Eating on Cruise Ships
Gone are the days of huge piles of food at the buffet line and the midnight buffet. But that doesn’t mean you will go hungry on a cruise ship! There are lots of choices and you can get as much as you want most of the time. For example, in the main dining rooms, you can order whatever you would like. You can order two appetizers, two main entrees, and three desserts if you want – you aren’t limited to one. And there are venues open except for the wee hours of the morning. It may be pizza or a grill, but you can eat almost anytime.
Most lines still offer free room service. Some have a service charge for the service. Check your daily newsletter or in room menu for pricing and/or service charge. Having breakfast in your room sitting on your balcony is a nice way to start the day!
Speaking of breakfast, you can get lots of choices on the buffet, but all the cruise lines also have at least one restaurant open for breakfast for a nice sit down meal. Some of them have two or three other venues open for breakfast. That is also in your daily newsletter
Specialty dining is a good option for the first night on the cruise. It is easier to get the time you want and some cruise lines give discounts or wine for the first night diners.
Do you like ice cream? Most cruise lines have soft serve ice cream on the Lido Deck or the buffet lines. Speciality ice cream often comes with a charge, but soft serve is free. Check each area that serves soft serve, there are often different flavors at different locations.
A sit down restaurant is a good alternative the day of embarkation. Instead of braving the mob, ask a crew member or check the daily newsletter to find out which restaurants are open. Then sit and enjoy having someone bring you your choices.
The main dining room menus are planned out for a week and you can look at them in advance. Visit the front desk and ask to see the menus. You can pick which meals you want to eat in the main dining room and which meals you want to go to an alternate dining venue.
Alert: gaining weight on a seven day cruise is normal. Don’t be surprised if you do!