If you don't go to the main/assigned dining room for dinner, is there something along the lines of a buffet where you can eat dinner? I've heard there's an alternative casual dining place, there's a charge and you need to make reservations. Is this true?

I've been researching the same thing for our upcoming cruise on Infinity. Yes, there is casual dining, offering everything from sushi to pasta as well as items from the dining room menu. There is a $2 service charge (as of last time I checked) and reservations are suggested.

Hello,

The alternative dining room on Celebrity ships is in the room where the breakfast and lunch buffets are served. However, at night, this room is set up as a very nice dining room (non-buffet)for those who for whatever reason do not wish to go to the ship's main dining room. In November 2004 my wife and I had dinner in the Mercury's alternative dining room but I do not recall any service charge.

Hope that this helps,

Fred

Zenith was the same way in November 2005. No buffet at dinner time, but the buffet area was dressed up and turned into a reservations-only restaurant. We never ate there so I don't know if the menu was the same as in the dining room or not.

Sandy

We ate at the alternate dining on the Millenium last year. The menu has a few less choices then the main dining rooms and you do have to make a reservation to dine there each night. It is suggested that you pay an additional $2.00 per dining to eat there, but that is for the tips for the wait staff. While talking to the waiters and MaitreD we found that these people were actually in training for the main dining room. We could not have asked for better service. We ended up, each night that we dined there, at the same table by a window with the same waiters. The only nights we did not eat there were on the formal nights. Food was fantastic. We liked it because it was more informal then the main dining room.