What is the best/most proper way to ask for expedited dinner service?

[TigerLaw]

I know the dining staff on the cruises can only do so much, but my son will never make it through a 2-hour dinner service. So I was just wondering what has been everyone's experience in asking for a quicker dining service and what are the best ways to make that request? (I don't want to be rude to the staff)

Also, after asking, what was everyone's result? Was the staff able to shave off some of the time involved? I am not looking for it to become a fast food experience but every few minutes would go a long way in the avoidance of a bored/unhappy kid!

Thanks for the help!

 

[Bad Pink Tink 2.0]

For my first two cruises I asked for a private table and most times I was done around 70 minutes. With a private table you can control the speed of the service.

One thing I did to speed up the service was to ask for all apps at once. For example, if I wanted the salad and then the soup, I would tell the server to bring both at the same time.

You can also ask for the dessert to go, and the server will bring one of the metal plate covers that they use for the room service food.

Another thing that speeds up service is if you want alcohol during the meal, get it at any bar before going to the restaurant. When you order alcohol during the meal, you have to wait at the end of the meal for the assistant server to close the check and bring the receipt to the table for you to sign. I use the souvenir DCL glass and get the drink of the day before going to the MDR in the evening.

 

[Geomom]

With main dining, and having leisurely meals, the longest our meals lasted is 90 minutes, and the servers were already prepping for the next dinner service, so we were some of the last people in the dining room. We get 1-2 appetizers each, dinner, and split all the desserts between 4 of us. (Plus a specialty drink that comes from the bar.)

You could say that you'd like dinner to take no more than an hour as your little one can't sit still that long. Know that night 1 might be a little longer (new passengers), but service should be better the next night. Also, items from the kids menu come out quickly, so they're having dinner when you have appetizers.

 

[OKW Lover]

The best way is to mention it to your server as soon as they come over to say hello. Just something along the lines of "we really need to eat quickly" is all it takes. Perhaps giving them your complete order then as well will help.

 

[SnowWhite2]

Make sure you look at the menu prior to dinner and pick out what you want to eat so when the server comes to the table, you are ready to place the full order. Also be aware that if a certain dining room has a show, they may only be able to go so fast as to not ruin the timing of the production.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

What is the best/most proper way to ask for expedited dinner service?​

"We'd like to be out fairly quickly, if you could serve quickly, that would be nice. THANK YOU."

 

[Cheburashka]

Private table, being ready to make your orders, and not sending things back to the kitchen. Also, not doing any special dietary orders.

I've never done first seating dining, so I can't really compare, but I imagine that second seating dining might allow them to move quicker, because it's a little less crowded and has somewhat fewer kids (so fewer magic tricks, etc. for them to do at tables, etc.) But that's just a guess.

I can say from my experience of always dining at a second seating private table and not being an extremely fussy eater, I've never come anywhere close to a 2-hour dinner at an MDR, and that's over 15 cruises on the Fab Four and the Wish. MDR dinner is usually about an hour for us, maybe slightly longer when there are dinner shows, but not much longer. And we've never even asked for speedy service.

 

[jwalk03]

I have never had a 2-hour dinner. Usually around 90 minutes. Shorter if you skip dessert.

The staff are as accommodating as they can be. They often ask if you have any after dinner plans you want to make. So if you prefer a faster dinner just tell them upfront. They will not be offended- just be direct.