Specialty Dining Choices on The NCL Bliss
While the NCL Bliss has close to 20 different dining options on board, only half of them are complimentary. The rest are referred to as “Specialty Dining”. Is it worth it to pay an additional fee to eat a meal on the ship? I’ve got the info you need, so keep reading!
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What is specialty dining?
Gone are the days of cruising being an all-inclusive vacation. While you can technically pay your cruise fare and not pay another dime, other than gratuities, you will not be able to use all of the facilities available on a ship.
The NCL Bliss offers included, complimentary dining, but they also advertise their other restaurants which must be paid for out of pocket during your cruise. These out of pocket, specialty dining locations also include bars, bakeries, ice cream shops and more.
NOTE: Children 12 and under eat FREE at sit down specialty restaurants!!!
Dress Code on the NCL Bliss
Since NCL has freestyle dining, the dress code on board is a lot more lax than on other cruiselines. However, the specialty restaurants do have the following dress code:
“Dress smart casual in our more upscale specialty restaurants. For women, it includes slacks or jeans, dresses, skirts and tops. For men, it’s jeans or slacks with a collared shirt and closed-toed shoes. Kids 12 and under are welcome to wear shorts in all our restaurants.”- From NCL’s FAQ page
Pre-Paid Packages
If you’re someone who doesn’t mind paying extra for special experiences, but you like to pay for your entire trip up-front, NCL has you covered.
When booking your vacation, NCL is almost always running a special that includes the all-inclusive drink package and at least one specialty dining meal. (If they aren’t running this when you’re booking I would call a travel agent and see if they can help.)
You can also upgrade these packages to include top tier alcohol choices or more meals. See all of NCL’s “extras” on their website.
On our cruise the adults had the unlimited open bar package and an included dining credit each.
New bookings will have the new NCL’More at Sea’ packages available to them!
Unlimited Open Bar Package
The baseline open bar package includes soft drinks, fresh juices and most alcoholic drinks under $15.00. This is in addition to the coffee, tea and regular juice already included in your cruise fare. It appears the new “More at Sea” package will also include some top shelf liquor brands.
-List of bars and lounges on board
Specialty Dining Credits
One credit at a specialty dining restaurant is good for an appetizer, main course and dessert. Reservations are highly suggested and can be made online prior to your trip.
Specialty Dining Choices
Restaurants
The below price guide is based on the main entree prices at the various dining establishments. For the best, up to date pricing, follow Prof. Cruise. She is an avid cruiser who is able to update her information often. Her NCL menu page is located here.
$……….$5-$20
$$…….$20-$35
$$$…..$35+
Food Republic- $
When you enter Food Republic, you will notice the long banquet style tables with tablets on them. Here you will place your order for fusion style shared plates.
Ocean Blue-$$-$$$
The ship’s upscale seafood restaurant, Ocean Blue offers everything from fish and chips to a seafood tower. The menu does offer one steak, one chicken and one vegetarian option as well.
Los Lobos-$
A Mexican restaurant with items such as guacamole prepared tableside, elote, tacos and carne asada. Most entrees are served with Mexican rice and beans.
Teppanyaki-$$
A classic Japanese steakhouse experience, entrees will come with a show and garlic fried rice! Current pricing is $25 per diner. The meal includes salad, soup, a main entree with fried rice and vegetables, as well as your choice of a dessert.
We were able to catch a Teppanyaki demonstration by the chefs on our cruise. They were very entertaining!
Cagney’s Steakhouse-$$$
Another upscale choice, Cagney’s offers a lot of bang for your dining voucher buck. If you choose to dine here, expect appetizers alone to cost between $10-$15. Main entree choices include surf n’ turf, prime rib, Australian lamb chops and more.
La Cucina-$$
An Italian restaurant on the Bliss, La Cucina’s menu features pasta, 12-inch pizzas and other Italian favorites.
Le Bistro-$$
Rounding out the international dining options on board, Le Bistro serves a French menu. This is the spot to dine if you are looking for escargot on your vacation!
Q Texas Smokehouse-$$
‘Q’ is another restaurant to eat in if you’re looking to get the most value out of your specialty dining voucher. While you are able to order an appetizer, entree and dessert like any other restaurant, the portions here are huge. You could easily split a meal, especially if you order the ‘Pitmaster Platter’. The Platter consists of 1/4 pound of brisket, pork spare ribs, smoked chicken AND jalepeno and cheese sausage. It is served with coleslaw, potato salad, pickles, beans and cornbread.
Other Specialty Dining Locations
Pricing at these locations varies greatly on the item. Expect to pay “theme park prices” for desserts on board the ship.
Dolce Gelato
Unfortunatley, we never discovered this location open during our one week Alaskan cruise on the NCL Bliss. It is a walk-up window located outside on Deck 8. A video menu board shows updated flavor choices for gelato.
Coco’s Chocolatier
Located on the deck 6 near the atrium, Coco’s is a sweet shop that also features over-the-top milkshakes. Each decadent and well decorated shake costs around $20. There are bistro tables and some booths available to sit while you enjoy your treat.
The Bake Shop
While Coco’s menu is mostly chocolate, The Bake Shop offers other choices like macarons and cupcakes. It is located inside of the ship on Deck 8, around the corner from Dolce Gelato.
Starbucks® Coffee
Can’t go without your Starbbies for a whole week?? NCL has your back! A full Starbucks location is available on board. While you can’t use your points, you can use a Starbucks giftcard or purchase a package that includes Starbucks (it is not included with the open bar promotion). The line will get long in the mornings, so plan accordingly if you’re trying to caffeinate before your time in port.
Bars and Lounges
The NCL Bliss has enough bars and lounges for you to try a few each day and not repeat! Unless you have the Open-Bar package, all soft-drinks, specialty coffees, fresh squeezed juices and alchoholic beverages are an extra cost on top of your cruise fare. Below is a list of bar and lounge locations:
- Atrium Bar
- Horizon Lounge- Exclusive to Haven guests
- Humidor Cigar Lounge
- Maltings Whiskey Bar
- Mixx Bar
- Observation Lounge
- Skyline Bar
- Social Comedy and Night Club
- Spice H2O-Adults Only area
- Studio Lounge-Exclusive to Studio (Solo) guests
- Sugarcane Mojito Bar
- The A-List Bar
- The Cavern Club
- The Cellars Wine Bar
- The District Brew House
- The Haven Lounge- Exclusive to Haven guests
- The Local Bar & Grill
- The Vibe Beach Club- Adults only, must purchase a pass
- Waves Pool Bar
Need somewhere for the kiddos to go while you check out these lounges? Read all about the kids clubs on the NCL Bliss!
Thoughts on Specialty Dining
*I’ll be giving a full review of Q Texas Smokehouse on this page soon, this is the restaurant we chose to use our voucher on and we weren’t dissapointed!
We went into this cruise assuming the food at the main dining rooms would be the amazing food we have previously had on other cruise lines. With that in mind, specialty dining wasn’t a priority to us.
Midway through our week of vacation, we cashed in our specialty dining voucher and realized the standard of food was mountains above that in the complimentary dining areas. I really wish we had tried Cagney’s Steakhouse to satisfy the itch for a truly decadent meal on our trip.
Read more about dining on NCL here
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