Tipping for Specialty restaurants
 

We're sailing on the Summit 6/27 and plan to do one night in their gourmet "Normandie" Restaurant. Has anyone done this? Would appreciate comments. How is tipping handled? I assume that the additional fee for the meal (which I think is $25 per person) is added to your overall bill when you make your reservations. But, does that include the gratuity, or do we leave cash on the table ... or what? Thanks

Hi Anna,<BR><BR>The tip is included in the fee you pay but you are free to give a few bucks for outstanding service. I'm sure the wait staff would appreciate it. The food alone is worth the $25 additional.<BR><BR>Paul

Anna (and others who eat in these gourmet restaurants): I'm not knocking any of you, but what am I missing? You will pass up one nice meal that you already paid for to pay a second time for an even nicer meal and then, you'll pay a tip to be served the second nicer meal and be charged for another tip for the servers in the main dining room where you didn't eat.

Doesn't anyone want to answer Andrews question. I thought the same thing.

OK Sally, I'll answer. A specialty restaurant is the same type restaurant that you will see in your home state. It is a special occasion evening.<BR><BR>It is just an option that is offered by the cruise lines recently to attract passengers that enjoy this type of private dining. There are so many new ships that each must fight the competition. The cruise lines are not trying to say, &quot;hey eat at our supper club, the food is so much better.&quot; <BR><BR>Paul<BR><BR>

We ate at a specialty restaurant and had cheese fondue for an appetizer and chocolate fondue for dessert. They would never have been able to offer fondue on a large scale in the main dining room. We just did it one night, but it was fun and worth it for us. <BR><BR>The same argument can be made for eating while in port, why pay for food in port when you could stay on the ship and eat what you've already paid for. Answer: Because it's fun to try different things.

I still have not heard a good answer to Andrews question. And Barbara, you're not in port, so your answer doesn't hold.

Numerous answers to Andrew's question:<BR><BR>1. If you believe fine dining will be an experience unto itself, the answer is yes, otherwise no.<BR><BR>2. If paying a second tip is so important, remove one from your &quot;sign and sail&quot; card.<BR><BR>3. If you're happy eating only at home or Mickey D's, then why pay more for any kind of food. If fine dining is your bent, then the specialty restaurants are worthwhile.<BR><BR>4. If you have to worry about such trivialities, why take a cruise at all?<BR><BR>

Dear Grumpy: OOOOuch! I can see where you get your name. They were just asking a simple question.<BR>Don

Eva - if you don't like the answers Andrew got to question, you probably shouldn't pay to eat at a specialty restaurant - obviously you don't get it.

Don--why are you fussing at Grumpy's Ghost? <BR><BR>Eva challenged others to answer Andrew's question: &quot;I still have not heard a good answer to Andrews question.&quot;<BR><BR>GG gave four simple answers to what you call a simple question. Your reply was &quot;OOOOuch! I can see where you get your name. They were just asking a simple question.&quot; <BR><BR>Now, tell me why the four answers given were not acceptable to you? Also, tell me why you thought it necessary to personalize your reply.<BR><BR>BTW: the poster was &quot;Grumpy's Ghost,&quot; not Grumpy.<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>

Enough and Barbara: &quot;Grumpy's Ghost&quot; &quot;answers&quot; were snide references to someone who does not subscribe to his &quot;foodie&quot; pretentious value system. They were not valid answers. And if you don't see it, you are also a pretentious snob.

Carol--what is a valid answer? Your opinion? Let us have it.<BR><BR>Fine dining is not pretension. Micky D is not low class. Just a preference. So why personalize your reply? Bad day at the office?

this has become a typical fodor's thread full of name calling and the rest.<BR><BR>Anyway, the last time that I cruised I was at a table for 2 on the Carnival Pride. Certainly if you are at a table with 8 strangers, then one may argue that the specialty restaurant is much more romantic, but not so when you start off with a table for two.<BR><BR>I asked the waiter one night about the speciality restaurant and he told me, yes they have some foods that are not available in the main dining room, but if you are going to order steak or lobster, then it is a complete waste because it is the EXACT same food that is used in the main dining room. He said that people who spend the extra money for that type of food might subconsciously THINK that the food is better, but it is all in their heads.<BR><BR>So, unless you want some fancy gormet food, don't waste your money.

Andrew<BR>If you eat in the &quot;Specialty Restaurant&quot; you will have some cocktail chatter for the rest of the year.If you don't,you won't.Simple as that.Total snobbery.Wasteful.But you do what the crowds want.Stick with the DiningRoom.

Thanks Buster, you were to the point and did the best at answering the question. I will stick to the dining room and save my money for other things I can enjoy more.

Obviously, most of these replys are from those who have not taken the opportunity to enjoy the specialty resturaunts. Having just returned from a 7 day adventure aboard Celebrity's Millennium, I must state that partaking of the food was enhanced by the ambiance of the room itself. And not to mention the music presented by violinist and piano. Being waited on by accomplished waiters, having your meal prepared beside your table. Enjoying a 6 course meal not comparable to the main dining room. Come on folks, if you have never even tried eating in an upscale establishment on shore, you should at least give this a try before you admonish each other

I, too, thought it was NUTS to pay again for a meal that was included. We never eat in port, genetrally because I can get sick on the water from my neighboring state. However, we sailed on the NCL Dream 11/17/02 and had heard great things about Le Bistro on various boards. NCL also discounts the charge sometimes which other lines do not appear to do. We also found a nite we were not nuts about the dine room menu and it was near our anniversary. So we did it and loved it. Hubby wanted to go again but the next time available was escargot and prime rib in the dine room, so no way.

This was a very interesting thread of messages, and clearly a controversial topic!<BR><BR>I think both sides have a valid point of view, it's really dependent on whether this type of experience is important to you or not. I am also sailing on the Summit (in Jan.) and my hubby and I plan to check out the Normandie -- the fact is, even with the $25 charge, that's a pretty good price for a fine dining experience. But we won't know until we've been there, I guess. ;)

Andrew's question was answered many times.