Le Bistro - Norwegian Perl (Western Caribbean)

We have been on two Norwegian ships, the Pearl and two years before on the sister ship the Jewel. We liked the Jewel better, the service seemed to be of a higher caliber. Maybe due to the world financial situation Norwegian is cutting corners.

Anyway, we are not here to talk about the ship, we are here to talk about Le Bistro, which is the French restaurant on board.

On a cruise you expect to eat buffet food more or less. Most meals all come from the same kitchen, so in the end things start to seem the same. Most food is poorly seasoned and it is rushed to be put in front of you. This is not true of Le Bistro.

The service is what you would expect from a 5 start restaurant in any major city. The food was exceptional and well-seasoned.

I can't find the copy of the menu, and we had a large group, so I'll just go over the highlights.

For appetizers, get the escargot, it was unique in its preparation and very rich. For the main course, I would have to recommend the lamb, it was cooked perfectly. Others had the fish special which everyone cleaned their plate, so it must have been good. Two of us shared their version of Chateaubriand and it was excellent

We had the creme brulee for desert; it was not the best we have every had, but it ranked right up there.

Off all the restaurants on the ship this was the best. The second best would be the Italian restaurant.

If you happen to be on either of these ships, pay the extra $15 to go to Le Bistro, we hope your experience is as enjoyable as ours.

www.ncl.com