Norwegian Cruise Line Norwegian Epic

Venue Overview (8.00)

The Cagney’s on the Epic is huge, much larger than on other Norwegian ships. It’s located on deck seven, right next to Moderno. Apparently taking a cue from Moderno’s south American theme, Cagney’s feels more like an Argentinian steakhouse than an American one. Around the dark wood tables are wide, comfortable chairs. Rather than white table cloths, Cagney’s has place mats. There are some two-tops right next to the windows, making it a perfect spot for a romantic dinner.

To show everybody that all the food is prepared a la minute, Cagney’s has an open kitchen in the back. They offer wines from all over the world by the glass or by the bottle, starting at about $30 per bottle. You can get a glass of wine for as little as $7 – excluding gratuity, of course.

Breakfast

Once a week, the Norwegian Epic offers a jazz brunch, which sometimes takes place at Cagney’s. For $15, Norwegian sets up a buffet with salmon, different cheeses, salads, souffles, and sweet rolls. At the open kitchen, the chefs serve French toast and pancakes.

Beyond that, there are some dishes you have to order a la carte, like braised beef or salmon with saffron risotto. The salmon is the perfect brunch dish: not too heavy, with the fish perfectly cooked.

Lunch / Dinner

The version of Cagney’s on the Epic has the same menu as the one we experienced recently on the Norwegian Dawn. There are no surprises here: New York strip steak, T-bone, rib-eye, prime rib, and filet mignon. Appetizers include shrimp cocktail, crab cake, and oysters, and sides like Cagney Fries (with truffle oil and parmesan), sauteed mushrooms, or steamed asparagus.

There was so much spinach on the oysters Rockefeller, that you couldn’t really taste the oyster beyond a vague fishiness. We do feel that Cagney’s on the Epic is better than the Cagney’s we’ve experienced on the Norwegian Dawn. We salute the chef for delivering our prime rib as we ordered it, medium rare, but on the flipside, our side of asparagus was completely overcooked. We tried the Cagney Fries again, in the hope that this time we’d actually taste the truffle oil, but as on the Norwegian Dawn we were disappointed.

Dessert

Cagney’s offers a variety of desserts, from a sampler plate to a cheese plate. The raspberry creme brûlée looks quite good, but the cheese plate is the best thing on this dessert menu, with Danish blue cheese, brie and parmesan as well as some grapes, strawberries, and honey.