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Two-part Question


Danielle OG

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Hi everyone,

I am debating purchasing the cafe select coffee card for my upcoming cruise aboard Anthem. The reason being I like to have a good cup of coffee in the morning, and an ice coffee in the afternoon. So I do think this would be a good deal for me. I have heard the free coffee served on board is *ahem* less than perfect. My question is, If i want to wake up and have a really good cup of coffee, am I going to have to go and get it myself from one of the shops?

My second question is about dining. It's just my bf and I on this cruise and we have selected My Time Dining and made reservations. We were wondering if it's possible to always have a table for two when we have dinner. Is this something that needs to be requested or will it happen automatically? 

Thank you for the help!

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Hi @Danielle OG. Yes, room service coffee is the same complementary stuff served in the MDR and WJ. If you're a coffee snob like me then you'll need to physically get up and walk to one of two places:

  • La Patisserie on deck 4, located in the Royal Esplanade mid-ship (serves Starbucks brand)
  • Cafe Two70 all the way aft on deck 5 (serves Seattle's Best, aka Starbucks "discount" brand)

Both places will take the coffee card, but one thing you'll only get at Cafe Two70 is the option of a spiked coffee should you happen to want one in the afternoon. Just be aware those are treated the same as any other alcoholic beverage, so you'll pay the full charge for one of those if all you have is the coffee card.

Cafe Two70 is also good for picking up some no-charge breakfast nosh items -- mini croissants stuffed with egg and cheese, bacon / sausage links, pastries, yogurt parfaits, bagels, oatmeal, etc. At La Patisserie, all of the food items are up-charge (although you can walk across the hallway to Cafe Promenade and find some complementary food options there).

And if you go to Cafe Two70, then you're already at the Two70 lounge. In the early morning, it is a great place to sit and relax while you eat whatever breakfast you got at the cafe (or maybe at the Windjammer if you want something more than what the cafe offers). There are lots of chairs at the very back of the space that look out on the panoramic aft view, so you can just watch the wake and the ocean going by.

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3 hours ago, Danielle OG said:

My question is, If i want to wake up and have a really good cup of coffee, am I going to have to go and get it myself from one of the shops?

My opinion, yes, but people are okay with the ship's free option. My experience on Anthem was to get at least 2 coffees a day at La Patisserie and Cafe 270. They got to know me immediately and as soon as they saw me would start my order. (I almost always just order a misto - coffee and steamed soy milk.) The knowing what I want and starting it right away also happened on Harmony. I'm a creature of habit and they catch on quick. A few bucks here and there helped.

La Patisserie was open by 6am.

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4 hours ago, Danielle OG said:

My second question is about dining. It's just my bf and I on this cruise and we have selected My Time Dining and made reservations. We were wondering if it's possible to always have a table for two when we have dinner. Is this something that needs to be requested or will it happen automatically?

This will happen automatically. When you walk up to check in they'll verify how many are in your party and then seat you at a table for that number. If you have a specific table you would like, you can request it but might not get it depending on availability. Odds of getting it increase if you reserve the same dining time each night.

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6 hours ago, Danielle OG said:

Hi everyone,

I am debating purchasing the cafe select coffee card for my upcoming cruise aboard Anthem. The reason being I like to have a good cup of coffee in the morning, and an ice coffee in the afternoon. So I do think this would be a good deal for me. I have heard the free coffee served on board is *ahem* less than perfect. My question is, If i want to wake up and have a really good cup of coffee, am I going to have to go and get it myself from one of the shops?

My second question is about dining. It's just my bf and I on this cruise and we have selected My Time Dining and made reservations. We were wondering if it's possible to always have a table for two when we have dinner. Is this something that needs to be requested or will it happen automatically? 

Thank you for the help!

Instead of buying the coffee card, you might just consider an occasional specialty coffee purchase.  Ships vary on their policy about punching the coffee cards for a drink -- some take two punches.....I don't know Anthem's policy, but wanted you to factor that into your equation.

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6 hours ago, JLMoran said:

Hi @Danielle OG. Yes, room service coffee is the same complementary stuff served in the MDR and WJ. If you're a coffee snob like me then you'll need to physically get up and walk to one of two places:

  • La Patisserie on deck 4, located in the Royal Esplanade mid-ship (serves Starbucks brand)
  • Cafe Two70 all the way aft on deck 5 (serves Seattle's Best, aka Starbucks "discount" brand)

On the Ovation, they also had a specialty coffee place at the Windjammer. Doesn't Anthem have one?

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2 minutes ago, PG Cruiser said:

On the Ovation, they also had a specialty coffee place at the Windjammer. Doesn't Anthem have one?

I went to the Windjammer exactly once on my last Anthem sailing, so I'm not the right guy to ask about that. ? I know there were multiple stations where you could get coffee or hot water for tea from a bunch of big carafes, because I went to one of those to find lactose-free milk that time. But I don't remember seeing any kind of specialty coffee station there.

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6 minutes ago, JLMoran said:

I went to the Windjammer exactly once on my last Anthem sailing, so I'm not the right guy to ask about that. ? I know there were multiple stations where you could get coffee or hot water for tea from a bunch of big carafes, because I went to one of those to find lactose-free milk that time. But I don't remember seeing any kind of specialty coffee station there.

Anthem's WJ has a coffee bar with baristas.  

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2 minutes ago, JLMoran said:

Where is this hidden away? Guessing it's the same coffee menu as Cafe Two70, would be nice to go to this alternative on mornings when I planned to hit the WJ for breakfast anyway.

If you look to the right in that photo that is the port side hand washing station.  Walk past CK into WJ and make a hard right.  It's right there across from the handwashing station.  Right beside the bakery.

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5 minutes ago, twangster said:

If you look to the right in that photo that is the port side hand washing station.  Walk past CK into WJ and make a hard right.  It's right there across from the handwashing station.  Right beside the bakery.

That's why I never found it -- the one time we ate there, we went in through the starboard side entrance and I never looked to my left after passing the hand washing stations. I don't even remember seeing the pastry station! ?

Definitely going to remember that for this coming week, though! Thanks for the tip!

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