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- Norwegian Viva Specialty Dining Review – Should you pay to Enjoy “Better” Meals?
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- Final Thoughts on my 15 day Atlantic Crossing on the Norwegian Viva Prima Class Ship
If you have never been on a Norwegian ship or the NCL Viva you may or may not be aware that all dining options are not included in your cruise price. While main dining, a sports bar, the buffet and another neat option with many choices are all free – a number of specialty dining restaurants are not. Oh and they are not cheap.
Most cruise packages included a number free-ish visits to these restaurants. I say ‘-ish’ because even with a package, NCL tacks on an 18% gratuity on top. You’re already paying a daily service charge. Those ‘free’ visits will still run you $20-$30 per person. So even “free” you are paying a chunk of change. When all the other included options are so good it is worth considering if you want to pay for specialty dining at any price.
With that out of the way let me give you a, ah hem, taste of what you can expect from specialty dining. First up the steak specialty called Cagney’s and one of the most popular choices.
On package you get, surprisingly, 3 appetizers and 3 desserts if you want. That is a LOT of food btw. The lobster bisque is a popular choice but in recent years the amount of lobster has been reduced. The thick cut bacon is amazing and a solid choice you can even share. I normally go for a prime rib but even here the quality of the cuts are not what they were a few years ago. Desserts are always amazing and above is the 7 layer chocolate cake and OMG cheesecake. Num!
Next up the Japanese dinner show production called Tepanyaki. The show is 99% the same every single time you go but the food is really fresh and of top quality so we do often go once each voyage just to enjoy the meal. If you get a really enthusiastic cook the show is much more fun.
Another wildly popular choice is the French Le Bistro. The dress code does not allow shorts so keep that in mind as they strive to feel upscale – but often some of the waiters are in T-shirt’s from the sports bar helping out so… If you like mushroom soup they make a very good one (tip – ask for extra mushrooms before they add the soup). The double chop is also very good but they tend to favor the rare side so if you like your pork cooked – be sure to order medium well. Rather than sweets this visit I went with a cheese plate and it was delicious (just needed more bread).
My last one for you is the Italian restaurant called Onda. It has been revamped over the years and is much better than before. This pizza, an appetizer, is HUGE and oh so good. We get one and split it and still can not eat it all. My wife had pappardelle and I went with a fillet. Both were good but not remarkable.
Bottom line: the food is better than the complimentary options in most cases — but I’d never pay the retail $40-$60 per person (plus 18% on top of that) out of pocket for any of these. If your package includes the visits, use them. Just know that if you skip specialty dining entirely, you won’t go hungry or unhappy – René
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and and may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened. This relationship may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
