Celebrity Cruises said its new Celebrity Solstice, set to sail on its first revenue cruise on Dec. 14, will feature 10 restaurants. The line unveiled its dining plans at an event at New York's Per Se restaurant last night. "The dining experience has always been central to our guests' cruise experience, and on Celebrity Solstice we'll present the extraordinary service the brand is know for in venues designed to perfectly complement the spectacular cuisine," said Dan Hanrahan, Celebrity's president and CEO. "The larger size of Celebrity Solstice allows us to offer more options for our guests, with menus created by some of the best talent in the business." Celebrity Solstice will carry approximately 2,850 passengers.
Celebrity said it has partnered with some of the best restaurant designers in the business to create the new restaurants onboard Celebrity Solstice, among them Adam Tihany, who has created such restaurants as Per Se, Jean Georges, Le Cirque, The Sea Grill and Osteria del Circo in New York; Aureole, Bouchon and Seablue in Las Vegas; and Monte's and the Mandarin Bar in the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park in London. Tihany, in his first restaurant aboard a cruise ship, has designed the two-level Grand Epernay dining room; the classic steakhouse Tuscan Grille, and the Oceanview Cafe on the ship's lido deck. Grand Epernay features a two-story wine tower, similar to what Tihany created in Aureole in Vegas.

 

Royal Caribbean Tests “My Time Dining”

Now available on Freedom of the Seas through 2008, Brilliance of the Seas February 22-July 18, Serenade of the Seas, and March 8-June 7

My Time Dining is a flexible, open-seating concept served in the main dining room with the same menu and service as traditional dining, but guests will not be assigned a table or permanent tablemates.

Make the request at the time of booking. Reservations on board are recommended. Pre-paid gratuities are required to participate in My Time Dining.