Heidi BucoloHolland America Westerdam is one of the best ships sailing to Alaska this cruise season. If you have plans to discover the Last Frontier on this Holland America ship, we have put together our complete Westerdam restaurants guide with menus specific to Alaska so you can see what’s available at all the onboard dining spots.
Complimentary Westerdam Restaurants
While not one of the newest ships in the fleet, Holland America’s Westerdam still offers a selection of dining that is included in the cruise fare. There’s the main dining room, the Lido Market buffet, and some other casual options like the Dive-In burger joint found poolside.
With a variety of offerings, you certainly do not have to pay extra for dining (if you don’t want to). Though, the Westerdam restaurants lineup features some top-notch specialty dining that we think is worth the up-charge.
The Dining Room (Deck 2 and 3)
The Dining Room, Holland America Line’s main dining room, is located on Decks 2 and 3 on Westerdam. Guests can choose the option of traditional dining with a dedicated table and waitstaff each evening on Deck 3 or open dining which is on Deck 2.
With the open dining option, guests can dine at different times each evening from 5:15 PM to 9 PM. Open dining allows you to either make a reservation ahead of time or just show up when you are hungry. However, much like a restaurant on land, there may be a wait during peak times for those who choose the standby option. Or, with traditional dining, the early seating is 5 PM and the main seating is 7:30 PM.
The Dining Room is open most days for breakfast from about 7:30 to 9 AM serving traditional breakfast favorites. Further, it may be open for a sit-down lunch from around 12 to 1 PM or brunch from 10 AM to 12:30 PM on sea days.
Like most cruise lines, the MDR offers a multi-course rotational dinner menu that changes nightly. Regardless of whether you opt for traditional dining or open dining, these menus are the same.
On a traditional 7-night cruise, there are two formal or “dressy” nights. The order of the menus and when these formal nights occur vary based on the ports of call.
Taste Alaska
One nice touch is that Holland America does feature regionally inspired local dishes and ingredients, as well as beverages, on the menu every night for dinner and on the Alaska Brunch menu. Some of the Taste Alaska options include:
- Sitka Spritz
- Wild Alaska Smoked Salmon Chowder
- Salmon Chop Chop Salad
- Seafood & Artichoke en Bouchée
- Alaska Breaded Cod Slider
- Pork Chop with Parsnip Purée
- Charred Crusted Salmon
- Pork Medallions with Huckleberry Jam
- Cod with Endive & Caramelized Orange
- Alaskan Blueberry Pancake Stack
- Kodiak Steak & Egg Skillet
- Biscuits with Gravy, Reindeer Sausage
Breakfast | Brunch | Lunch | Dinner 1 | Dinner 2 | Dinner 3 | Dinner 4 | Dinner 5 | Dutch Dinner | Silver Gala Dinner
Dive-In (Deck 9)
While smaller than some of its counter parts, Westerdam does have a Dive-In on the pool deck. This casual and quick-service eatery is one of our go-to spots for lunch or sea day snacks. This grill serves up made to order burgers, fries, chicken sandwiches, and hot dogs. All items are freshly prepared and always served warm.
The Dive-In is open most days from 11:30 AM to 6 PM. You can even place your order via the Navigator app, and it will send you a push notification when it is ready for pick up.
Another thing that was new since our last sailing on Holland America was a small Mexican buffet located nearby Dive-In. This is another great alternative to the Lido Market. It features meats and toppings to make either a plate of tacos or nachos.
Lido Market (Deck 9)
The Lido Market is Holland America Line’s cruise ship buffet. This Deck 9 eatery features a variety of hot and cold items that are well organized into stations. In the Navigator app, guests can see the buffet menus for each day, which is a nice perk that most cruise lines do not offer.
This casual spot is open most of the day serving breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. You can get breakfast from around 6:30/7 AM to 10/10:30 AM. Lunch is served from around 11:30 AM to 2 PM each day, with select stations remaining open from 2 to 4 PM for a late lunch.
Dinner is available in the Lido Market from 5:30 to 8 PM each evening, re-opening from 10:30 to 11:30 PM for snacks. With selections from baked goods, salads, warm entrees, and other international cuisine, you will never go hungry on your Westerdam cruise.
For breakfast, you can enjoy custom omelets, continental items, fresh fruit, and all your other breakfast staples. Lunch and dinner options include sandwiches, custom salads, a carving station with other hot items, Italian and Asian Distant Lands selections ranging from pasta to wok creations, and so much more.
The Lido Market also features various regionally-inspired items throughout the cruise. There’s even a special up-charge Alaska Seafood Boil offered one evening for $35 per person.
Room Service
If that’s not enough, basic In-Room Dining is still complimentary on Holland America Line. Guests can order continental breakfast items AND hot breakfast at no additional charge. During the day, guests can also enjoy options like sandwiches and salads delivered to their staterooms for no cost.
This means you can order breakfast in bed while glacier viewing or lunch on the balcony while sailing through fjords and scouting for wildlife for no additional cost.
Room Service Breakfast | Room Service All Day
Specialty Westerdam Restaurants
If you’ve sailed on other Holland America ships, you’ll recognize some familiar specialty restaurants like Pinnacle Grill and Canaletto. While Westerdam does have ony these two venues, there are “pop-ups” for both Tamarind and Morimoto by Sea.
These specialty restaurants do all have up-charges. Though, they are certainly worth it in our opinion.
If you plan to dine at any of these restaurants, you should make reservations pre-cruise, as popular dining times do fill up quickly.
Pinnacle Grill (Deck 2)
The Pinnacle Grill is Holland America Line’s specialty steakhouse. This restaurant’s menu features signature cuts of beef and innovative items from chef David Burke like the clothesline candied bacon and braised beef short ribs with chow fun noodles. This menu has been refreshed since our last sailing with the cruise line, so we were happy to test out some new dishes.
The menu even features some regional Alaskan dishes, including:
- Dungeness Crab and Tarragon Salad
- Alaska Crab and Corn Chowder
- Seared Alaskan Halibut with Thai Coconut Red Curry
- Sauteed Prawns with Garlic Butter
- Roasted Prime Rib Beef with Huckleberries
- Strawberry Romanoff Bread Pudding in Grand Marnier
The cover charge to dine at Pinnacle Grill is $52 per person for dinner plus 18% gratuity and is open nightly from 5 to 9:30 PM.
Tamarind Pop- Up
Tamarind is Holland America Line’s Pan Asian specialty restaurant, and one of our personal favorites. This venue serves up Far East dishes alongside some delectable cocktails. With entrees like Szechuan shrimp, red curry chicken, and wok-seared lobster, the menu is packed with flavor. The Tamarind menu is in the process of being refreshed fleetwide in 2025.
While Tamarind doesn’t have a dedicated venue on Holland America’s Westerdam, guests can still enjoy all the delicious dishes during the pop-up experience that occurs during the cruise.
The cover charge to dine at the Tamarind pop-up is $35 per person for dinner plus 18% gratuity and is available on select dates which will vary by cruise.
Morimoto Pop-Up
On one select night of the cruise, there’s also a Morimoto pop-up exerience in Pinnacle Grill. This restaurant is in partnership with Chef Masaharu Morimoto, Holland America’s Global Fresh Fish Ambassador.
This upscale, Asian-influenced seafood menu includes options like Pork Gyoza Dumplings, a Sushi Plate, as well as entrees like Chicken Teriyaki, Ishiyaki Buri Bop prepared table side, Angry Lobster Pad Thai, and Shrimp Three Ways. For dessert, you can’t miss the Dark Chocolate Sphere.
The cover charge to dine at the Morimoto pop-up is $55 per person for dinner plus 18% gratuity.
Canaletto (Deck 9)
Canaletto is Holland America Line’s specialty Italian restaurant. Tucked away in an alcove near the Lido Market, this venue serves all the Italian classics in a casual setting. We are happy to report that the cruise line’s newly enhanced menu delivered. Among some of our favorite starters were the Veal and Sage Meatballs, Burrata, and Antipasti Plate.
For entrees, you can’t go wrong with the Herb and Parmesan Crusted Chicken or Ossobuco which were previously one-a-week specials. The Italian Sausage Paccheri is also a hearty, flavorful meal with homemade pasta in rich marina sauce, as is the Casarecce Pesto Genovese. For dessert, the Baked Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake is by far the best dessert on the ship.
The cover charge to dine at Canaletto is $25 per person for dinner plus 18% gratuity, and the venue is open 5 to 9:30 PM nightly.
Crow’s Nest Cafe (Deck 10)
This coffee house and bar located at the top of Westerdam in the Crow’s Nest is a great spot to grab a specialty coffee and a sweet treat any time of day, especially while sightseeing in Alaska. Open from 6 AM to 10 PM, you can relax, get lost in a good book, play a board game, work on a puzzle, or admire the glaciers and fjords whenever you want.
While the coffee and drinks are an up-charge (included in the beverage packages), the pastries are complimentary. Think continental breakfast items in the morning and cookies and other small snacks in the afternoon.
Comments
Have you sailed with Holland America to Alaska? Which of the Westerdam restaurants or menu items is your favorite? Drop us an anchor below to share your Holland America Westerdam food reviews.
