Does Oceania Cruises truly lives up to its motto of The Finest Cuisine at Sea®?
We cruised on the Oceania Regatta cruise ship for a month in Hawaii and French Polynesia.
This was our first cruise with Oceania ever, so we were quite anxious about what to expect as food lovers. The reviews we saw online were slightly mixed at times. Imagine being on a cruise ship where you are not impressed with the food, and actually looking forward to having better meals ashore – or even wishing you stayed home.
Fortunately we can look back at our munch time on board with a smile on our faces.
From elegant dining in the Grand Dining Room to indulgent Italian specialties at Toscana, perfectly grilled steaks at Polo Grill, and casual delights at Terrace Café and Waves Grill, practically every meal we had onboard The Regatta was excellent.
A Culinary Journey at Sea
For us food on board a cruise ship is a very important part of our holiday.
Oceania has built its reputation around gastronomy, promising that every dish is prepared à la minute, using premium ingredients, and presented with love. After experiencing the ship’s dining venues, we can confidently say that this promise is not an empty one. It is a philosophy that permeates every restaurant onboard Oceania Cruises.
The Regatta may be one of Oceania’s smaller ships, but it offers 5 distinct dining venues, each with its own character and culinary focus:
- The Grand Dining Room
- Toscana (Italian specialty restaurant)
- Polo Grill (classic steakhouse)
- Terrace Café (casual buffet-style dining)
- Waves Grill (poolside grill)
Let’s talk about each one of these venues a little more in detail to give you an idea of what to expect!
The Grand Dining Room: Classic Elegance Meets Variety
The Grand Dining Room is the beating heart of Regatta’s culinary scene.
With its chandeliers, white tablecloths, and attentive service, it feels like stepping into a fine European restaurant. The dinner menus change daily, offering a mix of Continental cuisine and regional specialties, often inspired by the ports of call.
The a la carte breakfast is classic as can be: eggs any style, breads, fruits, oats, breakfast steak, lamb chops, side dishes such as hash browns, bacon, grilled tomatoes, etc.
The a la carte lunch menu (only on sea days) offers salads, soups, pasta, grilled cheese sandwiches, fish, steak, pork and a tasting platter with 5 different small appetizers of cuisines such as Spanish, Moroccan, Greek or Indian.
What impressed us most was the balance between tradition and innovation. One evening, we enjoyed a perfectly cooked Dover sole, delicately seasoned and accompanied by a beurre blanc sauce that rivaled any Michelin-starred restaurant ashore. Another night, the menu featured Moroccan-spiced lamb with couscous, a nod to Oceania’s commitment to global flavors.
Desserts here are equally memorable. Soufflé, flourless chocolate cake, ice cream, cheese board or a refreshing lemon tart. The Grand Dining Room sets the tone: refined, varied, and consistently excellent.
Other memorable dishes that immediately come to mind: beef Wellington, Asian beef carpaccio, Thanksgiving turkey with all the trimmings, prime rib, mi cuit foie gras with brioche, sour cream crushed potatoes with caviar, and the monkfish curry.
Toscana: Italian Passion on the High Seas
Toscana is Oceania’s Italian specialty restaurant, and it’s nothing short of spectacular.
The moment you sit down, you’re greeted with a selection of excellent olive oils and balsamic vinegars to accompany the basket of 5 different types of freshly baked bread. It’s a small touch, but it immediately signals authenticity and attention to detail.
The menu is a love letter to Italy. It features classics such as beef carpaccio di manzo (thinly sliced beef drizzled with truffle oil), homemade pastas and gnocchi, soups, meats, fish and Italian desserts.
For the main course, the osso buco alla Milanese was a standout—tender veal shank braised to perfection, served with saffron risotto. It was hearty, soulful, and deeply satisfying.
Toscana proves that Italian cuisine, when executed with passion and precision, can be both comforting and elevated.
Other memorable dishes that immediately come to mind: the ossobucco, the antipasto platter with prosciutto and fried artichokes, sea bass with confit lemon and fennel and the caprese salad.
Polo Grill: A Steakhouse at Sea
If Toscana is about Italian romance, Polo Grill is about American indulgence.
This specialty restaurant focuses on steaks, chops, and seafood, prepared with classic techniques and served in a club-like atmosphere and decor.
The highlight here is the prime dry-aged steaks. My pork chop was cooked exactly to order, with a charred crust and juicy interior. The prime rib we had here was out of this world, truly the best we have ever had. And let’s not forget the homemade béarnaise sauce that comes with the meat: it is a technically challenging sauce to make but this one right here was perfect, like you would expect in a 5 star luxury Paris restaurant.
Epic.
Side dishes are equally impressive: creamed spinach, truffle mashed potatoes, and crispy onion rings that could rival any land-based steakhouse.
Polo Grill embodies the essence of a traditional steakhouse, but with Oceania’s signature refinement.
And if you still have some space left after such an indulgent dinner, do try the key lime pie!
Terrace Café: Casual Yet Elevated
For those moments when you want something more relaxed, Terrace Café offers buffet-style dining with an emphasis on quality. Unlike typical cruise buffets, everything here feels freshly prepared and thoughtfully presented. The buffet isn’t huge, but it honestly has all you need – at least that’s what we think.
The breakfast buffet at Terrace Café has all the classic breakfast items: omelettes and eggs cooked to order (2 stations), eggs Benedict, cheese, charcuterie, breads, bagels, pastries, donuts, muffins, waffles, oats, porridge, breakfast cereal, scrambled eggs, sausages, bacon, cream cheese, smoked salmon, pickled herring, sliced fresh fruits.
The lunch buffet changes daily, and usually has a theme such as Spanish, Asian, French, Italian, Greek, Moroccan, Mexican and British. There is a carving station, pasta station, soup of the day, cold cuts, several salads, appetizers, lasagna, daily changing hot food options, fruits, desserts and ice cream. Were always found something to our taste. Carving station items were pork belly, turkey, rotisserie chicken, sirloin, ham, prime rib, pork chops, lamb rack, ribs. Always is served with a nice gravy and a medley of vegetables. You can also ask for the grilled fish of the day, and order a burger or cheese burger here as well.
I’m a sucker for al dente pasta, which is often a let down on many cruise ships. Here the dry pasta was precooked (undercooked) and then briefly reheated in hot water for a couple of seconds, transferred to a frying pan with your choice of sauce. Came out perfectly al dente for me! On Italian themed buffet days, the pasta is freshly made, however too soft for my taste. I would often order a small portion of spaghetti in basil pesto sauce and that was always perfect. The pizza corner has 2 types of pizza, and they were good. Other hot food options were barramundi with olives, veal piccata, cannelloni, salmon, lamb kebobs, falafel, deep fried ginger squid, meatballs, fish and chips, beef pie, chicken tikka masala, Indian fish curry, French veal blanquette… Cold cuts were often thinly sliced prime rib or roast beef (delicious), veal, brie, blue cheese.
For dinner Terrace Café offers again a lovely buffet with hot and cold options, similar to lunch. Soups, salads, carving station, pasta, risotto, desserts. On several days there was a special side theme, such as Indian night. During our Polynesian trip the head chef would buy whole fresh tuna, and arrange an al fresco grilled fish dinner.
Delicious.
Waves Grill: Poolside Comfort Food
Waves Grill is the most relaxed venue onboard, perfect for a quick bite between activities. Yet even here, Oceania elevates the experience.
A small breakfast buffet is available at the Waves Grill from 6:30am until 10:30am: bread, pastries, cheese and charcuterie, fresh fruits, yogurt, breakfast cereal, butter and jam.
The Waves Grill is open daily from 11:30am until 4pm for lunch or an afternoon snack. There is a small self service buffer where you can assemble your own salad, get cheese and charcuterie, sliced baguette and fresh fruits. On the menu are sandwiches such as a club sandwich, pesto panini, rueben sandwich, shrimp roll, fish burrito, hot dog and cuban cheese sandwich. Burgers are also available: a classic burger, cheese burger, fish burger etc. Excellent place for us to grab a bite of comfort food after an excursion. Fresh and crispy salad every day. The fish burger was absolutely to die for, and so were the grilled sandwiches. Very copious portions to, that come with crispy fries. Squeeze bottles with mayo, ketchup and mustard are on each table to serve yourself. Food was excellent, the drink service often took a little long when ordering a beer for instance even though the bar is just in the same open pool deck. Other than that tasty juicy burgers and delicious grilled sandwiches.
Daily High Tea in Horizons
Every afternoon at four, the Horizon Lounge becomes the ship’s most elegant retreat. Guests gather for Oceania’s celebrated high tea, accompanied by live classical violin and cello music and sweeping ocean views.
Choose your preferred tea flavor from the Twinings chest. Waiters present tiered carts of delights filled with sweet and savory options. Classic afternoon tea sandwiches, and sweet desserts such as cookies, scones, tarts, cake, pies. Plenty to chose from again.
What a pleasant afternoon break. It’s a daily ritual that feels both indulgent and restorative, a pause in the day where refinement meets comfort. More than just a refreshment break, high tea in Horizons embodies Oceania’s promise of The Finest Cuisine at Sea® in its most graceful form.
In-Room Dining
Regatta offers 24-hour room service. The food is complimentary, however wine, liquor and specialty cocktails are at a surcharge + 20% gratuity.
On the room service menu: shrimp cocktail, salmon gravlax, vegetable California rolls, antipasti plate (serrano ham, artichokes, pecorino grissini), spinach artichoke dip tortilla chips, miso ramen soup, French onion soup, gazpacho, international cheese plate, chicken caesar salad, salmon salad, Tuscan kale salad, spaghetti meatballs, plant based penne, pizza margherita, impossible burger, black Angus burger, salmon burger, triple deck club sandwich, croque monsieur, veggie wrap, mezze platter, petit beef fillet, Thai coconut red curry chicken or tofu, Hawaiian poke bowl, omelet (plain or cheese), energy smoothie, crême brulée, NY cheesecake, chocolate mousse cake, warm roasted apple, ice creams and sorbets.
The only in-room dining that we did was order breakfast on 3 early excursion days. Each time we filled in the breakfast form, and put it in the mail slot on our door. In-room breakfast is served from 6:30am onwards. We chose the 6:30am-7am delivery time slot, and indicated in writing that we had an early excursion at 7am. At 6:10am room service called us to check if we were awake and to say that breakfast was on its way. 1 minute later a staff member knocked on our door and put the tray with food on our table. The coffee was hot, the omelets were hot and freshly cooked and the bread was warm and freshly toasted.
Excellent experience!
Bars, Beverages and Wines
We booked the prestige drink package: unlimited alcoholic beverages by the glass (except for a couple of premium spirits and sakes). We thought that the choice of wines by the glass was great and plentiful.
Life on board Oceania Regatta isn’t only about fine dining.
It’s also about the art of the drink. The ship features several distinct bars and lounges, each with its own personality, making them perfect for different moods and moments throughout the day.
- Martinis: This chic (but rather small) lounge is the ship’s signature cocktail venue. Here, bartenders mix classic martinis alongside inventive variations, often using premium spirits and house‑made infusions. It’s the place to enjoy a pre‑dinner cocktail in a sophisticated setting.
- Baristas Grand Bar: Located near the Grand Dining Room, this elegant bar is ideal for an aperitif before dinner. Specialty cocktails here lean toward timeless classics—think Negronis, Manhattans, and Champagne cocktails—served with polish and flair.
- Horizons: By day, Horizons hosts the celebrated afternoon tea, but by evening it transforms into a lively lounge with panoramic ocean views. Guests can sip on signature cocktails while enjoying live music. It’s also a favorite spot for wine lovers, thanks to its extensive by‑the‑glass wine list, which includes crisp whites, bold reds, and sparkling selections from both Old and New World vineyards.
- Waves Bar: Casual and poolside, Waves Bar is perfect for refreshing drinks under the sun. Frozen cocktails, tropical classics like mojitos and piña coladas, and light spritzers are the highlights here.
Does Oceania Live Up to The Finest Cuisine at Sea®?
After dining across all venues, our answer is a resounding yes.
Oceania’s Regatta delivers on its promise in several ways:
- Premium ingredients: From foie gras to lobster, caviar to saffron, the quality is undeniable.
- À la minute preparation: Every dish feels freshly made, never mass-produced.
- Global inspiration: Menus reflect both classic European traditions and regional specialties from ports of call.
- Consistency: Whether in a specialty restaurant or casual venue, the standard remains high.
Food is not just sustenance on Regatta—it’s an integral part of the voyage, a daily highlight that shapes the overall experience.
So what do we think?
Our cruise on Oceania Regatta was defined by its culinary excellence.
Each restaurant offered something unique, yet all shared the same commitment to quality and artistry. Whether savoring osso buco in Toscana, a ribeye in Polo Grill, or suckling pig in Terrace Café, every meal reinforced Oceania’s reputation.
The motto The Finest Cuisine at Sea® is not hyperbole—it’s reality.
On our first Oceania cruise, dining was not just part of the journey; for us it made our journey.