Carnival Cruise Line is serving up a new wave of food and dining experiences at sea.
The cruise line has unveiled The Next Course, a culinary update that includes brand-new restaurants and bars coming to future Carnival ships, along with refreshed menus and new dining options rolling out across the fleet.
The announcement was made in New Orleans during an immersive culinary event with Emeril Lagasse, Carnival’s Chief Culinary Officer. I had the opportunity to attend in person, sample several of the dishes that will be served onboard, and get a closer look at Carnival’s dining plans for the future.
While the new restaurants coming to Carnival Festivale and Carnival Tropicale are a big part of the announcement, Carnival is also making meaningful updates across the existing fleet. This includes refreshed Main Dining Room menus, new casual dining options, mobile coffee ordering, pop-ups and more.
Carnival says it carries more than six million guests annually and serves more than 100 million meals each year, giving the cruise line unique insight into dining trends and what guests want on a cruise vacation.
“Our approach to dining combined with our team’s amazing service is a driving force behind Carnival’s success,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “Our latest culinary adventure marks a bold step forward to give guests an unforgettable experience with a variety of new vibrant flavors fleetwide.”
During the event, Emeril Lagasse also described the Carnival dining experience in a way that felt very true to the brand.
“I think the Carnival experience is about fun, family, and food, and that’s what we’ll keep focusing on,” Lagasse said.
After attending the event, tasting the food and hearing more about what’s coming, that theme of fun, family, food and value really came through (I’ve included real food photos where possible)!
New Restaurants Coming to Carnival Festivale and Carnival Tropicale
As part of The Next Course, Carnival is introducing several new specialty restaurants that will debut on Carnival Festivale in 2027 and Carnival Tropicale in 2028.
The new dining venues include Emeril’s Coastal Seafood, Uku Lei Lei, Fetaccine and Le Bistro Musicale.
Emeril’s Coastal Seafood
Emeril’s Coastal Seafood will feature coastal-inspired cuisine from Emeril Lagasse.
Emeril’s Coastal Seafood will feature coastal-inspired cuisine from Emeril Lagasse, continuing Carnival’s partnership with the celebrity chef on some of its newer ships.
At dinner during the New Orleans event, one of the dishes we sampled was the Jumbo Lump Blue Crab Cake from Emeril’s Coastal Seafood. It was flavorful, beautifully presented and gave us a good sense of the elevated coastal-inspired cuisine guests can expect from this new specialty restaurant.
According to details shared at the event, Emeril’s Coastal Seafood is expected to be priced at approximately $50 per person.
Uku Lei Lei
Carnival is also introducing Uku Lei Lei, a new restaurant featuring Hawaiian specialties and Asian classics.
This venue will be open for lunch and dinner and should bring a fun, flavorful option to Carnival’s dining lineup.
During the New Orleans event, we sampled the Mongolian Beef Short Rib from Uku Lei Lei. It was fall-off-the-bone tender, very flavorful and a favorite for us.
According to information shared during the event, guests will be able to dine at Uku Lei Lei free for their first visit, with an $8 charge for additional visits.
That pricing stood out to me because Carnival emphasized value throughout the event. With specialty dining costs rising across the cruise industry, having a first visit included and then a small charge after that feels like a guest-friendly approach.
Fetaccine
Fetaccine is another new restaurant coming to Carnival’s future ships. The Mediterranean-inspired venue will combine Italian favorites and Greek specialties.
Like Uku Lei Lei, Fetaccine is expected to be open for lunch and dinner. Guests will be able to dine there free for their first visit, with an $8 charge for additional visits.
Le Bistro Musicale
Le Bistro Musicale will offer classic French cuisine in a relaxed, music-filled Parisian setting.
This venue will be exclusive to Carnival Festivale and will bring together French food and music in a casual themed atmosphere. Pricing for Le Bistro Musicale will be à la carte.
New Bars Coming to Carnival Festivale
Carnival Festivale will also debut several new bar concepts, including The Spark, a lounge with live performances and cocktails inspired by iconic songs.
Mix will offer creative cocktails, along with the option for guests to craft their own drinks by layering unique flavors.
Festival Grounds Coffee & Bar will serve specialty coffees and cocktails in a lively space, giving guests another spot for coffee by day and drinks later on.
Fleetwide Dining Enhancements Are Rolling Out
While Carnival Festivale and Carnival Tropicale will debut several new restaurants and bars, The Next Course also includes dining enhancements that are rolling out across Carnival’s existing fleet.
These updates include refreshed Main Dining Room menus for breakfast, brunch and dinner, Lido Marketplace updates, a new Lido Family Menu, BlueIguana Cantina daily rotating specials, Bagels @ Sea, a revamped Chef’s Table menu, new pop-up dining experiences, mobile coffee ordering and Express Dining in the Main Dining Room.
This is an important part of the announcement because these changes are not only for guests sailing on the newest ships.
Refreshed Main Dining Room Menus
Carnival is introducing new culinary creations in the Main Dining Room for breakfast, brunch and dinner.
During the event in New Orleans, we had the chance to sample several Main Dining Room dishes prepared just as guests can expect to see them onboard. This was one of the parts of the presentation that impressed me most.
The food was very good, but the presentation also stood out. It felt elevated without losing the familiar and approachable feel that Carnival guests enjoy.
One standout was the cream of mushroom soup, topped with golden brown puff pastry. It was beautifully presented and looked more like something you might expect in a specialty restaurant than a cruise ship Main Dining Room.
We also sampled the burrata and heirloom tomato salad, which was fresh and delicious.
For entrees, we tried the barbecue salmon with homemade barbecue sauce and the butter chicken. Both were flavorful, and the butter chicken is a nice example of Carnival adding more variety to the dining room menu.
Of course, we also had the Carnival chocolate melting cake with vanilla ice cream. This longtime Carnival favorite is still every bit as good as expected!
Lido Marketplace, BlueIguana and Bagels @ Sea
Carnival is also refreshing several casual dining options across the fleet, including:
- Lido Marketplace: New menu updates, including a Lido Family Menu with daily kid-approved favorites
- BlueIguana Cantina: Daily rotating specials, adding more variety to this popular casual dining spot
- Bagels @ Sea: Freshly baked bagels with assorted toppings
I had a chance to try Bagels @ Sea at the event, and this was really good. It’s sure to be a popular new Carnival breakfast option.
More Fleetwide Dining Updates
Carnival is also introducing several other fleetwide dining enhancements, including:
- Chef’s Table menu revamp: Elevated multi-course dinners with regionally inspired flavors
- Pop-up dining experiences: Fruity & Frosted Breakfast Bars and Ice Cream and Milkshake Bars on Excel-class ships, with other pop-ups planned fleetwide
- Mobile coffee shop ordering and pickup: Expanded grab-and-go options and a more convenient way to order coffee
- Express Dining in the Main Dining Room: A faster dining option that began rolling out earlier in 2026 and is now part of Carnival’s broader fleetwide dining updates
Express Dining is one update many cruisers may appreciate. It gives guests a more convenient option when they want to enjoy the Main Dining Room but also make it to a show, comedy performance or evening activity.
Carnival Is Keeping Value in Focus
One message that came through clearly during “The next course” event was Carnival’s focus on value.
Carnival has long positioned itself as a fun, affordable cruise vacation, and these dining updates seem to continue that approach.
While some of the new restaurants will have an added charge, the pricing shared for several venues felt reasonable. Uku Lei Lei and Fetaccine being included for the first visit, with an $8 charge for additional visits, is a good example of Carnival adding more variety without making every new experience feel like a major extra cost.
At the same time, the fleetwide Main Dining Room updates are especially meaningful because they benefit guests across the fleet, not only those sailing on brand-new ships or booking specialty restaurants.
Carnival’s Continued Growth
The new restaurants and bars will debut on Carnival Festivale, scheduled for 2027, and Carnival Tropicale, scheduled for 2028.
Carnival currently operates a fleet of 29 ships and is continuing a period of growth. The cruise line has five ships scheduled to be added through 2033, including a fourth and fifth Excel-class ship planned for 2027 and 2028, followed by three additional ships from a new class currently under development.
Final Thoughts
Carnival’s The Next Course announcement is about much more than a few new restaurants.
After attending the event in New Orleans and tasting several of the dishes firsthand, what stood out most to me was the combination of variety, presentation and value.
The new specialty restaurants coming to Carnival Festivale and Carnival Tropicale sound fun and flavorful, but the fleetwide updates may be the most meaningful change for many Carnival cruisers.
Carnival seems to be leaning into what it does best: fun, family and food. Based on what I saw and tasted in New Orleans, Carnival cruisers have a lot to look forward to.