Dining
Norwegian Dawn has ten restaurants plus a handful of casual options and I suppose you could try them all on a seven day cruise but it would be pretty hard. Themes range from Benihana-style Teppanyaki to fish-n-chips. Overall, food and service were good in quality and that judgment is broadened to include those with surcharge and those without. A couple of notes: While Norwegian has made much of the variety and indeed there is that of its boutique offerings, that mostly applies to dinner. And yet there's still plenty to choose from at lunch.
It's also important to mention that evening dining hours are from 5:30 p.m. - 11 p.m. but passengers must be seated by 10:30 p.m. One area that initially seems to cause passengers some anxiety is in the reservation process but we found it pretty smooth and our cruise was 99 percent booked managing to snare a seat in every restaurant we wanted to try. There's a reservation desk in the main lobby that's open from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. and passengers are permitted to book just one day in advance. Otherwise, you can call the restaurant directly after 5:30 p.m. Lastly, Norwegian Dawn has teamed up with Cooking Light magazine and menus in the dining room, as well as offerings on the buffet, feature lighter fare at lunch and dinner.
Here's a rundown:
Traditionally speaking, the ship's three "main" restaurants differ mostly in terms of atmosphere. They start with the 472-seat Venetian, which is the most cruise-like (and the one that's most often used for breakfast and lunch as well as dinner). It's gorgeous, smaller than most cruise line dining rooms, and decorated tastefully with huge murals depicting scenes of Venice. Because the Venetian is aft, it's overlooked by a huge series of paned window stretching across the entire wall and offering incredible views. There are plenty of tables for two (though they may be in short supply during peak periods). The 344-seat Aqua features a more contemporary (though no less pleasing to the eye) decor lots of pretty colored glass and colorful ceramic murals and menu. It's also (we think) cruise-dom's only all-female operated restaurant (including maitre d'). Impressions, with 236 seats, is the most intimate in size but is otherwise as traditional as Venetian. Food-wise, menus are nearly identical at the three restaurants.
While there's much emphasis on "freestyle dining," Norwegian Dawn's maitre 'd says that traditionals can request the same-table-same time-every night. Make the arrangements when you board.
Back to Freestyle, one of the benefits is that - because they're not feeding 1,000 people who all sit down at one time - there's no convention-center-banquet feeling. There is a definite improvement (over more traditional dinner seatings) in both service and quality of main dining room cuisine.
Some of Norwegian Dawn's boutique restaurants, where advance reservations are highly recommended (though you can chance it and just show up if employing this strategy it helps to want to eat very early or very late), have per-person surcharges, some don't. Of the latter, our dinner at Salsa, the Tex-Mex eatery (this was one that tended to book up every night) was a stand-out. The restaurant also offers tapas and house-made sangria. Less successful was La Trattoria, the ship's Italian restaurant (which also tended to book up each night); while the transformation of part of the Garden Cafe into an Italian bistro is genuinely amazing, our meals weren't up to the scenery (slimy mozzarella in the Caprese Insalata, overcooked pasta). The 24-hour Blue Lagoon, tucked just off the Atrium, is a fast-food joint and frequently packed. Offerings range from unusual (Shepherd's Pie and pork-fried rice to burgers and fish-n-chips); we found that the more traditional fast food fare (potato skins, burgers, fries, the fish) was the best bet here. Blue Lagoon is also one of the few restaurants to have outdoor seating.
Charging a sliding scale of per-person surcharges (not to mention additional pricing on some items read the menu carefully ) are three specialty restaurants where, by and large, you'll find the best food and service onboard. Le Bistro ($15.00) features a French menu, mostly traditional fare. Desserts also are wonderful. One distinctive highlight of this restaurant is its collection of four Impressionist masterpieces (Van Gogh, Matisse, Renoir and Monet); there's something incredibly powerful about eating amidst them. Le Bistro, due to its intimate size, is probably the ship's most booked-up restaurant; there is an overflow part that is called the Wine Cellar, a set of tables that sit outside the restaurant (and basically they are part of Gatsby's Champagne Bar).
Cagney's Steakhouse ($20) is a Morton's-like establishment featuring Angus beef, lamb, and seafood with sides, like rice, mashed potatoes and creamed spinach, served family style. Bamboo is an elegant amalgamation of three different Asian eating areas Thai, Japanese and Chinese. Bamboo ($12.50) is a favorite of many of the crew and officers who are allowed to eat at the alternative restaurants). There's a sake bar, a Teppanyaki room (a'la Benihana and a la carte) and a sushi bar which features an "all you can eat for $10" deal.
Ultra casual options: One of the highlights of our cruise was the daily cookouts held poolside. Featuring all sorts of the usual barbecue fare everything was cooked on huge Weber-like grills from burgers to ribs to corn on the cob, the cookouts were held at lunchtime on sea days and during the early dinner seating on port days. Not to be missed. The Garden Cafe is the buffet area, featuring the usual no-surprise breakfast choices (omelettes made to order, eggs, bacon, etc.). At lunchtime, one end features delicious vegetarian Indian offerings. Another casual choice is the Bimini Grill (one of the few outdoor restaurants) where, during lunch hours, the grill cooked up burgers, hot dogs and fries.
Kids menus are available in the main dining rooms and the Garden Cafe. The latter has a totally charming kids' dining area with child-size buffet stations, tables and chairs.
There's 24-hour room service from a relatively limited menu. Sprinkles, tucked between two ends of the Topsiders' Bar (poolside) offers free ice cream (you can also shell out a few bucks for premium brands).
Norwegian Dawn takes dining to new dimensions in cruising, mostly due to the variety of eating places and cuisine, not the quality of the food. Generally, the food is fine and bountiful, and while it is rarely outstanding, most passengers are content with it.
Three of the 10 restaurants charge approximately $10 for a reservation, but they are well worth the cost. Two other restaurants require reservations but do not charge a fee. The food in the specialty restaurants was substantially better than that in the three main restaurants and the buffets, with the French Le Bistro and the Asian restaurants drawing particularly high praise.
The ships' 10 restaurants and the freedom to dine whenever you want during the vastly expanded dining hours are the most outstanding features. At night, some passengers dabble, only trying a few restaurants during the week, while others try to eat in all 10 before the last night.
Norwegian Dawn's three main restaurants are the Venetian, Aqua and Impressions. The menu differences between the three every night are slight; Aqua claims to offer a lighter and more modern interpretation. The Venetian, with its dramatic staircase entrance, huge wall of windows overlooking the wake, and ornate decor, is far more popular than Aqua, which seems almost bland in comparison despite its open galley displaying the preparation of desserts.
The extra-tariff restaurants are all worth trying. Seating only 66, Le Bistro is the most intimate restaurant and serves probably the best food on this ship in a cozy, elegant surrounding. Not to be missed is the Asian restaurant, Bamboo with a sushi bar, sake bar, and separate Teppanyaki room in addition to a larger section offering Thai-Japanese-Chinese specialties. With many of its chefs and serving staff (dressed in ethnic Asian outfits) coming from Malaysia-based Star Cruises, the Bamboo Restaurant is an authentic Asian experience. Cagney's Steakhouse is a 1930s-style American steak house with a menu of steaks, filet mignon, prime rib, lamb, fresh seafood and grilled chicken dishes.
These restaurants require reservations but do not have an additional charge: La Trattoria transforms from part of the Lido into a more romantic Italian restaurant every night. The Salsa Restaurant and Bar is the Tex Mex and Tapas style restaurant aboard Dawn in the middle of the Atrium.
A surprisingly large number of people dine at the casual Lido buffet every night, the Garden Cafe. With so many other options available, none of which require dressing up for dinner, I preferred trying the ship's more interesting restaurants, and tended to avoid the sub-par food found in the Lido for breakfast, lunch and dinner. A good feature is the separate kids area in the lido restaurant.
The Blue Lagoon is a 24-hour eatery that resembles a cross between a cheap diner and children's playground, with very basic food like hamburgers and tomato soup as well as a few Asian dishes. There is also an outdoor grill and BBQ on most days, as well as a limited ice cream bar and the Java Cafe, featuring premium coffees and dessert at an extra price.
Aboard Norwegian Dawn you'll discover NCL has rolled out the red carpet for its guests. This is Freestyle Cruising at its finest. We've created a dining atmosphere that's as free-spirited as the islands and cities we visit. Our guests can not only select from 10 spectacular restaurants with cuisine choices from all around the world, they also have the freedom to dine whenever they want. They're welcome to come early and stay late because our evening hours extend from 5:30 'til midnight. For casual dining we have two cafes that offer savory choices around the clock and 24-hour room service. And guests are encouraged to dress according to their style, not ours. There are optional formal nights, and throughout the cruise, resort casual attire is always appropriate for dinner.
Norwegian Dawn's roster of 10 restaurants has a very international flavor. The fact is, no other cruise line has more Freestyle dining choices. From the French elegance of Le Bistro to the exotic Asian allure of Bamboo, the Dawn will treat its guests to a world of culinary options. Here's your inside pass to the newest, most tempting selection of Freestyle dining on the high seas.
