just saw this on a NCL site. Is is typical?

On most of the ships, there is a "free" food: buffet, restaurant(s) with assigned dining. There are also restaurants where you pay the entrance charge, it's not per dish.

Every night you'll find a roster on your bed with clear indication what is free, what is not.

The same with drinks: free tea/coffee, pay for capucchino and sodas and alcholol.

Most ship offers "premium" restaurants where they charge extra. NCL recently is offering 2 for 1 deals for them.
Some lines have experimented with charging a surcharge for certain "upgraded meal" in their regular dining room.

Ok, this I am not as offended by as the "Single Surcharge" - They are doing you a service by bringing in a superior product for those who really want it. We all know that the wasted food on cruises is atrocious! If they were to serve this food to everyone, they would really have to raise their prices - Also, the prices they do charge are very minimal. The ship I will be on (Carnival Spirit) has a steakhouse and it seems like the steaks they are using are the type you would find in any typical high end steakhouse (where you might pay $40 just for a steak and side) but you get a 3/4 course meal for $30

That is a good deal ...

Of course, if they did offer 2-for-1 I wouldn't be eligible because God forbid someone would want to take a cruise by themselves! ;-)

Surcharges for specialty restaurants are typical (very much so) on all the mainstream cruise lines. NCL has the most individual restaurants of almost any line, and virtually all the specialty restaurants have some kind of surcharge, except the two main dining rooms, which are always free. So you can always get food for the inclusive price, but you might have to pay $10 to $25 per person to dine in most of the specialty restaurants. The prices are also typical across the mainstream lines. If you want to avoid surcharges, then go on a luxury cruise, but you'll pay about 4 times as much as on NCL. Needless to say, it all balances out.