) the young lady at the reception desk asked me to put it on until I was seated. I always take my jacket for insurance in case they get fussy but never wear it. Once seated they never make an issue of removing your jacket. There were quite a few guys with just long sleeve shirts/no ties on.

In Sabatini's on casual evenings I wore my jeans & golf shirt - no problem.

[kywildcatfanone]

I am always interested in these "dress" threads because the experiences are always so varied. We were on the same cruise as mjkbaok and espo56. We usually "dress" for formal nights but for this particular cruise, my husband did NOT bring his tux, and I did NOT bring heels or a formal gown. We just didn't feel like it. Both formal nights we were seated in the DaVinci dining room. He had on a short sleeved Tommy Bahama shirt and dockers, I was in sandals and a "regular" dress. We know what the "answer book" says, we know what we usually do, but we also felt that we looked fine, even though not formal. If the head waiter had a problem with how we were dressed, he would have/could have turned us away and we would have understood.

 

We were on the Crown last week, and when we went to dinner the first night in the Michaelangelo Dining room, we picked our the table we liked, and enjoyed our servers (Felipe/Mateo), and one of the head waiters came over to our table and asked us if we were having a good time. We said "yes" and he asked us if we wanted to reserve that table for the week. I told him "yes, but we didn't have formal night clothing and would not be coming to the dining room on those nights".

He told us not to worry, and come anyway. I clarified what he was telling us and he reiterated that it would be fine, lots of people do, and it would not be an issue. I even asked our waiter after he left if it would be OK, and he said "No problem, lots of people would be in the same situation".

We did go to the formal nights, and did see others dressed smart casual. Perhaps it does vary by ship as to how these decisions are made....

 

Mike

[NukeTim]

We ate in the Caribe Cafe for formal nights. I must say that I was impressed. Salads and appetizers were premade so all you had to do was pick them up. The carved tenderloin was the best I've ever had (compared to the regular dining room). We also saved a lot of time. We heard the day after formal night that it took a long time to have dinner in the regular restaurants. It was also implied that Sabatini's and the Crown Grill would be formal dress on formal nights.

[nolablue21]

We ate at Sabatinis the first formal night. Delicious meal but be prepared to eat A LOT and be there for a while. Was a more enjoyable atmosphere than the dining room. The second formal night we ate from Cafe Caribe and also pizza from the pizza parlor (delicious) and ate outside watching a movie under the stars. Was fun, comfortable and a good alternative for those not wanting to dress up.

[4_THE_HALIBUT]

My most memorable non-formal "formal" night was aboard the Coral cruising Glacier Bay. We couldn't drag ourselves away from all the wildlife we were viewing from our balcony. My friends and I (there were two other couples) gathered a small collection. We sent my husband to the dining room to have a friendly conversation with the maitre'd. Forty-five minutes later, there was a knock on the door announcing the delivery of 12 lobster dinners! We had asked for 12 lobster tails, thinking we would visit the buffet later. Nothing quite like sitting on your balcony, drinking wine, eating lobster and looking at whales!

[WeBeGone]

My most memorable non-formal "formal" night was aboard the Coral cruising Glacier Bay. We couldn't drag ourselves away from all the wildlife we were viewing from our balcony. My friends and I (there were two other couples) gathered a small collection. We sent my husband to the dining room to have a friendly conversation with the maitre'd. Forty-five minutes later, there was a knock on the door announcing the delivery of 12 lobster dinners! We had asked for 12 lobster tails, thinking we would visit the buffet later. Nothing quite like sitting on your balcony, drinking wine, eating lobster and looking at whales!

 

Now that is REALLY going out of the norm as Princes has a "strict" policy of no food leaving the dining room. So much for policy - just like dressing for formal night. :p I'm so glad you could enjoy your dinner.