Tag: dining

An Insider’s Guide to Dining in Italy

On September 16, 2024

Dining in Italy

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There’s no denying that Italian cuisine is a culinary masterpiece, celebrated around the world for its simplicity, freshness, and bold flavors. But navigating the dining scene in Italy can be a delightful adventure in itself, filled with unique customs and etiquette that might surprise even the most seasoned traveler. From the art of ordering coffee to the sacred ritual of multi-course meals, this insider’s guide will equip you with the knowledge to savor every bite of your Italian escapade like a true local.

Macchiato in Bologna

Mastering the Art of Italian Coffee
Italians take their coffee seriously, and ordering it correctly is a rite of passage. Forget about drip coffee – in Italy, it’s all about espresso. A simple “caffè” will get you a single shot of the rich, aromatic elixir, while a “doppio” is a double espresso. The beloved cappuccino is a breakfast staple, but ordering one after lunch or dinner is a big no-no, as Italians believe it can disrupt digestion. Instead, opt for a “macchiato” – espresso with a splash of milk – for a post-meal pick-me-up or an “affogato”, gelato topped with piping hot espresso.

Dining Etiquette: The Italian Way
Dining in Italy is an experience unto itself, with a distinct rhythm and etiquette. Meals are typically later than in the US, with lunch around 1 PM and dinner starting around 7 or 8 PM (though in southern regions like Sicily, dinner might not commence until 9 PM). Expect to find a “coperto” or cover charge on the menu, which covers the bread, olive oil, plates, and other tableware.

Sicilian Antipasti

Embrace the Art of Courses
Italian menus are structured around courses, typically featuring antipasti (appetizers), primi (pasta or risotto), secondi (meat or fish), and dolci (dessert). While ordering every course is possible, sharing dishes to sample a variety of flavors is acceptable. It is important to note that Italian food is very regional and each city has its specialties that you will not see anywhere else. Rick Steves Italy for Food Lovers is a comprehensive guide to each region’s must-try dishes. Don’t be afraid to ask your server for recommendations.

House Wines: A Hidden Gem
While Italy is renowned for its world-class wines, you might be surprised to find that many restaurants only offer bottles on their wine lists. Fear not, for the humble “house wine” is often a hidden gem – inexpensive yet remarkably flavorful, far surpassing the quality of typical house wines in the US. Ask your server about the house red or white, or inquire about carafes if you prefer to share.

Balanzoni in Bologna

Tipping and Paying the Bill
Unlike in the US, tipping in Italy is not a hard-and-fast rule, but rather a gesture of appreciation for exceptional service. A few extra euros or rounding up the bill is generally sufficient. When it comes to paying, be prepared to ask for the check, as it’s not customary for servers to bring it unsolicited. And unlike in America, you’ll rarely hand over your credit card – instead, expect to pay at a central register or via a portable payment terminal brought to your table.

Gelato: A Sweet Indulgence
No trip to Italy is complete without indulging in the heavenly treat that is gelato. While restaurants might offer it as a dessert option, you’ll find dedicated gelaterias on nearly every corner, each boasting an array of decadent flavors. From the renowned gelato havens of Florence to the sour-sweet granitas of Sicily, exploring Italy’s frozen delicacies is a delightful journey in itself.

As you embark on your Italian adventure, remember to embrace the local customs and savor every moment. Buon appetito!

Thanks for stopping by! Check out our Go See Do Explore Podcast, available wherever you listen to podcasts. To read more about our Italian Adventure, check out our La Dolce Vita Trip Report. To read about some of our previous trips, visit my Trips Page. If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page and follow me on Instagram! For my list of gadgets to make your travels easier, click here. To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page.

Norwegian Getaway 2023 Review

By Ashleigh

On August 7, 2023

In Cruise, Travel

Norwegian Getaway

In June of 2023, we took a 12-night, transatlantic cruise on the Norwegian Getaway from Port Canaveral to Lisbon, Portugal. We had talked about doing a Mediterranean cruise this summer, but this cruise originally caught my eye because of the ports. The Getaway is in Norwegian’s Breakaway Class and its sister ship, the Breakaway, was our last cruise before COVID, so everything about the Getaway felt familiar. We were excited to get back to Norwegian because they were our favorite cruise line before COVID, but having sailed the Celebrity Solstice a few months earlier, I was worried Norwegian wouldn’t hold up. Read on to see how NCL compares.

Embarkation

I picked an 11:00 check-in time because that is usually around the time boarding begins and the lines aren’t usually too long. I was surprised to find that the NCL app wasn’t working that morning so I couldn’t retrieve our edocs from the app. Luckily, I had saved our cabin number on the ShipMate app so we were able to check in without a problem. We were all checked in and we were waiting to board when we realized that everyone else around us had a card with a number on it for their boarding group and for whatever reason, they didn’t give one to us. So, we had to go back up to the check-in desk and get one and the lady was very confused about how that could’ve happened. In the end, we got our boarding number and got on the ship not too much longer, but it was an annoying glitch that added stress to our morning. Unlike on Celebrity, cabins on Norwegian are not ready when you get on board so if you have to carry your carryon bag around with you for a bit before you can put it in your room (they do have a place to check them, but since we just had backpacks, it wasn’t that big of a deal for is).

Cabin

Club Balcony Suite bathroom

We had originally booked an oceanview cabin for this sailing, but I noticed the price drop as we got closer so I called my travel agent and was able to upgrade to a Club Balcony Suite. This is the fanciest cabin we’ve ever had on a cruise ship. It had a little bit more room than a traditional balcony stateroom but the bathroom was HUGE. It. felt like a regular hotel bathroom and since most cruise ship bathrooms you can easily reach out and touch all four walls, this was a luxury for such a long sailing. This cabin also came with some extra perks like canapes and cookies delivered throughout the sailing. It was nice but with all the food available on a cruise ship, it wasn’t something I would pay extra for. This was the first time we had ever had a balcony on a Norwegian ship and it was much smaller than on the other lines we sailed. It was not really comfortable to sit out there for any length of time. Norwegian recently switched to only cleaning cabins once a day. During COVID, I got used to not having my room cleaned daily so I didn’t really mind this, but since the room stewards are cleaning twenty-some rooms, it took a few days to figure out when we would need to be out of the room so he could clean it. Maybe it is because we were in a Club Balcony Suite, but our room steward did still make us towel animals every day without having to ask for them.

Entertainment

You would think with 12 nights at sea, it would be boring, but there was always something going on. Yanique, the cruise director made sure there was always something to do. There were many game shows but I really enjoyed any time there was a Q&A with the captain. He was surprisingly funny. There were so many different musical acts around the ship, even with 12 nights, I don’t think we got to see them all. There were two comedians on board and one of them was Frank Townsend who was also the comedian on our Celebrity cruise in March, and even with some repeated jokes, he was still managed to crack us up! There were two production shows that each ran for two nights, Burn the Floor (a dance spectacular) and Million Dollar Quartet (a Broadway-style show). Big dance shows aren’t really my thing, but I really enjoyed Million Dollar Quartet, which is based on a true event when Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash got together for a jam session one night. Reservations could be made in advance for the production shows and they filled up so I can’t imagine many people from the standby line were able to get in. The Breakaway Class ships have a rock venue called Syd Norman’s Pour House that had a line out the door each night. I would love to get to see a show there, but I don’t want to spend my cruise waiting in line. I wish Norwegian would come up with a solution for that, like maybe accepting reservations for some nights.

Sunset at Sea

Dining

Norwegian is known for Freestyle Dining, meaning there are no set dining times and no formal nights. The Getaway had plenty of dining options and in twelve nights we didn’t have time to try them all. As on all the Norwegian ships we have been on, the buffet, Garden Cafe, was very crowded but it is where we ended up eating breakfast almost every day. Tropicana is the Getaway’s more formal main dining room with nightly music and a dance floor and where we chose to dine most nights when we didn’t have a reservation for specialty dining. If you’re looking for a more casual dining experience, Taste and Savor serve the same food as Tropicana without a dress code. All the food that we had in the main dining rooms was very good and there were plenty of options each night. The other complimentary restaurant available on the Getaway is O’Sheehan’s Pub which is open 24 hours a day. The late-night food ended up being very handy when they changed the time back for the fourth day in a row and I had no idea what time it was anymore and was hungry for dinner around 10 pm after all the other restaurants had closed for the night.

This cruise came with three dinners in the specialty restaurants and since we had 12 nights at sea, I decided to buy a package for two more, so we had five dinners at specialty restaurants on this cruise. One of my favorite thing about the Breakaway class ships is that they have the Waterfront, which gives most of the specialty restaurants tables outside. We chose to eat outside whenever possible including a late meal at Ocean Blue when we were getting close to Europe where our server asked us if we were from someplace cold. We chose to dine at Cagney’s (the steakhouse), Moderno (Brazilian Churrascaria), Le Bistro (French), and Ocean Blue (seafood). All of the food we had at the specialty restaurants was phenomenal and the service was outstanding. My only complaint is that the portions (especially at Cagney’s) are enormous and I wasted so much food. There were several mornings I woke up after these meals feelings like I might never eat again. The Getaway also has La Cucina (an Italian restaurant) but we chose to skip it mainly because the other restaurants seemed like a better value with the dining package. I love pizza and pasta, but when the price is no object, I’m going to pick a steak or a fancy seafood meal over that any day.

Technology

Towel Animal in the bed

As I mentioned in the embarkation section, we started having problems with the app before even getting on the ship. It is very important that you print your edocs or download them to your device before embarkation (I had done this but forgotten about it and found them in my Google Drive when I got home). Luckily we knew our cabin number or I don’t know what we would have done. A few hours after embarking it began to work, but it would randomly crash throughout the trip. When I made my dining reservations at home before we left, it wouldn’t let me double-book them. Once we get on the ship, it let me make reservations whenever but I could only cancel them by going to guest relations or to the restaurant. That made no sense to me.

We were only able to take this trip because my husband got permission to work from the ship for the first week. Most of that time the internet was slow but worked fine. Friday of the first week it stopped working completely and the following Monday was spotty. For the average person who just wants to check their email and share pictures on social media it was probably fine, but trying to actually get work done was challenging at times. The captain told us they were installing Starlink when we disembarked in Lisbon, but I’ve heard from more recent guests that it is not yet up and running so I don’t know what’s going on there.

Disembarkation

Disembarking the ship in Lisbon was a breeze. We decided to do self-assist like we always do and we just got off when we were ready. We did have to wait in line to get our keycards scanned, but then we were in Lisbon. It was not a big deal at all compared to disembarking in L.A. on our last cruise!

Overall Impressions

At the end of the cruise, I was sad to leave the Getaway even though we still had a week and a half of our trip left to explore Europe. I really enjoyed the freestyle nature of dining on Norwegian, although if you want to catch a show you do have to do a little bit of preplanning. The food was fantastic and there were so many options. All the crew we encountered was super friendly. I would book another cruise with Norwegian or Celebrity again. It’s possible that I have two favorite cruise lines, now.

Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to stop by next week as we disembark the ship and explore Lisbon. To read more about this trip, check out Cruising the Atlantic to Portugal and Spain trip report. To read about some of our previous trips, visit my Trips Page. If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page and follow me on Instagram! For my list of gadgets to make your travels easier, click here. To see inside my camera bag, check out my updated Gear Page.

Mt. Roberts Tramway

By Ashleigh

On September 5, 2022

In Cruise, Travel

After returning from our whale-watching excursion, we joined the masses at lunch at Tracy’s King Crab Shack. Tracy’s is located right at the cruise ship terminal, right next to where our bus dropped us off. Being right in the middle of the action, of course, the crab comes with a steep price tag but it was absolutely worth it! Tracy’s serves Red King Crab (AKA The Deadliest Catch), but I decided to go with a less expensive snow crab. When I placed our order for one crab shack combo featuring 8 oz of bisque, 4 mini crab cakes, and 14 oz of crab the guy behind the register told me that’s not really enough food for two people so I added the shrimp ceviche. It was 3:00 by now and we were hungry but we could’ve split that and it would have been enough food. With the ceviche, we were stuffed and didn’t end up having dinner until right before the buffet closed that night. If you’re looking for good crab in Juneau and don’t mind paying the tourist prices, look no further than Tracy’s King Crab!

Since our ship didn’t depart for the day until 8, we still had time to explore Juneau after our lunch! We decided to take in the city from above at Mt. Roberts Tramway AKA the Goldbelt Tram. The base of the tram is right at the cruise terminal, on the other side of the parking lot from Tracy’s. I had never ridden in a Tram like that so it was a fun experience! The only downside was that being early June, most of the hiking trails were still snow-covered, so the view was nice, but there wasn’t really much else to do once we got to the top. Once the snow melts, Mt. Roberts is a jumping-off point for several trails varying in length from two to seven miles. Tickets for the tram are $45 for adults so admission could add up quickly for families.

Tram and Cruise Ships from Mt. Roberts

After our journey back down the tramway, we through town to Cope Park where we flew the drone for a little bit before heading back to the ship. We really enjoyed our long day in Juneau! It was nice getting to see so much of the city without a time crunch!

Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to stop by next week as I recap our day in Skagway and Haines, Alaska! To read more about this trip check out my Planes, Buses, and Boats Trip Report. To read about some of our previous trips, visit my Trips Page. If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page and follow me on Instagram! You can purchase prints on Fine Art America. To see inside my camera bag, check out my updated Gear Page.

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Mainely Acadia Recap

By Ashleigh

On October 21, 2019

In Road Trip, Travel

Wow! The trip was at the end of June and its the middle of October and I have finally finished my recap. As you can tell, it was a very busy trip that covered a lot of Mt. Desert Island. We were able to do all of the things that we weren’t able to do on our short visit last year. We hiked South Bubble Mountain and explored the carriage roads. Chris did several other solo hikes that I still need to get him to write about for you.

We watched the sunset over Cadillac Mountain from the water and explored waterfalls I didn’t even know were in the park. We saw several lighthouses and explored the Schoodic side of the park. We visited both the winery and brewery on the Island and spent time exploring Bar Harbor. We stayed in both Southwest and Northeast Harbor and spent time in both towns.

The Terrace Grill in Bar Harbor

We also got to do some shopping and enjoyed a lot of good meals. We picked up some fresh Maine lobster and cooked it at home, which Chris did not enjoy killing. Our first meal in Maine was at a place called The Liberal Cup in Hallowell, Maine. We enjoyed the views at Jordan Pond House and The Terrace Grill in Bar Harbor. We found a breakfast place we enjoyed within walking distance of our house in Southwest Harbor called Sips. We dined for a cause at the Common Good Cafe. Our final Maine meal was at a local hangout in Portland called Becky’s. In all of these places, TripAdvisor helped up find delicious, memorable meals that would otherwise fly under the radar!

After a week in Maine, have I seen it all? Absolutely not. I think I got my Mount Desert Island fix, though and I now I want to spend more time in Portland and I want to go back to Hallowell. I would like to see Castine, as well. Bar Harbor is the biggest tourist area in Maine and I would like to see places where most people don’t go. So, I will definitely have to return to Maine!

Thanks for stopping by! To read more about this trip, visit the Mainely Acadia Trip Report page. To read about some of our previous trips, click here. If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram! You can purchase prints on Etsy and Fine Art America. To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. For information about our new Guided Photography Tours, visit GuidedPhoto.com.

Norwegian Breakaway Review

By Ashleigh

On May 29, 2019

In Cruise, Travel

Looking back on our Spring Break cruise, I have to say that I really enjoyed my time on the Norwegian Breakaway. Even though it is a “mega ship” it didn’t feel much bigger or more crowded than the Gem. Of course, the bigger ships come with more amenities and more dining venues and it was fun to explore them all.

For some reason, the towel animals all had creepy, red eyes.

One of the biggest things that made me want to try out a bigger ship is the entertainment. For Norwegian, the Breakaway class ships are the ones with Broadway shows. On the Breakaway it was Rock of Ages and even though I saw the movie years ago, I didn’t really know anything about the show besides the fact that it was raunchy. And raunchy it was! I was surprised by the amount of children present! The story was okay (I liked it better than I remembered like the movie), the acting was fine, but the music was phenomenal! Which was a theme for this trip.

Every time we heard the musicians around this ship, we were blown away. Especially when compared to the music on the Gem which we lovingly described as a guitar, a drummer, and a computer. The music at Rock of Ages was great. The piano players at Howl at the Moon (the dueling piano bar onboard) were amazing! The addition of having a live band playing music at dinner in the Manhattan room every night was a great touch. We wanted to check out Syd Norman’s, the rock club, but it was so popular we could never actually get in!

The pool deck was huge and had plenty of deck chairs, but we tended to avoid the area and could typically be found hanging outside out on Deck 8, which is known as the Waterfront. Most of the specialty restaurants had outdoor seating available and several bars had outdoor bars with seats along the waterfront. Until the final sea day, this area was deserted during the day and was a great place to sit in the shade and watch the water. More cruise ships need to made use of the view like the Breakaway!

The Breakaway also had a lot of activities to keep you occupied during your time at sea. From the aqua park to the mini golf course to the ropes course the adventurous had lots of options! There was also shopping, the spa, and lots of other planned activities to keep cruisers busy.

With a large ship like the Breakaway comes a shocking number of dining options. We tried most of them and with one exception had great experiences. One thing that was great about this ship is that no matter what you were looking for, it was offered. From sushi to Spanish tapas to French food and pizza, there was a restaurant for your tastes. Even the buffets had theme nights that seemed to relate to our sailing. Since we sailed out of New Orleans there was a Creole night and another night was a Mexican night. They even had ice sculptures which I thought cruise lines get rid of years ago!

The one exception to the stellar food was a O’Sheehans, the 24 hour bar and grill located on NCL ships. It was really sad because we LOVED O’Sheehans on the Gem. But, after waiting almost an hour from when we sat down to when our food came after getting back on the ship in Belize City, I decided it just wasn’t worth it. I was telling someone about this and they responded “but you’re on vacation right?” Of course, but I wasn’t planning on spending all that time on a meal that was supposed to be quick. The next time we sail Norwegian, I would try O’Sheenhans again, but I wasn’t wasting my time on this sailing.

If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! You can purchase prints on Etsy and Fine Art America. To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. For information about our new Guided Photography Tours, visit GuidedPhoto.com.

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Norwegian Gem – A Dining Review

By Ashleigh

On July 27, 2015

In Travel

Norwegian Cruise Line specializes in “Freestyle Cruising” which means no assigned dining times or dining rooms and a more relaxed dress code. The Gem has 11 dining venues. 6 of these are complimentary: Magenta, Grand Pacific, O’Sheehans, Orchid Garden, The Garden Cafe, and The Great Outdoors. The Gem also has several specialty, for-fee restaurants: Cagney’s Steakhouse, Le Bistro, Moderno Churrascaria, La Cucina, and Teppanyaki. I would definitely recommend getting reservations for the specialty restaurants ahead of time unless you don’t mind dining late. You can make reservations for the specialty restaurants online before the cruise, but you have to pay at time of booking. If you don’t want to pay for your food months before your cruise, I recommend booking right when you get on the ship to get the most ideal times. And personally, I would book times on the later side since you’ll probably have a bigger lunch than you’re used to. Unless you have a big group, there is no need to book the complimentary restaurants ahead of time.

Magenta and Grand Pacific are the main dining rooms with rotating menus. Grand Pacific is the more formal dining room but even though they shared menus, we found the service to be better in Magenta. In Magenta they refilled our bread and brought coffee with dessert without having to ask for it. Speaking of dessert, you have to try the Warm Chocolate Volcano!

O’Sheehans is the Irish Pub that is open 24 hours a day. It has a limited menu, but is good if you want to avoid the crowds (especially on embarkation day) or eat at an off time. O’Sheehans definitely had the most restaurant-like feel to it and there was never a wait. The fish and chips were great!

Orchid Garden is the Asian Fusion restaurant that recently got rid of its cover charge and because of that, was the busiest of all the restaurants. This was the only restaurant we ever had to wait for and personally, it wasn’t worth it. The dishes were unusual but they were OK. Service, on the other hand was not so great. I would most likely skip the Asian restaurant on next Norwegian cruise.

The Garden Cafe and Great Outdoors are the buffets on the ship. The Garden Cafe is the main buffet and The Great Outdoors is the al fresco dining option. On sea days, The Garden Cafe was always packed! You could always find a table, but it was crowded walking through. The Garden Cafe typically had shorter hours and a more limited menu. We ate most of our meals in the main dining room because we didn’t want to deal with the hassle of the buffets.

Cagney’s Steakhouse is Norwegian’s Signature Steakhouse and it was PHENOMENAL! It has the highest cover charge of the signature restaurants and it was worth ever penny. Everything I had was perfectly cooked and seasoned. The servers were attentive but didn’t hover. My only complaint is we dined at Cagney’s on my birthday and they brought out an anniversary cake and sang an awkward anniversary song to us (we also celebrated our anniversary on this trip but I brought the card that said we were celebrating my birthday on this day). Our server caught the mistake and asked to sing Happy Birthday to me by herself but I declined. I’d had enough singing for one meal.

Moderno Currascaria is an all-you-can-eat Brazilian Steakhouse where gauchos bring the various dishes around on skewers. This was a meat feast (vegetarians may want to skip this one) serving everything from lamb chops to garlic marinated beef and chorizo sausage. There is also a salad bar with soups and all kinds of different salads. I made the mistake of going up for two trips to the salad bar and I couldn’t even try everything they brought around. I was so disappointed! I think on my next cruise, I will skip lunch on Moderno day.

Le Bistro is Norwegian’s French Restaurant and of all the specialty restaurants, it was my least favorite. I had the filet which came with a pepper sauce that I didn’t care for. We had the chocolate fondue for dessert and I was disappointed that it was cold, and honesty they didn’t give us much fruit. I have heard a lot of good things about Le Bistro, but I just didn’t care for it. It was not worth the cover charge to me.

Teppanyaki is a hibachi-style restaurant and it is the most difficult reservation to get. I have heard a lot of good things about Teppanyaki but I didn’t try it. The same goes for La Cucina, the Italian restaurant, which is also very popular.

Overall, the dining on the Norwegian Gem was great! If you’re looking for a cruise that has a dining focus, you can’t go wrong with Norwegian. I loved that the dining was restaurant-style and we didn’t have to sit with strangers. And unlike the other cruise lines that have “your time dining”, you rarely have to wait for a table.

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! To book your Norwegian Cruise Vacation visit NCL.com.