PaulRC Posted July 26, 2021 Report Share Posted July 26, 2021 OK so I am going to upgrade my room on a cruise to a JR Suite, from a balcony. This is on the Harmony OTS. With the JR suite I can do the Coastal Kitchen for dinner. My question I have already purchased the UDP, Is this a waste since now I can do the Coastal Kitchen? Should I keep it or get rid of it and instead use it on my cruise in march on the Mariner, that does not have any fancy Coastal Kitchen like places to eat? I guess the real down and dirty is the Coastal Kitchen better then having the pay restaurants. I could just change it to Chops + 2. Your input please Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordell1 Posted July 26, 2021 Report Share Posted July 26, 2021 In a JS you are not guaranteed a coastal kitchen reservation. With Covid restrictions, this may be bigger issue than it was pre Covid. If you are 100% against eating in the MDR, thewn I would keep the UDP. Neesa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted July 26, 2021 Report Share Posted July 26, 2021 Food is personal. In my opinion on some nights CK is closer to MDR and other nights it's closer to specialty dining. CK Ambiance and service is always a closer to specialty dining. Take a look in the app at CK menus for an upcoming cruise. If you like what you see you know the answer. Be aware that a JS doesn't get first priority in CK. While you are eligible for dinner in CK, a JS guests doesn't always get the best times or you may find all reservations are booked if you leave it too late. cruisellama 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairlynew Posted July 26, 2021 Report Share Posted July 26, 2021 CK is awesome. But specialty restaurants are also great. In a junior suite, you have limited access to CK for dinner. With UDP, you have lunch and dinner access to specialty dining. I was last on harmony in August 2018. I became friendly with a couple in a junior suite. They were able to get dinner reservations in CK for 3 evenings. Having said that, I enjoy the MDR for dinner. I like the CK for a relaxing lunch and breakfast, neither of which is an option for a junior suite. My recommendation would be to keep the UDP and pick and choose a few nights to eat in CK. Some menus are definitely better than others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted July 26, 2021 Report Share Posted July 26, 2021 HOTS has a lot of different food options, some of them are free. Another option is to get a 3 night dining plan and try to get reservations for CK the other nights. I don't know when you are sailing but with reduced capacity, you might have a better chance of dining in CK often-ish. cruisellama and PaulRC 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisK2793 Posted July 26, 2021 Report Share Posted July 26, 2021 16 hours ago, wordell1 said: In a JS you are not guaranteed a coastal kitchen reservation. With Covid restrictions, this may be bigger issue than it was pre Covid. If you are 100% against eating in the MDR, thewn I would keep the UDP. 17 hours ago, PaulRC said: OK so I am going to upgrade my room on a cruise to a JR Suite, from a balcony. This is on the Harmony OTS. With the JR suite I can do the Coastal Kitchen for dinner. My question I have already purchased the UDP, Is this a waste since now I can do the Coastal Kitchen? Should I keep it or get rid of it and instead use it on my cruise in march on the Mariner, that does not have any fancy Coastal Kitchen like places to eat? I guess the real down and dirty is the Coastal Kitchen better then having the pay restaurants. I could just change it to Chops + 2. Your input please Thanks Like Wordell1 said, even without Covid restrictions it was often hard for Junior Suites to get a dinner reservation in CK …… I’d keep the UDP if I were you and even with that I’d make all my specialty dining reservations as soon as you board at the first open specialty restaurant you can find or you may not even get dining times there that you want. Any open specialty restaurant can make all your reservations for the entire week at all the restaurants. PaulRC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisellama Posted July 26, 2021 Report Share Posted July 26, 2021 CK is nice, much higher waitstaff to guess ratio so better service and less noise as there are less people in the dining room. Food is good, but its MDR with flair (and a few extra unique offerings). So don't feel bad if you short the CK for a specialty dining room which also provides a higher waitstaff to guest ratio and does provide a unique and high quality offerings over the MDR. Just an opinion. Neesa, PaulRC and WAAAYTOOO 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSB_Z51 Posted August 8, 2021 Report Share Posted August 8, 2021 We usually do a 3 night specialty dining package and dine in the Coastal Kitchen the other 4 or 5 nights for dinner. Imo, coastal kitchen menu is slightly more limited than MDR, but better quality and service. That said seems like a small waste of money if you have UDP. Alternatively try CK and go for dinner again at a specialty restaurant the same night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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