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This past September, I took my first-ever Carnival Cruise to celebrate my upcoming wedding with five of my bridesmaids.
We embarked on Carnival Radiance for a bachelorette at sea to Ensenada, Mexico, from September 27-30, 2024.
While there were quite a few things that I didn't expect during the sailing, one of the best surprises was the quality of Carnival's Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse - which can currently be found on 25 of the 27 ships in the fleet.
I've enjoyed fine dining at specialty restaurants on Disney Cruise Line, the Carnival-owned Princess Cruises, and Royal Caribbean - and have been lucky enough to eat at some of the best steakhouses in Los Angeles, California - but the steakhouse experience I had on Carnival Radiance was easily one of the best.
Carnival advises guests looking to dine at their steakhouse to make a reservation in advance, which in our case, was very easy to do.
We actually made our reservation and paid up front right after booking our cruise from our online Carnival VIFP Club account. The time we wanted was available, as well as many similar time slots.
However, we could have easily made a reservation on the ship by speaking to the host or hostess or from the Carnival HUB App.
We actually enjoyed our dinner so much, we considered coming back the next night - and there were still reservations available in the App.
We ultimately ended up making a reservation at Cucina del Capitano (the Italian specialty restaurant onboard) for the following evening instead, but really only for the sake of variety.
That said, a large reason for why we opted to add another fine dining experience in the first place was because of how much we loved our Steakhouse meal.
But as a word of caution, it's always best to make reservations as early as possible.
It may have been easier for us to make dining reservations mid-cruise because we intentionally chose to sail during off season when kids are back in school. The 2,984-guest ship definitely didn't seem as crowded as she potentially could, and very likely wasn't close to maximum capacity.
Of course, I can't talk about our Steakhouse experience without talking about the food. For a flat fee, each person gets an appetizer, an entree, up to two sides, and a dessert - and we certainly indulged.
While Carnival had been quietly testing a simplified Steakhouse menu near the dates of our cruise, the full Steakhouse menu was available for our sailing.
Our meal started with complimentary bread service and cocktails - with many in our group particularly fond of the Fahrenheit 555 cocktail that shares the same name as the restaurant.
While I didn't order anything alcoholic (I haven't learned how to like the taste of alcohol yet), my bridesmaids told me it was a delicious mix of rum, pineapple, and lime before they proceeded to order a second glass.
But if that's not your cup of tea, there were many other cocktails to choose from - as well as soft drinks, juices, coffee, hot chocolate, and tea.
Between our group, we tried a variety of the appetizers - with the crab and mushroom risotto, tuna tartare, baked onion soup, and classic caesar salad standing out as the favorites.
I personally tried the caesar salad - which tasted fresh and gourmet. Even the croutons were the perfect texture.
For our main course, we were split between the broiled 9-ounce filet mignon and the prime New York strip steak. But in both cases, our meat was tender enough to cut with a fork or butter knife.
Everyone said their steak was cooked perfectly - medium rare in my case! - and a clear sign we meant it is that our group of constantly chattering girls was silent as we savored our steak.
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The sides were also equally delicious. The Yukon gold mashed potatoes I tried were creamy and perfectly seasoned - with just the right amount of garlic for flavor.
My bridesmaids were also partial to the Mac N' Cheese, which one said made her feel "nostalgic for her childhood."
Last but not least came dessert! Naturally, at least a few of us had to try Carnival's famous chocolate sphere - which melts before your eyes once the waiter pours a warm cocoa cream custard over the sweet treat.
While it's not what I ordered - as I am not a fan of the pear confit that is served with it - I heard that the dessert very much lives up to the hype for those that do like it.
I tried the cheesecake instead and found that to be delicious. It's served with a tasty hazelnut biscuit and was the perfect temperature, texture, and flavor.
Throughout our dinner, which took about two hours from arrival to dessert, we were met with nothing but excellent service from the hostess and the waiters.
When we arrived, it was easy to look up our reservation. There was no line to check in and we didn't have to wait more than about five minutes to be shown to our table - which was especially great since we checked in a little early.
The wait staff was attentive and went above and beyond during the meal multiple times. First, they paid extra close attention to my bridesmaid who has Celiac disease and cannot come near gluten - and even brought her gluten free bread with her own side of butter so she could safely enjoy the bread service with the rest of us.
When they brought out my cheesecake at the end of the meal, they had written out a celebratory message in chocolate to congratulate me on my upcoming wedding.
We didn't tell our waiter that we were celebrating my bachelorette, but rather she had overheard us talking and took the initiative to make some magic.
The restaurant itself also felt fancy and sophisticated, which added to the air of celebration for us. It was also a nice break from other parts of the ship where it was always noisier, such as the main pool on the Lido deck.
Fahrenheit 555 also requires a cruise casual or cruise elegant dress code, which calls for wardrobe choices like dresses and skirts for women and khakis and collared shirts for men.
While I can understand that not everyone loves dressing up, we found it to be something fun that made our evening feel even more celebratory. It also gave us a great opportunity to take some cute pictures around the Destiny-class ship.
In my opinion, the Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse was worth every penny. Whenever I cruise next with Carnival, I will certainly be planning to make a reservation - and would to share the experience with my now-husband.
At the time we made our reservation, the cost per person was $49 - although this has since been raised to $52.
However, this flat fee came with lots of food, good sized portions, and even covered gratuity for the servers and kitchen team.
The only additional cost we incurred during our meal was for alcoholic drinks, which are charged at standard bar prices.
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Because of the quality of the food and the experience, this price felt like a really good deal to me.
Additionally, where I live in Los Angeles, a steakhouse meal could easily run up a bill of over $100 per person for the same amount of food - with some entrees costing over $60 just for the piece of steak (without sides or starters).
Therefore, getting an entire meal of equal or better quality to what I could get at home for a fraction of the cost was something to celebrate.