New Embarkation Day Concierge Lunch?

Cirlonde

Mouseketeer
Joined
Apr 3, 2014
Does anyone have any more information about this? I've seen two different posts on Twitter mentioning it, one on the Magic and one on the Dream. I'm guessing it is something new? Just wondering if it's going to be offered on every cruise and if it is something we'll have to request or if it is offered to all concierge guests...it seems like it might be a good alternative to the crowds in Cabanas on the first day.

These are the pictures I saw on Twitter (Credit to Scott Sanders @TheDCLBlog & @StorybookD):
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DareCw0W0AUonyy.jpg
 
All of this info is from shoreside as we will be on the Fantasy in a week so I asked. Yes it is offered on all ships. Started about three weeks ago. You do not need to request it. You either can chose to go to the lounge or go to the restaurant where the dedicated concierge lunch is. The menu is almost identical to the sit down lunch in the other mdr. On the Fantasy it is in the Royal Court. Beer and wine is included with the lunch. A member of the shoreside team will be there so you can chat there instead of the lounge. I believe this is to make the lounge a little bit less crowded. We will be probably be going straight to the lunch.
 
That menu looks like the same one that is served in the sit-down restaurant for embarkation day.
I am not able to see the menu but I think there are a couple of additions. I read somewhere. Like a lobster salad and a desert. The advantage of doing this is that beer/wine are included and you can meet with the concierge team member there instead of the lounge.
 


All of this info is from shoreside as we will be on the Fantasy in a week so I asked. Yes it is offered on all ships. Started about three weeks ago. You do not need to request it. You either can chose to go to the lounge or go to the restaurant where the dedicated concierge lunch is. The menu is almost identical to the sit down lunch in the other mdr. On the Fantasy it is in the Royal Court. Beer and wine is included with the lunch. A member of the shoreside team will be there so you can chat there instead of the lounge. I believe this is to make the lounge a little bit less crowded. We will be probably be going straight to the lunch.

Awesome! Thank you for the details! I think this is something we'd rather do also.

You mentioned you couldn't see the image of the menu...I'm not sure what to do differently to make the picture show up, but here's a list of what's on it just in case you're interested:

Appetizers
Sliced Smoked Salmon with Lemon and Honey-Mustard Dill Sauce
Beef Empanadas with Red Chimichurri
Mixed Salad
Seafood and Chicken Gumbo with Cornbread
Leek and Potato Soup with Soda Bread

Entrees
Pennette Pasta with Tomato-Basil Provencal Sauce, Goat Cheese and a Spinach-Pesto
Grilled Salmon Salad
Muffuletta Sandwich with Olive Salad, Genoa Salami, Mortadella & Provolone Cheese
Chicken Caesar Salad
Poached Lobster Salad
Roasted Beef Tenderloin

Desserts
Cookies and Cream Cheesecake
Carrot Cake
Welcome Aboard Sundae
Warm Molten Pot with Homemade Hazelnut Gelato
Chocolate Marquise Bomb (chocolate mouse with raspberry sauce, no sugar added)
 
Just did this on the Dream last week. It is LOVELY. Instead of going to the (relative) chaos of the lounge and then into one of the MDRs/Cabanas for lunch (real chaos sometimes!), you can either plop right into lunch OR go to the lounge and then come back down for lunch. There's a member of the concierge team right as you board to help you through the process.

Also, they include adult beverages at lunch...also very nice.

We really enjoyed this and commented on it on comment cards. It's a great add.

One note--it was not a member of shoreside concierge who was in the lunch as pp said. It was one of the ship concierges. And we did not have our "chat" where we go over activities while we ate lunch. That still took place up in the lounge.

Thanks & Enjoy!

WJS3
 


Makes me wonder if we will see an exclusive concierge restaurant added to the new ships. Most of the other cruise lines have one now.
 
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Makes me wonder if we will see a exclusive concierge restaurant added to the new ships. Most of the other cruise lines have one now.
Yeah, nothing like separating the "classes".

That's one of the big issues with cruising on Cunard. I'd love to do a Cunard cruise, but separating the dining rooms by what category room you've booked seems tacky to me.
 
I really can't understand any comment re " classes" , why would that be mentioned.
I have sailed Concierge six times and non concierge eight times. If I pay for concierge I get that service, If I do not pay it, I do not get it.

The introduction of a concierge embarkation lunch, has not reduced or changed the service and options for non concierge on embarkation. We all have choice, if we choose not to book concierge we cannot expect that service.

It's a bit like saying thoose Paying $210 for a Royal Court tea is unfair, and if you do not book it, you going to guest services and saying I want the gifts for my children that the Royal Court tea provides.

When saying separating dinning rooms is tacky, well Remy and Palo is separated, thoose who pay get that service. It's not tacky, it's add ons we have a choice on.

It's like saying people booking first class flights are tacky being in a separate cabin with larger seats. You choose, you pay.

In the end, bottom line, the food options to non concierge have Not changed, the cruisers get exactly the same as before on embarkation. Yes you could see thoose behind the glass who paid more, but that's the point they paid for it, and honestly the high concierge costs, they Deserve some perks and they subsidise the cruise costs for others.
 
I really can't understand any comment re " classes" , why would that be mentioned.
I have sailed Concierge six times and non concierge eight times. If I pay for concierge I get that service, If I do not pay it, I do not get it.

The introduction of a concierge embarkation lunch, has not reduced or changed the service and options for non concierge on embarkation. We all have choice, if we choose not to book concierge we cannot expect that service.

It's a bit like saying thoose Paying $210 for a Royal Court tea is unfair, and if you do not book it, you going to guest services and saying I want the gifts for my children that the Royal Court tea provides.

When saying separating dinning rooms is tacky, well Remy and Palo is separated, thoose who pay get that service. It's not tacky, it's add ons we have a choice on.

It's like saying people booking first class flights are tacky being in a separate cabin with larger seats. You choose, you pay.

In the end, bottom line, the food options to non concierge have Not changed, the cruisers get exactly the same as before on embarkation. Yes you could see thoose behind the glass who paid more, but that's the point they paid for it, and honestly the high concierge costs, they Deserve some perks and they subsidise the cruise costs for others.
Palo & Remy are not restricted to only a certain category of booking. Like a separate "Concierge only" dining room would be. Anyone can pay the extra for those venues. There's no choice to add-on a concierge only dining opportunity if you're not in concierge.

Anything that anyone onboard can participate in (even with an extra cost) isn't tacky. Having an experience that's only for a select few, that's tacky.
 
Palo & Remy are not restricted to only a certain category of booking. Like a separate "Concierge only" dining room would be. Anyone can pay the extra for those venues. There's no choice to add-on a concierge only dining opportunity if you're not in concierge.

Anything that anyone onboard can participate in (even with an extra cost) isn't tacky. Having an experience that's only for a select few, that's tacky.
You mean like the Concierge Lounge? Or the private sundeck? Or Concierge hot tub?
 
Palo & Remy are not restricted to only a certain category of booking. Like a separate "Concierge only" dining room would be. Anyone can pay the extra for those venues. There's no choice to add-on a concierge only dining opportunity if you're not in concierge.

Anything that anyone onboard can participate in (even with an extra cost) isn't tacky. Having an experience that's only for a select few, that's tacky.
I kind of doubt DCL would do a concierge-only dining room, but I could be proven wrong. It just doesn't seem to make much sense from a ROI perspective, since you presumably couldn't charge them a surcharge the way you can for Remy and Palo. Limiting the guests in a restaurant seems like a waste of square footage potentially.
 
You mean like the Concierge Lounge? Or the private sundeck? Or Concierge hot tub?

I'm pretty sure she meant the whole "We don't even have to see you commoners" that things like NCL's Haven have set up - their own dining room, their own entire areas...and (from people bragging about it when I was briefly pondering trying NCL) they will even take advantage of being the first to board by buying up the wristbands to the adult-only limited admission sundeck that shares a wall with the Haven sun deck so they wouldn't have to hear anyone "invading their peace".

There is IMHO a big difference between a small area such as what DCL Concierge has and the total classist isolation the Haven and similar programs promote.
 
I'm pretty sure she meant the whole "We don't even have to see you commoners" that things like NCL's Haven have set up - their own dining room, their own entire areas...and (from people bragging about it when I was briefly pondering trying NCL) they will even take advantage of being the first to board by buying up the wristbands to the adult-only limited admission sundeck that shares a wall with the Haven sun deck so they wouldn't have to hear anyone "invading their peace".

There is IMHO a big difference between a small area such as what DCL Concierge has and the total classist isolation the Haven and similar programs promote.

From my experience the Haven is really not much different than the Concierge spaces on DCL. The only spaces DCL doesn’t have (yet) are the restaurant and small pool area.

Many Haven guests buy the Vibe passes to have access to an adult only area since the Haven attracts lots of families during school breaks and summers.
 
From my experience the Haven is really not much different than the Concierge spaces on DCL. The only spaces DCL doesn’t have (yet) are the restaurant and small pool area.

Many Haven guests buy the Vibe passes to have access to an adult only area since the Haven attracts lots of families during school breaks and summers.

In this particular case, the person was bragging how she and her friend bought the wristbands for every adult in their party with no intent to use them but simply to keep the number of people able to use the area next to theirs down to keep the Haven deck quieter.
 

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