Price model to change at some Norwegian Cruise Line restaurants

Passengers with big appetites should take note for their next Norwegian Cruise Line trip: At certain restaurants, they’ll soon pay for individual items on the menu instead of a single cover charge.

The new model will roll out first on Norwegian Escape in October and will be in place fleetwide by Jan. 1 of 2016, the Miami-based cruise operator announced this week.

Once the changes are in place, the restaurants in question — Cagney’s, La Cucina and Le Bistro — will no longer have a cover charge. That charge is currently $29.99 at Cagney’s and $19.99 at the other two venues.

At Cagney’s, starters will cost between $4.99 and $7.95 and main courses will run between $17.99 and $29.99 with complimentary sides. Spokeswoman Vanessa Picariello said in an email that the cruise line expects the average three-course check to be about $30.

“We certainly understand that guests may have questions and that’s why we included the range of pricing, to show it’s not a drastic departure from the cover charge today,” she said.

Main dishes at Le Bistro will start at $15.99 and at $12.99 at La Cucina. The menus at those restaurants will include a wider array of selections.

“So guests will have more choices to create the dining experience that’s right for them – just as you could at any restaurant here in Miami, New York or Chicago,” Picariello wrote.

The new restaurant Bayamo on Norwegian Escape and Ocean Blue on Norwegian Breakaway and Getaway will also have a la carte pricing, while dinners featuring entertainment will carry a cover charge. Moderno Churrascaria will still be $19.95 and Teppanyaki will cost $29.95.

On Thursday, Norwegian also announced that it would increase daily service charges from $12.95 per person per day to $13.50 a person per day for categories up to a mini-suite.

This story was originally published July 16, 2015 at 5:58 PM with the headline "Price model to change at some Norwegian Cruise Line restaurants."