HELP WANTED-Anthem of the Seas Dining Confusion

[WorldWacky]

I'm hoping someone out there can clear up my confusion.  My TA signed us up for My Time Dining for our February 2018 cruise.  I'm fine with that, but where can we eat?  At first I read that we were limited to two of the four "dining rooms" because the other two were designated for traditional dining.  Then I read that we could make reservations for any of the four dining rooms.  I asked my TA, but the question was never answered.  Are the menus the same each night regardless of the dining room.  I thought it would at least be nice to have a different atmosphere each night even if the menus are the same.  I feel so lost with all of this!

[Matt]

Good news, it's far less complicated than it sounds.

You're right there are 4 smaller dining rooms, but they are just 4 small main dining rooms. With My Time Dining, you will be assigned to one of them and you can make reservations for a time. Which of the 4 dining rooms you get is irrelevant, because the menu is the same.

[WorldWacky]

Okay, thanks Matt. So if I understand correctly, we'll be going to the same dining room each night and we just choose the time. 

My confusion came from an email I recently received from my agent that contradicted information I've found in my research. It made it sound like we could go to ANY of the dining rooms if we wanted to. Here's a portion of the email:

Food and service at the four main restaurants onboard -- Silk, Chic, The Grande Restaurant and American Icon -- are varied, so you can enjoy an array of experiences and venues if you choose. 

Anthem of the Seas features Royal Caribbean's Dynamic Dining concept -- no fixed seating times or tables and no main dining room -- which debuted onboard sister ship Quantum of the Seas. On Quantum, it wasn't too popular, and Royal Caribbean, to its credit, took the criticisms to heart and made key changes to Dynamic Dining on Anthem, including the introduction of Dynamic Dining Classic (DDC).

DDC reverts to a fixed-time seating model -- a traditional option among virtually every cruise line. On Anthem, passengers can dine at 6 p.m.or 8:30 p.m. with the same tablemates and waiters, albeit at a different restaurant each night. (You'll rotate among the four main restaurants throughout each sailing.) Or, stick with the original Dynamic Dining Choice, and eat anytime between 5:30 p.m. and 9 p.m., either by walking in or making a reservation ahead of time. Both dining options can be pre-booked.

[constable145]

2 hours ago, WorldWacky said:

Okay, thanks Matt. So if I understand correctly, we'll be going to the same dining room each night and we just choose the time. 

My confusion came from an email I recently received from my agent that contradicted information I've found in my research. It made it sound like we could go to ANY of the dining rooms if we wanted to. Here's a portion of the email:

Food and service at the four main restaurants onboard -- Silk, Chic, The Grande Restaurant and American Icon -- are varied, so you can enjoy an array of experiences and venues if you choose. 

Anthem of the Seas features Royal Caribbean's Dynamic Dining concept -- no fixed seating times or tables and no main dining room -- which debuted onboard sister ship Quantum of the Seas. On Quantum, it wasn't too popular, and Royal Caribbean, to its credit, took the criticisms to heart and made key changes to Dynamic Dining on Anthem, including the introduction of Dynamic Dining Classic (DDC).

DDC reverts to a fixed-time seating model -- a traditional option among virtually every cruise line. On Anthem, passengers can dine at 6 p.m.or 8:30 p.m. with the same tablemates and waiters, albeit at a different restaurant each night. (You'll rotate among the four main restaurants throughout each sailing.) Or, stick with the original Dynamic Dining Choice, and eat anytime between 5:30 p.m. and 9 p.m., either by walking in or making a reservation ahead of time. Both dining options can be pre-booked.

You have an old email. You must have booked a while ago..

 

Now the Anthem has traditional dining and MTD. With traditional, you'll have early or late seating- same time/table/assigned tablemates each night.

 

With MTD, you can make reservations for whenever you choose, or just go wait for a table.

[WorldWacky]

8 hours ago, constable145 said:

You have an old email. You must have booked a while ago..

 

Now the Anthem has traditional dining and MTD. With traditional, you'll have early or late seating- same time/table/assigned tablemates each night.

 

With MTD, you can make reservations for whenever you choose, or just go wait for a table.

Funny thing is, I just got this email from her on June 9th. I had a feeling the info was outdated. 

[Matt]

Since you have MTD, you have the option to book day/times in advance or show up and wait for a table.

Here's a good overview of MTD: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2015/06/04/what-you-need-know-about-royal-caribbeans-my-time-dining

[RestingBird]

They did away with Dynamic Dining if I'm not mistaken.

[iamjohnbamber]

I was just on Anthem recently and was confused by this as well. 

Basically, 2 of the dining rooms are on Deck 4, and 2 are on Deck 5. The Deck 4 dining rooms are My Time, and you basically form the line in the hallway outside of the two. American Icon Grill and Silk are across from each other. When you get to the host stand, they will check for your reservation (or book you one, presumably) and then have a server lead you to your seat in either dining room.  The menus are the same in either, so the only difference would just be the decor. 

 

[JLMoran]

1 hour ago, iamjohnbamber said:

I was just on Anthem recently and was confused by this as well. 

Basically, 2 of the dining rooms are on Deck 4, and 2 are on Deck 5. The Deck 4 dining rooms are My Time, and you basically form the line in the hallway outside of the two. American Icon Grill and Silk are across from each other. When you get to the host stand, they will check for your reservation (or book you one, presumably) and then have a server lead you to your seat in either dining room.  The menus are the same in either, so the only difference would just be the decor. 

 

So this would mean that Chic and Grande are the two dining rooms on Deck 5, and held for traditional dining?

While the menus are the same in all four, the decor in photos I saw before the removal of Dynamic Dining was pretty different in each. Is that still the case, or has each venue had its decor made a little more generic / utilitarian so it doesn't "clash" with the cuisine on offer each night?

[iamjohnbamber]

The decor is noticeably different in each room. I don't know if they've been dumbed down from their original concepts... maybe @Matt might know. 

[iamjohnbamber]

22 hours ago, RestingBirds said:

They did away with Dynamic Dining if I'm not mistaken.

yes they did.